Both of my horses suddenly have something very wrong with them and need the vet. My FEI dressage horse has a jaw injury and has to be ridden bitless for at least a month, probably more like 3-6, and maybe more like forever. I can't compete bitless because of FEI, USEF, and USDF's rules. He's also nearly unrideable without a bit - and I'd like to say that I have ridden bitless plenty in the past, I firmly believe most horses can do just as well bitless as they can with a bit, and I'm all for riding your horse in whatever tack you want. He's a seriously unusual case. I may have to permanently retire him if he can't come back to bitted work. If he comes back partially, then I'll have to see if my mother wants him. Basically, pretty good chance he might not be my competition horse going forward, and that really, really sucks. He's getting his jaw x-rayed on Monday. I'm hoping I'll get some more information on whether he's going to be able to come back or not. I wish I could just know now so I could make plans for myself and for him instead of just worrying about it. If he's going to have to retire or go to my mom, I want to know now so I can make the proper arrangements and be as fair to him and to myself as possible.

Okay, cool, all that is fine, I also have a three year old, so at least I'm not out of a horse to ride, right? I thought so too. Said three year old's back legs are all swollen up, and the vet suspects some kind of structural problem with his pasterns leading to joint damage. He's getting flexions and x-rays done on Monday so we can see what we're really dealing with. I've ridden him once. He's not being pushed too hard. He literally spends all of his time in a field just being a baby. He was supposed to be my next FEI horse. If this is bad, then I don't know what I'm going to do. I'm trying not to get too carried away too quickly, but I do not like hearing "joint damage" and "tendon swelling" in the same sentence as "three year old". Ooooh boy is Monday ever going to be rough.

I don't know what it is with vet bill storms. It's never just one thing, and horses are literally the worst about coming up with random issues. I don't understand how this many things could be going this degree of wrong all at once, and I'm fully convinced that horses break if you breathe at them wrong. Please cross your fingers for answers about my FEI horse and a "oh, we were worried over nothing!" result about my three year old so I don't have a full on nervous breakdown or something. This is just not my week.

Hey, that's sounds really tough. My horse is currently lame right now and has been on boxrest for 2 weeks so far. He just came out the field one morning broken. My horse has tripped and fell hard on his legs and was fine (this was a few years ago), but when he goes out to play in a field his leg is messed?! I'm so sorry about all of your issues and I'm hoping that they are getting better and the vet fees won't be too much <3

Thank you. They're seriously so fragile. Vetting was today, and it was hard to hear. My competition horse's results were mixed, but ultimately he's probably on the mend. Sending the results to a radiologist for some more information. I'm grateful, but it sounds like his recovery is definitely going to be on the long end, and we might be looking at a rubber bit in the future, which is not a great solution with a 16.3 hand freight train x giraffe with little to no regard for the fragility of human limbs. I'm not too upset, though. At least I know he's improved in some regards, and that means he'll be feeling more comfortable, which is obviously the most important thing.

The three year old, though... That didn't go so well. He's okay and his x-rays actually looked much, much better than everyone expected with no significant findings. However, based on some other stuff that came up in the exam, the vet thinks he's very likely to injure himself if I push him to grand prix in the future. I'm an ambitious rider, and I bought him to be my future grand prix horse. I'm not the kind of rider who's willing to take a risk at the potential expense of my horse. He might be fine at the upper levels, but I'm not willing to push it with him because I don't want to hurt him. I have to be kind and fair to my horse. I have to sell him. I want him to be in a home where he's treated well and can be successful, and I want him to make someone very happy. I know there's going to be someone out there who will enjoy him and not want to compete at grand prix with him. This is the first baby I've brought along all by myself, and he's so bonded to me. I don't know quite how to feel about this yet. It's sad, but I know this is the right thing to do for him and for me. Sometimes being an equestrian is just really, really hard.

Im so sorry, this sounds like such a hard situation to be in :(

Im not sure if its in your budget to keep your three year old and not compete in upper levels with him?

I hope your horse recovers and you are able to pursue your dreams.

<3

Unfortunately, it absolutely is not. I live in an area where board is sky high, even just to have them living in a pasture 24/7. Furthermore, I'm currently working and in school. I don't have land, and that's not going to be in the cards for quite a while.

Even if I did have the money, I think I would still sell him because this horse really wants a job. He's one of the types that wants to work all day every day. I have to stop him because he's not mature enough yet. I don't think it would be fair to him for me to keep him and have him end up as a lower priority. I'm going to need to find a new prospect, and I simply wouldn't have time to work him if I had two other horses (which I definitely wouldn't be able to afford anyway). He's still a super nice, fancy horse who will be right for someone. I just don't think it's an ideal situation for him to stay with me, financially or in terms of his welfare.

I was never planning on selling this horse because I figured that even if he washed out of training, he would probably still be best off with me. However, based on how he's matured and what kind of a horse he is, I think he'd be better off sold to someone who can focus on him. It's a hard decision, but it's the right one for him, and the only one I can really afford if I want to continue moving forward with my riding. I never want to sell a horse unless I think it's in their best interests. In this case, I really think it is.