Mama Belle is back in the herd

Mama Belle has been separate for a month now, and her bag was all dry so it was time to reintegrate her with the others. She is an old pro at this, as you can see in the video.

Her body language speaks volumes!

"Got milk, mama?"

"NO!"

They wandered around for a bit and that was it.

Back to the serious business of eating hay.

Josie and th' boys

Look what Nitro is doing now ......

He is doing well as a heeling horse, gets ridden a lot on the ranch too.....

That's Nitro in the middle and Josie on the right. Josie is learning to be a heel horse too. 

And then there's Rio....

He is in training to be a barrel horse and is doing well. He placed 3rd in the 3 D in this show.

I don't have anything new on Kai yet, just this quick video of him playing with a bag that was on the stall of one of their new horses.

So all these Beamer kids are doing what they are bred to do- be a good horse to ride. 

Winding down the year

December already.....

I'm glad this year is coming to an end, actually.
But I'll get into that another time.,
It was more like an October day than the 1st of December. Mild, a little misty and the horses were just feeling good.
First, the weanlings had to investigate my truck- something new in the barnyard!

Then they had to visit Beamer, on the way into the barn.

While I had them in the barn, Mama Belle got to performing so I had to see what she was up to.

Apparently, she is getting tired of being cooped up! I've got some weight back on her and she's looking good. I might have to swap out putting the weanlings in this pen for part of the day and letting her out to get some exercise.

Mesa was just full of herself- has been for the last couple of days. I really enjoy watching her silly antics!

I've got more barn renos planned for the weekend, bringing in more gravel for the pen Belle is in, hopefully getting the last window installed and maybe even a little carpentry if I can steal Ted for long enough.

And next post will be an update on the Beamer kidz in Alberta 😄

Getting connected

Have you seen all those amazing liberty exhibitions trainers like Jim Anderson and Double Dan Horsemanship do? Or Stacy Westfall and her amazing bridleless freestyle reining?
Do you imagine the amazing connection they have with those horses and think to yourself, I wish I could do that? And think to yourself, I'll never be that good or that connected?
Well- every time you walk into your horse herd, you are working on that connection.
If you have the time, read this article- it's kinda long but very in depth in explaining how to go about getting that mental connection.
One horse that I don't really need a halter for, is mama Belle. In fact, when I have a halter in hand she looks at me with disgust, as if to say, "really? I don't need that!" I can move her with body language and energy; whether its getting her to go into her stall, or exit her pen, or leave the darn wheelbarrow full of hay alone while I close the gate.

Get with the program, human!

When I play with the weanlings, I work on moving them with body language and intent. They are like a blank slate, it's so fun to work with them. For example, once they are haltered and in hand I visualise what I want them to do, set it up so that it is easy for them to figure out, and then wait for them to get it.When they do, I give them a big release. Each successive time it takes less wait and smaller releases. The goal is to be able to work with them in a round pen or even in the pasture and keep them connected with me. In pasture, they are both coming along nicely. Pistol has made great advances in putting aside his strong flight instinct and reactiveness, and now looks to see what I want  instead of just moving away.

Yesterday I wanted photos of them moving out, so I used energy and intent to get them going. it was fun!

Mesa was a willing partner!

After Pistol watched for a bit, I encouraged him to play too, which he did kind of half heartedly.

Anyway, it was fun playing with them. Rosalee is behaving like an old lady watching the kids play- being pregnant sure has slowed her down.

She came over and stood behind me with her head over my shoulder and watched .

The weanlings are getting really good with going in the barn and standing tied- I can point Mesa in the barn and throw the rope over her back and she heads right to her spot; Pistol still needs guidance. They're both standing tied quietly while I leave them to their feed and go do other chores.

I can't leave Beamer out- he is the one I'm connected to the most. I can pretty much just visualize what I want him to do and he does it- for example  this morning I wanted him to go stand in his stall so I could take a photo with a black background... and he was happy to oblige and pose for me.

Is this what you wanted?

Yes Mr. Handsome, that's exactly right. Thank you for your cooperation!

I have a lot of fun with my horses without riding them, although I certainly want to ride more.

May I have this dance?

Beamer's arthritis must be settling down....

I was so happy to see him dancing again. Something up by the road had all the horses on alert- I think someone was walking a black Standard Poodle wearing a red jacket- and that's what all the snortiness was about.

Even today, he is walking much better. The difference between this and a week ago is astounding. Before he had to lift at the shoulder to be able to bring that left front forward; while he still does that, it isn't as extreme and doesn't look as painful.

Just before this change I did 2 things differently: I switched from Spruce oil to Wintergreen oil with Copaiba layered over it, and added a good handful of Hoffman's mineral to his herbal concoction. I don't know if that is what triggered it- but if it ain't broke don't fix it! As far as the minerals goes, I had tried free feeding it to him but he just ignores it. Since he loves his "num-nums" I just added it in and he eats it. His num-nums are 2 cups alfalfa pellets with a 3 finger pinch of burdock root and of stinging nettle, topped off with 2 oz. of raw apple cider vinegar. He absolutely loves it!
I'm really hoping this  will be long term, if so I could put kids on him for lessons again. Sometimes with arthritis, they warm up out of the stiffness, and if that's the case, I would love to get him giving kids short lessons again, as he really seems to enjoy that.

Tying lessons

The weanlings are getting into a routine with their feeding time. I bring them into the barn for this, and they are really good about it, walking right in to the end stall and each one goes right to their own spot to eat.

I installed the eye hooks for teaching them to stand tied. The first day, I just ran the rope through the eye without tying, and when they thought they were done and ready to back out, I held the ropes and let them feel as if they were tied. Since they both have learned to give by stepping forward when the lead rope tightens, there was no panic or confusion.

The next day, I tied them but held the ropes in case they pulled back, so that I could pull on the quick release knot in a hurry if needed.... but they were good. I like to use that 3/8 rope for the babies because it is light weight and releases quickly.
Once again, no issues.

The knots didn't get any tighter than that... good kidz! Even with Thumper crawling around the stall dividers, they were content to just chow down. I have them stand there when they are done for a few minutes and increase the time a little every day. Today their tying time was about a half hour. I do stay there and keep an eye on them just in case.

Post # 2222

This post rolls over all 2's on my blog post count. I've kinda been waiting for something worthy to blog about for this special number, and this morning as the sun broke out and the Pineapple Express sent warm weather our way, so the horses were all frisky and enjoying the warmth after the week or so of rain we have had.
Beamer is feeling better- he was performing for the first time in a while and it really made me happy seeing him back to his old antics.

I was in the mare's pen when he started, and had my big camera with me, so please excuse all the fencing spoiling the photos.

He was having a blast! 

It was so nice to see him enjoying himself after watching him slowly hobbling around for so long.

What a butt!

Yes, Beamer I got all that.....

Oh- one more? 

Looking pretty pleased with hisself!

Oh Beamer....

I love you to bits and it made my day seeing you having fun!

Cats rule.And weanlings are cool.

Once again, the cat wins. Thumper is the King of the Castle.

No way you are knocking me off the rail, horse!

I give you the rear view!

and with a mighty leap.....

Thumper reaches his rightful place as king of the barnyard!

I took advantage of the sunny afternoon to bring Rosalee and the foals out of the pen and knock the mud off them. I has been wet here lately so I like to check them for rain scald and just overall well being. 

Instead of feeding the kidz their ration in the pen, which requires either tying Rosalee up, or taking mama Belle out of her pen and feeding them in there, I decided to change up the program and bring them in the barn to eat. I want to get to the point where I can put them in the tie stalls and feed them but they aren't quite ready for that. Plus I still have to clear out the barn isle, need to make a place to hang rakes and shovels and pitchforks. They did good, not much hesitation coming in- the trailer loading lessons paid off.

Mesa was a champ; marched in and got right down to business without much looking around.

Pistol was a little more cautious, but he came in readily enough.

He was a little more looky inside but he did well too. Even with mama Belle hollering at him!

Both weanlings have really thick fur. Pistol never did shed his baby coat except on his legs. They should be nice and warm this winter.

Wordless Wednesday

Decision made

So- I've been giving Rosalee some thought. 

I am so not into searching for another horse, so I am going to give her a chance. 

It will mean that I might have to take clinics, haul her lots and ride her lots. I think this winter I can just ride her around here even if it is just on the property. I can pony Mesa and even Belle. I can haul her to the indoor- she does great in arenas. 

I'll have to give her maternity leave from Feb. to July and start her again. She is really broke, I just need to get past her issues. Once her foal is weaned- if she isn't bred back- I can do more and hopefully will get to the point where I enjoy riding her. If not- well- once Mesa is old enough to ride, then I can sell her. I'm hoping that being pregnant has settled her a bit and she will be less emotional.

She has so many redeeming qualities. She is a great babysitter.

I can teach children on her as long as it's in the round pen or under close supervision. Hopefully she will become a great kids horse when she is a little older.

 And she is just so darn good looking....

and has a pretty good personality. Everybody loves her. And she is super athletic too.

If it doesn't work to the point that I really enjoy riding her again, she will at least make some very marketable babies for me and will earn her keep that way.

Meanwhile, I will do what I can to progress with her.

In other news.....

 

My little Thea has moved on to her new home with one of the top trials trainers/breeders. Not gonna lie, it was hard to let her go.

I'll miss that goofy face and her snickers and doggy kisses. But she is with a half a dozen other dogs and an excellent trainer, so it's all good.

Mares

A couple of weeks ago I posted a pic of a mare and said there's always something going on. So, here's the story.
This is a mare that I am trying to make a deal on. Here's her pedigree. From what they said about her , she is the type of horse I like and need. 14.1hh, been ridden out on trails and had kids riding her, can ride her bareback in a halter, no drama to her. The kind you can get on after not being ridden in a long time and she is just the same. Perfect, huh?
Only problem is, she is in southern Montana and they got over 2 ft. of snow dumped on them. So the deal is on hold, I told them if they still have her in April we can try to work something out. Bad timing. 
😣
Anyway, I have been giving Rosalee a lot of thought.

There are a couple of things about her that I don't like and don't have the patience to work through. #1, she doesn't really like being ridden out alone or away from her herd.

Doing her half spin evasion

And it isn't just me she does this to as I had Shayla ride her last summer and she was pulling her stunts with her too. Yes, it's fixable, but no I don't want to spend the time and energy to do it.

#2 is that when another horse dominates her she won't hesitate to go right through me to get out of the way of the other horse. About  month ago she flattened me as I was going through a gate. Coyote Belle had just glared at her and maybe flipped her head at her and she bolted right through me. I don't need that. And it's sad really because in every other aspect she is a sweetheart. So I have to decide if she stays or leaves. Do I put effort into a horse that I don't enjoy riding and who might make a dirt dart out of me, let alone walk all over me?

Do I keep her until she is foaled out, keep the foal and sell the mare?
Keep her as a broodmare and wait until Mesa is old enough to ride?
Sell her in foal and try to buy a good riding horse? (the one in Montana maybe?)

Decisions, decisions.

Mama mama!

Just this....

It's time...

Weaning time that is. I have never had to wean this late in the year. But Pistol just turned 4 months old, and Belle needs to put some weight on for the winter so I got busy setting up the foaling pen for weaning. I opted to put Belle in there, as I think it will be better for Pistol if he has plenty of room to run and have both Mesa and Rosalee for company. I figured confining him with Mesa would end up with him getting a lickin' from her as she doesn't tolerate his antics any more. He already has an edema just below his right stifle, I am assuming from a kick from her.

I watched them for a while to make sure everything was ok, then found a spot that needed further baby-proofing. The place looks like a homeless shelter! 

Hopefully things will go smoothly, Pistol has become less of a mama's boy over the last month. I took him for a walk the other day and he did really well. Only needed a few minor corrections when he got in a hurry. Also took Mesa for a walk, and I have to brag on her, she was perfect! Led on a loose line, went wherever I took her with no hesitation including fairly close to working machinery. Of course, no camera that time. 

Take a tour

I invite you to the grand tour of my hideout, unfinished but as done as it's going to get until next year.

Future plans include getting power to the barn, more shelves and organizing the rest of the barn.

Fall to winter.

Well dang. It looks like we have an early winter, unless we get another warm spell but I'm not holding my breath on that one.

Fall was too short. I still have trees with green leaves, although most of them had turned. This next photo was a week ago....

 and this is now:

We are having a tough start to winter; our well went dry and the landlord got another one drilled but it isn't hooked up yet; so no showers, laundry, and (yay) no mopping floors until they get an electrician in to hook the new well up to the old system. Fortunately, the horses are on a separate well so I don't have to haul water for them. Meanwhile, the guys are trying to charge the system with hoses hooked to the horse's well and are battling the hoses freezing up. There are two houses on the well that went dry, fortunately we are all good friends and are working together to keep things working. A little ingenuity goes a long way!
 The other thing that is happening here is that I have retired Beamer from riding. His arthritis is to the point where he is permanently lame. Since it's a front leg, even if the joint fuses he will still have awkward movement so I am just doing what I can to keep him as comfortable as possible. He will get regular bodywork and I'll keep up his herbal supplements and do my best for him. It's breakin' my heart. We shall have to see how breeding season goes, if he is even able to cover a mare. He'll let me know if he can't.

 He has entered into the winter of his life. My beautiful boy.