padame fall update

As you may know, we have been trying to figure out Padame's off/on lameness. In April 2024 she had an MRI. It came back inconclusive. I posted a lameness update in March 2025. As of this date, we are still trying to figure out how to best help Padame with her soreness. Lameness never seems to stop (r)evolving. 

Thankfully, she was able to be shown by her trainer last season. However, Padame required hock injections. If this horrifies you, know leg shots are very common for show horses to be able to repetitively do what they do. Not a big fan of injections in horses, or humans for that matter. It is what it is and comes with the territory. I am not going further into the variety or pro's/con's. I think of them as similar to human's who receive knee/back etc shots. They are intended to help movement be more pain free. No different with active horses. Horse hocks eventually fuze, and these shots are no longer needed. 

The problem is Padame's leg injections were not lasting. She presented sore in a short period of time. For whatever reason, she was not getting the normal length of expected relief from them. Which reveals her soreness is caused by something else.

Fast forward to the visit I mentioned at our trainers. Brad asked me to attend a meeting to discuss Padame's on/off lameness. Our meeting included a horse show friend from years ago. She is a retired small animal surgeon/vet who has been studying equine lameness under a mentor. Her home herd has multiple retired show horses. Some due to chronic lameness. 

Her equine vet mentor is well-known for treating lameness on high end sport horses. I am sure many equine readers have heard of DeClue Equine. The difference with this vets treatment vs traditional equine vets is that she treats with a whole body approach. Traditional equine vets tend to treat lameness legs down. Patching the problem, not rehabilitating the cause. 

Our friend enthusiastically shared what she is studying about equine lameness. The general message was that it often stems from weakness in areas other than the legs. Requiring a whole body treatment approach. She talked about the Iliopsoas (aka hip flexor) being a common weakness in chronic lame horses. Iliopsoas is a non-weight bearing muscle/tendon. Here is a brief article that explains the muscle/tendon. 

For those of you interested in horse movement, below are video's of Padame twirling.

September 2025 (1.33 seconds)

1.17 seconds

Iliopsoas Injuries is a podcast link that was shared with us. With all due respect, I couldn't get past the excessive steak reference. I might fast forward and retry listening. Then again, I cannot keep up with the endless podcast rabbit hole!! 

We, mostly Brad, had a lot to think about. Potential treatments mentioned included a muscle relaxer, Chiro and Body work and progressive light walk-n-trot in hand. Back imaging and a series of back injections were also discussed.
 

Decisions were made in Padame's best interest. Three of us were in agreement on not going the back injection route. Inserting needles between vertebrae sounds frightening. We don't know if Padame actually has Iliopsoas weakness. Chiro and Bodywork helped her improve and she eventually went back to being ridden lightly. Unfortunately, it wasn't long before the soreness returned. We are once again back to square one (aka the unknown). 

The next step for Brad's blondee will be hauling her to a specialty equine clinic that provides Thermal imaging. Hopefully it will help figure out what is making her sore. 

Padame needs a new treatment plan. You can't keep doing the same thing over and over and expect different results. 

land of wonders ~ september 2/2

September feels like such a long time ago. Twenty three days to be exact. The second half of our ninth month continued hot and turned drier. I wore my head net walking in our woods for most of it. Eventually, flying pests and more unusual nature wonders slowed down. Except for magnificent clouds! They were plentiful. Floating above without a care. Luring me outside, to spend a few minutes pondering their wonder. Blink and clouds change shape. Especially as the sun dips below our Western tree line. Casting vibrant light on different parts of the airy fluff. 

9.16.25

Some cloud shapes instantly resemble one thing or another. I thought the above looked like Goofy riding a magic carpet. Shapes rarely last for long.

There are evening where cloud fascination can be enjoyed in all directions. I get instantly wide eyed. Stop whatever I am doing and hustle in/out our doors, in all directions. It happens so often, I no longer hear "what are you doing?".

facing West

flocks of Geese heard then seen, high in the Eastern sky

formations of various sizes kept a-honking, as they flew northwest

I noticed more fuzzy crawlers appearing in September. Always on their way to who knows where. I have no idea what most of them are. My Google search results have been wrong a lot lately. Proving, you cannot believe everything you read on the internet!

Yellow Woolly Bear Caterpillar 
9.17.25

Autumn Crocus

Large Maple Spanworm Moth

The little blue wildflowers found in our pines continued to captivate my attention. We have one plant/patch growing. I watched for blooms every day. I can tell you when they do flower, the bloom lasts longer than one day. Depending on weather.

Dayflower
9.18.25

I can't get over the color, as well as the tiny bright yellow perfectly formed orchid looking stamens. There is also conflicting online info when one tries to ID these. Grows by wetland, grows in dry locations...whatever.

All know for sure, is what I see with my own eyes.

more tree window frogs visited
9.19.25

Check out the wild sky outside my West windows. Squeal!!

Closer views:

Turkey feathers of all sizes could be seen just about everywhere. I used to collect the feathers I found. There are so many. Now I leave them where they lay.

9.21.25

sunset

close-up

Woolly Bear Caterpillars started appearing. Fork lore claims the width of their black and orange bands can predict the coming winter's severity. A wide orange or brown band is said to forecast a mild winter, while a wide black band predicts a harsh, cold, and snowy one. 

My prediction: 50/50

9.23.25

Tank is always happy

My Epi Cactus bloomed off/on all Summer outside on the front porch. Another round of blooms started in September. I recently moved the plant back inside. It requires long sleeves and gloves (and still getting poked). Many memories are attached to this special plant. It is currently blooming like crazy indoors. Again! 

9.24.25

pop of early color

not your mothers pearls

waterlily autumn crocus

I was so surprised to find more than one of these had popped up in my bird feeder bed: 

9.28.25

hocus pocus, excuse the focus

many more creepy crawlies were spotted

With September coming to a close, the anticipation of cooler Fall weather increased. Especially when Summer's heat decided to hang around f.o.r.e.v.e.r. At some point, I was able to stop wearing my head net and just swat. swat. What a relief! 

Our last day ended with a visit to see Brad's blondeee. Post to come. Eventually :)
 

Padame (at trainers) 9.30.25

a different show

The June WQHA (Wisconsin Quarter Horse Association) show got moved. Inconveniently to a different venue over two hours away. On a holiday weekend. Not sure what they were thinking. I know there are issues with the preferred little-big city venue, and attending numbers continue dwindling. All Breed classes were added. Sadly, entries were still pathetically low.

Brad showed in one class (two different days) which is less than two minutes. Driving over four hours to wait around for unknown timing, in humid heat with nothing to do. Did not make sense for me to go. Someone has to take care of our other animals.  

It would have been nice to be there to support him and his horses. Not going to lie, it made for a long lonely four days. Thank goodness for our animal family at home!

Hope (separated by divider) Nemo and Harmony
7.3.25

Cierra is no longer retired. Brad "tuned her up" himself at home and hauled her to the show. He did not show Padame by choice. He bumped his lessons on her to twice a week. They are going really well! Brad's thought is they are at a good place as a team. He did not want a set back due to show nerves. Sorry no visuals of his blond beauty.

Brad is really (really) proud of Cierra!! She was only recently ridden at home a handful of times, and then he hauled her to ride once at the trainers arena. Cierra came home and was retired in 2020. A sign of good training.

A couple show pics from Brad:

Cierra

For many years, Brad wished for a directors show chair that would be easier on his knees.

 

day one 7.2.25

We finally decided on a land logo. Always harder creating your own stuff. 

Brad's directors chair

The show went on without me. Can you even believe it lol?! It was a different show. Brad chose to ride Cierra in an All Breed Open Ranch Riding class (vs AQHA). She is on allergy meds that AQHA does not allow. Breathing is apparently considered enhancing (insert eyeroll). You are done showing if you get caught. Not a big deal. Cierra already has plenty of points. His goal was to practice showing in front of judges. 

They had a good first day showing. Brad and Cierra took second to his trainer (riding Padame) in a small class of three. Padame went on to take "first" in her Ranch trail class, as a sole entry. Not sure about any other classes. 

Padame threw a shoe and sadly was only shown the first day. Brad didn't want just anyone slapping a shoe on her, considering her past lameness issues.

Brad & Cierra's second day of showing went even better. Scoring 73.5, 69.5 and 70.5 on their pattern. Every Ranch rider starts with a score of 70. They get plus or minus points from each judge, on required pattern/skills. They ended up Circuit Champ at that level. Padame would have most likely won, had she shown both days.

Showing is not my jam, but Brad is very happy living his show dream. Even with smaller numbers.

At home, we had to shift the herd. They were a noisy bunch, calling out. Harmony was turned out with Nemo, which left Hope with Koda. They were really good for me at chore time :)

Hope says "you can have Cierra, but please don't take Harmony"

Padame update

Per Shirley's request, here is a Padame update: 

Not much has changed since my last update on her, other than Padame came up lame again. After more vet lameness visits, special padded shoes (a type of Navicular shoe) she was once again taken out of training to heal and then rehab. Padame recovered faster the second time.

I am happy to say as of this post Padame is sound.

Our farrier was at our place last week and I learned that Padame doesn't have much depth to her hoof. Her toe grows straight out. Koda also does not have much depth and a similar growth pattern, although he said not as severe as Padame's. Koda's lameness is likely a different unresolved issue.

Brad rode Padame for the first time in a long time last week. They are restarting their partnership. Again. Let me be clear, her lameness is not anyones fault. Especially not Padame's. As Brad always tells me with less than ideal horse situations "this is all part of it". He handles horse set backs better than I do.

I feel bad for Brad who really wants to live his dream and be actively showing again. Ideally with a horse he has bonded with. We are not getting any younger! The last year he did was in 2019 with Cierra. She was retired a year later in 2020 due to Covid causing cancelled shows. He had hoped to show Cierra one more year. It created a longer than planned break from showing.

Brad just hasn't had a chance to get back to showing, or foster the growth and accomplishment that comes with building a solid partnership. Again, no ones fault. I am hopeful he will eventually have a special bond with Padame and be able to fully show her. She is an amazing horse! It will take time and consistent showing. With a quickly approaching show season, it would be unrealistic to expect this year. Perhaps towards the end of the show season.

I truly hope lameness doesn't plague Padame off/on. Brad won't jeopardize her long term health in order to show. The horse always comes first.

Thank you for asking Shirley. Hopefully I will have a brighter update and some new photos of his very pretty chocolate palomino girl.

Padame as a two year old

 (re-sharing from 3/2021 a month after she became ours)

first and last

This weekend is/was Padame's first and last time showing this season. Although she attended five shows spread out from March to end of August. The first was for exposure/training. She needed it. At her second show in April, Padame came up lame during practice and ended up not showing. 

An MRI revealed nothing in particular. Her course of treatment included a shot of ReNovo, followed by no training with continued partial turn out. She eventually began incremental rehab workouts.

Padame attended her third and fourth show with the trainer, to continue rehab. At least she got some kind of show exposure. Earlier this month Padame was deemed sound, and cleared to go back to full training. It took around 4 months. 

I am glad ReNovo worked for Padame. It did not work for Koda. He remains lame off/on.

Brad opted not to ride Padame during rehab. What little time was spent under saddle, was better done with the intuitive trainer she lives with. Just a few weeks ago, he started riding and connecting with his horse again.

Onto the first and last show:

Wisconsin Horse Shows continue to shrink. This season ending five day AQHA State Show was no exception. Almost all Youth classes have no one entered. How sad!! Hunter Jumper classes were also empty. Those folks chose not to attend, rumored to be because of venue/footing. The largest Ranch class I saw had 10 entries. Almost all had a lot less (4-5). It is a good thing Horse Showing is an individual sport.

Padame was only shown by the trainer. Although Brad did ride Padame in the practice rings, on no-show days. He noted a significant difference in her maturity.

Below are a few no so great cellphone shots of Brad's blondie, who turns a lot of heads.

Padame 8/31/24

For the show inclined, Padame's Ranch Riding scores ranged from a high 72.5 to an odd low 64. There was a judge that didn't like anyone she saw and scored much lower than the other two judging the same ride.

The scoring can drive a person bat shit crazy!! Everyone starts with a score of 70. You go up/down from there in .5 points increments, based on skill execution aka personal opinion...every skill, every judge opinion, two different days.

The State show was double sanctioned by both the Wisconsin Quarter Horse and Palomino Associations. On Friday, the two Palomino Judges placed Padame 1st (5 entries) in riding and 2nd in conformation (4 entries). No scoring. Saturday she got 2nd in riding and was scratched from conformation, so the two ranch horses could go home at a decent hour. They were so ready to leave the show chaos.

Padame 8/31/24

It was so fantastic and heart warming to see our long-time horse friend at the show, overcome her serious health problems. We used to all trail ride together back in the day. Most people never ride again after having a stroke, and she is even back showing. Nothing short of a miracle!! So well deserved. Brad has his show buddy back :)) Below they are getting ready to load horses.

Padame & Brad with Checkers & Peggy

Padame's turn

Here I am, typing from the Equine Hospital. Waiting to find out what is going on with Padame. She has been experiencing on again/off again lameness. Most recently at her second show of the season, in Minnesota. Padame came up lame the night before we were heading up to watch. She did not show.

We were here for Koda's lameness MRI, less than a year ago. Now it's Padame's turn. The hospital folks are very nice, but I reeeally do not want to become a regular!! Cost aside it is hard on the horses, and us. It takes an entire day. 

The MRI will reveal key information, including the possibility there are no injuries. Lameness yo-yo-ing is anybodies best guess otherwise. Obviously I hope there is nothing "wrong" with Padame. An MRI may seem extreme, but we know others in the show circuit who have spent years patching the unknown. In the end, it is more cost and more so a frustrating loss of time. Something you can't get back. We hope to target the care Padame needs and keep her sound.

wondering where she is

Padame is so dark & shiny

Our daughter (Harmony's mom) took a half day off work to cover animal care at home for us. 

We tried to distract ourselves on this beautiful 72+F sunny day. After lunch we walked the boardwalk and enjoyed lake views. Frequently checking the time.

Now we sit. We read. We pace. We check. It is hard not to worry as closing time approaches and Padame is still not back in her temporary stall. Similar to what we experienced with Koda.

She was finally returned to her stall! We met with the MRI vet, and at first glance nothing appeared to be wrong. Good news. After the MRI scans get reviewed by a specialist, the MRI vet and our vet will discuss findings and come up with a plan of action.

another loop and attempt at loading

Padame was less than willing to load up in our trailer. She has ridden in it before, but is used to a large slant load and having company. Poor girl. We all made it home without incident. I bet Padame slept good last night.

that's a wrap

We recently received pleasant news from this past show season. Padame got Reserve Champion in Level 1 AQHA Ranch Riding!

The fourth and last WI AQHA show that Padame attended, was the large State Labor Day show. Brad wasn't able to ride over the summer as much as he would have liked, and decided not to show. He didn't think it was fair to her. Riding in the practice ring would benefit them more during this transitional year. However, Padame was shown by her trainer. I did not attend the last show. Sorry no iphotos/videos.

If you missed previous show posts they are were in early June and late June. 

There have been some issues with the venue, and numbers decreased. The WI Palomino organization joined the show and held classes in conjunction with some AQHA classes. The Pally folks were recruiting participants. Although it was not part of their show plans, Brad ended up showing Padame in Palomino Conformation. His pretty girl ended up receiving some firsts and earning Palomino points.

Last Tuesday, I did a horse photoshoot at our trainers for an upcoming project of hers. While I was there, we also took posed photos of Padame. Brad chose the photo below. He will receive a nice prize (custom chaps/chinks!). Padame's photo will be in the WAQHA Directory & end of year award banquet slideshow.

Although she is still coming into her own, there is something to be said for showing up and doing the work.

Padame (5 yrs old)
11/14/23

back at it

Padame attended her third AQHA show of the season. Her first show was practice riding only. They continued working on overcoming Padames fears in the ring. We did not attend, it was held earlier in the season in MN.

I wrote about their second show earlier this month. It went well and progress was made. Our trainer showed Padame and Brad rode her in the practice ring. 

Brad is back at it and showed Padame for the first time! The third show was on Fathers Day weekend. He has not shown for four years. Since 9/2019. He planned on showing Cierra one more year, but in 2020 the whole world shut down. She retired early.

I am very proud of Brad!! Showing is a hard thing to do. It is even more intimidating at big breed level venue's. Especially on a young horse. Changing horses is hard too. We raised Cierra, he knows her very very well. Brad is building a partnership with Padame. It takes longer when horses live elsewhere. It will be fun watching them develop into a team!

making friends with a guy from Iowa

waiting, waiting (and waiting) SO MUCH waiting!

Friday's pattern was challenging

Brad's showing debut with Padame
(2:15 mins)

This big three day show was well attended. 247 classes! Stalls in both pavilions at the venue were full. There were people, horses, dogs (ton's of dogs, many owners breaking rules and letting them run loose), e-bikes, golf carts, kids on hover boards with flashing lights etc. It was a horse show circus!

Ranch classes were still small, with multiple new faces. Brad's class had 7 entered. If you watch the video's, you will notice area's need work. She wants to go! Brakes need to be softened. Doesn't matter. What matters is that they did it!! Brad is really enjoying his new girl. She is a good horse, with looks to boot. He received many compliments on her throughout the show.

Our trainer showed Padame in two classes. Same pattern as above. The open level class had 5 entries. She was two of them. I learned two horses are the max you can show in the same class. Padame was also shown in the open Western Working Rail class, with 6 entires. They call out gaits, so no pattern. Brad opted not to show that class. Padame will eventually also be shown in open & amateur Ranch Trail. When she is ready.

Friday was a LONG day for everyone! Especially the horses. I left the show the minute Brad got done and made the 50-ish minute drive home to do evening chores. Hours late. I was thankful our horses at home still had hay and were not hangry.

Sunday was a different story. Padame started her pattern with our trainer (open classes went first). The big bad tractor that raked the arena started up just as Padame got to the end of the scary arena. She had to face what was now a moving tractor, just a few feet away. Padame got scared, and it kind of went down hill after that. Nothing terrible happened. Padame is young and basically shut down. She stopped listening to her riders. It wasn't as visible in her first class. 

Sunday's pattern was much easier

I missed the entry part of Brad's pattern because, um, I was chatting. Whoops! The video starts after the extended trot entry to end of the arena. It was a bit scary. I thought we might be in for a rodeo (which apparently happened during a practice ride) or Brad would stop the pattern and walk Padame out. Instead he finished the pattern, the way he felt was best for his horse. Good job Brad!

quieter part of the pattern

(2:33 mins)

Padame was scratched from her third and final class (Western Ranch Rail) after our trainer said "she is not receiving information". Instead of forcing a tired young scared horse to show, like so many would do. Or leave. She simply took Padame into the practice pen and went back to work. It took around an hour of riding for her mind to come back. Of course, we stayed too.

Alllll those gobs of show people had long packed up and gone home. The pavilions were empty. Only the devoted ranch riders packing up remained. No clue why Ranch is treated like a red headed step child. Always last on the show bill.

It was stifling hot. After a long exhausting show weekend, there was our trainer. On Fathers Day, still working late. Talk about one step forward and two steps back. She said "this is like the MN show all over again". She didn't want to leave Padame thinking, getting scared at a show = going home. She did what was right for the horse and we are thankful for her.

A fellow participant commented to me on Friday, that they were really glad Padame ended up with Brad. She continues to be about a year behind mentally & physically. She is more like a four year old and needs time to mature at her own pace. Whatever rate that may be. No doubt Padame will get there. When she does ~ they are going to be a show stopper!

 

Padame turns five

Brad's beautiful blondie turns 5 today! She is spending her birthday weekend at a horse show (Thur-Sun). We drove 2 plus hours north to watch her be shown in two classes yesterday. AQHA Ranch Riding Level 1 and Working Western Rail.

It was obvious to me that Brad's girl is growing up and has filled in since I last saw her. We walked up and I got handed Padame "can you hold her..." of course I said yes! I hardly get to interact with her. We stood in the sun together, enjoying each others company while she was drying. I could feel her sweetness come through. I noticed her mane was more multi colored than I remembered. Padame's sooty/dark palomino coat dried to a glisten. 

Brad had driven up the previous day and ridden Padame in the practice ring. He opted not to show her at this show. Brad has been so busy at work and hasn't been able to ride consistently. He always puts the horse first and didn't think it was fair. Brad will start showing her at the next show coming up later this month. Looking forward to seeing him show again!

Padame has struggled with a few things at past training shows. As all young horses do. I wrote about it earlier. Last year and at an earlier MN show this season (we did not go). 

Yesterday she was better about the judges, and also being alone in the ring. Our trainer was super happy with her improvements!! "This was the first show that Padame wasn't so scared that she couldn't receive information from me. She missed some cues, but last year at this show I had a horse that was scooting sideways and backing up". It appears Padame has turned a corner :) 

So many things have changed with AQHA Ranch showing since I last attended a show. It has been sooo long that I had to look it up. I love Blogger for this very reason! Apparently the last time I attended a horse show was in 2018, when Brad was still showing Cierra. Unreal! I didn't go to training shows last year, add the COVID gap and a transition year. The proof is in the post.

AQHA has added/changed Ranch classes and terminology, and guessing some rules too. I didn't dig into it that deep.

2023 Ranch Classes offered

It was sad to see how small the show has become this year. Some large group trainers have retired. Several others took their crews out of State, to a fancier show down south. In addition, they changed the show format. I heard some were not happy about it and did not attend.

Typically you show twice, once on two different days. This show was three days of one day classes. Showing once in front of four judges, on the same day. It's great if you are having a good day. Not so good if you are not. Personally, I like it ~ ha ha! Less back-n-forth. 

Ranch Riding Level 1 pattern

Ranch Riding Level 1
(2:56 min)

They came in last out of three, which is expected when schooling. Their score wasn't too bad. Four judges gave them 65.5/65/63.5/65.5 with two penalties. One was during a lead change and the other I think was a second right turn. Not sure what some abbreviations stand for. 

There were only two entries in the Working Western Rail class. The sequence is called out and there are placements (no scores). It is similar to Western Pleasure...I don't get it. Perhaps it was added so more people would be interested in showing Ranch.

Attendance should be higher for remaining shows. I learned that MN and WI are working together, their sanctioned show points qualify for both States.

Working Western Rail
(3:49 min)

I found out this morning that WI Quarter Horse shows have gone digital!! Whoot whoot! There is a company that enters show details (via scribes). Gone are the days of waiting around to take photos of score sheets and trying to decipher chicken scratches. As someone who used to do digital work for a living, WOW I was super impressed with their app!! This detail girl got so excited seeing all the scoring data mesh together! Brad thought I was totally ridiculous.

I almost skipped going to this show. It was another blazing hot day. I had errands and a zillion things to do. I am really glad I went! It wasn't too bad in the shade and it was so nice to see everyone. Especially Padame <3

sunday sights

Ms. Padame at her home
3/26/23

We made a brief stop to drop off some of Padame's show stuff. She is on her way to her first show of the season in MN as I type. She is going with her trainer and a few others from the barn. Brad opted not to go to this early show.

Apparently Padame has developed a show diva attitude at the barn and doesn't want other horses riding too close to her. She doesn't do anything, other than pin her ears.

Padame was willing to say hi through the bars, but didn't want to come too close when I opened the stall door. Lunch was more important and there is always that chance she might have to go to work. Smart horse.

She will be 5 this year. My how time flies. Brad is looking forward to showing her this season. It sure was fun visiting at the show barn, even if briefly. 

We took a few side roads on the way home to see if there was anything floating on open water. Much is still frozen, or just starting to thaw. The water that was open looks cold. Apparently it doesn't bother American White Pelicans. 

activity was slow


there was a large flock (75+)

funny hair tuff

someone had an itch

There were quackers floating around, and of course gulls dipping & diving.

hooded mersanger

pair of bufflehead

Herring Gull (juvenile)

Life is about to get very busy. I enjoy these quieter moments, reflecting.