What is Going On?
It has been a long time since my mom and I have sat down to talk about the blog. A lot has been going on very fast. Since the last entry Skittles had his first serious medical problem. One night my mom and I went out to the barn so I could ride and when we got Skittles from his stall we saw that his eye was completely swollen shut. My mom had some antibiotic ointment for the eye and immediately put it in and cleaned it up as much as possible. His eye was runny and he looked like it really hurt. The next morning my mom called the vet and immediately had them come out to take a look. The antibiotic cream my mom put in helped some but you could tell it really hurt. The vet said the tearing and blinking indicated that it was hurting and immediately gave him Banamine to help with the pain. She then did a “stain”. A stain is when they put a yellowish liquid in the eye and then shine a light on the eye to look for scratches. The vet showed my mom and me that Skittles had an “ulcer” that was pretty big on the cornea of his eye. The vet said it could be very serious and that it required treating the scratch four times a day for a week. She also said Skittles had to stay in a dark stall because the light outside would make it hurt more. For almost two weeks we had to keep Skittles on stall rest. I was not able to ride at all. Some girls have practice ponies but I only have Skittles so it was difficult not to ride.
After all of the medicines were completed the vet came back to check on his eye and gave us the good news that the scratch was completely healed but that he still needed to stay out of the sunlight as much as possible and wear a fly mask while working in the ring and anytime he was outside. My mom was really nervous because we were only a few days from the NCHJA “AA” show in Raleigh and we had very little time to get ready.
On the Sunday before everyone arrived in Raleigh for the big show Skittles and I went to see Harold Chopping for a lesson and evaluation. After working with us for an hour and a half Harold said he thought Skittles was ready. With that good news, we packed up our things on Monday and arrived at the fairgrounds on Tuesday with Skittles. We wanted to give him time to settle in his stall. On Wednesday night I met up with Harold for a lesson before my classes on Thursday and Friday. Everything seemed fine and we had a good lesson. Skittles was a little fresh but Harold said that was too be expected with all that had gone on the weeks before the show.
On Thursday my mom had to work and so it was just me and my dad. My dad does not know a lot about horses but he tried. My mom knows how to get me and Skittles ready and calmed down before our classes so I was really missing having her there. Also, usually I have Jenn at the in gate coaching me but because she had her baby she was unable to be with me. Instead, Harold helped me out. The first day was alright but Skittles was really fast and Harold said he was a bit fresh. I felt a little out of sorts without my mom to help. We have certainly had better days showing.
On Friday, my mom was at the show and things started off a whole lot better. She made sure that Skittles was ready and we did our normal routine that we always do at shows. I felt pretty good. Harold met us at the in gate and I looked over my rounds. Right from the start when we entered the ring Skittles became spooked at the announcers stand. Our round was going pretty good and he was slow like he should have been until we came around a corner and the water truck was coming. Skittles got caught off guard and we missed the jump. I made a circle and continued our course. In our second round everything went fine except near the end on our last line he broke to a trot and it took a few steps before I got him to canter again.
After the classes were over, my mom and Harold talked about putting us in Schooling pony as a way just to get some more practice in the ring. Harold thought it would be good for Skittles just to go around since he had been out of training and showing for a while. Well, things did not go so good. I actually fell off when he stopped at the same jump he missed earlier that day. It just was not the day for Skittles. After our great show at Greensboro it was very shocking. Harold called up Don Stewart and asked if one of his students could ride Skittles. He did wonderful for the girl and even did lead changes easily. Harold and Jenn said it was probably just all that had been going on the past weeks and that neither of us were ready for the show, but my mom said she had made a decision. She told Jenn she wanted me to have a new pony.
Skittles and I have been through a lot together and I love him very much. He is my very first pony. We learned to do the Walk Trot Division together and then he was the king of the Young Entry Division. We won lots and lots of ribbons and made a great team. We learned all of those things together but my mom says now we have come to a point were we both need someone different. My mom and Jenn said I need a pony that will allow me to focus on my equitation and that will be a teacher to me. She says I need a pony that will now give me the miles I need to move to the next level. My mom and Jenn know that now Skittles needs a more experienced rider to give him the confidence he needs. He needs a rider that knows how to properly set him up for his lead changes and who knows how to bring out his best. He needs a little older rider who is looking for a green small pony.
Skittles is my best friend and my mom and dad love him too. We all cried. My mom said it was breaking her heart to let him go. It is breaking my heart too. He is the best pony I could have had. I hope that Skittles will find a home where he will be loved like I have loved him and I hope I will still get to see him sometimes. My mom says part of horseshowing is moving on even when it is sad. Harold said the same thing. He told me there will be lots of ponies and horses in my life. No matter how many come and go I will always have a special little place in my heart for Skittles.
Skittles and I will continue to train together while Jenn finds the next pony for me. We have a lesson this weekend in Southern Pines. It will be hard to go out and work with Skittles knowing that we will not be horse showing together anymore. I wonder if Skittles will know how sad I am? I also wonder what my next pony will be like and what great things we will do together? I hope the new pony and I will have as many good times as Skittles and I did.
