Today I spent about two hours with Faith, grooming her and giving her treats. She fortunately (yet unfortunately for my washer, dryer, and vacuum) is shedding out - in CLUMPS. She went from slightly shedding out her measly "winter" coat to practically tearing it off of herself. I have never seen a horse shed so quickly! It's good though; a sure sign her body is recovering and getting back into the swing of things.
About a half hour into my grooming session with her, my students came off of the bus and each picked up a shedding blade. We spent the next half hour going over her from her ears to her tail, and everywhere in between. She was very happy about it, leaning into the brushes with every stroke. As you can tell from the next few pictures, she had quite a few scratchy spots on her that were out of her reach!
I've also never seen a horse make so many goofy faces before...
When all was said and done, there was at least 10 pounds of horse hair on the ground. We could have made another pony out of it... Faith definitely seemed happier that we helped her out and scratched all of those hard-to-reach areas for her.
After her grooming, it was time for a bath. Unfortunately the car shop was busy and I couldn't get Faith into a bay again, so we held her outside the door and scrubbed her down there. There were quite a few funny looks and comments from passers-by, but we got the job done! It was warm today, about 65-ish and sunny, and the water was warm. After some regular shampoo, we rinsed and repeated with antimicrobial shampoo to help her coat and skin out a bit. Then she was toweled-off, blown dry, and put back into her stall with a light sheet on.
With her coat flat in these pictures, you can see her conformation and condition much clearer. She still has a LONG way to go, but she has been making huge improvments.
Thanks to Margaret, Lucy and Nicole for helping with her bath!
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A lot of Faith's followers have been asking about her weight gain, and I'm proud to announce that since she arrived 8 weeks ago, she has put on approximately 90 pounds!
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She's looking better with every post!
ReplyDeleteIt's sad that I've seen tb BROODMARES in the condition that she is now. On crappy farms, but still. We have a lot of sleazy racehorse "breeders" in my area, and it makes me sick. We call them "disposable horses," since that's what it seems to be for their owners. Horrid, horrid.
She must be thinking "ah to be cared for again". Her scratchy spots pictures are too cute.
ReplyDeleteYay for Faith! So glad to see her getting pampered and loved on!
ReplyDeleteAny feedback on the DNA tests yet?
The pics of you scratching her "sweet" spots are great. I'm sure it all felt absolutely wonderful to her after being starved and ignored!
ReplyDeleteAdorable! She's looking so much better.
ReplyDeleteI love the face photos! I enjoy helping my horses get those faces but never can take a photo of doing it.
ReplyDeletesagebeasties.blogspot.com
Its so very special how she has become a group project to be loved. Love your updates. Its the Black Beauty story all over again and you are her Joe.
ReplyDeleteWow. What a heartwarming story! I recently found your blog after a friend passed it my way. That mare is definitely a lucky little lady to have found you!
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed reading through the archives and seeing the awesome progress you've made with her. I hope you're able to find out a bit more about her past.
I volunteer at a local rescue in Texas, and I alway love it when an old horse gets a new start on life.
cheers,
Mary H.
http://stalecheerios.com/blog -- a serial for positive animal training