Posts Tagged ‘horses’
Things Change
I suppose the transition will never be complete. Everything, including ourselves, is in constant transformation. In a couple of months we will have completed our second year living in a rural setting, now with 4 horses, a dog, and a cat. We moved from our home of 25 years in the suburban area where we had grown up, living those last few years with no pets at all. The transition has been monumental for us.
Since we arrived, I learned how to drive our diesel tractor (12 forward gears, 4 reverse). We adopted 2 cats, one of which has been returned. We found a fence contractor who helped us design a new layout, cleared scrub brush and trees, and installed paddock and hay-field fencing. We cut a new trail through our woods to finish a loop. We added a gravel driveway around a new hay shed we had built. We built a 70-foot diameter labyrinth garden, now officially named the Rowcliffe Forest Garden Labyrinth, after our dear friend, Ian Rowcliffe, who has influenced and inspired us immeasurably in this adventure. I built a wood shed and then dismantled it after it blew over in a storm.
We discovered a Belgian Tervuren dog breeder not too far away and brought home beautiful Delilah, a 9-month-old puppy. After bolstering the stables and barn walls with new planks of wood, we eventually got around to adding horses; 4 beautiful Arabians. The dream for this property, and for the modifications to it, have all been centered around the plan to have these horses, even though at the start, we weren’t sure from where the horses would come.
This summer I found myself pulling a hay rake behind my tractor and helping my neighbor to bale our hay and it felt like the transformation had reached a real milestone. This was almost like being a real farmer. I’ve certainly spent enough time digging around in our manure pile to at least feel like a rancher. I’ve planted, transplanted, fed, watered, and also cut down, split and chipped enough trees to feel like a lumberjack.
In July of this year, Cyndie started a new job which triggered the decision to have me stop working in the Twin Cities and stay home full-time to manage the property and animals.
There are still some significant projects pending which are looming large. We need to get drain tile and landscaping done to improve drainage around the paddocks, and we are adding the next phase of fencing to enclose a grazing pasture.
Our transition is nowhere near complete, but as we approach the accomplishment of our second year here, we are seeing the benefits of the changes we have made and noticing a feeling of significance for where we are now, in light of where we have been. We find ourselves pausing more often, to sit in our rocking chairs on the hill overlooking our back yard and take it all in.
Delilah, born about the time we bought this place and so also approaching two years old, now sits with us by the rockers, instead of running around chewing on everything. A very welcome change, among many.
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Pony Pull
It’s that time of year for county fairs, and our Pierce County Fair is this weekend. My 77-year-old neighbor across the street invited me to join him to watch the free pony pull on Wednesday evening, the night before the fair officially opened. How could I resist?
Cyndie and I completely missed the fair last year, and hadn’t even been on the grounds yet, though we drive past them every time we go to Ellsworth, which is about 5-minutes from our house. I was happy to have the opportunity to preview the layout of the fair grounds and see how the entrance is set up and where the parking is.
The place was buzzing with energy as vendors all scrambled to get set up and decorated for opening day. I saw three separate buildings just for churches to sell their burgers, soups, pies, cookies, and other baked goods. I wonder if they offer any hotdish.
I found the petting zoo and the pony rides, and walked around carnival workers putting pots of flowers around a ride to make the deadly thing look pretty.
The pony pull was something I had never before witnessed. I don’t know if these folks train their horses just for this type of event, or if these are work horses that get a few weekends of competition for variety. The horses seem to know the drill, being all too eager to launch with all their might, whether or not the driver is ready and the handlers have successfully dropped the hook to catch the sled. More than once, the driver had to take the team around and circle back for another try. When they launch into pulling, it’s a force to be reckoned with.
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If I had been betting on it, I would have lost money. Some unlikely looking teams proved to have better combined power than a few pairs that looked great, but failed to coordinate their initial lurch, which makes all the difference. It’s definitely a team sport.
We are planning to get the full experience tomorrow. I think there might be some church food in my future…
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Horse Joy
John and Cyndie playing with horses; two pictures that I did not take. Thank you to Julie Kuberski for the beautiful photo of Cyndie exercising Legacy in our arena space. I realize that I just included a picture I had taken of Cyndie and “Legs” doing this same exercise a couple of days ago, but this image by Julie is just too wonderful to pass up.
The other one, Cyndie took with my new rugged-duty, waterproof camera. I carry it in one of my pockets most of the time, so it gets exposed to a lot of dust and dirt. There is a sacrifice of some image quality, but it gets the job done well enough to tell the story. I am interacting with Cayenne in this shot.
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.Horse wisdom is bringing us great joy.
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Double Bonus
Once again we have experienced one of our favorite things about Wintervale: the addition of visitors. We got a double bonus yesterday with a visit we were expecting, and also a drop in surprise! What a blessing it is to have friends and family be a part of our world here. It is especially rewarding when a visit includes the offer of labor toward projects.
Our special friend, Julie, whom I met years ago on one of the annual June cycling/camping adventure weeks, and her niece, Cecilia, came for a day of food, friendship, and work. Julie brought lunch she prepared, then Cyndie guided them through some exercises with the horses. After that, they all pitched in to help me work on relocating our temporary fencing to move the horses on to new grazing. The previous spot was getting a little too short.
Julie sent me a couple of pictures from her camera. This is Cecilia working in the round pen with Cayenne, and a picture Cyndie took of Julie in the “arena” with Legacy.
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Just as we had returned to the house for a break to have some popsicles, we received this great surprise: my niece, Liz’s husband, Nick, arrived with two of their kids, Ben and Heidi. Joyful energy abounded. Delilah had a blast when Ben tossed things for her to chase, the kids were cute as ever with the horses, and Nick offered his assistance for anything I needed help with.
Turned out I did find some heavy lifting for which his offer of help was a timely gesture.
With the day coming to a close, I was able to put final touches on removing slack from the tape, applying electricity, and opening the field to the horses great joy. This morning, in the low early light, my unwelcome shadow was unavoidable as I captured the horses in their new grazing space, where they are able to get in close proximity to the labyrinth garden.
Thanks to Julie, and Cecilia for helping get the fence up, and to Nick for bringing his kids for a surprise visit. It was truly a double bonus day for Cyndie and me. Delilah and the horses, too, for that matter!
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More Designing
I recently built a platform outside the back door of the barn for Cyndie’s portable sink. She said she liked it, but that she was also hoping to have a work station for washing horses in that area. On Friday, I worked on a design for a way to provide that, just beyond the sink.
The area will require a fair amount of fill, so I decided it was time to use the loader bucket on the diesel tractor. Moving massive amounts of manure was one of the reasons I figured I needed this tractor, but up until now, we have been managing just fine without it.
Actually, our neighbor, George, was just asking about our manure pile, and happily offered us the use of his manure spreader, as long as we can fill it using the loader on our tractor. That would allow us to spread our fertilizer on the hay-field. His asking created incentive for me to practice my skills using the loader for something other than snow.
It doesn’t come naturally for me. I have better control using hand tools. However, there is no denying the increased efficiency the loader provides. I can move a lot more fertilizer in a lot less time. One of my problems with mechanized assistance is that it also allows me to make a lot bigger mistakes in a shockingly quick blink of an eye.
For now, I am using the mostly composted manure from long ago as clean fill around our property. I moved a few bucket-loads to the spot and now have a sense of space that will be needed. I plan to bury a couple of fence posts to make a hitching rail and build up a platform where the horses will stand. We have some plastic grates that interlock, which we will fill with pea-gravel, and then that will be covered by rubber mats. I expect there will be a layer of plastic beneath the pea-gravel to cause water to drain in the direction we want it to go.
Luckily, Cyndie said she doesn’t expect to be washing horses for a while, so I have time to proceed in phases.
She was able to make use of the new arena space in the afternoon, exercising the horses with a lunge line. It was beautiful to see. The horses responded nicely to the exercise, and moved proudly around her in this new workout space that has been created.
Every day is something new around here. The progress of late has been invigorating for the soul, yet taxing on the body. That end-of-the-day shower is becoming a ritual of renewal and recovery after long days of heavy laboring.
During a brief pause between tasks yesterday afternoon, Cyndie brought out popsicles and invited me to join her on rocking chairs overlooking the back yard. With a cool breeze washing over us, it was a precious (and intentional) opportunity to take a moment to enjoy the richness of blessings we are surrounded by here. They are more than enough justification for the hard work we find ourselves engaged in day-after-day.
Horse Stuff
Here is what the arena space looks like after I hung the polytape fencing. I devised a gate which will allow Cyndie to pull up one post and move it to the side without changing the tension of the tape on any other posts.
Cyndie arrived home early enough to do some grooming of the horses yesterday. She surprised me with a text message that said she was “ten minutes away and bringing Dairy Queen ice cream treats.” What a sweetheart. Am I not the luckiest man alive?
A couple of the horses have been bothered by bug bites, and Cyndie took time with each horse, hooking to their halter with cross ties to keep them standing in one place so she could do a thorough job. 
The horses seemed to really appreciate the attention, willingly cooperating to get into the harness and lead rope for their turn.
After she had brushed them out, she applied a chemical fly repellant in hopes of giving them a break from the constant pestering, followed by a reward-treat to thank them for tolerating the funny smell. I was amazed that each horse didn’t just walk out into the paddock and roll in the dusty dirt afterwards, especially Hunter. He is notorious for getting himself covered from head to hoof.
Actually, he has been spending extra time when he does lay down, wriggling around to scratch himself against the ground, sending clear signals that the insects were bugging him.
I captured a picture of Hunter communing with Delilah (in her lopsided vest), in a rare moment when one or the other weren’t trying to demonstrate their perceived dominance.
In all fairness to each of them, Delilah and the herd have behaved with increasing poise toward each other in the days since I stopped driving across the cities to the day-job. I suppose it is a combination of the extended daily exposure they have been able to have, and the maturation Delilah is developing as she approaches the ripe old age of 2.
I’ll take it. Life is so much more pleasant when everybody is able to get along.
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Arena Space
Just when we are beginning to see progress on improvement of our hay-field, we go and re-purpose a significant chunk of it for a riding arena. Cyndie has been planning all along to have an arena, and this section of the field wasn’t producing the greatest grass, so we think it is a good location. Per Cyndie’s request, I mowed the field short in that space, and yesterday I measured and placed step-in posts she purchased for a temporary fence.
It gives us a tangible view of what her desired dimensions look like in that spot. It is a little awkward for now, because the area isn’t completely flat. It took me a lot of tries to get it oriented the way I wanted, because so many of the visual references are not square. Combined with the hill, those features created quite a battle between my eye and the tape measure.
Next, I need to install fence polytape on the posts to create a visual barrier that will allow Cyndie to ride the horses in the space. Somewhere down the line, probably after we get a landscaper to install drain tile and improve the surface of the paddocks, we would like to get the arena graded level and then have a layer of sand put down.
I have contacted two different landscaper/excavators who we were referred to for improving our paddocks, and neither one of them has returned my call. It’s frustrating. Our window of opportunity could close for the season before I can get work scheduled, and then we will have another winter/spring of mud hassles to endure.
I might be forced to do some of the work myself, like digging out a better defined drainage swale. The issue I’m most concerned about is how to determine and maintain a proper slope. I haven’t the equipment or the know-how to execute establishing that critical feature. Is that going to become another thing I have to learn how to do myself?
I’m hoping not.
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Morning Light
After the horses finished their morning feed, they moved out into the hay-field. We are giving them access to the big field for a few days, post baling. That gives the grazing pasture a chance to recover a bit. I liked how they looked in the early morning sunlight, and in the absence of having my camera with me, I pulled out my cell phone to capture the image.
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Multiple Priorities
It is such a pleasure to have our hay-field cut and baled, and to have our hay shed filled with what should be enough hay to get us all the way through next winter. The field looks great freshly cut. We opened it up to the horses after the baling was complete, thinking they might run out and revel in the wide expanse of space with available grass to eat. It was rather anticlimactic, because they instead chose to stay close to the paddock fence and graze on the grass growing in the unmowed drainage swale.
Finally yesterday, I witnessed them slowly making their way up the hill along the driveway fence line, tightly grouped in their little herd of four. I guess they are just being cautious.
I opened up the cover of the wood chipper and reclaimed the locking pin I inadvertently tossed in there on Monday. It was a simple procedure, giving me the opportunity to see the cutting blades and how the whole thing works. I sure hope I can put it to use before the end of this week.
With hay under control, it is time to move on to other business. I do hope to mow down the weeds on the small area to the north of the driveway, but cutting down trees and chipping up branches is a high priority that needs to happen before the fencing company shows up to finally start work on enclosing the entirety of the grazing pasture between the hay-field and the woods/labyrinth.
Another high priority for us is finding a landscape company that can take on the task of installing drain tile around the paddocks, and providing gravel and/or sand to improve the ground inside the paddocks during wet times. The one referral we were given is not responding. I’m guessing it is his way of indicating he’s not interested in the job, but a second source said it is likely that he’s just too busy. My neighbor said his prices are good, which is probably why he is too busy.
We really want to get this done while things are dry enough to support trucks loaded with gravel navigating our property. The way things have been around here the last two years, that time period ends up being rather short.
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Busy Days
I sure understand now, the old saying about making hay while the sun shines. The hay-making in these parts is happening all around us now that we are experiencing dryer days. Finally, even our field has been cut. Unlike last year, when our neighbor came over with horses pulling a sickle-bar mower, this time is was done with tractor power.
With our friend, George, too busy getting his own fields cut and baled, we went with a second option that took advantage of proximity. The fields next door to our south are rented out, and we sent word that we would like ours cut when the person comes to do those. Now a 3rd-person connection, I only know him by his first name, Ed.
The hitch here is that this guy only makes round bales. I don’t have the right setup to move those behemoths with my tractor, so they are no good to us. I have a couple of days to try to locate someone who has time and can make small bales. If I’m unsuccessful, we’ll have him go ahead and round bale our field and we’ll hope the neighbor with cows will take them off our hands.
Our need for the hay from our field —which is far from top quality horse hay, due to the ratio of weeds to desirable grasses— is greatly reduced since we connected with a local grower who makes small bales. We can afford to let hay cut from our field go to someone else. The most important thing for us is just getting it cut to encourage grass growth and discourage weeds.
How organic of us!
Speaking of our local grower, I made three trips to his place yesterday, hauling a whopping 120 bales. As a result of some weird law of physics, the bales get heavier as you lift more and more of them.
The days of hay-making are keeping me busy as ever right now. When our shed is filled with bales, it is going to seem like I suddenly have a lot less to do around here.
…Until I think about the woodshed roof laying on the ground.
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Relative Something 