21 days

I'm not sure I can wait 3 weeks for my new trailer to be done!!! I want it NOW!

Boomer is doing really well with wearing his shipping boots. He doesn't mind the velcro at all. I had him tied up to the blocker tie ring and put the boots on him and as I was doing so, I had a flashback of him last July. I had him tied up and tried to pick up one of his back feet and he went flying backwards so hard I thought he would take the fence out for sure. I am so happy with how far he has come. He has gone from flying backwards at every opportunity to standing quietly tied as I put bulky shipping boots on all four legs. It is moments like that which remind me of what we are doing here. Nothing with horses comes quickly, thus making it sometimes hard to see your progress. It is interesting to think about the fact that 8 months ago we were working on picking up feet and bathing and today we are working on things like cantering calmly and keeping constant soft contact on the bit. In a few short weeks, we will be working on trailer loading. I fed him on the mat covered platform yesterday and he handled it like a pro. I was happy with that!

After our hard ride the other day where we did co much constant trotting with him engaged and working I felt like he was just a little too sluggish and have changed his food ration a little. I think he needs the extra energy for rides like that which will hopefully become more frequent. I am now giving him 3 cups of Horseman's Edge 12% pellet and 5 cups of Ultium, plus a glugglug of vegetable oil. He also gets his hoof supplement which right now is Vita-Biotin and will soon be Su-Per Hoof Grow. I also give him a scoop of electrolites when he sweats after a ride. I made my own electrolites and used 5 cups of iodized salt and salt lite mixed 50/50. I also added calcium carbonate in the powder form. I got the calcium carbonate at GNC and ground the pills inthe coffee grinder. He should get about 5000 mg of sodium and 900mg of calcium per scoop. The calcium is important to keep up because low levels of calcium can lead to a metabolic issue called thumps which is essentially hiccups in horses.

Though windy, today looks like it will be a good day for a ride! More later!