Virtual Brush Box

Explanation. We have a horse on stall rest following colic surgery. This has taken over the blog. [Begin]

26 days post surgery
Second week of at-home stall rest

Rodney’s Routine

[Debriefing]

The original plan was to have Rodney in at night to keep Milton company.

When we bought the property, the barn had four small stalls with a center aisle. We turned two stalls into one stall and the rest of the space into an open-sided area that the horses use for a run-in shed. Roof, one wall is the stall, two walls of wood fencing, and one open side. For Southern summers, one wants as much breeze as possible.

When Mathilda needed to be kept up, we built two sets of two slats (four total) to close off the open side, photo.

To get ready for Milton, we dug out the remaining slats and replaced the others. You have to slide out two slats every time you want to get a horse through. You wouldn’t want this as a permanent feature, but for a while, it’s okay.

Milton would have the stall. Rodney would be closed into the run-in at night. During the day, we would open the side and let him come and go as he pleased.

That was the plan anyway.

Milton doesn’t want Rodney to leave. Rodney doesn’t want to go.

Seriously. Greg stands with Milton. I open the gate. Rodney stands there and looks at us.

Partly, when people are around to watch over Milton, that means people are around who might break out in cookies or hay. If we left the the run-in open for an extended period, he might might wander off to graze. Maybe.

I give even odds or better that Rodney wouldn’t leave, even if he had the option.

He really doesn’t want to leave Milton. If I take him out, I have to insist. If I let him go, he runs back. If I go too far, Milton screams. In a recent test, Rodney got as far as the ring and Milton started bucking in the stall. That was fun. If we take them out together, Rodney wants to play.

I don’t know if this will be sustainable for the duration. For now, Rodney is on the same stall rest as Milton, albeit with slightly more space. Yesterday morning, Rodney & I went for a short walk back and forth within sight of the barn.

As long as Rodney is good with it, we are doing whatever is needful to keep Milton happy and calm.

Onwards!
Katherine

Recuperation History & Calendar

To Date
[When Weekends Go Wrong]
[When The Poop Emoji Is Your Favorite, Patient Report #1] Day one thru Tues 10 Jan
[Welcome Home, Patient Report #2] Wed 11 Jan thru Mon 16 Jan
[Adventures in Horse Care, Patient Report #3] Tues 17 Jan thru Mon 23 Jan

Veterinary Orders, provided no complications in previous months
Feb 13, graduates to small paddock
March 13, pasture privileges restored
April 13, light work begins

Milton Recap

25 days post surgery
Second week of at-home stall rest

Milton has been good about being confined to a stall. We’ve all heard stories about stall rest turning previously mild-mannered horses in horse-shaped kites. This may be in our future. So far, so chill. Milton hangs out, eats hay, and bites at Rodney through the mesh.

Milton and his minion go for two 10-minute outings each day, per veterinary orders of 15-20 minutes total. This seems a ridiculously short amount of time, but Milton is tired afterwards. Healing is hard work.

Milton gets upset is when Rodney is out of sight. Fortunately, Rodney is being very good about staying in to keep Milton company.

Reflections

New plan.

Since the beginning of the year, I have been putting up daily patient reports on a separate page. Meanwhile, I continued to post here. I have been basically writing a second daily blog. Double posting didn’t worry me. I do love the sound of my own typing.

However, I underestimated how much energy Milton’s rehab would take. Mental as well as physical. Or perhaps we are all running a few gallons low right now. Ex Urbe: Self-Care & Healthy Work Habits for the Pandemic

I looked at my post shedule for the upcoming weeks, saw holes everywhere, and thought, I got nothing.

It wouldn’t be all that hard to figure something out. I’ve managed so far.

Maybe it’s time to simplify.

From now on, until we – the barn we, I have no idea about the global we – regain status quo ante, I am bringing the Milton Updates over here and dispensing with, well, pretty much anything else. The separate Milton Update page has been removed.

That’s why the banquet post was on Monday when I just got done saying saddle seat would be on Thursdays. And it will go back to being on Thursdays, once we resume our regular broadcast. Stall rest chronicle or not, I wasn’t about to let ribbons go unremarked! [ASHAA, How Wednesday Became Thursday]

In Other News

Signed up for GBH: History of Drinking Chocolates (Virtual), next month. Join the party! Let us be entertained and drink chocolate together!

Onwards!
Katherine

[When Weekends Go Wrong] Milton’s medical tribulations begin
[When The Poop Emoji Is Your Favorite, Patient Report #1] Day one thru Tues 10 Jan
[Welcome Home, Patient Report #2] Wed 11 Jan thru Mon 16 Jan

Tuesday 17 Jan

Now that Milton is home (yay!), I will still try to update every day. However, missing a day now and then should not be cause for alarm. Either there is nothing to add because the whole point of the next two months is for nothing exciting to happen. You hear that Milton? Or I omit a day due to waiting until the end of the day and then falling asleep. Because this sh*t is exhausting. Even when nothing happens. Seriously Milton, are you listening? No drama!

Short hand walk around run-in area.

(Note. This was back when Milton Updates were a separate page. Not any more. Begin)

Wednesday 18 Jan

With a horse on stall rest, theses are our Daily Tasks.

15-20 minutes of handwalking, maximum
More stall cleaning than usual
Feed hay in several snacks to spread out the entertainment
Minor wound care

That’s it. Otherwise, wait and watch. When there is this level of crisis, one expects to have to DO something. Not complaining. It’s just weird.

Morning. Short handwalk outside! Lots of stopping and staring.

I keep having to remind self that vet said handwalks were for Milton’s mental benefit. It is not an exercise regimen. If he wants to graze – or stare – instead of walk, that’s his choice.

Evening. Opened gate to give Rodney time off from babysitting. Not interested in leaving where hay & cookies where happening. Took him for a walk. Cut it short bc Milton got agitated. Took Milton for a short walk. Went fine. Better to be the leaver than the leavee.

Thursday 19 Jan

Last night, I was stressing that Rodney’s duties as babysitter might mean he ends up on stall rest as much as Milton. A) Milton’s minder said it would be a week to 10 days at most. At some point Milton has to get over himself. (Color me dubious.) B) Recalled the many (many!) times Rodney noped out of turn-out after breakfast. He really is a stall lovin’ horse. C) This morning, took Rodney for a walk to the corner. Had to drag him. Must. Not. Leave. My. Wingman. Milton screamed, despite a snootful of alfalfa to keep him occupied. And finally D) Greg took Milton for a short walk/graze. Milton had no problem leaving his wingman. Rodney had no problem being in the stall eating the rest of the alfalfa.

Evening. Same program, except I walked Rodney to the ring & let him go, giving him the option to stroll about &/or graze. He cantered back to the barn. Okay then, not gonna feel bad about keeping you up as Milton’s emotional support horse.

Friday 20 Jan

Took Milton for morning airing. Left Rodney in stall with doors open. He chose to leave the stall and come along at liberty as escort. It was cute.

10 minutes seems short, but he’s tired after.

Evening walk, with dog escort instead of horse. Rodney stood at stall door waiting for Milton to come back. He’s taking his companion role seriously. Milton doing great. Incision looks good. Needs weight, but he’ll be happy to work on that.

Saturday 21 Jan

Morning walk. Milton’s escort chose to cavort. Milton was very good about not joining in. Rodney’s rations have been reduced.

No evening airing due to activity in the cow pasture.

Sunday 22 Jan

AM. Rodney has a slightly puffy right ankle. Either from yesterday’s antics or from not moving the rest of the time. Seriously, the poop pile forms 6 feet behind the hay pile. Took both for a walk. Rodney felt like he would have been goofy if given the chance. Milton walked and grazed and mostly ignored him. After, Rodney was given an open gate and he chose to graze on the patio for a few minutes. Milton kept an eye out and ate hay. Rodney returned of his own volition. Ankle down a bit. Good boys.

How did Milton’s stall rest become all about Rodney?

PM. Walk. Put Rodney out & closed off access to barn. Be at liberty! Go Graze! You do you! He stood outside and looked in. He walked back and forth. We let him in a few minutes later when he started to get frantic. This is why we can you a dork!

Update. November 2025. Came upon this post while search for something else. Want to apologize to Rodney for calling him a dork here. He was truly excellent about staying by Milton’s side while Milton was ill. Nurse Rodney for the win.

Monday 23 Jan

Week two of phase one.

From left, large, medium (mini), & small flake shavings for stall bedding. Bought one of each to see which Milton & his minions prefer.

Sent photos of Milton’s incision to vet. Looks as expected. Tele-vet medicine. Photos not included. You’re welcome.

Onwards!
Katherine

Awareness of the outside world. ASHA: Funds. Link is to the national association. Awards were from the state association, hence the additional “A”.

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ASHAA Academy Adult Equitation – 4th of 5
ASHAA Academy Adult Showmanship – 5th of 5

February 2022. “You know, if I do two of the three local, summer shows, I could probably climb onto the tag end of the year-end awards.” [Crux]

Mission accomplished.

Photo by Courtney Huguley

Question for the audience. Are year-end awards a good idea? Aye. Motivation, vide me in 2022. Recognition, you can get a big, fluffy ribbon without owning a big, fancy horse. A dress-up occasion to brighten up the middle of January. Nay. The potential for overuse of horses and burnout of riders. All the shows have exactly the same classes. Movement between divisions gets done between seasons. Thoughts?

My ASHAA Shows for 2022
[Mid-South Spring Premiere]
[SSF Summer Show]
[Heathermoor Farm Summer Show]

Onwards!
Katherine

Art of the outside world. CNET: US Army Corp of Engineers Cat Calendar Is So Bad It’s Brilliant, Kooser, Jan. 19, 2023.

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[Superposition of Names]

Onwards!
Katherine

Another repost instead of new writing. The house has decided to act up. Because why not. Original post [Off Topic: A Chakra Moment 2014]

~~~

A while back I had a molar causing trouble. After a failed root canal, an emergency dental visit, and a failed endodontic treatment, it was deemed time to pull the tooth. I was happy to see it go.

The tooth refused to go. The first section came out immediately. The second half of the tooth was wedged. It took long enough that the dentist admitted he was having trouble. Not something medical professionals do easily. No complications. No pain. Just a cork that refused to come out of the bottle.

Letting go is not my forte. I have bank statements from the early ’90s neatly filed away. As my dentist took a break, I wondered if I was subconsciously holding on. I pondered. The jaw would be part of the throat chakra. Wiki defines chakras as energy points in the body. There are seven, lined up from head to crotch. The way I learned the system, the first chakra is the top of the head. That would make the throat chakra number three.

The dentist returned. He waded back into the fray. I took a breath. I exhaled. I thought to myself, ‘Release through the third chakra.’ The tooth slid out as if oiled.

Causation? Coincidence? The world may never know.

Onwards!
Katherine

Awareness of the outside world. “Welcome to the Historic 4th Avenue Business District, one of the only surviving Black Business Districts in the Southeast still operating with a majority Black owned business ecosystem and property ownership!” Forward 4th Avenue. This is where the race started & finished.

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MLK Day 5K Drum Run Birmingham AL
Birmingham, Alabama USA
Saturday 14 January 2023

Chip Time – 56:00.6
Gun Time – 56:56.2
Pace 18:02

Place – 307 of 330
Division Place, Female 60 to 69 – 12th of 12
Division Place, Female – 155 of 172

The Race

Less than one hour! Good time for starting at the back & taking a potty break. Tea might not have been the best pre-race choice, but the warm was lovely.

No medal pic because once again too slow to get this year’s medal. Management broke out the medals from last year so us turtles would not go home empty-handed. I’ve ended up with overstock at other races. Shrug. Of course I’d like a medal. I’ve mentioned how I feel about ribbons and the like. However, this is the possible downside of choosing the tourist option.

No self timing. I took whatever official time turned out to be. When I wondered how far I had gone, I checked my phone & figured from there.

As previously, no pics of drummers because privacy & kids.

The Walk

This is my favorite 5K.

One. The course goes through the part of Birmingham where they keep the tall buildings so it has more of a city feel.

Two. The soundtrack! Drummers are staged around the course: drumlines from local schools, a church group, a professional drum bands. Lots of different kinds of drums & drumming.

I don’t know why every runner in Birmingham isn’t there. Maybe if you run it goes by too fast. At my pace, it is wonderful. Except for a short dead spot in the outback of the course, there is continuous music. Just as the sound from one group fades you start to hear the next.

There is a link to 2021 audio on the race website.

As I have noticed in my last few long walks, I have a definite gear change between mile 1 and mile 1.5, when my system switches from the daily mile to the 3.17 miles of a 5K. At approximately 20 minutes, I hit the slightest of walls. This was when I looked at the time. I figured I had gone about a mile. I was hearing a lot of complaints. Are we done yet? Why aren’t we done yet? Oh, one of those days. And off I went.

Paying for my free drink with airtime.

Previous Posts

[Traipsing With A Tempo, Walk Report, MLK Day 5K Drum Run] 2022
[Percussion in the Pasture, Virtual MLK Day 5K Drum Run, Walk Report] 2021
[Strolling To A Soundtrack, Walk Report, MLK Day Drum Run 2020]

Onwards!
Katherine