A Farm of Your Own

A Farm of Your Own

At one time or another, every equestrian has fantasized of owning his or her own farm. For some of us the dream has been realized for others it has yet to happen. In keeping with the theme of this blog “the aging equestrian”, in a short series of posts I would like to cover the pros and cons of farm ownership for our age group. I welcome all comments and recommendations you might be able to add that would be helpful to prospective farm owners.

The Reason Why

Out of the blue the mantra, need a farm, need a farm, need a farm is on a loop in your brain. You wonder, where did that come from? Why, exactly, do you want your own farm? Have you simply had enough of boarding stables or the care your horse is receiving? Maybe you are tired of the show circuit and just want to relax and enjoy your horses in your own backyard. Has the atmosphere at boarding stables (not to mention the rules) finally gotten to the point where you no longer enjoy the time you are at the barn? Whatever your reasons are, they are significant enough that you want to take on a completely new lifestyle. However, are you sure you’re ready to handle this huge change?

The Decision

To be certain that the decision to own a farm is right for you at this time, you must consider all the aspects involved. Even if you believe you are ready for a place of your own, you have to ask yourself whether you are experienced enough to be responsible for everything it entails. It is a huge commitment and not one to take on without due consideration. Many questions need to be asked and answered before you contact a real estate agent. As always, you must be very honest with your soul searching about what kind of a farm you intend to own; without honest answers you will set yourself up for failure and heartache.

v If you plan to have a backyard set-up for your own horses, will you be doing the feeding and mucking? Can you afford to pay someone else to do it? Do you trust them? Good help is nearly impossible to find; if something goes wrong and you are temporarily without help, can you handle the farm by yourself for a few days or weeks until you find a replacement employee? When the farm is snowed in, will you be mucking all of the stalls and hauling all of the hay, feed and water yourself? If you are taking care of things yourself, what will you do if you are injured, get sick or want to take a vacation?

Having a single horse, isolated from other horses, is borderline cruel for these social animals; will you get your horse a companion; and, will you be able to separate them for your riding, or will you need three horses just so you can take one out to ride without the other getting frantic? Will you have enough space to accommodate the number of horses you plan to have?

If you plan to board a horse or two or are considering taking on friend's horse in a backyard situation, you’ll need to educate yourself about liability and how to protect yourself in the event a horse or rider sustains an injury while under your care. Friends are wonderful until something catastrophic happens to their horse, whether it is your fault or not.

v Do you want to try your hand at breeding and selling horses? Breeding is a 24/7 project - you do not get to go on vacation and you need a qualified knowledgeable person present at all times. Leaving horses unattended during the day while you are at work or running errands is out of the question; there is no end to the trouble horses can get into and someone needs to be on premises at all times. Is a full-time manager in your budget, or, if you take on the responsibility yourself, can you handle the physical demands of raising a rambunctious baby? Do you know enough to properly handle and train one from scratch? You must ask yourself if you are skilled and knowledgeable enough to bring quality horses into the world, train them properly and sell them to good and caring homes.

v How about a place for retired horses that need a place to live out their final days in peace and dignity. If you plan to run a facility for them, are you aware of the special needs of an older horse? Including specialized feeding, dentistry and veterinary care, proper turnout, and perhaps limited but correct exercise?

v Have you thought you could run a boarding and training facility featuring quality training, state of the art barns and riding arenas, shows and clinics, etc? Do you think you could make money doing this to pay for your dream of owning your own farm?

Legal matters may arise for any number of reasons, and you must be prepared to defend yourself and your farm from bogus claims. You are on call, similar to a doctor 24-7. Horses can get sick and need medical attention day or night. Again, good barn help is notoriously hard to find; are you prepared to deal with employees in a fair but firm manner? Will you have staff quarters on the premises? Are you well versed in the law pertaining to workers? Can you find a qualified barn manager and instructor(s)?

Starting a business is never easy, and operating a barn is one of the hardest types of business you can enter into and succeed. From personal experience, I can attest to the fact that dealing with boarders, their horses, and their horse’s special needs, may find you at times feeling overwhelmed and lead you to believe having a degree in psychotherapy would be required just to get you through the day. What is more, people tend to think that owning a farm will mean more time to ride and spend with their horses, but often it is just the opposite; attending to the needs of boarders and their horses is a full-time job in itself, and leaves very little time for relaxation and fun with your own horses. My advice is unless you are knowledgeable enough to handle all (or most) aspects of the business, or can afford to hire those who are, you may want to skip this idea.

v Finally, being an older horse person, perhaps with the requisite aches and pains of aging, can you honestly say you are up to the challenge owning a farm encompasses. Will you be up for the physical and mental ordeal that greets you each morning at dawn?

Once you have a firm idea of exactly the type of farm you want to own, you can start looking for the perfect place to make your dream a reality. I will address this in my next post.

Until next time

Quote of the Day

Nothing moves me more than when on the way to fetching in my horses the sound of their neighing to me as I open the gate.

Dos and Don'ts of Purchasing a Horse

Purchasing a Horse

On February 2 Punxsutawney Phil, the famous groundhog residing in Pennsylvania, saw his shadow and predicted six more weeks of winter. Not being one to put much stock in what a little rodent has to say, I believe that Spring is just around the corner. With springtime on the way, naturally our thoughts turn to horses. This is traditionally the time of year people start looking for horse prospects to purchase. No one in his or her right mind will purchase a horse before winter that needs to be fed and cared for and have limited riding and training time for an entire season.

Instead of advising on what to do when you begin your search, perhaps it would be better to touch on what not to do.

· Never impulse buy. A horse is not the attractive box of candy beside the cash register; it is a living breathing being that will need care for the rest of its life. To avoid impulse buying, it would be wise not to travel with your horse trailer dragging behind you from farm to farm and have a blank check in your bag. This could be disastrous for both you and the horse.

· By no means, buy a horse because you like their breed, name, color or size. Horses are individuals, regardless of breed, and the old cliché applies: never judge a book by its cover. Maybe the horse fits into the halter, saddle, or blanket you already own; sure this would save money by not having to buy duplicate items, but it’s much easier to replace a piece of tack that doesn’t fit your horse than an entire horse that doesn’t fit you! I actually know someone who bought a horse because it fit the saddle and bridle she already owned; it did not turn out well.

· Avoid at all costs the “dog pound syndrome.” This is when you fall in love with the most pathetic specimen in the lot and take him home out of pity. Of course, there is nothing wrong with giving a needy horse a good home. However, unless you are prepared to rehab this horse and deal with its issues, this may not be a good scenario for you. Rehab could mean huge medical or training costs and, even if you are prepared financially to handle that aspect, some abused horses are so psychologically scarred they can never be brought back to their full potential. Likewise, be aware that a skinny, hungry or otherwise sickly horse will be much more docile than a fit and healthy one; some horses are actually starved intentionally by their owners because they are untrained, unruly or not able to be worked with safely. Once rehabilitated, you may have more horse than you bargained for.

· If you are a beginner (or even if you are not,) you probably don’t need the most athletic horse you can find, or the one with enormous “potential,” as this often translates to “this horse is a handful with the biggest buck and the fastest spook.” Often the horse with the round, scopey jump, the biggest stride, or the most suspension will make a fantastic prospect for a professional or a serious advanced rider, but may be more horse than you need for pleasure riding, adult amateur hunters or first level dressage, for example. You’ll have to work much harder at staying with your super-athletic horse over fences or sitting the trot on that big mover than you might like, and often at the expense of safety. Just as it’s never advisable to buy those jeans you hope to fit into “one day,” it’s best to resist the temptation of buying something green or more advanced that you can “grow into” in favor of buying the horse that is best suited to you here and now. If you are anticipating moving up the levels that rapidly, then you might be better off leasing a horse at each stage and waiting to buy until you are closer to your goal.

· In your travels, of course, you will come across a horse that just seems perfect for you. You instantly feel the special connection; you must have this horse at any cost. Well, the truth is this horse will be there tomorrow or next week or even next month. Do not fall for the hard sell, which could go something like this, “I have three more people interested in this horse, so you better make up your mind today, otherwise, he will be sold to one of the others buyers tomorrow morning.” Take a step back and think why this owner would not have sold him to one of the others before you arrived! Did he somehow know that the perfect partner for this horse was traveling to the beam of light this extraordinary horse was sending telepathically to you over the miles? Oh yes, Mr. Zen can see you have a real connection and he would not want this horse to go to just anybody. Mr. Magnanimous will even take a little less to make sure this prize gets a good home. Chances are the owner/seller has boarded this horse for the winter so lowering the price just to get rid of him might seal the deal. At this point, take another step back, turn and run to the car.

· The horse must be ridden more than once before purchase, by either you or your instructor. You need to evaluate whether or not this is a horse you can handle. If there is any excuse why he cannot be ridden right now; he threw a shoe this morning; the dentist was here yesterday and floated his teeth; he is dirty and needs a bath, don’t believe it. If the seller is not offering a ride on the horse he is selling there is a reason. A horse should always be put on the longe, as most lameness and gait problems will show up on the circle. Always ride the horse more than once and at different times of the day. During lessons, at night, in the morning, ride as much as permitted before money changes hands. Many sales stable will “prepare” a horse prior to your arrival to ensure you have an uneventful ride; if at all possible, leasing the horse or taking it on trial for a few weeks will give you a sampling of his personality and quirks under more realistic circumstances.

· Also, do not expect to buy a horse and have it appreciate in value. Think of it like buying a car - you will never resell the horse for more than you paid for it unless you are a professional trainer and can really improve an already promising horse.

· A green horse is not ever a good idea for a beginner and some non-beginners as well. Unless you can personally train it, never consider a green horse. If you buy green and are unable to complete the job at hand, you expose yourself to the possibility that a trainer will take advantage of you and your horse. Trainers are a dime a dozen and most possess an ego the size of Texas; there is no guarantee that they know how to get the horse from point A to point B correctly. Buying a young untrained horse because of a cheaper price tag, will more than likely wind up costing a whole lot more than the older, safer, more experienced horse for a few dollars more at the outset.

· Try not to over spend. If you must cash in your life savings, re-mortgage your house or really cut back on the family’s groceries, then perhaps this expensive once in a lifetime horse may not be the one for you. On the other side of the coin, “don’t look a gift horse in the mouth,” may have had some meaning in past times, but it’s always wise to remember a free horse is never free. The board and feed and medical bills are the same price for any horse you own.

· No matter how much the seller guarantees his health, the horse you have selected needs a pre-purchase exam, with x-rays. If the horse has previous x-rays, all the better to compare with the new ones. If the horse is registered with papers, make sure all the markings and descriptions match. If you don’t request the papers for your horse (and make sure they are authentic), many dealers will simply recycle them for the next similar-looking horse that comes into their yard. There are reasons the expression “horse-trader” is used in a derogatory sense.

· Take a knowledgeable trainer/horse person with you. If you are not sure of conformation, lameness, behavior, suitability or general condition issues, some expertise is needed. A knowledgeable horse person can help you ask the right questions and restrain you from making a hasty decision you may later regret. And your trainer should be able to determine whether, depending on what discipline you ride, that 15 hand western pleasure horse is suitable for getting you to Grand Prix level dressage or over a four-foot hunter course. Maybe the 17.3 hand Warmblood is just not the right horse for trail riding (have you ever tried to get on one from the ground?) The bottom line is, get the horse you need for what you plan to do, not the horse you want because it is a pretty color.

· Rescuing horses from a reputable organization is a noble cause. But first, ask yourself if you are skilled and knowledgeable enough to rehab a horse, as this takes much time and effort. We have taken in many horses over the years for rehabilitation and we don’t regret any one of them, since most would have been sent to slaughter if we had not had the time and know-how to rehab an unwanted, abused or seriously injured horse. I am happy to report that they all found good and loving homes (or found permanent places with us.) Just a bit more about this, with all of our rehab “projects,” progress did not occur overnight. Most have taken a long time, including one who needed surgery and a cast on his leg for months; others required extensive physical therapy treatments, re-training, etc.; each horse had a different need. And horses that need to be confined for long periods or gradually re-introduced to work can be difficult if not downright dangerous. Rehabilitation is very time consuming and requires patience, money and skill. Although I enjoyed helping these horses because it was challenging and fulfilling, I would not recommend it for everyone. A rehab horse is always a gamble. Not all of them can be “fixed,” and this is something you need to take into consideration as well. The point here is to not purchase a horse you are not prepared to care for in good times and bad. If you are the sort of person who collects animals, as I do, and know that what you bring home has a home for life, try to get a horse that fits into the program and that you can live with and love, even if it can’t live up to your expectations.

At the end of the day, everyone will buy the horse they feel a connection with and, if it is not the perfect match, they will have to learn to live with their decision. Before you start searching for the perfect partner, ask yourself all the tough questions. You must be very honest about your riding abilities, your goals, what you can afford and the type of horse you need. Somewhere out there is the perfect horse for you and you will find him or her eventually. Keep in mind that you have to be flexible – no horse is perfect.

Until next time

Quote of the Day

A lovely horse is always an experience . . . It is an emotional experience of the kind that is spoiled by words.
- Beryl Markham

More Fun With Awards & Tags

I’ve been tagged by MiKael’s Mania - Arabian Horses, who was tagged by Gorilla Wordfare. This one’s subject matter, ‘Top Five Causes/Pet Peeves/Things That Irritate Me’. Like all awards, memes and viruses the rules are the same. Please link back to where you got it from and pass it on with links.... I actually don’t mind this one as I have more than enough things that irritate me on a daily basis and to choose just five will be a snap, since I have been blessed with more opinions than a centipede has legs here we go:

• Rollkur now referred to as “hyperflexion.” Come on people. Just because you changed the name, doesn’t make it any less tortuous to the horses. Anyone who employs this despicable practice should be banned from the sport. This includes the trainers, ‘top riders’ who need to keep their game rolling for those big money endorsements, judges who allow it without fining and throwing them out of the competitions, and just about anyone else who would take a shortcut and use this method to “train” a horse.

• Anyone who ever ran - or still runs - a PMU facility. This is one form of abuse that should never have been allowed. No matter how much drug company money you pocketed. How do you sleep at night?

• To all of you backyard breeders who don’t have a clue as to what you are doing. Just because you have a mare or a stallion, that doesn’t give you the right to breed horses. Do you really think this will be your ticket to prosperity? Most of these horses wind up abused or on their way to slaughter because there is no market for horses that are poorly bred. Once the light bulb goes off and you finally figure out there is no sale, you abandon these horses to their own devices for survival and most of them do not survive.

• Anyone who takes in rescue horses from a rescue organization and figures it would be a good idea to ask people for donations to help you feed and care for them. This would be a nice idea if you had an idea of how to rehabilitate a rescue horse. Except your main concern seems to be how to make money from the abuse the horse has suffered already, i.e. the pictures I get in the mail of starving, beaten horses is sickening. As an added perk, the money you take in will also keep you from having to get a job to support your own horses. A nice gig if you can pull it off. Sadly, most of you cannot and so the rescue horses will eventually have to be re-rescued once again.

• All horse people who only have their own (or their trainer’s) opinion, and will fight you to the death to prove, despite all evidence to the contrary, they are right. Open your mind a little and let some daylight in once in a while. Research new training methods, if it’s not for you, at least you gained knowledge of some kind. People with closed minds and only one way of doing things are a little shallow; in order to expand and become a better horse person, you must look into different opinions. Even if they are different from yours, there may be one or two things you can learn.

I am passing this on to Victoria at Teachings of the Horse, Glenshee Equestrian Centre, Midwest Horse , I do hope you are not overwhelmed with one more tag. I thought this one might be fun.

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It seems I have been given the Excellent Blog Award and would like to thank gecko musings , who has an interesting blog about her farm and other goings on Down Under in Australia. This award originated from Mind Sieve . The idea is to give the award to your 10 favorite blogs. Click on the image to pick up your award, and make someone’s day by passing it along to your ten favorite blogs. My choices are:

pro photo by lori, lost world farm , diary of a young horse, camera-obsura,Glenshee Equestrian Centre, equine spirit, smells horsey.

I hope everyone is pleased to receive this award, I know I was.

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Chosen again by diary of a young horse, for this meme tag:

The rules are...

You must post the rules before you give your answers.

After you've been tagged, you need to update your blog with your middle name and answers.

You must list one fact about yourself for each letter of your middle name.

Each fact must begin with that letter.

If you don't have a middle name, just use your maiden name/last name.

At the end of your post, you need to tag one person for each letter of your middle name. (Be sure to leave them a comment telling them they've been tagged and need to read your blog for details).

So here is my middle name and what I came up with,

A – anxious to get back in the saddle as soon as the weather improves

N – normally not neurotic

N –natural

I fear I will have no more blogger friends left if I tag one more person so I am not officially tagging anyone, if you would like to participate please do.

Reiki for Horses

Equine Reiki

Now that we have ‘Spread the Love’, divulged our inner selves, and exposed our quirky horses for what they are, perhaps it is time to get back to the blog at hand.

Equine Reiki is fast becoming popular in the horse world. With some background and knowledge of Reiki practices, the decision will be yours on whether you wish to try it or not. Reiki can be used to complement traditional medical practices, but should not be used as a replacement for proper veterinary care.

History of Reiki

Reiki pronounced (ray-key), is a Japanese word, which means universal life energy. The REI means universal and present everywhere, and KI- meaning the non-physical force giving life to all living things. Reiki is an ancient form of energy healing, using a method that is believed to have spread throughout China, India and Tibet approximately one hundred and twenty years ago. Reiki has no religion attached to it intentionally; its mystery is open for the benefit of each and every one. However, the value of animals and the world environment as a whole along with its people has a bit of a Buddhist premise in its point of view. Reiki is also not faith healing. The Reiki healing method has mainly been used for healing people; recently more and more practitioners have come to realize that this healing system could be beneficial to animals. Since horses have no belief system they are more open to the treatment, they easily tune into the intention of the healer. For more information than I could ever go into here, follow this link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reiki.

How It Is Done

The Reiki practitioner is fundamentally a channel for the Reiki energy, which the beneficiary draws to themselves through the hands of the practitioner. Attunement is the method by which the Reiki channel is opened and it works on the deepest levels of consciousness. Horses are very straightforward and they are far more in tune with themselves and their environment than people are, so they deal with the consciousness and healing on a level of what they need. Horses have no preconceived notions or bias of what will work and what will not, so they are good subjects simply because they are open to receive the healing energy. Energy is drawn to the area needing healing, whereas the body then heals itself. Every living thing can have energy blocks, which are usually dealt with personally day to day. The problems are detected when the body or mind comes under pressure.

When horses are well energy flows through the body like an electric current, the energy blocks that occur are due to pressures mainly from outside factors such as, emotional trauma, infections, injuries, changes in diet, training issues or a combination of different situations. If left untreated this can leave some areas depleted of energy and other areas overworked. An energy blockage can also lead to behavioral and psychological problems. Reiki will not retrain the horse that is having behavior problems or psychological problems but it will resolve the issue of the energy block which may be causing the problems. I would like to add that many rescue organizations use Reiki on their abused horses for their mental and physical problems. Energy blocks are released and natural balance is restored. Reiki is a very potent treatment, outwardly, it is very subtle in its application but inwardly it is felt intensely. Working with Reiki, positive energy flows into the horse and any imbalance or negative energy is dissipated.

Benefits of Using Reiki

Some of the reasons people turn to Reiki practitioners for their horses may be to help reduce stress, improve the horses’ flexibility, balance, behavioral issues, and increase their energy levels. This in turn may help them to recover from injuries, relieve their pain, and ease depression. Reiki has been used on dying horses and horses that are grieving for a lost pasture mate or other traumatic situations. Reiki can never harm your horse. Some horses accept it readily and will even “show” you where it hurts. There are horses who absolutely want as much as you can give, perhaps an hour or more to work the whole body and some who will only take ten to twenty minutes. These particular horses may be worked with on a steady basis until they accept more. A horse that has had a Reiki session should be allowed to rest for a day; you may be surprised to see the renewed energy your horse displays the next time he is ridden.

Reiki is also beneficial to riders, for all the same reasons you might use it on your horse. Once you are taught the Reiki method and put it into practice, a deeper bond between you and your horse is another benefit. I might add that once learned you could also save a lot of money by not paying for sessions with a Reiki master. It is also possible to work on yourself. If you are at all interested in this topic, find a practitioner in your area and see if it is something, you may like to explore in more depth.

Case in Point

My personal experience with Reiki is limited. A few years ago, we had a boarding/training/rehabilitation/ etc. facility, and held a three-day clinic with a Reiki master. We like to research new practices gaining recognition in the horse world, and decide if they might truly be of help to horses, or just a new craze to come down the pike. I do try to keep an open mind, but at times, it is hard for me; I am quite skeptical about any new gadget or training system by horse “experts” who expound on the virtues of their new improved methods. I attended the clinic and made an effort to keep an open mind, took notes and learned all I could about Reiki for horses. Not detecting any major changes in the horses’ behaviors right away, I put the Reiki I had learned in the vault. Doubting Thomas? Perhaps a little.

It was winter so, naturally, there was some down time; my horse seemed slightly stiff and I decided to try my newfound Reiki knowledge on him. Erik was comfortable being worked around in his stall so I performed the attunement there.

I can attest to the fact that I am not a spiritual guru with mystical powers but, as we progressed further into the Reiki treatment, Erik lowered his head, yawned, licked and chewed, and let his bottom lip hang. These behaviors sometimes happen as you work on a horse that needs his energy blocks opened. The moment the last energy block on his body was treated, he released a huge sigh and lay down. I thought he was going to roll, but no, he just put his head down and went to sleep. This made a believer of me. Having seen the effects firsthand, I now think that Reiki has a place in dealing with certain issues in horses. Even though any new ideas I come across will still have to be thoroughly investigated, I hope that I will be able to be less cynical in the future.

Until next time

Quote of the Day

There is one respect in which beasts show real wisdom... their quiet, placid enjoyment of the present moment.
- Schopenhauer

Spread The Love Award

' Spread The Love '

I was pleasantly surprised to have received an award from my friend Victoria, at Teachings of the Horse, and would like to thank her for thinking of me. It is an honor to be the recipient of any award, but it means a lot to be remembered by a friend like Victoria. This award was designed by Mica at garboodles.typepad.com. Her idea is to “Spread the Love”, among all the special people we meet in the blogosphere and a way to show love and appreciation for all of us who put ourselves ‘out there’.

There are a lot of people I would like to “share the love” with, many have already received this award and I wouldn’t want to duplicate. For those of you who read my ramblings regularly and comment, I want to say thank you, it is always nice to hear from you and your comments are appreciated. While it is impossible to pick just a few special people when there are so many ,I would like to pass along this award with extra thanks to:

Linda at Lost World Farm

Lori at Pro Photo by Lori

Echo and her Mom at Diary of a Young Horse

Callie at Midwest Horse

To add the award to your post and pass it on to those you wish to show your appreciation and fondness for, just click on the award photo.

An Inspiring Ride

Monika & Filur

I recently received a comment from Marion, who asked me to watch this video, I am happy to say I did and it was wonderful.

Marion said:

"This is a dear friend of mine riding a blind Knabstruper stallion called Filur. This horse is trained to the higher levels of Academic Equitation. I know this horse and have seen him being ridden by several people, including his owner, but never like THIS!"

Although this has nothing to do with the actual subject matter of my blog, this horse is just stunning and his accomplishments are astonishing considering his blindness. The rider brings out the light of his soul with an inspiring ride. At least for me, and I thought to share it with you in the hopes you will enjoy it as much as I did.

Horse Virus MeMe Strikes Again !

' Horse Quirks '

Victoria at Teachings of the Horse has asked for volunteers for the new horse virus afflicting the blogosphere, so I am volunteering in the hopes I will not be “tagged” by other bloggers. Below is a list of quirks that distinguish each member of our herd as an individual.

Blue

Blue is kind of a loner – he has almost no “herd instinct;” sometimes when he’s out in the back field by himself, it will take him an hour or two to realize the rest of his herd is already in the barn and eating dinner.

Blue can often be found with his head stuck in a bush for no apparent reason. We’re convinced he’s practicing his meditation.

He is a stealth escape artist. Say you are bringing hay into the field on the back of a truck; you look around and no sign of horses. But, if there is a gate open in the paddock for even a minute, rest assured Blue is hiding behind a bush or a shed somewhere, watching. When he sees an opening, he’ll come tearing “out of the blue” and through the gate… to freedom!

Blue is one-with-the-deer. While living out, all of the horses will come into the shed at feed time and hang out there eating their hay for a good portion of the night. But Blue is not one of them. Instead, he’s usually to be found right in the middle of a herd of deer. The deer seem to take no notice of him, and he seems to be more at home among them than the other horses sometimes.

Birds regularly perch on his hindquarters while he’s out grazing, making him resemble a rhinoceros of the Serengeti.

When Blue can’t be bothered to come in from the back field, we leave the gates open for him and eventually he will come moseying into his stall; though when allowed to wander into his stall from the paddock, he will occasionally make a detour to climb into the dumpster and just stand there.

If you turn Blue out in an indoor full of jumps, he will voluntarily jump an entire “course” on his own – think of a jump-off with lots of turns and lots of speed!

Blue apparently can’t eat his grain until his bucket is arranged “just so” – he works it out so that one of the snaps kinks and holds that side of his bucket up higher than the other. Not until his feed bucket is properly tilted can Blue commence his feeding frenzy.

He will not drink anything but fresh water; if his bucket is filled during the day, it’s no good. He has to watch you fill it before he’ll drink.

He will not put his halter on to go out in the morning until he has relieved his bladder

Blue can sleep through anything. In his stall, he likes to bury his head under one of his banks and it’s Lights Out! But, even at his first show – which was an away show during which he was stabled in an indoor arena for a week – he slept – and I mean, lying down – while a stranger braided him for the first time.

Donnie

Donnie is a cheeky monkey. He is always up for roughhousing, games and other mischievous antics – even when no one else is in the mood, somehow, Donnie always convinces the herd to play along.

Even though he is a shy, cautious horse, his curiosity and intelligence usually get the better of him. He can dismantle a round pen (the kind with chains, though I’m sure, he could remove pins as well…) and free any horse imprisoned within. He can also open gate and stall latches, and when that fails, he can pop out fence boards with his chest.

For Donnie, being the lowest status horse in the herd does not inhibit his ability to get in a few cheap shots on his buddies – he simply waits until they are on the ground rolling to make his sneak attack… no one is safe.

He is the all-time reigning champion at “halter tag” – he can break or otherwise remove the halter from any other horse at any time. He also enjoys leading other horses around by their halters. Needless to say, we don’t turn out with halters these days…. He’s pretty good with blankets, too.

Donnie play-fights like a zebra – he goes for his opponent’s legs and then sits down or kneels to protect his own. He’s a dirty little fighter!

Donnie is phobic about anyone touching his ears while putting his halter on, but loves it when you stick your fingers into them and scratch!

Donnie was abused before we got him and used to be extremely shy. Now he is the barn mascot and talks to everyone who enters the barn. And his reaction to people he likes? He gently grabs them by the sleeve or the front of their jacket (never pinching the skin) and pulls them over to the front of his stall to play.

Mellon

Mellon has a phobia about paper cups. Don’t walk past his stall with a coffee cup in your hand unless you’d like him to ricochet off the back wall of his stall, and don’t even try to get a drink of water while mounted at a hunter pace checkpoint!

Though not a fan of having body clippers actually on his body, he loves to have his face clipped with the body clippers. Same goes for the hose; he’ll do his best to prevent you from getting his legs or body wet, but he’ll absolutely insist you soak his head.

He is quick with his feet – at one barn where there was a rat problem; we’d muck out several flattened rats every morning. We had a similar problem with horseshoe crabs at the beach (we tried to explain that “horseshoe” was just a nickname and that they weren’t going to become attached to his feet, but he wasn’t buying it.) The same is true with hoof oil cans; leave one near his feet and then surprise him with the hoof-oil brush at your own peril! Try cleaning an exploded can of hoof varnish off the walls once and you’ll never make that mistake again.

Mellon could be the most regal – even prissy - horse you will ever meet, but he cannot resist covering his entire head with bran mash when he’s lucky enough to have one for dinner. In fact, it gets in his ears, his mane and even his on shoulders. Not really sure how he does it… or why… but, it makes him happy…

Mellon always has to be first – first to eat, first to come in, first to go out or he’ll become hysterical. I recall the first barn where he was stabled had low ceilings and, because his stall was on the end, he was turned out last. there were hoof prints on the ceiling!

Mellon lives for grooming – preferably with other horses. He sets up shop - “Mel’s Fabulous Manes” - and will stand in one spot in a run in shed, and the rest of the herd will line up and wait for their grooming appointment. He’ll also groom humans – Mellon thinks people look best with huge dreadlocks of hair sticking off the sides of their heads, preferably held in place by copious amounts of horse slobber – his own line of styling product, if you will…

After the water trough has been scrubbed and refilled, Mellon will sometimes take up a post as the sole guardian of the water. He can spend hours standing over it. Maybe he’s guarding against slobbery backwashers? Or keeping the birds from mistaking it for a bath? No one but Mellon knows for sure…

Nate

Nate is a little like a trained elephant at a circus – put a block or any other solid object in front of him, and he’ll stand on it with as many of his feet as he can manage. This includes trying to get onto the mounting block with you, or standing on your step stool while you are pulling his mane. We like to ride in the field and once left a mounting block out there – when we came out in the morning, we found Nate standing proudly with both of his front feet on the top step. We have no idea how long he had been standing like that….

Don’t ever bend over in front of Nate or he will ram your backside with his head like a goat, sending you flying across his stall to do a face-plant in the shavings. Or, alternatively, he will amuse himself by grabbing the waistband of your pants and lifting you off the ground – the equine equivalent of an atomic wedgie. Always best to pick out his front feet on the cross-ties…

Nate will try to remove your shoes with his teeth (and is sometimes successful!) If his nose is near the ground, don’t stand still for too long!

If you’re not paying attention while you’re riding, Nate will turn around and grab the end of your dressage whip, pull it out of your hand, put the other end under his foot and snap it in half. We’ve lost a lot of whips that way… Also, one icy day when we turned out in the indoor, he picked up a longe whip lying on the ground and chased another horse around the arena with it!

Nate will try to fit his head into any opening he encounters – sometimes with disastrous results – he will also try to squeeze under things clearly not designed to accommodate his 17.2hh frame – stall guards, tree limbs, and even an entire fallen tree in his paddock… going down hill… at a full gallop…

Nate can be in a 40 acre field of lush pasture, but will be the only horse sticking his head through the fence by the road to nibble on dirty weeds.

Nate likes to dismantle things – grooming kits, tack trunks, jumps, flower boxes, radios, telephones – anything he can get his teeth and hooves on.

Nate loves to jump things out in the field. If no actual jumps are available, he’ll look for interesting hills to fly off of or puddles to leap over!

Nate’s idea of “playing” involves three things: chewing on another horse’s chin (I know, it’s a little odd), clamping his jaws over the other horse’s mane and not letting go, and hovering over the other horse’s back with his jaws open in the annoying big-brother gesture of “I’m not touching you, I’m not toooouuuuching you, heheheheheheh…..”

Nate, the barn mayor, can finagle food from even the most stingy of herd-mates. When dining out in the field, Nate has been known to casually visit each horse’s bucket, take a taste and move on. Oddly enough, no one seems to mind, including Mellon. After all, he’s just being “Nate.”

Dusty

Dusty thinks she’s Marilyn Monroe reincarnated. She must be groomed endlessly, and when she’s had enough of her adoring public, will slam her stall door shut. Then, when she hears the feed bucket or the hay cart come out, she’ll whip open her door and emerge from her stall again.

Likes: stomping in muddy puddles, stuffing all of her hay into her water buckets, snorkeling in same water buckets, trotting as fast as her legs will go, her breastplate (it enhances her cleavage!), and cameras (so she has something to pose for.)

Dislikes: standing still, following anyone (she has to be in front!), waiting for people to mount (let’s go already!) foreign objects in her mouth (like bits) and of course, those stupid boys!

Until next time

Quote for Today

Horses have as much individuality and character as people.

- C.W. Anderson