Nakai’s progress ebbs and flows depending on the day. Last week he looked well: he moved out easily, no hip drop, and had quite a bit of spunk whilst free lunging. However, after a walk (really, a jig) with friends on Sunday he began dropping his hip noticeably again. The worst part is that he feels fine under saddle, so I did not notice until I untacked and free lunged for a few minutes.
We’ve been walking for almost 5 weeks now and just started whispering for trot. The request comes through like a bang, though, and 9/10 times Nakai tries to gallop off from a walk. He tosses his head, gnashes his teeth and groans. He’s terribly bored and determined to launch himself at Mach 5 into anything I ask. After Sunday’s ride it’s obvious he’s not ready for trotting yet… riding with friends is an excitement we can’t afford to have I guess.
Everything I’ve read on SI Joint issues points to most horses never making it back to their normal workload prior to the injury. While the Chiropractor stated that he was better than the first time, I feel it’s taking twice as long to recover and I’m wondering if I should just retire him now. He’ll be “29” in March, although it’s possible he’s even older.
I’m selfishly not ready to retire Nakai. The reduction in work also means my social life has tanked. Between work and Ben I have very little free time as it is, and now I’m unable to ride out with friends. I ride solely by myself, letting Mulder sniff and snoop while Nakai and I walk our loop of boredom for an hour. I can no longer participate in NACMO and my team travels to rides without me. The reality of elderly horses means realistically I knew this would have happened sooner or later; I just didn’t think it would happen at a time when I really, really need the mental escape that riding provides.
The other side to the coin is that I think it’s nearing time to remove Nakai’s right eye. He has been blind for a few years now and the eyeball itself has caused zero issues. He hasn’t had an ERU flare up since going blind. The eye has shrunk and looks more cone-y in appearance than round. The significant issue is that his tears now gather in the corner of his eye rather than traveling down the lid and out. The tears and eye boogies get crusty and I’ve been fighting small, chronic sores on his bottom eyelid for about a year now. While medicine helps heal them, they’ve increased in frequency and are becoming a bother for him.
Ben will be admitted for his stem cell transplant in early January and will spend a minimum of 4 weeks in the hospital. Barring any setbacks, I’m tentatively planning on having Nakai’s eye removed in March. Once the eye is removed, Nakai will have until the beginning of a summer for work. If he does not significantly improve and recover from his SI Joint I will retire him.
That Spotted App 