The Mane Event

 I love long flowing manes on horses.  It doesn't have to be crazy long but I love natural manes and tails. If I had a Fjord I think that would be the only time I would cut the mane....but if their mane was already flowing it'd be hard!  I have trouble even doing a bridle path but practicality warrants it and I find it much easier for haltering and bridling.

Seamus has a nice thick mane, and a pretty decent tail.  A great thing is that he doesn't get tangles very much just like Daenerys.  Upkeep of the mane and tail is easy for these two.  Chance on the other hand gets tornado twists from hell.  I have to work so much to keep him untangled and when I do untangle him it doesn't take long before he's twisted again.  But when it's all cleaned up his mane is beautiful!  That's hair texture for you some types tangle easy.  Maybe it's because he's Arabian?

Anyways.  When I brought Seamus home he had some mane on one side and some on the other.  Then it flopped mostly to the off side, his right.  Now as you'll see in pictures below, his mane is falling on his left.  I haven't had to really work with  it to get to lay that way.  I didn't even realize his mane had flipped.  I would just groom him the way it seemed to lay.  Doesn't really matter but I find it funny!

My big concern with his mane has been his rubbing the darn thing off!!  Mr. Seamus decided he didn't like the dry barnyard area with little grass so he found a way to reach through the wooden fence in three different areas of the yard to find the grass on the other side.

It was wonderful not having to weed whack around the fence line but his mane!  He lost a huge section of it with a few tendrils of scraggly hair left.  How awful!  I know he didn't care but I wasn't happy!

From some angles you could almost not see the missing hair but it was still gone and he was continuing to reach through the fence line to get the bits of grass.  Ugh.  Silly boy!

I spent days after work when I had a moment in the heat of summer to pull the middle board out of the fence, cut it if it was a 16 foot section instead of an 8 foot one and then put another board in.  Basically the middle board was moved down by a board width and another put in above it to prevent my yogi horse from contorting to get his head through the boards and eat the grass.

Board by board, section by section I completed the problem area.  The outer fence in the barnyard has a line of electric on the top so I luckily did not have to do those boards too.  I just don't want electric where I walk through the human entry gap or near the water troughs.  So I did it the hard way of pulling off boards and adding additional boards.

It's probably been about 3 months since the fencing has been updated to this new "anti-grass is greener on the other side" style.  Seamus's mane is filling in some.  I'm very happy.  It seems trivial but I love long flowing manes.  I'm not so set on having a really long mane or tail where I need to braid and wrap and basically make the horse look like an old lady with curlers in her hair all the time. I do like to maintain the hair and keep it flowing as best as I can for horses who live in the fields and barnyard.

 

Look at that silly beast!!  A least he's looking more presentable!  He sure likes to get into everything and unknowingly cause problems.....what next Shadow pony?

Obstacle Clinic at Stable Relationships

Back in late June I took Seamus to an obstacle clinic.  It was only for the day but was a great trip for us to take as it was not far away and I could start doing what I really want to do with him.  Obstacles and trail.  This June day was one of the first really hot days as summer descended upon us with a vengeance.

We started in hand for the first half of the clinic.  The obstacles included:

Crinkle area to step through

Noodle Tunnel

Noodle curtain/cowboy curtain

Pedestal

"Bridge" that also became a slight teeter totter

Tire step throughs- picture football players

Fallen logs chute to step through

Snaking tubes to step trough that then made scary movement if stepped on

Flags

Cones

Poles all radiating from a central lifted place

Seamus was pretty chill about most things.  The flag was slightly concerning when the breeze picked up and it made more flappy sounds. Sound seems to be a trigger for him.  The movement of things doesn't seem to bother him but scary sounds I will even notice in the field at liberty that someone will have a big reaction as an Amazon truck lumbers down the dirt road behind out house.

The pedestal was fun.  He didn't need too much encouragement to step up it.  I kinda wonder how that one would be under saddle though.  I'd be gripping the horn of the saddle for dear life!

The cowboy curtain was done in phases with more and more of the noodles and dangles being released with each pass.  He got used to it really fast and didn't mind the noodles poking him on the side.  

Same for the noodle tunnel, they would move against him and then sort of bump his flank as he walked through.  He was pretty good about it the whole time.  

The afternoon it was time to saddle up if we wanted but I decided not to.  I forgot my riding helmet of all things!  Ooops.  So we did some more of the obstacles and then headed home. The ladies I met at the clinic were very nice and so was the farm Stable Relationships.  They plan to have more clinics and I can't wait since it was a nice place to go and I liked the trainer too.  

I was very proud of Seamus and I also find it funny that another person was ready to load him in their trailer! He's a good boy!

Redoing Electric-2023

Headlamps and poop......

Since November of last year this is how we've been scooping manure, at least before the days got long enough that it wasn't pitch black at 6pm.

Steve thinks there was a short in the wire coming from the house to the shed and barn so we cut off the power and have since been updating all the electric in the barn and shed.  We were also putting in a swim spa near the shed so we needed to have additional power, meaning another line run with a meter and new panel.  Steve did so much research and since he did electrical work in the army it wasn't too bad for him to work on it.  It just took a long time since he just had weekends, set backs and then days where he didn't want to work on the electric.

He worked long and hard though.  We had extension cords for water heaters and the electric fence.  Then at night it was headlamp time.  The horses really didn't care.

The old shed is being turned into a woodworking and blacksmithing workshop for Steve so we bought a smaller shed to then have all the outdoor tools and equipment that we stored in the older shed.  Steve put the panel in his workshop and on the outside Duke electric ran the line for the new meter.  Steve had to go through several phases of inspections and had to correct some issues at times.

I didn't think it would ever get complete.  We had the swim spa delivered onto the concrete pad that had been poured months before.  We were thinking we'd have power in a couple weeks.  Well, it ended up being another couple months!!! But Steve kept at it, in the heat of July too.

Things were coming together in his workshop...

And his "bravery" sometimes stopped my heart as he sat on a rafter working on the wires.  All this off course is dry, no electricity is flowing yet, this was all before the meter and power were connected.  There is the rough in inspection, then another one after that and a final inspection and then the power is connected, so Steve was safe from electric shock for the bulk of the work.

The barn had new stall lights and aisle lights installed.  The extension cord for the electric fence of course has disappeared now since it's hard wired into the electricity. 

I have three bright and fully enclosed LED strip lights for outdoor buildings that make it really bright when I need it.

 

Steve also updated the tack room lighting and the outdoor spot lights.  Even with the older lights I still often needed a flashlight to get all the manure piles picked up but now once it starts getting dark, I will be able to do stuff around the barn easily with the lighting so bright!

That was a long wait for the electricity in the barn and shed but well worth it!!

Posts in the Queue

 I have so many posts in the queue right now it's ridiculous.  I just have not had the time to write or when I have had the time I've been exhausted and not wanted to write.

Since I got Seamus I've taken him to a couple different places, the first big one was outside of Chattanooga TN for an Ivy Starnes gaited horse clinic.  I got recordings of my three 1-hour slots of time where she worked with Seamus on gaiting.  He was already a good gaited horse but speed and his bit change was causing a disconnect with the two of us.  Basically his previous owners had the typical gaited horse Wonder Bit which is a gag bit that exerts a lot more pressure than the snaffle.  I was trying to work in a snaffle and under saddle Seamus was picking up speed and getting into a trot. I will need to review those videos and I can get some snippets of video and still and do an entire post or two on the clinic. It was awesome!  I have a lot of work to do with him still and the heat wave the past month has really put a damper on working with him.

Ivy riding Seamus on Day One at the gaited clinic

I went to an obstacle clinic with him locally and that was awesome...he was great and chill.  I am starting to get some issues with loading him on the trailer though so I need to work on that. I know the issue is most likely me since I'm a newbie trailer loader and I need some guidance.  As a single horse in a two horse trailer I have been loading him on the wrong side....that's what happens when you are a newbie, oops! Glad the trainer pointed it out at the obstacle clinic.  I'm always hoping to learn and not sure where I went wrong with that but moving forward I know now!  Maybe I read something in a UK horse page about which side to have a single horse on...that would make sense.

The heat has prevented a lot of riding recently since my horses are miserable and I've also had to deal with Chances multitudes of health issues (heaves, PSLD, rain rot easily from sweat, Cushings) and then Dani had a slight tenderness issue due to grass on the track system; I've been trying to get it to dirt but the grass is persistent.  She can't be on it even with a muzzle, and it nearly moved to nothing....so barnyard area it is.....  Chance has been losing weight yet refusing extra feed but we finally found a feed I can feed less of and it's higher in fat and other calories plus we are having him on grass in the evenings to help.  I still see ribs but hoping that it's making an impact. A bad shave job I gave him to keep him cool exaggerated his skeletal look, my pet sitter gave me heck over the terrible trim...  Poor guy we are trying! Old horses are not for the faint of heart!  The struggle is real and it can be frustrating to manage them but as long as they have a quality life I will fork over the money for the meds and try different feeds or supplements and refence my property to make managing their different needs easier..... I juggle horses, it's what I do.

Seamus and I have had a few "discussions" about who the boss is rather recently and there have been a couple times lunging that I was a pretty nervous about his intentions.  I had tried the a stick with a flag instead of a stick and string and perhaps I'm not working it right but it escalated his temper. I have since done some small ground work sessions and he's been his chill self.  He can be pushy and mouthy if you let him; just like Dani in the beginning.  I have to remember she wasn't always so "Yes Ma'am" with me, we had to build that relationship.  This weekend I'll try lunging again and get our conversation going where I want it too. I'm also trying to get a trainer here to help us with trailer loading since once the weather cools I have a couple more clinics I want to go to locally.  The obstacle clinic I went to was awesome and that barn will most likely host more once it's cooler.  The June 24th clinic was really hot so that was the last one they held.

 

We've also been working on the electric in the barn and Steve's workshop (our shed is being converted).  This has taken a lot of Steve's time and my help.  We were without power out there since November of 2022 and now we have power so we are pleased to have lights again and the horses are loving having the fans in this heat.  

We've had a lot going on and I have posts galore waiting to be typed and pics to be added. I've just not done it!  So I'm going to try and get posts out.  It may not be sequential since I'll work on the low hanging fruit posts, simple, less contemplation needed, type of posts first. With the August misery setting in I may find more time being inside since even mowing the pastures doesn't go well in this heat.

Hope you are staying cool as you can in this heat.  Wishing all the ponies and their humans fun days ahead!

Serene Sunday

 

That's the life

Serene Sunday

Serene Sunday

Their debut album cover:

Daenery's and the Eunuchs

Saddle Fitting, Riding Lesson and Ground Work Beginnings

 Seamus and I's first trip together was to Hillsborough, NC to the Rockin B Saddle Shop, this would have been the first weekend in March!!! Wow I'm a bad blogger!

The saddle shop is about 30 minutes from our house.  I've gone there before when I needed them to adjust Dani's saddle....the fenders actually.  I have short legs and arms compared to my height, others of the same height tend to have longer appendages, I just have a longer torso....fun.  Normal stirrup fenders tend to be too long for me.  I also add stirrup turners which puts the stirrups perpendicular to the fenders which easier on the knee but this adds a few inches of length to the fenders.

Seamus was a good loader and unloader; a little quick at unloading but we'll work on that as some point. I tied him to the trailer with a hay net and then went into the shop to view the saddles I'd discussed with the owner. He had hybrid saddles, part leather part synthetic that I was interested in seeing.  The brand is High Horse which is made by Circle Y.  Dani's saddle is Circle Y and I've loved it so I felt comfortable looking at these saddles.

We went out to look at Seamus first and the saddle fitter brought a couple trees out and some cardboard to get measurements.  Seamus was a good boy through this whole thing.  I went back into the shop and then sat on a couple saddles.  I chose one and then we went out to Seamus to fit it.  I already had a nice felt rounded pad to us for him so we put that on and then adjusted the saddle.  The saddle had very different rigging than I'm used to. You don't need a back cinch since the ring is angled so you loop the latigo through it in a Y shape.  We also used the rear part of the front ring to bring the pressure off the shoulder due to his conformation and gaited way of going.

I then got him ready to ride and we went into the arena to ride.  Seamus started with a nice gait and I was thrilled.  I had him in a snaffle though and as he sped up and became bumpy I had trouble getting him back into the gait.  We'll work on that though.  I was satisfied with the purchase and thanked the saddle fitter  The Rockin B Saddle Shop is awesome, family owned by a nice older couple.  The man is retiring but his son is taking over so it's great to know that this place will be a place to go to for years to come I hope!

The following day I worked with Seamus in the pasture.  We worked on softening his contact with the bit and lowering his head at the walk for relaxation. I've been following Ivy Starnes the gaited horse trainer on You Tube and have some of her DVD's in addition to being a member of the training group she has on Facebook.  I've learned a lot but in application it can be a bit hard to do when you are just learning with a new horse.  The concept is similar to stuff I have learned in the past but Seamus is a younger horse that is going from a harsh gag bit to a soft sample. I went to her clinic in Tennessee end of March so I'll have a couple posts about that and probably share some of the videos too!

The following weekend I had a lesson at Mountain View Farms in Bahama with Erin who has worked with my other horses, before the pandemic.  She's very busy getting ready for show season so I was happy to meet up with her.  It was a short haul to her farm but Seamus did well.  A little hesitation on the load...we are still getting used to each other and I'm still new to trailering horses. The parking was tight at her barn but we got in and I got Seamus tacked up.  We started with some groundwork, and honestly...this boy needs it.  Erin said he was difficult to turn clockwise.  I'd noted that myself when lunging him.  She showed me some tricks to better communicate with him.  He probably had not had much ground work done with him.  It was a good lesson and I have some things to work on with him.

Seems I don't have the time to blog like I used to when I didn't own horse property!  Spring is starting up so the mowing is beginning and we have a lot of rewiring happening in the barn and the workshop of my husbands.  Basically we are without power in both and have been for the past 5 months.  I've tried to fit in riding with my new young horse and even went to a gaited horse clinic.  I have a lot of posts in the queue!!

Old post I never posted- Getting Dani up to Snuff Again

This is an OLD POST I never posted.....it should read months ago I began working with Dani

A few weeks months ago I began working with Dani on the lungeline.  She's not had the attitude I expected after so much time off.  She was great honestly and listened well and was calm.

I made sure the get her tack fitted right, wasn't sure if the girths I had would still fit since she's gone up and then down in weight.  The stirrups had been adjusted for me by a tack fitter since they'd always been so long and I need them fairly short to fit my short legs.

I added my stirrup turners again even though the tack guy had twisted the leather to turn the stirrups it still hurt my knees a bit. I got everything set with the tack and continued some ground work with Dani including getting her to come up to the mounting block which she was a good about.

 

The next time I went out to work with her I did only a little bit of ground work to check on her mindset and then I got up on her and rode around the barn.  We worked on some bends and turns and halts, nothing crazy.  She enjoyed it, at least it seemed like she did.  She likes being engaged and being with her human.

Another ride we went out to our little culdesac road and road up and down a bit.  We had Steve and Chance with us and our older dog.  Chance was really excited to be out and about and was prancing a bit in hand with Steve.  Then Chance spooked at our dog and blowing and snorting in the air.  Silly Arabian!  Dani just looked at them with curiosity.  

I'm happy that Dani retains what she learned and that even with over year off she is just about the same horse under saddle.  She's by no means perfect and there are things we can and will work on.  I still don't really see her going on long trail rides with me for several reasons.

1. The trailering issues, I'd need to put a lot of work into getting her on the trailer and consistently too.  It's been about 7 years since she was last on a trailer.
2. Her tender feet, how long can she last being ridden in boots on a rocky trail? Could she be prone to injury more easily?  Then what do I do miles away from home?
3. If I take her out and about Chance will be left alone at the barn and he'll get upset like he does with her just down the road. I can't leave him like that for a whole day!

Since I'm looking for a third horse it makes sense to get a younger horse I can work with and go to training and clinics and do some trail riding when we are ready.  I'll have two horses that can stay home, content to chill and be ridden (Dani at least) around the property and neighborhood. It doesn't make sense to me to get an older companion horse while I try and take Dani places to ride with the issues stated above.

Can you tell I'm still conflicted though? She has such a great mind and is such a sweet horse.  I love her so much.  How did I find such a great horse for so cheap 10 years ago?

When I look at the horses advertised now with harsh bits and minimal training and a huge price tag I'm really shocked. I don't have a deadline to find a new horse and now that Dani is back under saddle and her feet are doing well so happy I can play with her. She's a great friend to spend time with, my future of horsing where I go out and about like I've wanted will come and I will be ready when it does! I'm so happy to be riding my Daenerys again.  She's such a good horse!

First Hoof Trim for Seamus at Geek Acres

When I got Seamus he'd been in the pasture for several months and really needed a trim.  It seems that his shoes had been left on and let to fall off....these are just the assumptions of my farrier. In the first picture of a hoof you can see there were still some nail heads in the hoof.  This hoof also had a piece of hoof wall "notched" out.  My farrier showed me a scar that looks like he'd had a coronary band injury in the past few months.  Nothing came up at the vet exam but I remember noting those back hooves being longer and one I did a double glance at thinking it was club.

The nails were removed and his hooves were trimmed not long after I brought him home.  My farrier is a great barefoot farrier. Both my horses hooves have improved since I came to NC and found her.  She's the farrier I suggest to anyone who wants a barefoot trimmer.  She knows so much more than hooves too!

His back feet were the worst with big wall flares but they are strong since the wall didn't crack or break off.  I'm still working with him on picking up his feet easily.  I ask with poking his chestnuts but sometimes use the hoof pick as a hook to scoop up his foot from the area of the ergot....hope that makes sense.

His hindlegs are easier to pick up and each time he gets better.  Below you can see the trimmed foot on the left and the untrimmed on the right.  It's always nice to see freshly trimmed hooves.

The angles were off on all four feet, especially the back so my farrier got them trimmed up nicely.

Below you can see the trauma that had occurred to the hoof wall and the possible site of the coronary band injury.  We'll see how it grows out.

Freshly trimmed back feet from the far side below,

Freshly trimmed back feet from the near side below,

Nice rounded edges of the wall.  I'm sure his feet will expand some being 100% barefoot here.  It will be interesting to get some comparative pics 6 months from now and a year from now. I'm glad he wasn't one of those Tennessee Walkers with the big pads on their feet.  He just had been a little long between trims and my experience is that trims are different for a shod horse and I'm learning that there is still that old school thought that horses need to have long toes to gait.

It's so not true.  For the longevity of the horse their feet should be trimmed for their conformation and have the best angles to keep their legs aligned properly.  Too high a heel, too long a toe or compressed heels....these all lead to long term problems that don't just affect the hoof but the entire horse. Bad angles in the hoof and legs and add strain to ligaments up the leg and into the spine. Needless to say we have a chiropractor appointment soon so we can make sure he's not been thrown off kilter.