Flashback two weeks ago and Freedom had a swollen leg. I was really, really hoping that two weeks of rest, wrapping, ice and anti-inflammatories would solve the problem. And it almost did.

His leg was about 95% better, but still had some thickening in his tendon area. So, today the vet did an ultrasound. The bad news? He has an injured check ligament. More bad news? He’s looking at 2 months of rest before I can even start walking him under saddle again and then a slow rehab so I figure he’s about 4 months away from real work.

The good news? It could have been worse. His Deep Digital Flexer Tendon looks fine and the Check Ligament isn’t completely torn. He’s not lame and the swelling is very minimal. He should make a full recovery with time and patience.

I’m glad that I was on top of this right from the beginning. For once he injured himself when I was in town (usually he waits until I’m away on business) so he’s had the proper care right from the beginning. I’m also glad that with modern diagnostic tools, having an ultra sound is easy, routine and instant. You no longer need to take your horse to a clinic; it’s

all done right at the barn.

But I’m seriously bummed. After losing a great deal of last fall’s hunt season to a series of abscesses, I was really looking forward to hunting this spring. That won’t be happening. At least not on Freedom. Several people have offered me horses to ride — and even to hunt — and I am so touched and grateful.

The trick will be to keep Freedom calm and not too grouchy. I wrote on Wednesday that he is a horse that needs a JOB.

He’ll be getting some Ace to keep him from running and I’m thinking this might be the time to do some clicker training. He needs something to think about other than his herd.

I can still hand walk him (at least when the snow melts) so it will also be an opportunity to get myself into shape too.