Why?

Did everyone see this post on the Fugly blog where the horse managed to get its head stuck in a tree? That blog entry also had pictures of the draft filly that wedged herself into a water trough. My first thought when I look at the pictures in this post below is why, why, WHY? These horses all live in big pastures, we allow approx. 2 acres per horse, and the pastures are well maintained. Even during the peak of the drought last year we still had lots of grazing in our pastures. Granted they've looked a lot better than they did last summer, but they weren't grazed down to dirt and weeds either. We really try hard to keep up our pastures, and it can be pretty expensive and time consuming. So why do the horses contort themselves so they can shove their head under the gates to pick at grass when they have acres and acres of equally good grass if they would just turn around and walk a few steps away from the gate?? *headdesk* *headdesk*

Harmony

Trillion
Buffy

Teddy

Faune (this picture was taken a couple of months ago but the rest are all in the last few weeks)

Nap Time

I guess it is only fitting that on a horse retirement farm I see the horses napping regularly. After all they are retired! The horses have pretty regular routines, and being prey animals they tend to do more of their resting and sleeping during the day than they do at night. That allows me the opportunity to take a lot of exciting pictures of horses sleeping. I have managed to capture a lot of these pictures in the last few weeks.

The "big boys" gathering in their usual spot for their afternoon siesta

I think Bush spends as much time sleeping as he does awake Poco letting out a couple of big yawns as he settles into position for his afternoon siesta

Trillion was so sleepy he was letting the fence hold his head upTrillion says it is a tough life but someone has to do it

Sebastian was right next to him and was dead asleep

Cloudy's barn cat duties wear him out

Poco and Ogie napping in the shed

A Few Of Our (Least) Favorite Things

There are a few tasks that I really don't enjoy. For some reason I hate dealing with dirty horse blankets. For the most part I am a very organized person and like to stay on top of things. When it comes to dirty horse blankets I am the queen of procrastination! I don't know why but I always find a million excuses and other things to do rather than sort through the blankets and get them over to the wonderful person who cleans and repairs them. I did finally sort through them all a few weeks ago, load them into the back of the truck and happily dump them all out at her house so they could be her problem! Since we have a blanket or forty (or more) around here it isn't a small job for her to wash them all and do any needed repairs.

Dirty blankets loaded in the truck and ready to be cleaned and repaired

Another task that would not make my list of favorites, and for that matter most of the horses don't like it either, is being wormed. You know you go through a lot of wormer when Valley Vet or Country Supply or whomever I recently ordered paste wormer from slaps a mailing label on the original box from the manufacturer and sends it on to you. It seems like I spend as much time opening up each individual box of wormer, then removing each individual tube from the plastic wrap, as I do actually administering the wormer to the horses. Depending on the season I paste worm every 6-8 weeks. Most of the horses don't object at all, but of course there are always one or two who let you know it is not their favorite thing.

My pile of boxes and tubes as I work my way through the box getting everything opened and ready for use

I can't say the horses love their annual visit from the dentist. As with worming they are all mostly cooperative, if less than thrilled, about having their teeth done. But really, who actually enjoys going to the dentist?

We provide equal opportunity care and housing on this farm which means Sparky the donkey has his teeth floated every year, is paste wormed on the same schedule as the horses and has his feet trimmed every six weeks.

Asterik is the most recent retiree to join us on the farm. He was a very good boy about having his teeth floated.
Ivan says the best part about the dentist is the drugs! He was very lightly sedated, as they all were, and quite alert when the dentist was working on him. He acted like a drunk when he went back in his stall though, and let the door hold his head up for a few minutes.

Poco Is Home!

Poco was evicted, er, I mean discharged from the clinic today. His breathing was back to normal yesterday and stayed that way though lunchtime today so we were asked (begged) to bring him home. After being scoped, having multiple ultrasounds, being on IV fluids and being poked and prodded for four days, there is still a big question mark as to the cause of his upper respiratory inflammation. At this point the vets think his liver problem is a separate issue from the upper respiratory problem. We will be redoing his bloodwork (for the fourth time!) in two weeks to check his liver enzymes again. In the meantime I have the pleasure of medicating him several times a day. He is off the steroids for now and will be on banamine for two more days, and antibiotics and Liver Kl'een for 14 days. Yeah for me.

Thank you everyone for all of your well wishes and for the comments and e-mails I have received the last few days. I really appreciate them! I can't say that Poco does but I have no doubt he has enjoyed his 15 minutes or less of fame. I hope we don't repeat this any time soon!

Things felt normal on the farm again this evening as I wrestled with Poco to get his medications in him. Sparky is one happy donkey to have his friend back and Poco is thrilled to be back. He was almost too friendly when we visited him at the clinic over the weekend. Poco bit me on the arm tonight. All is well again at the farm.

In his stall at the clinic; he hated being in the stall and looked tiny and dejected yesterday when we visited himPeeking over the door of his stall at us
Streeetching his neck up to look over the stall door
We were given permission to take him for a walk when we visited him on Sunday. Poco and my mom below going for a walk around the clinic. I think it is cute that she is barely taller than the shetland pony. The shaved patch of hair was one of the areas where the ultrasound probe was used.Foaming at the mouth tonight after I medicated him

Poco Update: Still in the Horspital

Poco is still a patient at the horsepital. He is a a sad little sight with his IV fluid line. The good news is he is acting as feisty as ever and giving the clinic staff a lot to complain about! As of mid-day today after he had another ultrasound there was no improvement in the swelling in his upper respiratory area. There was also still no sign of any fluid where it shouldn't be, he still does not have a fever, still has excellent gut sounds and his heart sounds great.

His bloodwork was redone today and the liver enzyme that was off the charts high did come down a bit. Yesterday the reading was at 337, and the high range of normal would be about 84. Today that number had come down to 276. So some improvement in the liver area.

He has now had three of the five vets at Tennessee Equine Hospital consult on his case and I know he is in the best of hands. I have no doubt the staff there wishes he were in someone else's hands! Poco was making it clear that he was not grateful or appreciative for all of the expertise, time, care and money being spent on his behalf. Obviously he has long ago forgotten his humble beginnings when he was in desperate need of a new home and being offered for sale at a flea market one weekend.

Sparky the donkey finally gave up his vigil by the gate this afternoon. I saw him wander off and join Ogie for some quiet grazing. My mother bought Sparky his own batch of fresh carrots today so we think that helped ease his concern.

Everybody continue their good thoughts for Poco, he needs them.

Think Good Thoughts For Poco

As I type Poco the pony is at the vet clinic hooked up on IV fluids and receiving antibiotics and steroids. We noticed his breathing was really labored today and he just wasn't acting right. The vet came quickly and examined him. Normal temperature, excellent gut sounds, heart sounded great, terrible sounds coming from upper respiratory area. The vet tried to ultrasound so he could see his lungs but Poco was being himself and completely uncooperative. The vet was hesitant to tranquilize him before having a better idea of the problem. So the trailer was hooked up immediately and Poco went to the clinic where they could put him in the stocks. Why did he object so strongly to having an ultrasound probe on his stomach and chest? That is life with Poco.

The ultrasound was successfully completed and revealed a very inflamed epiglottis and larynx but no fluid or foreign objects in there. His bloodwork was completely normal with one glaring exception: one of his liver enzymes was extremely elevated. The high end of normal would be mid 80's and his was over 300. Two of the vets at the clinic (Tennessee Equine Hospital) consulted about his case and are unsure if the upper respiratory and the liver issue are related or unrelated, and we are all baffled about the cause of the upper respiratory inflammation. So Poco was admitted as a patient to the clinic and will be spending at least the weekend there.

I complain often about Poco as he is an evil pony always looking for the opportunity to bite me. But I have been sad all night and am now complaining about how much I miss him. So please think positive, healing thoughts for Poco. I hope he gets better and can come home soon.

Sparky the donkey is also devastated. He and Poco have been inseparable companions for nine years. Sparky brayed when Poco left on the trailer which is highly unusual. I hear Sparky "talk" maybe once a year. He waited for Poco for hours by the gate this afternoon.

I want Poco to get well and come home so I can complain about him some more. It isn't the same around here without him. :(

As I mentioned in a previous post Poco was purchased at a flea market (!) by my father who happened to be driving by and felt sorry for him. Poco has been torturing me and all other humans on this farm ever since and enjoying every minute of it.

In other news we had a chicken rodeo yesterday and today rounding up two new flocks of baby chicks, Gwen our wonderful farrier was here today, Apollo's mom Vivian was here today from Florida to visit him, and the vet accidentally knocked my camera off the shelf and it won't turn on. The concrete aisle in the barn has claimed yet another camera. Oh, and my refrigerator was repaired this morning and is now back to normal.

Changing Seasons

On Monday morning I was up and out early feeding the horses. I've mentioned before that mornings are my favorite part of the day. It is so quiet and peaceful, and the horses are so happy to see you. I know they aren't happy to see me, they are happy to see the food lady coming, but I pretend it is me that makes them happy.

It was an especially peaceful and quiet morning. There was still a bit of fog and it was very quiet outside. I was walking through the pastures lamenting at how terrible they looked as it suddenly had decided to get really dry and hadn't rained for 45 days. That was rectified on Tuesday and Wednesday though as we got 3+ inches of rain. Hopefully the pastures will spring back soon.

As I was feeding some of the horses a big flock of geese came flying overhead. They were flying quite low and circling above the pastures I was in at the time. I wasn't surprised to see them as we have a pond and have geese visit us each year. The geese are just one of many signs I'm seeing these days of the changing seasons. I've started to see a hint of fuzz on the horses' coats, the leaves are starting to hint at changing colors on the trees, the pastures look like they are approaching the end of grazing season in another month or two instead of their fresh spring look.

The geese made quite a loud entrance on what had been such a quiet morning, and eventually settled in one of the pastures. They had everyone's attention, mine, the horses, and Bella the dog. They were an interruption, although a pleasant and welcome one, to our peaceful morning. Once they landed they joined us in our quiet solitude and were quiet in the field.

It always makes me a little sad when the seasons change, it feels like you are saying goodbye to a friend. Except I never feel that way when spring comes. I detest cold weather and winter. I am sure Jason will remind me that we don't have winter here, just what he calls extended fall. Jason is from Canada and I am from the South , so to me any season with the possibility of snow (although granted we get very little here and it melts quickly) is winter, not spring or fall. But in his world spring and fall both bring snowfalls, but winter brings permanent snow on the ground for awhile and deep frost. He grew up east of Toronto and their frost line was six feet I believe. Yikes!

One of the peaceful scenes I saw early Monday morning

Bella was being playful in the pasture as she walked along with me

The geese got her attention though

Flying above us

All of the horses watched them come in for landing as well; here Teddy watches intently

Settled in the pasture; I know the picture is terrible but the fog was still hanging on

Pictures

I started to catch up on posting some of my pictures yesterday and will do the same today. I know so many pictures of horses grazing can become very repetitive, but I see something different in each picture. Sometimes it is noticing a new buddy system, or maybe a different expression than I might typically see on a certain horse.

On another note the home "fix-it" projects are gaining momentum. My refrigerator decided it was time to stop running properly today. Hello, universe, I DON'T HAVE TIME FOR THIS RIGHT NOW!!! Could you please move on to someone else's house? Besides, it is a really nice refrigerator and only four years old. I thought these things were supposed to have a long lifespan? Well, I guess I just needed to get that off my chest, rant over!

Back on topic to pictures . . .

A happy triumvirate

The same triumvirate a few days later with a slightly different arrangement

This rooster gets around; yesterday we saw him grazing with Sebastian and riding on the Gator. Today he is grazing with Trillion
Peaceful

Poco, the bane of of my existance. My dad bought him a few years ago at a really low rent flea market. He was going to the TSC store across the street and saw several ponies tied to a trailer. This flea market typically has just cheap junk and he was shocked to see ponies. He took pity on them and their less than stellar condition and bought one. Now I have the pleasure of being the recipient of Poco's charms every day. He is all pony. I guess I love him anyway, I'm not sure.

I'm not sure if Jason was painting the shed, his clothes, his legs, hands, boots or . . . ?

Clearly Bear wasn't supervising very closely or surely Jason wouldn't have been covered in paint

Sebastian peering out of the shed that Jason commenced painting with Bear's assistance (and of course mine)

I love everything about this picture from the horses' expressions to the scenery

Moving on to another grazing spot

Pictures

I am way behind on sharing my pictures with everyone. I have a month's worth of pictures of the horses, farm, and various other farm residents to share. Without further ado I will begin uploading a few of my pictures from the last month.

Sparky and Bella

Waiting to be fed on a rainy morning
Sebastian; he has such a cute face

Ivan and Apollo

Elfin, Homer and Finn

Sebastian grazing with a friend

Buffy, Harmony and Teddy

Sebastian, Trillion and Faune bringing up the rear

This was a "Green Acres" moment; my dad was driving around on his Gator with Bugle in the passenger seat as always, with the rooster hitching a ride on the back; The rooster just hung out while dad drove from the barn to my house. I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't seen it for myself. Only on this farm.

Homer and Ivan

Elfin with his mouth stuffed full of grass Leo grazing