After a great clear round last weekend at Larkhill I entered Soap for another hunter trial at West Wilts. He loves his XC and I thought the 1m class there would be good prep for our last event of the season BE100 at Moreton. He warmed up well, and got very excited squeaking and leaping into canter in the start box! He started ok but a little inconsistent rushing and then backing up which felt odd, then he stopped at fences 4 and 5. These fences were on the edge of a little copse, and I wrongly put the stops down to him being spooked by the light/shadow. We carried on round the course but he just didn’t feel right, and in hindsight I should have had the sense to pull him up and retire. I feel disappointed in myself for not realising sooner that something was wrong as he isn’t the type of horse who is naughty and just stops for no reason. I was concerned about what was wrong with him so put a magnotherapy rug on him overnight and called my physio. After discussing all the signs and his behaviour with my physio (who is a very experienced horse woman having represented GB, and with over 10 years experience with racehorses) we came to the conclusion that it sounded like he picked up a virus last weekend which then caused him to tie up. She gave him a full MOT and couldn’t find any damage or tightness as a result of this, and was actually really pleased with how strong and healthy he is looking. I don’t think it’s fair to ask him to event just a week after tying up even if it was only a mild case, so I have withdrawn from Moreton and that brings our season to an end.
It’s not an ideal end to what has been a fantastic season, but it means after a minor blip I still have one happy, healthy, sound horse who can now have a little holiday before I bring him back in to clip him out, and start a winter season of dressage and sjing. I plan to take him to Hoplands XC schooling for a bit of fun when he comes back into work, but for the next month he will be footloose and fancy free in his field, whilst I will be busy with my latest purchase…intrigued?…stay tuned to see the latest addition to Team GHE!…