Darn deer!

 The waning full moon was setting at chore time yesterday. Love the pastel pink. 

The other day, deer got into my flower bed- little rotters stripped the bottom leaves of the sunflowers and chomped all the leaves and flowers and rosebuds of my yellow rose- and chomped all the foliage of the raspberry plant. So when I saw them the next day in the yard, brazen as can be....

I went out and hollered at them to chase them off. 

Ruby wasn't sure what the problem was, as she's used to deer in her pasture.

But when I went all gangster on them, she figured it was best to high tail it outa there!

Our pasture is holding out well, despite all the heavy frost. Now that the majority of the bugs are gone it's time to do my fall deworming program for the horses. Hopefully it will catch any bots they may have, it's probably been long enough for them to mature enough to pass from the wormer. 

Ted is building a shaping block for my bosal; I want to try it on Ruby as I think that's all she will need . If you don't know what I'm talking about, check online for how to shape a bosal. They have to fit properly to work properly, and mine is too wide without being shaped. It will be fun to see how she does in it. 

My sister with the Rough Collies is coming up for another dog show next weekend, so that will be fun. She is bringing her puppy for it's first show- a lovely blue merle named Gemma. I also have a horse sale to attend on next Saturday- not to buy, but to see how the market is. It's a dispersal sale for a Driftwood breeder- these are the horses that are popular for ranch, roping, and barrel racing. Should be a fun weekend!

Long weekend stuff

Beamer is a funny boy. Even though I made his pen 4 times bigger, he still prefers to hang out in the original part. One quirk this guy has is that he actually likes small spaces. Go figure!

Hanging with the guys. Never mind the dirty face.

Some good news for him- he will be getting a girlfriend today! A mare is coming from Alberta and should be here for around a week. Thanks to her getting an ultrasound, we know that she will be ready to breed for the next 3 or 4 days, so it's perfect timing. I hope he remembers his manners! Cause if he doesn't, he will get reminded!
We are hosting a big birthday party for Ted this weekend, his birthday is actually in the middle of the week, but a long weekend is the perfect time to have a party. Especially since we are getting rain, so what else is there to do?

My Martin Frobisher rose is 9 ft. tall and in full bloom.

I spent the last week beautifying the yard and doing my spring cleaning. Gotta look good for the party!

Where did this week go?

I had big plans this week.... but all for naught! I was going to haul Kai to the bigger round pen, but the road between here and there was being paved which was a PITA for waiting and driving on oil so that didn't happen. I did get on him, bareback in the round pen and he pretty much refused to do anything. Quite happy to just stand there, walk a left circle but nada to the right, didn't even want to flex his neck to the right- I had to grab right onto the halter to get him to bring his nose around. He was all "uh-uh, I don't wanna and you can't make me". If I asked him to walk forward, he backed, or stopped and put his nose on the ground. So I've pretty much decided I am not going to work him again until he has his body work done- then there will be no excuses and he'll just have to get over his attitude. He seems to be really adept at finding ways of getting out of work, so once I have him at his best physically, he is going to have to work his brown butt off. Cowboy up, Kai!
Today I have a really painful lower back, my Back on Track back brace didn't do much so I did what always helps to loosen up my back- I rode Beamer. Me and Tess and Amber did the circuit of the hay fields- and it didn't take long to rule out trotting. Which sucks, because that's my favourite. And at one point, Beamer got a little bratty and wanted to turn back for home but I got that sorted and we had a nice late afternoon amble.

The last time I had him out was September the 8th, when I took my border collie Reba for her last trail ride. It was her 13th birthday, and she is really slowing down. She has a tumour on one of her nipples, which I have been treating with Young Living's Frankincense and Clove oils, and it is about half the size now. Also, Beamer had been shedding his frog, if you recall from my posts on that, where I had to cut it away to keep dirt from getting trapped under it. It is completely gone now, and the new growth is starting.

  That foot still has a long way to go to be truly healthy but it has made major improvements over the last 2 years.
Anyway, I figured it was time to bring him out for some exercise. It was a bit cool, we had our first heavy frost last night but this morning the sunrise was fabulous.

Tomorrow, I am clerking an auction of antiques, want to bet that I come home with something?
And- Shayla will be travelling back from California tomorrow, so I hope to get a visit in with her on Monday - it'll probably take a week to hear all the stories!  Happy that I'll have my riding buddy back and hope she can help me with Kai. Another thing- the Bruce Koch clinic that I was going to had to be cancelled- Bruce got in a wreck with a horse he is training, got a rope wrapped around his leg and got dragged, so no clinics for a bit. He'll be allright, a separated shoulder and probably cracked ribs.
Goes to show that even the pros can get careless and make mistakes. Glad it wasn't any worse! That must have been a nightmare for him.
Well, you all have a wonderful weekend! Here's a parting shot from the Beamer ear cam!

Weekend stuff

Well, clinic day is here, in about an hour we will haul over to the arena for lessons with Jim Anderson. Yesterday, instead of more arena time, Rio got a trail ride; I rode him and Shayla rode her palomino mare Allie for a nice relaxing putt around the neighbourhood. Love that horse- whenever he saw something he wasn't sure about he would just hesitate, look, and then carry on. Sorry, no photos! But I did finally  get a moon shot! Used my telephoto lens and tripod, I think I can get crisper focus next time, but this will do for a first shot! Not up to Ed's quality, but I'm trying!

I think that bright spot on the lower right is interesting, it looks like the stem spot on an orange.

Penny goes to her new home today, her wounds are nearly healed, about the size of a dime on her back and the tear below it is almost gone too, she sure healed quickly, only a week or so.

I'm calling this the Winter that Wasn't ...yet.... I swear the grass is growing! I took this shot of Shayla's saddle a couple of days ago.

Tess is getting very large, less than two weeks to puppies! She is really playing the pathetic card lately too even more than usual.
I'll do a clinic post at the end of the weekend, till then, I'll be busy!

Rain Rain Go Away

The last few days have been soggy, to say the least. We did get a little respite today- just long enough for me to start pulling the weeds and dead plants in my garden
The snow has shown up on the mountain peaks, but it's a long way from down here on the valley bottom.

I had the mares turned out during one rainy day and I had to bust out laughing at Gussie; she came to the gate with the most pleading look I have ever seen on a horse:

Pleasepleasepleasepleeeeease let me iiiiiinnnnnn!

I did make her wait because I wasn't finished cleaning the pens, poor girl!

Josie has found her place in the herd, she is a lot like her mama Chickory, a little reserved but very bribe-able; it's easy to build a routine with her.

Mama Belle has gone from putting her in her place to giving her a place next to her:

I love my little herd, they all get along so well, no nastiness, just happy horses. 

I'm happy to report that Shayla got her certification in the ABC Hoofprint Trim, so she will be taking over the trimming duties here at Diamond Lazy H Quarter Horses- she also is studying equine chiropractic so she will have my herd health to do to. Pretty proud of you Shayla!

So, life rolls on, seasons change, and time never stands still. 

I should have the results of Stella's blood tests within a couple of days, some of it is in, but not all. It will be good to have some answers. 

Barring any unforeseen problems, I should be on my way to Alberta on Friday to take in the Canadian Cowhorse Supreme, and to visit with a few fellow bloggers and Facebook friends. 

3 more sleeps....

Only 3 more days and Nitro goes to his new home, we are hauling him on Saturday. I'm really pleased that he will be boarded at my friend Janice's place until his owners buy their own acreage. He'll be with his big sister!

He is now in a pen by himself at night- see all those spots on him? That's from Rio nipping him, so they are only together during the day in pasture, and penned separately at night.

So I guess after this weekend, you will have to visit Janice at Own a Morgan & QH blog to see him!
Rio and Nitro only play for a few minutes in the morning before they get down to the serious business of grazing.

They get along fine in pasture, and I'm going to miss seeing them together.

But, I'll have plenty of things to keep me busy; training Rio, I have to trim his feet again too, and there's all the chores of fall to do; like winter wood, digging up the spuds before the voles eat them all, building a flower bed in front of my art studio so I have somewhere to put the dahlias next spring, and we won't even mention all the house chores- bleah! Plus I want to can peaches this weekend. Has anyone ever used the method where you process them in the oven?

Work and play

Today was a hot one, and I spent it fighting with the tractor, trying to get Beamer's pen cleaned. The linkage for the lever that operates the bucket and boom is totally worn out, it's pretty tough to steer and hold the linkage together and operate the lever all at the same time; I needed another hand! Got'er done though.  Put some dirt in Beamers feed area to level it so that the snow (!!!) won't melt into the shelter this winter. We will be building some walls for him too which will make the area a little larger and keep the winter winds out.
When I rode him yesterday I got this shot of the corn field that the elk are snacking on; they only hit the short corn that they can see over, and left this part of the field alone; these stalks are almost 10 ft. tall.

Speaking of elk, I plan to wait for cooler weather, it's crazy trying to get an animal in the heat and not have the meat spoil. I'll still do some scouting though.

Some of us bloggers are planning a trip to Red Deer Alberta next week to the Canadian Cowhorse Supreme which is a great show that includes cutting, reining, and working cowhorse. There is a huge Equine trade fair, and a horse sale on Friday night. Janice and I are traveling together on Thursday, and will spend all day Friday at the show, and maybe Saturday morning before heading back. The plan is to meet up with Sherry and Crystal, and we are hoping that Linda can make it- and any other bloggers who live close enough to head over there. It'll be great to have a girls night out!

No Beamer, you can't come, even though there would be lots of horse girls for you to look at!

A different weekend

This really wasn't my idea of the best way to spend a long weekend, what with Ted's injury and the time we spent in Emergency and in the hospital. Happy to say that they kicked him out on Sunday, the IV antibiotics having done the trick. He gets it checked again tomorrow. Meanwhile he's been running the tractor doing ditch mowing, using his grinder, using the orbital sander, etc. etc.- not exactly giving his hand a rest! I took Merle into the hospital to see him, and of course he was a big hit with everyone who laid eyes on him.
Ted and I thank everyone for their prayers and well wishes for his speedy recovery.

Didn't get any riding done like I'd hoped, but did spend time with Rio who is now eating grain like crazy, which is good because he still looks a little ribby. I measured his leg again and for sure he will top out around 15.1 hh. I took a photo of all the different colors in his tail:

Gold, silver, brown and black. Sure is different! I do plan on getting a color test done on him. Meanwhile, he is growing  lots, hence the ribby look. (He has been dewormed in the last two weeks.)

We have been getting cool nights lately, and even the tiniest touch of frost for a couple of nights- not enough to do any damage, just on the heavy dew on the grass. We had a couple of misty mornings too, before the sunrise evaporated it.

I entered some of my photos in the Fall Fair, including the one of the three dogs, the columbine shot that Ed liked, one of my nieces, a rainbow shot, one of the owl, and a winter shot of the frost covered hay rake. I've never entered a fair before unless it was for the horse show, so this will be interesting.
Thought I'd throw this photo in so you can see just how tiny Merle is:

But he runs around the farmyard with the big dogs, and manages to keep up, in his own little pell-mell way- sure is funny watching him run. He behaves more like an adult dog than a puppy.

Heading out!

Heading out to Alberta today, for a mini getaway. Some good friends are looking after the herd, the cats will be housebound, much to the disgust of Thumper and Foose, and the 3 dogs are coming with us. We are going to the Calgary Stampede tomorrow, at least for the afternoon, and can't wait to see the Chuckwagon Races.

Remember I said I was a winner over at GunDiva's blog? Well, I got my parcel yesterday, and put the items to use right away.

I chose a couple of holders- for napkins, and business cards. If you haven't visited Horse And Wildlife Gifts, go check 'em out! Lots of cool stuff.  Thanks again, GunDiva!

I opened the gate between the mares pen and Beamer's pasture, because Beamer will be staying in his dry pen while I'm gone, so the mares can mow down the grass in his pasture, then when I get back I'm going to rough cut it because the weeds have taken over. I'd like to get some Graze-on to spray it with this fall. The girls and Rio had to do a high speed inspection of the new paddock, and here's another teaser photo of Rio.

He's almost all shed out now, just his sides and the bottom half of his front legs to go. By the end of the month I should be able to get some good photos.
See you Sunday!

Long weekend- but a good one!

This is some of the folks who showed up for Ted's birthday party; we had a bonfire, plenty of food, lots of collies to throw the ball for including Tess's littermate Luke, and a Dairy Queen birthday cake:



Of course, I totally blew my diet for the occasion (I've lost 16 pounds, but don't dare weigh myself for a few days!). The weather held out; although it rained in the morning it cleared off and was lovely by the time the party got rolling. Since we're all old folks now, we wound it down around 10 PM. Thanks to all our friends and family from Alberta who spent a lot of hours on the road to make this a special day for Ted, and to everyone else who helped us celebrate!
Since we reconfigured the horse pens, I now have my round pen back, and I worked Chickory today. Threw the saddle on her, led her over to the pen, and longed her a little in the bosal (she is shedding caps now, so no bitting for a while). She worked just lovely, you'd never know it was August last year when she was last worked. Ted came along after a bit, and I got on her and had him lead her around. She is pretty cautious when I'm on her, I need to build her confidence and get her moving out freely. When I can get her moving out nicely at all gaits, and stopping and turning well, it will be time to move on to the big arena, and some trail riding. I might try ponying her from Gussie too.
Breeding season is done here, we bred Belle on Easter weekend, and Gussie May 12-16. So I really need to get Chickory going well this year, as Gussie gets next summer off. Beamer is still available for other mares, but I'm not really advertising especially with the EHV problem.
Ted got to see another littermate of Tess's today, this one I sold to a lady who is a caretaker for a mine that is shut down, and it's bear country; the dog, which she named Wallace, has done a good job of protecting her. There are feral cats there too, and apparently Wallace thinks it's his job to round them up and keep an eye on them.

Blogger, bones, blossoms, bugs and bits

When blogger was down for a day, I noticed that I lost some of the comments on my last post. Probably won't get them back either.
This evening when I was bringing Beamer in, I tripped over a bit of barb wire that was half buried in the ground and did a face plant- of course, I managed to get my arm out a little to break my fall, and heard that unmistakable little snap! of a bone cracking in my wrist- fortunately it seems as if it's only a minor one; I iced it for an hour or so, and it seems bearable. There is a lot of junk buried in the ground here; lots of bale strings and wire bits. We've been  cleaning it for two years now and there always seems to be more surfacing.

  The cherry blossoms are in full force, and the Magnolia trees are blooming. I'll try to get some photos of them this weekend. Of course, the bugs are back too; we have mosquitoes and plenty of these guys:

Rio is thriving, he has a lot of speed and likes to show it off- but he can stop on a dime too. I think he'd make a good reining horse, he's built right for it. He gets more handsome by the day!

and he has the cutest little nose!

I really can't wait to see what color he sheds out- I'm pretty sure he will be lighter colored than Kai; Kai is chocolate brown right now. 

Tomorrow I will be helping out at a big barrel-o-rama here, I'll be a barrel setter. My camera is charged up, I might be able to get a few photos. 

Rio at 3 weeks

Rio turned 3 weeks old yesterday, and he's growing up to be a big strong and well behaved boy. Except when he discovers the electric fence isn't working, and then the mares discover it, and then I have electric fence tape spread all across the middle of my pasture! Ted tweaked the ground rod as it was rusty, but it still isn't working right- Rio was chewing on the tape again last night and not getting zapped. So I guess I'll have to get my tester out today and see if there is any power at the source; it's clicking like it is supposed to and I sure hope I don't have to buy a new unit.

He licks this wall.

We had a lovely sunny weekend, and on Saturday we butchered Url, so next Saturday we'll spend cutting and wrapping. Looks like we will have some good beef to serve for Ted's birthday party this month- Sunday May 22 we celebrate because his birthday is on a Wednesday, and the 22nd is the long weekend. We have family coming from Alberta, it will be a good time-hope the weather is good!. The local asparagus will be available, so that will be on the menu too. 

A good weekend

Ted and I don't do a lot for St. Valentine's day, but on Saturday we went to a Valentine's dance, and took Debbie, our friend who hauled Gussie home for us. We had a wonderful meal featuring stuffed pork tenderloin- I got the recipe :o) - and there was a good band. Three elderly ladies came to sit with us, we discovered that they were all celebrating their 86th birthday, and they came to dance- and they had a string of gentlemen who kept them on the dance floor- they were still dancing when we left at 10:30! They were all good dancers, and we really enjoyed their company. Inspiring!
We spent the weekend hauling wood, Debbie took a load home, and we hauled two more loads yesterday. I'm a little sore today, but I bet Ted is really sore as he worked really hard and is still not 100% from his hernia operation in January.
Debbie went for a little ride on Beamer, it's always nice for me to see someone else enjoying my special boy. She commented on how powerful he feels; and I think it sure is nice that someone can feel that power and feel how easy he is to ride.

We have had a lot of rain over the last 24 hours, and the snow is rapidly disappearing, to be replaced by mud as we wait for the ground to thaw.
Today is the day that Velvet gets a visit from her prospective new owner, so I'm really looking forward to that- hopefully I won't have to groom too much mud off her to make her look respectable!

Small time, but published!

Do you all remember this photo? Our local bank had a photo contest going, for submissions for their calendar for next year. I submitted 5 photos, and included this one because so many of you really liked it. It made the cover of the calendar!

Another photo I submitted made it too; do you remember this one of Foose? I guess we can call him Mr. September now!

I got the corrals cleaned yesterday.Today is skirt work-make pickled carrots, and maybe do some baking- perfect photo op for Sunday Stills challenge, which is food. But I'd rather be riding!

Busy and happy

The last couple of days I've been busy with my new job, and getting organized to leave for our family reunion this weekend.

Beamer is walking better now, I think he's over the tenderness from the rocks on the trail ride. Check out Mrs. Mom's blog- she did a couple of posts on his feet. He'll get a few more days off, as we'll be gone till Monday.

He is going to have some changes next month; after I wean Kai, I'm going to turn him in with Coyote Belle, who is in foal, and I expect that she will teach him some manners, and that close proximity to other horses does not mean it's breeding time! I have large pens so that he'll be able to get away from her- and it will give Belle something to take her mind off her foal.

Tonight, when I went to bring the mares in, and didn't have my camera with me, they did their flat out fun play time before they were ready to be caught. It was a moment of absolute joy for me, watching them frolic, their manes and tails streaming out as they galloped, heads up, nostrils flaring, the pure beauty of their movement, and their coats glistening in the fading sunlight made me feel blessed that I have these beautiful creatures in my life. It was a moment of shared love of life that I hope will always remain with me.

Going to be a great week!

I spotted Kitty Bob on top of the pile of old honey barrels today, so I went out to visit with him. (I'm assuming it's a him; might be Kitty Bobbi!) Then I noticed that Foose was on the barrel pile too- trying to be invisible.

That's Foose on the left; he was glad to see me; it meant he could exit gracefully without having to concede defeat. I think Bob quite intimidates the poor little guy; Foose is only 8 months old, and Bob is definitely a mature cat.

I'm not trying to tame him to the point of being a house cat; just want him to hang around and do varmint control without being afraid of the dogs- and without putting the run on poor Foose! I think Kitty Bob really appreciates the catfood I've been putting out for him. I've always liked Manx cats.

The mountains to the west had a pretty pink tinge to them this morning; I managed to capture a little of it as it rapidly faded with the rising sun- yes, sun! The rain clouds have gone, and the north wind and full moon brought clear skies for this week. Of course, that also means it's a little colder too, 4 degrees below freezing is still not too bad for December first in my books. Guess I'll just have to dress a little warmer when I ride Beamer this week- gotta keep him in shape for sorting on Dec. 12th.

This weekend should be fun, we are joining Janice and Dave for the Back Country Horsemen's fundraiser and Christmas bash. Wagon rides, potluck supper, and silent auction, to help raise funds to keep the trails open for riding in the back country; the mountains and lakes around here make for some fantastic rides, as you can see from some of Janice's posts on her blog. We really would like to have a "blogger ride" next year, so check out my post below, and let us know!

Adjustment and attitude!

This evening the Chiropractor came back to check Sparkle. Her neck is much improved, and her hips were perfect. She did an adjustment on the neck, and found some spots that need massage. I think the little rascal really loves getting massaged, so that should be an easy program to follow with her.

Earlier today, when I gave Coyote Belle her grain, Sparkle got right in there and hogged the bucket, even pinning her ears at Chickory and chasing her out of there. What a brat! The next thing you know, they're out in the pasture, best buds, grooming each other and playing.
She just had to roll in the mud, too! This filly has so much character, she is delightful to watch.

Tomorrow I'm traveling to Creston, bright and early. Ted has place or two for me to look at and I have a job interview on Friday. I have pre-scheduled my post for Sunday Stills, I enjoyed this one, yellow. I'll be visiting Gussie and her filly on my way back, so look for pics on Monday! Have a great weekend, everyone!

It never rains but it pours

Today was super windy, there are strange lights in the sky, and things seem to be falling apart all over the place. My sister had her car impounded because the shocks were worn out; my cat Bubby has some sort of skin condition that is giving him scabs along his spine; I had to euthanize my other cat, Otis, due to that condition male cats get with their urinary tract; I lost one of my jobs; I had to put my pretty red truck in the shop to get a new rear end ($2500); other than that, things are going along just fine! Nuzzling Muzzles knows what I'm talking about with her recent bad day. Seems that things just pile up and hit you all at once. Oh well, life goes on, and I trust that God has a reason for everything that happens to me, so let's just focus on the positive things:

Chickory is now getting easier to catch, and although I still can't walk up to her and put the halter on like I can with Peppy, she no longer turns her head as far to the right as she can. I can walk her down in only a few minutes, and can pet her out in the middle of the pen, but have to get her in the mini pen to catch her. She lets me pick up all 4 feet, and is quite happy to eat grain out of my hand- which is not something I normally do, but I am using it with Chickory to build trust. She leads much better now and has discovered that she can't get away from me on the lead line- she tried!

Peppy is back out with the mares, enjoying roaming around on about 8 acres of pasture and bush, and coming in every day for his Frisky Foal.

I plan on hauling the last 12 round bales this weekend, then I will have all my winter hay in, and can start my winter program- move all the horses around so that Beamer is where Chickory is now, and the mares and weanlings are all in the pen where the hay is- which means less work for me! I will use a round bale feeder for them, but will fork hay over the fence into Beamer's feeder. I may put Chickory in the pen in front of the barn and use one of the stalls as a run in shelter for her until she is 100% sound on that back leg. She is coming along really well on it, but is still limping slightly.

So even though things went all cattawhumpus for a while, it's not all bad. Life goes on, and I still have the best husband, the best dogs, and the best horses I could ever want! And, I may add, the best friends and blogger buddies!

Posts are in; next?

The weekend project went really well; the guys got all the posts pounded, some of them in really tricky spots. Next we get to put up the boards.

This will be Beamer's corral; he will have a shelter at the top right corner, hopefully before the snow comes! Beamer is the only horse I know who likes small, confined spaces. When I went camping with him last year, I kept him in my stock trailer overnight and he was quite content. I've seen him squeeze in between a tree and a building, with a fence making the area about 8ft. by 4 ft., and happily while away an afternoon there. I hope he doesn't mind a large shelter- plans are to make it 16 ft. by 12 ft. We will close 10 ft. in on the front of it, that way if I need to confine Beamer, I can put a 12 ft. panel across to make a stall for him.
My girls and Peppy were soaking up the sunshine on Saturday morning. Colourful bunch, aren't they? Blue roan, red roan, palomino and Coyote Belle- I call her a black buckskin. Peppy's blue roan colour is really showing now, I'll get some more pics of him soon. I went out today, but it was wet and they were all muddy.