Posted on 08/07/2007 7:33:14 AM PDT by HairOfTheDog
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!
Yeah, I’m pretty sure it did. I bet the owners never come forward...
So how is your weather now? The pictures you posted yesterday just looked miserable...yuk. I feel for you.
Becky
At the moment it’s a little gusty but mostly a rain event. We’ve had gusts to 34. It’s POURING. To say it’s rained 2 inches overnight doesn’t sound like that much! Remember the pictures from last year with that big lake in the pasture? We have that again.
The peak winds will be around 6-7 am local and high till it looks like around noon. They’re predicting 25-35 gusts to 45ish, but who knows. They’ve got 100 mph gusts at the coast.
It’s really warm now... 52. Pineapple express! Horses are double blanketed from the cold still but with all this rain and wind I don’t think they’re hot. I’ll check and evaluate when it gets light.
Weather is so crazy...about 2 hours after I posted we were warm and humid yesterday the temps. had dropped 20 degrees and it got really cold..today we are suppose to be back in the 50’s and as of now they are saying 70 again by next Sat...
Becky
So when did Patty Stiller come back? Did she have anything to say about her exit?
Becky
I think she said “OK - I have to post on this” regarding something that had been posted. I think since that one barefoot chick she fought with so much hasn’t been around much either, she decided to come back.
That’s horrible about those people abandoning those poor dogs! How people can do things like that is just beyond me. They could’ve at least taken them to the shelter where they wouldn’t just starve to death. And you’re a saint for taking them in like that!
Hey! Congrats on the shooting competition! I like the outfit too.
Here's a few pics from our ride...
Me and Miss Ellie coming down TheSteps...
Going back up...
Amy on Shane negotiating a boulder...
BladeRider and Blade doing the same...
Down the bank to the creek...
Everybody having a cool drink...
Back up out of the creek...
Across the bridge...
Then up the hill...
and on down the trail...
Man that makes me cold just looking at it!
I had to take off my buckskin jacket to shoot, I was afraid all the fringes would get stuck in (1) my revolver hammers as I drew; (2) my shotgun; (3) the lever action of my rifle.
Needs. More. Practice.
Crazy weather here too. It rained overnight (thank goodness! we need every drop!) and it was fairly warm at daybreak this morning, then the wind picked up and the temp dropped like a ROCK. It’s almost noon here and still in the 30s, and the wind is blowing more than is comfortable. Branches down all over the yard. We had the tree man in to trim just in time!
Great terrain and obstacles you’ve got! That little rut you’re riding down looks fun.
And the steps... as always, tricky.... the loose pavers at the bottom of it don’t help!
Our winds are proving not too bad, others around us got it worse, so I think we were in the lee of something. Good deal.
It is pouring though, and humid. 54 degrees. The horses finally came in the barn when it got light out and we took their under blankets off (yesterday it was freezing) but put their outers back on. I’d almost leave them off it’s so warm, but they wouldn’t dry by tonight if I did. Doing that work with three horses in the barn was like working in a sauna. And meanwhile, the pony wants to roll in the shavings. So we had three horses and us in a 10x24 space, and one of them is rolling.
LOL!! Sounds interesting. But at least they get along for the most part so that's an advantage.
I had an interesting day yesterday. I decided to try out my new grinder on the horses feet. So I go to the barn yesterday morning around 8:30 to feed and of course I have to clean up a barn-full of poop from the all night hay buffet the night before and I'm trying to decide who my victim is going to be while I'm doing that. I had about decided on Grace, but Miss Ellie just kept hanging around the door so I just opened the gate and let her in and started with her. And I had the added challenge of having to pull her shoes first. They'd been on nearly 9 weeks, which is 3 weeks longer than I usually let them go, but the clenches were still plenty tight so I tried this trick that one of the guys over on the Abrasive Hoof Trim group had suggested and used a Dremmel tool with a cutting wheel. Now that was interesting! I had her foot up on the stand and my face shield on and sparks were just flying everywhere. But the little angel stood there and never gave me a minutes trouble, aside from trembling a little bit when I first started. But it worked pretty well even though it took a little longer than I had thought it would and ended up using up the whole little wheel in the process. But the guy was right, the shoes did pull off pretty easily after that. It definitely beats using a clench cutter and a hammer.
So once I had them off I put her foot up in the cradle and got the grinder out. I had no idea what she'd do when I turned it on so I just held it out to the side and bumped the switch a little bit to see. She flinched a little bit, but nothing to speak of so I just bent on down and went to it. She startled a little bit the first time it touched her foot, but after that it was just like running clippers or anything else that you might do, and actually may have even been a little better than when I did her feet with the rasp. I'm assuming that's because I wasn't pushing and pulling on her foot as much. So I was pleased so say the least. It took me about as long as it did with the knife and rasp, but I did have to pull her shoes and use the nippers to get off the excess hoof wall first, so think that'll change as I get the hang of it a little better.
After that I went on over to the in-law's and did Truly and Goose and they did about the same. I had been a little concerned about how Goose would do because I've had a little bit of problem with him and the clippers, but I did Truly first so I guess he had a chance to get used to the sound of it before I got around to him. He did give me a little bit of trouble on one back foot, but then he did that with the rasp too so I can't complain about that too much.
So overall I guess I like it and will continue to use it. And it'll really help that I don't have to worry about keeping a hoof knife so sharp anymore, because I never could do that very well, and I won't be running through a $20 rasp every few weeks either. The flap-disks that go on this grinder are $1.75 a piece from an internet supplier and the Abrasive Hoof Trim guy says that you can do 5 to 7 sets of feet with one disk as long as you get them really clean before you start. Mud and poop will clog one up quicker than anything. So there you have my long and boring story. But what else have you got to do on a rainy slushy day? ;o)
Well that sounds interesting! Glad they took to it well. If you can manage it with a helper, I’d like to see pics of this tool in use sometime, I’ve never seen a farrier use a power tool to trim.
Just thought I’d let you all know, Harley is going to the vet again tomorrow. I don’t know what’s going on with him, but he is very very lame again...worse then the first time. I noticed it Fri. evening. The splint seems about the same...I didn’t clean out his feet to see what I could see, and his frog looks funny on that one foot...it seems white chalky flaky...any ideas? I’ve never seen a frog look like this. So I guess it could be something else wrong with him other then the splint.
Anyway...he’s probably going to be around here all winter...no selling him like this.
Becky
Wow...I’m very impressed that you do this yourself, AND how well your horses handle it:)!!!
Good job.
Becky
Oh dang. Sorry. Can you take a picture of it?
When I go out later, I’ll try to remember the camera.
Video him walking too....
When it rains it pours:\
Becky
Is it the same leg as the splint?
Yeah, I think so...but now that you ask I can’t say for sure...my mind is gone.
Becky
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