Chunky Monkey gang

I did mention the nutraquin and he said it may or may not work. He was aware of it and said some dogs had had good results other no difference. We discussed MSM as well. I think hes leaving it in my hands to try what I like so happy to look at any suggestions. Hes had his first danillon tonight.
 
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Just realised I didnt do an update yesterday. The xrays went ok. He had a little objection to the needle for sedation but once sedated he was super.
It's not good news but it's not bad either. They had to do the whole leg and did both legs to compare. Not sure what that's going to cost but I worry about that when I get the bill.
It would appear to be an abnormal lump on the hock, what exactly it is there not sure. But vet thinks it might be and old injury that's healing but has a funny shaped spur. They dont think surgery is appropriate certainly not now. But they are going to medicate the joint with steroids and some other things. So there coming back Friday to do that. Hes got to have a few days off once done but then he has to go back into work. Whether it will do any good only time will tell.
I'm dreading the thought of steroids. Im just hoping that as hes got some refinement in him that he isn't full cob and wont get laminitis. I dont know his breeding at all but it's the thought of cobs and steroids. My head is spinning and I've had a headache since last week. This morning it feels like a migraine coming on.
I felt better first thing when I saw the first of the calves had born overnight but now its getting worse an I had to go to work now. Only good thing is I have a cancellation so if my head improves I can squeeze in a drive with chunky later.
 
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Crossing everything for you that the steroids get it under control and you can get back to normal riding :) I hope your head feels better soon
 
Lots of vibes for the steroid injection. Hopefully it will go well and no side effects. I'm sure your vet wouldn't do it unless they thought it was a good idea.
 
I got home at 6 to do the cows and sheep and see the boys who have both been stood in for company, having had the vet out this morning for billies leg injection.
The vet managed to sedated Billy fairly easy today. I stuck a lid infront of him that had a load of molasses on it. Even under sedation when he put the needle in the leg he decided he didnt like it and tried to kick out. I had to grab his front leg and lift it off the ground and scratch his neck. He still got the back leg off the ground a second time.
Vet said leave Billy stood in for as long as possible. As I've no stables they been in the collecting area all day. Chunky was a grumpy as hell. Greated me with a thump in the chest with his head. Billy had manage to hook the fillet string on the back end of the fleece on the tap and has completely ripped it. He was still stood hooked up but wasnt panicking. Mum had checked on them about 4pm and all was fine.
The best of it is I have never used the fleece until today. It was a second hand one that someone was selling along with a load of other bits so I bought a job lot as they were getting rid of as they had sold there horse. I took there rain sheets off and thought I'll put those fleeced on rather than a cold draught. I could have screamed when I saw the rip. Now I have to unstitch the binding and repair about a metre of fleece.
I turned them out on a new patch of grazing at 6.30. Vet has said small area, flat as possible for a few days so I fenced it off ready this morning. I have to keep Billy fairly restricted from running around. They went out and put there heads down. Theyve had haynets to eat during the day. I'm thinking i might go and get them back in about 11pm to stand back inside overnight with haynets again. The grass is very long and a bit rich. So 4 hours filling there bellies with grass will hopefully get rid of chunkys strop and keep them content to stand in overnight.
 
Argh I could scream.
Move Billy onto a flat area, not to large, dont let him run about.
So Friday I set up the new paddock, turned them out in it for 3 hours Friday night, then brought them back in to stand overnight. I turned them back out yesterday morning. Late afternoon I went out to get chunky in for a drive left Billy out. He seemed fine. Came back from my drive, turn chunky out and billy is lashing out and banging the ground on his medicated leg. Put my hand under his rug and hes sweating. Do I get him in or leave him out. I decided to leave him out, I figure if hes banging his foot on the ground it would be better on the grass than on hard concrete. I was worried that the sweating was him coming down with lami. Even though it was a small patch the grass was long and soaking wet.
I woke up several times worrying all night. This morning he seemed fine when I checked him in the pouring rain. I moved the fence a little to give a bit more grass as the small patch was getting a bit churned up.
I go out at 3pm to get chunky in for a drive. He has a gash down the front of his face. The skin is all peeled back. Both boys are covered in mud and the paddock is trashed behond belief. I couldnt stand up and was slipping around. I think Billy has kicked him. Theres nothing in the paddock for chunky to have caught himself on. Its electric all round.
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So I got them both in. Cleaned up all the blood and put some sudocrem on the wound. Couldnt drive chunky as the noseband goes right across the gash. Taking the noseband off the driving bridle isn't easily doable. So i decided to ride but i had to take the noseband off that.
Have had to set up a completely new restrictive paddock and move the water trough down. The grass is really long on that but at least it's not muddy. Please dont pig out boys.
The vet said a few days off then back into work. This week is my busy work week so cant do anything Monday and Wednesday and I dont want to do anything too soon but I'm contemplating a short in hand walk with Billy on Tuesday. Hes had two weeks off completely now and I think hes fed up. Hes getting very forward just leading him to and from the field. I dont fancy getting on a ticking time bomb so a walk in hand to the end of the road and back might take the edge off him.
 
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Oh hell, what a nightmare, I'd think a controlled in hand walk Tuesday would be better that an out of control ride later in the week. Some really do struggle when their work suddenly ceases, hopefully he'll settle back into it very quickly.
 
Today was a good day. Another TB test for the cows this week. We got the all clear. So slight relief. Not loosing anymore for now. We have to pass another one in January to get the complete all clear. So cant be completely at ease but I'll take today's results.
I havent done much riding these last few weeks. After Billies lameness, and chunky being stiff I've lost my mojo. I feel like a bad mummy. I've got another 3 weeks before the mornings draw in too much for me too ride before work so I need to try and do some hacks. It's too wet to go up the hill doing off road hacks now as billies barefoot he will just slip and slide on the grass, also vet said to avoid too much hill work. So I'm happy to not go up as the tracks are very stoney and uneven. So it means I have to do road hacks. Which does involve hacking down the main road, down the hill to town then coming back up the hill. But at least its smooth tarmac. Hacking down the hill on the roads will be alot less pressure on his joints than hacking off road.
 
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Oh i havent posted here for two months. Well a wee update as we had another TB Test on the cows this week. Today the vet came to read the results and pleased to say we passed again. So we are now classed as TB free. Hurray. We will have to have another test in 6 months, then if all goes ok then we will be back on yearly testing. That is unless the ministry change the rules or the goal post. I know quite a few farms round me have gone onto 6 monthly testing regardless of having reactors as we are in a high risk area. Weve got to make a few decisions now rather rapidly as we really need to reduce our herd numbers as we have too many, but the decision will be hard as to who we sell or if we wait until the june test before we sell some. Because of todays test result if we are going to sell some now we have another 56 days to sell some cows. Otherwise we have to have another test on any we want to sell which will cost a fortune. So better to sell them now as we didnt have to pay for the test. We also need to decide if we are going to hire in a bull.
The vet also castrated all the bull calves today that were born in the autumn. Weve got a friend coming on sunday to dehorn the calves that were born with horns. Ill try and take some pictures of the calves at the weekend if i remember. They are growing really well. This week has been the first time since they were born and ear tagged that weve got our hands on them. They all seem quiet and none kicked out which usually means there a quiet bunch. If any had kicked out i usually find there the ones that give me grief later. They learn from an early age.
I managed to sell my ewe lambs from last year at the weekend. Id had a couple of adverts running on some websites for a couple of months and not had a single enquiry. So i tried a new website just before christmas and got a phone call last week from someone not to far away who wanted to come and see them.
I sent all my ram lambs and a steer to the abbatoir in mid December. Which all come back to me for my customers. We are collecting the beef tomorrow as its been hanging to mature for a few weeks. My other two steers went to another abbatoir for a butcher a week later. So im on my quite period at the moment. With calving complete and all animals sold that need to go for meat and my spare ewe lambs gone to a new home. Its just the tough decision on the cows to make. I only have the ewes and a couple of flock replacements left. The rams are still in with the ewes but most were served weeks ago. Im due to start lambing mid march. Which is only 8 weeks away. Heck.
 
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The horses are just ticking over with lunging in the weekday and rides or drives at the weekend. Its still too dark for me to hack out early morning before work during the week. Hopefully that will happen come February.

A few pitures below. The first is the boys on there weekend grazing area. I get them up on a Saturday to ride and then after there worked they stay up in the top field. Then on sunday i can just grab them in to work. Then they go back to the bottom field after. Ive fenced off about an acre for them so they have plenty of room to move around. They grazed it back in july august so it then got a few months rest for worm break. To go and get them everday at the weekend from the bottom field would take me 1/2 hour. They another 1/2 hour to return them after work. I did it last winter and it was just too time consuming so i decided this winter to experiment with having a grazing paddock for the weekend, up near the yard. Then during the week they go in the bottom field, as i dont need to get them in to ride as i cant.

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The boys on there weekday grazing. We didnt cut for hay last july so only a few sheep have grazed so theres loads of brown grass, or standing hay as some call it for them to eat. Ive sectioned off a couple of acres. Put in some wooden posts so i can put them on a new peice each week. So far its worked out really well. Ive got an area fenced off which is flatish so i can use it for lunging during the week. There not getting that peice to graze until i run out of grass on the other paddock areas.

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Area to the left of the white posts is my lunge area. Area immediately to the right of the white posts is my catching paddock. If billy decides to be funny about being caught as we are back lunging i just put him in that bit so he cant run off. Works a treat. The area to the right of the wooden posts is grazing paddocks. I just move the wire each week onto a new wooden post. So far i think theyve used about five paddocks. Because of the way ive managed it theres hardly any mud. Each week a new paddock means a new gateway. So its not boggy. Im going to rotate back to the start next week but do double paddocks. Once thats gone I'll then have to start grazing on the lunge area.

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OMG im crippled. After a lovely ride with my friend riding early this morning trying to teach his dog that horses are not for chasing but walking nicely with on a hack. I had to be back as we had arranged for me to have some help to foot trim the sheep who were overdue. Ive had 4 go lame just recently so needed to trim to rule out any abcesses or infections. I wanted to do them before they went to the rams in october but didnt have any help. So i found a lad that isnt versed in sheep but has got a couple of pigs and wants to do odd jobs to earn some cash whilst having a year out from his studies.
Well it took us 7 hours to go and get half the sheep from the field and walk them 1/2 mile back to the farm, take the rams out, put all the ladies back together, foot trim, foot dip and worm all 24 sheep, then take the 22 ewes the 1/2 mile walk back to there field. We didnt stop literally no breaks, nothing.
My back is killing me as 19 are hopefully in lamb and i wont turn them to foot trim when in lamb as it causes lambing complications. So we have to catch each one, put a halter on and tie everyone up to the gate and trim each one all standing, so my back is aching with all the bending. I have cramp in my legs from being on my feet do long. I have blisters and severely aching hands from repeditive strain of using the foot trims, which are like a pair of secateurs. My hands are quite painfully, even writing this hurts just now.
But its all done, i can relax now knowing that if anything goes lame now in the next couple of months, it wont be from overgrown split feet that need trimming. If the go lame now any lameness will be caused by a bacterial infection which will just be a dip in a foot dip solution. I am so relieved to have got the trimming done its been stressing me wondering how i could sort it.
Tomorrow we have someone coming to dehorn the four calves that were born in the autumn, that had horns. Hopefully i will be a little less achey in the morning. At least i will only be holding the calves not doing the dehorning. Although there getting quite big so they are getting strong now.
 
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I moved the boys to the bottom field at the end of November and told myself theyd be there till mid February then they could come back up to the top field when the mornings draw out so i can start riding again. The patch of grass theyve been on has held up well with my grazing rotation so im really pleased.
With Billy being lame i decided he was better staying down on the flat field a bit longer. I stopped lunging during the weekday and have been doing clicker training instead but its not tiring his brain cells, and quite frankly when his legs are coming above my head i think i have to start doing some more work with him before he kills me. So ive made a decision that end of the month they are moving back up. Im not going to miss the long walk up and down the steep bank every morning to feed them. Its a tricky one as it means they wont be on flat grazing which could make his leg worse but if he gets some exercise it will stop him running round and lashing out which cant be doing his leg any good. I will start riding billy again a couple of times a week with a short hack. It will only be during March till i start lambing. I doubt ill get to ride much during April. I am resisting calling the vet at present as i think the only option will be some form of surgery. Which at this muddy time of year without a stable will be silly.
Im counting down the days till i start lambing. Its only 3 weeks till the first two are due. Ive not done the mucking out yet with these storms we are having. Hopefully the weather will improve and i can get it done in time.
 
I moved the boys to the bottom field at the end of November and told myself theyd be there till mid February then they could come back up to the top field when the mornings draw out so i can start riding again. The patch of grass theyve been on has held up well with my grazing rotation so im really pleased.
With Billy being lame i decided he was better staying down on the flat field a bit longer. I stopped lunging during the weekday and have been doing clicker training instead but its not tiring his brain cells, and quite frankly when his legs are coming above my head i think i have to start doing some more work with him before he kills me. So ive made a decision that end of the month they are moving back up. Im not going to miss the long walk up and down the steep bank every morning to feed them. Its a tricky one as it means they wont be on flat grazing which could make his leg worse but if he gets some exercise it will stop him running round and lashing out which cant be doing his leg any good. I will start riding billy again a couple of times a week with a short hack. It will only be during March till i start lambing. I doubt ill get to ride much during April. I am resisting calling the vet at present as i think the only option will be some form of surgery. Which at this muddy time of year without a stable will be silly.
Im counting down the days till i start lambing. Its only 3 weeks till the first two are due. Ive not done the mucking out yet with these storms we are having. Hopefully the weather will improve and i can get it done in time.
It's just so difficult to know what to do for the best when they aren't right :( all you can do is go with your gut, hopefully the exercise will help settle them down :)
 
Moved fields at the weekend but I put them in a strip at the bottom of my top field just to flash graze over the fresh grass. The ground is so wet it will churn up really quick so I've put two sections up, one for this week and one for next week. There's not A lot on there but more than you think. They were eating a bale if hay between the two a day. They still haven't eaten one bale yet and that's in three days. I've cut the food to minimal, just so chunky can have his supplements.
First early morning hack of the year today. Have been missing riding in the week. I tried doing clicker training yesterday with Billy and he just couldn't focus. Just wanted to run off playing with legs flailing. So I gave up before he got me. He was lovely and chilled after his ride this morning.
I have quite a trek to go and get them in to ride and return them to the field after. Will move then closer in a couple of weeks when I start lambing. So then it will be easy peezee to grab in for a quick ride.
 
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Must try to do more updates here. I seem to post them elsewhere currently.

We now have the calves in the shed for weaning and halter training. Progress for only two days is good. Four are already coming to eat out of a bucket. One i have managed to stroke down the neck a few times to. They are getting use to my hand in the bucket and some have actually eaten food off my hand. This stands me in good sted. The better they eat the food the easier it is to reward the halter training.
There still too stressed and noisy at present to risk letting out the shed into the yard to feed. I only have some little sheep hurdles in a couple of places and the calves will think nothing of clearing them with there current mindset. Ive got some gates tucked in a shed so i think i might get them out to reinforce the yard a bit. Mums are still hanging around just across the road. So its still pretty noisy out there currently.

Now trying to do some polework with Billy a couple of times a week. Only walk and trot poles. Really frustrating when he knocks the poles off on the lowest jump block setting and you have to keep getting off to pop them back on. Sure he does it to get out of work. I had some poles just resting in the ends of road cones but he wasnt seeing them especially with the grass coming through now. So yesterday i got the tyres out which ive had stored ready for someone to make me a jump (one day), but i experimented and found if i balance the cone in the tyre with the pole in he didnt knock them so much. Hope it might teach him to not be so lazy. Amazingly he then didnt knock a single one off the jump blocks either.
Saw this pole layout configuration and thought id give it a go. It really makes us both concerntrate. I find small circles really difficult so hoping this improves my balance, also teaching me to look ahead rather than the ground in front of him. Bad habit of mine. If i dont look ahead i miss judged the loop and cant get over the pole.
Just hope its not to tight for Billy with his leg issues. He wanted to stop a couple of times mid way, not sure if it was just lazyiness or if his leg was uncomfortable. Might space out a bit to make the loops larger. Although i did notice it made him slow down, rather than rush so there again.
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