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"Aru-chan hasn't been moving much lately, and even during grazing, she looks listless."
Aru-chan was the nickname of a nineteen-year-old Kurige horse.
She had come to the current ranch when Grandma Takamura's husband was still alive.
She was not a distinguished stakes winner, and her main victory was only a local special race.
Before being taken in by Grandma Takamura's husband, she was almost euthanized.
After coming to the ranch, Grandma Takamura had always referred to her as "Aru-chan."
"Do you remember what you've fed Aru-chan recently?"
Kitano asked while looking for his tools.
He noticed that Aru-chan in the stable had already lifted her strides and stretched her body forward several times in the short time since she came into his sight.
This was not normal.
"Still the same things, hay I cut myself, carrot sticks, and so on."
Grandma Takamura had a good memory and answered immediately.
"Fresh hay and carrot sticks?"
Kitano bent down and began to check the temperature of Aru-chan's strides.
Frequent stride lifting, alternating weight bearing, reluctance to move, and obvious lameness during walking—these were all early symptoms of laminitis.
Laminitis, literally meaning inflammation of the lamellar tissues of the horse's stride, causes the coffin bone to sink, leading to severe pain in the horse. It is a common and debilitating equine disease.
Kitano touched the stride walls of the Kurige horse's four limbs and quickly withdrew his hand.
Indeed, both of Aru-chan's front strides were slightly warm, noticeably hotter than her hind strides.
However, a diagnosis of laminitis cannot be made hastily based on a single symptom.
Next was the examination of the digital pulse.
He then extended two fingers and placed them on the sesamoid bones at the fetlock, feeling the pulse of the blood vessels above the coronary band.
The pulse was very strong.
In healthy horses, the digital pulse is weak and almost imperceptible to the touch.
Additionally, placing a finger at the stride edge, the transition from hair to stride wall felt distinctly stiff.
The coffin bone had already begun to sink.
Kitano stood up.
"It's laminitis."
He said.
The old woman tightly clutched the corner of her clothes.
"Th-then what should we do?"
Although her voice trembled slightly, Grandma Takamura asked as calmly as possible.
"First, the diet structure will probably need to be adjusted."
Saying this, Kitano continued to observe Aru-chan's body.
She was not excessively obese, nor did she have abnormal hair growth.
He preliminarily ruled out the possibility of Cushing's disease (PPID) or insulin resistance (EMS).
Even so, for a horse of this age, dietary management had to be considered.
"Foods like tender grass or carrots should be fed less frequently in the future, and you can try feeding more low-sugar, high-fiber hay."
Grandma Takamura nodded repeatedly, and Kitano then asked about Aru-chan's weight.
He planned to first inject Flunixin meglumine solution to reduce the inflammation in her strides.
When using non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), the dosage must be strictly calculated according to body weight.
Grandma Takamura immediately led Aru-chan to the designated weighing area.
Although it had been many years since it transitioned to a retirement ranch, the ranch's various facilities were still well-maintained.
"Remember to take several oral supplements on time and in the correct dosage. If she's in a lot of pain, you can try wrapping ice packs around her front strides' coronary bands—that's this area. But each time shouldn't exceed twenty minutes, three to four times a day is fine."
After completing the injection, Kitano began to give medical instructions.
As for the remaining tasks, such as trimming the stride shape or replacing special horseshoes, those would be left to the farrier.
"Thank you so much!"
After writing down the medical instructions on her flip phone, Grandma Takamura bowed deeply to Kitano.
"It's nothing, these are just our duties."
Kitano quickly returned the bow to the old woman.
On the way back to the clinic, he let out a soft sigh.
Just now, there was one sentence he hadn't spoken.
If the coffin bone sank through, or if there was completely unmanageable pain—
Consideration of euthanasia would likely be necessary.
Time came to June.
As the weather warmed, many tourists turned their attention to Hokkaido.
Horse fans also typically visited the ranches in Niikappu Town during this season to observe.
Walking on the streets, there was a noticeable increase in fashionably dressed young faces.
And Kitano's life remained largely unchanged.
House calls, filling out records, and studying racehorse-related knowledge—these three things unreasonably occupied most of his time.
Occasionally, in his free time, he would deliver fresh pasture and bedding hay to Nishiken Ranch, then ask Ogawa questions about racehorses.
Today was such a day.
"Regarding a racehorse's aptitude, how is it usually determined?"
Kitano asked with some curiosity.
"Currently, the distinction between turf horses and dirt horses largely still relies on experience."
Ogawa shook his head while pouring chilled beer into a glass.
"Would you like a glass, Kitano?"
It was the exact same invitation as the previous times.
"No, I still have to drive back later."
Similarly, Kitano gave a similar answer to the previous times.
While not disliking alcohol, he would not take risks for the sake of temporary indulgence.
"That's a shame."
With that, Ogawa Jo picked up his glass.
With just the first sip, the liquid in the glass was more than half empty.
"What about pedigree then?"
Kitano continued to ask.
Both Ogawa Jo and Tanaka had seemed to mention Mejiro Pegasus's pedigree when discussing its aptitude.
"Pedigree can indeed be used as a reference, but sometimes it can be inaccurate."
Ogawa Jo raised a somewhat rough finger and continued, "For example, among the descendants of Orfevre, a Hall of Fame horse active on turf, quite a few show dirt aptitude."
"Hmm, things involving genetic inheritance are indeed complicated."
Kitano nodded in agreement.
"Exactly—"
Ogawa Jo also nodded along.
Ogawa Kanna suddenly pointed at her father's face and began to snicker, covering her mouth.
Ogawa Jo immediately realized and also smiled as he wiped away the foam from his lips.
"So, it really does come down to the strides, doesn't it!"
Ogawa Masaru, holding a straw in his mouth, slurred somewhat, swirling his glass.
The glass contained chilled lemonade that Ogawa Kanna had specially prepared for Kitano and her younger brother.
He didn't like this sour stuff at all!
"Strides… Is there something about them?"
Kitano turned his head and asked with some curiosity.
"Of-of course!"
With all three gazes fixed on him, Ogawa Masaru instinctively felt a bit nervous, but after a few coughs, he continued, "Turf horses usually have strides that are a bit more pointed and narrower, while dirt horses usually have flatter and wider strides. I observed all of this myself!"
Towards the end, Ogawa Masaru's tone unconsciously became a bit smug.
Then, he looked nervously at his father.
"What Masaru said is indeed correct, but even such summarized experiences can sometimes have deviations."
Ogawa Jo nodded slightly, acknowledging his son's statement.
"Is there no more scientific rule?"
Kitano pressed on.
"Perhaps."
Even Ogawa Jo became a bit hesitant when answering this question.
"When I was young, I heard that American trainers seem to determine whether a horse is more suited for dirt or turf by measuring the degree of stride reduction from turf to dirt."
"However, such measurements are probably difficult to achieve in Japan."
He then helplessly raised his glass.
NAR is nominally a single entity, but in reality, it is just a loose confederation of various local autonomous race organizations.
The massive database required for measuring stride reduction is something that cannot be achieved by one or two racecourses alone.
And in Central, which has more financial and technical advantages, dirt racing has long been in an awkward position of being undervalued.
"Speaking of which, Kitano, have you paid attention to Pegasus's strides?"
Seemingly noticing that the atmosphere was becoming a bit heavy, Ogawa Jo immediately changed the subject.
"Pegasus's strides? My impression is that they are somewhat rounded in shape, the stride wall growth is also good, and the connection between the stride and the fetlock is not too stiff."
Kitano's memory indeed included several instances of closely observing Mejiro Pegasus's strides.
But at that time, he was more often making judgments from a veterinarian's perspective, and the standards used tended towards health or lack thereof, rather than good or bad according to racehorse standards.
"That's right, although not a very large type, Pegasus's stride shape is quite good for a dirt horse."
Ogawa Jo said with a smile.
[Horse Judging: C → C+]
It seemed his ability rating had increased.
Kitano calmly closed the panel and continued his conversation with Ogawa.
After that, he said goodbye to Nishiken Ranch.
On his way home, most of the people he encountered had already shed their sweaters and coats.
Even the sunlight, which not long ago was as soft as a cat's back, had begun to feel a bit hot.
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