While others are excited about daylight savings time, I'm still trying to figure out the new routine. Having a toddler and running a horse sanctuary is a bit tough. I wouldn't trade it for the world, but the balancing act is a little rough some days.
With daylight savings time, I tried a new routine (i.e., I'd wait until I'd put my son to bed an then go outside). Unfortunately, by that time, it was already dark. Going to have to come up with a different routine. I'd also decided that with the warmer weather, Junior and Bo don't need to be stalled every night if I can get them grain early enough in the evening.
So I finally went out last night after dark to do chores. I was feeling sorry for myself because it was dark. Yes I was riding the pity train, but some days I'm allowed. I'd fed the ponies, mares/Ivan, and was getting hay ready for the big herd. Unfortunately, I had to break into a new bale and this one is another one of those awful bales. The hay is so fine and so thick that the baler can't chop it. It wouldn't be a big deal but trying to man handle a 3x3 sliver of hay that's anywhere from 2 inches to 4 inches thick is a little difficult. I have no idea the weight on these but they are HEAVY. I know, I know. I'm supposed to feed based on weight but these bales that have fine/course hay are hard to judge.
So I was man handling the bale last night and I just couldn't take it. After getting one sliver half of the way into the wagon (and having another sliver drag along behind AND having the wagon try to roll away), I just gave up and crumpled to the ground and started to bawl. (That's me hoping on the pity train.) But the minute my butt hit the ground, a gust of wind came in to the hay shed, rattle the roof and touched my cheek. What I didn't mention was that it was completely calm. There was no wind, or none that I could tell when I was out earlier feeding.
Some might think I'm crazy and some might think I'm insane (who wouldn't be to run a retirement farm in South Dakota). But it felt like someone was telling me to hop off that pity train and get to feeding those horses. I'm not overly superstitious but it was a very different feeling. It certainly wasn't scary. But all I wanted to do was sit down and cry for a good five minutes and I couldn't. So back to fighting the hay I went and got everyone fed.
When I was done feeding the horses, there was a very light breeze. Un-noticeable had I not had that odd wind just come in to the hay shed. And when I say odd, I mean odd. I was at the middle of the hay shed so it would take a huge gust of wind to get to where I was at.
So I'll leave it up to you if I'm crazy, simply exhausted, or had watching over me.
Tuesday, March 10, 2015
Monday, March 9, 2015
Strides for Success March Photo Challenge
I've tried two months in a row to participate in the Strides for Success Photo Challenge and both times I've been beaten down by some sort of sickness. So I'm going to try again. Third time is the charm right?
Thursday, March 5, 2015
When It Comes to Senior Horses
I was puttering on Twitter and I saw an interesting question. It made me think. So I'm going to ask a similar question and I'd love to hear from you.
When it comes to senior horses, I'd like to learn more about ______________________.
I'd love to hear from you. You can leave a comment, post your information on our Facebook page, comment on Twitter, or email me at borderlandshorsesanctuary@yahoo.com.
When it comes to senior horses, I'd like to learn more about ______________________.
I'd love to hear from you. You can leave a comment, post your information on our Facebook page, comment on Twitter, or email me at borderlandshorsesanctuary@yahoo.com.
Wednesday, March 4, 2015
The Herd's Acceptance
Last night when I went out to do chores, I couldn't find Junior. I thought maybe he'd wandered out into the pasture (he's discovered that Zeke won't torment him if he's in the pasture). I figured I'd get some of my chores done before I went to get him. With the wind as fierce as it was, most of the herd was tucked into the leanto off the barn. They saw me moving around and came out. Sure enough, Junior came out. He'd been stuck in the back the entire time. I'm not sure if he'd wanted to be in there with everyone else or not. I'm guessing not.
At least most of the big herd has incorporated him into the herd as one of their own. I figured the pushier horses might boss him around but they don't seem to care one way or another. Now if I could only get Zeke to stop bothering him.
Although last night it was rather cute. Junior was hiding in the leanto with just his head sticking out and Rain came over. I was worried cuz Rain can be mean. Nope. He stopped short of Junior's bubble and reached his neck out to touch noses with Junior. That sight very much warmed my heart. Rain has accepted him.
I normally put Junior and Bo in the barn but with the wind, figured I'd put a couple more in the barn. I opted for Rain, which still gave Junior most of his stalls to move around and get away from anyone. I'd planned on putting Zeke in the barn as well but he wasn't cooperating so I let Jim in. Everyone else stayed out. Call me mean I guess.
We are supposed to get more subzero temps so some are going back in the barn tonight. But then we are supposed to start getting a warmup. I heard a wonderful rumor that we could be in the 50s by the weekend!
The blankets are definitely coming off! I can't wait to see everyone's colors again. I used Junior's blanket for two purposes. One: as a buffer in case someone would take after him and bite him. Two: to make it difficult for the herd to figure out who is who (between him, Brego, and Bo). But I'll be pulling his blanket off on Friday so we'll see if that causes any drama. I doubt it but I'll still worry.
Here's to hoping this is the last cold day/night of the 2014-2015 season!
At least most of the big herd has incorporated him into the herd as one of their own. I figured the pushier horses might boss him around but they don't seem to care one way or another. Now if I could only get Zeke to stop bothering him.
Although last night it was rather cute. Junior was hiding in the leanto with just his head sticking out and Rain came over. I was worried cuz Rain can be mean. Nope. He stopped short of Junior's bubble and reached his neck out to touch noses with Junior. That sight very much warmed my heart. Rain has accepted him.
I normally put Junior and Bo in the barn but with the wind, figured I'd put a couple more in the barn. I opted for Rain, which still gave Junior most of his stalls to move around and get away from anyone. I'd planned on putting Zeke in the barn as well but he wasn't cooperating so I let Jim in. Everyone else stayed out. Call me mean I guess.
We are supposed to get more subzero temps so some are going back in the barn tonight. But then we are supposed to start getting a warmup. I heard a wonderful rumor that we could be in the 50s by the weekend!
The blankets are definitely coming off! I can't wait to see everyone's colors again. I used Junior's blanket for two purposes. One: as a buffer in case someone would take after him and bite him. Two: to make it difficult for the herd to figure out who is who (between him, Brego, and Bo). But I'll be pulling his blanket off on Friday so we'll see if that causes any drama. I doubt it but I'll still worry.
Here's to hoping this is the last cold day/night of the 2014-2015 season!
Tuesday, March 3, 2015
Junior is Relaxing
Temperatures are quickly dropping now that the 30+ mph winds are here. Luckily we missed out on the majority of the snow so we arent' dealing with white out conditions. If we got more than an inch of snow, it would be hard to tell. It's going to all blow into drifts as far as I can tell.
Last night I knew the storm was coming. The horses must have known there was something coming as well. They were really spooky. I tried to blanket a few but Zeke wouldn't have anything to do with it. I put Jim in a different blanket. I shouldn't have. It's now torn and I'll have to figure out how to repair yet another blanket. One more blanket down from the pile of useable blankets.
When I went in to the barn to get water for the ponies, I only noticed one set of ears standing in a stall. I was a little worried because last night while eating Junior was acting uncomfortable. He's doing the same thing that Brego did the other day. Where he'd kick his back leg a little...not like he's kicking at his belly but that he didn't feel 100%. I wasn't sure if that's because he was eating his grain and he normally paws or if there's something wrong with his back end. He came to use with something wrong with his back end so I'm not sure what's going on right now.
Anyway, when I took a closer look, I noticed that Junior was actually curled up in his stall. It's the first time I've seen him lie down in the 4.5 months since he arrived. I'm glad he finally feels relaxed enough to rest. Even if his only opportunity to lie down is in his stall, I'll take it. Made me so happy this morning. I just hope he wasnt' lying down because his back end was really bothering him. But he seemed fine once he was up. So I'm sure I'm over reacting.
I'm not really sure what to expect for the weather this evening. The winds are terrible but are supposed to die down after dark. And someone reminded me that next weekend is daylight savings time. Oh how I love daylight savings time and hate it at the same time. If it wasn't for the feeding schedule and the toddler, I'd love it. I much prefer the opportunity to feed horses in the daylight when I can do a more thorough check on each horse to make sure everyone is happy.
And tomorrow is supposed to be the coldest day of this week but then we're going to have a huge warmup and be in the 40s by this weekend. Blankets will definitely be coming off. I wonder if this is or last hurrah for storms. I doubt it. But I'll take the warmer weather whenever I can!
Last night I knew the storm was coming. The horses must have known there was something coming as well. They were really spooky. I tried to blanket a few but Zeke wouldn't have anything to do with it. I put Jim in a different blanket. I shouldn't have. It's now torn and I'll have to figure out how to repair yet another blanket. One more blanket down from the pile of useable blankets.
When I went in to the barn to get water for the ponies, I only noticed one set of ears standing in a stall. I was a little worried because last night while eating Junior was acting uncomfortable. He's doing the same thing that Brego did the other day. Where he'd kick his back leg a little...not like he's kicking at his belly but that he didn't feel 100%. I wasn't sure if that's because he was eating his grain and he normally paws or if there's something wrong with his back end. He came to use with something wrong with his back end so I'm not sure what's going on right now.
Anyway, when I took a closer look, I noticed that Junior was actually curled up in his stall. It's the first time I've seen him lie down in the 4.5 months since he arrived. I'm glad he finally feels relaxed enough to rest. Even if his only opportunity to lie down is in his stall, I'll take it. Made me so happy this morning. I just hope he wasnt' lying down because his back end was really bothering him. But he seemed fine once he was up. So I'm sure I'm over reacting.
I'm not really sure what to expect for the weather this evening. The winds are terrible but are supposed to die down after dark. And someone reminded me that next weekend is daylight savings time. Oh how I love daylight savings time and hate it at the same time. If it wasn't for the feeding schedule and the toddler, I'd love it. I much prefer the opportunity to feed horses in the daylight when I can do a more thorough check on each horse to make sure everyone is happy.
And tomorrow is supposed to be the coldest day of this week but then we're going to have a huge warmup and be in the 40s by this weekend. Blankets will definitely be coming off. I wonder if this is or last hurrah for storms. I doubt it. But I'll take the warmer weather whenever I can!
Monday, March 2, 2015
Weather Drama
Just checked the latest on this upcoming storm.
We are still only one county away to the north from a blizzard warning (that's only about 15 miles away). Now they've put us in a Winter Weather Advisory. At least the county to the west of us (the one just three mile to the west of us) is out of the blizzard warning and into the winter weather advisory. No one mentions to Mother Nature that the weather has to change at county lines.
With wind chill temps, we are supposed to be sub zero Tuesday night. No wonder I'm exhausted all the time. If it's not this darn cold, it's this darn weather.
Currently at 25 degrees and by Wednesday we'll be at a high of 8 degrees with Tuesday night and Wednesday night below zero (not looking at wind chill because that makes me sad).
This is what I get for actually paying attention to the weather. Now I have to figure out who goes where. Think everyone stalled ok the last time with Junior going in last. Now, to keep Dude from crashing through and demanding he go into the barn as well. He broke a stall so we are one stall short of letting him in.
Maybe we wont' get any snow (i.e., only an inch) so there wont' be much to deal with. The ice is still buried under the snow so I still have to be careful where I walk.
Brego seemed colicy Sunday so I took him for a walk out in the pasture. I think it was more his back end was bugging him. But I hate to walk him out in the driveway because I don't know where the ice is at these days.
Come on spring, where are you?
We are still only one county away to the north from a blizzard warning (that's only about 15 miles away). Now they've put us in a Winter Weather Advisory. At least the county to the west of us (the one just three mile to the west of us) is out of the blizzard warning and into the winter weather advisory. No one mentions to Mother Nature that the weather has to change at county lines.
With wind chill temps, we are supposed to be sub zero Tuesday night. No wonder I'm exhausted all the time. If it's not this darn cold, it's this darn weather.
Currently at 25 degrees and by Wednesday we'll be at a high of 8 degrees with Tuesday night and Wednesday night below zero (not looking at wind chill because that makes me sad).
This is what I get for actually paying attention to the weather. Now I have to figure out who goes where. Think everyone stalled ok the last time with Junior going in last. Now, to keep Dude from crashing through and demanding he go into the barn as well. He broke a stall so we are one stall short of letting him in.
Maybe we wont' get any snow (i.e., only an inch) so there wont' be much to deal with. The ice is still buried under the snow so I still have to be careful where I walk.
Brego seemed colicy Sunday so I took him for a walk out in the pasture. I think it was more his back end was bugging him. But I hate to walk him out in the driveway because I don't know where the ice is at these days.
Come on spring, where are you?
Blizzard Watch
So apparently I need to pay more attention to the weather. It's the beginning of March and I knew March would be a doozy of a month but I sort of let that all fall by the wayside since I've been sicker than a dog lately.
This morning I hopped online only to discover that we are in a Blizzard Watch (or will be starting tomorrow at some point). It's March. We shouldn't be dealing with blizzards. Although I had a general idea that March will be a rough one this year. I was tracking fog back in December and we had a lot of it! So I looked at my calendar. Sure enough I had it marked that we had fog 90 days ago come this Thursday and Saturday. So it's not completely spot on but it's close. I need to start keeping an eye on my calendar and my "fog report" to know when the next storm is on its way.
I had such high hopes of getting things cleaned up around the place over the weekend. But I managed to catch yet another cold that has left my brain in idle mode and my body in off mode. I couldn't get off the couch yesterday afternoon despite my best efforts.
I finally finished up with all the hay in the hay barn. I do love having the hay in the hay barn. It means lights and easy access to hay without snow. Now I'm back to pulling hay from the hay shed. I guess I shouldn't complain. It's all under cover. But the hay shed has no lights and no electricity so I have to go by the light of the moon and the little bit of light that comes from the hay barn. I'm not sure if we'll have enough hay or not. I thought we had more than what I was figuring but maybe that's because I'm forgetting some of the hay that's in the red shed still. I dunno. I expect I'll start to worry about hay in the middle of March.
I had hoped starting in February to start doing some monthly give aways but I can't seem to get over being sick long enough to get my thought processes going. So maybe this month or next month I'll get my poop in a group long enough to start. Sunday was Horse Protection Day and i'd so hoped to do something. And the weather was decent for a cold and windy day. I'm hoping maybe next year I can do something fun. I seem to be missing out on all kinds of opportunities as of late thanks to being sick all the time.
I'll be glad when spring is finally here. Maybe then I'll finally start to feel better. It would be nice to feel good enough to go out with the camera and take pictures. Maybe after this blizzard passes, I can sneak out for a few minutes to get a few good shots.
This morning I hopped online only to discover that we are in a Blizzard Watch (or will be starting tomorrow at some point). It's March. We shouldn't be dealing with blizzards. Although I had a general idea that March will be a rough one this year. I was tracking fog back in December and we had a lot of it! So I looked at my calendar. Sure enough I had it marked that we had fog 90 days ago come this Thursday and Saturday. So it's not completely spot on but it's close. I need to start keeping an eye on my calendar and my "fog report" to know when the next storm is on its way.
I had such high hopes of getting things cleaned up around the place over the weekend. But I managed to catch yet another cold that has left my brain in idle mode and my body in off mode. I couldn't get off the couch yesterday afternoon despite my best efforts.
I finally finished up with all the hay in the hay barn. I do love having the hay in the hay barn. It means lights and easy access to hay without snow. Now I'm back to pulling hay from the hay shed. I guess I shouldn't complain. It's all under cover. But the hay shed has no lights and no electricity so I have to go by the light of the moon and the little bit of light that comes from the hay barn. I'm not sure if we'll have enough hay or not. I thought we had more than what I was figuring but maybe that's because I'm forgetting some of the hay that's in the red shed still. I dunno. I expect I'll start to worry about hay in the middle of March.
I had hoped starting in February to start doing some monthly give aways but I can't seem to get over being sick long enough to get my thought processes going. So maybe this month or next month I'll get my poop in a group long enough to start. Sunday was Horse Protection Day and i'd so hoped to do something. And the weather was decent for a cold and windy day. I'm hoping maybe next year I can do something fun. I seem to be missing out on all kinds of opportunities as of late thanks to being sick all the time.
I'll be glad when spring is finally here. Maybe then I'll finally start to feel better. It would be nice to feel good enough to go out with the camera and take pictures. Maybe after this blizzard passes, I can sneak out for a few minutes to get a few good shots.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)