OSU Visit: 1/31 Saturday - Arrival

Saturday was a whirlwind day. I picked up my mom, then we got gas and breakfast, then we picked up straw from the feed guy and headed to the barn.

We dropped off the straw, then were faced with the task of digging my trailer out of 8 inches of snow. After that, the wheel chalks were frozen to the ground and we had to use hot water to release them. Loads of fun.

Unloaded the trailer... we wouldn't be needing any of the horse show stuff... then loaded hay and feed. Loaded horse. It was strange that all I needed was hay, feed, no bows to come home in, and the horse.

Five hours later (!!!) we had finally arrived at OSU's Galbreath Equine Center. Talk about a freaking cool facility. If you ever get a chance to tour the place, do it no matter the drive. It is incredible.

The entrance.

My truck and trailer fit easily inside. I think almost any truck and trailer would fit. Five of me would have fit.

Stunning ceiling. The entry hall had weird orange lights. I thought they must be dimmed for the evening or something, but nope, they're always like that.

I took Mikey's boots and blanket layers off immediately after unloading him, before we went to his stall. One, because the building is heated to a normal building temperature and he'd start to sweat quickly (I sure did). Two, because I would have had to bring all those blankets back to the trailer! I did send his Rambo Whitney Fleece Cooler to his stall on the off chance he got cold. He didn't need it.

Our arrival seemed to draw every student out. Other than a couple emergencies that were there before us, I think we were the only ones that arrived over the weekend. They said several of the horses that were scheduled to arrive had cancelled their surgeries because of the impending snowstorm. It was why we came a day early. Mikey got rounds of "What a nice clip job!" and "What a handsome horse!"

Mikey was weighed (1,140 lbs) and then we took him to his stall to settle in. First thing he did was sample the straw in every corner. Second thing was to take a big pee. Good job Mikey.

After getting weighed. The scale is the dark rectangle on the right.

Comfy in his stall drinking water.

Stall front.

Visiting is never restricted for a horse's owner, but the veterinary hospital does have standard visiting hours so the techs and students can get their work done, so they ask that you try to respect those hours. However, there aren't visiting hours on the weekends because there isn't much going on; it's emergencies only. Standard hours are 9am-6pm. We really tried our best to stick to those hours, but a couple times we couldn't.

After he was settled in, my mom and I checked in to the hotel and got some dinner at Applebee's. We went back after to check on Mikey again. I was at a loss of what to do for him. We had traveled, stabled away from home, and I wasn't supposed to take care of him. Or ride. And no hand walking or grazing. All I could do was pet him and talk to him. For someone used to doing everything herself, and then sitting in front of the stall waiting for Mikey to need something, it was unbearable.

Mikey seemed happy, but he wasn't keen on them putting his hay in the back of the stall. His water was up front, and he likes to dunk and eat. His student caregiver figured it out the next day though. But I may have moved Mikey's hay Saturday night :-)