10/13/2026
ECVM .. SUPPORT!!!
4 years ago, I started my boy on his first cross country school. I did not know he had ECVM. Today, 4 years later on the dot, we are aiming to move up to beginner novice and had this kind of school today!!! This is my TB āSES 5 Estrellas āļøā and itās been a SLOW, long road with the worst (metaphoric!) sinkholes, roads closed with a 40ft trailer in tow and no turnaround in the dark, and detours you can imagine. 4 and 5 years ago I was sobbing seemingly every other day about whether I was going to have to lose him, my best friend. I hated seeing him spooky, a skeleton (despite a dumpster of feed per day), struggling with balance, and the worst: blank. Like my horse wasnāt inside that body. And I didnāt know what to do. A couple days went ok and I would think we were getting better and didnāt need to put him down and then BAM he would decline in an instant, spiral all over again. And the constant weekly āIām going to have to put him downā fought with the ābut heās doing better now. Maybe this will be okā¦ā and they fought. I fought. We all fought science and statistics, argued over welfare and heartbreak. Heading hot into uncharted waters with no support network made this sailor sink or sail. We have patched up the holes and are still sailing today. For as long (or as little) as he wishes. He taught me to listen- to an instrumental piece with a thousand words even when not one was to be heard. Because they were never meant to be heard. They had to be FELT. Like Beethoven, deaf as aā¦ bat? Having to hear the music not through the earsā¦ but through the rest of the body and soul. Itās a constant argument whether you can āteach feelā well maybe humans arenāt so good at it; maybe it just takes a horseā¦
4 of 5 vets saw his rads and told me immediate euthanasia he will be too dangerous to even be aroundā¦ he said, hold my cocktail. I remember asking him outloud in English: do you want me to put you out of your misery? And I tear up writing this he responded clear as day: ānoā¦ itās not my time yetā so I promised him.. āas long as youāre wanting to fight, I will fight with youā šš we are still fightingā¦ As we go into double digits in January, itās statistically this age 7-8 that will make or break an ECVM horse. Ive been told itās when symptoms can appear to be the most aggressive and obvious.
But heās taught me to be his bodyworker for the last couple years (neuro system development (particularly autonomic!), patterning, and dominant motor loops all are solidified by 7-8) so the most change we could evoke, we were lucky to have caught it āearlyā at 5 when major changes were still promising and had a fighting chance. Early diagnostics were KEY and I credit them to saving his fate because we were able to change important neuro patterning and build muscle responses that can help him compensate for his unfortunate vertebral failure. There are many people (even my mentors) that believe that ECVM horses should never be ridden. I can respect their right to that well-intentioned OPINION! But I care more about what my horse has to say. I hold on to Pamās words at his diagnosis : āit is not a death sentanceā Pamela Eckelbarger: you may never know just how much I have clung to this hope, that came from those words. You may never know this huge role you played in saving this horse. I am forever grateful for your SUPPORT when we needed it most. When the world was falling out beneath us and only told us to fear. And we didā¦ SCARED. We moved on in the dark. We did it scared and alone. When no one answered my phone calls. When no one answered our pleas in desperation, our calls for help. We didnāt know how. But we kept on looking for the answers. And we did it afraid.
Each horse is an individual- each horse has different circumstances. Some are ready to go NOW when YOUāRE not ready. But proper diet, turnout, herd dynamics, dental work, farriery, bodywork and MINDFUL training have made this horse comfortable enough to want to do a job. To have a purpose in life. To still be here today (whether in or out of work, irrelevant). My point? DONāT LOSE HOPE. Ever. You can swear, you can cry, you can scream, you can rest. But we go forwards, time waits for no one. Your horse WILL tell you when itās time. You just need to ask. And learn to trust the listen. Sustainable Equine Solutions at its coreā¦ exists because of Doniā¦To help horses like him. For as long as they want help š ā¦ to share that hope that we picked up 5 years agoā¦ so please hug your horses a little tighter tonight. And just listen.
