Osteo-Max - is it a magic potion?

 Pippi has been on Osteo-Max for 6 weeks as of today April 14th. 

To refresh your memory, and mine, this is video from after week one, and two. 

 In the last 6 weeks we have also worked hard on her fitness, with the goal of strengthening her stifles and abdominals. Lots walking over groundpoles, and then trotting over ground poles. Lots of transitions, lots and lots of transitions from walk and trot, with some canter mixed in. I am not fond of cantering  horses on the lunge line, so we keep that at a minimum. I realize that some horses may need that, but Pippi is 20 years old, and so a circle or two in each direction will do. Let me also say that by "circle" I mean using the arena to the max, and so it becomes a rounded oval with me running around inside. Good exercise for both horse and rider. By going as big as we can in our arena, we put as little stress on joints and tendons as we can. 

I start each work session with a good groom (checking her all over for heat, swelling, pain etc). Then I do a stifle release triggerpoint massage (not sure massage is the right word really), and after walking in hand for a few strolls around the arena, I let her out on the lunge line. We still walk just on the flat for another few circles, before I guide her over the groundpoles. Once we have walked the poles 4-5 times, we do some short trot sessions (not over the poles), before finally having her trot the poles. Lots of walk/trot transitions, before just trot. Then we canter (not over poles) just a little, before doing the entire thing in reverse order. Including the stifle releases. We have slowly inreased the total time of the workout, and are now up to 40 minutes. And I have raised some of the poles at an angle recently. 

After the work out, weather premitting, I have taken her out to graze. We stand on the steepest part of the grass, making sure she grazes uphill (loading those back legs), downhill (stretches her out), and sideways (loading one side). I have no idea if this helps, but theoretically it should, right? I see her muscles tighten as described so I am going with it. 

So what does Pippi look like now? 

That was as you can see, April 9th, so five weeks after starting Osteo-Max and the new routine. There is clearly great improvement, and I plan to start doing some work under saddle. Just a lot of walking to begin with. 

Based on these 6 weeks, I will say that I recommend Osteo-Max. It is not a magic potion, and I can't say how much of the improvement was Osteo-Max and how much was the fitness training. But there is great improvement, and Osteo-Max is part of that package. 

I have not been paid by Osteo-Max for this review, I do not have a relationship with them, and no special coupon code for you that somehow benefts me. This is my honest experience this far with this product, and my honest review. 

I painted the Paint!

 In the last year or so I have been trying to learn how to paint with watercolors. The photo that is the backdrop to this very blog is my absolute favorite picture of Pippi. She is cantering around in the snow, carefree and wild, just exactly they way she should be. Just totally being a horse. 

Here is the journey from pic to painting:

created the sketch

painted all the light colored areas first, then the trees

painted the fences

added details to trees

Finished painting

Matted and framed

I ended up being so happy with it that I framed it. Luckily I had frame and mat that fit it perfectly. 

Do you have any art you created with your horse as the muse? 

Sleek-EZ after grooming gloves

 Just a quick post to say that using Grooming gloves to lift dirt from the fur,  then following that with the Sleek-Ez is a super way to groom in the spring. Look at all the hair from just a few passes. 

I highly recommend both products. 

Again - I am not sponsored by anyone so my reviews are just my unbiased opinion. 

Osteo-Max Update - 1 week!

 Pippi has now been on Osteo-Max for one week. I have noticed that she has less swelling in her lower extremities, and perhaps a little more flex in her joints. 

Here is a video of her at walk. The top portion is from a few days before we started Osteo-Max. The bottom is after 9 days. (Please excuse the dirt on her. Ohio is messy in the spring)  You can see how she kind of slams that left hind leg into the ground. 

 

So far I am not super impressed, but obviously I will continue to feed the supplement and see if it helps. 

I am also working on Pippi's overall fitness which will also help. So thrilled to be in an area with a good surface again. 

I will post again in a week. Hopefully it will show some improvement.  

Osteo-Max - worth the hype?

 Yeah I ordered it too. 

https://100xequine.com/pages/osteo-max2

It is an expensive addition to an already expensive hobby, so........is it worth it? Do you have any experience with Osteo-Max? Do you use any supplements?

Pippi is nearing 20 and she seems to have some stiffness in her hock. Her left hock is affecting her right front, as it is with diagonal pairs. So am hoping that the claims are true. 

Here are the listed ingredients:

I plan on videoing her before starting Osteo-Max and then every week after. I hope to see some changes. This is not an ad; I don't have any deals with 100xEquine. I don't get a discount if you use "my link" 'cause I do not have one. If this supplement seems to work, I will let you know, and I will also let you if it is a waste of money. It will all be anecdotal of course, but at least from an unbiased person with nothing to gain other than a horse feeling better. And money lost if it does nothing. 

I will report back as soon as I get the supplement in the mail. 

Back at it!

I recently moved Pippi back to barn we boarded at a few years ago. It feels a bit like being back home, and I am finding my joy again. My joy in horses, my joy in learning, my joy in dressage, and my joy in this equestrian life. And my absolute joy in Pippi!!

Sometimes life goes along, and things are "just fine" and you settle for that. But then you make a change, your perspective shifts a bit, and you realized that there is so much more to this equestrian life than "just fine." 

So I plan to blog more, as I restart riding, and blogging about it. 

I'm excited!!

“There is no substitute for time in the saddle.”

“Patience and time do more than strength or passion.” (Fontaine) I love that quote, even as a chronic rusher, I love that quote. It is one of my many mantras, sayings and quotes that I pull out of my hat when needed. And it is one that I tend to remind myself of often as I strive to become a better equestrian.

“Time – take it” I say to myself when I wonder when (will it happen), how soon (until we get it), how long (will it take) and how many (times do we have to do this). The answer is, of course, “who the heck knows!” It’s going take the time it’s going to take. Few things with horses can be rushed, and anyone who has tried to rush a horse has found that it’s kind of like rushing a man or a child; you just slow yourself down more. (My apologies to the opposite gender, but you do tend to put the brakes on whenever we try to get you to hurry. You don’t even wear make-up or do your hair, why are we the ones waiting at the door?) .

The most important tool to use in conjunction with anything else you are doing is time. Take the time, because it is going to take some time. A former Trainer, a very wise woman, told me often that

  “there is no substitute for time in the saddle.” 

For anyone who started riding as an adult this statement really hits home. I see a comfort level in riders that started young, a balance and certain comfort in the saddle that only comes with experience. The Trainer also meant that no matter how the ride went, you were riding and the horse was ridden and so there is value there. When I prepare for a ride, or a lesson, I think about what I want to work on, but I quickly remind myself not to put pressure on whether it will work out. I have goals, a timeline, but not a deadline.

"When are you starting your young horse?"

 "When are you starting over fences?"

"Does your horse have a flying lead change yet?"

"When do you think you will move up to 2nd level?"

"Are you going rated yet?"

 These questions are really all about time. 

       We determine our success based on where we are on our goals list, while our horses only know when you were supposed to feed them! Pippi learns things at her own pace, and all I can do is look for clues as to what she is ready for. I learn at my own pace, and all Pippi can do is hope that I catch up to her at some point. She doesn’t put too much pressure on me, and I appreciate that. She sure is happy when I pick up a new skill, and gives me lots of praise, but she has yet to stomp away from a ride disappointed that it didn’t live up to expectations. She gives me all the time I need, and I do the same for her.

What are your goals? Mine is to keep riding, maybe show if the opportunity arrives, and to enjoy my time riding. Riding is my “Me-time” after all.

Will your horse pull away if you become the boss?

 Recently I heard a trainer say to a rider during a clinic: “Every step belongs to you.”

Those words floated around me like a mist, settling into every nook and cranny of my brain, and I could clearly see the transformation of Pippi and I, as a team.

When we first started, or even before that, when I was the show mom and just sat on Pippi from time to time, Pippi was so clearly in charge of each and every step. When I started really riding, we had a bit of a leadership battle. Pippi was in charge, and we both knew it. We also knew that this would have to change, but neither of us knew how. I worried about what this shift would do to us; could we still have fun and be us if I bossed her around? Would Pippi resent it?

My secret fear was that Pippi would shut down, and shut me out, and that I would no longer feel a closeness to her. I realize that some of this will sound totally ridiculous, but I don’t care. Once I started to “hear” Pippi, I was loathe to lose that, and yet I wanted us to grow as a team. I made the decision that if I ever felt that our training was driving a wedge between us, something would have to change. My closest friends heard me ponder and question, and more than one remarked that this sounded just like a parenting problem. I admit to not liking this, as I really hate it when someone calls me Pippis “mom.” (I have two kids! Pippi is my partner, my teammate, my four legged side kick.)

But as I sat there watching this lesson, with “every step belongs to you” bouncing its way around my noggin, I realized that we had freaking done it. Pippi and I had come out the other end, and we were okay. We had realigned our partnership, and we were still intact. She is still a silly mare with strange rules like “two feet = one treat” and she still piaffes on her own when excited. I still insist on hugging her too long, and she is still smarter and knows first when the hug should be over. I still sing to her, and a portion of the song from "Yentl" lends itself quite well if you change “Papa” to Pippi.

I remember,  Pippi – everything you taught me

What you gave me, Pippi

Look at what it’s brought me!

Looking back I feel a little foolish, but I blame it on that nervous feeling everyone gets in a new relationship. Is she going to still be my friend if I show her my bossy side? Can you be respected and loved all at the same time? Turns out you can, if you are willing to wait, be patient and always do everything from a place of mutual respect. Pippi and I are not the same, things have changed, and I will not claim that our relationship is better. It’s just as good, but in a new and working way. I still hear her, and sometimes she still gives me some ‘tude, but we are team with me as the team leader.

We still play around a lot :)