December 27, 2022
Happy New Year, may we, herd and all, prosper with good health in ’23. 2022 stretched the learning curve, just a whole lot more than I liked. We survived. Fiona knocked a lot of us on our butts. It will be a while to recover from that blow. Today Allen and Erik set the bunk house, that is still tipped on it side, onto blocks so when the crane comes they will be able to get the lifting straps under the building. It was not an easy task, the poor thing was frozen into the ground. On my calculations they spent two hours at that task. Today was a management failure for me. I eyeballed the round bales in the field before Christmas week. The eyeballing told me that they would just be fine until the New Year. I was wrong. These horses are hay connoisseurs, as they were getting to the bottom third of the bales, they decided that was enough and not up to their standard fair. And so they went hunting through a wire fence and a pallet fence. Today Erik moved 10 more bales into the field. I put out the call for fencing help. My barn heroes, Heidi and Zoe, arrived and repaired as best they could. I think I will have to call the professionals to do some repair so we can put the Gallagher to the wire. The barn heroes have been so busy removing trees off the fence line and putting in T-bars posts, just to keep the herd in. As amateur fencers they have done a wonderful job. This herd is spoiled and need a good zap. I think it is time to find a professional fencer to give them that gift.
A job that was done every winter and needs doing again. Tack and more tack needs cleaning and assessment. Each horse has its own bridle. Saddles are a different matter. It is important that the saddle fits the horse. It also has to fit the rider. There are two saddles assigned to one horse. One to fit the youth, and the other to fit an adult. Our saddles are old, a leather saddle well cared for will last for many a year. I have a “Barnsby” that I bought used in England in 1956. That makes my ownership 66 years long, and I do not know how old it was when I bought it. It has been repaired only once. The neat thing about this model, it fits a lot of horses. I have a few synthetic saddles that have not stood the test of time. Probably no older than 30 years and the material is worn and torn. Horses change shape through the year. They may lose some muscle mass during the winter, and their top line will change. Until they build muscle again through conditioning you may have to shim up a saddle pad. I made some saddle pads for that very reason. I could add more foam when needed. But also I could remove the foam and wash the cover separately. The sign on the wall tells everyone. “If you fail grooming 101 and the pad is dirty, remove the foam and put in the laundry hamper.” It is important to me that their backs and skin are always cared for by having clean saddle pads. Whether you are riding or driving, clean tack is pretty classy.I consider our barn a teaching barn. I have information posted all over the place. Each stall is identified by the horse’s name above the manger. On the posts there is a bit of history, their age, breed and donor. Under that is their feed menu. On the door we have a poster with lung description, skeleton anatomy and muscle anatomy. Information that every horse keeper should know. On another door we have the Farrier Schedule and the Medical History Charts. The med chart has a record of their weight, which is handy because most medications are administered by weight. It is a record of when we deworm and vaccinate, also we record any extra treatments if there is an injury, nicks and bruises. We learn by observation and listening, but reading is important at the barn. Saves me a lot of nagging. Although once in a while I am asked a question, that is written on the wall and I know hasn’t been read. That is a $5 question that I charge. It doesn’t take long for the kids to read more. My thanks to everyone for their good wishes and generous donations to the Sanctuary since Fiona. Our barn heroes have been kind dealing with the ravages of that storm. Hoping 2023 bring less winds.
Love and hugs from Yogi and the herd.