Earning their keep

Nitro on the left packing salt in for a rancher, that's Rio on the right with his girl, and their friend on her nice dun mare. Good boyz!

Me and Rosalee

Yes, that's her name. Ever since I got her I've been thinking of the Bellamy Brother's song "The Ballad of Tumbleweeds and Rosalee" and I just couldn't get it out of my mind when I was trying to think of a name for the yellow mare. She is so pretty, I wanted a name that reflected that. I even looked through names of yellow roses, but nothing came up. So I had a little chat with her, told her that dolls were just toys and that I wanted to name her after the prettiest thing I could think of and that is roses. So her name would be Rosalee. I swear, when I said that, her eyes got all soft and she looked really pleased!
Anyway, I borrowed a Vic Bennett reining saddle from Shayla because my regular saddle was giving her dry spots. The weather here is hot and muggy, and if I wait for cool weather it could be a while, so I saddled up and headed out with Tess and Thea.

I don't think the colour of the saddle suits her, but it fit her really well and was a good fit for me too. I might look for something similar in a darker oil.
Since it was too hot to go the 6 mile river loop, I opted for the hayfield ride again. It is about a 2 mile round trip- and it was almost too much for Tess, who is out of shape because I haven't been taking her out on trails for about a year now. She made it though and I made sure she went in the dog tub as soon as we got back. Thea is fitter with way less hair so she was fine.
As we started out, Thea thought she should be working the mare, so she was flip flopping from side to side and taking little runs at the string tail I tied onto Rosalee's hock length tail. As the ride progressed, she got over that. It annoyed Rosalee but she was pretty good, only swinging her neck at the dog and pinning her ears when Thea did the fly-by.

Unlike most people, I have never actually hankered after owning a palomino or a red dun; I've always loved the bays and blacks. But like Mark Rashid says, a good horse is never a bad colour.

When we got back I checked her sweat marks for dry spots- there were none.

Ted is working on installing the puckboard inside my horse trailer, should be done in a couple of days if he doesn't get interrupted. Than my plan is to haul Coulee and Rosalee to the big arena in Canyon and work both mares. I'd like to get Coulee going now that all the body work is done on her; she shouldn't have any issues. Even if I just pony her, it might help her get along with Rosalee but I'd really like to get riding her.

Belle's colt update

Isn't he a handsome little dude!

Belle, on the other hand, looks like she really needs to come home for some TLC.

Coulee talks

Ever since I got Coulee and discovered that she is the equine version of Grumpy Cat, I have tried my best to eliminate anything that may be causing her behaviour. I got her teeth done, she has had an equine sports therapist work on her twice, and I bred her in hopes of relieving her hormonal stress. Still, she is crabby, and while I know that it's her nature to be that way, I wanted to make sure that I had explored all the avenues available to me to help her.
Yesterday, I had a session booked with an animal communicator, Dana Meier. I didn't tell her anything about Coulee, just that I'd be interested in hearing what she has to say. It got very interesting right away- she does this type of visualization where she approaches the horse and goes through all the different parts of the body and reports anything she finds, and then goes on to talk about the mental/emotional side of things. She doesn't claim to be completely accurate, just reports what she is getting from the horse.
Right off the bat, Coulee said she wanted to be asked permission to be touched,  and Dana picked up right away on her crabby nature. Then Coulee told her about how and where her neck was stiff and her back was tight and sore, and that she had tight extensor tendons on the front of her hind cannon bones. Now, Dustin had just worked on her a few days ago, and he found a lot of stuff out on her back including a twisted vertebrae, so I think that her body is adjusting to being aligned right. Dana suggested using a mini thumper massager on her and I just happen to have one, so after the session I gave her a "thumping". Which she seemed to enjoy.
When asked if she had always been grumpy, Coulee said yes. She also gave Dana the impression that it's nothing I am doing that makes her grumpy, it's just the way she is. (That was a relief to hear.) She was also a bit alarmed when I told Dana that one of the reasons I booked the session was that I was trying to decide whether to keep her or sell her- she does not want to leave.
Dana didn't pick up on any hormonal issues with Coulee, so I asked if the reason was that she had been bred and was probably pregnant and we got a big Yes! She is happy to be pregnant. So I think my plan of helping her in that way worked. Her previous owner used to give her a drug to keep her from coming in to heat because of her raging hormones.
Then we got on the subject of the other mare, why she is so crabby to her. Apparently Coulee thinks my new mare is smug, and that Coulee is afraid that the mare will kick her. I know where that fear comes from; the new mare is in the same stall that Chino was in when she came here for breeding, and Coulee got into a couple of kick-fests with Chino so perhaps she thinks that any mare in that stall is out to get her. Coulee seems to think the best defence is offence.

It's ok Coulee, nobody will hurt you. I only want to get along with you.

Also I asked about the name for my new mare; I'm having such a hard time naming her and that is unusual for me. Dana asked her about that and it seems she really likes the name Dolly! (the name she came with). And she likes to be called Princess too. Really? Seriously? Do we have a prima donna here?  (Coulee thinks so.) We tried a few options from my short list and the only two she didn't mind are Rosalee and Billie.
All in all I think it was a good session and that I didn't waste my money ($30) What I got out of it was some more things I can do to make Coulee feel better physically, and that I can respect her desire to be left alone while at the same time letting her know that I think she is beautiful and that I'm happy with her and won't sell her. I'm glad to know that I'm not causing her any of her problems.

First trail ride

I got invited to go on a short trail ride yesterday.
My as-yet-unnamed mare used to be in a pen of geldings and she came to me with a lot of nicks and hair missing, so I assume she had a bit if a rough go with the geldings.
As we lined out for the ride, a gelding was a bit behind her and off to one side and she nailed him with a hoof to his chest/shoulder. The day before he is to get his paperwork done to go barrel racing in the US and the day after he got worked on by the same guy who worked on my mares. I sure hope he is okay. So now I know to make sure this mare doesn't get in striking range of other horses on a trail ride. She was good with the dog being right behind her, and I hope this was just a one time occurrence, but she won't get a second chance.
Other than that, it was a good ride, she seemed quite relaxed in the bush, followed well and didn't get anxious when the other horses got out of sight. She has a lovely long trot, such a big stride compared to what I am used to.

My next ride on her will be down the road here to the river and back. It's a 6 mile round trip; I need to get my dogs out following so Tess can teach Thea proper trail riding etiquette; follow behind and stay off the road. Yah right..... we will see how the puppy does!

Sunday smiles

Beamer got to be a kids horse today. A family with 3 children came over and as a birthday gift for their youngest daughter wanted to give her a ride on a horse. So pulled Beamer out of his pen, slicked him up and saddled him and introduced them to him. My B Boy was on his usual stellar behaviour as kids climbed on, loved up on him, and got led around. All 3 of them wanted to trot as well as walk and you should have heard the giggles!

Thea loved the kids and had to be underfoot all the time- literally, as Beamer stepped on her toe. Good thing it's deep grass, she didn't get hurt. After we put Beamer in his pasture, and Coulee out in hers, I introduced them to my as yet nameless yellow mare. I brought her out and put them up on her bareback- not riding, just sitting on her. She was really good.

This is my favourite photo of the day. I let their dad use my camera, he took all these photos and gave me permission to use them on line.
I love seeing how happy children are around horses and dogs.

Riding whats'r name

I got the hayfield ride in today. To start with, the mare didn't pay much attention to me as she is really trying to befriend the other two horses; Coulee is jealous of her and Beamer thinks she should come live with him and the poor girl has to be separate from them so she was listening to them instead of me. 5 minutes in the round pen fixed that; I have some work to do to get her to sidle up to the fence for me to get on; she isn't bad but does move her hip out. If I mount from the ground she stands good, but it's easier for me to get on from a more level spot.
 Anyway, we headed out- no traffic and today's showers knocked the dust back so it was a nice little ride. I opted to leave the dogs home until I get to know her a bit better.
Riding a new horse out alone from her new home is a pretty good test too, and she passed with flying colours. She is curious but calm on the trails.

She's a long strided mare, so different from the horses I usually ride. Doesn't seem to walk out with energy but that may change when I start riding with others- next week.
I have her on Step 8 to help her regain some weight as well as Hoffman's minerals and all the grass hay she can eat. And I hand graze her after we ride. Once we move she will have her own grazing paddock - I foresee fencing in my future this fall!

Smell the roses, don't eat them!

Meanwhile I am still racking my brain for a name for her. Start firing suggestions this way please! 

Something feminine, a little bit Western would be nice, or something classic. Not a name that plays on her colour (like Goldie, Brandy, Sunshine etc.)

I has a happy!

  The true test for my new mare was if I could just saddle up and ride. So that's what I did, saddled up   and the plan was to go down the road and into the hayfields.

However, there was a lot of traffic- billowing dust from hay haulers going by. So I changed plans, jumped her in the trailer and hauled to an outdoor arena that's in a park. Rode a little bit in the arena, just getting a feel for her- she is quite narrow and after riding chunky, short strided Beamer her long stride felt quite different.

Then we went for a nice little ride along the paths and through the trees

Such  a good girl! Checks things out but doesn't get worried. It's going to be fun riding her!

I contacted Llana on Facebook, she will be here next Thursday and will give me some pointers on how this mare was trained, that should help me to ride her the best I can.
I am also entered in a Cowboy Dressage clinic October 8 and 9, just an hour south of here.

Gotta get her named....

News!

First of all, got the pregnancy tests back on Coyote Belle- she is open so no little dun baby next year. That's ok she needs a year off.
Next news- yes indeed I did buy the yellow mare! Left at 5 AM. Did a marathon trip with Tess and Thea for company, got there when I said I would, checked the mare out, rode her and loaded her. Back home by 8 PM. Poor mare, she wouldn't eat or drink on the trip, but she made up for it last night, ate all her hay and drank well.
She is thin- and has goopy eyes. I am filling her belly with hay, will get her some other feed today, and I'm giving her Omega-Alpha Immune Plus and I'm making yarrow tea for her.
Found out more of her story. She was successfully shown; here is a video of one of her runs. It wasn't a perfect run but at 3 years old it looks good- looks like they didn't push her too hard to be perfect.



Also looks like she was well loved... at that time...

Then she was sold in her 4 yr old year; the person that bought her was the ex girlfriend of the guy I bought her from. He got the mare in trade for a couple of kids horses, last fall. Said she was thin then, and dang it all she is still thin. But I can fix that. This mare has been put on the back burner and neglected.

She doesn't have much of a tail, any tips for helping it grow that don't require braiding and a tail bag?
She has very cool dun factor as you can see in the above photo and in the photo below of her back legs.

She is shod and I will keep her that way until some time in September instead of trying to transition her to barefoot when I have so much riding planned for the next 2 months. She was barefoot for a long time and only had shoes put on earlier this month for the mountain trip. So it should be an easy transition.
I will only do some light riding until I'm sure she is over the stress of travelling over 900 kilometres to get here. This afternoon I'll take her and the dogs on the hayfield ride.
Oh- and suggestions for a barn name will be welcomed! None of the usual palomino names please! Prefer something with western connotations.

At last.....

http://www.allbreedpedigree.com/solano+n+jac

Shown as a 3 yr old, won 3500 in 2 shows. The video was taken today. She just came back from a week in the mountains. Everything about her is just what I'm looking for. Heading to Alberta tomorrow to see  her and ride her. Pretty sure I will be bringing her home. I have spent countless hours over the last 2 years researching horses, responding to ads. and nothing even comes close to this mare.There would have to be something pretty awful about her in person for me not to bring her home.

Where we stayed

Our trip to Alberta for the Stampede was also a bit of a celebration for us; we had our 20th anniversary on June 15th, and since we got married on horseback at the Anchor D Ranch, we went back there and stayed there the weekend. The owner is a good friend, and it's been 3 years since I visited, so it was nice to catch up.
This is a photo of the log house- hub of all the activity. Notice the pen in front of the house with the paint filly?

Well that painted baby is an orphan, she was found abandoned by her wild herd, no sign of mama. She was rescued from a bog, and  they tried to reunite her with the herd but they wanted no part of her. So Dewey went all the way to Grande Prairie to bring her to his ranch. (9 hrs. at least).  She pretty much has him twisted around her hooves!

She gets to visit in the evening.

That sign can't possibly apply to meeee.....

They were outfitting a whole bunch of riders the next morning. Of course for me, that meant photo op! Dewey says he has about 135 horses. They run weekend camping trips, day rides, hourly rides, and week long packing trips into the mountains as well as guided hunting trips.

We got to go along when he had to take a team up to his base camp to pull a wagon out. Here is the team:

 Ted and I rode in- Dewey led the roan mare and the black gelding followed, with Ted and I riding behind. My camera was out of battery, I should have checked before we left! so I didn't get any photos of that ride. But here are the horses we rode:

I rode the sorrel mare, Ted rode the paint. The mare is a quarter horse/Percheron cross, and the paint is a Suffolk Punch cross. It's been a long time since I rode a horse that big! They were both really good.

We rented one of their cabins- more like a small log house than a cabin! It was so relaxing to be there, especially since there was no cell coverage to speak of so we were unplugged for the weekend.

The Outriders

These guys are athletes. They hold 4 ramped up thoroughbreds just before the horn goes to start the race, at the same time hanging on to their own revved up outriding horse; then they follow the chuckwagon through the pattern and down the track. They have to finish within 200 feet of their wagon. They are often called upon to help out when things get a little sideways, as you saw in my last post with the horse/equipment problem- one of them actually went between the 2 lead horses to help untangle things; risky move! I watched one race years ago where the driver was thrown from the wagon and 2 outriders jumped onto the wagon to stop the runaway, only the lines were tangled around the team so one of them crawled up the pole and onto one of the horses to grab the lines and get the team stopped- all the while they were in full pounding flight. These are brave and athletic men.

Holding the team just before the horn goes. The second outrider is at the back of the wagon ready to throw the stove in.

Stove is in, team is under way. Going with them....

Now to get out of their way so they can turn the top barrel......

and jump on while the horse is in full stride....

Then around the barrel pattern following the wagon. Notice he is holding the short lead and a handful of mane, and no stirrups yet. Gather the reins, stick your feet in the stirrups and ride at Mach 3 with your hair on fire!

They were the winning wagon!

Both outriders made it to the finish line in time.

The Calgary Stampede 2016

Usually when we go to Stampede, we choose to watch the chuckwagon races instead of the rodeo. We spent the morning shopping- we both needed new boots; I got some Ariat lace ups and Ted got new black pull ons, and we each got jeans too. Got to take advantage when we go to Calgary to get stuff that we can't get here in little Creston.

The last little bit of blue sky ......

Late afternoon, we got nailed with a rockin' rollin' thunderstorm right over the Stampede grounds, got a little wet right through my Australian slicker! We were in the beer gardens for a beverage when the storm hit, and it was so crowded that since we were at the edge of the tent the rain was driving right in on us. Didn't dampen our spirits too badly, we headed out of there and two-stepped our way to the next building. slicker's flying as we danced!

So many food booths there, and all so expensive. We did NOT try any from this booth!
There are so many rides there, it's a thrill seeker's paradise.

Being suspended upside down a hundred feet in the air is just crazy to me!

Then it was time for the chucks! We spotted this guy working as one of the safety crew who position themselves around the track during the races.

See the fellow on the red roan tucked away? It's his job to get there in a hurry if things go wrong. Do you recognize him?
How about now?

Yes indeed, Terry Grant, aka Mantracker. 

The races were pretty good, one minor problem when a horse stepped over the pole coming in for the practice turn, but it was quickly sorted out.

No injuries, and they went on with the race.

If it looks like this next wagon was about to run over that barrel- you're right- they did! And got a 5 second penalty.

I love a close finish.

I plan on doing another post on what the outriders go through- boy they have a tough job and are real athletes.

Beamer's "kidz"

We had a great weekend away... where to begin! Let's make this post about the horses. I took the mare back to Alberta- she lives with the Beamer kidz. As I drove up their driveway, I spotted one of the girls working a horse in their arena... I had to look hard because I really thought it was Rio- but it didn't have the white socks and I thought, that's way too big to be Kai! But it was! Dang has he grown and filled out!!!! I just had to measure all the boys; Kai and Nitro both stand right at 62 inches, so 15.2hh, and Rio is a good solid 15.3 and a half. Wow! And I say Wow! because Beamer is just over 14.2hh and their mama is 14.3hh.

Terrible photo of Kai, but you can see how much he has filled out. He is a big soggy boy now!

And just look at Nitro! What a handsome boy! I think Alberta agrees with them!

They brought Rio and Josie in for me to see too. I didn't get a photo of Rio and once again, a crappy photo- tough to take them at close quarters in a stall- but look how miss Josie has filled out.

Josie got to be ridden down the road to their neighbours for a lesson, her first ride out.

Photo credit to Alana!

For those of you who didn't get to see a photo of the paint mare's Beamer baby from last year- here he is. His name is Cowboy (Pep's Midnight Cowboy)

Photo taken by his owner. He is one year old now.