The four-legged kids.
The people at my barn are trying out a very sweet off-the-track Thoroughbred. She’s a big bay mare with a lot of heart. Fascinating to learn about the differences with Thoroughbreds who have raced and what that means they are used to (like someone mounting and then walking off immediately). A barn name hasn’t been…
The weather was perfect at the barn. We had a nice quiet ride (more on that in another post). At the end of the evening, the fog settled over the pasture. Evenings in Tennessee always looked like this, but it isn’t something I see very often in North Carolina. Related Images:
It’s been a while since I did much posting here. I had a huge backlog of saved posts and things I had wanted to write about and haven’t yet. If you see a sudden flurry of blog posts that are dated in November, that’s why. I’ve finished most of the posts about the new phone….
Equine insurance is almost as much fun as people insurance. Almost, but not quite. Don’t get me wrong: I’m very glad I have insurance on Kasane. When Isis needed colic surgery, the only way I was able to afford it was because of the insurance. Here’s the catch: Once you make a claim for an…
Where did October go? I suddenly blinked and it was gone and November is looming large. December isn’t too far behind, judging by the Christmas crap that’s appearing in the stores. (Christmas crap = the tacky decorations that get shoved on unwilling consumers to encourage them to buy buy buy during the ever-extending holiday season.)…
I didn’t realize until today why I have been listening so much to a song by Bat for Lashes called “Horse and I.” It’s because it feels like a song for Isis and I — and fits in with a short story I’m writing about her. “Horse and I” by Bat for Lashes Fur and…
The quality of the light is different as summer fades into fall. The humidity haze burns away and is replaced by a golden glow at dusk. I couldn’t wait to get out to the barn on Tuesday. It was perfect riding weather. I would only have enough time to do a little with Kasane besides…
The vet came out today around noon and saw Prize. She was much lamer today than she was yesterday. We added extra bedding to her stall for some extra padding. She still just looked like she hurt, poor girl. The vet had some good news: he’s almost 100% sure it’s not laminitis (yay!). He thinks…
When I got to the barn this evening, I had two surprises: Kasane was covered in hives (happened last year too) and Prize was in her stall. I called the barn manager to ask about Prize and to see about giving Kasane antihistamines for a few days. The barn owner and I had been playing…
Last week at the barn, we had a special jumping session to introduce the horses to some of the crazy things you might come across with jumps. Sylvana and Tara came up with some crazy, amazing jump “enhancements.” Okay, most of the time you probably won’t be asked to jump stuff animals or comforters. We…
I went to the barn tonight to ride Kasane. It was a lovely evening: mild weather, light wind, bright sun. I brought out all of our tack to the outdoor ring, so she could eat and play while I got ready. At one point, she looked up from eating, and took off down the length…
After the power outage this afternoon, I packed up my gear and headed out to find a place with free wifi. The Sheetz station has a cafe with free wifi, so I headed there — and to the tack shop behind it. The tack shop is going out of business so everything is 50% off,…
For those of us who grew up on a horse breeding farm, the directions on the Stud Suds jar make for hysterical reading. In this case, the “studs” refer to metal studs that can be screwed into the bottom of horseshoes like cletes. It doesn’t mean the jar will let me fit a stallion in…
I never expected to be having great schooling rides bareback. We’re walking and trotting bareback and I’m not losing my seat any more. The differences in how Kasane responds to my aids are subtle but amazing. For a while, we had trouble free lunging. She’d race from one corner to the next and not pay…
Saturday it poured and poured and poured. We had several inches of rain over the weekend. In between rain showers, I went to the barn to play with Kasane. I walked out to the field and found her laying down. She was so cute and tired. She let me walk up to her and kneel…