[RC] Cap Refill - April JohnsonOk, I rushed home and checked out Tanna as soon as I got home (Saw Carla Lawson and hubby as I drove down the highway. Freaky weird cooincidence!). Tanna was snoozing in the semi-shade near the neighbor's horse usually is (though Scout was not there). I walked out with carrots, a watch, and a stethescope. First I checked his guts. Perfectly normal for him (I never check anybody else's guts, so I have no idea what's "normal" for other horses). Then his back. No soreness. Hindquarter muscles. No soreness. Skin tenting, normal. Pulse about 38. Finally, I checked his gums. I had checked Serts' just prior just to get an idea. Serts' gums looked fairly light-colored, too, but I could tell a difference (very briefly) in color when I pushed on them. Anyway, Tanna's gums were fine, too. They still looked quite light in color, but, I really think it's because I've not paid attention to his gums before. I did get a difference in color when pressing on his gums and it returned to the pinker color in less than a second of letting go of the pressure. Verdict? I think I stressed him and combined with me not having paid attention to his gums before I think contributed. So he's getting a week off and then we'll start back at the same mileage, but a LOT slower speeds. I added speed and overall weekly distance at the same time! I know, I know, it's a no-no and I didn't even realize I'd done it until I was analyzing. So now we're going to drop back and do the mileage, but slowly. Back to 5 mph instead of 7+ mph that we were doing. I also didn't allow adequate rest after his LD at Chicken Chase. Now I'm rethinking doing an LD the week before his 50. It definitely sounds too soon for trying that. I sure wanna keep this horse for the long haul. Thanks to those that offered advice. I think I'm going to not do the bloodwork on him right now, but if a similar situation happens again, I'll seriously consider that. Thanks, April Nashville, TN =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net. Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/Ridecamp Subscribe/Unsubscribe http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/logon.asp Ride Long and Ride Safe!! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
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