Conversations With My Gut...

Your gut will tell you a lot and normally it is right.
Since Wednesday, Chester has been lying down during the day in his stall, with people all around him.  He has lost a little bit of that gleam in his eye, the perky ears that always greet me haven't been seen in a while. He is glum, he is bored, he is depressed.  I have been told he needs to stay inside and hand walk him as much as possible...but it was to the point where I didn't think it was doing him any good.
I knelt down beside him this afternoon while he was lying there, looked him in the eye and went 'What is wrong with you?  Something else is up isn't there?'  I could see the World behind those eyes..."Mom, this sucks". So - I took a breath and thought to myself as I sat in the shavings with him and scratched his neck....
His circulation is down which is why he is stiff -> we have been hand walking/free walking in the arena as much as possible.
He comes out of the stall STIFF -> It takes him a couple minutes, but he comes out of it once we start walking around in the arena...when he moves, it isn't 100%, but it gets better everyday.
He is bored/depressed for being in his stall for the past 6 weeks.
Horsey, has to move.
At that point, I looked at him again and said - okay buddy - you're going out.
One of the barn's coaches was there and we took a walk back to the paddocks (There was a torrential downpour yesterday, which promptly turned into a town wide skating rink as temperatures dropped over night) and I wanted to make sure it wasn't too bad.  It wasn't, so back to barn we go, on goes his Rambo and back to his paddock he went marched.  Head UP, ears Pricked, snorting and alert.
Okay horse - this is your chance to prove it to me that you need to be outside as much as possible...don't screw it up and don't prove me wrong.
I came back 3 hours later and watched him from around the corner of the barn.  He was standing with one of his buddies and I am sure the conversation was about how brutal I was being to him making him stay inside for so long....When I came around the corner, his head jerked up, ears pricked and he walked towards me..humm, this is a good sign...
We went straight into the arena and he proceeded to trot around with his nose to the ground, snorting...he wasn't 100%, but he was damn near close.  His legs and feet were cool an hour after being in his stall.
Tomorrow is another day - but today gave me hope. He is going outside from now on until he gives me a reason not too...

Sometimes, you have to listen to you gut...because it knows best.