Saturday.......cool overcast morning!

I got a lot done this week at the barn. I fenced in the new paddock with it's very own loafing shed...all done with tall posts so the behemoths that we keep will not be tempted to jump, lean, nudge or bulldoze through the fences. It means that everyone now has a shelter/stall and a good sized paddock.

While I was moving the fencing around Beaver escaped. He takes full opportunity of knowing the fence is off and then makes a run either under or straight through the fence. Then of course he runs laps around the paddock while I run after him. This time he went over the old rotten logs in the neighboring paddock and got himself stung by wasps! He just cannot leave anything alone. I finally caught him and he seems none the worse with the wasp stings. I put him back and turned the fence on...so then he decided to fight through the fence with Sully...the old "I bite you and you scream, then you kick at me and I scream" game.

Our new filly is in heat and so there is the occasional scream between her and Winston. Winston has really no idea why the screaming is going on...he is just trying to get any food that is on her side of the fence and she comes up and screams at him. He eventually gets mad and charges the fence, then runs off. He is very jealous of the attention she gets...and so far, everyone wants to see her, pet her and oooh and ah over her. We don't have a name yet folks?! Don't make me name her...you will have to live with it.

I need to tell you about a young boy I have had the pleasure of meeting a few times. He has made a big impression on me and really, it probably takes a lot to impress me.

This is the Stiffey's little boy...we call him Bubba. He helped out at the barn the other evening and he is so polite. If you ask him to do something, his immediate response is "yes, I can do that" and then he goes right to it. He helped my mom with wheeling her trash can, helped us mend a fence line and ran for tools when we needed them. I am going to try to keep "yes, I can do that" in my own answer bag. There are so many disrespectful kids out there, I love to meet one who has been raised with manners and a positive attitude. Bubba.........YOU are a great kid! Thanks for all your help.

I took Hamilton the the vet last week. It was the morning of the 103 degree day and I hated to trailer him, but his jaw was very sore and he was not eating. I was distressed, worried and so I put him in the trailer and went to Maple Valley. We got xrays (I will find the money somewhere if I have to take another job) and we "tapped" the giant lump with a needle for a biopsy. Xrays don't show anything conclusive unfortunately. The vet gave him some new medicine (dex and antibiotics).The vet is perplexed and has never seen anything like what Hammy has.

I left Hammy at the Jones farm that day/night as it was way too hot to put him in the trailer for the trip home and I did not want to stress him. I gave him a bath at the Jones farm. The Jones farm treated him like royalty over night...fed him every couple of hours, gave him his meds, hosed him...in a great big stall next to some very fine Thoroughbreds. I picked him up early the next morning and brought him home. Hammy is a very kind horse, very willing and very stoic with the kind of pain he has had. I have mixed feelings about what to do for him at this point. He cannot stay on steroids forever. I hope the biopsy will show us something.

We have a mission at PonyUp and that is to rehab and rehome sport horses. Obviously sometimes we bend the rules because our hearts rule our heads. This was the situation with Hammy. Hammy will never be more than a light riding horse (maybe) or maybe just a pasture ornament if his jaw issues can be fixed...he also has bad stifles, poor leg conformation...we would not have picked him for rehoming as a sport horse. but I was the one who went and looked and well...once I looked, I could not leave him. Horses make eye contact with me and it's almost always over. I do not regret bringing him home. This rescue business is a labor of love...heartbreaking at times, expensive and time consuming. I look sometimes at Hammy's stall and it is a mess from the gruel he has to eat. He gets it all over himself and all over the walls, the floor and did I mention he likes to pee in his stall (even without bedding?)...I would like to kick him outside and have him eat out there, pee out there...but gosh, he is happy in the stall and seems generally happy until his jaw pain becomes severe. I am trying to manage the best I can and do the right thing for him...my brain is fighting my heart on this one. My brain knows that chronic pain is no life for a horse...horses spend almost all of their time foraging when they are awake...how can a horse with a bad, painful jaw exist like that? My brain says they can't. My heart says...pain medication, gruel...DMSO...

Sometimes we have to let go. Hard decisions. We will wait for the biopsy.

off to the barn to see our volunteers and our horses that we love!

Stay cool today.

Very Hot Saturday

Cool and overcast ......very still and quiet.....I enjoyed the coolness when I stepped out with my dogs and coffee very early this morning. Our house is right in the middle of a large wooded area and there is always something to see or hear. The dogs look around for just the right place and rabbits freeze on the spot........dogs are oblivious and go right past them, and then the rabbits disappear into the brush soundlessly. We had a bear in the backyard several days ago. He was checking out the koi pond.

On to the barn for morning chores.

The pain medication for Hammy seemed to work as he ate better this morning. He will now get a complete mush three times a day. Beet pulp, senior grain, alfalfa pellets and all of the supplements we give him. Keep your fingers crossed.

My best girl volunteers came and they picked paddocks and helped clean up. I got some good pictures which I will post later. We also cleaned up around the barn and in the barn. Place looks awesome!

On to riding chores.......Briann tacked up Rio and we took him up to the arena, where we worked him on the lunge line, then had Briann get on him. Brianne has perfect riding posture.....it was still cool so we didn't have to work in the heat.

Then.......drum roll please..............

We got Sully out and I put an old jump saddle on him, and IT FIT!!!! So we lunged him both directions and over/around the tarp and trot poles..........

then.......drum roll..............

I had Briann get on him and we walked the perimeter of the arena!!!!!!!!!!!!!! He was a little super star and maybe.......just a little on the lazy side. He was unfazed by the constant clanging of the fence (provided by a jealous pony named Beaver)

So we had a successful morning.......

done by noon and everyone went off to their regular chores.

Great job Briann!

pictures later..........my camera battery died and I was unable to take pictures........but one of my bestest volunteers took pictures of our riding events!

Wednesday evening update

Short work week! YAY!

We love long weekends, although in general we hate the 4th of July. Fireworks and horses do not mix and it makes for a long evening. I generally stay up until 2am with my horses to make sure there is no blood shed, no fence crashing and they feel better with me there. I will turn the music on in the barn, something with a rock beat and perhaps give a small tranquilizer to Ollie. Ollie really hates the noise and any visuals.

I worked with Sully, the un-stallion tonight. He had several days rest, but is ready to go back to work. I did some ground work with him and picked all his feet up. He is so little that his feet seem like they are made out of balsa wood. Nothing like the big warmbloods I am used to and I might add that all those big warmbloods WANT you to hold their full weight once you pick a foot up...just another reason I have big biceps.

Hamilton was a little fussy with food today. We backed off on his corn oil and he ate better for a while, then we added Gleam and Gain which he ate with good appetite...but today he was a little sluggish. Perhaps the heat? He has no temperature, no runny nose...we will watch him.

Beaver has made friends with Sully over the fence...no screaming this time, no striking...just some evil faces when the grain is passed out. Beaver does not get any grain and so he is desperate to take anyone else's grain. He is not shy about it. He has the large TB's trained to just give it up...but Sully is not so easy. It is good to see them hang together, even though they are separated by a fence they still stand next to each other during the day.

It is just coming dusk and the little one legged bird is at the window as I type. He still brings items to his reflection in the window...so sad. I have never seen him with a mate. He spends most of his time on our patio.

The weekend will bring more chores. Fencing...roofing, moving stall mats...the weather is supposed to be good and we are glad for that.

This weekend, I will ride Rio and Sully. I will not allow pictures of me and Sully...it will be like riding a pony. Nope...no pictures. I may ask my trusty assistant Briann to help me.

I had a dog fight in the house this evening. Jack Russell. Need I say more? How about Labrador ? How about jealous? How about blood?

More later...have a good evening!

How did Wednesday get here already? (Edited late pm)

I am only writing for a moment...I am LATE...I went to bed late, I got up LATE and I am just plain late. I got the dogs out for their run, coffee made and now I must jet around like a crazy woman...get to the barn, get to work on time and get some things done!

Contact vet about dental floats.
Call about oyster shell...wonderful draining material, cheaper than rock and FREEEEEEEEE!
Make sure we have a feeder for Thursday pm.
Buy feed today.
Send some thank you notes out.
Make plans for Saturday chores.
buy arena fence posts
call tractor man to come and auger holes for new fence.
paddocks must be picked/dragged
rocks picked from arena
hotwire put up for Beaver
buy another fence post hole digger....honestly, we got one from Lowes last week and what a hunk of junk......I had no idea that one post hole digger could be different from another but ..it picked up about a tablespoon of dirt at a time...no good! I think Page should have her own.

It never ends...constant chores...not complaining and glad to do it or have it done.

We have horses ready for adoption! Sully, Rio, Simon Beaver(?)...no, not Beaver...but really, if he escapes one more time...I might mull it over...all are ready for new parents who will love them, feed them and care for them! The healthy ones must go so that we can help others and we have folks knocking at our door each day, so we either need room, or a bigger farm or possibly to have our heads examined.

Again, we are thankful for our volunteers and the folks who support us in donations...we could not do it without them. Hug your volunteers today...they are special people with big hearts!

I promised a Beaver story.

A year or so ago, I was at my other farm, had a horse with a temperature, so I called the vet on my cell phone. Then I put my cell phone up where I could easily hear it ring. I proceeded with chores...cleaning stalls, raking paddocks...some time passed and I wondered why the vet had not called back. Hmmm...maybe I didn't hear the phone? I should check the phone...now where did I put it? On the stall wall? No. On top of the food bin? No...where the heck is it? oh, I put it on the top of a wood fence post...but where? I can't find it. I am losing my mind.....I check the truck, I check my pockets...I look in the barn, on EVERY fence post. I must have dropped it? No...as I look up, I see that Beaver has it in his mouth...standing and facing me...chewing it. He is on full alert. I tell him to drop "that phone" and I lunge for him.......he, of course runs...he runs like the wind with my cell phone still in his mouth...I chase him out into the orchard and I get close enough to almost grab it...and he is off again, back to the paddock and loafing shed. I run back up the hill after him. He stops in his paddock, right in front of his stock tank and looks at me...I say "c'mere Beavey...come on, I have a treat...give me that phone! He puts his little pony ears up, gets a really cute look on his face and promptly drops my cell phone into the stock tank...then looks at me. I dive in after it...but of course it is too late. The Treo Palm phone is not waterproof...not pony proof...I shake the phone, I take the back off...but it is too late...a trip to the bottom of the tank is not good for an electronic device.

Beaver stands in one spot, very proud of his accomplishment. I tell him he is going to the fox farm...I tell him the phone is worth more than he is...I then run to the house to call the vet, in case he has called while the chase was on and now that he CANNOT call because my phone does NOT WORK!!!

That is the type of pony he is...I have a million more stories.

---

Late Wednesday pm...Pony Up girls rock...Briann and Darlene came out and helped me feed...then we put the roof panels on the new loafing shed and braced the underlying supports. What a big help they were. Now we need to patch some nail holes, put some mats in the stall, attach a feeder...put some paddock fencing up and we are ready for Sully. Oh and we got another wall of plywood up (thanks Jan!) in Beaver's stall.

almost 9 pm and I have more stuff to do here at home.

Goodnight!

The un-stallion rides again (Sully)

The UN-stallion had another day of riding around the Jones Farm...look how GOOD he looks! He is definitely ready to have his own person...if you are interested in adopting him, please contact us. Adoption contract and fee will apply.

Rain,rain, go away...I hate to complain after all the nice weather we have had, but I really didn't need the rain today.

Hopefully the sun will come out tomorrow and we can work most of the day on a new loafing shed for the UN-stallion. My brother in law is coming to help. Hey...he is a good worker and he does side jobs...he is a gas stove technician/heating/cooling guy. If you need some work done...email me? He also does door installation and some wood work.

I guess you are tired of him being called the un-stallion...me too...so he got a new name today. His name is Sully. YAY he has a name...!! How did I come up with that? well, let's see...he was so sullen for a few days...I actully called him so swollen and sullen...then sullen turns into Sully. yes...Sully. It is a good name for a nice little gelding.

Rio is going to work tomorrow...he will be tacked and lunged. We hope he will work like a soldier with a minimum of fuss. He certainly looks good and feels good. We will let you know tomorrow how it goes. Rio is ready for adoption as he does not need anymore rehab.

So now we have:
Rio
Hamilton
Simon
Gossip
Sully
Beaver
Yukon

Don't we come up with great names?

More tomorrow!

Sunday morning

Winston playing with feeder

Junah

hammy

I slept hard last night and got a late start this morning. I had a long day yesterday. Fortunately, Page was on time and got everything done before I got there....I am lucky to have her. That meant that I got to do the good stuff, like hand out carrots and apples.

Yesterday, during the tractor work, a bunny nest was disturbed and one very tiny bunny found. He did not have his eyes open yet. We had him in the barn for a while but decided it would be best to try and reunite him with his mother. So we put him back near the nest spot in some hay and then hoped for the best. I checked on him this morning and he seemed fine, but then I found his litter mate.....dead ..and then a little further and I found another litter mate, very, very cold and still breathing a little. I knew he was too cold and so I picked him up, then called Page....."here, I said....put this bunny in your cleavage"...."he needs body heat"....Page never batted an eye, she put him under her shirt while I searched for any more bunnies. We saw the mother bunny dart off.

I made the decision that we should take the cold bunny to the my mom's house and warm him, perhaps give him a little warm milk with a syringe....so off we went. We had to pass through Beaver's paddock and he wanted to see what was going on, so he nosed us and then seemed to know that Page had the "bundle"...so he bit her. Beaver wants in on everything and he gets mad if he is cut off. We got out of there and went to my mom's house....heated a little bit of milk, put a drop of honey in it, put it in the syringe and I took the bunny and fed him a little. Then we put a wet rag into the microwave, heated it, placed it in a ziplock, wrapped it in a dry towel and placed the bunny on top of it (in a plastic bowl)...dramatic results...the bunny visibly improved and his color looked better.

Now, I know that little creatures are incredibly hard to hand feed and returning to mom is always best...so after observing him for about twenty minutes, I decided to put him back into a nest with his sibling rabbit. I trudged back through the pasture and into the woods, found the "hay" nest that we constructed for the other baby, and gently placed the other baby with his sibling. I then tightened the nest around them and deepened the nest, then built up the sides a little.
You always wonder if you are doing the right thing.

I went back to check on them about twenty minutes later......both bunnies were warm to the touch and moving and squeaking a little.

I have done what I could and I will hope for the best.

The horses LOVE the new hay and they have cleaned up every bite....then they beg for more.

Yukon is settled in at Chelsea’s and Junah was settled this morning. Junah is very intrigued by Beaver and Beaver makes threatening faces at him and rushes the fence at him. Junah just stares at him, like "what is that?"

We moved Hammy to the bottom paddock, so that he will have less to crib on....and then maybe burn less calories and just concentrate on eating.

It is overcast this morning, relatively cool...but I expect it will burn off and we will have a beautiful afternoon like yesterday.

I have yard work to do..laundry to do, dogs to walk...groceries to buy...and I still have farm work to get done. Some fence work, paddock cleaning.....and we still need another loafing shed (I love to build those!) It is just time consuming.

The un-stallion will be home and we will need a shed for him to call his own.

Next week we will take Rio up to a local barn and see how he reacts and handles. Keep your fingers crossed! We have a young girl who loves him. He needs a girl of his own.

Another busy day coming

Up early on this Sunday morning, let the dogs out, fed the cats......I am listening to the coffee pot groan it's way through the brew cycle, noisy and yet strangely comforting in this big quiet house. My little sparrow friend has just arrived and is checking out the windows......I wish he or she could find a bird of their own. It must be lonely living with your reflection. Yesterday, he or she brought a small worm to the reflection and cast it to the ground, hoping to lure the bird out of the window. Kind of sad.

I have to go and get Winston today, then come home and work on the fencing arrangements.......we sort of started a remodel when I took the horse trailer through the back gate.......as it wasn't quite wide enough. Winston has been having daily attention and living at a nice farm, so it will be a let down to come back to my farm. This means I will move Beaver back to his pony stall and Churchie will get his big stall back. Beaver really likes having the big stall and is probably going to be a pill about moving. We have had several people inquire about adopting Beaver.......but they just don't know what they are asking.......he is trouble in a pony suit and must be managed.......he hates children........he hates dogs.........he usually hates the barn cats and he chases the chickens and has intent to kill them.and did I mention he is an escape artist?.......besides that he is a wonderful little pony. He potentially could be a guard pony I guess.

Today we will scrub water tubs out, clean stalls (never ending chore), rake some paddocks, clean up the hay area, sweep out the barn, comb manes/fly spray bodies and fix the fence up by the arena.

Tuesday the tractor comes and will groom the arena, cut some brush back, and move the manure pile. All volunteer work and we so appreciate it.

Saturday, the shoer comes for my horses, Yukon and Rio.....I will probably put shoes on Churchie......he has a club foot in the front and just generally bad angles. Rio has great feet and just needs a trim.

Page and I get roped into outside chores for my mother just about every Sunday morning. Something about a 79 year old lady out there attempting to lift something heavy or dig something or move something from here to there and then maybe move it back because it doesn't look right. Last week it was .........picture this.........she had the lawn mower out attempting to pull start it........Page and I looked at each other and said <"well, I guess we are mowing the lawn, aren't we?" This is a set up by my mother who manages to be outside the minute we arrive, and attempting to do something she knows I wouldn't allow......yes, a set up just for us. LOL. Page has a good heart.

enjoy your day...........take the brakes off your heart......life is short.

The stallion comes to Pony Up north.....gelding goes South

Chelsea, Page and I got up early, got our chores done and then got on the road to get the gelding and stallion moved. We were not sure what was in store for us with loading a stallion who had never been loaded before....but off we went anyway. We met up at the old farm and decided to start with "Manny" the stallion first. Got him haltered, made him do a little line work......brought him out, opened the trailer, lined him up.........he was very curious and not at all ill mannered. We let him scope it out, gave him another treat.....(he loves carrots).........then Chelsea asked him to step up and in he went........voila........just like that. I told you he was smart. He stood very nicely for ten minutes while we loaded the old gelding into Chelsea's trailer and he went right in like an old trooper. I asked Chelsea to come to my place to help me unload Manny. We got there and my horses were calling, he was screaming and very excited to see what he could see.......Chelsea walked him up into my outdoor arena and it took a minute to calm him down enough to get his halter off......then it was off to the races and showing his parts off. We removed horses from his fence line so that the fence would indeed stay up. The excitement wore off on the rest of the boys and they ignored him as he pranced the fence line. We got him a water tub, some hay and turned the electric fence on.

Tomorrow we find a vet to geld him. W.I.R.E. (Whidbey Island Horse Rescue) has kindly donated 100 dollars towards his gelding costs......and we THANK them very much! They have been very willing to help us and we can use all the help we can get most days!

I just came home to get some lunch, Chelsea is on the road taking the old boy home, Page went home........then I am back to put up some more insulators for some more hot wire. I am not taking any chances.

I have to say that all in all, Manny was a good boy and I have hope that he will learn fast.

I will post more pictures tonight of Manny in his new spot.

After gelding him, he will go for 30 days of training, where he can learn some manners and perhaps be put under saddle. We shall see...

I am tired.....too much excitement and adrenaline. More later.

I am back. I just spend several hours putting up more hot wire tape along the top of the arena fence. Then I haltered the stallion (I had grain, so he was more than willing).....then decided that I would de-worm him with the rest of the herd. He was easier than the rest. Maybe I should have had an Arab years ago? LOL. .......anyway, we got the de-worming over and he refused to eat the rest of his yummy grain because he was certain I was poisoning him. He walked off and walked the fence, then ate some hay, then walked some more....all the while watching me. He is particularly in love with my gelding Ollie........he sees him and he gets all worked up, screams and prances......whilst Ollie ignores him. Ollie is not impressed by his antics.

Beaver was a pill today. We moved him so that he and the stallion would not share a fence line.....and Beaver did not like it. We moved him to a far paddock and he promptly escaped into Hamilton's paddock by ducking under the fence. Hamilton promptly chased him and then Beaver ducked into Church's paddock where he was greeted by a 17H unfriendly Holsteiner and so he promptly retreated to the bottom of the paddock waiting for me to rescue him.

That darned pony. He is locked in a stall tonight while we regroup on paddock arrangements.......the trouble is........NO horse likes Beaver and Beaver is relatively unafraid of the electric fence. ...he knows he can bolt right through it...if he is fast enough.

Back to work tomorrow......and I hope everyone stays in the paddocks as assigned.

The really good news is that after the stallion has been gelded, he will go to the Jones Farm, who has very generously donated training and board for him. They are so good to us and such good friends. We adore them and we want to live at the Jones Farm ourselves.......a small slice of heaven in Renton.....picture perfect on any day. Really....I love that place....and the Reeves are two of the nicest people you could EVER meet.

Enough for today. I met some really great people this week and I am pleased that we were able to help the Arabians get placed.

After the stallion has had his training, he will be available for adoption. He is small, wirey, very smart and athletic. I bet he would make a great competitive trail horse. Too bad I am six feet tall and he is 14.3H....and also too bad that I am not a competitive trail rider (almost forgot that!)
Enjoy your short work week!

Thanks to Jason and his family for making the efforts for these horses and I was glad to meet all of you.

Hamilton Radar Jones is home

Hamilton Radar Jones is home. I picked him up Saturday. I was told that he "didn't load" and that it would take a long time to get him into the trailer. Nope. He loaded right up.......he actually loaded better than my Holsteiner......better than my TB.......and about as easy as my Hanoverian. No trouble, no balking, a little soft talk and some praise.......and in he went. He hauled nicely although he screamed all the way to anyone who would listen. It was a warm day so I left the jail bars up and windows down.

I promised I would be politically correct. His owners did the right thing by surrendering him and I will give them points for that. He is not in good shape. Per my agreement with the surrender, I cannot go into all details.
I can say this......he is happy today. He ate all night, cleaned up everything he was given and this morning he called out in a strong voice that he was ready for breakfast. He needs dental work, he needs hoof work, he needs weight and he needed a chance......which he now has.

Did I mention he brought friends? LICE...... I told Page that he had lice after she was petting him and she got "that" look on her face.........I said "don't worry, they might hop on you but they won't stay".........she said "good". I love to shock Page with these things...for just a moment anyway.

He also has bilateral stifle issues, which may be due to needing some muscle...we shall see.

oh, yeah........he windsucks too. Oh well, we don't mind, it could be worse.

A beautiful day today and in a little while I will go and scrub Hamilton's legs with some betadine cleanser.

I left the farm with all the horses enjoying the sun. Ollie and Rio were trying to get each others’ fly masks off. Churchie was laying in the damp part of the paddock. Beaver was teasing Yukon over the fenceline. Chickens were working the manure pile over. Did I mention the other Banty is setting on eggs in a secret location? She comes out to eat and then disappears. We really don't need any more chickens.......anyone want some? We have an assortment of 12 banty chicks........half grown....just raise your hand! Chelsea you don't have any chickens...Jenny......how about you?:)

enjoy your day!

news!

We were contacted by the IRS and our 501c3 status is approved. We should recieve the letter this coming week!

This weekend we are re-fencing the paddocks. We purchased wooden posts today and have a tractor coming tomorrow to auger the fence post holes. We have thirty to start with and more coming in the future. No more metal fence posts.........too dangerous, especially with big horses who like to stand on their hind legs and play.

It was a gorgeous day today ........Page and I cleaned paddocks this morning and swept the barn out. I cut Ollies mane and combed out his very long tail. He looks more like the old show horse that he is rather than a wild mustang off the range. No matter...he is the most handsome horse I have ever had.

We have big plans to paint the exterior of the barn and the inside too.....we have a very small barn for right now...but it works......we use every inch of it. We have a microwave and a table and a drug dispensary area. We think we can do without the table and maybe put a bench in where we can easily put our boots on and maybe use it to rest between chores!

Mud dried a little today and next week we will begin the de-mud process with the paddocks. Gravel, road fabric and timbers.......voila.......no mud.

We must also re-roof Beaver's shed. It really looks like non professionals did it and well, truthfully.......non professionals did. ...Page and I. I mean.......It IS functional, it doesn't leak but it does look odd. Did I mention that Page hammers nails like a girl? LOL.

Church (the Holsteiner) let himself out of his stall the other night......there was really nothing for him to get into, but he turned everything over and nosed his way through the trash, left us several piles of poop. He met Page when she came to feed in the morning but obediently went into his stall when she asked.

So much to do on the weekends, we must write a list and prioritize it and reprioritize it as the week progresses. Things change that is for sure.

In the next week, we will bring Junah to the north farm and take Rio to the south farm. Junah needs to use the arena to stretch his Thoroughbred legs........keep your fingers crossed that he keeps his shoes on!

We had a good week of volunteers who want to help.......we have an offer of training for Junah and another offer of grooming and ground work for Rio.

We really love Rio. Such a great horse in so many ways.......he has blossomed at our facility....he is friendly, calls to us and loves to be groomed now.

We have an offer from a local vet to treat our fosters at a great price for dental floats and health checks. More on that later ........we love to give credit where credit is due!

Have a great week.......do something meaningful for yourself or someone else!

Pictures from the weekend

Beaver the Pony Up mascot!
 

My Hanoverian Winston.

Rio, eating breakfast.

Herd dynamics

Bright and early Page and I are at the barn, get horses fed, barns cats fed and let out, chickens let out and fed.......then clean stalls, empty the wheelbarrow, then dump, clean and fill the stock tanks. The sun is out and the morning chill gradually warms up with a little sun. Hmmm......chore of the day? We need to move horses around in paddocks. Sounds like a small project, but not really. First we need to make a new fence line to keep the pony in his new area with his new loafing shed.....this will free up a stall that we need for Rio. Ollie and Rio share a paddock with a loafing shed...but need to be moved to the larger paddock which is attached to two stalls. The paddock is larger so they have more room to roam. The real issue here is that Ollie will not allow Rio into the Noble shelter when it is raining so Rio has to stay outside with just his nose inside the shelter. Rio needs shelter. So we will take the pony's stall and then Winston's stall. Winston will take the paddock with the Noble shelter. We pound some posts into the ground. We have to use metal with caps.......although we will eventually change these to wood. I hate metal, especially with big horses.

Okay, so we separate the pony into his new area and Winston cannot stand the change....he bolts right through the hotwire and goes in with the pony. I wonder who will get the upper hand. Beaver(the pony) is 11 hands but top dog around the farm. Winston is a large 17H warmblood and a drama queen. He has his nose in everything......he needs to know what everyone is doing and he needs to be part of it.

Page's eyes are the size of saucers. I tell her to duck under the fence to safety while the boys work it out and I will try to catch Winston. I get him cornered and into the holding pen.....then laugh as Page asks why they are so upset? I say......."because they have the brain of a gnat" and 'any change is exciting and a reason to buck and run". I tell her that the fun is not over yet, because we still have to move Ollie and Rio.

I get Ollie caught up and move him first.......he proceeds to buck and fart and run the length of the paddock. Then I get Rio and he follows suit. Winston is running laps in his holding pen and rearing on his hind legs. I go to him and halter him, then lead him out to the smaller paddock. ZOOOOOMMMMMMMMM. He is down and back and around.........snort, fart, buck. I decided that the term "fire breathing dragon" was man's interpretation of freshly turned out horses and not really dragons after all...all the horses were now running, making deep groaning sounds and then blowing out while practicing their best passage moves at liberty. Then one by one they threw themselves down in the dirt to take a quick roll and then got up and raced each other around the paddocks one more time. Finally all is quiet......Ollie and Rio start to graze. Winston decides to check out the Noble shelter and gazes up the driveway at my mom's house. My mom is gardening and Winston is fascinated. The chickens are going single file down the driveway and so I must go head them off before they get to the road. They must have heard that joke......?

I have leaves to rake and the barn to blow out. I decide that blowing leaves is really what the blower was for. I make a mess of the leaves. I figure there must be a science to this leaf blowing. I go back to blowing the barn out.....then I rake leaves for a while. I look at the horse trailer and it needs a wash job. Tomorrow....yes, tomorrow I will wash the trailer. Tomorrow I will repair some more fencing and decide how best to expand the arena. I hope it won't rain. I have a loafing shed that needs the roof fixed/expanded. Sunshine would be appreciated.

I trimmed manes before I fed dinner.....I did the bridle paths a couple of days ago. My mom states that the mane trims look like "home haircuts"........ hmmm......well maybe they do, but they look better than they did.

Tomorrow will be Sunday before we know it.

Friday is here already...

I took today off so that I could catch up on chores around the house and around the barn.

We have some resident chickens (mostly Banty type) and one little hen has blessed us with 12 chicks! Too cold outside for chicks, c'mon spring...warm us up! So I have a small fence to put up for the chicks safety, as the barn cats think they are interesting and I have stalls to clean, horse blankets to take to be cleaned and feed buckets to wash. I always have this idea of sleeping in, but the horses have their feeding schedule, so I get up at my regular time and go to them.

We have a mascot pony. His name is Beaver. Nope, I didn't name him....he came to us named and we never bothered to change it. He is 11 hands of pure personality. Sure he is cute but he is also Dennis the Menace in a pony suit. Gates must be double latched and you never turn your back on him for just a second. Clever opportunist....if the gate is open an inch, he will barrell through it and run like a wild mustang. Last time he pushed Page out of the way and ran through the barn aisle, out of the barn and straight into my mom's yard..........where he paused to take a drink out of her goldfish pond, then ran to the garden and pulled up several clumps of daffodils while he was debating what to do next........then just as we had him surrounded, he made a break for it to run down the driveway. Fortunately he was cut off by the driveway gate and then trapped by us. Sometime I will tell you about my cell phone and Beaver or Beaver and the hired hands who would not come back. We have a million stories.
Thursday was nice enough to take blankets off and let the horses have sun naps in various spots of mud. I reblanketed them when I fed at night.......good thing I did because it got cold and rained all night. More rain this Friday morning and then voila.......the sun came out.

Tomorrow we work on the new loafing shed and repairing some fencing. I was noticing that we needed some horsie makeovers too......manes are long, bridle paths have become mohawks.....gee, I wish my hair grew that fast.

I noticed this afternoon too that the gnats are out......we call them no see-ums.......because we can't see them, but they are right there irritating Mr. Sensitive.........Ollie. I will have to get the Skin So Soft out and coat his belly, sheath area and thighs.....this of course, he loves and he will gladly lift his hind leg out to the side so that you can get all the right spots! It is messy but in the end, he smells nice and I smell unusual.......Skin So Soft and the faint scent of horse manure.........hmmm.

Enjoy your weekend!