Our weather pattern changed dramatically this week. After a pretty nice spring, we started getting rain ... and lots of it. It was good to get the rain initially as it has been pretty dry, but we're now way too soggy. After heavy rain from storms caused flooding in Burlington on Wednesday, the storms concentrated on our area on Thursday night. Our driveway washed out from the torrents of water coming down the road, but the effect on our driveway was nothing in comparison to the end of our neighbors' driveway, where a four-foot trench developed. The town road crew was really busy taking care of road repairs; there were a lot of washouts. The temperatures dropped into the 40s, so it has been a pretty raw weekend.
Needless to say, with the heavy rains and winds, the horses have been in since Thursday. Once our road opened back up, I headed to the barn early Saturday morning to let them romp for a bit in the indoor. Whenever I do this, I'm always struck by their different responses to this, um, opportunity.
Dude was totally charged up, and just opening the barn door to the great outdoors was cause for much excitement. Adding to the excitement was a visual change since the last turnout day - some long drainage pipes had been left along the walkway, which led to a long, drawn-out "something's new in my world" snort and some sideways eye-balling of the pipes. In the indoor, he dropped, rolled, bucked, then trotted around snorting and tossing his head, periodically running up to me to jump around in front of me and give me a nudge. Sorry Dude, not going to play with you. A) You outweigh me and B) You are not known for your respect for personal space. He ran around for a bit, then settled down to a walk and investigated the corner where the jumps are stored, the lunge whips hanging on the wall, and his own handsome self reflected in the wall mirror. Once the indoor experience's novelty wore off, he strolled over to me, and I reclipped him and we went in.
Bestie strolled out calmly and didn't even look at the drainage pipes. Once we were in the indoor arena, she moseyed around for a bit, dropped for a leisurely roll, then walked over to me like "OK, what's next?" Since the rain had let up a bit, I hand grazed her for a few minutes.
I cleaned up their stalls and added more shavings prior to leaving. Barn manager Larry reminded me that they'd pick out the stalls again later in the afternoon - very nice. It rained all day yesterday and is still coming down today so I don't anticipate they'll be heading outdoors any time soon.
Sunday, May 26, 2013
Sunday, May 12, 2013
A couple of photos from an evening visit
We've transitioned into spring with a bang! The snow lasted as long as it needed to (which is until the ski season ended mid-April), and we've had great weather since. There was a period of about a week when the paddocks were too muddy for turnout, but we had a stretch of temperatures in the 70s (and even hit 80 a couple times) with lots of sun so they dried out fast.
Dude and his buddies Skye and TC are in a back paddock, one of my least favorites because it is right off the road and not visible from the house. Bestie and sidekick Sadie are off the path to the outdoor. Lots of grass there and they DO NOT come to the gate when it's turn-in time - too busy munching.
We celebrated Bestie's birthday at the end of April - 17 years old!
Being back on grass has led to some serious zone-out moments on the cross ties in the evening. The fans are up - probably a first for May as it's hardly ever warm enough to warrant fans in spring.
Spring cleaning at the barn meant a bit of straightening in my tack area with lots of blankets taken home for washing and most of my winter outerwear also taken home. I left a jacket and one fleece; it IS May, but you never know if the temps will dip again at this point in the season! Bestie's Himalayan salt lick is on the tub. I took it out of her stall because she wouldn't leave it alone. I wasn't sure if she would eat the whole thing right down to nothing, so I put it in her feed dish while I'm at the barn and then take it out when I'm ready to head home. This is the "after" photo of the cubby - I should've taken a "before" shot. :)
Dude and his buddies Skye and TC are in a back paddock, one of my least favorites because it is right off the road and not visible from the house. Bestie and sidekick Sadie are off the path to the outdoor. Lots of grass there and they DO NOT come to the gate when it's turn-in time - too busy munching.
We celebrated Bestie's birthday at the end of April - 17 years old!
Being back on grass has led to some serious zone-out moments on the cross ties in the evening. The fans are up - probably a first for May as it's hardly ever warm enough to warrant fans in spring.
Spring cleaning at the barn meant a bit of straightening in my tack area with lots of blankets taken home for washing and most of my winter outerwear also taken home. I left a jacket and one fleece; it IS May, but you never know if the temps will dip again at this point in the season! Bestie's Himalayan salt lick is on the tub. I took it out of her stall because she wouldn't leave it alone. I wasn't sure if she would eat the whole thing right down to nothing, so I put it in her feed dish while I'm at the barn and then take it out when I'm ready to head home. This is the "after" photo of the cubby - I should've taken a "before" shot. :)
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