MOVING DAY!!!! (well for the horses anyway)

Mike and I spent 7 hours cleaning stalls and runs today. My back is KILLING me!

The hardest part was cleaning the cesspools that were Thai's and Classy's stalls. Good lord, those two didn't potty ANYWHERE except in the stall. It was sloppy and sloggy, and stinky. I had to totally strip both stalls! YUCK! Once done, I put up panels to keep horses out because both stalls need to dry out before I can put clean dirt back in.

So, Honey and Thai moved into the arena. Although they've never even been neighbors, they got along right away.

Classy moved to the outdoor pen on the back of the barn. She's protected from the wind, but has no overhead protection. I'm not too worried about it since we have very little precipitation and the little bit that we have had, she been standing out in it anyway.

Angel went back into her old stall, which was occupied by Jazzy while Angel was in the arena with Squirrel. Dobbs and Millie stayed put. Squirrel and Jazzy are now in Thai and Classy's former runs, and share a water tub.

It was a beautiful day! For most of it, I worked only in a sweatshirt. We picked up 25 3-string bales of hay at 4 pm, then went to supper. We off loaded the hay once we got back.

The GOOD news is....our hay guy said that hay will be around $160/ton this year! YEA!!! We just might be able to feed all our horses AND pay our bills!

Sorry...no pictures of Classy until next weekend!

I must be doing something right!!!

It happened tonight, about a week before I expected it....

Classy didn't eat all her alfalfa pellets!

Big deal? YES!! IT IS!!! It IS a big deal! It means that she is finally starting to stabilize weight wise! It means that she's no longer "starved".

Its what I look for. Its what I hope for. It means she is getting enough to eat and is no longer in starvation snarf-every-crumb mode! Considering the shape she was in, two weeks is pretty early!

Shades of grey...

Yesterday, while I was cleaning stalls, I notice this bright circle in the sky. It was almost bright enough to be visible through the low hanging clouds, but not quite. Mike told me that it was the sun, but I'm not sure.

Oh, and by the way, I am very glad I DID clean stalls yesterday! It's 27 degrees with an 8 mph wind out of the north this morning. BBBBRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!

This morning, when I went out to feed, the were clouds to the south-east that were almost a peach color. No bright circle, but different shades of grey.

To the north and west though, the clouds are dark grey, signaling precipitation. yay

It snowed almost all day yesterday but there was very little accumulation.

Classy - Update PICS ARE UP!!

Classy on arrival.

Classy today.

Tubby, erm, Thai today


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Bear in mind it's 25 degrees and snowing...

Fecal sample collected. The vet will let me know the status,

She checked her teeth and said that her teeth weren't "that" bad, no sharp points, no ulcers in her mouth. Definitely a cribber at some point in her past - her upper front teeth are just nubs. Vet wants to wait until we have warmer weather to float. Her fingers get so cold - to the point where she can't feel what she's doing.

Vet did a pelvic exam. She couldn't feel anything that would suggest a uterine infection or problem. Classy has been expressing liquid for at least a week. Vet suggested that with health will come resolution. She also wanted to wait and see.

The vet suggested I continue the feed program that Classy is on - alfalfa pellets, Strategy, Amplify.

No pics yet....I'll let you know.

Even an 18 yr old....

I will update with information about Classy later, I promise, but I wanted to share something with you.

I was sitting here reading Joe's Blog, TBFriends. He didn't have his main daily post up yet, but he did have pictures of 4 statkes winners up with a little writeup about each one. One was exceptionally skinny and photographed as he came off the trailer.

My 18 yr old daughter, Kali, came in and saw the picture and said, "I hate when people do that. There's no reason for a horse to be that skinny!" I read Joe's writeup to her and told her that all the horses had been dumped and that Joe had probably paid no more than $400 a piece for them. That their owners had just dumped them. She said,

"That's because it's all about money."

How sad that she is right! That she can be mostly non-horsey and still have that insight. She used to have her own horse, a sweet little granny arab named C-Bey Real we put down 3 years ago when she started falling down and walking into walls. Since then, she's ridden a few times, but the passion for them died when her mare died.

I find it interesting that she can have this insight. These horses owners know, but just DON'T CARE. And horses suffer.

I know I said, but...

I know I said I was going to get pictures, but I didn't. No reason in particular, just didn't.

Classy is really gaining weight, even without having her teeth done. She is on two pounds of Strategy each feeding, and pretty much free access to alfalfa pellets. She decided that she didn't like it soaked and mushy. Apparently she wasn't too hungry, because it was all flung out on the floor. So we went back to the dry pellets.

She LOOKS pretty good. It's because her coat is so fluffy. I can still feel her ribs, but not as much as before.

Tonight, her topline looked awesome, until I looked closer. The hair along her spine lays down, and on either side, it sort of curls up, giving the impression of a smooth topline in the dim light of the barn.

I WILL get photos this weekend. It'll be two weeks since she arrived. I'm going to try to replicate the "poses", so you have a before and after from the same view and angle to compare.

The vet comes on Friday to float her teeth and check on her uterine infection.

The farrier declined to trim her feet, saying he'd only have to rasp a little, and that she could wait 3 weeks or so.

One of those weeks...

You know, I could have posted daily updates about Classy and/or Thai, but each day would just be a repeat of the day before. They're eating, they're pooping, they're feeling better, they're looking better. You know, same thing, different day.

Our "Spring" weather has disappeared and we are now back to winter. 28 degrees, freezing fog, scattered snow flurries. Ok FINE! With the fog, the humidity is up and it seems to go right through you.

On New Year's Eve, while I was staying to "watch her", my gramma got up in the dark to go to the bathroom and fell and broke her other hip. She's broken the first hip right before Thanksgiving. The surgery went well, and she's in a rehabilitation home, but she has seriously deteriorated mentally. She is combative and mean mouthed. This is SO NOT my gramma, who has always been the proper southern lady. She took a swing at the physical therapist with a one pound dumb bell in her hand. *sigh* Oh well, what are you going to do? Paddle a 94 year old very frail woman? I think not.

So I stay away, visiting only once a week. It hurts my heart to see her like this. I didn't visit my grampa before he died because I didn't want to see him old, bent, and feeble. I wanted to remember him as he had alway been to me: strong, ageless, and totally in love with me.

Yesterday (Friday), a truck turned in front of my son and his family in an intersection and Josh hit the bed of the truck. It dented the rear quarter-panel of the truck. It totalled by son's Grand Prix. The airbags deployed - THANK GOD!! Josh came out unscathed. My grandson as scared, but unhurt. My daughter-in-law fared worse...the airbag kicked her butt! She has a black eye, a fat lip, and bruises from the seatbelt. They all declined to go to the hospital, though I think that at least Tiffany should have. She's going to be REALLY sore today and tomorrow. The driver of the truck got a ticket, and it'll be his insurance that pays. Tiff will probably need chiropractor work in the weeks to come. But, they were very lucky!

Honey and Dobbs spent the week in the arena. It seemed if they weren't napping or eating, they were pacing, in constant motion. Though they each had a buddy, they didn't like being away from the herd. Self-exercising!! BONUS!!!

One day this week, it occurred to me...Thai is getting fat! I ran my hand over her fuzzies to make sure that it wasn't an illusion. Nope! She getting fat! Now if we can just get the leg swelling down. My plan is reclip her leg and take a closer look. She is so good about being handled! I really love this mare! Cathy is going to have to thumb wrestle me to get her away from me! EVERYONE should have a horse like this!! If they did, there wouldn't ever be an auction or kill buyer! No one would ever part with their horses!

Classy has had the blanket on for several days straight now. I need to pull it off and give her a good brushing, and make sure that there aren't rub spots on her hips. I'm sure there are because they stick out so far. I also don't want to rub the hair off the top of her butt or whithers. I'll try to get new pictures and put them up on my Photobucket account. For whatever reason, my home computer can't upload them into blogger. It really annoys me!!!

FLAKE SALE

This is a charity set up to help horse people who saved their horses, but lost their hay in the 2009 Flood. Not everyone has a hay loft where they can store their hay. I know I don't. As such, any hay under water was lost! If you have a couple extra dollars, or can stand to skip that 12 pack of Pepsi, please consider donating.

Save A Forgotten Equine

SAFE is supporting Classy's care, but they have taken on several horses that were much worse condition. Horses that needed to spend time at the vet for fear they would crash. Horses so skeletal that they couldn't regulate their own body temperature. Please consider donating to SAFE as well.

Thanks for reading and be sure to hug your horses!

Sunday - Day of the never ending chores

Mike and I get to spend our Sunday repairing the automatic waterers, trying to figure out why the heaters aren't working. We're thinking that there just so much gunk down at the bottom, that it is inhibiting the heater. The barn will surely smell like a rotting swamp! But we have replacement heaters and the schematics just in case!

I'm sure we'll find lots of other chores to keep us busy! I just can't think of anything right off the top of my head.

One thing we plan to do is go for a walk. We'll take a couple of horses with us. They need exercise just as much as we do!

Classy nickers every time the back door opens. I just love it! Her teeth are so bad that she is not eating flake hay. I think is what mostly contributed to her weight loss. So, I put her on 8 pounds of alfalfa pellets, 4 pound of Purina Strategy, and 1 pound of Purina Amplify per day. Already her loose poop has firmed into normal "apples".

In the paperwork that her former owner filled out, she said that Classy was a cribber. I have seen no evidence of that. She either eats, or stands keeping an eye on Thai. She is in an open sided barn with an 80 ft dry lot runout.

Day Two - Getting to know you, sort of...

I found last night that Honey's blanket will fit Classy. She's actually bigger than she looks. Also, in the pictures, she doesn't look too bad, but in persn, she looks a LOT worse. I'll try to get more photos and post them.

Classy stood like a princess while I put the blanket on and adjusted the straps. Not so much as a flinch. Then this morning, I fed everyone and while she was eating, I removed the blanket. Again, no reaction. It was like she's been at this for a long time.

She is doing well and has settled in nicely. She has already attached herself to Thai, her next door neighbor. Between the two of them, there has been no squealing or posturing. Just polite curiosity.

To Classy, (and of course the rest of the herd) I am now the Girl-Who-Gives-Grub. She nickered for her supper. It sure didn't take her long.

Class Act aka Classy

The trip went well and Classy is safe here at my place, the place she'll call home for the next six weeks or so.

When we got there, the couple that was surrendering her were in the yard waiting. I parked the truck and Mike and I got out. I gave the gal the paperwork to fill out, while Mike chit-chatted about her goats. The husband, tried to catch Classy, with no luck. She wanted NOTHING to do with him. So he backed off and Classy calmed down, but stood off a little way. I walked out to Classy and petted her.

She was fine with me petting her neck, but when I moved my hand to scratch her chest, she pinned her ears. When I removed my hand, her ears immediately came forward. I told Classy in a low voice, "If you want out of here and moved to a place where you'll be fed, you might want to cooperate." I walked over to the husband, who was holding the halter about 30 feet away.

I walked with the halter back to Classy and she stood quietly while I put on the halter. When I walked her to the gate, the husband said "She doesn't like men. She was probably abused by them before she came here. She's never liked me." Well, ok.

I walked her to the trailer where I proceeded to stuff cookies in her face. She got the "Cookie slobbers", which cracked me up!

When the woman was done with the paperwork, she and Mike walked to the trailer to help me load. Classy stood at the back of the trailer, sniffed around, put one foot up, then lowered it back to the ground. She didn't budge. Just stood. Mike went and got a little "boppy stick" and tapped her on the butt and the back of the legs. Nothing. No reaction.

So I shacked down on her lead rope a couple times to back her up and get her attention, then led her forward and she walked right in. The gal had said that it took HOURS to load her when she first picked her up. She also said that Classy would need an experienced rider because she's so spooky. From what I've observed so far, Classy had her bluffed!

She rode quiet on the drive back, and stood quietly in the trailer while we moved horses around. She unloaded easily, followed on a loose lead, and stood quietly while I removed the halter. She then dove into the feed I put out for her.

She's a dark bay with a little bit of white on her forehead. She looks like a smaller version of Honey. Surprisingly, her feet aren't too bad. Her toes are long in the back, but I've seen a LOT worse.

She is desperate need of having her teeth done. There's a picture in her album at the link above that shows her poop in the trailer. Does she even HAVE any teeth??? Dental work will be done in a couple of weeks.

Classy is in the pen right next to Thai, who by the way was doing the "new-horse-on-the-farm" arch and flag. If was good to see Thai feeling so good!

Dobbs and Honey were moved out to the arena, where they'll live for the next 6 weeks or so. They ran around for little bit, then settled down, trying to figure out what was up.

As I said before, I am fostering Classy for SAFE and they are bearing all the costs. While she is not as critical as some of their horses, I'm sure SAFE will appreciate any help you are willing to give.

There will be regular updates on both Thai and Classy, so keep checking back!

New Project

I have a new project coming..I pick her up on Friday. I'll be fostering her for S.A.F.E - Save A Forgotten Equine. With the passes closed and all the flooding, they was her in a safe place until someone can get her across the mountains. She'll probably be here a couple of months.

If you're interested in donating for her care (or any other horses that they have saved, please contact S.A.F.E

Her name is Class Act and she's 20 years. I have no other details at this time.

As soon as she's here, I'll get pictures and post what I know. She may even make an appearance on FHoTD.

Stay tuned...

THE WIND!!! It blows....

Normally, I would complain about the wind. But not this time.

It's 50 degrees outside (at 6:25pm) and the wind is HOWLING!! It's suppose to blow all week.

That is a GOOD thing!! That means that HOPEFULLY the runs will dry out and my poor ponies will be able to walk in something other than slop.

I'm also hoping that we won't get more snow or rain. I'll take cold over wet any day!

I was just thinking that they all need trimmed. GAH!!! That's going to run me around $200 just to trim! Looks like it's time to get a rasp and work on them once a week to keep the length down. (Yeah right)

Freeze-Dried Poop Soup!

I talk about the weather here and what's happening, because the weather where YOU are is most likely different. From what I've heard from others, is that I really don't have it that bad, but being whiney and bitchy by nature, well...you know.

On New Year's Day, Mike and I spent HOURS cleaning the sloppy poop soup out of Thai's and Squirrel's stalls and back filling with clean dirt out of the arena. Through out the slop in the runs, there are channels where I hoped the slop would drain and maybe not be so mucky. OK, I did most of the work, but Mike did help push the wheel barrow.

I worked on Friday, and by the time I got home, the temperature was dropping and the ice has just started to form on top of the slop. It's frozen solid now, and because it's so dry here, the muck is getting freeze dried. That's fine by me!

We're supposed to have a chance of rain or snow all week, but the temperatures are supposed to be in the 40s. I'd like a week of 40 and DRY, please.

I promised Cathy some new pictures of Thai... I managed to get one blurry picture before my camera pooped out. (I think it's a battery problem)

P.S. Cathy - She gives her feed pan back too...LOL! Such a good girl!