Saturday, March 20, 2010

I've tried to keep it in...

I know how disgusting and annoying a person can be when all they do is talk about one subject, so i have tried really hard to talk about a variety of subjects here..... and there is one subject that I just wouldn't shut up about for a while that I have tried to stay away from for the last little bit to keep from making everyone sick of it but...


Oh my gosh, I love my horse!

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Seriously, it has been almost a year since i got him home and I am just as smitten with him now, if not more, than I was the moment Marsha led him out of her trailer and handed me his lead rope.
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I mean, he is just so sweet, and loving, and ADORABLE. Every time I look at him I am a horse crazy teenager all over again, only this time i get to KEEP the horse.
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It may have taken 39 years, but he was worth the wait.


Every


Single


Minute.

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Friday, March 19, 2010

SUPERSTAR!!!

Yesterday was... interesting.

LOL.


The goats managed to get on top of their Quonset hut and use it as a trampoline so I had to prop it up with posts. I totally expected it would happen sooner or later, and I laughed so hard I felt light headed. I didn't get any video, because I was afraid they were going to try and go over the fence but now I wish I had. lol.

I was starting to wonder if my goats had any trouble making in them or not. A goat without a wide streak of "troublemaker" just isn't a REAL goat, you know? lol. Of course it was HRH Thyme, Goat Queen of PhoenixDown Farm, who started it. Once the hut was back up she spent an hour trying to fling herself back up on top of it and failing. Then she started to attack all the other goats and the fence in frustration. Then she angrily threw herself down and started to chew her cud with a ticked off look on her face, haha.

So, I decided this was a good sign that I should run the electric on the fence. I got it done. The fencer doesn't pack much punch but every single one of them has tried to chew the wire so they now have some respect for the fence. So if they do manage to get on to the top of their hut I HOPE that will keep them from trying to go over the fence. HOPING but not counting on it. lol. Because, you know, they are GOATS.

I hope to take them out for a while today for some browse time. They free ranged at the breeders and stayed close to home, and I will be playing goatherd not just letting them go unsupervised but I am not used to having animals just running loose unless they are cats, lol. As a precautionary measure I am filling my pocket with Ziploc baggies full of marshmallows and stale froot loops. *big grin* I need a shepherds crook or something, to better look the part. And to help catch them if they go rogue.

Anyway, On to the superstar. Yesterday Katherine came to trim the Knucklehead. *gets all dreamy eyed about her handsome horsie* Last time he was a total prat. snatching his foot away, doing what for him counts as rearing up, other such foolishness like kneeling down while she trims his front feet. I've been working with him on that since and he has been pretty good, but of course the day of the trim he starts kneeling again. *rolls eyes*

Anyway, I decided to work him before she got there. Basic ground work taking control of his feet. Now he is notoriously dense about this stuff and so I wasn't expecting much, I just kind of wanted him too tired to be annoying while he got his feet done. Well, someone has been doing his home work over the winter because he did fan-FREAKIN-tastic.

Yield the hind quarters, check. Yield the forequarters, check. Back, got it. Forward, that too. Side pass? OK, not sure what that is all about but will try... Might move the front a step then the back a step but the concept seemed to be sinking in. walk, trot and whoa on the line. got it. Directional changes on the line? Why yes, I know what you want me to do. I may not be reliable turning toward my left but I know what you want, I just don't want to do it... but if you demand I will do it with a pouty face.

And he was a real champ at trimming time. Katherine brought some vet wrap to wee if it might work to keep the hair out of the way and that worked fine. Makes her job easier. He was super for two feet, good for a third, and just a little fussy about the last one. so the work right before the trim seems to be a good plan.

He really was SUCH a good boy.

One thing though... I changed the way I was doing a few things after watching some videos online, and I think this works better for him than what I was doing before. This lady does a lot of things the way I do anyway, but I have tried not being so vocal because almost every trainer I know says not to blahblahblah the whole time. This lady is very vocal and is constantly going "good boy, that's a good boy!" and rewarding with lots of petting and rubbing. Which feels really natural to me but I have kind of suppressed it because so often trainers say all that noise and chatter just distracts and confuses the horse. But Brego seemed to just love it and it made things easy for me because I was able to just respond with my own instincts. It almost entirely solved the issue I have had in the past with timing.

At any rate, i was mega please, especially since for most of the work time Tsu was dragging the drive right next to my work area, and Brego would get a little distracted but would go right back to focused on me!

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(his feather was MUCH cleaner than this for the trimmer, lol)

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

Busy goat day...

I got everything I was waiting for today, so Himself and The Ladies have now received their copper tucked into marshmallows, their Ivomec pour on, their plastic chain collars (to help make catching Rosemary and Thyme a tad bit easier when they get an attitude but to still be safe) and a dusting of D/E (Diatomacious Earth, it is a great parasite killer and it is natural and non-toxic). They are all up to date on everything now, I just need to give Parsley time to show the results of all this stuff. I sure hope this clears up his skin and hair coat.

i was going to work the horses and drag the paddock but i think i want to take a break and colour my hair first. hehe.

there is just something relaxing and... i dunno... it just feels good to know the critters are all up to date on all their stuff. Now i can just relax and enjoy them and see how they do over the next few months.

Weird new kid in the goat pen...

where did that weird new kid come from??


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lol.

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Tsu is going all "Green Acres" on me with his nifty new harrow.

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Of course he is making funny faces, as usual.

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Today once it warms up I will be dragging the barn lot, assuming i can remember how to start the quad.

The horses are shedding like mad.

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Brego seems to be holding on to his 'stache so far.

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they are super itchy and spend a lot of time doing this sort of thing:

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They were running around as Tsu was using the harrow.


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They are filthy and the barn lot looks HORRIBLE, but such is spring.

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Both of my orders of supplies for Parsley are out for delivery today. So he should be treated for that nasty skin, and get his copper bolus as well. All of them are going to be treated for creepy crawly skin stuff and get a marshmallow full of copper. Might as well make sure they are all treated at once just in case. I'll be glad when that is done. I tested the actual effectiveness of the marshmallow treatment method day before yesterday. I stuck a probiotic in there and gave one to each goat, and after a little confusion on Sage's part that lead to Thyme getting an extra marshmallow they each scarfed them down without hardly chewing at all. So it should work great for the copper.

i will feel SOOOO much better once they are all treated.Still need to get them wormed. haven't heard from Anita, but if I don't hear from her soon I will just pick up some safeguard myself and dose them. I know for sure Sage and Parsley need it, so i don't want to put it off for too long. The horses are due, too.

Oh man, the time change is kicking my butt. I'm sleeping pretty good, compared to usual after time change, but I still wake up feeling HORRIBLE.

Tuesday, March 16, 2010

Mud, Mud, Glorious Mud!!!

Anyone else ever sing this song as a kid? "Mud, mud, glorious mud. Nothing quite like it for soothing the blood. So follow me follow, down to the hollow, And there let us wallow in glorious mud!"

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My trimmer is coming today. How in the world am i supposed to make THIS manageable? *sigh* I guess i will stall him for a few hours and try to brush it out. What a mess.


Anyway, the goats don't have any mud to deal with so they are happy.

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Sunday, March 14, 2010

Stayed up late to finish this knitting project...

It's for the Global Family Room monthly craft challenge (This month's theme, "hats") and I call it "Goodbye Kitty".

lol.


I didn't use a pattern, just got an idea because i was too cheap to buy new yarn for the project so i used what I had on hand and ended up with this little gem:

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