No news is not good news

I have not posted in awhile because the mild lameness Blu has been gradually showing for quite awhile blew up last weekend. I was doing his warm up routine on the lunge and he was looking pretty good when all of a sudden the front wheels fell of the bus! He was so lame so fast tears sprang to my eyes. I walked him for a bit and he did improve some but it did not go entirely away. I had a vet look at him last week and low and behold he has a problem in his front feet especially his right front and in his back (probably a result of his foot problem). I will have him shod tomorrow by a new farrier recommended by the vet. This is all very nerve wracking but I am hanging on the vet's good feelings about fixing this problem.

Changing my vet and farrier was not an easy decision but after my previous vet told me that I was being "too picky" about his soundness, I knew I would need to make a change. It is interesting that the new vet wanted to block his feet to help diagnose his problem and my old vet never even thought about doing it. As soon as he was blocked he improved. She also x-rayed his back which my previous vet never thought of doing. He has two areas on his spine that are "kissing" but she feels these will improve with the shoeing and some rehab.

So long story short, it will probably take a couple of shoeings to correct the problem. This being the case Blu and I will not be competing anytime too soon. This is all very frustrating and it really has been difficult to accept that this man made problem has been festering for some time under my watch. I am grateful I am on the right track now and remain hopeful the damage can be rectified. Otherwise, I will have the most beautiful pasture pet. One lesson I have learned is that I need to trust what I know and feel is right and stop listening to others even when they are vets and farriers.