Escaping is in the Air

The other day I drove up to the barn and noticed Dickie and Tari were separated in a smaller paddock attached to the barn. I thought maybe the herd wasn't getting along and figured there was a good reason for it so I wasn't concerned. Later on I found out that it had nothing to do with herd drama. The hot ribbon wire wasn't hot (a certain bay horse may have been involved with t-post cap removal) and somehow got caught around her leg. Again I blame Dickie because he for some reason thinks white hot tape is super fun to try and pull off the fence. Poor mare panicked and went through/over the wooden fence and down the street. Dickie went with her and the big mares stayed behind. Big Mares called for their friends and paced in front of the fence that was low enough to step over but were smart enough to stay home. The two hooligans took off down the road and luckily before hitting the main street saw some horses and went to meet them. Tari went through barbed wire to get to those horses. She is pretty banged up but no stiches were needed and she wasn't lame just swollen. Arabs might get themselves into crazy stuff but at least they are as tough as nails.

Dickie was entirely unscathed. Not a single scratch on him or even a hair out of place. They went over every inch of him with a headlamp and so did I. I think he just went along with the girl who was having the most fun but had enough sense to avoid the fences. For all his baby goofiness he is pretty level headed and doesn't panic. More than once he has had blackberries wrapped around his hind legs and wasn't the least bit worried. He just walked slowly like he was hobbled then stood cool as a cucumber while I untangled them. Why my horse feels the need to climb through the blackberry patches that tower over his head is a story for another day.......


Then tonight (about midnight) I went out to love on them. My pre work ritual is to stay up all night the day before I work. That gets me used to overnights again after flipping to a day schedule. When I am up I groom the kids then hang out at the restaurant Josey's mom works at. I was greeted by the four faces peeking out of their stalls. Then I went to the tack room to organize and had a strange feeling someone was watching me. It was totally silent (silence with four horses should have been my cue that something was up) and I turned around to find ..........

"Um, got any treats in the tack room?"

"They didn't tell you I now sleep with my stall open? Don't you know it is bad for  young horses to be in a stall all night?"

Yesterday this was several bales of neatly piled hay. 

Not sure why I didn't notice the halters strewn about and the poop in the hall when I first arrived. 

He was very nonchalant about his new choice of sleeping arrangements. Usually when Bre escapes she knows right away she has been bad and starts to scramble and get excited. The chase is part of the fun of escaping for her. The thought that he wasn't supposed to be out making messes didn't cross his mind. He had no interest in leaving the barnyard. Why would he when he had three girls begging for his attention, access to a paddock full of green grass, and bales of green yummy orchard grass hay? He sauntered (yes sauntered) back into his stall with me when I rattled the grain can. I caught him working the door open again later but ruined his plan by making sure the snap was clipped.

I guess the longer sunny days have the horses thinking they need to be free like mustangs. I need a wild mustang to come over and let these beasts know there isn't orchard grass hay, Redmond rock salt licks, milk jug toys, jolly balls, strategy grain, curry combs, mint horse cookies, or blankets anywhere to be found out there on the range. Stay home ponies it is much better here.

New pad and goodbye yak hair.....

It has been decided that purple is just Dickie's color. Bre is chestnut so anything on the red side of the color wheel looks terrible on her. I haven't been able to use purple, pink, orange, or red for way too long. That means Dickie is going to be sporting some purple and pink for awhile. Poor boy. Do you have a color? Do you stick to it or do you change it up? When I first got into horses (I was an adult) I had a color and everything had to be in that color. Now I am a little more ADD about it. I tend to change it up but for now purple it is. 

The other contraption in my photo is a measuring stick!! I have tried to measure him with a tape but it doesn't work. One time he is 15hh the next time he is 16.1hh. It takes two people to measure him with the tape but once two people get into his personal space he is waaaaay to excited to keep still. I took it out tonight and he is officially 16.05 hands at the shoulders (maybe 16.1 because getting him to stand up straight is impossible) and 16.1 and some change at the hind. I thought he was a little taller at the rump but he has def grown!! I feel more comfortable on a bigger horse but as long he fills out this is a nice size for me. Bre is just a smidge under 16hh and I feel great on her. She is also a stout mare with well spring ribs. 

Are your horses starting to shed out? Bre is shedding like crazy. She gets a really dense flat coat that stays pretty shiny even in the dead of winter. I always forget how fuzzy she is until she starts shedding. Dickie doesn't have much hair but is starting to drop little bits. He actually stood in the cross ties and let me groom him for a good half hour so I managed to groom out some of his winter coat. 

He has also lost a little bit of weight. I remember how much tinkering I did with Bre's grain when she was young. I like to keep them lean when they are young but I did let him get a little on the porky side because I know they usually drop some weight when they change coats. Youngsters also seem to get porky and pot bellied then grow and get skinny. It's only been two weeks since he was a porker and now he's ribby. He will be happy to get more grain. He loves his strategy. It's almost time for teeth too. Hopefully they don't find anything too exciting in there. I need to keep an eye out for baby teeth. I still have two of Bre's baby teeth somewhere from when she was about four. 

"Look at how still I can't stand in the cross ties. Let all the girls admire how sexy I am."

"Wait never mind, must toss my head and demand TREATS!!" On a more serious note-look at how great his top line is turning out!!

Once again standing still and patient in the cross ties. I thought for sure it would be years before we could enjoy a cross tie grooming session. Now we have had TWO in one week. 

"Lead rope, nom, nom, nom...."

"From the side I look grown up, from the front I am still just a wittle bitty baby."

The girls wanted to get in on the fun. Or maybe have some grain. 

Look at those pretty faces all tucked in. 

Six Months

Not much more than six months ago that I was getting ready to start my first job as a nurse. Just about that time Dickie came to live with his new forever family in Oregon. It seems like yesterday but it also seems like forever. I think I will feel like a "new grad" for at least another five years but I feel really settled in the new job. It feels like it is where I am meant to be. And I can't imagine my life without Dickie. When he first came home I wondered how long it would take for me to really fall in love. He was gorgeous, charming, and super smart. What's not to love? I only wondered because the biggest reason I love horses is the connection. It bring me satisfaction to know an animal so well that I can predict how he will react in different situations. I had know my other horses for over six months before they became mine. Being in the possession of an animal who was a total stranger to me was a new experience. 

I have to say that I wish everyone would take six months to bond before they ever put a foot in the stirrup. Dickie was too young to get started under saddle until now but I wouldn't trade those six months on the ground for anything. When you are up in the saddle you miss so much. I have been watching him move in different situations for months and this will be invaluable when I ride him. I know how he naturally carries his body so I won't be fighting against it. I know what length of stride is comfortable for him. I know how he carries himself when he is tired. I can tell twenty steps ahead of time when his baby brain is starting to short out. I know how far I can push him when he is feeling stubborn before he will throw a royal tantrum. I don't always avoid a tantrum but at least I can see it coming. And I think this time has also given him a chance to know me. He understands my body language and tone of voice. 

I think that even if Dickie had been older and under saddle taking six months getting to know him wouldn't have been a loss. The connection you build on a ground will carry over when you are in the saddle. There are people who would have started a horse like Dickie last summer. He was big and could care less about weight over his back from day one. I strongly believe though that a year from now we will be light years ahead of the person who started their horse at two and a half. 

If you are in the market for a new horse I challenge you to spend some time just watching them and figuring out what makes them tick. Watch what they do in their stall, watch how they approach new situations, watch them move on the lunge line over different obstacles. I know it isn't feasible to give your new sport horse six months off but why not a month? If not a month surely two weeks of ground work and lunging won't hurt. Trust me it will really pay off. 

I don't have any new photos so share so here are some blast from the past gems. These were taken by the rescue when he was a yearling. 

This is the baby boy as a yearling when Pony Up gave him his first bath. I am not sure how they did it because he vetoed the bath idea this summer.  

Again as a yearly sniffing the nose of a blind mare that had been dropped in the kill pen. Pony Up saved her and they still have her. She has her own facebook page. Iris the Horse

His little baby butt with the auction tag. 

Look at those BIG MULE EARS!!! Sadly I think he is growing into his big goofy ears. 

Photo Proof!!

Dickie and I had our third ride last week. I can't seem to get pictures. My ground person for the first two rides had their hands full. I decided to do this ride without a ground person. I know him well enough to trust that he isn't a bolter. He might buck or rear in protest but he won't take off. At this point I want him to start focusing on me more than the person leading him. Sooooo I worked him in the round pen until he was focused and I hopped on. I was sure this time someone would be around for  photos. There were lessons going on in the main arena so people were coming and going from the other barns. 

I had hoped one of those people would snap a photo with their camera. Sadly only one person walked by and she didn't have her phone with her. I was determined to get some kind of evidence. We walked over and I handed her my phone. That was the end of my ride because his attention was now her. She did however manage to get a couple of photos before I got off. 

I am so proud of him!! It was a super chaotic day. The horses were being fed, some were being led in from paddocks, people were heading past the round  pen to lessons, cars were coming and going, people stopped to peek into the round pen. He had a really hard time keeping his attention on me. Even with all that finally gave in and stood by the mounting block (we have never worked on the mounting block outside) and was a rock when I got on. I still shocks me that he doesn't react at all I get. It is a total non issue. Good boy!! 

For every one decent photo I have 20 deleted nostril photos. 

Seeee I really am up there!! No foolin'

Isn't he cuuuuuute!!! He looks so little all tacked up. He still has so much filling out to do. 

Bre's Adjustment Problems

When we talked about moving Bre my biggest concerns were her colic history and her farrier issues. I didn't think colic would be a problem at Dickie's barn because turnout with other horses seems to be the key. We decided we will haul the horses home for trimming if the farrier won't come to our barn. He trims Bre and Romeo because of the boarding stable down the street so he might not make a separate trip for us. I actually love Dickie's farrier but I don't want to change for three months. Plus, Bre is weird about her feet and is terrified of most farriers. She loves her current farrier and I am not going to change that. 

Bre has been out with other horses for the last 11 years and always gets along. She will be the head mare if given then chance but won't pick a fight. The herd she was with for six years changed several times a year and she always adjusted with zero stress. Her past colics where never related to stress over a specific move or show. It was either related to a change in food or living in a cramped chaotic stable. 

When I brought her to Dickie's place she initially settled in just as expected. I thought we might take a few days to get the herd integrated but it wasn't needed. First I put her out with Dickie in the smaller paddock and they trotted around then went to grazing. She let him molest her without even one squeal. I decided to put Josey out int the paddock with Dickie and Bre. There were a few squeals (what do you expect from mares) but they quickly decided grass and enjoying the sun was a better use of time. After 13 years I know my mare pretty well and she wasn't even the slightest bit stressed. I let her eat some grass then took her across to the big pasture. The little mare wanted to make friends and would sniff Bre but if Bre moved an inch she would squeal kick and run with her tail between her legs like she thought Bre was going to eat her. 

Bre did some fancy trotting around the pasture to check things out but wasn't worried. She just likes to run and seemed thrilled to have a wide flat space to run in. At this point I noticed Josey and Dickie screaming for Bre. They were totally fine with Bre in the pasture with them but once she left the screaming started. They always seem to think something better is going on where the humans are. Never mind that they had a paddock of lush grass.

When I took Dickie over he was thrilled to be back with his new girlfriend and they all proceeded to meander to the far end of the pasture. I went back to catch Josey and I was sure she would give me a run for my money. Josey loves that green grass and also thinks the barn is where the fun is. Even on a dry sunny day she wants in at 2:00pm. The paddock is attached to the barn and I stupidly left the barn door open when I went to catch her rather than closing it behind me. I thought there was no way Josey was going to leave the barn when all of her other escapes have been to get back to the barn and stuff herself with hay. Lo and behold miss Josey bolted out that door and made a beeline for the pasture. She waited patiently for me a the gate to be let back in then ran with her big thundering Clydesdale feet to be with her buddies. 

The rest of the day Bre and Josey had odd interactions. They would act like they wanted to be best friends they Josey would kick out and squeal like Bre's mere presence was killing her. Sometimes she would stay away from Bre just staring and other times she would circle around her not letting the other horses in. Then every so often Tari (little arab) would get int he middle of it. Dickie and Bre all the while seemed unconcerned by the other weirdo horses and just wandered happily. 

I brought them all in around five and was surprised by Bre and Josey calling to each other across the hall. They were talking incessantly and reach their noses across the aisle as far as they could. I left thinking Bre was fine and dandy. She had her new buddies and seemed thrilled to be with them. Jump to five hours later when I stopped in for one last check. Bre's pile of hay was untouched (not even tossed around) and neither was her water. Bre will ALWAYS eat unless she is colicky and she goes through two buckets of water a night. I noticed that she seemed alert and comfortable but wouldn't take her eyes off Josey. I also noticed that eating the hay would require her to look away from Josey. I handed her some hay and she wolfed it like she was starving. Then I put the hay in a cart in front of her so she munched happily. I still wasn't sure if maybe she was colicky so I went to her old barn for banamine and her equinet. When I came back she had almost wolfed down her hay (that's my girl). I moved her next to Josey so they could touch noses. The second she touched her nose she then turned and gulped down a bucket of water. I hung the next outside her stall and she was happy as could be. I spend a few hours hanging out with the kids to make sure she was back to her normal self. A week later Josey hates Bre but still goes out of her way to sniff noses and squeal. Maybe Bre loves her so much because it is the first time she has been rejected. What we can't have is always the most exciting. 

Bre is in love? Go figure. 

Bre and Dickie eating some yummy grass in the sun. 

Bre and Josey meet for the first time. 

Dickie sandwich. He's in heaven!!

Bre is already starting to shed out her winter coat. 

Josey batting her eyelashes then playing hard to get. 

I realized how babyish Dickie still looks until he was next to my beefcake QH. 

Josey reaching out to her new friend. 

Bre munching away now the she doesn't have to turn away from Josey. 

Bre's Big (temporary) Move

Bre's stable has an upper and lower pasture. Last year the upper pasture was replanted and we have to keep the horses off it. We can let them on it for short periods but when it is wet like this they can't be on it at all. It is a sacrifice but in the long run it is going to be for the best. Last year they hung out in the outdoor arena and we were able to ride in it until March. We didn't use the lower pasture because there is a steep hill between the two pastures and we worried about it getting too slick. 

This year the arena turned to muck immediately. It has progressed from muck to soup. We started letting them go to the lower pasture out of desperation. Until recently they have managed to navigate the hill safely but now the ground is really saturated. I received a text message that the horses were slipping dangerously. She wanted to know if I would be open to moving them for three months. That would let them revamp the arena and for everything to dry out. The only other option would be to leave them in their nighttime paddocks. There are a fine gravel with special drainage so there is no mud to speak of. However, they are small and Bre colics if she can't run around. I would have to move her for a few months and Romeo can't be left behind. 

Soooooo.... In 24 hours we got the fourth stall ready at Bre's barn, and the BO did rearranging so Romeo could fit at the main barn. It would have been awesome to have Romeo with Bre but there isn't room. It would also require his Girl, a young teen, to walk him through nasty mud in the dark to the main arena. I think it will be great for Romeo to be on his own a little. He is crazy herd bound to Bre. If he even suspects she is leaving he will kick is stall, scream and attack any chickens in reach. I am worried he will hurt himself if I take her on a ride. He is in a pen between other horses so he can sniff noses but won't have one horses to focus on. 

We hauled the horses separately because we didn't want them to realize they were boarded so closely but unable to be in the same pen. It will be fun to have Romeo at the big indoor for a few months while RG is competing on the HS eq team. I am hoping to get his flying changes going before 4h this summer. It will be fun for me to have Bre and Dickie in the same place. In the long run Bre is better off where she was at back at her old place. She gets daily love from multiple people there. However, I am going to have a blast for a few months. 

More on how the integration went soon.

Bre showing Dickie her stuff. 

Romeo looking shiny even with his winter coat. 

Finally Horse Show Update

Disclaimer: appalling spelling and despicable grammar will be found throughout this rambling post.

I can't believe I took so long to write about the horse show. I guess I can believe it when I look back on my week.......

Last Friday: Off from a 12 hour shift at 730am, Sleep 9-11am, Pack up Romeo's Stuff, Pack up Dickie's stuff, trailer Dickie, settle Dickie and Chevy (BOs horse), romeo arrives at settles in, all horses get ridden or longed, horses tucked in by Ten PM

Saturday: At stable by 5am, First class at 830am, Between the three horses a class every 20 mins until 6pm, pack up and home by 730pm, no sleep until 2am because I had flip my sleep schedule to nights for work the next day.

Sun-Thurs at 730 am- WORK!! Crazy crazy rough shifts. Running my ass off the full 12 hours and still barely getting my patent's needs meds crazy shifts.

Thurs-Pack up Romeo and Bre for a spur of moment move (more on that I promise), get stalls ready at new place

Friday-Move Romeo and Bre make sure they are both settled in, integrate into herd, repair hot wire that went dead and was promptly destroyed by Dickie once the tape no longer shocked his face, make a contraption over one of Dickie's windows to prevent destruction of barn (more on that too), try to go to bed but then realize Bre seems colicky at the new place (more on that too, she is fine by the way)..... now it is one and you can see why I haven't posted in awhile.

So that is why there was no show update. My update probably won't be super awesome since it isn't as fresh in my mind.

Dickie:

ROCKSTAR HORSE!!! It has been ten years since I went to this particular show grounds and I was only watching friends. As a result I had forgotten that the stalls are scary dark cages. There are 15 foot cement walls on each side, the stall front is cement and metal. The mesh on the stall fronts is so tightly woven that you couldn't get a finger in there. There are no window or hatches to open. You could stable a stallion in the middle of 20 mares in season and be safe. But who really needs that kind of lock down? Dickie handled being stalled for Fri/Sat really well. He called out to the other horses but never seemed upset or stressed. I brought my awesome equinet and it kept him busy.

I wanted to make sure he got exercised and I was so happy we have worked on lunging. It isn't like I can get on and ride him. The first day we had one little drama during lunging where he kept trying to spin the other way. That was it though. Once he accepted I was running the show he lunged like a seasoned show horse, was right on with voice commands and didn't let himself be distracted by other horses. Sat AM after he had been couped up for 24 hours he acted like a trained horse even with the distraction of two mares being lunged at the same time.

When it came out ground manners he was perfect 99% of the time. He was worried about the new place, smells, and people. Not to mention the fact that he is young and used to running around on three acres all day. I loved that he was full of energy and alert but listened. I led him on a lose lead the whole time. He walked up to all kinds of scary things. He is a brave horses, not because nothing scares him, but because he never balks at checking out horse eating objects.

He was even good with the mob of horses milling about. He has never been in an arena with more than four or five horses. And in those cases the horses were standing or walking quietly. We were in a tiny warm up arena with at least 20 horses in a constant state of chaos. The only worrisome incident occurred when he half kicked (I say half kicked because it was more a dramatic stomp) at a kid who ran up on his butt. We were standing almost in the corner with less than five between his rump and the wall. A little girl started trotting up and down behind him then parked right behind him to work on backing. Her mom saved the day and I backed him up more so he was practically leaning against the wall.

Sadly the 1% of time when he got wild was in the halter class. We were the second class of the day and the show had started late. I had him ready on time which meant he had stood still for way too long by the time we went in. He was not bad in the least but had ants in his pants. He started swinging himself around and trying to check out people in the bleachers. There were about 20 in the class and we had no chance of placing anyway so I didn't care. He was a good good boy so I was proud. He had to hang out in his stall for the rest of the day and handled it really well. Then when it was time to trailer home the older experienced hauler refused to get in. Dickie said "I got this" and hopped right in first.

I think I am going to have a show horse!!! He could not have behaved better. I didn't want a super calm QH type so I was actually happy he had some fire. An obedient horse on the hot side is exactly what I wanted. He is well on his way to being that horse!!

The other two horses were great too.  Chevy can be a handful and has a history of bolting. He wanted to let the crazy out a few times in the huge classes with chaos going on in the bleachers. He listened to his owner really well and she had a great experience. He started to get really squirrelly by the end of the day and I wanted to make sure they ended on a good note so I took him in the last classes. She got to end on a calm safe note and I got to work Chevy through some of his goofy moments. It was a blast!!

Romeo and his Girl looked fantastic. Sadly they didn't place but they help their own. The fancy paint show circuit people made up the bulk of the show so the fact that she looked like one of them was huge. And she did it with kindness to her horse. Those people made me sick. They rode around yanking on the horses' faces or riding in draw reins. YANK YANK YANK SPUR SPUR SPUR. Half of them didn't even get on the horses until the shit was ridden out of it by a trainer. RG was proof you can get there without being awful to your horse. I wish she could have started off the season with a ribbon or two just because she looks so great and had worked so hard but I know she didn't want to be like those people. As sad as it was to witness that kind of treatment I actually think it was good for her to see it. I have been drilling into her the things I want to avoid. I have also told her that she will be stuck going against people who are using abusive methods at home.  I think the fact that she got to see this behavior so blatantly will make her feel better about losing to people like that.


Soooo, all in all it was an amazing show. We had a blast, everyone performed at their best, and I can't wait to go again!! I won't be going back to those grounds but there are a few shows coming up with stall that are more horse friendly. Dickie seemed happy to go wherever the people were so I am sure he will be just as good next time.