Bonnie has done readings for us on most of our horses and all of them have been really good but this was the first time we had a specific problem and went to her for help.
I didn't want to tell her anything that would influence the reading so I told her nothing other than which horse it was and the basic details she needed to get started.
The first thing she said was "oh my....this poor horse is in terrible, terrible pain. He hurts all over his body, his neck and back are all messed up and out of whack and sore but all he can focus on is his mouth and how much it is hurting him."
She continued assessing his physical condition and was trying to get the horse to tell her what had happened to him but all he wanted her to know was about his mouth and teeth and over and over all Bonnie said "no matter how fast he ran he couldn't get away from the pain (his mouth). Finally I had to explain what had gone on so that she wouldn't think we were beating or mistreating the poor horse.
I'll try not to go into a ton of detail or make this too long because this is really about Bonnie and her readings but need to tell enough for everyone to understand what happened and you never know - it might help someone in a similar situation. At a show a few weeks ago something just wasn't right with one of our B horses and I felt he was crabby and out of sorts and he kept messing around with the bit and opening his mouth. His cavesson was pretty loose so we tightened it right before I went into the ring for a pleasure class. (you will learn later that he was opening his mouth to avoid the pain and when I tightened the cavesson he couldn't open his mouth anymore and that was when the trouble began) Halfway around the ring he totally spooked at something (I thought) and just bolted on me. We were about to crash into the driver in front of us so I hauled hard left on the reins (note to others: at a gallop in a cart - not a good idea) the cart flipped and I bounced and skidded out and hit the other driver anyway but just with my body not my horse and cart. The horse left the arena at a full speed gallop because the gate wasn't closed yet and he slipped and skidded on concrete, ran headfirst into a metal pole, got up and continued through the barn down the aisles (pulling the cart he still managed to avoid hitting anyone or anything) , out of the barn, into the parking lot and then came back to our stalls in the barn and thankfully stopped. It is a miracle on so many levels that he wasn't seriously hurt and that he didn't hurt anyone else during all of this. I went off to the hospital and he was treated by the emergency vet. We both came out of it ok just lots of bumps and bruises and scrapes (another note to self: think twice about wearing a skimpy strappy gown next time if I think this could happen again. My arm and back were totally skinned up and had serious "road rash").
The next week I drove him every day at home without any problems so I thought it was just a freak thing.
We went to another show and he was fine most of the day but a little jumpy and still not himself. In roadster it happened again. I'd already decided I just wanted to play it safe and have an uneventful class so when they called for "drive on" I did nothing to push him and planned to keep him at road gait. He must have stiffened or clamped down on the bit because he knows what "drive on" means and off we went. The other drivers immediately moved their horses inside and stopped and at a full out gallop we circled the ring FOUR times on the rail. It was a big arena too. I was determined to get the situation under control and slow him down and stop him but he was just going faster and faster. I stayed calm, I was talking to him, working the reins, trying everything I could think of. I even tried to slow him down Fred Flintstone style by putting my heel down and dragging it in the arena sand (remember, it was roadster so I didn't have the basket on the cart - in retrospect I don't recommend trying that one). There were people in the ring trying to block him and grab him as he flew past and he just kept going until someone stepped in front of him and blocked his path and he veered inside toward the judges pavillion and tried to skid to a stop because we were about to crash into the pavillion and this time everything flipped and rolled........the horse, the cart and me. I saw him going over too and I knew he'd be tangled up and as soon as I hit the ground I scrambled to him and got on his neck to hold him down until we could get him free. Thankfully quite a few people were right there within seconds and just jumped right in helping hold him down, unhitch him and getting the cart back upright.
So getting back to Bonnie........we got him home and in addition to getting a detailed check up by a vet we decided to have Bonnie do a reading to see if she could help too. I'd gotten a lot of advice about how to "deal" with him and had been told all sorts of things about maybe him developing a behavior or an attitude problem or being sour but I was willing to try a number of things before we decided what to do.
Now remember the horse "told" Bonnie no matter how fast he ran he couldn't get away from the pain and discomfort in his mouth. Well Bonnie gave us a lot of specific info regarding his mouth condition and also his aches and pains in his neck and back. Within a day or so we had his teeth checked and he saw a chiropractor. Sure enough he had developed major, major issues in his mouth and had teeth growing longer on one side of his mouth because his jaw/teeth don't totally line up and He had pointy razor sharp edges worn in various places that had caused ulcers inside his mouth and obviously driving and a bit in his mouth would be painful. I couldn't believe he'd put up with it for this long. He ended up having some MAJOR dental work done that same week. Bonnie had also pinpointed painful areas of his neck and back and the chiropractor found problems and said he was out of alignment in the same exact spots (I didn't tell him anything about Bonnie) and he did some serious adjustments on him and you could see right away how much better and relieved he felt. With all the dental work and the need for the sores in his mouth to heal he won't be driving for a long time but he seems to be feeling pretty good and seems more happy and relaxed than he has been in a long time.
The reason for posting this is to ask those that have a horse displaying bad or crazy behavior to look for an underlying reason rather than just deciding the horse is rotten or worthless or sour or a mistake. I think sometimes that happens and then horses get passed from hand to hand getting rougher and rougher treatment and methods used on them. Meanwhile the horse could be suffering from something that could be easily taken care of with the right medical help.
Bonnie did a follow up reading a week or so later to see how he was feeling and here is exactly what she had to say:
Scanning him now. his mouth is WOW (what a difference!) a tiny tiny bit of discomfort on HIS left side second tooth back on top also still discomfort on his top on HIS right side half way back. I will do him again for you say next Monday and expect it to be gone by then but feel its important to wait til he is PAIN FREE, as he will still expect it to hurt so be gentle with him the first half dozen drives. Remember this is huge for him as he now associates the harness with pain.
But I will explain to him what has gone on as I am sure you have as well.
This is so great what a difference!
To share other bits and pieces from the reading that you may find interesting.....The horse told Bonnie he wanted to be called by a different name. We were told that by this horse the first time Bonnie did a reading on him at nationals and we didn't change to the name he wanted because we already had a horse with that same name. I asked Bonnie how to handle that and she said change both horses names - the other horse doesn't care and will know his new name within a week. Bonnie asked what else we wanted to know and I asked if the horse wanted to ask or tell us anything or if there was anything he wanted to know.
He asked why the little girl didn't sing to him anymore (found out later that my daughter goes out to the barn and when she is alone she is always singing to him but that she hadn't done it lately because she has been busy). He likes when she does it and wants her to continue.
He also very much wanted to know why the "green tomatoes" tasted bad.
I was totally confused about that one until I was telling my kids about it and found out that at the last show we'd been at that we ordered pizzas and in each pizza box was a whole jalepeno pepper and that my four year old thought it was a green apple and fed it to the poor horse and the kids didn't want to tell me. Can you imagine? The poor horse.
Putting aside the jalepeno incident I was relieved and happy to learn that the horse was happy and content with our family and that he felt safe and loved and appreciated and was grateful we helped his mouth feel better.
Bonnie also said when he bolted that he wasn't even thinking about me being in the cart or being in danger and with the blinkers on didn't see what happened to me. For him it was just all about the horrible pain in his mouth and trying to escape it.
I just want to add that we DO have our horses teeth checked on a regular basis because minis in particular are known for having dental problems and it is always important to keep that in mind and keep your horses UTD. We just got him last year and he was due to be checked this month which was our regular schedule and we would have discovered the problems during the exam, but the accidents happened first. I wasn't using a fancy or harsh bit or anything either, just a simple gentle non-pinch snaffle bit.
I did ask Bonnie to make it very clear to him that the whole bolting thing is unacceptable and that if he ever has a problem or feels pain again to stop and refuse to move and that I promise I will figure it out and help him. Just please, please no more runaway stuff. :no:
I'm in no rush at all to drive him again - I've got other really good driving horses to focus on - so we will let him take time and heal up and hopefully mentally get over it all too. He has been doing really well in jumper and hunter this year and in-hand with the kids in halter and showmanship so he still has other things to do if we keep showing him. We did leave him home from a show after the dental work was done and when we left he was standing alone at the fence watching us leave and looked so sad and depressed that I think he still really enjoys showing and didn't like being left home.
I didn't want to tell her anything that would influence the reading so I told her nothing other than which horse it was and the basic details she needed to get started.
The first thing she said was "oh my....this poor horse is in terrible, terrible pain. He hurts all over his body, his neck and back are all messed up and out of whack and sore but all he can focus on is his mouth and how much it is hurting him."
She continued assessing his physical condition and was trying to get the horse to tell her what had happened to him but all he wanted her to know was about his mouth and teeth and over and over all Bonnie said "no matter how fast he ran he couldn't get away from the pain (his mouth). Finally I had to explain what had gone on so that she wouldn't think we were beating or mistreating the poor horse.
I'll try not to go into a ton of detail or make this too long because this is really about Bonnie and her readings but need to tell enough for everyone to understand what happened and you never know - it might help someone in a similar situation. At a show a few weeks ago something just wasn't right with one of our B horses and I felt he was crabby and out of sorts and he kept messing around with the bit and opening his mouth. His cavesson was pretty loose so we tightened it right before I went into the ring for a pleasure class. (you will learn later that he was opening his mouth to avoid the pain and when I tightened the cavesson he couldn't open his mouth anymore and that was when the trouble began) Halfway around the ring he totally spooked at something (I thought) and just bolted on me. We were about to crash into the driver in front of us so I hauled hard left on the reins (note to others: at a gallop in a cart - not a good idea) the cart flipped and I bounced and skidded out and hit the other driver anyway but just with my body not my horse and cart. The horse left the arena at a full speed gallop because the gate wasn't closed yet and he slipped and skidded on concrete, ran headfirst into a metal pole, got up and continued through the barn down the aisles (pulling the cart he still managed to avoid hitting anyone or anything) , out of the barn, into the parking lot and then came back to our stalls in the barn and thankfully stopped. It is a miracle on so many levels that he wasn't seriously hurt and that he didn't hurt anyone else during all of this. I went off to the hospital and he was treated by the emergency vet. We both came out of it ok just lots of bumps and bruises and scrapes (another note to self: think twice about wearing a skimpy strappy gown next time if I think this could happen again. My arm and back were totally skinned up and had serious "road rash").
The next week I drove him every day at home without any problems so I thought it was just a freak thing.
We went to another show and he was fine most of the day but a little jumpy and still not himself. In roadster it happened again. I'd already decided I just wanted to play it safe and have an uneventful class so when they called for "drive on" I did nothing to push him and planned to keep him at road gait. He must have stiffened or clamped down on the bit because he knows what "drive on" means and off we went. The other drivers immediately moved their horses inside and stopped and at a full out gallop we circled the ring FOUR times on the rail. It was a big arena too. I was determined to get the situation under control and slow him down and stop him but he was just going faster and faster. I stayed calm, I was talking to him, working the reins, trying everything I could think of. I even tried to slow him down Fred Flintstone style by putting my heel down and dragging it in the arena sand (remember, it was roadster so I didn't have the basket on the cart - in retrospect I don't recommend trying that one). There were people in the ring trying to block him and grab him as he flew past and he just kept going until someone stepped in front of him and blocked his path and he veered inside toward the judges pavillion and tried to skid to a stop because we were about to crash into the pavillion and this time everything flipped and rolled........the horse, the cart and me. I saw him going over too and I knew he'd be tangled up and as soon as I hit the ground I scrambled to him and got on his neck to hold him down until we could get him free. Thankfully quite a few people were right there within seconds and just jumped right in helping hold him down, unhitch him and getting the cart back upright.
So getting back to Bonnie........we got him home and in addition to getting a detailed check up by a vet we decided to have Bonnie do a reading to see if she could help too. I'd gotten a lot of advice about how to "deal" with him and had been told all sorts of things about maybe him developing a behavior or an attitude problem or being sour but I was willing to try a number of things before we decided what to do.
Now remember the horse "told" Bonnie no matter how fast he ran he couldn't get away from the pain and discomfort in his mouth. Well Bonnie gave us a lot of specific info regarding his mouth condition and also his aches and pains in his neck and back. Within a day or so we had his teeth checked and he saw a chiropractor. Sure enough he had developed major, major issues in his mouth and had teeth growing longer on one side of his mouth because his jaw/teeth don't totally line up and He had pointy razor sharp edges worn in various places that had caused ulcers inside his mouth and obviously driving and a bit in his mouth would be painful. I couldn't believe he'd put up with it for this long. He ended up having some MAJOR dental work done that same week. Bonnie had also pinpointed painful areas of his neck and back and the chiropractor found problems and said he was out of alignment in the same exact spots (I didn't tell him anything about Bonnie) and he did some serious adjustments on him and you could see right away how much better and relieved he felt. With all the dental work and the need for the sores in his mouth to heal he won't be driving for a long time but he seems to be feeling pretty good and seems more happy and relaxed than he has been in a long time.
The reason for posting this is to ask those that have a horse displaying bad or crazy behavior to look for an underlying reason rather than just deciding the horse is rotten or worthless or sour or a mistake. I think sometimes that happens and then horses get passed from hand to hand getting rougher and rougher treatment and methods used on them. Meanwhile the horse could be suffering from something that could be easily taken care of with the right medical help.
Bonnie did a follow up reading a week or so later to see how he was feeling and here is exactly what she had to say:
Scanning him now. his mouth is WOW (what a difference!) a tiny tiny bit of discomfort on HIS left side second tooth back on top also still discomfort on his top on HIS right side half way back. I will do him again for you say next Monday and expect it to be gone by then but feel its important to wait til he is PAIN FREE, as he will still expect it to hurt so be gentle with him the first half dozen drives. Remember this is huge for him as he now associates the harness with pain.
But I will explain to him what has gone on as I am sure you have as well.
This is so great what a difference!
To share other bits and pieces from the reading that you may find interesting.....The horse told Bonnie he wanted to be called by a different name. We were told that by this horse the first time Bonnie did a reading on him at nationals and we didn't change to the name he wanted because we already had a horse with that same name. I asked Bonnie how to handle that and she said change both horses names - the other horse doesn't care and will know his new name within a week. Bonnie asked what else we wanted to know and I asked if the horse wanted to ask or tell us anything or if there was anything he wanted to know.
He asked why the little girl didn't sing to him anymore (found out later that my daughter goes out to the barn and when she is alone she is always singing to him but that she hadn't done it lately because she has been busy). He likes when she does it and wants her to continue.
He also very much wanted to know why the "green tomatoes" tasted bad.
I was totally confused about that one until I was telling my kids about it and found out that at the last show we'd been at that we ordered pizzas and in each pizza box was a whole jalepeno pepper and that my four year old thought it was a green apple and fed it to the poor horse and the kids didn't want to tell me. Can you imagine? The poor horse.
Putting aside the jalepeno incident I was relieved and happy to learn that the horse was happy and content with our family and that he felt safe and loved and appreciated and was grateful we helped his mouth feel better.
Bonnie also said when he bolted that he wasn't even thinking about me being in the cart or being in danger and with the blinkers on didn't see what happened to me. For him it was just all about the horrible pain in his mouth and trying to escape it.
I just want to add that we DO have our horses teeth checked on a regular basis because minis in particular are known for having dental problems and it is always important to keep that in mind and keep your horses UTD. We just got him last year and he was due to be checked this month which was our regular schedule and we would have discovered the problems during the exam, but the accidents happened first. I wasn't using a fancy or harsh bit or anything either, just a simple gentle non-pinch snaffle bit.
I did ask Bonnie to make it very clear to him that the whole bolting thing is unacceptable and that if he ever has a problem or feels pain again to stop and refuse to move and that I promise I will figure it out and help him. Just please, please no more runaway stuff. :no:
I'm in no rush at all to drive him again - I've got other really good driving horses to focus on - so we will let him take time and heal up and hopefully mentally get over it all too. He has been doing really well in jumper and hunter this year and in-hand with the kids in halter and showmanship so he still has other things to do if we keep showing him. We did leave him home from a show after the dental work was done and when we left he was standing alone at the fence watching us leave and looked so sad and depressed that I think he still really enjoys showing and didn't like being left home.
