We've had so much rain here for a while that it's almost become a cliche to say we've suddenly moved to Seattle. This has meant that the front field where my jumps are has been too wet and muddy to ride in. I had really been hoping to do some jumping to regain my confidence over 2'6" fences, but it had to be put off. But yesterday and today, no rain. It looked like the ground would be okay today, so that's what I planned on doing.
Grooming and tacking Royal up, I noticed he seemed a bit quiet. Which can sometimes happen, where he's subdued when I get him, then perks up as we warm up and ride. But he didn't have any tender spots or seem colicky, so I figured he was okay. On-line warm up was good, riding at the walk fine, but when we started trotting, I knew something was off. I couldn't feel where, but I know something wasn't right. I got off and asked him to circle, and sure enough, he had a head bob on his left front going to the left. It wasn't present circling to the right or on a straight line, but you could see it to the left. I felt a bit of heat in that left front, but he wasn't fussy about me handling it. I tried to give him some bute, which didn't work, and cold-hosed the leg for about 15 minutes. I was successful in giving him banamine, and put him back in his paddock with some hay and his step-brother BJ. The barn owner promised to keep an eye on him for me, and I'll probably go back up there tonight and tomorrow.
At this point I have no idea what it could be. It might be that he was running around in the pasture and tweaked it a little bit and he'll be fine in a little bit. Or, this could be the start of a serious injury that means months or years of rehab. I do know that Royal is a very stoic horse and often doesn't show his injuries until they get pretty bad. Right now, all I can do is wait. I will most likely ask to have one the vets at the clinic come down there with me and take a look at it, no matter what. I just want to know what's going on.
Hopefully, he's okay.
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