bobbysmum

Hi everyone. Just popped in to see how you all were and it seems to have been remarkably quiet. Hope Loki is settling in ok and enjoying seeing his mum in her lunch hour. Dexter is moving away for good tomorrow. His owner took voluntary redundancy from her job and as her house was tied to her job she is homeless as well so she is moving back to family near Aylesbury and taking Dexter with her. Bye bye Dexter. Hope all goes well for you. My friend who emigrated family, dogs and 3 horses to Canada came back to UK this week. We had lunch. She loves her life now. She has 49 acres, 12 stables and her own indoor school. She has joined the eventing association and has 6 places who run regular competitions within half an hours drive. Once the snow has cleared they will begin to build their own eventing course. She has already laid a riding trail around the land. We always have a great time together. Fall about laughing at the problems a new country brings. One of the dogs discovered skunks! Raccoons that poo on the rafters of the indoor school, it freezes and then they knock it off as they run along the rafter later

Hi all Just popped in to see how you are all doing. Looks like you are all having fun. Have heard some disturbing things about Dexter. Owner not turning up to do him when she says she will and being left all night without any food at all. Then turning up when she says she cant making it and turning him out just before the farrier is due etc. Now you know why I gave up sharing. Havent been on a horse for nearly a year now. My horsey friend who I have known for over 30 yrs emigrated to Canada at the end of October taking her family, 3 dogs and 3 horses with her. She has the place of her dreams. Indoor school with stables attached so she doesnt have to go outside to exercise. I am so pleased for her but do miss her.

Heard on the news that a 23 yr old competitor at a X country event in Gloucestershire was killed today. Apparently was pronounced dead at the scene. I for one will be watching the X country tomorrow. The girl that gave me riding lessons when I had Dexter, worked where Headley Britannia was bred and she she broke him in and started him off as a youngster. She is the sister of my horsey friend who I have known since I was at school.

Just popped in to see how you were all doing. Claire - brilliant pictures and video. Have been to the yard a couple of times with Caroline who owns Nippy so I got to see Dexter. He went away to family at the beginning of July to be ridden by the kids through the summer holiday. It will be great for him. He will have lots to do and hopefully some sort of consistent routine. Didnt get to say goodbye though. I have my doubts that he will be back.

Just popped in to see how you were all getting on. Love hearing your stories. Glad Pendlewitch and Wanda are back in the saddle. Clare you look brilliant. I am going out to dinner tomorrow with Caroline who I used to hack out with. She misses me so much she says. After lunch we are going to see Dexter. Yay.

Just popped in to see how you were all getting on. Loved the video. Soon after I gave up Dexter the weather improved and I have gazed wistfully out the window and thought what a brilliant day for a hack. Glad to see you are all having a great time. Hope Sam is ok.

for Grandma Squiggs. You are truly an angel walking this earth and you showed dear little Bow such love in the short time that was left. Bow will leave an empty space for a long time I am sure. May her memories give you comfort. Run free Bow Life wasnt always kind to you but may you run free knowing how much you were loved and how many thought of you.

Bradders, how did it go with the saddler? Clare hope the rumours arent true. What a blow esp when you are both settled. Saw a 3 bed bungalow for sale with a couple of acres of land and 2 stables. Only £575K! My friend is getting desperate to move hers out as she is sharing with a bossy domineering woman who is making her life a misery but there is very little around here at the moment and she has 3 to find places for. She has moved one out but its difficult having them in different places.

with laughter at that

Well done Kane and Rolo This weekend was my first without Dexter. I dreamt about him on Saturday night. I took lots of piccies of him on my last weekend so will post some when they are sorted and a suitable size. OH videoed me in the school too but I havent watched it yet.

I rode Dexter in the school twice last weekend. He was a good boy considering he hasnt done much for so long. Came home on Sunday really sad because next weekend is my last weekend and I would have said goodbye to him. The owner brought the new sharer up last weekend and they said hello and went off to look round the fields. Then they came back and ignored me. Went into the stable to look at Dexter (who I had got ready for bed) and stood chatting with their backs to me. O goes into hosp at the end of the month and will be non weight bearing on crutches for 12 weeks. I gave notice 2 months ago. I didnt know it would coincide with her op. have offered to help out but am obviously not wanted.

I went a couple of years ago when the weather was nice. OH and I flew there. (it was a surprise for my birthday). Its a great way to get there. OH has a private pilots license but he didnt fly us, a friend of his did. Straight in over miles of car queues and it was only £10 more to park a plane than a car. Then at the end of the day fly out over the queues again.

Hi all. Sorry havent posted for a while but not alot has changed in the Dexter situation. Will try and read back and catch up. Anyway I rode him yesterday. Just 20 mins in the school, walking and a couple of short trots. Didnt ride him today. He got most of his exercise in the field so I heard (at one point chasing 2 men with a gun who had come into his field) The slope down from the field is so muddy and with the wind and the youngsters pratting about it took 2 of us to get Dexter in. Trying to hang onto him and stay on our feet In a couple of weeks Dexter will be turned away again as owner is going into hospital and my share finishes in a couple of weeks anyway.

thats good. Took my son back to Uni in York yesterday. Unpacked his stuff and caught a bus into York. Passed a field with 2 ponies in. They were on chains. Couldnt see any access to water. When we came back I looked again and still couldnt see any water. There were people with them feeding them but I dont know if they were owners or people that were passing through the field as there seemed to be a path across the field. Is it acceptable to chain them?

oh Loki you cheeky thing. Trying to persuade your mum that nothing fitted no doubt. Well after a good weekend - this weekend is naff. As instructed I left a note for owner explaining what I could do this weekend as I have to work Fri, Sat & Sun. The only times I need help are getting in Friday and turning out Sat am. So went up this morning to find they have changed the locks on the yard Luckily maintenance man was there and I could get in. Was accosted by his 3 dogs who all jumped up and left me filthy. Yard rule - no dogs allowed!!! Went to Dexters stable empty. Stable clean Went to the field he was in last week. Empty. Found him in another field. Came home and left a message asking O to contact me to explain what is going on as went up there on a wasted journey. So if no one goes up this evening he will be out all night as am working til 8pm and not allowed up the fields in the dark. Havent heard from her. Highlight Going to Canada western riding which got me back on a horse. Finding Dexter. Lowlight Coping with Dexters owner and yard politics 2008 Becoming horseless

Aww Jacky. Glad you had a good weekend. I rode Dexter in the school. First time I had ridden for 3 weeks. Had been told that he was usually turned away before Xmas and she decided to ride him last week. As I wasnt the first to get on him, I did as well. I was under the impression that he was going to be a problem after time off as she told me she paid someone else to ride him for the first 2 weeks coming back into work. He was fine. The yard politics are getting out of hand. One girl moved away to the West Country and my friend that I hack with asked if she could take over her stable. The owners arent horsey people and employ an agent to do everything for them. The agents sent her a bill for £220 to amend 2 lines of her contract, a deposit in case of damage and 2 months rental up front. She cant afford it. She is just on grass livery but the owners have complained about the mud and now all horses have to be in at night. She is looking to move away. The other girl is looking to move hers too as her horse is arthritic and seizes up if he has to stand in a stable all night. So that will leave Dexter in a field on his own.

Well the plan had been to have a share so I would have the back up and the people around me so I could learn. However in reality the yard is too quiet, (I am frequently up there on my own) and the owner is inconsistent and unreliable. In just a few months I have become fond of Dexter and will worry about him terribly after I finish. I finally had contact with owner tonight. In previous years it appears that she usually pays someone to ride Dexter every weekday for the first 2 weeks that he is back in work. Now I am wondering if this is because he can be a handful. Normally that would be the first 2 weeks of January but this year it wont be until she has had her operation and has completed her 8 weeks in plaster. As she doesnt have a date for her op yet, he is not going to be back in work before I finish my 2 months notice in 3rd week of Jan. Bradders have you got your pig oil and sulphur yet? Can anyone remind me of the name of the brilliant brush that everyone uses for feathers? it looks like a human hair brush. Thought I would buy Dexter one as his feathers are caked solid at the moment. Where can I get one? Ta muchly

Glad Blues lumps are getting better & that Wanda is sound. Hope the same can be said for Wandas mum soon as well Hope Loki's bar shoes solve the problem too. What are Bar shoes. Is Loki doing bar work to earn money for Xmas? Well I havent heard from Dexters owner at all this week. She should phone on Thursday evening. So have no idea what he has done. Didnt know if he was in or out so had to go up early on Friday in case he was in. He wasnt in. Went to his field- he wasnt there. Someone else had ponies in there. Then had to walk round and look for him. Weather wasnt great so just gave him a feed and checked him over and left him out. Really fed up and deflated now. I stood in his field and cried with frustration. Have another 6 weeks to go and am paying for all this aggro. She has had 48 hrs to phone me since and hasnt. Have just been up and checked on him again and given him another feed. Couldnt get there this morning as I was working. Will never have a share again.

What awful weather today. Didnt stop Yard Manager hacking out both of hers though. Thought I would go up and give Dexter an extra feed this morning cos of the weather and found that he was in his stable. Owner had left a note to say that she had got him in and was to stay in tonight. So went back up this afternoon and took off all his dry mud and made him look nice. Then lunged him in the school to stretch his legs and break up the monotony of being in. I am confused. Last week she told me that he lived out permanently til after Xmas and was turned away unless I wanted to do anything with him. Feel my decision to give notice is vindicated

to all the horses with poorly feet and to all the owners who are poorly too. I have given notice on my sharing agreement. I have to give 2 months notice and by the end of January my horsey days will be over I didnt get a phone call this week to say what Dexter had been doing. I assumed he had done nothing and lunged him on Friday and rode in school yesterday and today. Found a blood blister in Dexters eye but I was on the yard alone so had no one to ask. Have told the owner about it and she will look at it tomorrow. Its not bothering him and the rest of the eye looks fine so I didnt panic. Now I feel really bad as owner told me she is now on crutches her ankle is so bad and she is desperate for this operation.

Sorry Pendlewitch that cracked me up. Quite agree - MEN! Hope that they can sort your knee asap. Dexter is now so huge that I couldnt get his lungeing roller round him and have a battle to get his saddle on!!! Loki get well soon and Clares thumb too and anyone else that needs a hug

Sounds like things are as as ever in Dexter land! That made me laugh so much. Pendlewitch. Hope all goes well with your visit to specialist and they get you sorted really quickly. Claire. Hope Loki is just playing for the sympathy vote and its nothing too serious. Was at a loose end what to do with Dexter yesterday. He had a big flap of frog yesterday. Didnt know if that was a problem or not and was on my own up there so no one to ask. (Only OH with me with his camera and he knows nothing about horses) Could get the hoof pick under it but it didnt seem to bother him and he wasnt lame so I used him anyway. He has got a small cut under his eye too. Probably stuck his head in the hedge after some tasty morsel. I lunged him in the school. Wondered about doing something to make it more interesting so we did this. He got a bit excited after a while so we had to stop and go back to basics Sorry its a bit yellow. Its the lights from the school. The building behind is the end of Dexters stable block so we dont have far to go to get to the school in the rain LOL Anyway left Dexter in last night as was unsure about foot. He seemed very pleased and contented with that decision. Especially as had found him huddled against the hedge as the others wouldnt let him in the field shelter.

Bradders Thanks for the linky to Pig oil & sulphur thread. Do you know if it helps greasy heel? Not sure what it is but owner says Dexter has it. To me his heels dont have a problem although he does seem to be hot horse generally and his feathers are quite coarse. The scabby sore skin starts a bit further up and goes up to the next joint on his back legs and is behind his knees only on the front legs. Dont know if I will be able to persuade owner to try it. Thanks for the best wishes for Laddie. Have never had a dog with cancer before although my dad died of a brain tumour and my mum has had breast cancer this year. His liposarcoma is derived from fat tissue. I need to ask the vet if he needs to have his other lipomas removed. Am hoping not as he had a bad reaction to the anaesthetic. Dont know whether to put him through it if he says yes. (Decided against removing them with last anaesthetic as we really didnt think they were a problem and he was already having 3 lumps taken off) Rode Dexter in the school today. Was at bit of a loss what to do. So to give him something different I set up a barrel racing course but we only did it at a walk and trot. Dexter thought it was interesting and walked round with me while I was setting up and putting away. We also practised from our lesson and I managed to get him to drop his head so he had a vertical line down his face to the floor. Damned if I know what I did to achieve this though Its what I am supposed to be doing but why it worked this time and not before I dont know. Is there any hope for me? In the last few weeks I have been told by owner that 1 Dexter prefers to live out. 2 Dexter gets bored in the field and prefers human company. 3 Dexter gets bored in the stable. 4Dexter can live out all the time it wont do him any harm. 5 He usually stays out til after Xmas. 6 Perhaps I will start bringing him in next week. I have been watching him and found that he doesnt like being turned out in the late afternoon. He stands by the gate and wont leave me to go to the other horses. He is eager to come in mid afternoon onwards. When the others go to check their horses he follows them back to the gate in the hope that he will get taken in by them or he is stood by the gate waiting for them. I really think he prefers to be in at night. He is bottom of the herd in the field and am sure he gets picked on. This may improve when bossy mare leaves soon and its just the geldings in the field.

Bradders. Am interested in the pig oil and sulphur. Where do you get it and what do you do with it? Is the sulphur a powder you mix into the pig oil? Dexters owner has now said the evening primrose oil and royal jelly isnt working. His RH leg is very red and scabby. Bleeding in places. Having said that I turned him out last Friday and he hasnt left the field til I went up today. As he has done nothing for a week I lunged him while I waited for the temperature to rise and take the edge of any ideas of exuberance he might have been fostering. We had the best lungeing session I have ever managed (out of my 3 attempts so far) and he was actually listening to me. Had to lunge without the roller though as couldnt get the girth to meet!!! Only a short hack as he was looking at every little thing. Both he and Nippy took exception to the black reels on a new electric fence as we rode through the estate. Also didnt like the new sheep fencing that had been put up since they last passed. Dont quite understand why something as innocuous as a fence would be a problem but then I dont think like a horse!!! A bit down today. Laddie my oldie had lumps removed last Monday. He went ga ga for 36 hours after the anaesthetic, pacing constantly and crying. Results came back today as liposarcoma - a low grade cancer. There were good margins round the tumour so have got it all so thats a good thing. edited to say Laddie is a dog not a horse!!!

Welcome home big boy!!! You are handsome Sorry to hear that Wanda is poorly again. Get well wishes for Wanda, Claires thumb and Rolo'w legs and anyone else I have missed. Dexter has very sore scabby heels at the back and behind the knees of front legs at the moment. Owner has shampooed them in coal tar shampoo. Hacked out with Nippy last Friday and they were jumpy as it was windy. Had to go through the farm yard and by the open barns which now have the scary black cows in for the winter. Nippy had a panic and cannoned into Dexter and luckily I had already got off else I would have been ejected. Then had to get by the tractor with the 2 trailers on the back which the farmer had left with the engine running. Dexter was living out this week although had been in for the previous 24 hrs Only had him one day last Friday as my weekend was tied up with kids coming home from uni for my mums 70th birthday party. (Would like to thank the kind person who vomited over my sons suitcase on the train. It collected in the recessed area for the telescopic handle, ran down the handle and came out in the bottom of the suitcase. This resulted in me having to wash the entire contents of the suitcase and throw out a brand new suitcase. )