Barn Dynamics

There was some swapping going on last night, moving horses to new quarters, which is always good for a ruckus! Then the fun of watching the new dynamics begins.

Chili did not care much for being separated from Lucy…AT ALL! Even though that separation is a fence and 10 feet. He showed me some incredible moves and it took him about 10 minutes to settle down.

Kaci was not happy about his new neighbor and told Lucy so over the fence. Jinx got a girlie and giggly (squealing) at Sonny, who was the doting suitor. By morning, they were sharing hay.

So this morning, this is what is going on: Chili loves and pines (not unlike Kaci) for Lucy... who could care less and is in love with Kaci… who could care less and is in love with Jazzy who could care less and is in love with Sonny… who is in the arena and in love with Jinx… who could care less but will share her hay. Shyanna is in the barn glaring at Chili saying (and I quote) "Leave me alone. This is MY hay!" Bullwinkle is wondering what all the fuss is about. And Angel (My darling) just wants a cookie… you got a cookie?

Nine horses at the place. 3 are boarders. 6 are my own. AND… I got one in training. Mike has NO CLUE how many horses there are!

Texas Chili – Part 1

How cool is that name??

He’s pretty brown gelding, about 12 years old. He had a successful career on the race track, then another career on the polo field.

Somehow, and we aren’t sure when, Texas Chili ended up starving in Washington, on the Yakama Indian Reservation. A woman saw him and convinced his owner to either sell or give Chili to her. Months later, this woman could no longer care for Chili and signed him over to Avalon Mist Equine Rescue in Yakima, WA.

Avalon Mist somehow determined that Chili’s knees (they called him “Tex” but I like “Chili” better…) “were shot from being on rocks”, though we don’t really know what that means. Avalon Mist also determined that Chili has “nerve damage from a wreck on the track, though race records don’t support that determination. At this point, we aren’t sure if Avalon Mist is making assumptions or whether a vet was involved. No vet records came with the horse.

Avalon Mist acquired Chili, presumably to adopt him out with an adoption fee, which makes sense really. But a horse with nerve damage and bad knees isn’t very likely to go anywhere, so they contact The Exceller Fund (The Fund). Chili is a grandson of Exceller, and after obtaining a commitment of funding, The Fund became the horse’s owner and wanted him placed in a more permanent retirement home. Based on a recommendation, The Fund contacted me.

Whoever gave me this recommendation, THANK YOU!

On Saturday, July 3, I drove to Yakima and picked up Texas Chili. Upon arrival, I noticed a few things.

First was his feet. They are horrendous. While he is wearing shoes, he is platter footed and there are monstrous waffles in the walls that are caused by long term poor nutrition. Luckily, his heels aren’t horrible underslung, so he should be fine with regular farrier care.

The second thing I noticed was that he is pretty good shape weight-wise. Another 100 – 150 pounds, and he’ll look fat and sassy! But his coat condition is poor. The hair looks dry and brittle, burnt and sun bleached.

The next thing I noticed is that he holds his head low and nose tipped to the left.

Lastly, he is meek.

More in a couple days. Or tomorrow. We’ll see…