I was told I could ride again at 8 weeks post-op. On Wednesday the 17th, at exactly 8 weeks, I went out, saddled Gunner up, and got on. ..... and had NO pain. I think I grinned the whole time I was up. I even went on a short trail ride w/ the barn trainer and one of her students. We walked the whole way and it was wonderful to get outside on horseback again. Since then, I've been trying to ride twice a week, doing a little more each time. I've mostly been walking with a little bit of trotting. I've cantered a couple of times, but that one is still a little sore to do. The hip joint is still pain free, but the muscles around it are complaining loudly after a ride, so I have to give them time to recover in between each ride.
I'm very lucky to have the horse I do because he is very patient and easy going. Only occasionly does he need to be discouraged from bad behavior, and it's easy to do because it would require too much effort to put a lot of energy into being bad.
In a couple of weeks we'll be trying out horse camping for the 1st time. We had another trip planed, but that got canceled, so this will be our maiden voyage. It's a campground only 44 miles from the barn, so we can always come back if we have any problems. I just bought a used truck and horse trailer and I'm hoping to have them ready by then. If not, I'll continue to tag along with my friends Mike and Diana in their 3 horse trailer.
And 3 weeks from now, I'll be leaving for Peru. Pam is trying to set up a couple of horse rides for us, in between the sight-seeing, shopping, and lounging by the pool that is scheduled. But I'll be writing more about that trip later!
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