The good and the bad

 Bad news first- I got xrays on my ankle and apparently I have 2 broken bones; more fractures actually because there are no loose pieces and I should heal up eventually with no problems. Because of my age it will take a little longer. So that kind of puts the kibosh on any riding with stirrups for the next few months. 

And then we get to the good news, I saddled up Velvet yesterday. It has probably been at least 8 years since she has been saddled. 

Good news- she only fidgeted a little bit, I had Ted hold her while I saddled her. 

Good news- my little saddle fits her. 

Good news- she longed nicely both ways. 

Good girl Velvet! Bad news- I won't be able to ride her until my ankle heals. But I can get my round pen set up and work her from the ground and see how much she remembers. 

I'm pretty stoked to get to ride a horse I raised, even if I did sell her originally as a long yearling. I'm also really hoping she is carrying a Beamer foal, that will be a keeper. 

While everyone west of us is having a super hot summer, we have had wonderful weather (except for the first day we moved in here). We have dew every morning, and the spiders sure have been busy.

New webs every day!

This next one really caught my eye, it used a stalk of grass as an anchor. 

We are going to have a busy week fixing stuff here. I have some panels to relocate using the tractor (big heavy 2 inch pipe panels) , some fence boards to replace, and of course find a place to set up the round pen. 

We did have a fun day on Sunday, we got to see the professional Chuck Wagon races - same wagons that run at the Calgary Stampede- but I will save that for the next post!

Back on line!

 We finally got the internet hooked up here; now I can post from my computer again which means I can post photos from my non-cell phone cameras. However.... that means I have to find the cord that connects one camera to the computer.... so meanwhile we are still on cell phone photos.  

This is a gate that leads down to the river. 

The river is low right now and although it looks muddy it's actually clear, and shallow. 

We have a lot of deer here, and when I was checking fence I spooked a couple of white tail bucks - couldn't get my phone out quick enough to get them jumping the fence, but did manage this one. 

They are actually across the river there, it's quite shallow. 

A little back story on my Sunday Stills post.

Since both mares seemed to be settling in nicely, I thought it was time to see if Beamer could go live with them. Considering that they are both bred to him, and neither one is in heat, it should have worked. 

Wrong. 

Sophie wasn't too happy with him from the get go. At first it was a lot of posturing, but it devolved into kicks and bites. 

They seemed to find their respective places after a while, usually with Beamer far away from the mares.

Then either he or Sophie would approach, and the squealing and roaring was on again. 

I gave it 3 days, but by then it was obvious that it wasn't going to work; Beamer had only one thing on his mind and the mares were saying flat out get lost. So I pulled him and back to his pen he went... where he paced and paced and hollered and worked himself into a sweat. I was at my wits end to find a way to calm him down; he would get really wound up if the mares went out of his sight. I finally tried some Stressaway oil in his nose, then I locked the mares in the pen opposite him so that they were always in sight of him; and finally he calmed down. 

Was it wise to just stick him in with the mares? Probably not. But I was going by how well it worked when I put him in with Jayne; they got along great, and Velvet is very much like Jayne. The catalyst, I believe, was Sophie. She has turned out to be an alpha mare, at least in this herd - she wasn't when she was in with Shayla's horses - and she got quite aggressive with Beamer. He isn't used to that, so he got pretty ramped up. Poor guy has lived a sheltered life! As long as Sophie is here, he won't be living with the mares. I will be sending her to Shayla after she foals, to be bred to Shayla's stallion, at least that is the current plan. 

It's nice to have peace in the barnyard again!

This(tle) be the way to do it

 A tutorial by Velvet  

Sunday Silence

  

Gussie update!

 Some mares like to foal on the full moon- like mama Belle- and apparently  Gussie too. This morning around  daybreak she finally foaled ( after almost 2 months of sleepless nights for Shayla!) 

It was worth the wait.  Before I  show the foal, here is the sire: 

This  handsome  fellow is Layne, a Percheron.

I think you will agree that he and Gussie make very nice babies! 

Here she is... yes it's  a filly.  

And she is a blue roan. 

She's  quite adorable  with those long lashes!

Gussie is quite smitten; it has been 9 long years since the twins. 

I get to go meet her tomorrow!  We now live over an hour away from Shayla or I  would be  there today 😊

Last load!

 If anyone  watches Barnyard  Builders you will be familiar with  their call , " Last log!" when they are tearing down an old barn. Well we aren't  tearing down, we are building  a future  on this farm, and last load was officially hauled here today. (Now the work begins, not ends!)  Upcoming  projects  are focused on repairing the dilapidated  fences and making the barns  more habitable as well as creating a tack room area. 

I let the mares in the little barn to see how they would  like it. Velvet went right in and not so brave Sophie went in after Velvet proved it was safe 🙄

I won't  let them in together  unsupervised  because  Sophie can be agressive to Velvet; she actually  charged at Velvet and bit her hard, although  not in the barn. But I  can put them in separate  stalls if necessary.  

Speaking of Velvet- the day we brought  her here she was in heat. So Beamer got to have another girlfriend!  He covered her 2 days in a row and then she was out of heat. Talk about good timing! I wasn't going to to breed her much later than that. As it is she will be due mid July. 

Happy Beamer! I intend to stick him in with the mares next week. They are both bred to him so hopefully  they will all sort things out in a hurry once he figures  out that  they aren't  in heat . Could be a lot of squealing  and striking going on until he learns to leave them alone but they will get it sorted out . 

I also got to go with Shayla  to visit the colts, they are sure looking good.  

Two completely  different types.

 Scooter is  turning out to be a dark buckskin with a more silvery tone than Mama Belle.

Everything  else is  going along  good. We have our hay in and are going to get pallets  tomorrow  to restack them on. Once that's done  I  can tackle  the fencing. No rest for the willing!

Those wide open spaces

 I missed Alberta. As much as I  love  my home province of BC , I  do love Alberta. Maybe not so much the weather here....

We had a storm come through  complete with tornado warning the first day we were here! All we got was 5 minutes of hail some of which was quite large, but no damage done. 

Beamer has settled in, he can see some horses across the river to holler at, and we are planning to bring the mares this weekend. 

Our  hay is getting delivered today (yay) and we have other essential  things lined up to do over the next few days, so in another week it should be all about getting to know this farm and all we need to do here to make things flow smoothly for chores and do some fencing. 

Ted took the tractor ( that comes with the place! 😁) and pushed those offending boards that were  buried under the grass into a pile for later disposal. 

It's  awesome that we have the use of a big tractor!  Because this winter it will be used for plowing that looooong driveway. 

Relaxing with a glass of Malbec after a hectic day of organizing stuff

Here's  the video of the rest of the farm:

We have plenty of feral cats here, who get fed outside  with food the landlady supplies for us.  I was  exploring  the top of the barn and came across what looks like about a 3 month old kitten . Lots of pigeon poop and feathers there too . 

Plenty of deer here too. No gardens for them to get into so I  will have to  make an enclosed area when I  do build my garden beds. 

We get our internet on the 18th so I  should  be able to get back to reading and commenting  on all the blogs! 😊

We have arrived....

 And a river runs through  it. More on that  in a bit. 

Sunday we had helpers and all our stuff was out of storage and in the house by 11 am. Those guys worked hard!  

But let me back up a bit to last Friday. Ted and I  hauled the horse gear and some square bales  to the new place. While unloading I  made a bad step and sprained my ankle  hard. Ouch..... can't let that slow me down... much.... we had work to do!

So needless to say I was  happy that Ted called in some help for Sunday. 

Monday morning  it was time to haul Beamer to his new digs.  He didn't  want to load at first. Little did he know how much he would enjoy the new place! 

Beamer has access to part of the barn for his own personal space and he loves it! 

He has  plenty of  grass to  eat but he's  still getting  a flake of hay while he adjusts to his  new diet. 

The days are hot and humid so he spends a lot of time in his  stall. 

Very handy to have the best of both worlds huh Beamer? Snacking from the barn door! He is a very happy horse but he  will be happier  when I  get  his girls here in a few days . 

2 months of living in a holiday trailer was wearing a bit thin especially  because  we has two very hairy (shedding) cats in with us. Hair everywhere! Now  they are consigned  to the barn again. We kept them in for 2 nights then today they followed  me to the barn  and are now getting fed there . No cats allowed  in  the house here. 

They were so happy to get out of jail! 

Now for the "river runs through it part. 

That is the Medicine River and yes it can flood the bottom pastures here sometimes . 

The video shows the non horsey part of the  property . I will try for a video of the rest of the place soon. 

We are rather overwhelmed with the kindness of our  friends who have helped us make this move possible.  Shayla and Blake  in particular  have been so accommodating from caring for the horses to letting us plunk our freezer in their shop for the last 2 months  as well as putting us up in their holiday trailer  for a couple of weeks. And then Ted's  friend Brian letting us use his trailer for  the duration  of our homelessness! We are truly blessed in our friends. Also a hat tip to Rick and Wendy for being so helpful with the move as well as giving me Velvet! Ted's  brother and cousin both helped a lot in the initial move to the ill fated temporary  rental as well as helping on Sunday. They both drove a long way to come  help 😊

So here we are, we can breathe a bit but there's  still a lot to do! 

Velvet

 

I picked up Velvet yesterday and took her up to Shayla’s place to tease her with Beamer as we suspected she may be in heat. 

She said no not right now! Beamer however thought she should be. So we will have her visit him every day to check where she is in her cycle. 

She got turned out into a large pasture with 3 other mares, including Gussie. 

Still waiting  for that foal! 

1 week to go for move in....

Rio update

 Got some cool news from Rio's people. 

If anyone  was watching the Calgary Stampede Show Riders in their flag carrying ceremonies  or in the victory  laps for the contestants  you may have seen a familiar set of hooves. 😊

Apparently  the pick up men were eyeballing him; he's  big and powerful  enough for that job!

Rio has never carried a flag before but he took to it like a champ. And I  think  he rather  enjoyed  all the attention and  commotion  of the Stampede. 

Good job, Rorie and Rio!

Counting the days

 Yep counting the days  until we get  in our new home on the farm. 2 more weeks! Camping for extended periods is a true test of marital bliss. 

I have been busy with my "job" of teaching  Sage to load. Sage is a mare owned by the people who  gave me Velvet. She's  a grade quarter horse, 7 years old. Mostly she's  just halter broke  and stands tied. I have been working her every day, short sessions of ground work to give her the tools she needs to learn to  trailer load. 2 days of that and we worked on leading. First  time  it was just the front feet. Next day, in she went. We were using my trailer which is a 2 horse angle haul as it's  wide open. 

Front feet in....

All the way  in. This was the 3rd time in a row loading . She did great! 

She also backed out beautifully.

 

 And was quite proud of herself! 

A couple days later we loaded her in a 2 horse straight haul.  First day just the front feet, next day all the way in. Because straight hauls are more confined I  did put her treats in the manger to give her a reason to step all the way in. Viola! In she went. We will  load her in there a few more times  to make sure she's  comfortable  with it. 

Meanwhile Sophie  is turned out in a back pasture with a herd of mares and geldings; got to see her yesterday and she's  looking great. She also came up to the fence to visit which made me happy, she hasn't  gone feral on me!

Her beautiful  bay color  has a metallic sheen to it- hard to see  in a photo. She looks great! 

She's  having  a vacation!  But once we get on the farm I  will  resume working  with her.  

Some photos and some news

 Just a quick post to show off some Boe photos😊

Isn't he a chunk!

I am considering  putting  him up for sale at weaning time. I think he's  one of the prettiest  Beamer boys along with Derby, Belle's  last Beamer baby. 

Of course I  have a couple of  Scooter photos to show off too .

Such a handsome boy. Can't wait until  he is all shed out!

And a Mama Belle photo - she looks pretty good for being 18 yrs old and  working on baby # 13!

And now for the big news!  You all remember Belle's  first foal, Sparkle N Peppy  who I  had for a little while a couple of years ago. Her owner, Janice,  bred her to a grey double bred Playgun stallion last summer and yesterday at 1 am she foaled....

A filly. 

Isn't  she a beauty! Looks like she will go grey like her daddy.  I will post more photos as I  get  them. 

Beamer is a grandpa finally!

What's that smell?

 As some of you know I  had covid last August.  I recovered with the help of ivermectin although it took a while to get my strength back . One of the things about covid is that you can lose your sense of smell, which is what happened to me. Believe me that is really weird!   Anyway, I  seemed to have recovered my olfactory senses although not completely.  Like I  only got half the intensity. Then around  March this year things started  smelling funny . Like when you have something garlicy in the fridge and if stinks everything  up . Everything had a rancid smell . At first I thought it was something  going on with me because my sweat and my breath smelled like that but so did all the food and drinks even my coffee. 😟

Finally  I  googled it and discovered that its a fairly common side effect of covid  and its called Parosmia.  It is a result of damage to the  olfactory nerve. It can go away but it takes time. 

It does  seem to be slowly  improving.  Some things do smell normal now.  Like my horses!

To answer some questions  about Velvet; she was  never on my blog as I  had her before I  started blogging.  

She was born in 2000 and I  sold  her as a long yearling.  Her dam was one of my most quiet and reliable horses. So Velvet is 22 this year. 

I will be trying to get her in foal one more time to  try to preserve the bloodline; she has some wonderful old school blood on her sire's side. 

As far as  I know  she was ridden before becoming a broodmare; I  will he researching that with her previous  owner. 

She is sound, quiet and easy to handle . 

This is a photo of her mama back in the day. We were  getting  ready for a parade. She was a really nice horse.  I used her  for dragging calves to the branding fire and she was my go to horse for  giving little  kids rides. 

Anyway, I  leave you with  a photo from yesterday and hope the rains quit so we can get some summer!

Hangin' in there

The last couple of weeks  have been rather dreary and rainy. Every day I  go see Beamer and hand graze him for about a  half hour. He's  doing  fine; most of the time I  see him he has his head buried in  his timothy bale munching away. 

I did get to ride one of Shayla's  horses, checking on a little group of cows. 

I  got to visit Boe the other day; I  needed to take a hair sample for DNA. 

All the horses are doing great, living their best life on all that pasture. 

 

I do have some news; we did secure the lease on the farm, so that takes a load off our minds. I  also have my winter's hay spoken for from a  farmer local to that area. The price is almost double  what I  paid in Creston! 😳

I also acquired  another horse! (Imagine that....)

This is a mare that I  raised and sold as a long yearling. She was broke to ride and used primarily as a  broodmare.  Some friends  of ours bought her about 6 or 7 years ago and she had a wonderful  life of retirement  with them. But they want to make some changes  in their  life and rehoming their  horses is part of it. 

So she will be joining my little herd; she has come full circle!  

Welcome back, San Poco Velvet!

Packing our brand😊

More info on everything  once we get settled. 3 weeks to go!