Easter ride!

Everyone was sans urchins today, so we decided to go for a ride.

We decided on Montgomery County Agricultural Park so we packed a lunch, loaded up the horses and headed off to the park.

When we started tacking up we realized we were short a girth, specifically Bill's western girth. It was either drive back home and get the girth (an hour round trip) or not ride. Bill decided rather than not ride at all, he would 'cowboy up' and ride in the spare english saddle we had. Here is the proof of the one and probably only time he will ride in one of those!

Other than getting the stirrup lengths correct, it wasn't too bad, and he adjusted his stirrups on the fly!

Yes, that IS Mythril he is riding!

Steph, Mike and Steve..ever notice how most of my photos are of butts?

Steph and Mike on Bubba and Q


Steve on Austin.

For a couple of reasons we had to cut the ride short, but we had a good time after the ride, sandwiches, beer, and good conversation.

Dreaming of spring...

Spring is coming...

The horse owners 'winter sports'

On my way to work today, I was listening to the radio (WPOC). They were having a discussion about regional winter sports, what winter activity does your community get involved in. There were lots of fun sounding things mentioned, ice sail boating, ice kites, someone created a golf course on a lake (9 holes!), tobogganing, all fun sounding stuff.

Then I thought about my winter sports, as a horse owner. I too face great physical challenges, battling the elements to accomplish my goal. So lets list the horse/barn owners winter games.

1. Ice Chop - The sport of attempting to break up and remove ice chunks from buckets and troughs without soaking your hands (or feet if you have resorted to stomping). Tools can range from hammers to pitchforks to bare hands.

2. Water challenge - This sport is more of a long term competition, with varying levels of success. The Gold would be awarded to the person who has water free flowing from unfrozen spigots with thawed hoses into troughs with heaters. Mid range would be the people hauling water in buckets from the house. Last place are people melting snow with hair dryers.

3. Hay carry - The sport of carrying a 50# bale of hay accross ice patches, through knee deep snow, through a gate while fending off 5 giant 4 legged furballs who try to maul you for the hay.

4. Blanket toss - The challenge is to get a winter blanket on a spooky, snorting horse in the middle of a blizzard with the wind flapping the blanket and dogs barking. Bonus points if a snow plow blasts by with all the lights blinking.

5. Grain chisel - Chip enough frozen grain free from the bin to feed the horses.

6. Obstacle course - The game is to get the horse from the barn to the turnout without slipping on ice, falling in snow, the blanket coming off the horse, the horse spooking and bolting free, etc. Must pass scary plow/tractor, negotiate ridges of frozen mud, ice patches, inside out blankets sunning on the fence, dogs bounding in and out of the snow, etc.

Ok, what other events can you think of?

Snow, and new blankets

With a blizzard rolling in, I tucked everyone in to blankets.
Mithril shows off his new sporty plaid blanket. Purple, black, and blue are definitely his colors!

Coconut has a new blanket too, light blue with purple trim. Quite the fashion diva!

Not that they are interested in talking about their new clothes when there is hay to eat. Notice, that even though there is hay in their stalls, they would still rather be outside in the snow.

Shadow and Symphony are resplendent in hunter/navy and purple/black, respectively.

We are supposed to get up to 28 inches by tomorrow night. Tomorrow they will all get a yummy hot bran mash, with oatmeal, apples, carrots, brown sugar and peppermint candies!

Snow!

Ride!

Horse Poetry

This has been making the rounds on the e-mail lists. As I am approaching 50 with warp speed, I thought it was a good one to ponder.

I Hung up my Bridle Today

Yesterday, for the first time,
I was too tired to ride
I was afraid I would be hurt if I was thrown
I heard someone say my barn was too shabby
I let someone tell me I was too pudgy to ride
I realized I was old
I had to face that I could no longer keep up
I had to let go of my dreams
I felt my heart break
I turned my back on my friend
I knew I was done

Today, for the last time,
I felt warm, braided leather in my hands.
I ran my stirrups up so they wouldn't bang my mare's sides
I released the buckles on the girth and watched my girl sigh
I slowly dropped the bit so it wouldn't hit her teeth
I gave my mare a cookie to thank her for the ride
I buried my head in her soft, warm neck
I inhaled the sun and the dust in her long winter coat
I closed the gate and trudged to the muddy porch
I tracked hay and horse hair into my house
I pulled off my boots and felt the sting of warm blood returning to my
cold toes

Today, for the first time,
I cried after my ride
I felt my hands shake as I set the saddle on its rack
I hugged my young trainer a final goodbye
I waited for the new owner's trailer to arrive
I set my boots in a box to go to the Goodwill
I sighed at the wear on my riding gloves
I had no hay in my hair
I did not hear nickering when I opened my back door
I felt worse leaving the barn that I did when I entered
I had no one to check on before going to bed

Tomorrow, for the first time,
I won't have to buy hay
I can stay in bed longer
I won't see the poop pile grow
I won't be able to fly on four legs
I will be sorry I listened
I will regret letting her go
I will be angry at God
I will be angry at myself
I will cry the day away
I will be glad to die

Day after tomorrow, for the first time,
I will awaken in tears
I will know I was wrong
I will defy all the judgment
I will ignore my old bones
I will return the buyer's check
I will bring my friend home
I will take my boots out of the box
I will be reborn

For the rest of my life,
I will have a horse in my yard
I will ignore the cruel judging
I will watch the poop pile grow
I will have hay in my hair
I will track mud in my house
I will bury my face in her soft neck
I will let my soul fly
I will never be alone.

I'll never Hang up my Bridle, how about you?

by Kris Garrett
11-11-09

November ride!

Water hazards

It's summer time and 900 degrees in the shade. You are thinking about the river/lake/beach down the road, and wouldn't it be fun to take your horse in swimming! I agree, it is a lot of fun, and most horses seem to enjoy it too, but there are real hazards there, and if you aren't aware and cautious, it can mean disaster for your horse, and you.

Lets go step by step.

Footing

1. Is it safe to approach the water? Boat ramps into lakes can be slippery. Banks that are masses of reeds are probably boggy. Tall grass and brush can hide tires, other debris. Steep banks with faint deer trails are not a safe access. Deer weigh about 100 pounds, can climb vertical surfaces and can jump if they slip. Your 1200 pound horse plus you, plus tack, plus you pulling on their head to guide them will not be able to go down the same trail. Remember head room. You on your horse is a lot taller than you think, make sure you don't get scrapped off on a branch on your way down.
   
2. Is there a way back up? Just because you can get down, doesn't mean you can get back up. Esp after several horses have turned the bank into a mud pit. If you want to cross, make sure there is a way to get up on the other side.
3. What kind of floor does the water have? What looks like a clear, safe passage can actually be bog, quicksand, or a lot deeper than you anticipate. Rocky mountain streams seldom have this problem, but streams near lakes, bays, or swamps can be deadly deep bogs. Water in arid areas can create quicksand, just as deadly as the bog. Both can suck you down, causing strains, injury, and drowning. Ending up a lot deeper than you expect can also be deadly. Not all horses can swim. Remember rocks are slippery, and hard for a horse, esp with shoes to walk on. think about that before you ask your horse to pick their way through boulders and shale.
   
4. Is the crossing clear? If you can't see the bottom, be very cautious. Bodies of water often are dumping ground for all kinds of hazardous trash, as well as stumps and branches. The tire, or scrap metal you don't see can catch or cut your horses legs. Stumps and branches can catch legs, or hook on shoes pulling tendons and causing both of you to fall. Remember, it's not just what could be dumped here, it's what washes down stream. you may be in what looks like a pristine wilderness, but if a road or town crosses the river upstream, anything could be washed down.
5. Is your tack appropriate? Even if you only plan on going knee deep, you never know what could happen. Never ride a horse into water with a tie down, martingale, draw reins, or anything that would restrict their heads. It only has to be deeper than your horses chest for them to drown, if they can't raise their head. (Or if they don't have the experience or instinct to raise their head.) Remember when you go in water, things float, so make sure you don't have a lot of loose things (ropes, water bottles, etc) dangling off your saddle. They can float around and spook or tangle your horse. Make sure your tack is water appropriate. Leather stretches when it gets wet. If you have leather latigos you can find yourself with a loose girth, leather bridles can stretch, if it is salt water remember to thoroughly clean all your tack after the ride.
6. Is your horse prepared? Crossing a belly deep rushing river is not the time to find out if your horse crosses water! Prepare yourself and your horse by starting with small streams in the company of experienced confident horses. If you think the water will be deep enough to swim, make sure your horse is comfortable with that. Step them in slowly, or better, lead them in on a lunge line, and let them experience it without the weight of a rider. Some horses panic when they can't touch the ground. They can freeze, go into the prey animal shock, or thrash around. Be careful! Also, if you are going to the beach for the first time, even the most seasoned water horse will be unnerved by waves crashing down, and the foam chasing them. Be ready to do some desensitizing work.
   
7. Get good advance knowledge. If it is a known trail, talk to the locals, or better yet, get a knowledgeable guide. Even if you do though, remember, water is tricky, one good storm can change the entire geography of a crossing.

I have ridden horses on trails from GA to ME, and have yet to find a trail without some human debris on it. Never trust that you are in the wilderness, and there won't be a rusty pipe or plastic rings to snag your horses leg. I have learned the hard way not to trust any crossing.

When I lived in Annapolis, one of our regular trails crossed a creek. this creek was proably 1/2 mile from the bay. Muddy, but never too deep. We were riding in the winter and crossing it as normal. My friend on her trim little Arab trotted across, hopped the log on the other side, and went on down the trail. My 16 h TWH mare however, got halfway across and bogged down to her belly. She panicked, not because we were bogged in mud, but because her FRIEND LEFT HER! She reared up and in a move worthy of a Lipizzaner, leaped out of the creek and over the log on the bank. Doing this her 15 pound bone head slammed into mine and shattered my glasses. As she frantically charged after her friend, I put my glasses in a pocket, decided my nose had gotten hit too, then went on with the ride. Later I found out she had broken my nose. This was a known crossing, we had been through it many times.

Another time I was riding with a club (in the winter again). When we came to a stream, the person who was leading couldn't get their horse to cross. I was elected to lead the way, because my horse (again, my TWH horse Shadow) would always cross. I asked the host of the ride if the crossing was ok, because the water was muddy and I couldn't see the bottom. She said yes, they had gone through it on foot. Fine, I asked Shadow to cross and she hesitated. This should have told me something, but I pushed on. We crossed the creek, and just as we got to the other side, Shadow fell in a hole next to the other bank. I rolled off, and Shadow was hanging there, front legs folded up on the bank, the rest of her handing straight down into the muddy water. The hole was so deep my 16 hand horse couldn't touch the bottom. We eventually got her out by taking her front legs, and rolling her over in the water to solid ground. Then I got to ride in a wet saddle with wet clothes for another hour. Remember, even with a local guide, be cautious.

For a few years I boarded my horses near the Bay Bridge. At that time, we were allowed to ride our horses in Quiet Waters park, and take them in the water at a little side beach. (no, this is not allowed any more) We were careful, because the shipping channel was close, so never took our horses more than chest deep in the water. One time after one of the hurricanes had been through, we took our horses to our little beach, and were riding them in the waves, about knee to belly deep. I didn't want to go deeper because had my cell phone in my saddle bag. As we waded out a bit further, suddenly nothing was above the water but my head and Shadow's ears! It seems because of the storm, the channel had shifted (the channel at the Bay Bridge is 300 ft deep) and we were in it! Shadow came up snorting, and started swimming for the shore. She completely ignored me until we are on the beach, and then stood there refusing to go back in the water. She made it plain that this was not funny, and she wasn't happy about it. Fortunately for both of us, she figured out how to swim, and later would come to enjoy it a lot. But it could have ended very badly for us. We had been riding there for over 2 years, and thought we knew the safe places to ride. The cell phone did not survive the encounter.

This is the same place I encountered a pony who couldn't figure out water. Another time we rode there, I loaned my 13.2 pony gelding to a friend, and we rode down into the water. I looked back at my pony, and while he was willing to go in the water, the waves were breaking over his nose, and he couldn't figure out to raise his head. He was snorting water and getting panicked, his rider had no clue. I told her to take him out and we didn't take him there again.

Another winter ride, this time in the Avalon section of Patapsco. Again with my horse Shadow (yes, this horse is a saint). According to the map I had, there was a crossing below the dam. I was trying to ride different trails, so we decided to go for that crossing. I get there, and there are no markings. Since this was a popular area, there was no obvious trail. We had two options, a very rocky crossing, or across smooth sand. I looked at the water, which was very clear, and thought the sand crossing was quite shallow. I didn't like the rocks, so we headed across where it was sandy. Halfway over, suddenly I am wet to the waist, and Shadow is smoothly swimming across. She wasn't bothered, as we had been swimming for years by then, but this was Feb, and again, I had an hour long wet ride back home. My friend crossed at the rocks, and laughed pretty much the whole way home.

Be cautious, and think ahead! Many thanks to the MDHorseperson list for contributions to this discussion!



How not to dress for the beach...

It's show time!

I don't show any more, but at one time I was a regular in the show ring. While I did have a goal, promoting the versatility of my breed of choice and earning Versatility Certificates, I never was a truly serious competitor. I just wanted to have fun. Plus, I know from my life experiences, if I took myself or my showing too seriously, the Universe would take her revenge!

My first show I was too broke to buy a morning coat to show in, so the night before the show I was up until 3 am sewing a skirt suit into a morning coat. it worked so well I had people asking me where I got it. This was the same show where I borrowed a western saddle for the western classes. The saddle didn't fit well, and my horse wasn't happy. (yes, it was Shadow) In the 3 gait class, when the judge called for a canter, Shadow bucked all the way around the ring. on the reverse, she did it again. Of course I didn't pin, and in the line up the Judge told me with a grin that he couldn't place me in the class, but he would give me an 85 on the ride. I loved that judge, he was sensible, fair, and funny.

I have shown at fairground with ground bees and the ring plowed like a field with huge dirt clods. (Anne Arundel fairgrounds) I've shown at the Howard County fair, which always seems to fall on the hottest most humid day of the year. One year a friends horse coliced and impacted. As we waited for the vet, she suddenly got a brilliant idea, loaded him in her trailer. He immediately pooped, and colic was over. Made perfect sense once we thought about it.

I have shown up at a competitive trail ride without a bridle for my horse. Yes, I know, brilliant. Fortunately it was the mighty pony Iceman I was riding, and I said what the heck and jumped on him with a halter and two leadlines. We got third.

The most fun was the larger shows, where we trailered up the day before, stalled the horses and stayed there for the weekend. Lexington, VA is a favorite. We rented an extra stall, and camped in the barn. They had hot showers, and food, and Domino's Pizza delivered to the barns. We rode our horses bareback in the dark around the rings, stopped by all the other barns to chat, and stayed up most of the night talking and eating pizza. It was great fun.

Lexington is also where I got a blue ribbon in western reining because according to the judge, we were the only ones who got the pattern right. Who knew all those years of having to memorize a jumping course in 5 min. would come in handy!

Remember as you show to think about your partner. You horse doesn't understand about ribbons, they only do this to please you so make sure you keep the show fun for them. Bring them hay, water, flyspray, and some treats. Don't tack them up at 8am and sit on their back all day, give them a break to graze, take them for a walk. At a show is where I have found out the most interesting things about my horses. They will eat ice, drink out of a cup, drink Mt Dew right out of a bottle, eat pretzels, and are very patient while little kids pet their nose of sit on their backs. If shows stay fun and interesting for your horse, they will do better.

Everyone have fun out there this summer!