New client and other news

I got a phone call from a new trimming client out of the blue last week, my first referral! It seems that my first client has been happy enough with my work to tell her friends. Owner called me up and asked if I could come right out since her horse hadn't been trimmed in 24 weeks, seems her old trimmer canceled on her and then never returned her calls to reschedule. After this information I didn't know what to expect, I see two reasons why a trimmer wouldn't reschedule- either the trimmer is a flake or the horse/owner is crazy. On first impression the owner isn't crazy, but she made sure to let me know that her little arabian mare can be "tempermental."

Fortunately for her, this mare proved to have nice feet if a little overgrown. Unfortunately feet this overgrown need the nippers and I'm not very good with the nippers yet, so it took awhile. She was quite good until I got to the last foot, the right hind, and then she cow-kicked at me. It was halfhearted and it didn't seem like she wanted to hit me, I think I'd just hit the limits of her patience. Sorry girl, next time I'll be faster.

Right fore, long toe and excess wall produced a little flare in the front.

Left hind, the owner was very worried about this flare. No big deal, ex-trimmer just hadn't given her any quarter relief. I rasped it off and she was fine.

A bit of excess foot here, the mare also had some thrush as you can see by the central sulcus crack.

While I was out the owner asked if I'd also trim her pony. Apparently she'd had two different people trimming her horses, one for the arab and one for the pony? I didn't quite understand that, but since I was already there I said sure. Pony was absolutely adorable, a little 30 year old shetland that had taught all the kids in the area to ride. She had an interesting trick I've never seen before, when she finally picked up her front feet she wouldn't bend her knees, she just lifted her leg straight backwards. Smart little pony trick! I just flexed her fetlock and her knee followed. I could tell that she's foundered in the past, there was a dish in her front hooves and the coronet band dipped down towards the ground in the front. Definitely some coffin bone remodeling going on in there (sorry, no pictures, I was tired by that time). She also had some massive heel growth so I took those right down. Her already compromised coffin bones didn't need that kind of stress put on them!

The owner's timing was a little funny seeing that I'm leaving for trimming school on Friday but it is what it is. I get back on the 23rd and then go and trim my other client on the 24th, I plan to put my new knowledge to good use right away!

In other news my saddle is supposed to be finished on the 24th! I'm very excited and hoping, hoping, hoping that the Quarters like it. I've been kind of putting off getting back on Gwen until the saddle comes, I've sat on her twice since the bucking incident but haven't really been pushing it at all. With any luck she'll like the saddle and I'll finally have some stirrups to use on her. Stirrups can do quite a bit for your confidence.

Oh, and I have a funny story to share: One day last week I let the Quarters loose to graze after their dinner, while I was standing with them I heard a mourning dove call and started calling back to him. After a while I switched to pigeon coos just for fun. To do a pigeon coo you have to open your mouth and vibrate your throat, something I was a little out of practice on. While I stood there practicing, Gwen picked her head up from the grass to look at me. When I kept going she walked up to me and put her muzzle right on my mouth, "are those sounds coming from YOU?" By this point I was laughing too hard to keep going so I don't know if she got her question answered sufficiently or not. She's too cute sometimes :)