I've been keeping my horses on my property for the past 19 years. The first horse I had here went blind from uveitis. Since she often bumped into things, I made the corrals as safe as I had childproofed my house, and stocked up on wound ointments.
She never had a scratch on her.
Taking care of her got me in the habit of inspecting the corrals and surrounding grounds daily. She went to the bridge years ago, still, I check everything and quickly fix or move anything that may possibly hurt a horse.
Since the subsequent residents here seem to be Band Aid poster children, the practice has stood me in good stead.
The latest on the horsey boo boo list is that the Shitweasel has managed to scalp himself. He is missing a huge patch of hair about 2 inches in width and 4 inches in length, from his poll to his forehead, There's a few scrapes that haven't broken the skin and part of his forelock is missing as well.
I have combed every inch of his stall and I can't find anything that could have possibly done something like that. I can't find the patch of hair either.
The only thing I can figure is that Princess Pout got tired of being bothered and grabbed a mouthful of hair and didn't let go until there wasn't a horse on the other end any more, and what he pulled off was picked up by the high winds we were having.
Shitweasel is solid black in the winter and his skin is pink so you can spot the bald patch from a mile away. There's nothing in the budget for the hair club for horses, so he'll have to live with a comb over until the hair grows back.
Just when I think it's safe to relax....
