The Lupine Certainly Stole the Show at Folsom Lake

No sun?
No problem!

Even with heavy clouds the Lupine were outrageous at 7 am. Folsom Lake 2021

BAD NEVEL

 This horse is exasperating at times!

A .5 mile stroll down the lane to the gate that opens near Browns ravine trail

Munch some luscious green grass on the way.

Freak out at a crazy hollering mad cow that is galloping across a field screaming for

Her calf-who by the way is ignoring her and playing with another calf.

Refuse to stand for mounting and charge around me-multiple times, lunged in circles,

Charges around and freaks out at a man in the cow pasture-

Ok, I’m exhausted and have walked another .6 miles, mostly in circles.

Finally stands nicely for mounting then has a lovely excursion on Monte Vista trails, Salmon Creek and Browns Ravine for 6 miles. 😳🙄

South Fork American River

One of few places where I didn’t see people!  Everyone and there brother seemed to be out hiking and exploring the hidden bridge area.

So Beautiful today though!

Spring Break

 Not really,

But it felt like Spring!  60 degrees.

2020 sure was a bust and the worst part was my daddy passing away  in NC on Christmas Day!  😕

This past Saturday I made several attempts to fly to Seattle To see family but was thwarted by a massive winter storm and repeated flight Cancelations.

So instead, on Sunday I took myself to Fallen Leaf Lake and did 5 miles of snowshoeing.  It was a most gloomy day to match my continued depressed mood.

This guy cleared his picnic table and was quite happy about it.

West Shore@ Lake Tahoe

Picnic Table at Fallen Leaf Lake

 I decided to play hooky from work today to catch some Vit. D.
Maybe like spring break!
Besides I was supposed to be in WA anyway.

Horseplay today  the trails mostly dry but very slippery 
In a few downhill spots

Dennis the Menace 😆

Natural Christmas Decor on the Trail

And then THIS happened

 Why is it that people don’t DO  what they SAY they will do?

Why not just be honest?

Or maybe you are older and your memory is failing?

People at the barn felt sorry for Persee because he was being tortured by flies.  They asked if they could put a fly mask on him..and actually did even tho I had said no!  It really isn’t worth it.  The mask is continually found trodden in the dirt.

Fly spray, roll on, SWAT, equi spot-nothing worked...and then he developed an oozing wound on his belly from fly bites.

Well here he actually has it protected with straw and dirt

After cleaning

After application of Well Horse.

 One of the gals even applied Silver Spray on it.

I asked the barn over if she thought he needed a vet prior to this and she had said no (I was in North Carolina at the time and had asked her -after she volunteered, to keep an eye on it And she said she would treat him daily.  I also agreed to pay her and told her where to find my medical supplies.

It was during this time that another boarder took a picture and texted it to me-open and bloody with flies and BEES ON IT!!!

I WANTED TO CRY!  I felt helpless and would not be home for another 5 days.  She gave a contact for another boarder willing to help me.  This gal was an angel sent from heaven.  I immediately called the barn owner and let her know someone else would be taking care of Persee

She treated it every day for me and sent me updates.  After I returned home she alternated days with me.

I asked her about the barn owner-she shook her head, not wanting to say too much except-“don’t depend on her to follow-through on anything.“

We thought it was getting better,  then it opened up again while I was in the Eastern Sierra for a week.

On return I called the vet out.

Dr. Howard from Loomis Basin decided it was a Summer Sore and proceeded to sedate Persee and scrape all of the granulated tissue from the wound.  It was then injected with lots of steroids to help knock out the inflammatory process.

Sorry!  I don’t know why this pics load sideways and upside down...can’t seem to change it!!!  Grrr!

Sedated

After being scraped

Persee gets a fly sheet with belly band

Nevel got one too but it was’nt long before he had it upside down...so he only wore his two days.  Persee ripped big holes in his by the third day but the belly band still works!  

Two weeks later a vet was out again for shots, sheath and teeth work and also gave Persee another injection of steroids in his wound.  It seems to be healing some...Agha so I’ve dropped my treatment visits back to every other morning.  That 35-40 min drive was really getting old at 6:30 a.m. everyday!

And I found a fly mask that seems to stay on longer than the usual kind as it has several buckles like a halter, but even with that he gets it off and Sue and Jocelyn help keep an eye on that too seen he had fly larvae in his eyes that the vet scraped out also!

Cool weather. PLEASE COME SOON and kill these flies and bees!!!

It’s hard work floating teeth when you have to stand on your head! 🙄

...where was I?

 Oh yeah...

No riding...AGAIN!!!

Well ya know-then there was Covid-I’m in the medical Management field-means long hours at work!

Ugha! One day a week with the horses, one day hiking.  The rest working, working, working in chaos!

And oh....did I mention Covid....Covid...Covid, depression and hot/scorching temps in the Valley?

Soooo I had some great 6-10 mile  hikes to Pallisades Creek Trail, Loch Leven Lakes,Twin Lakes, Showers lake & Winnemucca lake @ Carson Pass X 2-awesome wild flowers! Awesome scenery.  The summer zipped by and included a visit to see my ailing dad in N.C.  That trip also included being on the Outer Banks on Duck for 2.5 days and had the hurricane just miss us by about 5 miles...it just hooked around, headed north an hit my brother and son instead! 

My sister and I were lucky enough to catch a glimpse of the wild horses in the dunes on Duck.