FreeRepublic Saddle Club thread! - Thread 12

[HairOfTheDog]

The FreeRepublic Saddle Club - (very out of date) Who's Who *pics*

This is a horse chat thread where we share ideas, ask for input from other horsemen, and talk about our riding and horse-keeping. We have a lot of different kinds of riders and horses, and a lot to share, usually about our horses, sometimes about our dogs, gardens and other stuff we do. :~)

I have a ping list for horse threads that are of interest, and MissTargets will ping everyone most mornings. Let MissTargets and/or me know if you would like to be on the ping list.

So... like the previous threads, this is intended as fun place to come and share stories, pictures, questions and chit-chat, unguided and unmoderated and that we come together here as friends.

Previous threads:

The FreeRepublic Saddle Club thread - thread ONE
The FreeRepublic Saddle Club thread - Thread TWO!
The FreeRepublic Saddle Club thread - Thread THREE!
The FreeRepublic Saddle Club thread! - Thread FOUR
The FreeRepublic Saddle Club thread! - Thread FIVE
The FreeRepublic Saddle Club thread! - Thread SIX
The FreeRepublic Saddle Club thread! - Thread SEVEN
The FreeRepublic Saddle Club thread! - Thread EIGHT
The FreeRepublic Saddle Club thread! - Thread NINE
The FreeRepublic Saddle Club thread! - Thread TEN
The FreeRepublic Saddle Club thread! - Thread 11

New folk and occasional posters, jump right in and introduce yourselves, tell us about your horses, and post pictures if you've got them!

[HairOfTheDog]

If that pony is unlucky she'll flip the hay out and on to the other side of the wall where she can't even get it :~)

I liked that there was no hay wasted this morning, it was all cleaned up. I think even a bungie cord over the top of the rack would hold in the hay. Gonna try that.

And no one messed inside last night, but I think the lean-to is going to remain the toilet, so I'm going to look at it and think today. If I dig out the wet spots, on nice dry days like this it'll dry out pretty good through the day. But come November nothing dries just getting air, it just stays wet if you don't add dry bedding on top. Hence the buildup before.

[FrogInABlender]

That’s great about finding a riding buddy. It’s so much more fun to have somebody you can count on to be up for a ride. Kari and Shirley and I had a nice ride out in the Forest yesterday. I rode Ellie again and used the hack on her this time and she did MUCH better. Her gait is really settling in too and she’s turning out to be a really nice, calm-natured trail horse. There were a few places where a tree had fallen and partially blocked the trail with lots of branches and vines but we were able to kinda squeeze underneath. You really had to take your time and manuver your way through the vines to keep from getting you or your horse hung and she was real good about stopping and letting me lift them up over hear head and not getting me drug off. I was pleased.

[FrogInABlender]

Yeah, mats would definately be your best bet in the lean-to for the wintertime, but maybe if you can just keep the poo and most of the wet stuff forked out that'll be good enough. That way it won't build up quite as quickly or as high.

[FrogInABlender]

In other news, I finally pulled the trigger and bought a new truck on Saturday. It's a 2007 Dodge Ram 2500 Quad-Cab 4X4 Diesel. These pictures were made at the dealership right before I drove it home...

I pulled the trailer with in on Sunday and it was really nice. Of course I got it filthy on those dirt roads in the Forest so I had to wash it when I got back. I think that's the worst part of having a new vehicle. You feel like you've gotta keep it clean, at least for a while.

[HairOfTheDog]

If we don’t have hay out there, it doesn’t get all matted and woven together, so it’s easier to clean, I’ll just have to not get tempted into throwing old hay out there on the pretext of soaking it up. Shavings OK - hay bad.

Gonna do the math on what it would cost to mat it and think seriously about it again. We’ll see what it does to my mood when the rain starts. ;~)

[HairOfTheDog]

WOW- NICE TRUCK! :~)

[FrogInABlender]

Thanks, I like it, so far anyways. I'm sure I won't like it quite so much the first time I have to fill it up and it costs me $100. I'm going to drive it to work long enough to get the first 500 miles on it and break it in, which'll probably take about a week with the way I drive, but after that it'll probably mostly be a driveway ornament. I'll just use it to haul or when we go on trips. The old beat up Jeep will still be my everyday car.

[PayNoAttentionManBehindCurtain]

Oh, wow great truck!! man you are set now aren’t you. New truck AND trailer:)

Becky

[HairOfTheDog]

Well, you’ve got a good trip coming up to really break it in :~)

[PayNoAttentionManBehindCurtain]

I was thinking of suggesting bungie cords across the top.

I saw one of those DIY shows where they built a ball holder in a garage. They made a 3 sided wooden box, open on top but with a flat board with holes drilled in in it, and a flat board across the bottom, and bungie cords up and down all across the front. You could put the balls in the top, and reach in thru the bungie cords to get one out. It was pretty cool

I’m think you could put bungie cords across the top, and still be able to get the hay in.

Becky

[FrogInABlender]

...New truck AND trailer:)

Yeah, that takes a lot of the worry out of hauling. And now I can load up 3 or 4 horses in my bigger trailer if I need to. I've done that with the Jeep before, but that was when the babies were smaller and was only for a few miles on country roads. Now I can take them anywhere I need to. And I don't have to borrow a truck to haul hay anymore. I've got to get a gooseneck hitch put in it though, incase I need to use my FIL's big ol' cattle trailer. I could get all 9 of 'em in that if I had to, but it'd be tight. I've got to get the brake box installed too. It came with the plug and all the wiring though so it shouldn't be any big deal. I also need a 4 inch drop-down receiver for the hitch. I put the one off of the Jeep on it, just so I could use it on Sunday, but the front wheels on the new trailer were almost not touching the ground when it was empty, and with the suspension on that thing, it didn't drop down a WHOLE lot with 2 horses in it. And speaking of high, I need some darned step rails too because it didn't come with any. I just about have to pole-vault to get into it! ;o) My list of "things to buy" seems to have gotten bigger all of a sudden. :-/

[PayNoAttentionManBehindCurtain]

My list of "things to buy" seems to have gotten bigger all of a sudden. :-/

LOL...it's always something isn't it...and it's stuff you need, not just want too...so what to do:). Well, It's all very nice, good for you.

Well, the bob cat is finally here, so I'm off to move some dirt, and trees, and what ever else gets in the way:) I'll be in and out all day.

Becky

[FrogInABlender]

Sounds like fun! I love doing stuff like that. Be careful though. We don’t want you running over yourself or flipping over. If you’re there by yourself, keep your cell phone within reach, just in case something happens. </mother hen>

[HairOfTheDog]

Take pictures! I sure wish I had a bobcat around here!

[HairOfTheDog]

I’ve been making progress with one of the feral cats I’ve been feeding at night. I’ve been setting out food on the porch and keeping the dogs in as much as possible after dark, and there may be as many as three total who are regulars. Can’t really tell as I mostly see them as a blur at night. There’s one little calico kitten, hard to gauge how old, but not full grown, who didn’t completely run off last night when I came out onto the porch. She’s been retreating and then turning around to look when I call and shake the food dish. Last night she crouched in the yard at the edge of the porch light and I just sat down and stayed quiet, to see if she would come back up to the food. She did come up and sit at the edge of the porch, so I sidled up where I could crack the door open and asked ecurbh to bring me tuna. I set the bowl of tuna out within reach and that smell brought her in to where she was just a couple feet away. I got to where I could reach out to the bowl and slide it closer to me, and she’d spook but then return. If I was quick, I might have been able to get a hand on her, I could touch the bowl, but not her. I didn’t want to grab and miss, I might not get another chance. And I wasn’t sure I wanted to grab a wild cat without falconry gloves on! :~) I think I’m going to try tonight to see if I can set up the cat carrier and get her to go inside for tuna and shut the door.

If I can get ahold of her, I can stick her in the back room till she gets a little more handle-able, and at least keep her from getting pregnant till I can get her spayed.

[MissTargets]

Congrats on the new truck! Sure is sharp and black is my color. Yes, you will need running boards on that baby! How loud is the engine?

You just feel so much safer with a new rig. What surprised me, was that there few quite a few Dodges at the camp this weekend. Normally, all you see are Fords and Chevys.

So, Miss Ellie was a good girl this weekend, gosh she is sooo tempting. (smacks my face and says NO, not now)

[Beaker]

Woo woo! Nice truck!

[PayNoAttentionManBehindCurtain]

I need some darned step rails too because it didn't come with any.

Hell Frogie you don't need no stinking step rails, as excited as you are you can just jump in the thing. :)

Very nice Truck!!!

BigMack

[FrogInABlender]

I wouldn’t try to grab her coz you’ll ruin her trust. Just keep on with the sitting quietly and sidling closer. That’s how I tamed Miss Pearl. She was born feral and wild as they come but now she’s the worst bed-hog you’ve ever seen and really can’t get enough petting.

When I first started with her, I’d put the food out, then just stand there by it until she came to the dish, then I’d walk off. Then I got to where I could sit by it and look off into space. When she got to where she pretty much ignored me, I’d reach out and just touch her on the back. Of course the first several times she’d about flip over backwards and run off, but then she’d come back. So I’d let her eat a while longer, then touch her again. Then she got to where she ignored that so I worked it up to a little bit of a back scratch and she tolerated that so we just went from there, working on up to a neck scratch and a head scratch. She still doesn’t like to be held, but she’ll come lay on my chest on the couch. It’s gotta be on HER terms. Typical cat!

[PayNoAttentionManBehindCurtain]

Oh, sorry, I forgot the before pictures....But you did see the spot with the tall weeds that I couldn’t mow because of all the dead fall in that spot...I’ve got all that picked up and moved to one pile now to burn out in the pasture..The stuff small enough for me to load by hand I brought back to my fire pit so we can have something to burn for the bonfire night.

I got Harley’s stall leveled back out inside...He always stand on one side when he is in there, and poops on the other side...I think he must paw at the side he stands because it was alot lower so it stayed wet. That has been the main reason I’ve been wanting the bobcat, It worries me him always standing in wet.

I’ve still got to do Rocky’s stall. This year it’s started filling up with water when ever it rains. It’s never done that...but I’m not sure how to proceed on his side....I’m just not sure how to fix the problem.

And I still want to work on my driveway. I have two spots that fill with water and are big dips that need to be filled in....they need a base of rock tho... I’ll get some before pictures of the drive, and Rocky’s stall, altho I think it will be hard to tell what the problem is in his stall from pictures. His run slopes down to his stall, always has...so I’m not sure now why it is filling, how to change the flow, because his run is mostly rock...I think I’m just going to have to wallow it around, and hope for the best.

Becky