Peachy Keen, that adorable Chestnut pony who is the Northern Virginia
Therapeutic Riding Program’s Ambassador of Service, recently sent her admirers an
update about her medical condition. If you recall, she had a dreadful operation on Dec. 29th. She contracted fistulous withers and needed an operation on each side of her withers to remove the affected tissue.

Poor little horse girl! After the surgery, Peachy Keen (aka Peaches) spent several
days at Blue Ridge Veterinary Hospital. There, the devoted vets and vet techs gave her outstanding care. However, she didn’t enjoy spending New Year’s Eve away from her friends at Little Full Cry Farm.

When Peaches returned home to Clifton, she was ecstatic. At this point, she has
spent almost a month convalescing, but unfortunately, recovery is still far away. The
wound is still tender. Until the incision is completely healed, she cannot wear a
blanket. “Brr, brr!” she whinnies. A real trooper, however, Peaches doesn’t worry as
much about the weather as her humans do. A special system of lights to keep her toasty has been installed in her stall.

Peachy Keen wants to thank all of you for your generosity. The many contributions to her get-well fund and proceeds from selling the fabulous NVTRP calendars have helped pay for her medical expenses.

In her official role, Peachy Keen reminds you that the spring session begins on
Feb. 28th. If you are a rider, please make sure that you have registered. If you would
like to volunteer for the Northern Virginia Riding Program, training sessions will be
offered in February, March and April. She hopes you will save the date for an
informative Abilities Awareness Training workshop on Feb. 27th.

To Peaches, watching her horse buddies playing outside is almost as good as
looking at TV! Nevertheless, Peaches is a bit bored. She proposed a delightful contest on Jan. 27th: "Make a Snow Animal." After making the snow animal, post it on her Facebook page. The prize is a special bag filled with NVTRP goodies, like water bottles and mugs.

Peaches hopes you will write a comment about her on “Patch,” and she would
like you to become one of her more than 650 Facebook friends (Peachy Keen At Nvtrp). She tells Breeana Bornhorst, NVTRP’s Executive Director, that she truly enjoys the comments her pals have posted on Facebook. They’re almost as good as carrots! (But if you have a spare carrot or two, she would be happy to welcome you in person to Little Full Cry.)