Autumn rolls on

 Well the snow didn't last long, now we are back into the usual dreary November weather. However, we have been getting lovely skies, which makes it all better. 

The fall pasture is holding out well; the mares only occasionally head to their shelter to chow down on the round bale. 

Gussie dropped a bit of weight, which I was hoping to happen as she got rather fluffy on the late summer pasture. 

This Saturday, weather permitting, I will be going to look at a possible stallion to breed her to next June. If I choose him, it will be the first time ever that I have had to pay a stud fee. It puts things into a different perspective; weighing the costs involved against my desire to get an exceptional foal from her, as well as her well being and not having her as a saddle horse during her pregnancy. I think she is such a good mom that it will all be worth it. 

Velvet, assuming she is in foal to Beamer, will definitely be retired as a broodmare after this foal. If for some reason she isn't in foal she will still be retired. She has become a favorite with me, she walks with me wherever I go in her pasture, always with her head to my shoulder. She always comes to greet me in the mornings when I go to the barn to feed the barn cats, and positions herself so that I make no mistake in exactly what spot she wants scratching. 

All is well when your horses want to be with you!

Velvet is smart

 The barn swallows left yesterday, except for one lonely one twittering away on the wires by the barn. There is no silence, however, as the geese are gathering and filling themselves on the grain left behind by the combines as they prepare for their long migration south. Why is it that geese can't fly without honking? Hmmmm. Other songbirds were gathering on Saturday and by Sunday the robins and Goldfinches were gone too. 

The smoke has returned, painting the evening sun red and the morning sun too stood out red ,although for the life of me I  couldn't  portray its true color in a photo. 

Gussie continues to have opinions about being ridden. When the saddle pad goes on she pouts and fidgets, so I wait until she stops and then I take it off. Eventually she gives up so I saddle her. She does move a bit when I do, but just a little, so I don't do it up right away but wait for her to settle. Such an expressive horse, she leaves no doubt about her feelings!  My key word for this year is patience, and having patience and a peaceful mind is the way to deal with an impatient horse. 

Meanwhile, Velvet is watching carefully, and after having been ponied the other day, she was quite certain that it was just fine for her to wait at the barn while Gussie and I went out onto the 15 acre pasture for a tour. 

We had a nice ride- there sure is a lot of grass left out there so I am letting them back in there to eat it down until the snow flies. 

Velvet was watching from the barn that you can see between Gussie's ears

For perspective, this is a view from where Velvet was, we were out beyond the power pole by the quonset. Gussie was a bit impatient on the way back, she gets into a little slow jog and bows her neck when she wants to hurry but isn't allowed to. Back at the barn we worked on haunches turns, two tracking  and several other things to keep her mind in the middle before letting her stand and relax. 

Yes I know my saddle pad was off center but I decided to ride like that anyway as it was a short ride. 

I however am getting bored with these short rides so I may just have to ride to the mailbox tomorrow for something to do and maybe a tour of the hay field. Ted can keep an eye on Velvet for me. This business of having two horses is not my style, I like to have 3 so that the one left behind has company. I don't like stressing them out if I don't have to and Velvet is too old to make any changes in her. So I have been actively looking around to see if any of Velvet's daughters are for sale. She had 6 fillies and 4 colts before Theo (which makes me more hopeful that her last foal will be a Beamer filly!) So far, one is in New Brunswick, one is a competitive youth barrel horse, two I can't track down the registered owners and two were never transferred into the buyer's name. I do have the person who raised them trying to find out info on them for me. If I end up with one that is rideable, I may retire Gussie and let her have another foal. Unfortunately, she didn't allow Beamer to cover her this summer when she finally came into heat.

We do have a plan to bring a couple of Shayla's colts here for halter training, so that will keep Velvet occupied while I ride. And it will be fun for me!

Happies

 Some things that make me smile:

Siamese Stack (from bottom to top- Smudge, Misty, Badger and Bandit)

Giant Sunflowers in the autumn wind

Finding red leaves instead of the ubiquitous yellow

and finally having one of the kittens trust me enough to pet her every day.