Done and Done

The last couple of weeks have involved an almost non-stop stream of farriers, dentists and vets spending large chunks of time at the farm. It has felt like every day was a long marathon as we started very early (think 5am start time) and finished very late. Today was “only” a 12 hour day and it felt like we only worked a half day or something.

However the good news about working an insane number of hours is you get a lot done. Yesterday we had our last visit with the equine dentist until late summer or early fall. Half the horses have now had their yearly dental. The rest of the horses will have their turn in the dentist’s chair later in the year.

Today we had Vaccination Day Part 2. All of the horses have now been vaccinated. We carried on with our routine of running a strand of electric tape in each pasture to pen the horses up by the gate. The horses carried on with being most upset about this new fence. As they did on Vaccination Day Part 1 the horses did a lot of pacing and walking along their new fencelines. They milled around, they stared, they marched along the temporary fence over and over, certain that with each pass they would finally find an opening that would allow them to escape this tragic existence they suddenly found themselves in. When that failed they tried to pull halters off each other. They came to the gate and stared at us with disgusted looks, then they went back to pacing. Staring and pacing and staring and pacing is the name of the game on Vaccination Days.

Calimba, Maisie, Cuffie and Norman looking decidedly unhappy. Cuffie is looking at me saying “I would like to speak to somebody in management immediately.”

Lily saying “This is not what I signed up for when I moved here. Where do I complain?”

Baby looking most unhappy while he and Levendi marched along the temporary fenceline

Thomas and Tony pacing

Apollo and Thomas walking along the temporary fenceline looking for a way out

Grand and Moe. “Keep walking Moe, there has to be a way out of here. Just keep walking.”

While the horses used every possible method of non-verbal communication to show us their displeasure Jason and I smiled back at them. As the Big Boys paced, stared and milled around at their new fence I said “sorry boys, there’s nowhere to run this year.” But I really wasn’t sorry and they knew it. It was so satisfying to know that we had foiled the runners before they even had a chance to run. The horses felt so defeated no one even tried to walk away, apparently if you can’t run away it isn’t worth the effort.

Jason and I enjoyed the thrill of victory as the horses felt the agony of defeat.

We are happy to have two big items checked off our spring to-do list. Vaccinations are done and half the farm is done with the dentist for another year. Yay for getting things done.

Some of the horses that had their teeth floated yesterday included Silky