Horseflies (4 page)

A
CAR HORN BLASTED
. Carole jumped. The paperback fell out of her hands and she looked up, blinking in the bright sunlight. Just a moment ago she had been in ancient Greece, soaring through the clouds on Pegasus. Now she had suddenly plummeted back to Willow Creek, Virginia, where she sat in front of Pine Hollow Stables, waiting for Judy Barker to pick her up.

“Hi, Judy!” she called to the figure waving from the familiar blue pickup. Quickly Carole gathered up her book and the brown-bag lunch she’d packed and hurried out to the truck. Judy watched her and smiled.

“Hi,” Judy said as Carole climbed in beside her. “I’m sorry if I startled you. You looked like you were thousands of miles away.”

“Oh, not really.” Carole felt a tinge of embarrassment warm her cheeks. “More like thousands of years.” For weeks she’d been excited about spending Tuesdays with Judy, and here she was, on her very first trip, daydreaming about Pegasus. “I was just catching up on my reading while I waited. It’s about this horse with wings.”

Judy smiled. “You mean Pegasus?”

Carole looked over at her in astonishment. “You know about Pegasus?”

“Oh, yes,” said Judy, checking her rearview mirror. “He was my all-time favorite character in Greek mythology.”

“Wasn’t it wonderful what he and Bellerophon did?” Carole was thrilled to find somebody else who knew about this fabulous horse and rider.

“It was super. When I was little I used to wish I could grow up and find a whole island of winged horses, just like Pegasus. Then I could ride and fly anywhere I wanted to.” Judy chuckled as she eased the truck out into the street. “Now I guess I’d have to find one with a trailer hitch so that I could carry all my medical supplies along, too.”

Carole laughed at the idea of Judy’s making veterinary calls on a winged horse that pulled a trailer. She settled back in the seat and stashed her lunch under it.

“So where are we going today?” Carole asked as they turned right onto a four-lane highway.

“Out to a new client. Mr. and Mrs. Albergini at Shady Lane Farm. They moved here recently from southern California.”

“What kind of horses do they have?” Carole pictured the Alberginis bringing some exotic stock of Bashkirs or Friesians to Virginia.

“I’m not sure,” Judy replied. “They called me a week ago to set up a general vet check. This should be an interesting call for you to help with, just because it is routine.”

Carole looked out the window as Judy drove down the highway. Tuesday was as perfect a day as Monday had been, with sunshine and high white clouds floating across the sky. She gazed out the window as they cruised through the countryside. If she squinted a certain way at one cloud, she could just imagine a single rider on a winged horse soaring high above them.

They drove for several miles until they came to a bright blue mailbox with the words
SHADY LANE
in silver letters. Judy turned down the gravel driveway, which twisted through a grove of tall oak trees. “Guess this is why they named it Shady Lane,” she said as the truck bounced over a rut in the tree-covered road.

The driveway ended at a large riding ring filled with brightly painted jumps. To the right was a long barn, where an older man and woman stood waiting.

“Hi,” Judy said as she pulled up in front of the couple. “Mr. and Mrs. Albergini?”

“That’s us.” The man wore a golf shirt, jeans, and jodhpur boots. “I’m Sam and this is my wife, Claudia.”

Mrs. Albergini wore glasses with purple frames and a brightly colored Hawaiian dress. She smiled at Carole and Judy. Carole smiled back. By their outfits, Carole figured that Mr. Albergini must be involved with the horses, while maybe Mrs. Albergini gave hula lessons on the side.

Judy got out of the truck and introduced herself to the couple. “I’m Judy Barker, and this is my assistant, Carole Hanson,” she said as Carole got out of the truck and stood beside her.

“Pleased to meet you.” Mr. Albergini shook Judy’s hand firmly. He had a tiny mustache and brown eyes that crinkled up when he talked. “We’ve heard that you’re the best vet in the county.”

“Yes,” Mrs. Albergini chimed in. “We feel very lucky to have you stop by.”

“Thanks,” said Judy. “I appreciate the compliment. Is there a particular horse you’re having problems with?”

“Well, most everything is fine.” Mr. Albergini ran his hand through his thinning gray hair. “But I’ve got three that have been acting a little squirrelly lately. I can’t figure out what could be the matter.”

Judy gave the Alberginis a reassuring smile. “Let’s go have a look at them and see how we can help.” She turned to Carole. “Would you bring my bag and lab kit from the truck?”

“Right away.” Carole felt a thrill of excitement as the Alberginis watched her get Judy’s equipment. It was almost as if she were a real vet herself.

“Would you two doctors like some cookies and lemonade?” Mrs. Albergini called as Judy and Carole began to follow Mr. Albergini into the barn.

“No thanks,” Judy replied with a smile.

“Well, I’ll be in the house if you need me,” Mrs. Albergini called.

“Does your property have a lot of standing water, Mr. Albergini?” Judy asked as they jumped over a murky brown puddle.

“Only around the barn. The rest of the land drains well. We have a creek that runs along the back.”

“I see.”

Carole noticed a frown on Judy’s face; she realized that Judy had already begun diagnosing the situation when she’d only asked about a mud puddle. What did a mud puddle have to do with horses being sick?

The Alberginis’ barn was a long structure with five stalls on either side. Though the ventilation was good, the air was thick with gnats and flies.

“Where do you spread your manure, Mr. Albergini?” Judy asked, slapping a deerfly that had landed on her arm.

“Just right out there in back of the barn.” Mr. Albergini slapped a mosquito off his own arm. “But it’s fenced so that the horses can’t get into it.”

“I see.” Judy smiled. “Now, where are the horses you’ve been having problems with?”

“Two are over here.” Mr. Albergini led them to the far two stalls on the left side of the barn. In the first was a beautiful chestnut mare. She lifted her head and nickered when Judy and Carole came close. Her eyes were deep brown and very kind.

“This is Lady Jane,” Mr. Albergini said, giving the horse a pat on the neck. “She’s won lots of barrel-racing competitions, and we’d like to breed her, but I can’t get her to eat anything.”

“How long has she been like this?” asked Judy, a frown once again wrinkling her forehead.

“Oh, about a week. She’s such a sweet, good horse. I’m beginning to think something might be wrong with her.”

“Carole, would you hold her?” Judy asked.

Carole got the lead line that hung next to Lady Jane’s stall, snapped it to her halter, and led her out in front of Judy. Lady Jane sighed once and stood quietly, almost resting her head on Carole’s shoulder. “Good girl,” Carole whispered, rubbing her soft nose.

Judy examined Lady Jane’s mouth, eyes, ears, and feet. Then she rummaged in her bag for her stethoscope and listened to her heart and lungs. She felt down each of the mare’s legs, then along her spine.

“I’m not palpating anything abnormal,” Judy reported to Carole. Judy ran her hands along Lady Jane’s muscular shoulders and thighs. She felt behind the mare’s back legs and under her tail. “Everything seems okay,” she said. “She’s a good strong quarter horse, and she looks like she would throw nice foals.”

She gave Lady Jane a pat on the withers. “Let’s check her for worms. A worm infestation would certainly put her off her feed.”

“That’s a good idea, Dr. Barker,” said Mr. Albergini. “None of these horses have been wormed since last fall.”

“Okay.” Judy turned to Carole. “Remember that we need to do a worm check on all the horses.”

“Will she start eating again if we get rid of her worms?” Carole asked.

“She should,” Judy said. She gave the mare a scratch behind her ears. “She seems to be a sound horse otherwise. I’ll do some blood work on her later to make sure there aren’t any other problems, but after a cleanup and a tube worming, she should start eating again and make a wonderful mother.”

“That’s good news,” Mr. Albergini said as Carole walked the mare back to her stall.

“Who’s next?” asked Judy.

“Next is Joker.” Mr. Albergini walked to the next stall, where a shaggy gray Shetland pony stood munching hay. There was an impish look about him, as if he might enjoy romping in some goofy gymkhana race with balloons attached
to his head. For some reason, Carole thought of Stevie.

“Does Joker have any special problems?” Judy asked as Carole led the pony out of the stall. Joker seemed frisky and eager to leave the confines of the stable.

“Calm down, boy,” Carole said with a laugh as the little horse stomped one foot and twitched his tail.

“He’s a great little guy, although he has begun acting up lately. He threw my granddaughter off the other day.”

“Goodness. Was she hurt?” Judy asked.

“Only her pride.” Mr. Albergini laughed. “Still, I hope Joker’s not becoming an unsafe mount.”

“Well, let’s see.” Judy performed the same examination of Joker that she’d done of Lady Jane. Joker shifted and wiggled and fidgeted the whole time.

“Find anything wrong?” Mr. Albergini asked as Judy ruffled her hands through Joker’s shaggy coat.

“It’s hard to tell through all this hair,” Judy said. She folded her arms and stepped back from Joker; then she reached into her medical bag and took out a notepad. “Let’s try something,” she said. “Carole, I want you to hold this pad under Joker’s chin.”

“Sure.” Carole stepped forward and held the notepad.

“Okay,” said Judy. “Let’s see what we get here.” She held up Joker’s head and scraped her fingernails along the underside of his jaw. All sorts of dirt and dandruffy material fell onto the white paper. Judy examined it closely. “Look at this,” she said to Carole and Mr. Albergini. They bent over
the pad and looked. A number of tiny, brown, cigar-shaped bugs squirmed on the paper.

“Gross.” Carole scrunched up her nose. “What are they?”

“Lice,” Judy replied. “Joker’s got a bad case of lice. Lice make horses miserable. They itch all the time and can’t scratch properly and it wears them out.” She looked at Mr. Albergini. “That’s what’s making Joker cranky.”

“I’ll be darned,” Mr. Albergini said, amazed.

“I think Joker needs a summer haircut, a good bath with some lice shampoo, and insecticide spray.” Judy gave Joker a pat on his rump. “He’ll be fine. Before we leave I’ll do some blood work on him, too, just to be sure that’s the only thing wrong.”

Mr. Albergini and Judy moved to the next horse while Carole put Joker back in his stall. The little horse lowered his head sadly when he was put up again. “Don’t worry,” Carole said, giving his mane a quick rub. “You’ll be playing in the meadow with your buddies in no time.”

They worked their way down that side of the barn. The next three horses were fine, only needing a routine worming. Then they crossed to the other side of the barn.

“Who have we got over here?” Judy asked, swatting at a fly that buzzed around her right ear.

“This is Spirit.” Mr. Albergini got the lead line and led Spirit out himself. She was a delicately formed black Arab mare with a small white star on her forehead. Though she had a pretty, fine-boned face, her coat was dull and there was a hopeless look about her eyes. “She just hasn’t been herself.
Acting up when she’s ridden, spooking at familiar things. Just acting nutty in general.”

“Hi, girl,” Judy said softly as she examined Spirit. Carole watched Judy’s frown grow as she felt Spirit’s legs and along her belly. “I know exactly what’s the matter with this horse.”

“What?” Carole and Mr. Albergini said in unison.

“Both of you, lean down here and feel these bumps.”

Carole and Mr. Albergini did as Judy asked. Carole felt a whole line of swollen blisters the size of quarters. When they touched them, Spirit jumped as if she’d been pinched. “What are they, Judy?” Carole asked.

“Spirit is allergic to mosquito bites,” Judy said. “They’ve bitten her all along her girth line.” She looked down at Mr. Albergini. “Was Spirit ridden near those puddles of water?”

Mr. Albergini nodded. “That’s where my son last rode her.”

“Then that’s where she picked up those bites.” Judy patted the pretty little horse. “I can give her some medicine for the bites. But let’s try to make sure this doesn’t happen again.”

Mr. Albergini put Spirit back into her stall. Judy and Carole worked their way down the rest of the barn. Other than one gelding needing to have his teeth floated, all the rest of the horses were fine. When they had finished with the examinations and had taken all the blood samples, Carole’s shoulders ached with fatigue, but Judy had just started. She sat down on a bale of hay and began to talk.

“Mr. Albergini, have you been in the horse business long?” she asked, again swiping at the pesky flies that swarmed around her face.

Mr. Albergini’s eyes crinkled up. “No. My wife and I moved here from San Diego to be near our son, who works in Washington. We bought this farm lock, stock, and barrel two months ago so that our grandchildren could ride. We rode horses in California, and we’ve read a lot about keeping horses since we’ve been here, but we’re certainly not experts.”

Judy gave him an understanding smile. “Well, there’s nothing wrong with not being horse experts as long as you’re willing to keep learning. Your stable is in basically good shape, but you need to work harder at keeping things clean.”

“Oh?” Mr. Albergini said.

“Yes.” Judy took a pen from her shirt pocket and began writing on the notepad. “First, you need to get rid of those puddles of water. Unlike southern California, we get a lot of rain in Virginia. Standing water attracts mosquitoes. Mosquitoes carry all sorts of serious equine diseases, and you’ve already got one horse that’s highly allergic to them.”