Naughty Pony

I ran to the barn yesterday to see Ms. Denali. I haven't been out all week (see yesterday's blog) and as a result I felt guilty. She was in a good mood and fine walking into the barn. I put her in the cross ties and started to de-junk her. She's so dirty. She smells like a dead animal. She just had a bath a few weeks ago, she's blanketed, and isn't a dirty horse. It's still gross. Bath time again I guess.
I had her in the cross ties, and was getting some of her stuff together when our trainer dropped something big in the back of the barn. Well, if that didn't put her into a tizzy! She was just besides herself. I got her to calm down without too much of a disaster. I got to meet and yell at the new 4-H kid. She came running out of the office RIGHT BEHIND DENALI when she heard me yelling at her to "WHOA" then, while still standing right behind a freaking out Denali she proceeded to tell me that she knows that she shouldn't stand behind a horse that's upset. Yes, yes, I'm glad you know, but can you move now and explain later?

Denali's a great horse, but when she gets scared she'll kick out if she bumps into something and can't see what it is. After her freak out, she kept biting into the air. She always bites when she gets nervous/upset and I don't get it. I wish I could get her face when she's pissed, because she WANTS to bite me, but she knows that she can't. She squints and it's awesome!

Leave me alone Iz was scared

I proceeded to clean out her feet so that I could let her go burn off her pent up energy in the arena. When I got to her right hind I cleaned it, and when I let go she tried to kick me! Yep. Ms. Denali TRIED TO KICK ME but, I used my new ninja kills and I caught her leg. I don't know how I did it, but we were both in shock. She quickly realized she was in deep shit and tried to take her leg back. She got a smack and then stood perfectly still.

Iz the best pony in the whole world. Do not believe her lies. Iz don't kick mom. Shez lies. Send treats.

Bad Pony Mom

I have been a horrible, horrible horse mom this week. I haven't been out to the barn since Monday. Work had me swamped and I was trying to get everything organized for the Ice Cream Social that my class hosted. Yep, 10 1st, 2nd, and 3rd graders with Emotional/Behavioral disabilities HOSTED an ice cream social. We had around 30 people come to our room and my little guys seated, them, took their orders, made the orders and cleaned up. They did AWESOME! I was so, so impressed, especially since our first two practice runs looked more like Hell's Kitchen.

Some things we need to work on next time.
1. Seat people who come together, together. (We had some people come and one of the "waiters" would seat one at one table and another at another table.) Still cute!
2. When you're taking ice cream cones out to people, if it's dripping DON'T LICK IT!

That's about it when it comes to things they need to work on. They were adorable. I taught them to hold the trays on their hips and to put the pen behind their ears. They all had little chef hats on that we made. I was a very proud, tired teacher. Here's a picture of the aftermath.

Bare Foot vs. Shod

I always have this a feeling that if you want to stir up trouble with horse people discuss horses hooves. Just like anything people have their own opinion and some are pretty adamant that their way is the "right way."

Personally, (as in my opinion) I think it's great to be able to keep your horse's feet natural, but you need to do what is best for your horse. It always drives me crazy when people tell me that TB's have horrible feet and they need to have shoes on all 4's. My first farrier put shoes on all 4 of Denali's feet because she had "horrible" feet. Yes, they were not great, and I didn't know any better.

Just because your horse is a TB does NOT mean that they have horrible feet. I'm betting (and can't be for sure) but racing TB's are feed a diet to give them the energy that they need to be able to run over long distances. The feet are shod, and are not given much thought. Denali's feet were horrible when I got her, splintered, cracked, dried. After two years her feet look so much better. It's amazing what a healthy diet can do. I do think that there are some horses that just proned to bad feet, but again, a TB does not mean that you automatically have bad feet.

After that ramble, I'm not going to lie. Denali has shoes on her fronts. Her back feet look great, and Denali's front look good, but without shoes, with in days they are pancaked. I realize that it's hard for the hoof to get healthy with shoes on, but I trust her farrier. He does a great job, and always, ALWAYS watches her move, checks out the health of the foot, and always asks me questions and answers my questions. He does his trims based on the wild mustangs. I think it's called a Mustang Trim. He rolls her toes. I could be wrong. Don't quote me.

Where Denali lives she doesn't have any place that would help harden her soles. I tried going barefoot with her once (see bad farrier) so even a year later I'm nervous. My goal is to get her barefoot and keep her barefoot. Someday.

I have a few friends who have their horses barefoot. They have their property set up in a way that helps keep the foot healthy. Their feet look great! A few years ago I met the most amazing lady. Pat Wagner, she is amazing and really knows her stuff. Before I met her I thought that shoes were just the ways it should be. I didn't know. She taught me a lot through e-mails, and conversations we had about Denali's horrible farrier care.

Last week I was thinking about Laz, and my heart was breaking... I couldn't imagine what Kristen was going through, when I thought of Pat. Pat lives in WA, but she knows her stuff. I've seen her take horses with horrible hoof conditions, and save their life. I passed her info on to Kristen, and Kristen contacted her. Long story short, Pat gave Kristen another natural hoof care provider in her area. As I write this he's there...with Kristen and Laz, and I'm just dying to know what she finds out!!

What are your thoughts on keeping your horses feet? Do you feel strongly one way or another? I think personally, that you should do what's best for your horse, but WOW there are some horrible farriers out there... for both natural and shod horses. I've seen some amazing (NOT) horses feet. They didn't look healthy at all.

Umm....What the hell?

Apparently this is some type of art? I could be wrong, but seriously?! WTF?

Dear Jerk (Part 2)

You won't believe this one... our brand new truck? It got broken into last night. The same way that our car was broken into. I'm so pissed! Seriously!? They stole the stupidest things! Why must people be so rude? This is why I prefer animals over people (except our followers, you're awesome!)

I'm thinking about dressing all in black and hiding in the bushes at night. Go all ninja on them!


I've spent the night researching:

I tried explaining to Denali that you don't use weapons when you're a ninja, she disagreed and prefers to take them out using a semi-automatic. Her treats are in the car....she cares very much about those!!

SO's (Significant Others)

This isn't exactly Pony related, but kind of....

As I lay on the couch recovering from a migraine, I thought I'd talk a little bit about my husband (who ran out to get gas in my car so that I don't have to, after making me dinner.) He's such a great guy. My female friends all think he should teach their SO's how to be better husbands/boyfriends and my guy friends keep telling me they're going to throw him out of the "guy" club. :)

My Valentines day flowers, and my pre-Valentines day flowers

Reasons that my husband rocks:

1. I bought Denali while he was working at in a remote field camp in Alaska (in the arctic circle.) He had no phone, and no e-mail. I wrote him a letter explaining to him what I had done (even after we discussed NOT getting a horse due to $$$) and he didn't divorce me. :) He did go running to find a satellite phone, to call to see if I had really done what I said I did. Yep! (I won't pretend that he was totally fine with me purchasing a huge financial burden, but he didn't divorce me... :) )

2. He puts up with me smelling like horse, my car smelling like horse, my clothes all smelling like horse.

3. He puts up with the fact that I go to the barn around 3 nights a week, every weekend and I am rarely home for dinner on time.

4. He has me call when I leave the barn and has dinner waiting for me when I walk in the door.

5. He doesn't get mad at me when I willingly hop out of bed at 5am to go to a horse show, but throw a 2 year old fit if he wakes me up at 8am to go run errands with him.

6. When the vet informed me that Denali was sick, and that it would cost at least $2,000 dollars to treat her, he didn't blink an eye and questioned why I was asking him permission.

7. He's not a "horse person" but he loves Denali and she loves him. I still joke that someday I'll need to buy my own horse. Those two have the weirdest bond. He only sees her around once every two months, but she LOVES HIM!!

8. Even though I'm a teacher, and he's in grad school/researcher, he doesn't complain or make a huge deal over the fact that it costs us $450.00 a month JUST for board.

9. When Denali was a Psycho last January, I sat down and started making her an ad on dreamhorse. He informed me that I wasn't allowed to sell "Our" horse, and that I'd just need to think of something else. I told him it would cost more money to find a better barn, and he said, "So." (If you knew my husband, he's very money conscious and is always trying to save for retirement.)

10. He's my best friend. He understands how much that four legged, money burning, time stealing beast means to me. He doesn't get mad or upset with me, and I don't know if he'll ever understand how much that means to me.

If you want to hear a hilarious story, I'll need to tell you HOW I met my husband... I'll let your imaginations run wild right now...

How do your SO's deal with your horse obsession?

Once Upon a Time....

Do you know what I hate? Pathological liars. Hate might be the understatement of the year, and I usually can tell when they are lying, but continue to ask questions just for fun.

Let me tell you a story....

Once upon a time there was a horse. This horse was very famous in the PNW because he bit a certain kill buyer. His owner was a very selfish woman who obviously didn't care about him, since she "requested" that he went to slaughter.

Fast forward. There is a girl who is looking at a horse. The horse is amazing, beautifully built and nicely put together. He is an OTTB, and still young. The horse is owned by a friend of mine and the girl who is looking at the horse use to board with me. I've been told by many people that this girl is a liar. I've always wanted to give her the benefit of the doubt and ignored many of her stories that I knew were not true, just because I always try to see the good in people.

Another few days go by. I get text messages that the horse was sold to the woman who dumped the first TB at the auction. I was shocked, especially since the 2nd, younger TB looked SO MUCH like the first one. I asked the girl if I could contact someone to look into the situation. She said sure, but she didn't want her name mentioned. I agreed and contacted this person to look into it.

The story seemed so real. She described to me the truck, trailer, the woman, that it was her name on the check. That she was there with a check for $3,000 offering the horse, but that the owner said he'd rather have the $5,000. She told me with frustration in her voice that he didn't want to load, that he knew that he was going with an evil woman.

The next day she sent me texts (which I still have saved if you care) describing how she overheard a certain trainer talking about this new horse she went in on with the woman who sent the first horse to slaughter. (Still following me.)

I gave this information to the person who was helping me. She contacted the owner, and some things were said that weren't very nice (or so I was told.) I start to realize that the girl who went to look at the horse was lying. I tell her she needs to call the owner and tell her that she did. She tells me that she did. I decide to call the owner and explain what happened. I didn't want people who both have the same passion to be angry at each other because someone decided to come up with an elaborate story that I believed. The owner, thankfully, believed me and totally understood. She's mad. She's upset. But, not at me.

The next day. She calls the girl. She asks the girl what happened. The girl then proceeds to tell the owner that I MADE UP the whole thing! WTF! Seriously? Luckily the owner and I have known each other for some time and she knows that I'm not that kind of person. The owner finally got her to admit that she lied. Why? That's what I want to know. Why do people do crazy things like this?

In case you missed it. The horse in question, the one who supposedly went to the woman who sent her last one to slaughter? She's not with her, I don't think she even knows he exists. He's in a very happy home.

The girl then sends me an e-mail telling me that people have called her phone and told her she's a horrible owner, etc. etc. I find it interesting since I talked to both the other women and neither of them gave out her number. I asked her to not contact me again. Really? I'm almost 30, the last thing I want to be involved in is drama. You started it. If you'd like to finish it the right way, that's great, but when you drag my name through mud and say that I AM THE ONE LYING, as my friend puts it, "So not okay!"

We'll be back to our normal pony loving broadcasts tomorrow. I just needed to vent. Since I can't vent to other people because I don't want to spread the story around, I figure I'd let you hear it. I'm sure she's saying horrible things about all three of us. I don't care. You can only cry wolf so many times.

Happy Birthday Denali

Denali had a good birthday. Her dad took off of work early (thanks honey!) to come see her. He went and got her from the field, and she was a very good girl. We took her to the front field and let her eat grass then brought her in to eat her cake. She wasn't really into it. She eats hay with much more gusto than she ate her cake. The other ponies LOVED, LOVED, LOVED the individual cakes I made, so I don't think it's my cooking.

I got enough courage to ride her. She was really calm, really good, but about 2 minutes into it I got scared and quickly ended our short 10 minute ride. I don't know what my problem is. I need lunge line lessons on her to feel good on her. She's such a good girl. In my heart I know that I'm being ridiculous and stupid, but the fear that overtakes me, it's so real and it's so scary. I talked to my old trainer tonight (I MISS YOU!) and was trying to explain to her how I felt about riding Denali, she's good to bounce ideas off of. I asked her how "wild" Denali was at our last barn and she agreed with me that she was a !@#$ing basket case! I need to get over the fact that was a year ago and she's calmed down a lot. She has a good 45 days on her, and hasn't been totally out of control for some time. I KNOW I can ride her, I KNOW that I can stay on if she bolts, but I just can't get it through my head. As I sit here I'm still sick to my stomach. I'm ridiculous!

We also had Marianne come visit us! Denali liked to feel so special! It was a good birthday, aside from the fact that she is afraid of her Lik-it in her stall. lol. :)

Also sending good vibes to Kristen and Laz!! I'm praying for a miracle!!

I've had a long drama filled weekend. Check back tomorrow for THAT explanation. I didn't want to taint Denali's birthday with drama.

They Say It's My Birthday

Today the world's most beautiful, most amazing TB (who's named Storm City Slew, can't let it all go to her head) was born! It's the second birthday she's had with me, and I'm hoping for at least 20 more. I have everything loaded in my car, and the plan is to run out the door to go see the princess and spoil her rotten.

The recipe for this years cake goes as follows:

1 cup dry oatmeal
1 cup flour
1 cup shredded carrots or apples
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
1/4 cup molasses

Mix ingredients in bowl as listed. Make little balls and place on greased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes or until golden brown.

I put mine in a muffin pan and they turned out just fine! Denali's cake is the same thing, just shaped like a huge cake :) I'll take lots of pictures and post them tonight or tomorrow. Happy Monday everyone!

Sunny Sunday

Do yous have treats fors me?

Today was beautiful! I was up late last night making birthday cakes for Ms. Denali. She has her own cake, then I made individual cakes for all the other ponies at the barn. She's been very good, she must know it's her birthday! She is getting a new Lik-it for her stall, cherry flavored, along with an insert that is like an Uncle Jimmy ball, but I think it will be less messy than the ball.

Denali's Birthday Cake

Denali's "cupcakes" to share

Today was beautiful! I was up late last night making birthday cakes for Ms. Denali. She has her own cake, then I made individual cakes for all the other ponies at the barn. She's been very good, she must know it's her birthday! She is getting a new Lik-it for her stall, cherry flavored, along with an insert that is like an Uncle Jimmy ball, but I think it will be less messy than the ball.

I was up really late due to some horse drama, I couldn't sleep. Plus, my husband was away, and I let my mind run wild.

This morning I went to my lesson at 11. Today I rode an old Eventer. He was a huge TB, but the smoothest trot I've ever ridden. I could have ridden him all day. I feel like I did a better job of sitting the trot and doing it right. I also cantered on the old man, it was the sweetest ride ever! He was like a giant 17.1 hh rocking horse. I tried to sneak him in my car, but he wouldn't fit. ;) I think Denali needs a boyfriend! Seriously, I LOVE HIM!! :) He reminded me of Yukon, and that made me smile.

Ran and spent some time with the girl. She was in a really good mood, and very well behaved. We got the driveway re-done at the barn and the big machine was still parked there. Ms. D was pretty sure it was a scary monster that was about to jump out and kill her. We walked past it a few times until she figured out it was fine. Then she started to lick it.

I ran to my car to grab some stuff and she started licking my car too. She got really into it. It was hilarious!

Quickie

I'm waiting for my cake to cool so I can go to bed. It's almost midnight, and I have a lesson in the morning. Ugh. Excited for the lesson, not so much the getting up. My husband is off skiing for the weekend (he deserves it!) so I spent the day at the barn. Ms. Denali is off on NOT ONLY her left hind, but also her right hind. Her left hind is still swollen from when she cut it, and her heel is warm on her right hind. She kicked the fence a few times, and now I'm wondering if she's getting an abscess. She also has to small cuts out of her hoof wall. Very small, but now I wonder where she got them from. I'm thinking of bubble wrapping her permanently.

Seriously Denali! I'm going to let her know tomorrow that sick ponies don't get birthday treats. I'm not sure there is anyone else (other than the hubby) who I'd be willing to stay up late to bake a cake for. I guess not so much a cake as a huge treat shaped like a cake. She turns 6 on Monday. What the hell was I thinking when I bought a 4 year old?!

Middle School

Is it just me or is the horse world bare a scary resemblance to middle school? Is it just me? I hate, HATE, HATE drama. I'm the first to turn tail and run when it rears its ugly head. Seriously thought the amount of drama that is in middle school, and the amount of drama that is in the horse world....equal. Is it like this where you live?

Perfect Day

Today was the last day of my vacation. I did NOTHING over break that I was planning on doing. My garden still needs to be cleaned up, my house still needs a good spring scrub, and my classroom is a disaster. Oh well. There's nothing I can do about it. I work much better under pressure. I always have, I'm a procrastinator at heart. I spent yesterday sitting on a park bench looking at the mountains. I never get bored of them.

I spent the morning getting my lessons together for the next 5 weeks. I wanted to be semi organized before school starts on Monday. I had the copier going from 9 - 12 today. I have PILES of papers all over. I figured this weekend I can go in and get everything organized....OR...I can go play with Ponies. I'll give you a guess of what I'll choose.

I ran out to the barn today and got to watch Denali's lessor ride her. D's leg is still a little swollen, but nothing like she was the other day. I watched for a while then couldn't take it. I ran and put on my pants/boots/helmet and stole my pony back for a short spin (after they were done.) I have to say, there is nothing like sitting on your own horse. She's just so comfortable, and I feel really good on her back.

I just wanted to walk around the arena without freaking the !@#$ out. I feel successful at that. It's funny, I forget how super sensitive she is to your seat. I kept telling myself to take deep breaths and calm down. Each time I did her ears would relax and she'd put her head down. As soon as I'd tense up again, up her head came and her ears went on alert. I need to remember this. I still don't understand how she feels that through a leather saddle. I can sit on her back, squeeze my butt cheeks together three times (like the Wizard of Oz) and she'll back up.

Denali was in such a great mood today. She was super cute, and extra lovey. It was fun to be around her, it was a great day!! Her new blanket came, so I switched out her heavy weight winter blanket for the lighter weight one until it starts to stay warmer during the day.


Hopefully the nice weather stays. When it rains, Denali gets board and does things like this:That reminds me...I need to go buy a board.

After riding I went to Sam's Club to pick up some Nature Valley bars to put into SOMEONE'S 6th birthday cake for Monday. I ran in after riding, so I still had my pants and boots on. I was asked by an old man if I'd groom him. (No.) Then I was asked by two teenagers if I was really riding of if I was just trying to make a fashion statement. Yes. I woke up at 8 am and spent HOURS getting myself this dirty and smelly as part of my fashion statement. Sigh.

Oh, and if you need a good laugh read this. IT'S HILARIOUS! I went to high school with her, and just love reading it.

I love my Vet

I love my vet. She always makes me feel better when I'm having my overanxious, first time horse owner moments. I was trying to decide if I should call her and drive her nuts with my EPM questions. I was trying to calm my self down, but then I read this and that didn't help my fears at all. I wanted to read that once treated that horses are fine, and no recurrence. Apparently not the case.

We scheduled her teeth to be done the last week in March. I originally scheduled to have them done with a different vet to save the farm call. I figured I'd need to have my vet out anyway to do the . She said that if Denali is still hurting herself that we'll re-do the nero tests (if nothing positive shows up between now and then.) If the nero tests show regression then Ms. D will be going to the Equine Hospital for a spinal tap. Not the best news, but not the worst news. It could always be worse AND there is still not 100% proof that something is wrong. I just have this gut feeling that something is up, and I can't get over it. At least with an appointment set I can feel better.

I called the Equine Hospital and asked them for their rates (for pony saving saving purposes) and it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. Sedation is between $20-60 and the actual procedure is only $250 plus the lab work, plus the hauling fee. I'd say around $500. I thought it was $500 for just the tap. Then we go from there. I guess the way we'd go about it now is a spinal tap now, treatment, then a spinal tap again. Again, just a WHAT IF senario. That's why I have this blog, so I can fret and worry and not drive my husband totally insane.

Selfish me doesn't want to put all this training ($$$) into her if she's going to keep having problems. Of course I'd never let anything bad to happen to her.

Done rambling for now. I'm sure she's fine. Going to the barn and going to make the poor thing put up with me doing all the nero tests that I know. She's fine, she's fine, she's fine....I'm anal...

I think the first few lines of this song should be my theme song....

Comments

I have made it so "anonymous" users can leave comments now, although why you wouldn't just want to be a follower is beyond me ;0) Be nice! :)

@#$ it!!!

Where do I start. Remember how my knee was hurt? Well it's doing a lot better! I've ridden twice this week, once at the other barn and then I had the lesson at my barn today. I decided, since it was a beautiful day I'd get Denali and let her run around the big front pasture. Well. Guess who's hurt!? Shocker right!? god damn it Denali!!! She has a big cut on her left hind. I have 0 clue as to how in the hell she did it. The cut is scabbed over already, but the leg is still swollen. Either I'm hurt or she's hurt. GRRRRRR..... At least she'll have a matching set. Sigh. The missing hair on her right hind is from her sonogram in December. Damn horse! I KNOW what the vet said about the chance of EPM coming back is, but still I can't help but worry. I would love to find someone who treated a horse for EPM and what they were like when they came back from it. I wish I was a bazillionaire, I'd take her to the large equine hospital for a good check out.

Despite the swollen leg, that wasn't going to stop Denali from being a naughty pony. The front pasture is pretty big. It isn't used in the winter for turn out so as a result it has a lot of grass.

Sweet...delicious grass....

Ms. Denali was pretty excited about the grass, so much that she didn't want to run around. I thought that was fine with me. You're legs swollen (but not hot) I let her eat, I talked to a mom and a little girl who were walking past the farm. The little girl was in love with Denali, but Denali wanted nothing to do with them. MUST EAT GRASS. The little girl asked if she could take pictures of her, and I said of course! Apparently the little girl's sister was taking a lesson with my trainer.

After about 15 minutes I decided that was enough grass for a belly that hasn't had it in several months. I walked up to Denali with her halter/lead rope and she TOOK OFF. My horse, my sweet, obedient horse took off. I took it as a fluke since she hasn't done that since the first few weeks I owned her. I shook it off and I walked up to her and she did it AGAIN!

Denali. Seriously!?

At this point I got mad. I gave her one last warning, and the I left. It was funny, she stopped dead and looked at me like "What? I thought we were playing." I hiked up to the barn and got the lunge whip. One of the barn kids (young adult? She's 16) laughed at me and came to help me. I went into the field, tried to get her one last time (she ran off) so I took to running around like an idiot chasing her away from me and keeping her moving. Someone driving past stopped and took pictures of her, which I thought was funny. What can I say, she's beautiful when she's in her pissy trotting mood.

23 minutes. For 23 minutes I chased that stupid horse around the field. Eventually she came up to me with the look of "what? WHAT!? I'm tired." (Thanks to the 16 year old for the photos)

Silly, silly horse! So after that display of naughtiness I took Ms. Denali to our other favorite place at the barn. The round pen. I did a lot of work with her in the round pen when we first came to our new barn. We worked on transitions and listening today. She works really well in the round pen, it's much easier for me to get her to focus when I'm on the ground.

Funny side story: Last year I was working her, and I stepped forward of her motion to stop her, and I asked her to turn. HOWEVER, I stepped too close to her shoulder so she reared up, turned and came back down then looked at me like, "what now." Opps!!


Back to Today!! She did a very nice job and we were done. I took her into her stall and was just hanging out with her (the door was half open,) when two horses were led past her stall. She pinned her ears and went to snap at me. I hit her on the nose, and of course felt guilty, but I am not a snack.


Enough rambling. The lesson went well. I worked on transitions. I honestly just don't feel like I have my body in the right position. I wish there were some magical robot horse I could put my saddle on and ride and have it tell me what I need to fix.


Check out this Hottie!! :) I think this is the only picture I have of myself on a horse before now. :( I rode the same horse every week for 5 years and I have not a single picture. Great riding gear right?! I think I'm 5 in this photo.

Ebay Giving Works-SCR

I love horses (duh!) and I love helping horses in need. Being that I bought my first horse at an auction, and know how horrible a place it is, I never want a horse to have to go through there again (because it only goes from bad to worse if you're not bought.)

I can only rescue one, but I can try to help others. If you're a "fan" of Hercules the Horse on facebook (I made the page, probably the only thing 1,000's of people will ever follow) you can now donate directly to Second Chance Ranch the place that pulled him from the kill pen and gave him a new chance at life.

Second Chance Ranch is now signed up with Mission Fish, and that means that when you sell things on eBay, you can put down a percentage of the sale price to go directly to the rescue. The other great thing? The fee is waved. That means it doesn't cost you anything to donate. Clean out your tack lockers and give! If you have a rescue near you that you support instead, check to see if they are on the eBay Giving Works list of non-profits. It is easy (or so I was told) to fill out documentation.

*Disclaimer* I have nothing to do with Second Chance Ranch. I volunteer, that's it. I don't want any of my stupidity on here to ever be linked to the Ranch. Anyone who saves horses from slaughter gets a plus in my book :)

If you are a Fan of Herc, (and why wouldn't you be?) then check out the discussions. There is a brand new pair of shipping boots with 100% of the profits going to SCR.

I will write more ramblings later. :) Boy does my butt hurt today from riding yesterday! Lol, I forgot what it was like!

Click, Click, Click

I'm back, I'm alive, and I'm a little less bitchy (key word: little.)

I went into work to clean the fish tank out. I'm in charge or raising Salmon, and I'm pretty sure I should quit teaching and go into farming fish. According to the paperwork I got with the eggs, they should be hatching this week or next. They hatched January 11th and are about 2 inches long. Needless to say they put a lot of stress on the tank, but I don't want to release them yet. They are fun and I'm pretty proud that this is my first year in charge of the tank, and also the first year the eggs hatched.

Remind me to tell the story of my classroom when I taught middle school. Short synopsis: 2 guinea pigs turned into 13 VERY quickly.

Anyway, I was a nervous wreck all day. I don't know why. I've been like that all week. I left work an hour and a half early for my lesson. Yep. An hour and a half. I stopped and bought some coffee, decided to pay for the guy behind me, and ended up having a very nice chat with a very nice old man. He was counting out his change to buy a coffee, I couldn't help it. I'm a sucker for grandparents. He was going bird watching, and was pretty excited about it. I like doing nice things for people, random acts of kindness make me happy.

That still left me with an hour, but I left anyway. Turns out I'm glad I did. I thought I knew where the stable was. I even envisioned it in my head. Turns out I was totally off. Since my GPS was stolen I had to rely on the handy maps. I got to my lesson with 10 minutes to spare.

I really liked the arena, indoor with amazing footing. I rode a QH who was once National Champion for Halter. He was pretty, and he was safe. Just what I like. My instructor was really good. She said a lot of things that helped what I already know click. I signed up for three more lessons, but that's going to be it. I can't afford more than that. My husband already puts up with the horse. He's amazing and understanding, but not THAT understanding.

I have another lesson tomorrow with my trainer. We'll see how that goes. I called to ask how Denali was doing. She's back to her spring habits. Mud = mud puddles = fun. Denali loves puddles of water. She loves jumping in them, and she loves playing in them. It's fun to watch. Check out this video from last March.

Re-Introduction

Hi. Let me Re-introduce myself:

I have zero desire to WIN first place on my horse, I have all the desire in the world to put my horse FIRST.

I am confident that with the right rider, she could go far, but that rider is not me, and I don't want her going anywhere.

I do not own the world's most amazing horse (in my OPINION I do), nor will she go Grand Prix, but she is mine, and I wouldn't sell her for a million dollars.

I am a re-rider, this time dressage, 10-15 years ago, I did hunter/jumper at a barn that would probably be featured on the fuglyblog.

I am learning. I am learning about dressage, I am learning about riding, I am learning what it is like to take on an OTTB as your first horse, but you know what? No one can love her like I do.

This blog is about me learning, and in my learning sometimes I am wrong.

This blog is my opinion. Sometimes I'm spot on, and other times (see learning) I am wrong.

Giving me grief doesn't make it go away, BUT you can if you don't like it.

My rant for the morning. Thank you.

Adorable!

This video is adorable!

I am going tomorrow to a different barn with a different trainer. I need to get over my ridiculous fear of riding. I hoped up on my trainers horse tonight, and my heart was in my throat. I don't understand why. Yes, it's been since November since I rode, but I still have something I worry about and I can't put my finger on it. (Dying might be it)

I love my trainer, I love my horse, I love my barn. I just need a change of scenery. The trainer I'm going to is highly recommended by a woman I really respect. We'll see. Wish me luck!

Video

I found this video informative (edit: interesting). I was playing around on Youtube (I do have a life, I promise) looking at random horse videos and found this. SO. In case you didn't know, or you haven't seen this. Ta.Da!

I taught English for two years, I should stop and think before I just throw out adjectives.

I'm trying to remember....

What did I do with my free time before I had a horse?

Difference in Opinions

Here is how I THOUGHT our day would go:

I would go to the barn, get out the saddle, bridle, boots, side reins, etc. Spend some time loving on her (since I haven't been out since Sunday) then tack up and work on transitions on the lunge line.

Here's how Denali saw it:

My mom pulled in to the barn in her crappy old car. She doesn't even have the audacity to come say hi to me right away, she instead gets out my work stuff. She comes up, doesn't even let me nibble grass on the way back to the barn. This makes me mad. I then get my feet cleaned out. She puts on my stupid pink boots and leads me (she didn't like when I lead her) into the arena. She closes the gate, and I THOUGHT that I was free so I started to take off. I was STILL attached to my lead line, and started to buck in place. I got so scared that I started to buck in place. Mommy's friends came running because they thought I ate her. He he he....

Mom back in:

Denali defiantly started to buck in place. It was pretty funny, she has a bite mark behind her ear (not funny) and when she pulled back she got pressure there, and it obviously hurt. Poor thing. I made her walk with me to lock the other door (so she wouldn't open it again.) I can usually tell when she's full of beans, and I had no idea. She was so lazy walking in and getting groomed. As soon as that halter was loose she was off. She literally ran non-stop for 20 minutes. I got bored and started to take video. After about 10 minutes Ophie joined her for a romp in the dry arena.

I love that she's running around Ophie, and so excited to play with her. They're really cute together.




We joke that Ophie and Denali do synchronized galloping. They sometimes act like they have a whole act planned out in order to really show off for us.

I don't do anything to her to make her run like this! She does this all on her own. After the 20 minutes of NON STOP running. I took her to the cross ties, and she was dripping with sweat. As in a puddle on the ground. I decided to let her cool down a little bit before I tacked her up. I put her back in the arena while I ran to the restroom and well....



What I was thinking? I have no idea! Lol. She COVERED herself in dirt (this was side 2.) It was impossible to get it off, so I had to give her a bath. She wasn't too excited about that. It was raining outside, and she hates the noise of rain on the roof.

My smokin' hot horse :)

Ms. Denali and Ophie hanging out after running around like crazy.

When I named my blog, I wasn't expecting to show anyone it. I was making it for myself. I originally named it auctionappendix.blogspot.com, but I quickly learned that was a very dumb name. I then decided that wildponybeast would do! That's what Denali's "aunt" and Ophie's mom refers to her as (well, pony beast, I call her wild pony beast.) I think that's some good evidence as to why as stupid as it sounds, it is a really good name.


BTW, I saw that Dreamworks has a new movie coming out, "How to Train Your Dragon." I wonder if it will be helpful to me and working with Denali. :)

Your blogs

I'm working on my blog this weekend. If you're a follower, AND you have a blog can you post the link in the comment section? :)

Edit: If I put your blog there AND you don't want it there (for some reason) let me know and I'll take it off! :)

TGIF!

When I was younger I never quite understood what the big excitement was about Fridays. Sure, I didn't need to go to school, but that was about it when it came to understanding WHY they were so great.

After trying to get my classroom full of 9 little boys, and 1 little girl organized for our Valentine's Day Party all I have to say is TGIF!!

I have all week off next week. Can we say excited?! I am so happy for a break! I am in charge of our schools fish tank, so I need to go in and clean the tank and feed the fish, but I don't mind that. My classroom is a disaster, so hopefully by Friday it will be clean.

I want to spend lots of time with my pony. I really hate not being able to spend everyday with her. I wonder what she thinks? When I bought her, I knew that I'd only be able to spend time with her for 2 and a half months. I spent almost everyday with her. Hours and hours. I made sure that she had everything she needed and I love her. THEN. THEN I MOVED. I spent everyday for 108 days worrying about her. I worried she was happy, I worried she was safe, I worried she was fed, I feel like my worries were justified now.

Have you ever left your horse for an extended period of time? How was the outcome for you?

In the summer I spend a ton of time with her. THEN school starts, and my time with her goes from tons to very little. Sigh. I love her barn. I don't love that I have to fight Seattle traffic to get to her. I guess a lot of me gets jealous of people who get to see her everyday, who get to love on her and I own her. I want to be able to do those things everyday. Who wouldn't want to love on this face!!
She's starting to shed out pretty good now! Her tan markings are getting lighter which is usually a good sigh. Speaking of that. What color do you think she is? Her paper says black/brown, and sure, she's a bay, but I would say Seal Brown. Not that any of this matters, I need coffee and I'm rambling!! Off to work!!

200th Post

And I wanted to use it to thank you! Thank you for following along on my journey through horse ownership. Thank you for your comments, and your insights. Owning a horse, I assume, is just like having a kid. We have our ups and our downs, but I love her regardless. I assume that the next one will be easier, just like children. I have learned more in the past year and a half about horses then I ever thought possible. I'm still convinced that if I can "tame the beast" that the next horse will be nothing. :)

I begged, pleaded, and cried for my own horse growing up. I never got it. One Christmas my dad had bought hay to put in the dog houses. I was CONVINCED I was getting a pony for Christmas, I had just read a book, maybe Summer Pony, so the idea of the horse living in my garage didn't seem so far fetched. At the time I was always so mad at my parents for not getting me my own horse (I leased an Appy named Misty, I'll tell her story someday) but I appreciate Denali that much more. She is mine, and she picked me. Things happen for a reason (and believe me I HATE THAT SAYING!!) but it is true.

I also want to say a huge thank you and welcome to Yukon's new mom!! He was adopted yesterday! (*insert loud clapping here*)There are no words to describe how happy I am for him (and for you!) He is an amazing boy and deserves to be treated like such.

Thank you everyone!

If you haven't seen this yet...

I bawled my eyes out...



It just makes me so sad that this is not how all horses are treated. I try not to think about it, it just depresses me. The fact that a horse I loved more than anything was given "to a forever home" and then left in a field. I read on the rescue blog that Yukon is almost ready to go to his forever home. I am forever grateful to them for taking him in and taking such good care of him. How he got there I'll never know. I wish I would have known at the time he was soon about to be homeless. He'll always have a spot in my heart. I am thankful that I was able to spend a day with him this summer. Thank you Pony Up Rescue!

Horse Tails

I just finished ordering Ms. Denali a new blanket. I got another tack catalog in the mail, and what can I say: it was a great price!! I love clearance sales. I HATE, HATE, HATE shopping for myself, but I could shop for DAYS for Ms. Denali. This blanket is lighter weight than her current blanket. Denali's current winter blanket (which I LOVE) is a Rambo Supreme. It was expensive, but it definitely keeps her toasty warm in our wet, WET winters. Ms. D, however, had put on some extra muscle/weight and her 78 is now a little tight across her butt. The shoulders are great! The red circles (or close to circles) are where her blanket is rubbing. I'm still not going to order her an 80, I've tried them and it was just so huge on her that it's not an option. Still trying to figure out what to do about the current blanket.

I had mentioned that this weekend I went to visit my friend's horse. He's a very cool Paint, but gets really itchy when he's shedding. I was scratching his butt for him, then moved away. He was pretty convincing that I continue scratching. He's always been like this. At my first barn he use to walk backwards into people so they'd scratch him. His new owner has him on a lot of different skin supplements that have improved his skin itching a lot! Every once in a while, he just wants a good scratch. Don't worry, I didn't press too hard!

Dreamhorse

Do you ever go on dreamhorse.com? I must admit that I often will go there and play around with all the options under "Advanced Search" to see what my "dream horse" would look like if I got everything that I wanted in a horse. Here is what I got.
He is an 11 year old Hanoverian (not something I was specifically looking for) Here is his ad (I wish I was a millionaire, stupid lottery ;) looks like I'll need to go to work tomorrow!

http://www.dreamhorse.com/show_horse.php?form_horse_id=1489827&share_this=Y

Lets play a game! Go to www.dreamhorse.com and under advanced search put in exactly what you'd want in a horse. Post you links!

P.S. Here I'm being selfish : Is there 1 more person out there that wants to become a follower? :) Then I could have an even 50. :)

What would you do?

Nice right? Seriously, Sometimes I think I'm on a reality TV show and I look for the cameras, this has to be a joke! Ugh. Nothing is broken (yay!) however, I tore off the top part of my toe, should have gotten stitches, but didn't and now I have this nice contraption to wear until it starts to heal properly. I tore underneath the nail, but not right under if any of this rambling makes sense. It really was a feat only I am capable of doing! I have almost as much talent when it comes to injuring myself as Ms. Denali does.

In other non-me injuring myself news. I bought a lottery ticket. I buy them every once in a while when I have time to dream and can think "what if." The slogan for Washington Lottery is "Who's Life Would You Change" (or something like that.)

Funny story. A few years ago I worked with an older Vietnamese man at the middle school I was teaching at. He was very quiet, and I don't think I ever really talked to him. I kept to myself and my kids. One day he came up to me in the hallway and rambled on and on about how nice it was outside, how hard I work, yada, yada, yada. He was so talkative! AND It was SO weird!

That was the first and last time he ever talked to me.

That night on the news I watched as he was handed a check for 65 Million Dollars!! We never heard from him again. We joked that he called in rich. He had apparently knew that he won, but came to work JUST IN CASE he didn't get the check. Lucky you! :)

If I won the lottery (dreaming via the Internet now) there are a lot of things I'd like to do. The first thing is I would make it so my parents and my husband's parents could retire. They deserve it.

Next step: I'd buy my dream house complete with an amazing 7 stall barn and heated indoor arena. Everything would be wood, and the stalls would be huge! Something like below. I'd then of course need some more horses to fill the barn. I'd ideally like to take in some retired racehorses, ones who were like Denali, didn't do anything special at the track, but need a place to just be a horse. I don't care if they're ridable or not.


I'd have my saddle made for me and Ms. Denali and I would just ride my horse. I would probably go back to work once I got over the initial, "I'm a multi-millionaire", but before I did that I'd just ride my horse. I'd have all the time in the world right?

I'd probably want some super amazing horse that's out there, but I'm not even going to try to look for a picture because that will take up hours.

I'd buy a truck that could pull a trailer.

I'd like to be able to donate money to my favorite rescues and help them out anyway I can. I'd actually like to start my own low cost gelding and a program for people who have horses who need help with medical bills, but can't afford them. (This is something I'd like to do regardless, but to do this you need money and I don't have a lot of that lying around.)

I'd also like to set up a scholarship in my mentor's name for students with EBD, something for them to work towards when they graduate from high school. I want them to graduate from high school, not necessarily go to college.

And to appease my husband I'd invest most of it for retirement! I know there are pros and cons to winning money. I've watched all of those Dateline specials, but honestly, I think I could handle it :) I'd like the chance to prove it!

What would you buy if you won 65 million dollars?

It's either me or the horse...

Last night I was so excited to go to bed early. I usually go to bed around 11, and somehow was able to get into bed at 10. My husband said something about being thirsty, and I jumped out of bed to go get him a drink. (Understand that he does EVERYTHING for me, and I was very excited to be able to do something simple for him.)

I hit my foot against the wall. Needless to say I then screamed every swear word I knew and grabbed my foot. It hurt so bad. I got back into bed and took off my sock. I hit my second toe in and it looks like I cut it down under the nail. It hurts! Lol. I took a picture, but decided it was way to gross to put on here. I'm waiting for my doctor's appointment on my couch. It's the first time in 7 year I've missed work without knowing I'm going to miss work. My toe is disgusting and hurts like hell. I was screaming about how bad it hurts and how my husband just doesn't understand. My husband had a climbing accident 6 years ago that he broke his leg in half, and his back in 3 places. He smiled at me and then I remembered. Opps.

So it's either me that is hurt or Denali that is hurt. In High School I had a friend that every time one of us got hurt the same thing would happen to the other one of us. It was sort of spooky.

While I'm laying here waiting for my doctor's appointment I have time to post more random pictures and videos from this weekend.

Ms. Ophelia and her mom in their class. This is why I do dressage. The idea of doing flat classes with a bunch of other horses scares me!

More of my favorite show off pony. He was just so fun! I wish I could find his owner so I could give her some of these pictures.

The video isn't exciting at all. I was just so excited that you could see more than just her hot pink bell boots that I just kept filming little clips.

Weekend Update (In Photos)

Welcome to my life! This is a LONG one since I actually took photos! Aren't you proud of me!! We got the truck lined (Linex) and had to pick it up bright and early on Saturday morning. I had my camera with me on as my husband drove me over to pick up his truck. (It was early and I didn't want to drive.) So I took some photos as we went over Lake Washington.


This is what I LOVE about living in the PNW. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the mountains! I took these while the husband was driving, not bad I think!


Mt. Rainer is so majestic and amazing, I love it and it always takes my breath away! I have never seen Mt. McKinley, but I assume that it is just as amazing, and that is why my horse is named after a mountain. Actually, she's named after Mt. McKinley because I wanted to name her after a mountain (because she's huge) and I stood in the arena naming mountains with Ophie's mom and I suggested McKinley (because my husband was in Alaska at the time) and she reminded me of the other name for the mountain, I liked Denali much better! I'm going to go there someday.

Back to my weekend, I went to visit another friend's horse first. It was really early, and Ms. Denali is not a morning horse. Very much like her mother. I actually understand her much better when I think of her as the horse version of me.

I finally got to the barn around noon after spending a few hours with a friend and her horse. It's always nice to visit other barns. I love "barn hopping." I love this photo! It's hilarious only because she looks so tiny! She's between 16hh and 16.1hh. I need to actually stick her and figure that out. Here she looks like a tiny pony!

I got Ms. D out of her field and brought her into the barn. I haven't been out this week at all. I've been so busy with work, and this week isn't looking much better. I put her in the cross ties and could tell that she just needed to burn off steam. She perks her ears and is extra perceptive about what's going on around her. We had review who was the boss, but she quickly came to an understanding. I put her bell boots on her and took her out into the arena. Usually, once I take her halter off she stands there and kind of follows me around. Saturday she took off like a bat out of hell as soon as I had it in my hands. I actually took video of her in the daylight!! Aren't you proud of me!! No pretty, fancy movement on her part, I was a little bummed since it was light and I could actually see what I was doing!

Is that a camel?? How funny that she is able to be So pretty, and then again SO Ugly looking! I hope she never gets access to the Internet, she'd be so mad if she knew I posted this.

It was in the high 50s so I decided that today would be bath day. She LOVES BATHS!! She stands perfectly still and doesn't budge an inch. ALTHOUGH. We did have an interesting incident during the bath.... She's in heat, and did something...um...INTERESTING while I was washing her tail. Um...how do I say this without being gross?? Let's just say that she was VERY receptive to the warm water from the hose. Anyone else ever have something like this happen? I can go into details if you don't get what I'm trying to say.... My friend's boyfriend laughed his ass off when I told him of her shower time.

Sunday morning I woke up at the crack of dawn, Correction: It was still pitch black out. Ophelia and her mom were going to their first show, and so i went to be supportive. I woke up at 5 and was at the barn by 6. It's funny, I can happily hop out of bed to go to a horse show, but if it was a weekday and I had to go to work I'd be a very unhappy camper!

Gee. Who braided Ophie's tail? It looks pretty good! Lol, I have NEVER braided a horses tail before and asked Ophie's mom if I could give it a go since we had time to kill before their class. (Hurry up and wait!) I think it turned out pretty nice!! I've done braids before, but Ophie's mane is so long I couldn't get it to look nice, I did a rope braid but she shook it out and I didn't have time to go back and put bands in it as I went.

While waiting for Ophie's class I walked around the ranch. It's a HUGE facility! I met this guy while I was trying to take pictures of the mountains and as soon as he saw my camera he started to put on a show for me. Lol, I must have 20 of him just running and playing. I sent them via e-mail to the ranch in case the owner would like them. Some of them are really nice. I was proud of myself. Actually, it was perfect lighting and my camera didn't need any adjusting.

And more of a reason of why I love the PNW!

As for the horse show, guess who got first place in her first show?! Ms. Ophelia and her mom. She was a nervous bundle of energy and her mom did an amazing job of working with her. I was very proud. I was a nervous wreck, I couldn't imagine actually showing myself. I'm afraid they'd need to ACE me before I went into the ring, forget Denali!

Hope everyone had a good weekend! I'm sitting on the couch watching the Super Bowl commercials in between the game. I always LOVE the ones with the Clydesdales. I always tear up. Lol. Pretty ridiculous!!

And honey, if you're reading this because you're wondering what I've been typing so furiously on for the past 20 minutes, know how much I love you. :) Horse husbands are the best!! Thank you for all that you put up with!!! (And it's a lot!)