Whew! It's Better

Things are better today. Horses are frisky, and the breeze is blowing. The insects have momentarily gone wherever they go when the humidity dies down. I haven’t been able to bring myself to write anything for the last few days because it was so unbearably hot and miserable around here. Yesterday, I lost count of how many times I hosed off the girls. I just knew I had to grit my teeth and push on through, even though every person and animal in my life was so cranky.

I am very grateful that I have a smart, kind vet. After discussing Silk’s allergic reactions, we came up with a course of treatment. We started her on prednisolone for a short time to just break the itch cycle, since it’s systemic and has gotten so severe. I’ve ordered all kinds of salves, herbs, belly bands for fly sheets and other good suggestions that I’ve received from so many of you. I really appreciate your help and concern. I’m exploring homeopathic remedies and local practitioners. Best of all, after only four doses of medication, Silk is so much better.

I explained to my horse that she was going to have to take a lot of these little pills to make things better and asked her to not make it difficult for me. After mixing the pills with molasses, I dumped them in her feed and kept my fingers crossed that she’d eat them. She did without any hesitation. Next time I fed them to her, I reminded her that these are going to be what makes her stop itching. She just wolfed them right down. Thank God.

There’s a book, “Butterflies on a Sea Wind”, written by Anne Rudloe, that was given to me by a friend. Interestingly, Linda Kohanov also mentions it in “Way of the Horse”. Rudloe says, “Life is about being whole regardless of what happens. It’s about a deep well-being that persists though we might not be comfortable at the moment.” I knew, even in the worst part of yesterday, that if I just put my head down and kept moving forward, things would get better. There will be bad times again. Things could even get worse. Really, other than being annoying and uncomfortable, we're all basically fine. This week-end the forecast calls for more of this difficult hot weather. Hey, it’s only weather. I laugh at my friends who sit in their air-conditioned offices and homes and complain non-stop about it. Then, I go out and muck the barn, hose the horses, make sure they are drinking water and carry on.