Busy is an understatement!

I can't believe its been 2 weeks already. Things have been so fast paced around here I feel like I'm chasing my butt in circles. Its been pretty chilly around here so I haven't been spending as much time in the barn as I would like to. Feeding,watering, cleaning stalls and daily blanket/ grooming checks usually take about 2 hours both am and pm. Plus there are plenty of cattle to feed and keep an eye on. Thank goodness the temperature will be rising a little this week. Highs in the 50's starting Wednesday. I plan on doing some major riding and conditioning on Ely. Barrel season is getting close and this bad weather has put a major kink in my riding plans. I plan on posting with more pictures later this week and introducing more horses. For today though I only have a few....

Daya getting used to the barn aisle. I wish I had video of her going into the barn for the first time. Needless to say at one point I had to back her down the aisle and into her stall. Poor girl. I never thought tying things from the rafters would have such a training impact but nothing rattles Suzie's youngsters.

Daya agreeing with me on the winter weather.

Lootah enjoying being in her stall.

Meet:
Grey Bob- odd name I know but this is the best horse by far in the barn. He is a 1D barrel horse but he also pole bends, ropes, team pens,and just about anything you can think of. He is built like a tank. I've never seen such a built horse. Of course my camera angles are horrible so he looks long and funny but this guy is one of the best cow bred horses I've seen around here in awhile.
Bart- My absolute favorite in the barn!!! This guy greats me every morning and evening, loves to be loved on and is one of the highest trained horses in the barn. Bart is 34+ and suffers from moon blindness but guess what, he is still ridable in the arena with an experienced rider. Bart used to be on the Ohio University Equestrian Team and boy does it show. He is one of the softest horses I have ever been on, his canter is unbelievable and he can do anything you ask. He is such a power house. He is literally the kind of dressage horse that everyone dreams of having. Needless to say Suzie and I pamper this guy a lot and he is very spoiled.

More pictures to come. Im hoping with the better weather coming this week I will be able to spend a lot more time in the barn. As for now Im off to clean stalls and feed!

I will soon be in horse heaven!

(Suzie and Ely)

That's right. I will soon be responsible for the care 20+ horses! Seems my cousin Suzie and her fiance have had enough of this cold weather and are going on vacation for a MONTH in Florida starting this Saturday. So hubby and I get to farm-sit for them. I've been scrambling to get packed, make sure the house is clean, and get all my horse stuff in the trailer. Oh, did I mention she just asked me yesterday and I have to be there tomorrow so I can get the hang of everything?! The horses I can handle but she also has a huge herd of cattle, some of which are real Houdini's when it come to getting out of the pasture. I told her if they give me that much trouble while she is gone, she may come back to a freezer full of fresh beef! lol

I'm pretty excited. This is going to be a fun mini vacation for us. Daya will be happy because she will get to be with Ely again. She threw a bigger fit when I hauled him back to my cousins place then when I weaned the baby. She loves that goofy gelding. Once I get up there and get settled in with the routine you can be expecting lots of photo's and videos. As for now I have to get hopping again. I have tons of laundry and packing left to do. Happy trails...

I've been awarded!

There are 4 duties to perform to receive this award:
1. Thank and link back to the person who awarded you this award
2. Share 7 things about yourself
3. Award 15 recently discovered great bloggers
4. Contact these bloggers and tell them about the award!

Thank you Jess, over at From Bones to Beauty for naming us as one of her 15! You are awesome!

7 things about myself:

1. I absolutely, with a passion, hate winter months in Ohio (not the worst winters I know but bad enough)! I was meant to live in the south. Snow, breaking ice, frozen water buckets, not being able to ride more than 20 minutes without my fingers and toes freezing off, and slick footing are just a few reasons. Oh how I’m counting down to the days of warm sunshine, sleek coats and picking stalls without my fingers freezing to the shape of my pitch fork!

2. I’m finding that the older I get, the more I have to actually work and concentrate on my riding. My seat just isn’t what it used to be after taking a few years off. Sure I can still ride just about anything but I just don’t look as graceful as I used to! lol

3. I can be a little bullheaded but in all honesty I think with horses you have to be. If not we would all have a bunch of pasture puffs who walked all over us and never learned anything.

4. My cousin Suzie is my hero! She can train anything, ride any discipline and is always smiling! This woman gives free riding lessons to children, any discipline they choose. Barrels, poles, roping, dressage, jumping… you name it. She simply hopes it will teach them responsibility and keep them out of trouble later in life.

5. I got a call the other day from an old friend. Her husband wants to offer me a job in his vet clinic when he opens it up in a few months as an equine technician. I’m pretty pumped and hope everything goes as planned so that he can open soon.

6. I’m addicted to tea! I’ve always been a coffee drinker but recently discovered loose leaf tea. Its amazing.

7. I get to house sit next month for my cousin Suzie who is taking a month vacation to Florida. I will be taking all my horses to her place and be looking after all 13 of hers too! I’m going to be in heaven.

My Favorite Blogs

A Green Horse

A Good Horse

A Journey into second chances and beyond

Gizzards and Calf Fries

Hoof Prints of Enzo

I Hate Your Horse

Musing From the Judges Box

My Nine to Five

Mugwump Chronicles

Oh Horsefeathers and Related Twisted Tails

Shame in the Horseshow Ring

Unique Horse Trailers

The South Dakota Cowgirl

I fell off the blog wagon...

Im alive! lol Its been a rollercoster at the barn since I last posted.

Daya is still my golden girl even though I've had some ups and downs with her. When Lootah was about 3 months old Daya started dropping weight at an alarming pace. No matter what I fed or tried, she would not gain weight. So after having her checked out and noting that the baby was growing like a weed, I made the really hard choice of weaning her early. She did really well and both momma and baby handled it like pro's. Daya is a one in a million mare. She called out a few times that day and smelled around but never acted up once I got her home. Within 2 weeks of being weened I saw her weight coming back and for the time being all my prayers were answered. I haven't been working with her as much as I should be. I've been so busy its hard to find the time. Im hoping once springs comes around and the days get longer that will change.

Lootah! The ham of the barn (both in personality and in weight!). She is growing up and turning into a great little filly. Sharp as a tack and loves to be loved. Her only downfall, she is club footed. Yep, my vet thinks from the sudden growth spurts she was having (and the reason she was sucking the life out of her momma) has caused her bone to grow faster than the tendon. Fixable by surgery if it is done before the age of 2 but my vet wont except payments and I'm laid off. I've listed her as free with the exception that her potential either uses her as a pasture ornament or pays to have the surgery she needs done. I've about lost it a few times talking to people who are interested in her. I've had so many "I want a foal for my children to grow up with" that I think I'm going to pull my hair out. Sure she is cute and cuddly now, just wait until she is a 800lb yearling with hormones!

Katie is also up for sale. Love this mare to death but she really needs someone who would appreciate her more. This girl is dead broke. I hauled her a little bit last fall to different trail riding events and she did so good. Perfect kid or husband horse. I've just my hands full with...

this guy. Ely, my new barrel gelding. I was in no way, shape or form looking for another horse. My cousin sabotaged me! Told me she had a barrel horse with gate issues she needed ridden and worked with. The first time I rode him he stood straight up in the air with me! Of course my mom and husband just happened to be there... they almost had a heart attack. I took him around the arena a few times and was hooked. He was the hottest yet most responsive horse had ever been on, like a hyped up dressage horse. I was in love! I was going to have a horse like this someday! That's when Suzie gave me the look and said " You know he is for sale!"... and I wanted him! This was my future horse! I felt that instant bond, he was "the" one. That woman knows me better than just about anyone, and before I had the chance to tell her he was probably waaaayyyyy out of my price range, she piped up again and added " and I bet he is in your price range and on a payment plan!" So, Im now up to 4 horses and its only January!

2 witchy attitudes and 2 hearts of gold...

Daya and Lootah:
Full blown attitude is all I have to say. Earlier this week Daya had her feet trimmed by Mike and she really showed her butt (which I promptly worked off!!!). She was being very fidgety and didn’t care to much for standing still for Mike or picking her hind feet up for him. Out of nowhere she gave Mike a nice little warning shot with a hind leg and clipped his elbow! No ears pinned back, no warning at all. Needless to say I worked her big opinionated butt until she lifted her back feet gently and didn’t even think about moving a muscle. Kicking is a big no-no for me and I don’t tolerate it at all. Even if a horse flips it’s tail at me when I ask for a hind leg, it had better be warning a fly because I feel it’s a warning to me someone is going to boot camp!

After Lootah's first bath

It must have felt pretty good to be sprayed off

on such a hot day because she was full of herself!

As for Lootah! What have I gotten myself into. Mike also wanted to start working with her feet. Her heels were growing fast and making her walk on her toe more than what we liked to see. I also noticed it was making her walk as if she was over at the knee. So I put her halter on her, did some basics to get her attention on me and started messing with her feet. Mike took over and started messing with her feet and picking up her legs…. that’s when all hell broke loose. Lootah kicked out a few times, no big deal because it’s a foal thing, but when Mike didn’t give her what she wanted she bared her teeth, pinned her ears and actually went AFTER him! More than once! I was speechless! I have never seen a foal go after someone with such animosity… ever! Mike laughed it off and continued to push her buttons until she stopped and yielded that little butt but it still unsettled me. So baby training is going into overdrive and I’m hoping I can train this behavior out of her before the gets some decent size to her….




Katie:


This girl is proving to be worth her weight in gold. She handles everything so well. My equine dentist Ed stopped by yesterday morning to do Katie’s teeth. She has been dropping feed and holding her head at an angle when eating her grain. Her mouth was a mess and I felt so bad for taking so long to schedule an appointment for her. She had hooks, sharp edges and Ed doubt she had ever had her teeth done before. She handled everything like a pro. She didn’t flinch when it came time to give her a shot and allowed Ed to run his “power tools” easily in her mouth . He had to really focus on a few areas that were very bad but she stood there and didn’t seem to care at all. She was much happier come feeding time this morning and never dropped a singe crumb.

Charlie:

Charlie is the little a 5 year old appaloosa mare I have in training right now for a friend of the family. They bought this little mare for their daughter about a year ago but she was labeled green, hot and needed many more miles put on her. I told them that a green horse and young rider would not be a good fit at all and that it would be better to sell this mare and buy and older broke horse for his daughter. I’m a firm believer in the “Green and green = Black and blue!” theory. So he asked if I would still put miles on her, see what problems we were facing and see if I could finish her out to be resold. In the beginning, I would have bet money that this horse was going to be a fire cracker by the description the previous owners have given them! But this little mare just about made me eat my hat! Lol She is barely 14 hh but she has the heart of lion. That horse will take on just about anything. She has a playful attitude, always meets you at the gait and will do just about anything to be with you . She knows the basics so I’ve started teaching her how to yeild and bend with leg pressure, back like a pro and tackle crazy obstacles out on the trail. She gets unsure about things like new ditches but one squeeze of the leg and she tackles it head on. This little girl really does have what it takes to be a good kids horse and her owners couldn't be happier. She isn't hot and or spooky, she does whatever is asked of her and you would have no idea she is a mare by the way she acts! Love this little horse.

Some photo's of Lootah's first week...

^ Funniest thing I've ever seen. It had been so rainy the week she was born and the barn was surrounded by mud! She didn't know what to think about the mushy stuff and gave it a few test pokes with her hoof.

Nap time...

More recent photo's will be coming soon. Im having a small problem with my camera and need to update the software on my computer to upload the new pics. There are more videos on my youtube channel as well so please feel free to check them out!

Im surrounded by divas!

Well its been over a month since I last updated everyone on how the Daya’s filly has been doing. Sorry for taking so long. Things at the barn and home have gone absolutely crazy. I’m up to 4 horses (all mares and all in training!) plus Daya and her diva filly, which means between feeding, cleaning stalls, training, doing my good little housewife deeds and crazy weekend adventures with the hubby and family, I just haven’t had time to do anything! This is actually the first time I've even been able to think about relaxing in what seems like over a month. I have lots of pictures coming up soon and some new videos I plan on adding to my youtube channel soon.

Daya’s filly is growing like a weed and hasn’t been the easiest little girl to work with until here recently. We ended up calling her Lootah which is Native American for the word red (I don’t even want to think about her registry name yet). My husbands grandfather recently passed away and was a horse lover to the very core. I don’t think there was ever a day when he didn’t ask me if that foal was on the ground yet. He was so excited to see her but didn’t make it to see her born. His nickname was Red and the entire community called him that, so I thought it would be a fitting name for the new filly and my husband loved the idea of naming her after his crazy, horse loving grandpa.

So Lootah it is and boy is she a little firecracker! Just like her mother. Sensitive, smart and loves being loved. She is also very dominant!! Only a month old and already trying to push the other mares around. If one gets to close to her and mommy, she snakes that head around and pins her ears so flat you would think she was born without them. I’ve been trying to get this on video but have had no luck.

The first few weeks Daya was giving me problems when it came time to work with the foal. In the beginning the foal didn’t mind being rubbed all over at all but Daya did. She never showed any aggressive behavior but would put herself in between me and foal when entering her stall or making the baby move away from me when out in pasture. Within a few days the baby would not approach me and would panic when I tried to approach her. So I decided I would ignore the foal complete, pamper momma and let both of them learn to relax around me again. Worked like a charm! I am now thought of as the best butt scratcher in the barn by Lootah and Daya doesn’t care what I do as long as her hay net is full and every hair on her 1200 lb body is neatly in place… What have I got myself into? I’ve got 2 full blown Divas on my hands…