At the Stable today, we all met at 9am to have a lecture-hands on- with he horses to document all of Their Vital Statistics. Temperature, Resting Pulse, and Respiration. We Checked for Dehydration through skin pinching and also Capillary Refill. Looked at the Mucus memebranes in the eyelids and gums. Also we listened to normal Gut sounds through the Stethoscope.Our Instructor was pretty funny...she was using an old Mercury Thermometer with hay twine tied to it and a wooden close line pin at the end of the twine.I do remember my sister using these methods as she is 15 years senior of our instructor.
The instructor has used this method since she was 16 and has not upgraded... Nostalgia city, is what she called it!
I have a Digital thermometer that was given to me when I thought my mare to be colicing once, 4 years ago...it stays in the tack grooming bag and I thought it may be dead by now...But no!
It was in fact was alive still and it took less than 30 seconds to read out the correct temp and beep to tell me so! We repeated 3 of everything, to make sure.
The digital pulse was the most difficult for me to find on my mare. I found it quite easily on one of the Arabians.Also the respiratory rate seemed difficult for me...she just did not breath in a fashion that was noticeable..so I watched and watched and read 7-10 breaths in 1 minute. 8-15 is normal.
I read now from the photcopied print out we all used,that we all could have simply felt the belly! I guess some use the old fashioned methods for lack of exposure/acceptance to the new and proven easier ones.
So-You may also use the Stethoscope on the windpipe and will hear lots of other things too! It was great to be with all and to check out other horses vitals.
Then, two of my freinds and I took a Brisk but sunny trail ride! 
The horses were in frisky form and I kinda thought coming back may be interesting...and yeppers..it was two Throrughbred mares and a Quarter horse mare really wanting to move out towards home...tried for some pics on the lookout..and got all kinds of kicks and stomps and twirls instead.
So..., now that it is done and we had to separate..I let them go on and I schooled and we met up again in the woods, then I let them go again.I talked to one of the gals that does natural horsemanship(blended views) She suggested that we start taking our halters and ropes with training stick as well...get right off at the spot of Uppity, unlistening horse and do some WORK!
I am in for this, all the way, and will not ride with others unless we can do this now...it just is not worth allowing my mare to become accustomed to getting away with what she pulls! Stopping usually does the trick for her...get her to put her head lower, shut off the Adrenaline!
Tomorrow will be a better day!
