I was all set to ride Epona on the trails yesterday, but when I unloaded her, I saw she had a leg injury.
There was a little swelling, as you can see in the second photo, and she was slightly off going to the right.
I stayed back with her and let Katie take Tumbleweed out on the trails solo, but we put our time to good use.
We have worked on the log pull in saddle before, and she got very nervous with it behind her. It struck me how like the other horses crowding up on her in the arena that obstacle is, and the need to do it a lot more with her. I asked my husband to find me a log to pull at home…when the shop project is finished.
Yes, we finally pulled the trigger on a shop for our boats, tractor, and hay. We had considered building one that also had an indoor arena, but in the end, it was just too much for too little, and we opted for just the shop.
It is, however, smack dab against my outdoor arena, so I have been avoiding riding out there while they work. It is close to being done now. The only thing left is the concrete floor. Until then, I’m hauling out every time I ride.
And, that is also coming to a close as it gets colder. They will, eventually, close the gate to the park. I imagine they will do it earlier this year because of the fire damage. Over 1,500 acres burned, and they are in the process of clearing dead trees. We can’t use that section of the park until they’re done, but we have seen photos and it is BAD. Here’s a link to an article.
Speaking of winter….
My husband built an overwinter table for our outside plants. It allows him to wheel them in when it’s going to freeze, and out for sunshine when it is above freezing.
We can’t fit all of our outside plants onto it, but most of them.
An update on Gully, my sweet, yet bratty, starling.
I still don’t know for sure, but I’m leaning toward her being a female. She is thriving. We bring her up and downstairs in her cage and release her into the sunroom for daily free fly. She has become quite a good flyer now and can hover, then attack. She is queen of her room. She can be very sweet to me, or peck my eyeballs. 👀 I have to be careful.
Life is, as always, quirky around here.
They always find a way to get an owwy... looks fairly minor . A note about things behind her- there are several things you can drag beside her (tarp, bag of cans, branches, etc. ) while you lead her, and what I find really helps them is if you start with walking beside her so that she can see what you are dragging, then turn around and back her while still dragging the object. Then go back to it beside her, going forward, and gradually let it get farther and farther back out of her peripheral vision . I think knowing what it is helps them wrap their mind around it, and doing it that way works better than just letting them see and sniff it while it isn't moving and then dragging it behind.
ReplyDeleteThat is a great idea for the inside plants, you may need 2 of them! I have so few that I can put them in a little red wagon to bring them in.
Nice to see Gully, I was wondering how she was doing!
Those are some great ideas, Shirley. I’ll definitely add them all into her work. I drug the log on the ground beside her yesterday and had her face it, too, and that did seem to help a lot. The tarp will be interesting. Cans, too. That will be fun and good for Tweed, too!
DeleteI’ve done what Shirley suggests with the dragging and it works. It reminds me that I should be doing that with Quaid.
ReplyDeleteI can’t wait to add those ideas into our training. You can’t go wrong.
DeleteA plant cart on wheels is an awesome idea for over-wintering plants!! I have an old gardening wagon that my mom gave me decades ago. It only fits a couple plants, but comes in handy.
ReplyDeleteYou made good use of your time with Epona, even if injured. Shirley has some great ideas, with backing etc. We have a bag of aluminum cans saved for working with Hope.
What can I say about sheds. They are so useful! It will be so nice to have things stored out of the elements. Our shod is getting closer to completion. Waiting on some electrical parts to come in etc. Brad is currently working on fencing around it.
I was going to ask about your birdee. Glad things are going well and she is thriving! Look at all those pretty spots! My college bestie had a Macaw named Otis. You never knew if he was going to be nice, or peck at you. Their form of communication.
Our shed is finished, except for the concrete, and we haven’t got an estimate of when that part will happen. I’m waiting to get our round bales and time is ticking.
DeleteThat’s funny about the macaw. Nice to know it’s not only the starlings. I hope she grows out of it. She is much better than she was a month ago, but I also have become very cautious.