C.S. Wilson's Blog, page 16
February 3, 2015
Kitten Break!
A few days of horse stuff, so now it's time for the cutest ever kitten break.
RapDom tactical gear gives away beer koozies every year at SHOT Show, but they're not your ordinary beer koozies. Nope, they're in the shape of plate carriers (or if you're old school, flack jackets). We've been wondering if we could get Abby into one. Jay and I weren't going to attempt it, because neither of us wanted to be shredded while attempting to put it on her.
Ashinator came over this morning and was willing to hold the shitten while I dressed her. I don't think too much blood was shed, or skin lost, and we managed to get the dang thing on her.
Abby was not impressed.
But we got a good case of the giggles :)
RapDom tactical gear gives away beer koozies every year at SHOT Show, but they're not your ordinary beer koozies. Nope, they're in the shape of plate carriers (or if you're old school, flack jackets). We've been wondering if we could get Abby into one. Jay and I weren't going to attempt it, because neither of us wanted to be shredded while attempting to put it on her.
Ashinator came over this morning and was willing to hold the shitten while I dressed her. I don't think too much blood was shed, or skin lost, and we managed to get the dang thing on her.
Abby was not impressed.
But we got a good case of the giggles :)
February 2, 2015
Happy Birthday!
Following the convention of all horses' birthdays being January 1st, Skeeter and Copper both turned 5. They're probably both a bit younger than that, but since they were wild born, we have no idea of their actual birthdays so using the conventional birthday works for us.
They weren't too excited about their big day, but they graciously accepted their birthday carrots anyway.
They weren't too excited about their big day, but they graciously accepted their birthday carrots anyway.
February 1, 2015
Winter Woes
Being December, we knew the nice weather was just stopping by for a visit and wouldn't last, but we did not anticipate being unable to use our gates to get into the pen.
The combination of humidity and cold-cold conspired against us and the thumb latches on our gate chains froze. I'm not exaggerating when I said we couldn't get them to budge.
Skeeter, of course, had to help.We tried warming the latches with a lighter, but that didn't work either.
It wasn't just one gate that we couldn't get into, but both the "people" gate and the gate into the hay. When we realized that there was no way those latches were going to give, we realized we had two choices: over or under.
It was even colder than it looks.
Trust me when I say climbing gates was a lot more fun when I was a kid. It was so cold my gloves stuck to the metal.
We sprayed WD-40 in the latches daily, and waited for the day it would warm up enough we could move the latches. After four or five days, it finally warmed up enough for me to get one of the thumb latches to move. Because it was still bitter cold, I didn't risk re-locking the chains. Instead, I used baling twine to tie shut both gates.
After about a week of tying the gates shut, it warmed up enough that we decided to trust the thumb latches again. So far, so good (but we haven't been as bitter cold as we were then). Hopefully the amount of WD-40 we pumped into the latches will keep them working nicely the rest of the winter.
The combination of humidity and cold-cold conspired against us and the thumb latches on our gate chains froze. I'm not exaggerating when I said we couldn't get them to budge.
Skeeter, of course, had to help.We tried warming the latches with a lighter, but that didn't work either.
It wasn't just one gate that we couldn't get into, but both the "people" gate and the gate into the hay. When we realized that there was no way those latches were going to give, we realized we had two choices: over or under.
It was even colder than it looks.Trust me when I say climbing gates was a lot more fun when I was a kid. It was so cold my gloves stuck to the metal.
We sprayed WD-40 in the latches daily, and waited for the day it would warm up enough we could move the latches. After four or five days, it finally warmed up enough for me to get one of the thumb latches to move. Because it was still bitter cold, I didn't risk re-locking the chains. Instead, I used baling twine to tie shut both gates.
After about a week of tying the gates shut, it warmed up enough that we decided to trust the thumb latches again. So far, so good (but we haven't been as bitter cold as we were then). Hopefully the amount of WD-40 we pumped into the latches will keep them working nicely the rest of the winter.
January 31, 2015
Catch-up Post, Again
I think I'm going to forever be playing catch up. Training has slowed because of time and weather constraints. Jay changed jobs, so our schedule is even more erratic. I'll eventually get everything caught up, I swear!
On December 18, I had some dental work done that required me to be drugged up, so I asked Mom and Bill to pick me up from the dentist's office and drop me off at home. While they were here, they were willing to work with the horses a bit. It was tough twisting their arms, I tell you.
They did a lot of work, but because of my drugged up state, I only remember parts of their work. Copper is very buddy sour and throws a fit when Skeeter leaves the pen without him, so part of the plan that day was to separate them and try to work him through it.
Grandpa Beel thought that maybe Skeeter wanted to come tell Mom hi, so he brought her over to the bedroom window.
While Skeeter and Grandpa were out on their walkabout, the Bionic Cowgirl was in the pen with Copper. She had him haltered and was working him a bit on the lead, but when he started having a temper tantrum, she let him go and then kept him going until he decided that maybe standing quietly was a lot easier than pitching a fit.
Making him move also helped him stretch out his shoulder. He was healed up pretty well, but hadn't really pushed his shoulder since he hurt it. He looked good and moved smoothly without a hint of his previous injury.
On December 18, I had some dental work done that required me to be drugged up, so I asked Mom and Bill to pick me up from the dentist's office and drop me off at home. While they were here, they were willing to work with the horses a bit. It was tough twisting their arms, I tell you.
They did a lot of work, but because of my drugged up state, I only remember parts of their work. Copper is very buddy sour and throws a fit when Skeeter leaves the pen without him, so part of the plan that day was to separate them and try to work him through it.
Grandpa Beel thought that maybe Skeeter wanted to come tell Mom hi, so he brought her over to the bedroom window.
While Skeeter and Grandpa were out on their walkabout, the Bionic Cowgirl was in the pen with Copper. She had him haltered and was working him a bit on the lead, but when he started having a temper tantrum, she let him go and then kept him going until he decided that maybe standing quietly was a lot easier than pitching a fit.
Making him move also helped him stretch out his shoulder. He was healed up pretty well, but hadn't really pushed his shoulder since he hurt it. He looked good and moved smoothly without a hint of his previous injury.
January 1, 2015
Our REAL Wild One
... and she's not a horse. Abigail, the abandoned kitty, is our wildest animal.
She, at a pound and a half, is far more dangerous to be around than our 1,000# "wild" mustangs.
She, at a pound and a half, is far more dangerous to be around than our 1,000# "wild" mustangs.
December 12, 2014
Adventures in Christmas Cards
Oh my.
I had the perfect Christmas card composed in my head. Jay and I each with our well-mannered horses with Allie-bird sitting calmly between us. Each of the horses were going to calmly stay in place and were going to set up for their pictures like pros. They weren't even going to mind wearing their Christmas colors.
We spent some time a couple of weeks ago getting them used to their Christmas clothes.
I should have known that it wasn't going to go as planned when Skeeter pulled her clothes off the fence and proceeded to shred them. I think she liked the sound of the material tearing, because she kept doing it.
I didn't like how not-Christmas-y Skeeter's blue halter looked, so I changed to a purple flat nylon halter. Have I ever worked her in a flat halter? No, but she's got good ground manners, right? She's solid, I shouldn't need the reinforcement of the knots on the rope halter, right?
Jay got the camera all set up and it was show time!
After trying to get Skeeter (the damn mare) to line up nicely, I said screw it, let's just do pictures one at a time.
Since Copper was being a good boy and was already in position, he and Jay went first.
Then Skeeter and I took our turn. Lord is that girl food-driven.
Skeeter needs some serious work; she hasn't been worked in a few weeks. Her ground manners in the pen are amazing. Once we leave the pen, it's like her brain falls out her butt.
Sigh.
We said, screw it, let's just get our picture with Allie-bird and call it good. We put the horses away, threw their hay and got ready to take pictures with the dog. As soon as we got ready to take the pictures, over came the horses, like, "whatcha doin'?" Skeeter even kicked the fence to remind us she was there.
I had the perfect Christmas card composed in my head. Jay and I each with our well-mannered horses with Allie-bird sitting calmly between us. Each of the horses were going to calmly stay in place and were going to set up for their pictures like pros. They weren't even going to mind wearing their Christmas colors.
We spent some time a couple of weeks ago getting them used to their Christmas clothes.
I should have known that it wasn't going to go as planned when Skeeter pulled her clothes off the fence and proceeded to shred them. I think she liked the sound of the material tearing, because she kept doing it.
I didn't like how not-Christmas-y Skeeter's blue halter looked, so I changed to a purple flat nylon halter. Have I ever worked her in a flat halter? No, but she's got good ground manners, right? She's solid, I shouldn't need the reinforcement of the knots on the rope halter, right?
Jay got the camera all set up and it was show time!
After trying to get Skeeter (the damn mare) to line up nicely, I said screw it, let's just do pictures one at a time.
Since Copper was being a good boy and was already in position, he and Jay went first.
Then Skeeter and I took our turn. Lord is that girl food-driven.
Skeeter needs some serious work; she hasn't been worked in a few weeks. Her ground manners in the pen are amazing. Once we leave the pen, it's like her brain falls out her butt.
Sigh.
We said, screw it, let's just get our picture with Allie-bird and call it good. We put the horses away, threw their hay and got ready to take pictures with the dog. As soon as we got ready to take the pictures, over came the horses, like, "whatcha doin'?" Skeeter even kicked the fence to remind us she was there.
November 29, 2014
Copper's Owie
On November 13, the day after it got *really* cold, Jay noticed that Copper was lamed up. We thought it was maybe due to ice balls that had built up in his hoof, so we cleaned out his hooves. Even though we'd never "trained" him to have his hooves picked, he stood like a champ.
Only, that didn't solve the problem and he looked more and more pathetic. We buted him, which helped for a day, but then he got more pathetic. I was at a loss, I knew it wasn't an abscess and we had cleaned his hooves out every day, so I know there wasn't anything stabbing him when he stepped, so I took video and posted it to our Facebook page in hopes that someone would know what was going on.
I was so focused on it being his foot, that it never occurred to me that it could be his shoulder. We continued with the Bute as needed and just let him be. Tincture of time has worked and he's still a bit gimpy, but not much, and started trotting around a few days ago.
It was a huge relief to find that it was his shoulder instead of his hoof. Shoulder injuries heal much better, while hoof injuries can be expensive and may never heal right.
Only, that didn't solve the problem and he looked more and more pathetic. We buted him, which helped for a day, but then he got more pathetic. I was at a loss, I knew it wasn't an abscess and we had cleaned his hooves out every day, so I know there wasn't anything stabbing him when he stepped, so I took video and posted it to our Facebook page in hopes that someone would know what was going on.
I was so focused on it being his foot, that it never occurred to me that it could be his shoulder. We continued with the Bute as needed and just let him be. Tincture of time has worked and he's still a bit gimpy, but not much, and started trotting around a few days ago.
It was a huge relief to find that it was his shoulder instead of his hoof. Shoulder injuries heal much better, while hoof injuries can be expensive and may never heal right.
November 17, 2014
Skeeter's Baby Pictures
On some of the FB pages I follow, I've seen that people are able to find pictures of their horses before they were rounded up and I got curious to see if there were any of Princess Skeeter.
I went to the Piceance/East Douglas FB page to see if any of their photographers had managed to capture her, but their page only goes back to 2011 and she was rounded up in 2010. I was bummed, but determined.
I remembered that I had seen a YouTube video of a gather (this was while everyone was up in arms about the Wyoming Checkerboard gather), so I decided to see if anyone had videotaped her gather.
They hadn't.
However, the BLM produced a "pre-gather" video explaining the necessity of the gather, so I watched it and there she was!
Her blaze back then took up most of her face (she's grown into it), but you can see it's the identical "Unicorn facing to the right" blaze (thanks for that description Funder). Here's the video, let's see if you can find her:
There's a lot of talking, but I found her eight times in the video. I'll post in the comments where I found her, so you can enjoy your scavenger hunt.
I went to the Piceance/East Douglas FB page to see if any of their photographers had managed to capture her, but their page only goes back to 2011 and she was rounded up in 2010. I was bummed, but determined.
I remembered that I had seen a YouTube video of a gather (this was while everyone was up in arms about the Wyoming Checkerboard gather), so I decided to see if anyone had videotaped her gather.
They hadn't.
However, the BLM produced a "pre-gather" video explaining the necessity of the gather, so I watched it and there she was!
Her blaze back then took up most of her face (she's grown into it), but you can see it's the identical "Unicorn facing to the right" blaze (thanks for that description Funder). Here's the video, let's see if you can find her:
There's a lot of talking, but I found her eight times in the video. I'll post in the comments where I found her, so you can enjoy your scavenger hunt.
November 9, 2014
It's Not All Rainbows and Unicorn Farts
There are some days when the stars just aren't aligned properly. For Copper's training day, his stars were aligned beautifully and his training went well. Skeeter's stars were not aligned properly and, well, this his how her training went ...
November 8, 2014
Dead Indian
When Ashinator was younger, she used to like to lay across Jesse's back and play "Dead Indian". The horses would wander all over the pen with her draped across their backs. The bonus to Dead Indian is that you can usually just slide down and land on your feet, so we've introduced our weight to Skeeter and Copper's backs by using the Dead Indian "technique".
This past week, Mom and Bill came down to work with Jay and Copper. Skeeter just got yelled at for being "helpful", since it was Copper's training day.
First, they made some progress with Copper and the trailer. Instead of flat-out refusing like he's done in the past, Jay managed to get two feet in without a fight.
After they "loaded" into the trailer, it was time to start with the getting people on his back thing. Copper's not big on having people be taller than him, so we've taken to standing on the black tub here and there while petting him.
On this day, though, he got the full Dead Indian treatment, first will Bill and then with Jay.
He's thinking about it. Strange, but not bad.
You should have seen how Jay lit up when he was telling me about this. It's such a huge step for both of them. In no time, he'll be sitting astride.
This past week, Mom and Bill came down to work with Jay and Copper. Skeeter just got yelled at for being "helpful", since it was Copper's training day.
First, they made some progress with Copper and the trailer. Instead of flat-out refusing like he's done in the past, Jay managed to get two feet in without a fight.
After they "loaded" into the trailer, it was time to start with the getting people on his back thing. Copper's not big on having people be taller than him, so we've taken to standing on the black tub here and there while petting him.
On this day, though, he got the full Dead Indian treatment, first will Bill and then with Jay.
He's thinking about it. Strange, but not bad.You should have seen how Jay lit up when he was telling me about this. It's such a huge step for both of them. In no time, he'll be sitting astride.
