SPECTACULAR TONIGHT

STRANGE TOOLS FOR THE BARN

Yes, laundry sorters are a necessary piece of barn equipment.  We feed grass hay to the penned horses and have to peel individual helpings from a large round bale. For me and the volunteers, this makes it easy to transport to the pens. Now Dan, on the other hand, uses just a pitchfork to stack loose hay on the cart to deliver. The other morning the wind must have been blowing as he came through the arena because there was a big bunch on the ground.  Knowing your horses scope out the slightest straw leaving a 3’ dump was not a plan.

Midnight is back in action with small riders. He has mellowed so he can work sooner with a beginner rider. The little ones love it because they don’t have to use a stool for most of their prep work.

Drafty says Happy Thanksgiving from the barn.

This rider is autistic and his skills and ability are coming along nicely. I decided to introduce Butch to his energy and see how things worked. Both had a very successful ride.

BUTCH -SOMETHING NEW

This rider is autistic and his skills and ability are coming along nicely. I decided to introduce Butch to his energy and see how things worked. Both had a very successful ride.

I LIKE SUNSETS 11-25-14

This time of year we have pretty sunsets.

I really enjoy my sunset photos with horses in the foreground.

Each night the colors are different.

YA JUST NEVER KNOW

When you stand inside the horse pen with a camera in hand - well .....

I SEE YOU 11-21-14

I'm glad the horses can't see some of the photos I take. I'm not sure Golly would be too happy with me.

OCTOBER WAS PEANUT FESTIVAL 2014

Once again we furnished our pony rides for the annual Peanut Festival. This year we were inside the event center and in an area that afforded a resting place for the ponies away from the main crowd. It had rained early that morning so we arrived with wet ones. They did dry out before we needed to saddle up. All of them did their jobs of giving the little ones rides very well. 

STILL AFTER THE SNOW 11-17-14

vvvv

At least they made a sippy hole.

Someone asked me which horse is the dirtiest. I told them it depended on the day. Today the award goes to Target.

Mattie and Patches enjoy the warmer day.

After the Snow 11-17-14

When I did chores today I noticed these snow lines in the arena. When I looked I realized that apparently the shade from the fence rails kept the snow from melting.

Long view of the 'snow rails'.

Lil thought we had enough cold and snow so this was how she spent some of her time in the warmer afternoon.

The temperatures got above freezing for a few hours so horse 'maintenance' was not too bad.

We Had A Dose of Fear Today

Jas was on her way to the pony pen as I stepped out of the house. She said ‘snake’, I said ‘where’ and she pointed a few feet from her. It was still and stretched out pointed toward the pony pen. Later I found out she walked by it with about 2” between her and the snake. I think the following was in her favor; she walks quietly, and the wind was blowing toward her away from the snake so that should have taken care of scent and possibly sound. It didn’t strike or move.

Midst the barks of Drifter I walked over (close but not too close) to check the identity and yup – it had the noisemaker section. (I check the back end first – forget checking the shape of the head – that end bites). First order of business was to put Drifter in the house and out of the way.

I gave Jas the job of keeping it in sight and “don’t go close” while I went to fetch the pistol that I keep loaded with bird shot. My previous attempts with the ‘real deal’ shot is another story for another time. Suffice it to say I can hit one this way.

By the time I returned, it had moved just inside the pony pen. I shot and hit it. I haven’t killed a rattler in several years so that was an interesting experience for both of us. Of course there are the lingering movements of the snake and as we were watching two ponies headed our way. (It was now wayyyy past their grain time.) Jas headed them off and shooed them back into their hay pen where she locked them in.

I think we may have looked like a comedy act with Jas jumping on the shovel while I held it to cut the snake’s head off. It is always recommended to do this and bury the head because the fangs contain poison and can inject it simply by brushing the fangs. This protects other animals from accidently being poisoned.

If any students are interested, the rattles are hanging on the cork board in the tack up area in the barn. It looked to me like it was 2 to 2 ½ feet long. I did not get a yardstick to check it out thank you.

As I was giving thanks that Drifter wasn’t struck I remembered that is why I have the dogs given rattlesnake vaccine each spring. Yes, there is a vaccine now to protect them.