Sat. Misc.

With warmer weather finally here, thoughts do pass through the horse person's mind as to arrival of the seasons first "FLY".

I was floored this year to spot a horse fly about 2/15 between near zero degree days when it reached about 40 degrees f.  Next fly?  On 3/15 and 75 degrees f the thought was just going through my head when I walked to back of my truck, and sitting there on the pressed alfalfa bale, voila, a whole family of them.  Enlarge the vid.  The little black dots are, well, baby flies.  Apparently the little fellows chose that spot to sun themselves, or possibly they emerged out of the alfalfa and were so stunned at the weather they were unable to move.  At any rate, we're fearing fly season just around the corner.

In the #148 injury dept. here is the front left heel bulb on 3/15.  Good news and bad.  This will probably be sufficiently healed to gallop through sand in Tulsa, OK hopefully by about tax day.  And, the bad news:

Part of this injury affected the coronet band -- lower right heel the separation of the hoof wall shows--u can see the black between the horn and the sole.  There's no hoof wall growing in that area because the hoof is without a coronet band in that area.  Worry!

#148 freshly shod front left with Thoro'bred #7 level grips.  Pretty decent job if I do say so considering the horrible muddy conditions we're shoeing in.  And, that the horses have retained all of their shoes, and yet to have an abscess in all this mud--testament to the shoer and so I will take a bow and knock on wood since it's raining buckets as this is being typed.

Training.  Since 2/25 fast riderless works every two or three days.  The 3/15 work was the first of the year in dry conditions, and also thus the fastest.  Horses really motored for 4 x 2f.  Even the warm up was fast.  Too dark to ride when this was all done.  Got to get back on 'em!