The work of spring started a few weeks ago with pasture maintenance and re-seeding. However I know it is really spring when I have calluses on my hands from the shedding blade. And as I type not only do I have calluses on my hands but my hands are actually both tired and sore from gripping the shedding blade so much today! Some of the horses are shedding a lot and some are shedding a little but the shedding blade, shedding daisy and curry combs are all working overtime these days.
Few tasks are more satisfying than de-fuzzing a woolly horse while enjoying fabulous weather. Nothing motivates you more to keep going than the super shedders, where your pile of hair grows with every swipe you take. After working on a super shedder it is somewhat disappointing to work away on a horse that isn’t shedding nearly much.
For those who have asked for a Miracle update she is doing well. She is very friendly and quite spunky. Despite the fact that she is “kid broke” under saddle she has been taught very little in the way of ground manners. We’ve been practicing walk when I walk, stop when I stop, etc. Next we’ll work on having our hooves handled, she also needs to learn how to tie, etc. so we have plenty of things to keep us occupied. I don’t drill her, just spend 10 to 15 minutes working on the basics. As a friend of mine said it is no surprise that they can ride her into the ground without bothering to teach her anything else, not to mention the other horrors she was subjected too.
Tuesday morning I was working in the barn and Miracle was in a stall. She was tired and I could tell she needed to sleep. She did lay down but made sure her head was positioned on the hay. She fought to keep her little eyelids open even though she was clearly exhausted. She did not want to stop eating and this was why she was fighting sleep. She lay on her side in the stall in dead horse position, still picking up bites of hay and eating. She never eats particularly fast but she rarely stops eating. It was so sad watching her fight sleep, taking bites of hay while down. Hopefully the emotional scars of hunger will fade for her over time.
I hope everyone has a lovely weekend. I see many hours with the shedding blade in my weekend outlook!
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A video of Miracle racing around in a paddock. At the 13 second mark she jumps the goats’ teeter totter – she’s a spunky little girl!
Regis and Noble playing
Sky and Miracle hanging out together; Sky was introduced to Miracle yesterday and she has babysitting duties for now
Silky and MyLight
another run-in shed under construction
Gus, Chimano, Romeo and Asterik
Clayton napping in the morning sun
Justin
Cuff Links and Harmony
Tiny, Romeo and Johnny
Murphy and Dutch
Rocky, Toledo and Kennedy
Some of the hair I removed from Lily today; the pictures simply do not do justice to the massive mound of Lily hair that was on the floor and we still have a lot more hair to go!
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