Ok, the weather. I am just so sick of rain. And I think I'd be sick of it even if I didn't have horses and dogs that come in muddy, leading to major, frequent, exhausting cleaning efforts on my part of equines and their turnout sheets, and canines and their paws. The fields at the barn are so wet I can't even imagine that they'll dry out unless we get some good hard freezes at night. The downside of that is while the moisture may get sucked out, the fields will likely freeze with deep little hoof-produced pockets that are sure to yank off shoes. There's one field in front that actually has a little pond at its front end. Even the usually dry spots, like up on the hill where I handgraze Dude and Bestie, are very squelchy.
One more rant. This summer I very carefully sprayed two each of Dude and Bestie's turnout sheets with a spray for water repellency. I read the directions and everything (didn't wing it as I usually do). The sheets are in good shape but were not exactly water repellent any more; the goal was to keep them going for another season or so. On the first day Dude and Bestie wore them, the sheets soaked through. The description on the can made it sound like I would see beautiful beads of water on the surface if the sheets were worn out in the rain. NOT.
At yoga tonight we had a little discussion about how it's ok to be cranky; that crankiness is a legitimate feeling. That made me feel better. Sometimes it's just fun to wallow in it for a little while. I am totally owning my crankiness tonight.
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Monday, October 26, 2009
What's new ...
... not much. For days now I have been thinking to myself, "Gee, I gotta get back to the blog," but a whirlwind of activities involving work, hockey games, relatives visiting, book club, yoga, 4H achievement night, husband out of town, blah blah blah have kept me from Horse Mom-ing. Not that much has happened, pony-wise.
Once it became clear that the fields were just not going to dry out, barn owner Larry rigged up two little paddocks right around the indoor for Dude and Bestie. They are perfectly happy there, although I heard that Dude had one meltdown when Bestie was brought in before him, despite the fact that his field is surrounded by the other horses' fields and they were all still out. He is pathetically needy at times. They had a few days of 2-3 hour turnouts because there was quite a bit of grass in those fields, and now they are going out all day.
We had a good stretch of days last week until Saturday, when the rain started again and continued through the night. Sunday everyone stayed in because the fields were so spongy. Last night was cold, which seemed to suck out some of the moisture, so everyone went out today.
I got to the barn around 3:30 to wait for the farrier, a no-show. While waiting I did an excavation of the tack box layers to dig up Dude's winter shoes--labelled, in a little baggie, "Dude's shoes from winter 08-09. Farrier says ok for 09-10." Pretty organized, huh? Only because last winter I had a BIG bag of miscellaneous winter shoes and kept hopefully pulling shoes out as our farrier shook his head at each one, "Nope, that's an OLD one. Wow, that's a REALLY old one. I don't think THAT one even belonged to one of your horses."
After finding the shoes I did a really thorough grooming of both horses since this weekend my visits were a little rushed due to visiting relatives. Lately I have been shocking Bestie when I groom her, which makes her a bit psychotic when I reach out to pat her (understandably). It's wierd, because I don't shock Dude. Poor mare. Between the shocking and me picking burrs out of her forelock, she had a few wild-eyed moments tonight.
No evening activities this week except for yoga Thursday, so I'm hoping to ride. Would be nice!
Once it became clear that the fields were just not going to dry out, barn owner Larry rigged up two little paddocks right around the indoor for Dude and Bestie. They are perfectly happy there, although I heard that Dude had one meltdown when Bestie was brought in before him, despite the fact that his field is surrounded by the other horses' fields and they were all still out. He is pathetically needy at times. They had a few days of 2-3 hour turnouts because there was quite a bit of grass in those fields, and now they are going out all day.
We had a good stretch of days last week until Saturday, when the rain started again and continued through the night. Sunday everyone stayed in because the fields were so spongy. Last night was cold, which seemed to suck out some of the moisture, so everyone went out today.
I got to the barn around 3:30 to wait for the farrier, a no-show. While waiting I did an excavation of the tack box layers to dig up Dude's winter shoes--labelled, in a little baggie, "Dude's shoes from winter 08-09. Farrier says ok for 09-10." Pretty organized, huh? Only because last winter I had a BIG bag of miscellaneous winter shoes and kept hopefully pulling shoes out as our farrier shook his head at each one, "Nope, that's an OLD one. Wow, that's a REALLY old one. I don't think THAT one even belonged to one of your horses."
After finding the shoes I did a really thorough grooming of both horses since this weekend my visits were a little rushed due to visiting relatives. Lately I have been shocking Bestie when I groom her, which makes her a bit psychotic when I reach out to pat her (understandably). It's wierd, because I don't shock Dude. Poor mare. Between the shocking and me picking burrs out of her forelock, she had a few wild-eyed moments tonight.
No evening activities this week except for yoga Thursday, so I'm hoping to ride. Would be nice!
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Spontaneity can be hazardous to your cell phone
Rode Dude on Sunday and Monday. I know, very energetic of me. Sunday was ok; I mean, the ride itself was fine, but the periodic gun shots were a bit unnerving. Some sort of hunting season must've started up. The barn land is all posted, but still, it annoys me and freaks me out to hear them. I was telling Kris when I got home about hearing the shots and of course he starts quizzing me. Him: "Well, were they shot guns?" Me: "Like rifle shots, I guess." Him: "How did they sound?" Me: (irritably) "Like GUN SHOTS."
The shots didn't seem to bother Dude, he was more focused on the mooing cows across the road. But I can't help but tense up every time I hear one, so he definitely was feeling my nervousness.
On Monday I got to to the barn early. Grazed Bestie for a while and ran her up and down the path like a crazy woman. Her legs seemed a bit stocked up. I hadn't wrapped her for two nights because her legs had gotten so dandruffy/scurfy (new barn word) and I'd scrubbed her with Betadine two days in a row. But with the stocking up I went back to wrapping, with my fingers crossed that that's all it is and not a return of my dreaded enemy, cellulitis. Today her legs looked much better, so it appears to be swelling from standing around in her stall for a month.
After getting her all set I got on Dude and rode out to the outdoor ring, went around it twice, then headed back to the barn. On the way back I had a brief thought -- wouldn't it be fun to canter across the field -- and Dude broke right into a canter. We yeehawed across the field to the path; very fun. Unfortunately my cell phone popped out of my jacket pocket, which I didn't realize until we got back to the barn. Oops. I walked back out to the field after asking someone to call my number in five or ten minutes. Tried as best I could to retrace our route. Was standing in the field thinking that it would be a miracle if I found the phone when I heard it ringing. There it was, not three feet from where I was standing. Very funny to stand in a field and hear a phone ringing. Even when you know it's yours.
Today was cold with just about every form of precipitation known to mankind. Snow, rain, sleet. Well, no hail (that I saw). Wasn't a great day for extended hand grazing, but I got them out for about 10 minutes this morning and about 20 minutes this afternoon. All the ponies were stallbound today. Hayburners, barnowner Larry called them. Hay=happy horses=no chewing on each other or stall walls.
The shots didn't seem to bother Dude, he was more focused on the mooing cows across the road. But I can't help but tense up every time I hear one, so he definitely was feeling my nervousness.
On Monday I got to to the barn early. Grazed Bestie for a while and ran her up and down the path like a crazy woman. Her legs seemed a bit stocked up. I hadn't wrapped her for two nights because her legs had gotten so dandruffy/scurfy (new barn word) and I'd scrubbed her with Betadine two days in a row. But with the stocking up I went back to wrapping, with my fingers crossed that that's all it is and not a return of my dreaded enemy, cellulitis. Today her legs looked much better, so it appears to be swelling from standing around in her stall for a month.
After getting her all set I got on Dude and rode out to the outdoor ring, went around it twice, then headed back to the barn. On the way back I had a brief thought -- wouldn't it be fun to canter across the field -- and Dude broke right into a canter. We yeehawed across the field to the path; very fun. Unfortunately my cell phone popped out of my jacket pocket, which I didn't realize until we got back to the barn. Oops. I walked back out to the field after asking someone to call my number in five or ten minutes. Tried as best I could to retrace our route. Was standing in the field thinking that it would be a miracle if I found the phone when I heard it ringing. There it was, not three feet from where I was standing. Very funny to stand in a field and hear a phone ringing. Even when you know it's yours.
Today was cold with just about every form of precipitation known to mankind. Snow, rain, sleet. Well, no hail (that I saw). Wasn't a great day for extended hand grazing, but I got them out for about 10 minutes this morning and about 20 minutes this afternoon. All the ponies were stallbound today. Hayburners, barnowner Larry called them. Hay=happy horses=no chewing on each other or stall walls.
Saturday, October 10, 2009
Attack of the Killer Cows
Dude and Bestie's rules ...
Cows in the field behind the pastures: ok.
Cows grazing close to the fenceline in the field behind the pastures: not so ok; cause for alertness, but not panic.
Cows moved to field ACROSS THE ROAD from the barn: Most definitely not ok, because it marks a change to the status quo (even though the cows are in fact farther away).
Cows in the field across the road who MOO INCESSANTLY: cause for high alert. When on high alert, behavior includes grabbing a mouthful of grass and chewing it while peering anxiously across the road, and frequent random speedy circlings of the owner trying desperately to hold on to the end of the lead rope.
That was my a.m. visit to the barn. It was sort of misty and the clouds were low, so the mooing cows seemed like they were right in the driveway. And for all Dude knew, they were, because the shed was between him and the driveway, so he could hear but not see the cows contained in their field ACROSS THE ROAD. Each time they mooed his head snapped up and I'd hear his neck crack. It was a little disconcerting. He did get some exercise in the indoor--no one was there so I took him off the lead, and he trotted back and forth peering at the cows through the clear plastic windows that run the length of the indoor, all the while doing his "I don't like this AT ALL" snort.
I figured that Bestie would be fine with the cows. She's pretty "whatever" about most things. Not today. She was ok grazing (grass, the great distracter), but once we went into the indoor she ran back and forth peering out at the cows too. Even I got a little sick of their mooing; I mean, they were mooing every few seconds. And there's something about repeated mooing, it sounds like the cow is being tortured. But when I peeked around the edge of the barn, there they were at the fence, looking perfectly fine. So I'm not sure what all the noise was about. Perhaps just a bovine plot to drive the equines crazy.
Cows in the field behind the pastures: ok.
Cows grazing close to the fenceline in the field behind the pastures: not so ok; cause for alertness, but not panic.
Cows moved to field ACROSS THE ROAD from the barn: Most definitely not ok, because it marks a change to the status quo (even though the cows are in fact farther away).
Cows in the field across the road who MOO INCESSANTLY: cause for high alert. When on high alert, behavior includes grabbing a mouthful of grass and chewing it while peering anxiously across the road, and frequent random speedy circlings of the owner trying desperately to hold on to the end of the lead rope.
That was my a.m. visit to the barn. It was sort of misty and the clouds were low, so the mooing cows seemed like they were right in the driveway. And for all Dude knew, they were, because the shed was between him and the driveway, so he could hear but not see the cows contained in their field ACROSS THE ROAD. Each time they mooed his head snapped up and I'd hear his neck crack. It was a little disconcerting. He did get some exercise in the indoor--no one was there so I took him off the lead, and he trotted back and forth peering at the cows through the clear plastic windows that run the length of the indoor, all the while doing his "I don't like this AT ALL" snort.
I figured that Bestie would be fine with the cows. She's pretty "whatever" about most things. Not today. She was ok grazing (grass, the great distracter), but once we went into the indoor she ran back and forth peering out at the cows too. Even I got a little sick of their mooing; I mean, they were mooing every few seconds. And there's something about repeated mooing, it sounds like the cow is being tortured. But when I peeked around the edge of the barn, there they were at the fence, looking perfectly fine. So I'm not sure what all the noise was about. Perhaps just a bovine plot to drive the equines crazy.
Monday, October 5, 2009
Waiting for turnout
I'm still going to the barn twice a day and grazing Dude and Bestie and mucking their stalls. This weekend one horse on solo turnout was at a show, so I was able to use his empty field to put them out for a couple hours (separately) on Friday and Saturday. Sunday was a washout ... after heavy rain Saturday night the fields were a mess and in fact, all the horses were in both Sunday and today.
The weather forecast does not look at all good. At this point the fields are so wet that we would need at least two and maybe three days of sun before they'd dry out enough for me to consider it "safe" to put Dude out without the risk of him losing a a shoe. And because the horses were turned out when it was pretty muddy, the fields are punched pretty full of pockets.
The muddy conditions are also making me nervous with Bestie, because the vet had preached caution about putting her out when really wet because the risk for picking up cellulitis would be higher. I guess once it gets nicer the plan is to try her with Lexie, one of the mares in the group that she was out with before, whom she didn't seem to have any problems with. Fingers crossed. I told barn manager Emma tonight that I didn't want that arrangement to be tried unless I was present. I'm just playing it super cautiously. At this point she's well on the way to recovery and I don't want to jeopardize that.
Despite the lack of turnout Dude and Bestie have been very good. They both seem to have chilled out somewhat at the new barn. Tonight a rabbit shot out of the woods about 15 feet from Bestie and I and she didn't even pick up her head. Dude had his door open today with his stallguard up and from Emma's report he was perfectly well behaved, except for some cranky faces--that will never change!
Last week I heard the very sad news that my friend Caroline had to put her Jake down. It ended up being liver cancer; who would've thought. He had been up and down healthwise since we all departed the Fairfax barn in early May, and it sounded like she had investigated everything medically with nothing conclusive until recently when a tumor showed up. Very, very sad for her since she had owned his grandma and his mom. I hope that when she's ready she will find another pony to love.
The weather forecast does not look at all good. At this point the fields are so wet that we would need at least two and maybe three days of sun before they'd dry out enough for me to consider it "safe" to put Dude out without the risk of him losing a a shoe. And because the horses were turned out when it was pretty muddy, the fields are punched pretty full of pockets.
The muddy conditions are also making me nervous with Bestie, because the vet had preached caution about putting her out when really wet because the risk for picking up cellulitis would be higher. I guess once it gets nicer the plan is to try her with Lexie, one of the mares in the group that she was out with before, whom she didn't seem to have any problems with. Fingers crossed. I told barn manager Emma tonight that I didn't want that arrangement to be tried unless I was present. I'm just playing it super cautiously. At this point she's well on the way to recovery and I don't want to jeopardize that.
Despite the lack of turnout Dude and Bestie have been very good. They both seem to have chilled out somewhat at the new barn. Tonight a rabbit shot out of the woods about 15 feet from Bestie and I and she didn't even pick up her head. Dude had his door open today with his stallguard up and from Emma's report he was perfectly well behaved, except for some cranky faces--that will never change!
Last week I heard the very sad news that my friend Caroline had to put her Jake down. It ended up being liver cancer; who would've thought. He had been up and down healthwise since we all departed the Fairfax barn in early May, and it sounded like she had investigated everything medically with nothing conclusive until recently when a tumor showed up. Very, very sad for her since she had owned his grandma and his mom. I hope that when she's ready she will find another pony to love.
Monday, September 28, 2009
Recheck time
Blah. I was in such a funk today I couldn't stand it. I think the three weeks of twice-a-day barn duty are catching up with me; I feel like I'm not giving anything 100 percent.
I decided to keep Dude in because his field is super muddy due to all the rain and with our farrier traveling I didn't want to risk him losing a shoe. I walked out to doublecheck the field this morning and nearly slipped myself, a sure omen that keeping him in would be good for his physical well being (if not for his mental state!). So I had two horses demanding my attention. I fed them both hay to settle them a bit and went to change my shoes before taking them out. Decided to graze Bestie first, after all, she's the one who has been in for THREE WEEKS. Grazed her and hosed her legs, then got Dude and grazed him. Stalls hadn't been done yet so I did their stalls. Was 9:15 by the time I got out of there, meaning a late arrival to work again.
In the afternoon I left work a little early in order to graze them and take the edge off before the vet's arrival. Of course it started raining right as I got to the barn, but I got them both out for about 20 minutes apiece. The vet checked Bestie over and was pretty happy with what he saw, but still sounded a note of caution about the slow-healing wound above her stifle, saying it was possible there could be a small bone chip in there. It has gotten a lot smaller, and he told me basically to leave it alone and let it crust over. If the healing process seems to stall, I need to call him for an x-ray to see if there is a small chip in there aggravating the wound.
Then out to the indoor arena to trot her and check for lameness. I hate that. I'm always running alongside them thinking, "Please oh please oh please..." The good news is that he said she is sound! I suspected as much having seen her trot next to me several times as we headed out to graze, but it was definitely nice to get an official "all good." Even after he did a flexion test, holding her leg up along her belly, setting it down, and then having me trot her out, she was sound. Huge HUGE sigh of relief. After that, back in for her Potomac and flu/rhino injections. She was really good. Poor thing, having to deal with the needle twice after the flexion.
Then it was Dude's turn. He was fine for the first shot, but when he saw the second needle coming, he surged down the aisle, basically pushing me along in front of him and the vet alongside. Aaaaaaaaack. The Dude tidal wave. Somehow the vet got the needle in and the deed was done. Wish I had a video montage of some of our "warm and fuzzy" (*not*) moments with the vet. They earn their pay, that's for sure.
So the bottom line is that Bestie can go back into turnout once we figure out a field situation and the weather clears. This weekend someone will be gone, so there will be an open field. I'm totally gun shy about putting her back with another horse and am contemplating paying for solo turnout. I'm supposed to take it slow with getting her back into work, starting with easy lunging and then light riding. Love it, a "prescription" for what I do as general practice!
It is absolutely pouring as I type this so looks like another day inside for Mr. Dude. At least their stalls are right across from each other so they're not staring at empty stalls. The other horses went out late today, except for the gelding next to Bestie who has had hives recently and seemed a little off. The back fields, where Dude usually is, will be pretty soupy tomorrow. The week's weather is not looking good at all, and with fall's cooler temperatures the fields will take a while to dry up. It's gonna be a l-o-n-g week.
I decided to keep Dude in because his field is super muddy due to all the rain and with our farrier traveling I didn't want to risk him losing a shoe. I walked out to doublecheck the field this morning and nearly slipped myself, a sure omen that keeping him in would be good for his physical well being (if not for his mental state!). So I had two horses demanding my attention. I fed them both hay to settle them a bit and went to change my shoes before taking them out. Decided to graze Bestie first, after all, she's the one who has been in for THREE WEEKS. Grazed her and hosed her legs, then got Dude and grazed him. Stalls hadn't been done yet so I did their stalls. Was 9:15 by the time I got out of there, meaning a late arrival to work again.
In the afternoon I left work a little early in order to graze them and take the edge off before the vet's arrival. Of course it started raining right as I got to the barn, but I got them both out for about 20 minutes apiece. The vet checked Bestie over and was pretty happy with what he saw, but still sounded a note of caution about the slow-healing wound above her stifle, saying it was possible there could be a small bone chip in there. It has gotten a lot smaller, and he told me basically to leave it alone and let it crust over. If the healing process seems to stall, I need to call him for an x-ray to see if there is a small chip in there aggravating the wound.
Then out to the indoor arena to trot her and check for lameness. I hate that. I'm always running alongside them thinking, "Please oh please oh please..." The good news is that he said she is sound! I suspected as much having seen her trot next to me several times as we headed out to graze, but it was definitely nice to get an official "all good." Even after he did a flexion test, holding her leg up along her belly, setting it down, and then having me trot her out, she was sound. Huge HUGE sigh of relief. After that, back in for her Potomac and flu/rhino injections. She was really good. Poor thing, having to deal with the needle twice after the flexion.
Then it was Dude's turn. He was fine for the first shot, but when he saw the second needle coming, he surged down the aisle, basically pushing me along in front of him and the vet alongside. Aaaaaaaaack. The Dude tidal wave. Somehow the vet got the needle in and the deed was done. Wish I had a video montage of some of our "warm and fuzzy" (*not*) moments with the vet. They earn their pay, that's for sure.
So the bottom line is that Bestie can go back into turnout once we figure out a field situation and the weather clears. This weekend someone will be gone, so there will be an open field. I'm totally gun shy about putting her back with another horse and am contemplating paying for solo turnout. I'm supposed to take it slow with getting her back into work, starting with easy lunging and then light riding. Love it, a "prescription" for what I do as general practice!
It is absolutely pouring as I type this so looks like another day inside for Mr. Dude. At least their stalls are right across from each other so they're not staring at empty stalls. The other horses went out late today, except for the gelding next to Bestie who has had hives recently and seemed a little off. The back fields, where Dude usually is, will be pretty soupy tomorrow. The week's weather is not looking good at all, and with fall's cooler temperatures the fields will take a while to dry up. It's gonna be a l-o-n-g week.
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Bestie's leg looking better; vet to come on Monday
Today I thought Bestie's leg looked a lot better, except the little stinker keeps tearing off the scab on the skin break. Every day I wipe it clean of shavings and put this horsey antibacterial creme on it, and every day at some point I look at it again and from its extremely clean and ointment-free appearance quickly realize she's been licking at it. Guess she's acquiring a taste for the Farnham's 3 in 1 ointment, yuck. The vet is coming Monday for the recheck. I've got to call in tomorrow to talk about tacking on Potomac and flu/rhino shots, and to reorder the big (and big $$$) bag of daily wormer.
Not much new today. Dude and his buddies got switched to a different field, right in the front facing the cow field. When I left this morning he was happily wandering/grazing. When I arrived back at the barn this afternoon he and the two other geldings in the field were lined up watching CowTV. Pretty unconcernedly; they each had a rear leg cocked and resting. But their ears and eyes were definitely on the cow creatures grazing right across the fenceline. It appears that Herefords, which many of these are, do not bother Dude as much as the Holsteins at the old barn. Being a Quarter Horse, perhaps he feels that the Herefords are more of a manly round-up breed of cow. He's a horse with cow prejudices.
Catching up on a couple of photos I took earlier this week. This is the view I get when I walk Bestie out the path to graze her in the morning. The outdoor ring is a bit further along the path. Pretty nice surroundings!
This shot was taken the next morning, not at the barn but at our house. It was a double rainbow in an early morning pink sky and the picture definitely does not do it justice (I'm blaming both old camera and operator (me) ineffectiveness!). The pink sky really brought out the color of the changing leaves on the hill across from our house. You can just barely see the lighter rainbow to the left of the bright one. Again, the photo does not do it justice!
Not much new today. Dude and his buddies got switched to a different field, right in the front facing the cow field. When I left this morning he was happily wandering/grazing. When I arrived back at the barn this afternoon he and the two other geldings in the field were lined up watching CowTV. Pretty unconcernedly; they each had a rear leg cocked and resting. But their ears and eyes were definitely on the cow creatures grazing right across the fenceline. It appears that Herefords, which many of these are, do not bother Dude as much as the Holsteins at the old barn. Being a Quarter Horse, perhaps he feels that the Herefords are more of a manly round-up breed of cow. He's a horse with cow prejudices.
Catching up on a couple of photos I took earlier this week. This is the view I get when I walk Bestie out the path to graze her in the morning. The outdoor ring is a bit further along the path. Pretty nice surroundings!
This shot was taken the next morning, not at the barn but at our house. It was a double rainbow in an early morning pink sky and the picture definitely does not do it justice (I'm blaming both old camera and operator (me) ineffectiveness!). The pink sky really brought out the color of the changing leaves on the hill across from our house. You can just barely see the lighter rainbow to the left of the bright one. Again, the photo does not do it justice!
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