Posts Tagged ‘horses’
Happy Horses
I’m beginning to think that access to our hay-field could be what makes our horses happiest. This past week, Cyndie took down the barriers that kept the horses out of the hay-field. Early in the week we experienced the first bit of frost in a couple of low areas and it had become clear that we weren’t going to be able to enlist George’s assistance in cutting and baling the field, so we gave the horses full access to graze out there.
They didn’t hesitate for a moment and they’ve been out there pretty much non-stop ever since, except for brief stints to the paddock for a drink of water and servings of their feed pellets.
Despite our desire to get a second cut of hay off that field, which didn’t happen either of the first two years we were here, either, there were enough reasons to give up the wait and put the horses on it now, that it was an easy decision to make.
For one, not cutting and baling it would be the least amount of work. I’ve got plenty of other things available to occupy my time, so I’m more than happy with getting out of tossing bales.
Secondly, where would we toss them? There isn’t much in the way of room in the hay shed. That leads to the third reason this was an easy decision: We already have enough hay stacked up to get through the winter.
My primary interest was in cutting the field to discourage weeds and encourage more grass growth. It would be a shame to simply mow it down and not bale it, and getting bales to feed the horses at a later date is a real bonus.
We started to give the horses limited access so they would “mow” it down uniformly, which works great, but to continue moving them would require more temporary fence work than either of us was wanting to deal with right now. Easiest just to open it up in its entirety, and most fun for them, too.
It’s a treat to be able to give them something that makes them so happy.
If they are happy, we’re happy.
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All Here
Focusing on the concept of being “all here” is akin to the moment when uttering the phrase, “I’m all in.” To say you are “all here” reflects something of a simultaneous conscious and meditative state. It is a practice of experiencing a hyper-awareness of everything you feel within, in conjunction with the sights and sounds of the environment surrounding you.
It is an exercise of recognizing the energy radiating from your very core, realizing how far beyond your physical boundary it reaches, with attention to the external stimuli imbuing influence. In a moment, you can be aware of your breathing while sensing the involuntary flexing of your toes as a bird’s tentative song wafts through an open window.
Our horses are brilliant at helping me slide into a place of feeling “all here.” Silently standing among the herd in a mode of total relaxation, while also practicing the art of keen awareness to everything, provides a unique equine experience that most of our visitors miss out on, due to the natural tendency of people to be excitedly verbal.
Of course, I have the benefit of being alone with the horses. Experiencing the herd in this unique way can be achieved with a group of people, as long as there is coordinated attention of all present toward focus on the exercise.
Cyndie has a different opportunity to be “all here” with the horses when she is riding them. Here she is with Cayenne in a photo taken by Rachael Walker during a lesson earlier this month.
I feel richly blessed to be learning to practice this relaxed awareness the horses have shown me, even when away from them and involved with other activities. It is an exercise of aligning with my authentic self, breathing into being “all here.”
It generates a feeling of wholeness that feels divine, with echoes of the equine.
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Making Prototypes
Despite the time squeeze of trying to be in two places at once, filling in for two different vacationing people, I found a way to occupy Delilah by taking her to the shop for a distraction while I tinkered on prototyping a design for grates that I can use for slow feeder boxes in the barn stalls.
She seemed to appreciate the chance to be out of the house with me, despite the confines of her leash. I decided that while Cyndie is away, I will only allow Delilah off leash if I am able to give her my undivided attention, like when I am throwing discs for her to make spectacular diving leaps toward, or flinging squeaky tennis balls great distances for her to sprint after.
Before Cyndie left for the coast, she picked up some fence panels from Tractor Supply for me to make my own grates. As nice as the ones are that I had a local welder make for the two full-size boxes I built, they were a bit pricey.
The first challenge I am facing is finding a way to add some weight to the grates. The custom welded ones are made of heavier rod and also have side plates that give it a desirable heft, so it lays firmly against the bale. The horses can pretty much ignore it and concentrate on nibbling the hay between the squares. The weight helps the grate to keep dropping as the hay is consumed.
The fence panel is made of lighter gauge wire and I fear without added weight it wouldn’t tend to fall as naturally, and the horses might become inclined to mess with it when it got hung up. They have a knack for eating down on one side at a time so that the grate can end up tilted dramatically.
One thing I am considering for the stalls is that there will be no sharing. It will be one horse only that will be grazing hay, so there won’t be mixed behavior. Whatever eating tendency each horse has will define how the slow feeder works in each case.
My first shot at adding something akin to the side plates on the welded grates, was to attach a section of an old T-post that I cut to length on the band saw. By snipping off a section of fence panel so there were end wires extending beyond the area that will cover the hay, I was able to bend them over to capture the post.
In terms of weight, I think it will work adequately for what I want it to do, but I didn’t end up with the exact dimensions I had in mind. Turns out the fence panel wasn’t welded to exacting specifications. The dimension between squares varies, so I will cut another one a whole square larger and take a second stab at a method of bending the sides around a section of post.
I want it to cover an area as wide as a bale, to make it easy to fill the box with full flakes and then drop on the grate and secure it. Speaking of easy, the horses will mainly be in the barn when it is below-zero, so I’m trying to design the box so it will be possible to fill it when wearing big mittens.
That is, in case we ever again experience any below-zero days, what with the planet simmering away at a record pace now days.
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Double Double
I am doing double, double-duty this week: at home, I am covering for Cyndie while she is visiting the west coast with friends, and at the day-job, I am filling in for a vacationing employee. What an unfortunate coincidental timing for these two situations to occur.
I am taxed with not being able to leave home before rush-hour traffic builds, because I need to tend to our daily morning animal-care routine first, while at the same time, I have twice the work facing me at the day-job, which realistically requires I spend extra time there. Not gonna happen. I need to get home early to rescue Delilah from the confines of her outdoor kennel and then feed the horses their afternoon nutrition.
Somethings gotta give, and I’m afraid it’s going to be service to our customers for a few days. Maybe they won’t notice.
At home, I fear the never-ending grass growth is likely to be my ongoing nemesis. It needs mowing again already! I didn’t have time yesterday after work. Between needing to give Delilah a healthy amount of attention and cleaning up a day’s worth of manure, the ever-shorter evening daylight hours were easily consumed.
Now that I am checking the temperature of the composting manure pile every day, I am finding that I need to turn it over with the pitch fork much more often that I had been doing.
I took a picture of the thermometer displaying that it was over 160° (F) again, after I had just mixed it around on Sunday. What a fascinating phenomenon that heat generation is.
Speaking of heat, we are enjoying a spectacular rendition of warm September days this week. Yesterday felt like warmth of a summer day, but there is no mistaking the subtle clues that frame it as autumnal.
I expect that the changing angle of the sun contributes greatly, but the actuality of that is not entirely obvious. Around our place, we’ve already got enough crunchy leaves over our trails that they are contributing a distinct fall-like aroma to go along with the auditory serenade that happens beneath footsteps.
We are in a period of high winds, as well, and something about the way the rushing warm air felt on my skin last night gave me a feeling that this is something special to be appreciated. It was hot, without being hot. Seriously. That may not make sense to you, but it explains the impression that warm September air can produce.
I am challenged with needing to luxuriate in this brilliantly spectacular weather for more than just myself, but for Cyndie, too, since I’m absorbing her share of bliss while she’s gone. It’s the least I could do.
It wouldn’t make much sense to only take on the burdens her absence presents, would it?
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Barn Chores
During the previous weekend we finished creating the stone walkway out the back door of the barn. Looks good now, but I am wary of how well it will hold up to the ravages of changing seasons and expected usage. Most often, that is the route out of the barn for the wheelbarrow full of manure and soiled wood shavings, after the horses have needed to spend a night indoors during the coldest of brutal nights.
Maybe we won’t have very many severe cold nights this coming winter, what with the forecast of a super El Niño intensity unseen in 50 years. I wonder if the global climate is being impacted by human activity? (I just can’t help myself, putting a question mark at the end of my “I wonder” statements.)
I will be surprised if our stone placements survive their first winter of shoveling and freezing without needed some level of maintenance when next spring arrives, but for the minimal effort we put into the project, I think the path is adequate for now.
At the very least, it’s a heck of a lot nicer to look at.
With the stones all in place, the next task receiving our attention became the stalls in the barn. Taking advantage of some dry September air, we pulled floor mats out of the stalls for washing, and raked out the dirt floors so they could air out.
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While standing in the stalls, it occurred to me that I need to get to work designing new slow feeding hay boxes for each one. The current setup allows the horses to pull hay out freely, dumping it on the floor, where it goes to waste and leaves them with nothing to eat.
A smaller version of the two boxes I’ve already built will offer a perfect solution for that.
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Dreaded Tail
I’m not sure what happened between Monday and Wednesday for our horses, other than an early morning thunderstorm yesterday that provided Hunter and Dezirea with the opportunity to paint themselves from head to toe with lime screenings. Somehow during that time, Hunter apparently had an appointment with a hairdresser who made his tail into a dreadlock.
Seriously, his tail was tangled into such a dreadful (sorry) mess that it had become like a large piece of rope. Cyndie thinks there may have been a burr in the middle that started the process. After that, he must have rubbed back and forth against something until he inexplicably wove the hairs of his tail into one heck of an impressive dreadlock.
We couldn’t have done that to him if we tried. As it was, it took around an hour and a half for Cyndie to brush it all apart. After putting him in a halter and tethering Hunter, I stood at his head and distracted him with treats of food and neck scratches while Cyndie toiled away at the other end.
He was amazingly patient with us for the entire time it took, staying calm about the battle going on at his butt, while Legacy stood close by, begging for treats of his own and occasionally trying to bite Hunter’s hind quarter.
It was interesting to have stationed myself as a captivated observer for the length of time it took, and see the uninterrupted behavior of the horses as evening settled in. After a long time lingering beside Hunter and us, the three other horses took a little foray down to the green grass around the arena space.
We were still working on Hunter when it started to get dark and Legacy trekked back up to check on things. It was cute. When he found everything was under control, he made his way back down to where he could watch Cayenne, who had stayed out to graze.
As we were putting things away after Cyndie finished the bulk of the detangling, Hunter made a point of giving each of us a little kiss of attention, as if to show us he appreciated what we had done for him. He continues to impress us with the incredible maturation he has shown over the last few weeks.
That last gesture of a little kiss was enough to make the long, long session of standing to keep him calm and distracted, much easier to accept. It will help even more if he also successfully avoids creating the same mess in his tail all over again another time.
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Work Resumes
It was back to work for all of us yesterday, after our glorious weekend away. I returned to the day-job and Cyndie picked up where she left off with Hunter. My Monday in the mine was already complete and I had just arrived home when Rachael and Cyndie were heading down to put Hunter through some exercises.
I was able to observe some of the process from where I was picking up the days-worth of manure that had accumulated under the overhang. It was fascinating.
Turns out that Hunter is a bit of a perfectionist. He is also very sensitive. Rachael could see that he really wants to do things right the first time. She was directing him with only the slightest of movements. If she simply shifted her weight, as if to take a step, Hunter responded.
After Rachael’s demonstration, Cyndie took a turn at giving him directions with the lunge line. I could see that it is very much a joint exercise for the two of them. Cyndie’s lessons will be toward gaining clarity of message with her movements and Hunter will hopefully learn to respond appropriately.
We think he has potential to become a star in our herd of facilitators when it comes to communication.
September has arrived, which is the month when the horses were delivered to us, two years ago. I think they have adjusted well to the changes that have been presented to them in that time.
I expect it is fair to say that we have adjusted pretty well ourselves over that same period. In October, we will mark our third year of living on these 20 acres of fields and forested hills in western Wisconsin.
It feels like we are starting to get the hang of it.
Last Thursday, while mowing as fast as I could around the perimeter of the back pasture, I felt a sense of appreciation for the design and installation of all our fencing. During a pause to put gas in the lawn tractor, I made a point to call Tom and Sue Sherry of Best Built Fence.
I wanted to take the opportunity to reach out (for once) at a time when there was nothing I needed from them. I just wanted to say thank you and tell them what a great job they did for us. They showed up when we were as green as could be and helped guide us to a plan that was what we wanted but beyond our ability to envision.
I always felt Tom knew better than us what it was we were trying to accomplish. It was refreshing to be able to tell them so, when they least expected to hear it.
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Sweet Harmony
Yes, Hunter and Cayenne sharing a hay feeder.
It’s hard to describe how precious it feels to now see Hunter side by side with the other horses grazing at the hay feeders.
When I first put those boxes out last year, I wasn’t sure how well the new setup would work. I wanted the horses to be able to feed at them, 2-at-a-time, but it wasn’t to be for Hunter. He was either not welcomed by the others, or just not comfortable stepping up to the “table” while someone was already there.
The signals are often so subtle that I miss them entirely, but occasionally I would witness a simple shift of position or nod of a head which communicated clear enough to an approaching horse that they should just stay where they are. My standing near, trying to invite a horse in, would not be enough to override whatever messages were being sent by the horse already at the feeder.
Hunter always got his turn, eventually, so I chose not to worry about it. I let the horses manage the routine of grazing at the hay boxes all by themselves.
It’s pretty sweet to see they have finally worked it out so they can all cordially graze together at the same time, no waiting. To me, it seems like such a dramatic change in their behavior, but they make it appear as if it was nothing at all. Looking at them now, you’d have no reason to assume it hasn’t always been this way.
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Hunter Changes
I’ve been meaning for some time to describe how much, and how quickly, our horse Hunter demonstrated new behavior after Dunia began training his attention and responses, upon which Cyndie and I then experienced the epiphany to re-frame how we had always perceived him.
Hunter, moving too fast for my camera positioning.
Within a single day we began to see a series of disruptions among the three chestnuts of our herd, but primarily between Hunter and Cayenne. Prior to Hunter’s new displays of confidence, he was subordinate to Cayenne. She would pin her ears back and he would submit to whatever direction she dictated.
All of a sudden Cayenne was finding she no longer had total command over Hunter. He was pushing back with emphasis. There were times during their little spats of positioning to send a message with a good swift kick, where neither would back down and the alarming dance would carry on 2 or 3 times longer than is usually needed for this sort of thing.
There wasn’t any sign of hesitation in Hunter’s decision to demand a new level of respect, despite Cayenne’s initial resistance to accepting his new assertiveness.
Giving me a bit of a smile.
Of course, such changes in individuals also makes an impact on those around them. Legacy’s leadership is usually rather subtle, but as the two younger horses continued to wrangle over their relationship, I witnessed him take some bold steps to put them both in their place and convince them to give their ongoing battle a rest for the time being.
Just as quickly as the disruptions among the herd started from Hunter’s new attitude, they settled back down. I was surprised to suddenly find Hunter and Cayenne congenially eating from the same hay feeder, at the same time! That was a first.
Soon, Hunter was doing the same thing with Legacy.
The herd is once again a “get-along-gang,” which has us very pleased. How could we think of Hunter as anything other than the champ that he is to us now?
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Autumn Hint
I could have comfortably worn a long sleeve shirt yesterday, but I chose to stay with a more summer-like exposed arms ensemble in denial of the possibility summer might be coming to an end soon. With our dew point temperature down in the ever-so comfortable sub-50° range with an October-like sky, it felt like the kind of day we should have a fire in the fireplace.
Two weeks ago we were celebrating summer with our gala bash of picnic food and live music on the deck. What a difference between then and now.
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The horses seem to appreciate the fact that a breezy and cool cloudy day helps minimize the relentless harassment from flies. Cyndie caught Legacy and Cayenne in a brief nuzzle, probably because the flies weren’t covering their faces, while Dezirea stares the camera down as if disapproving of the violation of her friends’ privacy.
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Relative Something 