Snowstorm

And the horses love it. Ben and Sally rolled around, kicked up their heels and played in it before settling down to the business of disposing of a great pile of hay.

I snapped this pic of Ben as he stopped for a moment before turning to trot across the paddock again.

Sally

Sally streaming past the fence line at dusk. She looks like a ghost horse. For some reason, I like this photo.

It's Spa Day!

 

And the horses couldn't have been more thrilled! In fact, had they suddenly been blessed with the ability to communicate verbally, they could not have articulated more clearly how perfectly delighted martyred they felt at having been led away from their pile of hay to stand for the farrier. The entire enterprise was accompanied by deep sighs, face-making, half-hearted attempts (when they decided they were just soooo tired, too tired, in fact, to stand up) to lay on the farrier, and other minor bits of nonsense. Of course, my horses are simply too well-mannered and polite to engage in any real misbehavior (they pick up their feet when asked and never offer to kick, strike or bite), but because the day was warm and humid, all they asked of life was to be allowed to eat, drink and laze the afternoon away. Standing for the farrier represented work, and, as anyone who is owned by horses knows, equines avoid work most assiduously when possible, particularly on hot summer days.

  

Mr. "B" (our farrier said I could use pics of him as long as I didn't use his name. He simply doesn't need any more clients) works on Ben's right front hoof. Mr. "B" is an excellent farrier; he takes his time, lets me know if anything might be amiss, gives me suggestions on hoof care and never, ever loses his cool with the horses. Farriery is seriously hard work, and he does a fantastic job.

Ben having his back left hoof done and...

 ...making faces at me (I'm holding him) while Mr. "B" re-sets his back shoes. Ben is a really tall horse (17.1h), which tends to intimidate people; however, he is also one of the sweetest horses I have ever met. He just turned 24 years old this past April.

 Nicely trimmed feet.

Then it was Sally's turn...

Getting her in place. The Guineas seem concerned.

And the trimming commences. Mr. "B" uses a rasp to file down parts of the hoof.

Sally bears her fate with patient resignation. Actually, she's very nearly asleep.

Sally had thoughtfully rolled in some mud just prior to her appointment with the farrier and I didn't have time to brush it off, so she looks a little, well, muddy. At 25+ years old (at least), Sally is our Old Lady, but she still likes to go riding, provided she doesn't have to go very far, or move very fast. She has a very smooth, sweet little trot and is an all-around nice horse.

Here we are in the homestretch - last hoof that needed a trim and re-set, and then Sally was free to return to her stall where, along with Ben, she received several apple & carrot treats by way of compensation for the indignities visited upon her person, along with a couple of flakes of hay and a re-fill of her water bucket.

Ah. Life is good.

More Progress...

...but of a different kind.
I think it was 16F this morning when I got up and went out to the barn to feed the horses, cats and chickens. I didn't even bother opening the door to the run for the ladies (and our suddenly self-important rooster, now known informally by the acronym SIR) until later in the day; I just turned on their light and let them stay snuggled inside. Their coop is actually quite cozy; aside from the fact that the structure itself is fully insulated, the chickens themselves put out quite a bit of body heat, more than you'd expect.

The temperature is supposed to moderate later in the week; still, I can't complain - it is December, after all, so every day that isn't miserably overcast and bearing a malevolent wind or laced with snow or freezing rain is a blessing.

Shortly after the morning caffeine revival (I have never been more exquisitely thankful for coffee than I have been since moving here) we assembled our tools and headed out to one of the many projects we are currently working on.

We took down two old paddocks and have been putting up new ones. This is the largest one. It was a cold day when this photo was taken (obviously).

Today's quota of work. The remaining second and the entire third row of boards should be on this week. There is still much to do, but it's coming along. We have pasture for the horses, but the goal is to have a couple of large, well-constructed paddocks as well. This is the (almost) end result of the preliminary work posted in the earlier photos of the Horse Fencing post - one large paddock.

Ben, in one of the spare stalls, waiting while his stall is cleaned and new bedding laid down (and his feed and hay are brought in). This big guy is all heart. He and Sally joined our family nearly eight years ago, and with our family they will remain, Lord willing, until the end of their days, hopefully many years hence.

They're Here!

DH and our neighbor, to whom the rig belongs, and who so kindly consented to haul our horses from boarding, arrived with them in tow this morning. Unfortunately, the driveway had been narrowed by a previous owner and the trailer couldn't make the turn, so the rig had to be parked off-site. We made certain no vehicles were approaching before unloading Sally and Ben (not that we live in a congested area...it's the country, after all). Thankfully, our horses are well-behaved and came off the trailer without any fuss or feathers.

Ben carefully backing out of the trailer. Yep, those are burrs in his tail. He seems to attract them...or go looking for them. Not sure which it is, but at any rate, he is in for a good grooming. In fact, an equine spa day may be just around the corner (feet, manes, tails...the works).

Sally, led by our neighbor. She grows such a remarkable hair coat every winter that she truly resembles a plush toy.

Ben at home. Ben is an ex-racing Standardbred, and, at 17.1 hh, is a pretty big boy, tall for the breed. He is extremely gentle, however, and very good on the trails.

Sally, her nose in hay. What else matters? Not much, unless it's Triple Crown Senior Feed - that usually gets her attention. Sally is an "older" horse (just how old, she won't say), but still in great shape!

This is the lower right side of the barn - home to our four barn cats and now Ben and Sally. It is pretty. The other side features an additional two stalls and the tack room.

Awesome neighbor Heidi - a woman with tremendous energy and enthusiasm. We've really enjoyed getting to know our neighbors.

Did someone mention barn cats? I think I may have done, a few paragraphs prior...which leads me to introduce Shadow, one of four kitties who call the barn (and a warm tack room where they sleep and eat) home. Shadow is technically a feral cat; however, I can pet her and she is a most loyal companion, following me as I make my rounds. She is a registered TNR cat (Trap, Neuter, Return) and to show that she is part of a managed colony, her left ear is tipped.

She's well-fed, vaccinated, spayed and very healthy, not to mention a very pretty girl. Yup, she's family.

Horse Fencing

Spent the entire day with DH and a couple of helpers from neighboring farms, a six wheeler, a truck, concrete, crushed stone mix, a tamping tool, shovels, and fencing posts. The posts are finally in the ground, and the 120'X 80' paddock is ready for either boards or vinyl coated electric fencing (decisions).

There are some additional details to attend to, but hardest part is finally complete. I am beyond sore and extremely tired; however, I fell asleep too early in the evening (napped, really), now I'm awake and annoyed with myself.

The only remedy for this state of affairs is a good book.

The photo illustrates that we couldn't make up our minds whether to pound the fence posts into the ground (Method 1), or use an auger to drill holes and pour concrete to fix the posts (Method 2).

So we took a chain saw and shaved off a bit of each post, anticipating that, yeah, Method 1 was the way to go. However, when it became clear that we were not going to be able to obtain the necessary equipment (an apparently Herculean task) to have a go at Method 1, we decided we liked Method 2 better anyway. Hence the pointy posts turned upside-down in the post holes, and a paddock that is somewhat reminiscent of a medieval encampment, surrounded by pikes.

Anything potentially dangerous to the horses will be removed before they even lay eyes on their new digs. Safety first!

(More art to come, btw...I've been gourding, and two new drawings are in the works. Studio time - tomorrow, absolutely, even if I have to drag myself up there, which seems rather likely.)