Sunday Night Photos

Please enjoy some photos of happy, healthy horses. For some reason, both Melissa and I are feeling brain dead in terms of writing something intelligent and appropriate on this Sunday night. It really bothers us when we lose a horse, and this past couple of weeks has been particularly tough in that we lost Spike AND Billy the goat.

We'll be back with more farm happenings later this week !

Jason

Sam was hoping I had a treat

B-Rad, Alex and Darby

MyLight enjoying a good roll with Cuffie watching

Silky was rolling nearby with Missy watching

Wiz, Dutch and Murphy

Cuffie and Lily

Grand and Homer hanging out in the shed

Grand looked so handsome I had to zoom in on him

Clayton found a nice view over Stormy

Faune and Winston grazing with Chimano napping nearby

Romeo, Fonzi, Gus and Chimano

George, Silver and Asterik

In Memory of Spike

Today we had to say goodbye to OverDrive, more affectionately known as Spike. Spike had been with us only a year and a half, and made the trip from Victoria, British Columbia to join us for retirement. Spike was a beautiful horse and a very big boy, topping the measuring stick at just over 18 hands.

Spike lived with a systemic connective tissue disease known as DSLD (Degenerative Suspensory Ligament Desmitis) or ESPA (Equine Systemic Proteoglycan Accumulation). There is still a lot that is unknown about DSLD/ESPA however it is believed to be genetic. As the disease progresses it can affect almost every part of the horse's body, not just the tendons and ligaments.

When Spike arrived after his long trip he was very worried and very nervous. His first few weeks we sometimes wondered if it had been the right decision for Spike to travel to our farm. He was by far the most sensitive horse I have ever known, and we learned over time that it was very important for him to have a lot of trust and confidence in not only his horse friends but his people. Spike's lifelong preferred method of letting you know that something was not right in his world, and the something could be anything from physical pain to uncertainty about something in his pasture, was to not eat. He spent his first few weeks with us not eating more often than he did. To say this was stressful for us and his mom would be an understatement. I remember joking in our early days with him that I was going to start stealing Spike's GastroGuard so I could take it myself.

I consider Spike one of our best success stories. Not only did he make the transition, he blossomed. We had the pleasure of watching him transform in almost every way. He not only made friends with the horses, he was so confident he became second in command in the order. His soundness did nothing but improve. I remember his mom asking me one time if I had seen him canter. It shocked her when I responded that we saw him canter all the time, in fact we did not realize there was anything special about it. Spike would canter and gallop through the fields with his friends, often in the lead, and often throwing in a buck or two as well.

His first few months he would always watch anything new or different in his pasture with suspicion, be it a change in water troughs or a new hay feeder. Spike completely changed in this respect as well and after awhile nothing bothered him. A huge flock of wild turkeys walking through the pasture - not even worth lifting his head. A new horse in his group - he would be the first one to introduce himself. His habit of not eating when anything bothered him disappeared. In fact he became an absolute chow hound. He was always fed first in his group and anytime it was near meal time Spike was at the gate, sometimes banging it with his hoof, demanding that he be fed now.

When we moved Spike to the new farm last December of course we were nervous. Despite the fact that he seemed to have completely transformed himself into a new horse we could not help but worry about how he would handle the move. He put our fears to rest by walking up to the gate and demanding his dinner the day of the move. I said to Jason that Spike demanding to be fed after we moved him was the best Christmas present I received last year.

Jason and Spike had a special bond. They had a game that they played together after meals. When the "new Spike," the one that was a chow hound and loved to eat, finished a meal he would arch his neck, flap his lips, and make a grunting noise. It was Spike's way of saying "that was so good!" Jason would often perform Spike's post-meal routine with him. He would nod his head up and down and make a grunting noise along with Spike. After awhile it got to the point where Jason could walk up to Spike at any time and start performing the post meal ritual and Spike would do it with him. I always meant to take a video of Jason and Spike doing the post-meal routine together but I never did. I am really regretting that today.

We had settled into an easy rhythm of life with Spike. Sure, anyone could look at him and easily see the classic symptoms of DSLD/ESPA with his dropped pasterns. But they weren't slowing him down and Spike was living life to the fullest. Even though we knew he had advanced DSLD/ESPA it was easy to think that the day that it would catch up to him was at some distant point off in the future. How could you think otherwise when you were watching him cavort around the pasture?

We all know that life is precious and Jason and I were reminded of that the last few days. A couple of days ago Spike had significant swelling around one of his hind fetlocks. He was still being Spike but it appeared to be an ominous sign. We took pictures and let his mom know of the change, as in our past experiences with this disease we did not have a good feeling about where this was heading. The vet was out the next day to examine Spike. He was pretty certain that one of the branches of the suspensory ligament on that leg had failed, and it was time for some hard decisions.

We are so appreciative that his mom agreed with us and the vet that it was time to let Spike go. None of us wanted to wait until the entire suspensory failed on him. The arrangements were made for this morning.

As usual Spike was waiting at the gate for breakfast early this morning. The swelling in his leg had increased significantly. He ate his breakfast just like it was any other day. He finished eating a few minutes before the vet was due to arrive. As the vet was driving up to the barn Spike walked a few feet away from his friends and laid down, all the way down, flat out on his side. We had no idea what to make of this except that it was very, very strange. One minute he was perfectly normal, eating every crumb of his breakfast, and the next he was down on his side.

Spike hated all vets and could spot one from a mile away. Just yesterday he had been trying to get away from the vet while we examined him. He did not get up when Jason and the vet, the same vet he had seen yesterday, walked in the pasture. In fact he did not even lift his head. It was time and Spike could not have more clearly told us it was ok. As I said earlier he was the most sensitive horse I have ever met, and it genuinely seemed like he was telling us he agreed, he was ready. There is no other explanation. Spike passed easily and quietly. The whole time the vet was administering the tranquilizer and then the euthanasia Spike never lifted his head, never tried to fight the vet, never tried to get up. It was his last gift to us.

Rest in peace Spike, we will really miss you. Thank you for making this as easy on us as you could.

Spike and his mom

Spike with his family in British Columbia

Spike and Thor

Enjoying one of his frequent afternoon naps

Spike loved to groom with other horses; here he is grooming with Lucky, one of his most favorite friends. We used to joke that Spike's favorite saying was "with my friends Lucky and O'Reilly I can do anything."

Dozing on a lazy winter afternoon after a nice roll in the mud

Grooming with Lightening

Spike with some of his friends

Mission Accomplished - Moving is Done!

Finally we can say Mission Accomplished! Everyone is now happily grazing in their pasture at the new farm as of yesterday. As always everything went smoothly and the horses loaded and unloaded easily.

The first order of business for finalizing this move was relocating the Big Boys to a different pasture. On Friday morning they went for an after breakfast stroll and we led them to a different pasture. In Big Boy form they ran around for a few minutes acting like they were in a foreign land. Actually for the boys they were pretty tame and only ran around for a few minutes. Unfortunately the pasture is just huge which made it impossible for me to capture a lot of the exploring on video, they were just too far away or they were behind trees.

The Big Boys taking a look around their new pasture

On Saturday morning we were up and at it bright and early. Everyone had a very early breakfast and had their halters put on. Instead of wandering away from the gate after breakfast like they usually do they stood there and kept an eye on us, curious about what we were up to.

Kennedy, Stormy, Clayton, Johnny and Rampal watching us, wondering why they all had halters on. Johnny is saying "Dude, something is up, we ALL have halters on."

Kennedy was the first horse on the trailer, followed by Toledo. One by one they made their way up the ramp and backed into their stalls. Everyone was loaded in good time and away they went.

Toledo was a little unsure about the ramp but walked right on the trailer. He picked his legs up very high like a Walking Horse to minimize having to touch the ramp, it was cute.

Rocky waiting his turn

Gus

Faune

George

Asterik

After they were loaded we made our final field trip to the new farm. Given how long it has been since many of these horses have been on a trailer it has amazed me each time how well everyone has loaded. Of course it helps that we can start with a horse that we know will load well. Then everyone watches their friends walking up the ramp and they don't want to be left behind. The last horse to load is usually trying to drag us up the ramp!

Pulling in to the new farm

Winston was the first horse off the trailer

B-Rad and Alex watching the trailer drive past their field

Some of the Big Boys watching the new arrivals: Baby, Tony and Thomas

Leo and Chance watching the new arrivals

Clayton, Kennedy, Rocky, Toledo, Stormy, Johnny, Rampal and Tiny checking out their new pasture. They trotted and cantered around for a a couple of minutes and then settled on grazing with some walking. The allure of pristine grass was powerful!

Kennedy and Toledo

Clayton, Rocky and Stormy

Johnny, Rampal and Tiny

Stormy, Rampal and Clayton taking a good look around - they had just spotted the mares across the driveway

George and Asterik were the only ones in their crowd to do more than walk around and graze. Here they wow us with a slow trot.

Winston and Faune

Silver, Gus and Romeo

Fonzi and Chimano taking in the sights

In Memory of Billy

We lost a long term resident of the farm today, Billy the goat. Billy was with us on the farm for 15 years. His beginnings with us were unusual to say the least. Billy, Nanny (yes, we know, my dad is not the world's most creative when it comes to names) and their young kid Bubba were living under the bridge just before the driveway to the farm. We have no idea how they came to be living under the bridge and tried hard to find their owner, but no one ever stepped forward to claim them. We did not claim them so much as they claimed us. They just sort of . . . moved in.

Like any normal people would do when faced with stray goats my parents fenced off a special goat paddock for them. In addition to building them their own paddock my dad, after realizing that goats hate to be wet, also built them their own house that we fondly refer to as the "goat condo." Like I said these are the normal steps that people take when stray goats move in with you.

The goats have brought us a lot of joy and fun through the years. Nothing is more entertaining than watching goats play. Bubba grew up and would ram horns with his dad Billy constantly. In addition to the goat condo my parents also purchased them a custom made dog house (or should I say goat house?) and a dogloo. The doghouse and the dogloo were mostly used as objects to play on and climb while the goat condo is used for lounging around and getting out of the elements.

Billy walked with a distinct limp the last couple of years after surviving a coyote attack. He still loved to jump up in the air and ram horns with Bubba but he did not climb on the dogloo or the dog house as often.

The last few months he really began to show his age. Recently we noticed he was starting to have a lot of trouble chewing his food, probably because most of his teeth were gone. He was not able to climb or jump on the dogloo or dog house anymore. He was starting to go downhill hard and quickly, and the decision was made to euthanize him. It was a sad day.

Billy has been a wonderful babysitter to Mina and Jo, World's Cutest Fainting Goats, the last couple of years and they really miss him, as does his son Bubba. He also served as a wonderful companion and friend to many of the horses when they first arrived.

We know Billy was at least 17 years old as he wandered up to the farm 15 years ago and was at least two years old at that time. How much older than 17 he was we don't know. Regardless, as the vet said today, he lived a very long time for a goat. She also made the comment that Billy had a very soft landing in life when he moved in with us 15 years ago.

We really miss him. He was an extremely vocal goat and it it eerily quiet around the barn without him babbling away. Rest in peace Billy.

Visit from Lee

On Sunday through Tuesday we had a visit from tropical storm Lee. We were looking forward to it as the last few weeks had been very dry with no rain at all. On Sunday it was quite nice. A very, very soft rain fell for several hours starting Sunday afternoon which was perfect for the dry ground. The temperatures were warm and it was very pleasant for both people and horses (this said by the person who really dislikes being out in the rain!).

By Monday the rain was coming down harder and the temperatures had dropped quite a bit, from the low 90's down to the high 70's. At this point we were all saying that this was perfect. The soft rain of Sunday had prepared the ground for the harder rain on Monday and the cooler temperatures were a nice change. On Monday afternoon I was getting pretty grumpy. I was ready for the rain to stop and the temperatures to warm up. Jason and I both had on long sleeved shirts under our raincoats Monday afternoon, and Jason had traded in his shorts for jeans (I always wear jeans when working on the farm, not shorts). My problem with this is that I wasn't hot with the long sleeves and the raincoat. I should be hot in this attire in early September. Like I said I was starting to get grumpy.

It rained all night Monday and All. Freaking. Day on Tuesday. The temperature was right at 60 degrees and raining, with some wind. I had moved on from grumpy to full on witch mode. I was constantly having to change my clothes as I peeled myself out of my soaking wet clothes. The horses were also getting crabby. Everyone had moved on from welcoming the rain and cooler temperatures to cursing the rain and the temperature, even Jason.

Lee FINALLY moved on Tuesday evening and the rain stopped. Today was exceptionally pleasant after three days of non-stop rain, alternating between cloudy and sunny with temperatures still in the mid 60's which is incredibly low for this time of the year. Personally I would prefer the normal temperatures for this time of year which would be low to mid 80's but since it was not raining I was quite happy. From Sunday through Tuesday we had just shy of eight inches of rain. Thanks to the soft, soaking rain of Sunday the ground soaked it all up and there was no run-off and no flooding. The grass was already starting to explode today (at least this part made everyone happy) and we are preparing to put both the lawnmower and the bush hog to work in the next few days. The ground is not even muddy, just wet enough for the horses to roll and get really dirty.

After our record breaking drought in 2007 I told myself I would never complain about rain again. I have kept that promise to myself faithfully until the last couple of days. Bad me.

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Cuffie leading the way with MyLight, Cinnamon, Lily and Missy following

Wiz

Norman and Traveller having a grooming session

Levendi (Baby and Tony in the background)

Moe, Leo and Chance

Homer

Ivan, Hemi, Thomas and Apollo

Chili leading the way with Fuzzy, Sam, Murphy, Wiz, Sebastian and Renny behind him