It was 12 degree's when I went out to feed this morning.
Seriously?????
Its almost May for crying out loud!
Other than that...I got nuthin news worthy at all.
How about a nice little love song by my favorite singer of all time?
Click here for a video of Jalan Crossland sing my favorite love song ever
If you have ever seen Bosler, WY you will understand what a great song this is.
I drove through it once, wanted to take a picture but couldn't even get my camera out in time....it was gone!
If you haven't seen Bosler, well its still a great little song.
Tuesday, April 23, 2013
Monday, April 22, 2013
I Rode Up the Mountain
Saturday was a crazy busy day, it started with 2 different auctions going on at the the same time, both of which had things that TC wanted. So he put me at the police auction while he went to the consignment auction, and we communicated by phone. There were a few things that I wanted as well, like a go kart for Simon, a 1932 Gibson guitar for Colton, a Garmin, and a lap top computer. TC wanted floor jacks, and bottle jacks, and an old broken down road blade for parts for his grader.
We ended up with all the jacks, the go kart, a bicycle, a brand new XBOX 360 (still in the box for half of what a new one would cost) 2 Garmins, a Fossil purse (brand new), oh and a darn near new portable DVD player, with all the chargers and stuff. He did not get the road grader, they had sold it the day before. The laptops went for more than I was willing to pay for a piece of used electronics that I couldn't even tell if they worked as they had no cords. The guitar did not even sell, as the owner wouldn't take less than 3 grand for it. 1932 or not, it was just an acoustic guitar, and didn't even have that great of a sound. If I am going to spend thousands on a guitar there is a 1970 Grestch hollow body electric model, sitting at the local music shop that has the most beautiful sound I have ever heard. I could buy that for about 1500.00. But I don't have that much money to spend on ANYTHING, much less a guitar. I don't even play, but my son does play very well, so I am always on the look out for a good deal on a nice guitar.
Anyway, back to my story.
We went home with our bounty and then I had just enough time to grab a samich and load up my paint. We headed up to meet Mark. The road were clear but everything was a muddy mess. He had texted me and told me we would ride outside since the weather was nice. The out door arena there is on a hill so I was hoping he meant that it was semi dry. To get to the arena, you have to drive down between the house and the indoor, around the back of the barn and then back up a hill to the outdoor. So in that low spot, it was pretty icky. I put the old gray girl into 4WD and plowed right through it. Mark had also texted and told me that we couldn't do a full 2 hours this time as he had someplace to be, so he decided we would just go for a trail ride up the BLM land and see how Trax did.
Okay by me, I tacked him up, did a few circles on the ground just to remind him that I am the boss and then stepped up on him. The first thing I had to do was ride through a huge water puddle. It was maybe 8" deep, he balked for a minute but then went through. Mark asked if he was ok with crossing streams, I have never had an issue before with him, so I assumed we wouldn't this time. I was wrong.
We headed up the drive, out the road and then through a gate to the BLM. There was still quite a bit of snow but the ground was kind of soft and squishy. Where there wasn't mud there was rock. Not my favorite terrain but I trust Mark, so I pretended not to care. Mark was riding a 3 year old colt, that he is starting for someone else. I decided that if this 3 year old could handle it so can my seasoned trail horse, and truthfully Trax can handle it, he just didn't want to.
First stream, he started snorting and blowing like it was a terrible thing. I kicked him through it and he jumped it instead. I should have made him go back through, but decided to move on. We headed up, up, up, through snow banks down ravines through some brush, across more streams.He did great on the slopes, and odd angles. He was calm and sure footed, choosing his footfalls carefully. He was more than happy to match his pace to the colt (who Mark calls Tumbleweed, trust me it fits), to lead when we needed to, or to follow when I asked him too. The only time I wasn't so proud of him was at those stream crossings. He did everything he could to avoid crossing the streams, balking and jumping over them, but we came through unscathed, and I think once he even went through like a pro. On the last one, though, he tried to just turn around and go back but I make him go anyways, so he ran me through a tree. I could hear my horse saying, "Hey Lady, why don't you try wading through it and see if you don't look for another route!" It didn't hurt but it was annoying.
All in all it was actually a cool ride, and Mark and I just talked about different things, there wasn't a lot of training going on, as Trax never once tried to run off with me. I think I had to turn him around once for going to fast, so that part was good. We discussed if Trax will be ready for the open show at the end of May. He said that if we go in with the expectations of not winning but just completing the courses, then yes, he will be ready. I appreciated his honesty on that, and truthfully that is all I am hoping for. To prove to myself, and to my horse (and to maybe a couple of doubters) that we can do it.
I wish I had been able to get a few pictures to show off, it was truly gorgeous. Next time I promise.
When we got back I rode to my trailer and dismounted. I almost fell down when I hit the ground, my knees hurt so bad. We didn't even ride that long. The only time my knees hurt like that is if I have ridden for hours and hours or I am riding with my legs tensed. I guess I was more nervous up there than I realized. So I had to examine that.
I trust my horse, I knew he wasn't going to blow up or anything. I trust my trainer, I don't believe that he would put me in a dangerous situation. So I guess I was really just nervous about the terrain. Truthfully, I never would have gone up there of my own accord. There were paths that he chose that I probably wouldn't have, but then he rides up there a lot so he knew what was safe and what wasn't. If I was unsure of what was in front of me, I followed him so that Trax and I could both see what we were headed into. Even though we did very little training "per say", it was actually good for both of us. I will be less nervous next time I ride where the footing isn't that great, and Trax learned that whether I am tense or not, I expect him to go forward. I suppose my tension added to his apprehension just a little.
Once I got him untacked and trailered, I paid Mark. He said I didn't really owe him since we didn't really do anything, but I paid him anyway. My theory is that he generally works with me for 2 hours and only charges me for one. So this sort of makes up for some of the money I should be paying him, but don't.
I made my way out the drive and promptly got my truck and trailer stuck. Even in 4wd I could not get out of the pit I was in. They ended up having to use the skid steer to get me out. I was so embarrassed My truck is not supposed to get stuck! The owner of the property assured me that it was no big deal, and that he himself had gotten stuck the day before.
I can honestly say that except for the mud I really did enjoy the ride and am looking forward to a day when we can go there again when it isn't quite so mucky. I want to see if we have the same problems crossing the little streams. If so then we will cross as many as we can, until we are both totally okay with it.
Now it is snowing again....supposedly this is the last day. Gosh I hope so, I am seriously ready for some real sunshine and some decent riding weather.
We ended up with all the jacks, the go kart, a bicycle, a brand new XBOX 360 (still in the box for half of what a new one would cost) 2 Garmins, a Fossil purse (brand new), oh and a darn near new portable DVD player, with all the chargers and stuff. He did not get the road grader, they had sold it the day before. The laptops went for more than I was willing to pay for a piece of used electronics that I couldn't even tell if they worked as they had no cords. The guitar did not even sell, as the owner wouldn't take less than 3 grand for it. 1932 or not, it was just an acoustic guitar, and didn't even have that great of a sound. If I am going to spend thousands on a guitar there is a 1970 Grestch hollow body electric model, sitting at the local music shop that has the most beautiful sound I have ever heard. I could buy that for about 1500.00. But I don't have that much money to spend on ANYTHING, much less a guitar. I don't even play, but my son does play very well, so I am always on the look out for a good deal on a nice guitar.
Anyway, back to my story.
We went home with our bounty and then I had just enough time to grab a samich and load up my paint. We headed up to meet Mark. The road were clear but everything was a muddy mess. He had texted me and told me we would ride outside since the weather was nice. The out door arena there is on a hill so I was hoping he meant that it was semi dry. To get to the arena, you have to drive down between the house and the indoor, around the back of the barn and then back up a hill to the outdoor. So in that low spot, it was pretty icky. I put the old gray girl into 4WD and plowed right through it. Mark had also texted and told me that we couldn't do a full 2 hours this time as he had someplace to be, so he decided we would just go for a trail ride up the BLM land and see how Trax did.
Okay by me, I tacked him up, did a few circles on the ground just to remind him that I am the boss and then stepped up on him. The first thing I had to do was ride through a huge water puddle. It was maybe 8" deep, he balked for a minute but then went through. Mark asked if he was ok with crossing streams, I have never had an issue before with him, so I assumed we wouldn't this time. I was wrong.
We headed up the drive, out the road and then through a gate to the BLM. There was still quite a bit of snow but the ground was kind of soft and squishy. Where there wasn't mud there was rock. Not my favorite terrain but I trust Mark, so I pretended not to care. Mark was riding a 3 year old colt, that he is starting for someone else. I decided that if this 3 year old could handle it so can my seasoned trail horse, and truthfully Trax can handle it, he just didn't want to.
First stream, he started snorting and blowing like it was a terrible thing. I kicked him through it and he jumped it instead. I should have made him go back through, but decided to move on. We headed up, up, up, through snow banks down ravines through some brush, across more streams.He did great on the slopes, and odd angles. He was calm and sure footed, choosing his footfalls carefully. He was more than happy to match his pace to the colt (who Mark calls Tumbleweed, trust me it fits), to lead when we needed to, or to follow when I asked him too. The only time I wasn't so proud of him was at those stream crossings. He did everything he could to avoid crossing the streams, balking and jumping over them, but we came through unscathed, and I think once he even went through like a pro. On the last one, though, he tried to just turn around and go back but I make him go anyways, so he ran me through a tree. I could hear my horse saying, "Hey Lady, why don't you try wading through it and see if you don't look for another route!" It didn't hurt but it was annoying.
All in all it was actually a cool ride, and Mark and I just talked about different things, there wasn't a lot of training going on, as Trax never once tried to run off with me. I think I had to turn him around once for going to fast, so that part was good. We discussed if Trax will be ready for the open show at the end of May. He said that if we go in with the expectations of not winning but just completing the courses, then yes, he will be ready. I appreciated his honesty on that, and truthfully that is all I am hoping for. To prove to myself, and to my horse (and to maybe a couple of doubters) that we can do it.
I wish I had been able to get a few pictures to show off, it was truly gorgeous. Next time I promise.
When we got back I rode to my trailer and dismounted. I almost fell down when I hit the ground, my knees hurt so bad. We didn't even ride that long. The only time my knees hurt like that is if I have ridden for hours and hours or I am riding with my legs tensed. I guess I was more nervous up there than I realized. So I had to examine that.
I trust my horse, I knew he wasn't going to blow up or anything. I trust my trainer, I don't believe that he would put me in a dangerous situation. So I guess I was really just nervous about the terrain. Truthfully, I never would have gone up there of my own accord. There were paths that he chose that I probably wouldn't have, but then he rides up there a lot so he knew what was safe and what wasn't. If I was unsure of what was in front of me, I followed him so that Trax and I could both see what we were headed into. Even though we did very little training "per say", it was actually good for both of us. I will be less nervous next time I ride where the footing isn't that great, and Trax learned that whether I am tense or not, I expect him to go forward. I suppose my tension added to his apprehension just a little.
Once I got him untacked and trailered, I paid Mark. He said I didn't really owe him since we didn't really do anything, but I paid him anyway. My theory is that he generally works with me for 2 hours and only charges me for one. So this sort of makes up for some of the money I should be paying him, but don't.
I made my way out the drive and promptly got my truck and trailer stuck. Even in 4wd I could not get out of the pit I was in. They ended up having to use the skid steer to get me out. I was so embarrassed My truck is not supposed to get stuck! The owner of the property assured me that it was no big deal, and that he himself had gotten stuck the day before.
I can honestly say that except for the mud I really did enjoy the ride and am looking forward to a day when we can go there again when it isn't quite so mucky. I want to see if we have the same problems crossing the little streams. If so then we will cross as many as we can, until we are both totally okay with it.
Now it is snowing again....supposedly this is the last day. Gosh I hope so, I am seriously ready for some real sunshine and some decent riding weather.
Sunday, April 21, 2013
When all else fails...go for simple.
We just got back from Cheyenne, where we met up with the farrier to check Sassy and have a look at at Killian. the weather was nice, we did not have to rush, and even had time for a little grooming this morning so that they didn't look like the "poor relations from the south".
We met him at another clients house, and she was so nice and warm and very chatty. I liked her quite a bit. I wish I had gotten a picture of her horse that Steve was working on at the time. He was a Percheron, TB, QH cross, and he was massive! she said she used to do dressage on him, and even won quite a bit. I'll be that was spectacular to watch.
When he looked as Sassy, he had me move her before he pulled off the remaining clog. Even missing one clog she still moves better than she did before he started with her. So hopefully that means she is healing. Then he looked at her "empty" foot. I now feel like a total fool and terrible horse mom because it never even occurred to me to look to see if she had any nails left. She had one that had folded over and pushing into her sole. next time I know to look for that if she looses one and pull it out immediately. In my defense, I have never once owned a horse with shoes. Mine have always been barefoot, so I just did know what to look for. Anyway, it did not cause any damage, so that is good.
He gave her a quick trim and put a new set of clogs on, and she was so good for him this time. Never even gave him a second of trouble, even on the one foot she always fights on. I moved her out when he was done and she looks great! Steve says that next time we will do another diagnostic to see what our next step is, but he feels that she is healing.
Can you say...YAY!
Next came Killian. He asked if he was lame, and I explained that he is not lame, but just feels so awkward when you ride him. So he had me move him out. We moved him in a circle and in a straight line and back in a circle again.
Steve said that his mis-step is so slight that he almost missed it. When you move him to the right in a circle he takes shorter strides, but to the left he moves normal. We attributed that to his shoulder issue. So he looked at his feet then asked some more questions.
How long since he was trimmed? -8 weeks
Where do you ride him? - On the road side, in an arena, in the pasture, on trails.
Does he avoid gravel? Yes
Steve then explained that what he sees is that Killian is a horse with no hoof, or not enough anyways. He isn't lame, but if you put weight up on him he is uncomfortable and so he is trying to lift his weight up off of his feet which makes him feel awkward.
Um....okay?
He said he could test that theory very easily by having me ride him. So I tacked him up and rode him down the gravel drive. He trotted out pretty well as far as speed (he was a little wound up), but he was just as uncomfortable as always. Then Steve put just some plain old flat shoes on the front and had me ride him again.
I swear to you, I could feel the difference. I could watch his shoulders and see that he was more comfortable.
He put two more on the back and I rode him out again. He trotted out relaxed and with his head down. I was amazed. He is not as smooth as Trax, and it he probably never will be, but it wasn't uncomfortable to ride, so that is a major improvement.
Steve said, "Humans tend to over complicate things, sometimes it is just a simple fix."
It was pretty cool watching him too. I swear I thought Killian was going to go to sleep when he was getting the last shoe on. I've never seen him act like that. Steve did not trim anything off his hooves at all. All he did was file them down so the shoes would be flush.
I asked if I should start giving him hoof supplement, but he said not yet. He feels that now that he has these shoes on, his feet will start to grow. But we will revisit that again in July.
I asked him if he could refer me to an ELPO farrier in Arizona as July will be my last appt with him. He said that not only does he have "a guy" , he has "the guy". I guess Gene Ovenick has a place down there in Cave Creek and winters down there, so he will hook me up with him. (yay!)
He told me it is time to start Sassy back on some light riding, so I need to set aside one day a week where I can work with her now.
I suspect that we will still pursue a chiro for Killian. I am still pretty convinced that he has some back pain going on, simply because of the way he groans if I ride him for more than a few minutes.
All in all it was a pretty great day. We got home at a decent hour and right before the weather turned to crap again!
Now it is time for me to go dye my hair, and get comfy and relax.
Hope everyone had a great weekend.
We met him at another clients house, and she was so nice and warm and very chatty. I liked her quite a bit. I wish I had gotten a picture of her horse that Steve was working on at the time. He was a Percheron, TB, QH cross, and he was massive! she said she used to do dressage on him, and even won quite a bit. I'll be that was spectacular to watch.
When he looked as Sassy, he had me move her before he pulled off the remaining clog. Even missing one clog she still moves better than she did before he started with her. So hopefully that means she is healing. Then he looked at her "empty" foot. I now feel like a total fool and terrible horse mom because it never even occurred to me to look to see if she had any nails left. She had one that had folded over and pushing into her sole. next time I know to look for that if she looses one and pull it out immediately. In my defense, I have never once owned a horse with shoes. Mine have always been barefoot, so I just did know what to look for. Anyway, it did not cause any damage, so that is good.
He gave her a quick trim and put a new set of clogs on, and she was so good for him this time. Never even gave him a second of trouble, even on the one foot she always fights on. I moved her out when he was done and she looks great! Steve says that next time we will do another diagnostic to see what our next step is, but he feels that she is healing.
Can you say...YAY!
Next came Killian. He asked if he was lame, and I explained that he is not lame, but just feels so awkward when you ride him. So he had me move him out. We moved him in a circle and in a straight line and back in a circle again.
Steve said that his mis-step is so slight that he almost missed it. When you move him to the right in a circle he takes shorter strides, but to the left he moves normal. We attributed that to his shoulder issue. So he looked at his feet then asked some more questions.
How long since he was trimmed? -8 weeks
Where do you ride him? - On the road side, in an arena, in the pasture, on trails.
Does he avoid gravel? Yes
Steve then explained that what he sees is that Killian is a horse with no hoof, or not enough anyways. He isn't lame, but if you put weight up on him he is uncomfortable and so he is trying to lift his weight up off of his feet which makes him feel awkward.
Um....okay?
He said he could test that theory very easily by having me ride him. So I tacked him up and rode him down the gravel drive. He trotted out pretty well as far as speed (he was a little wound up), but he was just as uncomfortable as always. Then Steve put just some plain old flat shoes on the front and had me ride him again.
I swear to you, I could feel the difference. I could watch his shoulders and see that he was more comfortable.
He put two more on the back and I rode him out again. He trotted out relaxed and with his head down. I was amazed. He is not as smooth as Trax, and it he probably never will be, but it wasn't uncomfortable to ride, so that is a major improvement.
Steve said, "Humans tend to over complicate things, sometimes it is just a simple fix."
It was pretty cool watching him too. I swear I thought Killian was going to go to sleep when he was getting the last shoe on. I've never seen him act like that. Steve did not trim anything off his hooves at all. All he did was file them down so the shoes would be flush.
I asked if I should start giving him hoof supplement, but he said not yet. He feels that now that he has these shoes on, his feet will start to grow. But we will revisit that again in July.
I asked him if he could refer me to an ELPO farrier in Arizona as July will be my last appt with him. He said that not only does he have "a guy" , he has "the guy". I guess Gene Ovenick has a place down there in Cave Creek and winters down there, so he will hook me up with him. (yay!)
He told me it is time to start Sassy back on some light riding, so I need to set aside one day a week where I can work with her now.
I suspect that we will still pursue a chiro for Killian. I am still pretty convinced that he has some back pain going on, simply because of the way he groans if I ride him for more than a few minutes.
All in all it was a pretty great day. We got home at a decent hour and right before the weather turned to crap again!
Now it is time for me to go dye my hair, and get comfy and relax.
Hope everyone had a great weekend.
Friday, April 19, 2013
Out of Office Reply
I will be out of the office for an undisclosed amount of time.
I watched the national news this morning and they told me to stay in my home and not go to work.
If you need me I will be holed up in my basement with a bottle of Peach Schnapps and my trusty Colt .45
If you would care to join me, you are certainly welcome.
Just knock 3 times and say the password.
Please byob as I plan on drinking all of mine.
Thank you.
That is all.
ps. Password : "Johnnydeppdancesnakedonfridays"
pss. I forgot to bring snacks so if you wanted to grab some on the way here, that would be great.
psss. If you bring snacks I will share my bottle.
I watched the national news this morning and they told me to stay in my home and not go to work.
If you need me I will be holed up in my basement with a bottle of Peach Schnapps and my trusty Colt .45
If you would care to join me, you are certainly welcome.
Just knock 3 times and say the password.
Please byob as I plan on drinking all of mine.
Thank you.
That is all.
ps. Password : "Johnnydeppdancesnakedonfridays"
pss. I forgot to bring snacks so if you wanted to grab some on the way here, that would be great.
psss. If you bring snacks I will share my bottle.
Thursday, April 18, 2013
Death of a Blanket
It never fails. If I head out to the pasture with some sort of camera, be it cell phone or bad ass Sony Nex5, I am lucky to get the horses to do anything cool. If I go out in a hurry to just get them fed, then they are a total blast, racing around like a bunch of fools.
I think I forgot to mention yesterday that TC put Killian's blanket on wrong side out. When I pointed this out to him , he said, "Killian will never notice the difference."
I should have fixed it then. I forgot that the material on the inside is smooth and fragile, where as the material on the outside is made to withstand tears and teeth. So when I got out there yesterday evening to feed, there was Sassy ripping the hell out of Killian's blanket. I yelled at her to knock it off, and went to fix his blanket. I put a string on his neck which is usually enough to hold him still.
Not this day!
I got as far as getting everything unbuckled and he bolted. I tried to hang on, but he was gone baby gone!
I called to him trying so hard to get him to calm down and let me come to him. Meanwhile my nice heavy quilted blanket from SSTack was slipping down around his side. It is a closed front blanket that you have to slide over their head, so it didn't just fly off, it was still attached around his neck.
"Whoa big boy, please just stand still"
I almost got a hold of him and off he went. Sassy of course was doing all she could to help by instigating the race.
Finally it slipped down around in front of him. I saw his big old fat feet land on top of it. He almost went down on his face but recovered, and then came the sound......RIIIIIIPPP!
And now its in a heap on the ground. He killed it.
Had I been smart I would have at least whipped out my cell and got it on film, but I guess my brain was still in "I have to stop him mode." I should have just grabbed food, its the one way to always get his attention. What can I say, I guess I failed under pressure.
It ripped straight down the closed front. I reckon I can just sew on some buckles or wide Velcro traps and still use it, although thanks to the crazy mare some of the insulation is gone too.
I'm pretty sure Sassy must be in full cycle right now, because Killian has flat out lost his mind. The worst part is that she seems to be purposely messing with him. She knows it drives him crazy for her to go around any other boy horses (which is any horse around) so she purposely goes over and flirts with them all. She is so bad. A brazen little hussy is what she is.
Anyway, I did finally remember to get some video although it was kind of boring. I was hoping to get some good video of Trax and Danny, but I guess they weren't really feeling it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EwhYB_Soxdo
This was taken right as I let them out. Of course the minute I shut the camera off and got back on the tractor, they started racing. Figures!
When I watched this after posting it on Youtube, I realized that it kind of shows how bad Danny's stringhalt is. Then I realized that although I have taken video of him moving, I have never uploaded any of it. I shall put that on my list of things to do this summer. It is really interesting to watch, especially when he runs. Even with his handicap, he is such a cool horse.
Naturally when I went out this morning the sun was shining and the lighting was great. The ponies were really feeling it, and it would have made for some fantastic video. But where were all my cameras? Inside on the counter. Ack!
It looks like the roads are going to clear up today, so hopefully I can get a lesson in . We were supposed to go to the ELPO farrier today, but the road to Cheyenne is still shut down so he rescheduled for Sunday.
I think I forgot to mention yesterday that TC put Killian's blanket on wrong side out. When I pointed this out to him , he said, "Killian will never notice the difference."
I should have fixed it then. I forgot that the material on the inside is smooth and fragile, where as the material on the outside is made to withstand tears and teeth. So when I got out there yesterday evening to feed, there was Sassy ripping the hell out of Killian's blanket. I yelled at her to knock it off, and went to fix his blanket. I put a string on his neck which is usually enough to hold him still.
Not this day!
I got as far as getting everything unbuckled and he bolted. I tried to hang on, but he was gone baby gone!
I called to him trying so hard to get him to calm down and let me come to him. Meanwhile my nice heavy quilted blanket from SSTack was slipping down around his side. It is a closed front blanket that you have to slide over their head, so it didn't just fly off, it was still attached around his neck.
"Whoa big boy, please just stand still"
I almost got a hold of him and off he went. Sassy of course was doing all she could to help by instigating the race.
Finally it slipped down around in front of him. I saw his big old fat feet land on top of it. He almost went down on his face but recovered, and then came the sound......RIIIIIIPPP!
And now its in a heap on the ground. He killed it.
Had I been smart I would have at least whipped out my cell and got it on film, but I guess my brain was still in "I have to stop him mode." I should have just grabbed food, its the one way to always get his attention. What can I say, I guess I failed under pressure.
It ripped straight down the closed front. I reckon I can just sew on some buckles or wide Velcro traps and still use it, although thanks to the crazy mare some of the insulation is gone too.
I'm pretty sure Sassy must be in full cycle right now, because Killian has flat out lost his mind. The worst part is that she seems to be purposely messing with him. She knows it drives him crazy for her to go around any other boy horses (which is any horse around) so she purposely goes over and flirts with them all. She is so bad. A brazen little hussy is what she is.
Anyway, I did finally remember to get some video although it was kind of boring. I was hoping to get some good video of Trax and Danny, but I guess they weren't really feeling it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EwhYB_Soxdo
This was taken right as I let them out. Of course the minute I shut the camera off and got back on the tractor, they started racing. Figures!
When I watched this after posting it on Youtube, I realized that it kind of shows how bad Danny's stringhalt is. Then I realized that although I have taken video of him moving, I have never uploaded any of it. I shall put that on my list of things to do this summer. It is really interesting to watch, especially when he runs. Even with his handicap, he is such a cool horse.
Naturally when I went out this morning the sun was shining and the lighting was great. The ponies were really feeling it, and it would have made for some fantastic video. But where were all my cameras? Inside on the counter. Ack!
It looks like the roads are going to clear up today, so hopefully I can get a lesson in . We were supposed to go to the ELPO farrier today, but the road to Cheyenne is still shut down so he rescheduled for Sunday.
Wednesday, April 17, 2013
Just Dance
My boss came in about 3pm yesterday and gave us all the ok to leave early if we desired. The snow was falling consistently, and the wind was blowing along with it, but I really didn't see too much accumulation out my office window. I was driving TC's Denali which is probably the best vehicle I have ever driven in snow and ice conditions, so I opted to stay for a while.
TC called me about 3:45 and said the ponies were wet and shivering, and wanted to know which horse got which blankets. So then I opted to go home and help. Not that I don't think he is capable, but I knew at least one horse in particular was going to avoid being blanketed no matter how cold he was.
Roads weren't great but I have seen worse for sure.
When I got home, he was already out there, and had Danny and Killian done. Being the old guys, it was most important for them to be warm. He said that Danny was more than happy to have his blanket, and Killian didn't seem to mind either.
Sassy must have been pretty cold too, because she didn't move a muscle when I went to catch her. She stood quietly for her blanket, but then she pretty much always has, so I wasn't surprised.
Then it was Trax's turn. When he saw blankets coming out he started tearing around the pasture. He would run in to his pen, but then if he saw one of us coming he would tear back out again. When I was done with Sassy, he was standing on the far side of the pasture next to the old pens that we no longer use.
I thought to myself, "What the heck, I'll try calling him" I whistled and called his name. Much to my surprise he came racing too me as I stood next to his pen, but at the last minute made a hard left and took off again. Silly boy. I went to the barn scooped enough strategy for four horses and started doling it out without giving him a second thought. Pretty soon I heard hoof beats (fast ones of course).
TC says, "Quick shut the gate"
I had a bucket full of yummy grains. I knew he wasn't going to leave again and he didn't. Once he was locked in he was all for that blanket, as long as it came with food.
It snowed all night. The wind gave us some pretty good drifts, but not unmanageable.
This morning TC left for Sheridan. He took the Denali for safety which left me with his Dodge PU. I would have preferred my own but it is hooked to the trailer still and I just didn't feel like messing with it.
I turned the news on to check for road closures for him. His route was open although with severe advisories. He just texted me and said he made it without incident. (whew) The schools are closed to day which kind of surprised me. I have seen them stay open in much worse weather, but I guess last week when we got dumped on, they did not close the schools and several parents complained.
As I was getting ready I was half way listening to the news, and found myself a little bit pissed off at the media. Every time there is a tragic event, they report on it from every angle for hours and hours on end. Now don't get me wrong, this thing in Boston was terrible and my heart goes out to those families of the victims, and to the folks who were injured as well. But I hate what the media is doing. They are reinforcing this negative behavior by talking of nothing else. It is like every single reporter out there, needs to find a way to get into the picture, so they look for a new spin on the story. The one that finally made me shut it off, was when they started reporting about how law enforcement agencies are getting hundreds of calls from civilians who are "seeing" bombs every where. Police and National Guard are out in droves because the world is terrified. Well the world is terrified because the media is creating a feeding frenzy of fear and the person (or people) who planted those bombs are LOVING IT!
So far the bomb squads have defused a hair dryer, a discarded box of wiring in a trash can, a back pack with a jacket and some books. They evacuated and airport, a library, and oh crap now I can't recall what the other place was, but it was a lot of people. This is going on all over the country. Meanwhile some new sicko is watching all this on TV and thinking to himself, "Man this is soooo cool! I wanna create havoc like this too." And starts planning his own horrific event.
Perfect.
So here is what I am doing to make a stand. I am not going to watch news channels that sensationalize events like this. So I guess that means I won't be watching any news. I will not be doing any on line research about this event or commenting on any on line forums about what they should do to these people, about how this does or does not solidify the need for gun control, or anything else. Instead I am going to blog. I will blog about my horses, my dogs (which had me awake since 3 am) and my family. I will read other blogs about other peoples animals and their lives. I am going to go on living. I may be putting my own beliefs into the heads of the victims, but I think that the victims of this event and of others, would want the world to go on living. I know if I was a victim of something like this, I would want my family and friends to go on with their lives and not live in fear. Most of all I would not want my death sensationalized across the news media. I would not want the perpetrator to gain even once ounce of satisfaction from my death. But that is just me.
As I was driving to work I had the Ipod plugged in and set on random. I live close to work so I only get to listen to 2 songs on the trip. I was pretty happy with God's choice of music this morning.
One line in particular stood out to me.
"Well it might be me, but the way I see it, the whole wide world has gone craaayaaazeee, So baby why don't we just dance.'
So with that in mind the song for today is.
Why Don't We Just Dance
Enjoy.
TC called me about 3:45 and said the ponies were wet and shivering, and wanted to know which horse got which blankets. So then I opted to go home and help. Not that I don't think he is capable, but I knew at least one horse in particular was going to avoid being blanketed no matter how cold he was.
Roads weren't great but I have seen worse for sure.
When I got home, he was already out there, and had Danny and Killian done. Being the old guys, it was most important for them to be warm. He said that Danny was more than happy to have his blanket, and Killian didn't seem to mind either.
Sassy must have been pretty cold too, because she didn't move a muscle when I went to catch her. She stood quietly for her blanket, but then she pretty much always has, so I wasn't surprised.
Then it was Trax's turn. When he saw blankets coming out he started tearing around the pasture. He would run in to his pen, but then if he saw one of us coming he would tear back out again. When I was done with Sassy, he was standing on the far side of the pasture next to the old pens that we no longer use.
I thought to myself, "What the heck, I'll try calling him" I whistled and called his name. Much to my surprise he came racing too me as I stood next to his pen, but at the last minute made a hard left and took off again. Silly boy. I went to the barn scooped enough strategy for four horses and started doling it out without giving him a second thought. Pretty soon I heard hoof beats (fast ones of course).
TC says, "Quick shut the gate"
I had a bucket full of yummy grains. I knew he wasn't going to leave again and he didn't. Once he was locked in he was all for that blanket, as long as it came with food.
It snowed all night. The wind gave us some pretty good drifts, but not unmanageable.
This morning TC left for Sheridan. He took the Denali for safety which left me with his Dodge PU. I would have preferred my own but it is hooked to the trailer still and I just didn't feel like messing with it.
I turned the news on to check for road closures for him. His route was open although with severe advisories. He just texted me and said he made it without incident. (whew) The schools are closed to day which kind of surprised me. I have seen them stay open in much worse weather, but I guess last week when we got dumped on, they did not close the schools and several parents complained.
As I was getting ready I was half way listening to the news, and found myself a little bit pissed off at the media. Every time there is a tragic event, they report on it from every angle for hours and hours on end. Now don't get me wrong, this thing in Boston was terrible and my heart goes out to those families of the victims, and to the folks who were injured as well. But I hate what the media is doing. They are reinforcing this negative behavior by talking of nothing else. It is like every single reporter out there, needs to find a way to get into the picture, so they look for a new spin on the story. The one that finally made me shut it off, was when they started reporting about how law enforcement agencies are getting hundreds of calls from civilians who are "seeing" bombs every where. Police and National Guard are out in droves because the world is terrified. Well the world is terrified because the media is creating a feeding frenzy of fear and the person (or people) who planted those bombs are LOVING IT!
So far the bomb squads have defused a hair dryer, a discarded box of wiring in a trash can, a back pack with a jacket and some books. They evacuated and airport, a library, and oh crap now I can't recall what the other place was, but it was a lot of people. This is going on all over the country. Meanwhile some new sicko is watching all this on TV and thinking to himself, "Man this is soooo cool! I wanna create havoc like this too." And starts planning his own horrific event.
Perfect.
So here is what I am doing to make a stand. I am not going to watch news channels that sensationalize events like this. So I guess that means I won't be watching any news. I will not be doing any on line research about this event or commenting on any on line forums about what they should do to these people, about how this does or does not solidify the need for gun control, or anything else. Instead I am going to blog. I will blog about my horses, my dogs (which had me awake since 3 am) and my family. I will read other blogs about other peoples animals and their lives. I am going to go on living. I may be putting my own beliefs into the heads of the victims, but I think that the victims of this event and of others, would want the world to go on living. I know if I was a victim of something like this, I would want my family and friends to go on with their lives and not live in fear. Most of all I would not want my death sensationalized across the news media. I would not want the perpetrator to gain even once ounce of satisfaction from my death. But that is just me.
As I was driving to work I had the Ipod plugged in and set on random. I live close to work so I only get to listen to 2 songs on the trip. I was pretty happy with God's choice of music this morning.
One line in particular stood out to me.
"Well it might be me, but the way I see it, the whole wide world has gone craaayaaazeee, So baby why don't we just dance.'
So with that in mind the song for today is.
Why Don't We Just Dance
Enjoy.
Tuesday, April 16, 2013
Group Hug and a New Horse
No I didn't really buy a new horse, although there is a friend of my mom's in Oregon trying to give me a 14 year old Quarter Horse mare. But I am at my limit, as we all know, so I am trying to help her find a home for her mare. But that will be a different post.
After work yesterday, I bundled up and went out to feed the horses. There was a small reprieve in the weather yesterday, so although it was breezy and cold at least it wasn't snowing right then. I knew the worst part of this storm was going to hit today so I figured I'd better use that little window of opportunity to get the stalls cleaned. As I look out my window now, I know it was the right thing to do.
Anyway, I did the red horses first and then got them fed. It is funny to watch those two in the pasture. Sassy spends most of her time trying to get away from Killian, and Killian spends all his time trying to herd her away from the other horses. If she wants to visit the Arabians next door, he gets between them. If she wants to visit Danny, he gets between, same with Trax too. He will let her visit the mares that live behind us, but he has to supervise the whole ordeal. I often wonder if he gives himself ulcers worrying about her.
After I got those two fed and put away I let out Danny and Trax. One of these days I'm going to remember to always take a camera with me, because I was sure wishing I had one yesterday. They both hit the opened gates about mach 9, okay so maybe more like mach 5 for Danny, but in his mind it was mach 9, so we will give it to him. Where ever Danny went, Trax followed. They would rear up and "fight" each other, and then turn around and kick at each other with both feet, but of course never actually hitting each other. Then they would tear across the pasture, pick another spot and do it all over again. It was wonderful to watch.
Trax has always been one to tear around the pasture when he first gets out, but he has never really been "part of the herd". He always kind of kept his distance, and never really played with anyone, he would just run around. If there was any kind of ear pinning or ugly faces made, he was gone to the other side of the pasture. Watching these two cavort around like that made me realize that Danny and Trax are buds. For the first time in..well I don't know how long...Trax has a friend. I know that when he lived at Steve's (the man I bought him from) he did not have a friend. Steve said he was always alone, even though there were other horses there. So Trax has a friend now, and they were having a great time.
It was hilarious to watch Danny try to kick at Trax, his butt goes up real high but then his legs don't really kick out behind him. I think that this is good exercise for him because he is sure trying to stretch those legs out.
Anyway, after they were done with their games they parked up by the barn waiting for me to get their food. I walked up to Danny and gave him some attention. I just loved on him and rubbed him all over, kind of just checking him over all over while I was petting him. Trax watched from a few feet away. I saw him watching me, but just ignored him for a bit...he took a step closer. I kept rubbing Danny, Trax took another step. So while I was standing next to Danny I put my hand out for Trax to sniff, he touched my hand with his nose. I took a step towards him, he took a step back, so I turned back to Danny, I heard him step closer again. I put my hand back out, he touched it with his nose again. I took a step closer and he didn't move. Another step, he stayed put. So I stepped up to him and put my arms around his neck. I expected him to bolt right there, but he didn't. He stayed there and let me rub him and love on him. He turned his head around to see what I was doing. His eye wasn't quite soft, I could feel that he was a little nervous, but he wasn't frozen either. I think uneasy would be the appropriate word.
I stepped back and he trotted off, so I went back to Danny, pretty soon Trax was up there again. I could practically read his mind.
He was thinking, "I think I want her to pet me again, but I'm not sure."
So we did it again. One step at a time until he let me hug and love all over him. Then Danny laid his head across Trax's butt.
Group Hug!
It was cool for a few seconds, but then I could feel Trax getting a little claustrophobic so I stepped away. He didn't trot off this time, but just stood there licking and chewing, and let out a big sigh.
I have never once been able to walk up to Trax in a pasture and touch him. When I first got him, it didn't even matter if I had food. If he thought there was a halter attached to that food he was having none of it. I would have to corner him with the food and then use a little string to catch him with. Then I could halter him. Sometimes that didn't even work. Jay taught me to use my round pen to catch him. I would carry the grain into the round pen and he would sometimes follow me in. Then I would have to work him till he was ready to give in. Sometimes I would have to leave the food in there so he could go in of his own accord. Then the work would come.
After a while, he got to where I would put the food in the pen, he would go in, and I could just go to him. But it took and entire summer of feeding him in the pen for every meal to get to that point. Then we built the barn and he had his own stall. His stall has always been his, it never changes and he find security in that. When I get home from work, and he and Danny are out, he will generally be there waiting for his dinner. He may follow me around, but as soon as I head that direction with dinner, he stops following and beats me there.
So when it is time to catch him now, I just grab a bucket and he heads to his pen. At first, if I had a halter he would move a way from me to the other end of his stall, but now he comes too me. He puts his head in the halter and is ready to go.
But everything is different if he is loose. If he is loose and I have a halter, he is gone. If he is loose and I move towards him even without a halter in my hand, he takes off. If I turn my back on him he follows me, but if I turn around and face him, he is gone. I generally try about once a week to walk up to him in the pasture and pet him. It is always the same for him, "Nope not today."
Yesterday was the first time ever that he has let me come up to him in the pasture and pet him.
The very first!
I don't know what the difference is for him in the pasture, other than I know he knows he can get away, so he does. I don't know what changed for him yesterday, but it was so dang cool. He is becoming a new horse, and I like who he is becoming.
Nothing better than an equine group hug to take away the "Is spring ever going to come" blues.
UPDATE:
I am a little frustrated right now. I can see my blog list and the beginnings of everyone's posts, but I cannot open them. I can post and edit my own blog, but I cannot see the finished product. Not sure what is going on with the internet today.
Oh, and we have horizontal snow now. The roads were pretty much clear when I came to work. Looks like we have a couple of inches so far. Glad I didn't drive the jeep today!
After work yesterday, I bundled up and went out to feed the horses. There was a small reprieve in the weather yesterday, so although it was breezy and cold at least it wasn't snowing right then. I knew the worst part of this storm was going to hit today so I figured I'd better use that little window of opportunity to get the stalls cleaned. As I look out my window now, I know it was the right thing to do.
Anyway, I did the red horses first and then got them fed. It is funny to watch those two in the pasture. Sassy spends most of her time trying to get away from Killian, and Killian spends all his time trying to herd her away from the other horses. If she wants to visit the Arabians next door, he gets between them. If she wants to visit Danny, he gets between, same with Trax too. He will let her visit the mares that live behind us, but he has to supervise the whole ordeal. I often wonder if he gives himself ulcers worrying about her.
After I got those two fed and put away I let out Danny and Trax. One of these days I'm going to remember to always take a camera with me, because I was sure wishing I had one yesterday. They both hit the opened gates about mach 9, okay so maybe more like mach 5 for Danny, but in his mind it was mach 9, so we will give it to him. Where ever Danny went, Trax followed. They would rear up and "fight" each other, and then turn around and kick at each other with both feet, but of course never actually hitting each other. Then they would tear across the pasture, pick another spot and do it all over again. It was wonderful to watch.
Trax has always been one to tear around the pasture when he first gets out, but he has never really been "part of the herd". He always kind of kept his distance, and never really played with anyone, he would just run around. If there was any kind of ear pinning or ugly faces made, he was gone to the other side of the pasture. Watching these two cavort around like that made me realize that Danny and Trax are buds. For the first time in..well I don't know how long...Trax has a friend. I know that when he lived at Steve's (the man I bought him from) he did not have a friend. Steve said he was always alone, even though there were other horses there. So Trax has a friend now, and they were having a great time.
It was hilarious to watch Danny try to kick at Trax, his butt goes up real high but then his legs don't really kick out behind him. I think that this is good exercise for him because he is sure trying to stretch those legs out.
Anyway, after they were done with their games they parked up by the barn waiting for me to get their food. I walked up to Danny and gave him some attention. I just loved on him and rubbed him all over, kind of just checking him over all over while I was petting him. Trax watched from a few feet away. I saw him watching me, but just ignored him for a bit...he took a step closer. I kept rubbing Danny, Trax took another step. So while I was standing next to Danny I put my hand out for Trax to sniff, he touched my hand with his nose. I took a step towards him, he took a step back, so I turned back to Danny, I heard him step closer again. I put my hand back out, he touched it with his nose again. I took a step closer and he didn't move. Another step, he stayed put. So I stepped up to him and put my arms around his neck. I expected him to bolt right there, but he didn't. He stayed there and let me rub him and love on him. He turned his head around to see what I was doing. His eye wasn't quite soft, I could feel that he was a little nervous, but he wasn't frozen either. I think uneasy would be the appropriate word.
I stepped back and he trotted off, so I went back to Danny, pretty soon Trax was up there again. I could practically read his mind.
He was thinking, "I think I want her to pet me again, but I'm not sure."
So we did it again. One step at a time until he let me hug and love all over him. Then Danny laid his head across Trax's butt.
Group Hug!
It was cool for a few seconds, but then I could feel Trax getting a little claustrophobic so I stepped away. He didn't trot off this time, but just stood there licking and chewing, and let out a big sigh.
I have never once been able to walk up to Trax in a pasture and touch him. When I first got him, it didn't even matter if I had food. If he thought there was a halter attached to that food he was having none of it. I would have to corner him with the food and then use a little string to catch him with. Then I could halter him. Sometimes that didn't even work. Jay taught me to use my round pen to catch him. I would carry the grain into the round pen and he would sometimes follow me in. Then I would have to work him till he was ready to give in. Sometimes I would have to leave the food in there so he could go in of his own accord. Then the work would come.
After a while, he got to where I would put the food in the pen, he would go in, and I could just go to him. But it took and entire summer of feeding him in the pen for every meal to get to that point. Then we built the barn and he had his own stall. His stall has always been his, it never changes and he find security in that. When I get home from work, and he and Danny are out, he will generally be there waiting for his dinner. He may follow me around, but as soon as I head that direction with dinner, he stops following and beats me there.
So when it is time to catch him now, I just grab a bucket and he heads to his pen. At first, if I had a halter he would move a way from me to the other end of his stall, but now he comes too me. He puts his head in the halter and is ready to go.
But everything is different if he is loose. If he is loose and I have a halter, he is gone. If he is loose and I move towards him even without a halter in my hand, he takes off. If I turn my back on him he follows me, but if I turn around and face him, he is gone. I generally try about once a week to walk up to him in the pasture and pet him. It is always the same for him, "Nope not today."
Yesterday was the first time ever that he has let me come up to him in the pasture and pet him.
The very first!
I don't know what the difference is for him in the pasture, other than I know he knows he can get away, so he does. I don't know what changed for him yesterday, but it was so dang cool. He is becoming a new horse, and I like who he is becoming.
Nothing better than an equine group hug to take away the "Is spring ever going to come" blues.
UPDATE:
I am a little frustrated right now. I can see my blog list and the beginnings of everyone's posts, but I cannot open them. I can post and edit my own blog, but I cannot see the finished product. Not sure what is going on with the internet today.
Oh, and we have horizontal snow now. The roads were pretty much clear when I came to work. Looks like we have a couple of inches so far. Glad I didn't drive the jeep today!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)