December 10, 2020
Merry Christmas to all horse keepers. Despite the closing of all things entertaining, the farm has to continue daily with the care of horses, llama, cats and dog. Sunday the 6th we dewormed the herd. I was waiting for the hard hard frost, that has been slow coming. I noticed some Bot larvae in some of the horse buns. In my way of thinking it is critical to rid the herd of that one. I hate it when pesky critters ruin my nutrition plan.
I am in the midst of refreshing my medicine chest. I used the last of my Tetanus vaccine on Oliver. The herd is vaccinated in the spring, this year we used the 5-way vaccine which included Tetanus Toxoid. When a horse gets a serious injury on rusty metal I give the horse a booster shot of Tetanus toxoid, just to be on the safe side. A horse suffering from lockjaw is not a pretty business to deal with.
I also keep Butezone in the cupboard. It not only is for pain relief, but it also helps reduce inflammation. The next thing is injectable Depocillin for really bad infections. I do the majority of health management with herbs, but once in a while you need the chemicals. This year there were no abscesses or terrible infections, so the full 100ml of Depocillin is going to expire. That is okay it is a $10.50 safety feature in the refrigerator. In my experience most emergencies happen after hours, and it is 9 miles from the KVC pharmacy. My scout training tells me to be prepared.
Molly came for a stay. My protocol when a new horse comes to stay at the Sanctuary includes a new halter, deworming, vaccination, hoof trim, and because this new gal is 20 years she will have the ivories checked and floated if necessary, she will be isolated from the herd for 5 to 6 weeks in the barn paddock. She will not be alone, Tony Llama is very interested in being a friend. Every day she is gets a fussing and good grooming. Our fussing includes a good massage. It looks to me that her racing career was cut short with hock injuries, and the arthritis has set in, Joe’s Seaweed and Handibear’s hills will help that a lot.
Covid is throwing a spanner in the works of the Sanctuary. Volunteers are careful when they come. We have one more pallet fence to build, before I can say I am really, really, ready for all the management that winter brings. I am most fortunate to have Maxine living at the barn. She will be storm stayed the same day I am. I have a captive hostage to help.
I bought local! A lovely jaunting sleigh from Everett Stewart, who lives down the road. Material Girl ordered the plush for upholstery. It is quite beautiful now and we have been planning a photo shoot for our family of “Smalls” on the 13th. Costumes are on order, that man will be here! Distancing is required. Of course we also wanted to include anyone that wished to have pictures taken with the sleigh and Venka. That was planned for Sunday December 20th. We will be outside, and work very hard to comply with all the Covid requirements. Keep a close watch on our facebook page for updates. Plans can change, depending on the weather and the lovely Covid. These are different times and it is good therapy to hug a horse, and like life itself, the barn can give you lots of crap to shovel. We are fortunate on the hill to have a very efficient mechanical barn cleaner. Wishing you all the best that winter can bring. Be kind to one another. Love and hugs from Yogi and the herd.