Sorrel Diamond in the Rough

A few weeks back I found an Australian saddle at an antique store (hunting through antique stores is a little hobby I have besides taking care of all the horses at Borderlands). I’d always wanted an Australian saddle but they were out of my price range. The first booth I came upon had the Australian saddle and it was a steal. I have only tried it on three horses but it seems to fit each one of them. And it’s oh-so-comfy!

I was itching to try out the saddle last night and decided I had just enough time to do chores and get a quick ride before the storm blew through. I decided I would grab whoever came to me first. Lucky for me, it was Maverick. That boy has me in a conundrum. He’s one of the nicest horses I’ve ridden and yet he still spooks me out for no reason what-so-ever.

I haven’t messed with Maverick since last fall around mid October. No riding, no ground work, no nothing. I know, I know. I should be better but life seems to get away from me these days. But I decided that there was no time like the present and I would just ride around the yard.

Maverick blows my mind. He can be so naughty to the horses but when there’s a saddle involved, he’s down to business. I threw the Australian saddle on, grabbed his bridle, put my periwinkle marshmallow helmet on and walked him to the front of the barn. He was all up in arms smelling everything, checking everything out. I didn’t want to hop on right away in case he was planning on blowing up. I like to round pen him but the mares and Thor are in that pen so I was left without any option. I don’t like lunging him because he does buck and throw a hoof in my direction.

So instead, I led him to the barn where he spied Savanna and Prize. I have those two out on grass while I’m home. I don’t know what Prize will do once he discovered electricity. I’m dreading that day.

Maverick wanted to check them out but instead we got down to business. I hopped on and away we went. Keep in mind Maverick hasn’t been ridden in almost seven months, there’s a mare and baby (although he did meet Sahara and was not interested in her in the least; he actually wanted to stay away from Sahara). And to top it off, there was big gusts of wind with a storm on the horizon. But Maverick did beautifully.

My mind is always so boggled by how good of a horse he really is. We didn’t do much other than walk around in circles, which he gets bored with quickly. We did a little bit of trotting to get him responsive to me, boy was he rusty. And then we walked over a log and tried to go up and over a hill. He’s a quick (and lazy) guy so he tried to out maneuver the obstacles. I forgot what a good boy he really is. He’s not as stunning as Chaos so I didn’t choose to take Maverick for showing, but I may have to consider hauling Maverick to a couple of shows just to get him used to all the commotion. I think he’d like it immensely.

He’s gotten rather naughty with the other horses so I need to give him a job and keep his mind focused on riding time instead of harassing time. Poor Sam can’t seem to get a break from Maverick. I’m planning on taking Chaos to the Black Hills but I may leg up Maverick just in case.

I’m always so nervous hopping on Maverick the first couple of times. I’m not exactly sure why. I’m not sure if it’s that we connect or that he’s so laid back and lazy. I can’t quite figure it out. I guess I was always expecting the hyper Arabians and he’s so laid back. I’d like to put a few lessons on him so that I don’t continue to put bad habits on him. I know he needs miles and miles and miles and I’m going to start working on it. Hopefully he won’t sit for another seven months before I can hop back on him.

Maverick is my sorrel diamond in the rough.

Pasture Pics

Spent Memorial Weekend with family enjoying good family quality time. I did sneak a few pictures of the horses the day I let them out onto the pasture. I was a little disappointed that they weren't more excited to run around the pasture as they have in the past.

Hopefully we'll get some warm weather so that the pasture will actually start growing.

Can You See?

Can you see Prize's future? So many options and he's already acting like a king.

Five Years Ago

Five years ago on the Friday before Memorial Weekend we took in our first rescue. It's hard to believe that it was five years ago. It seems just like yesterday we were loading up an unhandled yearling stud. I didn't know what I was getting myself in to at the time. Of course, I assumed a little bit too much, thinking that the horse was at the very least halter broke. Lucky for me, that little unhandled yearling stud was Chaos. I remember the experience cleary and the sheer panic because I didn't know what to do with an unhandled horse.

I've learned so much in the past five years. We've had so many come through our doors. We've had a few pass away but did so peacefully and surrounded by loved ones. I can tell you stories about each horse that has come to Borderlands but I'll save that day long conversation for another time.

As a child, I knew there was a need for horse rescues. Now as an adult, I can only hope that some day there won't be a need for rescues or sanctuaries. I have been truley blessed with the horses and people I have met along the way. I've met some really good horse owners who wanted to do right by their horses. I've also seen uncaring owners who treated their horses no better than garbage.

I vow to do my best at caring for each individual based on their requirements and needs. It's hard to believe that five years ago Borderlands was formed. It's been a whirlwind experience and I look forward to the years ahead.

Wordless Wednesday

Sir Prize at two weeks old.

Mass Destruction

I’ve been letting the big herd onto the lawn for the past week or so in preparation for this weekend’s “releasing of the hounds” er I mean releasing of the herd. I still need to walk the fence line to make sure the electric fence is up, or at the very least not strung half way across the pasture. My farmer friend said he’d be out to spray but with the rainy weather, I’m guessing I’ll be hand spraying the weeds and hand fertilizing the bare spots. I don’t think the pasture is going to hold this year so I have to do anything and everything to get it to last.

A couple days ago, Dude, while on the lawn, decided that he would harass Thor in his pen. Thor decided to spin around and kick the top rail off his pen. I didn’t see the episode but Mike did. With the top rail down, it mean that Thor could push on the fence. Keep in mind, the pen I have Thor in is an old cattle loading area. The wood fence posts are old. I have no idea the actual age but they are old and rotten. Add a pushing draft horse in with a rotting fence and you have the beginning of the end for the fence. Thor managed to break the fence and fence post.

So that was my motivation to move Thor in with the mares. Maybe not the brightest idea to put a blind horse in with another blind horse, but I am limited on space. It seems like everyone is ok. Thor wandered around the new pen investigating. I thought maybe he’d be too scared. Nope. He took little steps to investigate and then rolled. His little pen was too muddy to get a good roll in these last few weeks. Queen absolutely HATES that Thor is in with them. I did have Thor in with Babe and Queen before but Thor was too tough on Babe and preferred to hover over Queen. He didn’t like getting run into by Babe. Well, now the playing field is a little bit more even.

Dick and Rabbit were interested in what was going on in the mare pen. I think Dick was sizing Thor up to see how hard it would be to take him down. Dick is most definitely a herd boss. But Thor stuck to wandering around, staying away from the fence line. This morning when I went out to do chores, Thor was standing where I’d fed him the night before. I know he investigated the pen last night so I wasn’t too concerned about him being too scared to move.

To add insult to injury, the horses broke the barn door. Mike says it’s reparable but I have my doubts. I didn’t open the sliding door wide enough and the herd rushed me. They wanted out on the pasture and decided that no one was going to be patient and wait. I can remember Sam and Ivan going through the door at the same time. I know there was another brown body in there somewhere (I’m guessing Brego). They didn’t break the door but they shattered the door frame. The door frame is big and heavy. It’s a good six inch piece of wood and they split it like it was a pencil. I swear, I can’t have anything nice with horses. :-)

Once the main herd was out, I let Savanna and Prize out into the drylot much to Savanna’s dismay. She really prefers to stay in the barn. I think there is comfort and protection in the barn whereas the drylot is open and not as inviting. Prize decided that he would test out his legs more. Once he started loping around the drylot, he kept loping. He’s absolutely too cute to watch. And then, to my amazement, Prize discovered that he could rear. It’s so fun to watch a young one learn something new, to discover that they have the ability to do something they didn’t think they could do before. As long as the rearing takes place while I’m on the ground far away from hooves, it’ll be acceptable. Of course, he’s only two weeks old so I’ll enjoy his play. And I just realized that Prize is two weeks old as of yesterday. How did that happen? I have been a bad horse mom and haven’t gotten any pictures as of late.

I’d like to get some pictures of Savanna but she’s looking tough. Her hair is falling out. It’s to be expected because she was in such poor health to begin with. I’m not sure if she’s losing her hair faster than Bo did or not. But she’s looking pretty tough. I know that when the hair grows back, she will be absolutely stunning. She has such a pretty and petite face. Add to that the stunning dark brown/black, and you have a combination that you can’t go wrong with. I have noticed she doesn’t crib as much as before. I’m sure that once she’s on pasture 24x7 she’ll be much better and I can pull that darn cribbing collar off her.

And speaking of cribbing, Mike and I discovered that we have another cribber. I thought that Savanna was my first and only cribber. Nope. Maverick is a cribber too. I thought he just liked to taste things. Nope. But he’s not as bad as Savanna. I do need to start putting some time on Maverick. He’s really getting naughty, testing out his herd position. I think he needs to get back into work and be too tired at night to anything but eat.

Last night while I was trying to finish chores, I noticed the sky was getting hazy. Yup, another rainstorm. With Mike’s help, I rushed the horses back in to the drylot where there’s good fencing. I was afraid the wind would pick up and the horses would get spooky. So into the barn Savanna and Prize went (the minute I opened the barn door), and then herded the horses back into the drylot. I thought it was going to be a doozy of a rainstorm but it lasted for about 10 minutes and then was done. I was lucky enough to stay under cover for most of it.

Last night was nice. After the storm blew through, I went back out and tossed hay. Everyone was quiet. It’s amazing what a belly full of grass will do for that herd. This morning the wind was atrocious. Lots of cuss words both last night and this morning fighting the hay. I’ll be so glad to get all of the horses out on pasture. I’ll not know what to do with myself when I don’t have to do three hours worth of chores. I doubt I’ll get to do much with the horses tonight. 30+ mph wind and rain isn’t very conducive to get much done other than standard chores.

While I was doing chores last night, Mike came out with the curry comb and brushed Mayhem and Queen down. Mayhem LOVES to be brushed. She’s such a diva. When Mike switched to Queen, Mayhem put her nose on his arm. I guess she was telling him that he wasn’t done with her yet. Mayhem is definitely going to be an amazing girl when she grows up. I’m glad she came out plain ol’ sorrel. It’s not the color of a horse that matters, but the character hidden behind the color. Mayhem amazes me all the time. She’s a doll and we are so blessed to have her at Borderlands. We are blessed to have all the horses that we have at Borderlands. I love each and every one of them. They are so unique.

Bale Wars

I'll be the first to admit that I'm out of shape. No ifs, ands, or buts about it. So when I tackled the round bale, I'm not sure who won.

We were late getting home so I was doing chores in the dark. I ran out of the big squares and had to go with big rounds. I can't just plunk a round bale in the drylot because not everyone would get to eat. I could put two out there but those in separate pens still need to be fed.

So instead, I break apart, separate, and divide and conquer. Or so I thought. Usually I can give myself a little break between fighting the bale and tossing hay. But last night I was running late so I didn't get a break. It was after 10pm, the horses were demanding their food, and I was tired. But the bale gave me a workout.

I'm five foot three inches and overweight. The bale is five foot tall on its side so I can unravel it. I was down to just about a day's worth of hay left on the bale. I'll admit, my irritation got the better of me. Luckily it was dark and Mike stayed away. Otherwise he would have heard me swear at it, kick it, jump on it, and in the end, tip it over. Yeah, I know. I'm thirty something having a temper tantrum because of a hay bale. Least to say, the bale got the better of me. Not exactly a proud moment but I'll admit it anyway just to give you a chuckle.

I think tonight will be the end of that bale and we'll be on to yet another bale. I wonder who will win with that bale?

EHV-1 in SD

From our local news:

Deadly Horse Virus Confirmed In SD
Published: May 23, 2011, 8:49 AM



MITCHELL, SD - South Dakota's Animal Industry Board says a deadly and highly contagious virus has been confirmed in a horse in Gregory County.

The horse and others on the premises have been quarantined to prevent the spread of Equine Herpes Virus-1.

The virus has infected more than 30 horses in nine states and Canada after being traced to an Ogden, Utah, horse event earlier this month. Some of the horses have died.

The disease poses no threat to people.


***************
Please take precautions. I've been reading about this lately, keeping tabs on where it's at. It may be that we'll play it safe and leave the horses of Borderlands at home for a while.

One Month Ago Today

It's hard to believe that exactly one month ago today, we brought home Savanna, unborn Sir Prize, and Sahara. They've come a long way in that short month. So much has happened in one month. So many highs and so many lows. It's hard to fathom. So many stresses and yet so many joys.

Last night, I let the big herd out onto the lawn and opened the barn door to let Savanna and Prize play in the drylot. I've been overly cautious of Savanna and Prize so I keep them tucked in the barn at night to ward off any chills or rainy weather.

Savanna wandered around but it seemed as though she felt more comfortable in the barn. It could be that she'll turn into a barn babe. Prize stayed close to momma for the first 10 minutes or so while I stood there watching. I puttered for a little bit and came back to watch them. Savanna wandered down into the mud and Prize followed. It was his first experience of mud. It's so fun to watch them experience the firsts of so many things. I feel blessed. After a few steps in the mud, Prize took off like a streak, well only sort of. The mud slowed his progress. But he was all legs loping through the muddy drylot.

Queen and Rabbit took an instant interest in what was going on. I know that Queen was interested in Prize. I'm not sure if Rabbit was interested in the baby or the fact there was another horse she hadn't met. Mayhem stayed by Queens side, using Queen as a shield if something bad were to happen. Mayhem was interested but not as interested as Queen. Of course, with all those mares around, Dick became interested too. Poor Dick is surrounded by mares. I'm not sure if he thinks he's died and gone to heaven or feels outnumbered. :-) I think Dick enjoys being surrounded. Rabbit is almost always by Dicks side and Mayhem stops for a chat a couple times a day.

While I was doing chores the other day, Mike asked who was standing by the fence eating. He thought it was Brego. Nope, it's Bo! Mike makes a point to not look closely at the horses every day like I do. That way when a major change happens, he can notice it. So either Brego is going downhill or Bo is improving. I'll take it that Bo is improving. His hipbones are still protruding but he's packing on the pounds and once he's out on pasture grazing, he'll gain weight a lot faster. I figure it usually takes about six months to regain their full weight.

I was just thinking about Rabbit and looked her over pretty well. She's fat. Fatter than fat these days. I was worried about her this fall. Mayhem took a toll on her and she came to us on the thin side. But she apparently wintered well and is fat. I think she may actually be an easy keeper, which will be a nice thing. I'm a bit exhausted having hard keepers.

I'm trying to come up with a better plan for Sam. His ulcers have returned. I read an article in Equus Magazine about ulcers and the meds that we are administering. I need to change Sam's diet but not sure how to do that with being able to keep his weight up. The grains keep his weight up but they cause his ulcers. It's a trial and error kind of issue. For those naysayers, No I have not taken Sam in to do an ulcer scope or whatever they are called. Borderlands doesn't have the funds nor do we want to stress Sam out any more than we need. I don't need a test to tell me he has ulcers. I have consulted with a couple different vets to decide what the best method is for Sam's future feeding schedule. My vet HAS seen him, does know the issues, and does not need to run any unnecessary tests to tell me he has ulcers. We've diagnosed the issue and now need to rectify the issue, which is the grains.

Now that Savanna has been here a month, she's starting to lose her hair. I'm not surprised. As emaciated as she was when she arrived, they tend to lose their hair. I always feel bad. Sahara is losing her baby fur in chunks. She's tolerating most of my pulling (as long as I stay on the other side of the fence). Oh to get a brush through that baby fur and let her slick out to a beautiful girl. I want to show off her potential. She's a gorgeous little girl that needs lots of TLC. I'm betting Savanna will turn gorgeous too once the new hair comes back in and her weight is at the right level. She'll be stunning and I'm not biased either. She has the petite feminine head that people want in a mare. Not the chunky blockhead some mares are "blessed" with. Savanna will be beautiful one day. I just wish I could speed up the process.

I'm hoping that June will be a better month than May. May was a better month than April. So hopefully it can only get better from here. My heart goes out to a couple of rescues that are going through some difficulties. You know know who you are. My thoughts and prayers are with you. Just remember, we are doing it for the horses. You are making a difference. Stay true to your heart and don't let those same naysayers get to you too. You've taught me that. :-) Stay strong and go hug a horse. The world is a better place because horses are in it.

Preakness Stakes

Tomorrow is the Preakness Stakes. As much as I enjoy watching these magnificent animals run, I'm sickened to think of the thousands that never make it to "primetime" and who will end their lives in Mexico or Canada.

While I drool over the horses, I'll also be sending up prayers for those not as athletic who are racing their hearts out to stay alive.

Another Good Blog Post

Another good post from a reputable rescue:

http://shilohhorserescue.blogspot.com/2011/05/thank-you.html

It is amazing what life and death can do for an individual, what life altering changes can occur. Much of what this rescue (and post says) rings true for Borderlands also. I just couldn't say it as elequently as them (nor have we had to go through the same ordeal as them). My heart goes out to themShiloh Horse Rescue and its caretakers.

Rambling

The weatherman predicted rain for this weekend. I scurried all week to get things wrapped up outside. But after all that running and then the paying job slamming me with a high priority this week, I petered out Thursday night. The horses were grumpy at me for not letting them out on the lawn to munch on grass. Poor guys.

I'm afraid Sam is not cured. He still has his ulcers. With everything going on, his "maintenance" treatment got pushed. I'll be starting him back on his treatment schedule. He's such a good boy to take his medicine. Even after 30 days of treating, I'm guessing that we'll always have to give Sam some type of ulcer medicine. I keep seeing dollar signs whenever I close my eyes. Seems everything is starting to add up these days. I'm guessing it's the rain that's making my mood a bit down. But I am worried about Sam. He's been doing so well and he kept his weight up all winter and through his ulcers.

On the bright side, I thank my lucky stars every morning. We woke to rain (the weather man said we received over a half inch of rain so far). I dreaded going out in a downpour to feed the horses. Of course, there's nothing that says love more than banging on a metal gate to get Babe's attention that food is coming and have lightening flash through the sky overhead. It's a bit un-nerving.

Poor Bo. We've had other rains that were just fine but there must be a little bit of a nip in the rain drops this morning. Poor guy was shivering. So into the hay barn he went to get a bit of grain mash while I tried to dry him off before throwing a waterproof blanket on him. By the time he was done eating his grain and had the blanket securely on him, he'd stopped shivering and went straight for his pile of hay. I felt like a terrible horse mom. Bo isn't up to snuff yet on weight and here I make him stand out in the rain without any clothing to protect him from the elements.

But let me say this one thing, Bo is amazing. Not once did he hesistate while I muddle around readjusting his blanket, pulling it on and off while he ate. Some of the herd would throw a hissy fit and move around trying to avoid my attempts at helping. Not Bo. I really do think Bo needs to be in a showring. I'm hoping to show him next year once he's had a year to recover from his ordeal.

I know that some don't agree and some don't like my snails pace at how I do things. But I like to move slow around the horses. I dont' want to push. I want them to spend some time just being what they are, a horse. They are my kids and my babies but they are also horses and need time to come down from their ordeal. Horses are just the same as you and me when it comes to new situations. I bet if we were to put you into a new situation, new surroundings, new experiences, by the end of the day, all you want to do is go home and sleep. But wait, you have a different home. So all you can do is sleep and spend a few days coming down from a new experience. I like to do the same with the horses.

I am the main care taker and provider for the horses. I want the horses to get used to me and my habits. I want them to come around to trusting me. Some trust much faster than others (I'm thinking Bo vs Sahara). Sometimes I think I'm an old person in a relatively young person's body. I don't like change and when there is, I need time to adjust. I guess I put that thinking on to the horses and want to give them time to ajust to their new situation and to give them time to realize that life IS better now that they are safe.

Sorry, rambling.

On the bright side, the rainy weather will let me catch up on housework so that I can spend quality time with the horses when it's nice out, whenever that will be. Enjoy your rainy weekend and I'll try to sneak some pictures between the raindrops.

Who Will Cry For Me

Heart wrenching story. No words from me, only a lump in my throat and tears welling in my eyes:


http://rtfitch.wordpress.com/2011/05/20/who-will-cry-for-me/

Please Support Gentle Spirits Horse Sanctuary and Rescue

Please check out Gentle Spirits Horse Sanctuary and Rescue. They are based out of Sioux Falls, SD and Forest City, IA. This rescue is making a difference in so many lives. They have an opportunity to rescue a group of horses. Their website is:
http://www.gentlespirithorses.com/

You can also find them on Facebook, which is where the action is. Love this rescue. I am truley impressed by their dedication to the horses. If you happen to have a little bit of cash laying around, they could use your support to help save some lives.

Appreciation

Over the past few weeks I've had a number of people help out Borderlands and I wanted to take a moment to thank those individuals. I couldn't do it without you.

Thank you Darla and Madison L. for donating halters. They've come in handy a number of times. The horses love to sport new halters.

Thank you Carmen W. for donating a tube of dewormer for Bo. Bo might not thank you but I sure do. It's nice to know that he's on a proper deworming schedule. He's such a sweet boy.

Thank you Stacy PW., Connor I. Alanna I., and Kaidan I. for donating five brand new fly masks. I know the horses will enjoy the protection from those pesky flies. Thank you also for donating two bags of Purina Mare and Foal. Both Savanna and Prize thank you. Just this morning Savanna let out a quiet but stately nicker telling me her appreciation for her grain mash.

Thank you Stacy A. for being Prize's guardian angel and stopping in multiple times during his first week on earth. I felt so much better knowing there was a watchful eye on Prize and Savanna while I was at the paying job.

Thank you everyone for your moral support and kind words. I'm so very proud to know such great people. From the bottom of my heart, thank you (and the horses thank you too!)

Happy One Week Birthday Prize

It's hard to believe that one week ago today, little Sir Prize was born. I only wish that we could have pulled Savanna sooner from the auction to give her that much more time to try and recover from her starvation.

Last night as I watched Savanna and Prize, Prize decided to lope through the barn. Luckily Savanna is relaxing her guard and letting Prize move around a bit more without her ever watchful eye. Savanna is most definitely a very protective mother.

This morning when I went in to feed them, Savanna let out a dainty little nicker. Late last week she wouldn't acknowledge me but this week she is. We are slowly gaining her trust and teaching her that we won't hurt her baby.

I get the impression that with Savanna, you have to ask for permission to be around her. Even in the condition she was in when we first got her, less than a month ago, she required you to ask permission. But once she agreed, she was the most loving mare that only wants to be cuddled and loved.

We are also making small headway with Sahara. Last night I was able to scratch her neck, shoulder, and a little of her side and face. She's still very cautious of people but she too is coming around. I can only imagine what she's had to live through in her one year of life. And then I look at Mayhem and see how well adjusted she is and how she enjoys life without any worries or extra baggage. It will be interesting to compare the two fillies as they grow.

I'll try to get some pics of the birthday boy tonight.

Wordless Monday

Brego, Ivan, and Zeke

On the Defense...again

Too many thoughts rolling through my head right now. I'm afraid if I say anything, I'll offend. I appear "defensive" here tonight and would rather not. So instead, I'll leave you with a few pics.

Picture Show

Babe eating her grain mash. She's a hoot to watch eat. I've never seen another horse enjoy her grain as much as Babe. Her delight in food shows on her face.

Sam man enjoying some lawn pasture time.

Dude before a storm hit.

Mayhem - she's really starting to get big these days. Can't wait to see what a beautiful horse she'll grow in to.

Rain enjoying some rain

Auction

I hestiated on going. I didn't have the mind set but we went anyway. I didn't last. So many very nice looking horses in the loose horse sale today at the Mitchell Horse Sale. It totally blows my mind to see a Fjord gelding and a beautiful black Percheron mare standing in the pens. There was even a branded sorrel mare with shoes on the front standing in the loose pen. What really broke my heart was the trio who were so friendly. Two drop dead gorgeous gray mares and a palomino with flaxen mane and tail (beautiful). So friendly, so interested and willing to do anything. I couldn't stay. I couldn't stay knowing they were headed to slaughter.

My only hope was that there were a lot of trailers and the parking lot was packed. My hope is that because it's spring, there are a lot of people interseted in buying a horse for summer trail rides. Those three would be stunnding on a trail or in the show ring. They really didn't even need much more than a grooming and a farrier to put them into the show spotlight to win some ribbons.

But we are full and I know we couldn't take any more. It broke my heart. I couldn't stay.

The worst part was standing there watching a dad unload a trailer load of horses while his son talked with the horses and even encouraged the horses to run around and beat on the trailer to get them out. Nothing like teaching the young about being cruel to animals.

These people apparently breed appaloosas and are from Plankington. sSs Appaloosas. That's all I Can remember. Who knows if they picked them up and is a trader or if they were his actual horses. Two sets of horses that would have made beautiful driving teams, but both sets unhandled. And some of them had names, or at least the kid had names for them. Unbelievable.

I couldn't even go in and watch this time around. I wasn't prepared for this auction. I apparently hadn't hardened my heart like I normally do for auctions. All I want to do is sit here and cry for a little while.

Brego and Ivan

Mayhem

Prize Photo

I was going to post pics of Prize last night but blogger hated me. Check out our Facebook page to see pics of Prize standing up. Here's just one pic of Prize. He's one day old in this photo. Can't believe he's two days old already.

Bo After Two Months

I'm terrible with names so my apologise up front. Someone asked for current pics of Bo. Tomorrow will mark two months for Bo at Borderlands. He still has a long ways to go but he's gaining weight.

I snapped a few pics tonight before the storm and cold front blew threw. Because Savanna and Prize are in the barn, I've taken to feeding Bo and Sam in other areas. Bo is such a good boy, that I can just halter him and feed him in the yard with no worries of him wandering away. He stays close to wherever I am. Please excuse the robe around his neck. I grabbed a wrong halter and lead. If I grab the right lead rope, it'll stay over his back but this lead was too short so I just looped it and tucked it in the halter.

Anywho, hope you enjoy pics of Bo, almost two months to the day of coming home.

More Prize Pics

13 hours since Prize was born. I'm still a little worried. Thought I'd post a few more of Prize and Savanna.

PRIZE

SupPRIZE!!!!

Born at 5:30am.

Little baby girl.

Waiting to hear from the vet to know exactly what we need to do because Savanna is so, so, so thin.
More to come.

Our First Show

We had an absolutely crazy weekend. I’m not yet recovered but not sure when I’ll get to put my feet up and relax. I promise that I’ll get pics this week of some of the herd.

Friday I took Chaos over to a friends to give him a bath in preparation for our first ever horse show. I’ve never participated in a show and haven’t even been to one as a spectator in years. Least to say, I was nervous. We spent a few hours in the evening prepping both Chaos and my friend’s horse for the show. It was midnight before we had our two boys settled for the night. I was running late so I still had chores to take care of after that. At 1AM the bed never felt so good. But I only got a “nap” in before getting up at 4:30AM to throw everything into the truck, load the boys, and get to the fairgrounds by 6:30AM.

For having never shown before and having very little practice time, Chaos did amazingly well. He’s never been in an enclosed arena with a loud speaker. He wasn’t happy with it but settled down after a bit. He took everything in and appeared to be relaxed for the majority of the day.

We did showmanship and walk-trot. Knowing that we wouldn’t get any ribbons (but hoping for one none the less), Chaos did come in fourth in one of the walk-trot classes where he alone was being judged. The class where I was judged we didn’t place (sorry Chaos). The last class we were in Chaos was judged. I blame it on myself for getting in his way. There were 11 riders and I felt claustrophic. I was at his mouth the entire time asking him to slow down. When we did the line-up, we ended up under a loudspeaker and he got mad. I was at his mouth the entire time. We were the last ones out of the ring, and I was at his mouth the entire time trying to get in line but not getting the chance to get out. Unfortunately Chaos reared, twice. I know why he reared (I was at his mouth the entire time). I’m not happy about it but I know the reasoning behind it. I’m extremely pleased that we even received a ribbon in a class and I’ll do my best next time to stay out of Chaos’s mouth and to do him justice.

We stayed at the fairgrounds for most of the day but late in the day I started to fade. When they were on the last few gaming events, I decided to call it quits and go home. I still had chores to tackle. Unfortunately for the herd, I only did minimal chores.

I gave myself Sunday morning off and slept in. I had thought about going to the Parker Saddle Club Play Day but decided against it. I was too tired, none of the horses (except Chaos) were clean enough to be presentable and I wanted to give Chaos the day off, and the wind was blowing like crazy. Instead, I puttered around for the afternoon but about 6pm we decided the wind wasn’t going to go down and we better get to Madison.

I am out of hay. We burned through 70 large squares of hay. I still don’t know what the bill is but figure it’s $100 per ton. The bill will be over $3K. I finally have the weight tickets so I can write the check. I just haven’t looked at the tickets yet. So we will be faced with additional costs for this winter because we’ll need additional hay.

I had four spare bales from two years ago and an additional bale in the shed at Grandma’s (apparently not enough room at mom and dad’s). We did score an extra hay bale and an alfalfa bale. I’ll have to do something special for my uncle (who’s my hay guy). I have it figured out that we’ll have enough hay to get through until Monday of next week. Hopefully the weather will stay nice enough that I can start getting the horses out on the lawn to adjust to grass. But this week isn’t looking like I’ll have time to do any “lawn pasture time”.

Unfortunately through the entire loading and hauling of hay, the wind was blowing 25 mph or so. The wind makes life difficult. We had to use a tarp, twine, and bungee cords to secure the half bale we tossed in the bed of the truck. No sense in letting any hay go to waste. Not only did the wind make the drive interesting, but the county decided to rip up our road. And when I say rip, I mean literally rip up the road with a ripper on the back of a dozer. We had to go an extra two miles to avoid the ripped up portions of the road. The county is trying to dry out the gravel but it makes life interesting trying to maneuver around the gigantic holes of “quick mud/gravel”. I’m betting if I were to drive a car into it, I’d get stuck in an instant.

I’ll be feeding the horses from the back of the truck tonight. And then will back out the trailer and feed the horses from the trailer. It’ll be handy only to some degree. I have a group riding lesson tonight with Chaos. But with the back of the truck loaded full of hay, I’ll have to bum a ride with a friend. Thank goodness for friends.

I’ll hopefully have more stories to tell but need to get caught up on a few things before I tell any more stories.

More Old Pics

I have a lot of thoughts rambling around in my brain to talk about. But I'm too tired so I'll leave you with a few old pics.

Tommy

Trouble

Brego -- notice his star. In Dec of 09 it was big. Now in the spring of 2011, his star shrunk. I'll have to get pics to compare. Who knew that a star could change.

Brego

Jim

Pictures

I haven't taken any pics lately because the card is full. I've been dreading pulling all the pictures off because they go back to November 2009 (oops). Normally I would be excited but November 09 was when we put Bob down and those are the pictures.

I downloaded them and am still choked up over them. It's amazing what the loss of a certain horse can do. I miss each and every one but some more than others.

But I did take a few pictures besides of Bob. The following are some older pics.

Tommy

Skippy with Tommy in the background

Skippy

Zeke and Brego

Zeke

Bo's Dismay and Babe's Delight

Much to Bo’s dismay and to Babe’s delight, Bo is in with the big herd. I’m a bit nervous because the big herd is a bit daunting. But Bo has met everyone over the fence. It’s just a matter of figuring out the pecking order. Poor Bo will be at the very bottom of the herd. Bo spent most of the night behind the manure pile (yes, I have a manure pile in the horse pen. It’s going away soon, fingers crossed.)

Babe seemed much more relaxed having Bo out of her pen. She had a look of contentment the minute Bo was out of the pen. Hopefully she’ll be just as relaxed when I put Thor in the pen with her. We’ll see how that goes. I’m still a little too chicken yet to try it. Maybe tomorrow.

We moved Savanna from her stall to the leanto. I want her to stretch her legs a little bit more. Being cooped up in a stall is no good and just increases her cribbing habit. She was also starting to get stocked up standing in her stall. I think having a week of low/no stress helped. I can’t tell if she’s started putting on weight or not. Usually it takes a week for the body to stop eating away at itself. So hopefully now that we’ve had Savanna for a week and a half she’ll start gaining weight. I brought her out last night and hand grazed her for a little while in the front lawn. I wanted to be close to the house while Mike repaired shingles from our terrible winds from last weekend.

Back to Bo. I still need to get pictures of him. It’s hard to believe that we’ll have had him for almost two months now. He’s really looking good. He looks terrible in with the other horses (he’s still so skinny), but from where he was to now, he looks fantastic. I can’t wait to see him all plump and sassy. As long as the herd lets him eat, he’ll do ok. I’ll pull him into the barn stall to let him eat and let him devour a sliver of hay too just to make sure he gets all the food he wants. He is such a pretty mover. He was trotting around the pen, just floating along with no effort even in his skinny state. He did a little bit of loping too. I can’t wait to see what he’s like once he’s at the proper weight. I’m betting he’ll be a handful. I keep picturing him under English. He’d be rather stunning. Of course, there isn’t enough leather for my fat butt to ride English, so we’ll just see how things progress.

I’m itching to play with Mayhem. She’s such a doll. I was messing with her last night just hanging all over her. She wasn’t very happy with me but she needs to learn. This morning when I threw hay, she was standing next to Queen. Queen waddled up and Mayhem followed. I busted out laughing. Mayhem was acting exactly like Queen. I really like putting a very young horse in with an older, more experienced horse. I did the same thing with Chaos when he was a baby. It seems to be working well for Mayhem. Of course Queen is digging every minute of it. I’m contemplating putting Sahara in with Queen. But I need to start working with Sahara to actually halter break her. She’s very skeptical of people these days. Of course, I don’t blame her.

And have I mentioned that I have the greatest family? My niece and nephews (along with their mom), went to Campbell Supply and bought fly masks for the horses. The oldest nephew picked one out for King. My niece chose one for Queen, and my youngest nephew picked one out for Chaos. Those kids have a heart of gold. Queen and Chaos are definite rescues. I pulled Queen from the Kramers auction and I took Chaos in before he headed to Kramers. King is the only possible non rescue. I bought him for a personal horse but he’s since come up lame due to muscle issues (sore muscles all the time). Had we not kept him, I’m betting he would have been tossed from one owner to the next until he ended up in the slaughter pipeline. I’ll be talking with the vet again to see if there is a different method we can use this summer. The meds we used last summer didn’t seem to work.

Speaking of meds, Sam finished his ulcer meds up this past weekend. It was for 30 days but I missed a couple along the way so it took a few extra days. The 30 days were to treat the ulcer. We are to do an additional treatment for maintenance. I haven’t gotten the meds yet but I’m already noticing that Sam is starting to not feel well again. I have a distinct impression that Sam will be on an ulcer regime the rest of his life. We’ll just do the “maintenance” portion but it’ll add up. I’ll do the “maintenance” treatment for 14 days. But I’m going to place an order to keep the ulcer meds on hand at all times. I also need to throw in meds for Rabbit’s heaves. Her heaves stay under control for the most part but the warmer the weather gets, the harder it is for her to breath. She really needs to go somewhere where it’s cold all the time. The crisp air seems to really keep the heaves down.

We are three weeks behind in the weather. I’m concerned that the pasture won’t come up in time. What worries me more is that I’ll be out of hay by early next week. I need to make a run to Madison to pick up one or two bales I had stashed at mom and dad’s just for a situation like this. I’ll also see if I can’t buy a few more bales to get me through until the herd is out on pasture. It’s never ending but now that we are getting down to the wire, I’m starting to feel the pressure and stress.

Loss of Words

I can't seem to put a name to the feeling I'm experiencing tonight. I'm betting it has to do with the two horses that were posted on Craigs List for free. From what I've learned through Tiffany at Gentle Spirits (awesome rescue btw), they simply gave the horses up without doing any background checks. I have a gut feeling they fell into the wrong hands. So many people are willing to say whatever it takes even if they are lies.

I'm finding that out with Savanna and Sahara. I believe that the owner lied blatantly when asked a simple question. Call me gullible I guess but when someone asks me a question, I'll answer it as truthfully and honestly as I can. Perhaps I'm just a little disappointed in knowing that there are people in this world that don't care about what happens to their animals and will say whatever it takes to make themselves sound good.

Maybe if I sleep on it, I'll feel better in the morning. I'll leave you all with some pictures I took last year on my "mini honeymoon" last June at Lake Vermillion.