Starting down the natural path

Looking back, maybe it was an omen. Two days after bringing Francesca to her new home, she came in from the pasture with a nasty overreach injury to her left front pastern. It was bad enough knowing that she hadn't made any friends on her first day, but an injury just wasn't something I was prepared for as a new mom.

The pasture that May was very muddy in certain spots and maybe Francesca, in an effort to make a quick getaway from an unwelcoming herd member, had slipped and caught a hoof. It wouldn't be the last time she would show up with a mysterious scratch or dent. But this being the first time, and me being a naive and protective mom, I was mortified.

The vet came out and determined it didn't need stitches (more likely it was too late by then) and suggested I apply some Fura-Zone ointment and a bandage for the next few days. So I learned how to wrap a leg. And instead of riding my new horse, I changed her bandage and watched her convalesce in the pasture with her new buddy, Skylar. No stall rest for this girl - Francesca told me early on that she was not happy in a stall. So she became a 24/7 pasture horse that first week and the change in her attitude was like night and day.

It seemed to take forever for Francesca's wound to heal. I discovered that something called "proud flesh" was a common side effect to the healing process. So I sprinkled some sort of powder in with the ointment in hopes of fending off this potential hazard. Later, I ditched them both for an herbal tincture that Shelly had recommended. After battling the ankle-deep mud with new bandages every day, I finally gave up and just turned Francesca out without the wrap. Which is probably what I should have done earlier on.

Eventually, Francesca's wound did heal over, and today the only evidence is a small spot where the hairs grow in a different pattern. A little reminder of how much I've learned about holistic alternatives since those first few days.

The picture in this post is of Francesca (foreground) and Skylar, May 2005. Skylar had picked Francesca to be on his team that second day in the pasture, and they were inseparable from then on. I've never again seen a bond quite like the one they had. They were clearly in love, practically sharing the same blades of grass as they grazed side by side on those early summer days.