Hanging out by the pine trees

It was really quiet at the barn today, unless you count the crows. There weren't any other people around, so I guess the crows that live in the pine trees around Bonnie's place felt they should be vocal about it when I showed up. Even the corgis were enjoying the air conditioning inside. Actually, besides the horses, my only other pal at the barn was one of Bonnie's old cats.

Adorbs!

I took the time to wander around the place. On Bonnie's six acres there are several fenced off areas and run-in sheds. I visited the one attached to the tackroom first and spotted a big snake skin dangling from the rafters.

Wonder what the crows think about this?

I made my way to the two big back paddocks. They're sort of cut into a back third paddock by a pine tree line, sort of a natural fenceline. I wandered beyond the trees and checked out the two sheds back there.

It was really peaceful under all those pine trees. There's something about a carpet of pine needles on the ground that makes everything seem quiet and secret.

The horses must think so too, because they were spending a lot of time by the treeline.

I'm sure the shade had something to do with it.

It seemed like a good idea, so after Gobie and I did a little work in the field, I joined the horses down by the trees. I sat down on the ground several feet away from the group and just hung out and watched. It's nice to just be in nature, with the sounds of the woods and your thoughts.

Gobie, snoozing the the shade beneath a pine tree.

Honey and Kahlua and Cinder and Bo all were really relaxed and seemingly unconcerned with me just hanging out near them. Everyone's heads were low, and most of them had one back hoof tilted back in repose.

Gobie relaxin'.

My favorite part, though, was when Gobie meandered over for a visit. I didn't want him too close--I was sitting down cross-legged on the ground, after all, which is kind of a compromising position. But he just came over to say hi, and then moved back to the grass and his friends when I told him to leave me alone :)



Such a great relaxing and productive day. I've got a good little pony on my hands.

What do you know?

I love long weekends! Especially when the weather is as gorgeous as it has been.

Today was a perfect balance of getting some work done and relaxing with the pony. I had a couple of goals for the day, one of which was just hanging out with the herd. The other was to revisit some of the things we left off with last weekend.

Gobie continues to be a very good boy for grooming. He's got absolutely no problem with standing still for having his hair combed, being brushed, having his face cleaned, and so on. He's also very good about having his ears fussed with.

He's looking pretty shiny if I do say so myself!

A great looking dorsal stripe right down his back.

Cute wrinkled muzzle! Not looking too sunburned yet.

I noticed he had a little rub or cut or something near his eye so I put a little ointment on it hoping that will help it heal and keep the flies away. I also revisited the fly spray. He was about a thousand times better with getting sprayed than the first time. He still wanted to get away from it (particularly on his left side) but he was much less fearful and gave up pretty easily.

I also wanted to see how much he knew as far as moving away from pressure. So I had my little riding crop out. I used it just as an extension of my hand, and first made sure to just rub him with it. I know already that he's got a good "back" so we started there. First a little pressure on his chest, and if he didn't more, then some tapping. He did great! Next was turning on the forehand. To my surprise he did it like a pro, pivoting on his left front foot and his right front foot! We tried sidepassing, too but that was a bit more difficult. He was also getting pretty lazy about it at this point, too, deciding he would do these things reeeeally slowly. I also tried to see if he knew anything about lunging and I'm pretty sure he doesn't. But he was extremely willing and for the short time that we tried he seemed to be catching on to what it was about.

I gotta say I'm pretty glad that this pony seems to be about as lazy as I am. While I definitely think it's good mental exercise to do some training, and absolutely necessary to teach him the basics of how to be a well behaved horse around people, my favorite part about owning a horses is just hanging out. Especially when I've got such an obviously people friendly pony.

Big bad fly spray

Sam and I paid a quick visit to the pony today. I had two goals in mind for the visit: 1) get some sunscreen on his nose and 2) get some flyspray on him. I also wanted to play with his feet a little to reinforce the positive experience he had with the farrier the week before.

It was a lovely day out and Sam parked himself in a folding chair under the pine trees next to the driveway. Everyone was hanging out in that side paddock enjoying the grass and the buttercups. I had my bag full of grooming stuff and Gobie was pretty nosey about it. I really enjoy it when horses are nosey about stuff--going through bags, sniffing around your pockets and so on. I think it's the mark of a curious and thinking horse.

Gobie sniffed out the sunscreen right away. I remember from first meeting him at HorseNet in September that the white part on his muzzle gets pretty sunburned. It was already getting pink but I thought I'd at least make an attempt to keep it from getting too burned. He didn't mind getting the sunscreen on his nose at all! And comedically he flipped his upper lip in the air at the smell.

I brushed him off a bit and combed his hair. Pretty much all of his winter coat is gone now, leaving him pretty shiney and trim looking.

He was a little paranoid about Sam in his folding chair. Everytime he would shuffle around a bit Gobie would get more alert. I think because Sam was in the shade of the pine tree and he couldn't see him that well.

I picked up and scraped out his feet no problem. They are looking pretty good although the outerwalls are a little dry and cracked looking. I've got some hoof oil that I'll try to use, but I was feeling a bit lazy and didn't want to attempt it the same day as flyspray!


Speaking of that--you'd think I was trying to spray battery acid on the poor guy! He was very nervous about the whole thing but really was trying to be a trooper about it. I started by spraying a little into the air and then getting closer to him with the spray. He would try to back up and run away but I would stay along with him. When he stopped, or looked my way, or made some other attempt to face his fears I stopped spraying and gave him a good pat. He was curious about the bottle and sniffed it a bunch. I was able to get a good coating on him, but he really wasn't a fan of the whole thing.

By then it was feeding time for the rest of the gang so I let him go. Sam and I picked up some Black Oil Sunflower Seeds that I'm planning on feeding to the pony. Hopefully that will help with some of his hoof and coat conditioning and serve as a vehicle for the vitamin/general supplement I got him!

Feet, Part Two!

I'm happy to report that Gobie's feet trimming went better than I could have expected! What a good pony I've got.

I took a half-day off of work so I could arrive at Bonnie's in time for the farrier appointment. All of the horses were getting trimmed and wormed that day. When I pulled into the drive way I saw another of the boarders was already there.

So I got to meet Kahlua's person, Rose. She was very nice and we chatted for a while about our horses and how much we like Bonnie :)

I was in no hurry for Gobie to be trimmed. My plan was to keep things low-key and if it looked like he wouldn't be too much of a baby about getting trimmed we'd do it, but if he was having a fit about it I'd work with him more and get him the next time.

When the farrier, Ben, arrived we had Kahlua go first. She has shoes in the front so it took a little while. Bonnie showed up soon after they got started with Kahlua, but as they were nearing a finish Bonnie and I got Gobie from the field.

Bonnie thought we should try deworming him first. Surprise, he did NOT like that idea at all. He threw up his head and did everything to back away from us. But by that time Ben was ready for trimming so we abandoned that for the moment.

Ben introduced himself to Gobie with some scritches on his withers and some soothing words. We put some feed in a bucket and Gobie dove right in. He barely noticed Ben gently asking for his front right leg. He gave it up like a champ and before you knew it he was on to the next leg. We put a little more feed in the bucket as Gobie cleaned it out and before we knew it he was all done and trimmed! He tried taking his back feet away a couple times but Ben was firm and patient and Gobie was a willing pony.

Being the nice guy that he is, Ben offered to deworm Gobie, too. I'm not one to turn down help, so I said sure! Like the pro he is, he stuck with Gobie as he backed away from the paste. With patience and persistence (and some speedy footwork) Ben won him over and got the deworming paste in that pony's mouth. Perfect!

We turned Gobie out into one of the grassy mini-paddocks with the rest of his friends. His feet look beautiful!

His girlfriend Honey was next to be trimmed and he made an idiot of himself, pacing the fence line and calling after to her as she was lead to the trimming area.

Looking handsome and tragic.

Honey was a pro at getting trimmed, of course! She was done in no time and Gobie was happy to have her back.

A great day all together!

Feet, Part One!

There's an old saying that goes, "No hoof, no horse" and what it means, basically, is that hooves are important to a horse's wellbeing. In the wild horses rely on their feet to be in good shape for helping them escape from predators, and for walking miles and miles for food and water. In the domestic setting horses spend nearly their entire lives on their feet: they stand to eat, to drink, to socialize, and even to sleep.

So an essential part of horse care is making sure their feet are healthy. And because horses hooves grow continuously they need to be trimmed on a regular basis, kind of like human fingernails.

But remember how horses need those feet to run away from predators? That also means they aren't crazy about having people mess with them. After all, somewhere in their instinctual make-up, horses know that being able to run at any moment on those feet can save their life. Horses must be trained to get their hooves trimmed, and go against all those instincts to let humans do it.

On Friday Gobie and the rest of the horses at the farm are getting a visit from the farrier--the professional that trims horse hooves. But today we had to do a little prep work! After all, my heroes at the rescue cautions that I may have to have Gobie sedated for a hoof trimming. I decided first thing was first: better find out if he would even lift his feet!

After work I drove out to the farm (almost two hours! traffiiiick!) and found all the horses munching hay together. As soon as Gobie saw me he moseyed over to say hi. I came into the paddock with him, and he was soon abandoning his hay to come follow me into the work area. It was pretty cute, I have to say. We started right away--a lead rope and a little socializing. I started with his front left foot and that was a piece of cake. I itched him on the fetlock and he lifted his hoof up with no hesitation. I scraped out the little bit of muck in it and put his foot back down and gave him a treat. Then it was on to the front right hoof. Also no problem--though he did try to put his foot down sooner than I wanted. He didn't put up a fight when I held on to it, though.

So, emboldened, I went for the back feet. First itching down his back and down his right hind leg. He didn't really want to pick it up, but when I leaned against him he leaned away so I could lift it. He seemed more willing to pull it back then lift it up. Regardless, when I held it in my hand he started to try to snatch it away and put it back down, but I held on and kept my hand on his leg. I won the disagreement and at no time did he try to kick me or run off! When I went for the left back leg there was a little hesitance but he was way more willing than the previous leg. All in all a great first experience!

Of course, picking your feet up is one thing and standing there patiently while someone clips and files them is another. We'll see how Friday goes. It's not high stakes or anything--his feet look okay so if we have a wait a little while to get a good trim he'll be alright. But this experience confirmed what I already knew about Gobie--he's not looking for a fight, is pretty easily convinced, and has a great mellow temperament. Good pony!

Meeting the gang

This Mother's Day weekend Gobie got lots of visitors. In addition to my in-laws meeting the latest addition to the family, my pals Elizabeth, Jason, and Molly came out to see the horses. Jason, of course, brought his camera.

Gorgeous!

Gobie was turned out with the other horses in the field that runs along the driveway, so I wanted to bring him a little closer to the fence where everyone was hanging out.

We had a little disagreement about being led.

I wouldn't say that Gobie's been great at leading in the past, but he was usually more willing to follow me. Having a chat with Bonnie later, she said that she's been leading him from paddock to paddock with a lead rope and feed. So my theory is that he was protesting my lack of bribery!

Okay, so I know obviously the way to lead a contrary horse is not to pull on them. Even as a pony, Gobie's still a million times stronger than I am. So, instead I would get him going by moving off to the side, putting a little pressure on his hind, and turning him slightly. You know, just to get the gas going so to speak.

Getting moving...

This was mostly effective. Gobie's the kind of horse who is pretty tolerant of a lot of things you ask of him, but when he really doesn't want to do something he'd rather stop and take a nap than put up a fight.

Finally leading!

It's great to work with an intrinsically good-natured horse. I'd take a horse with a heavy pair of brakes than a lead-foot any day. All the same, leading for grain all the time isn't gonna fly and neither is only taking two steps at a time.

No hard feelings, though, right?

So leading is something we'll work on. He was super great at standing to be groomed, though. And he was totally unconcerned with having a couple of people in the field with him, in addition to the other horses. He didn't seem concerned at all when we wanted to fuss over him and wasn't worried about being away from the others.

Of course, we weren't doing anything too strenuous.

My favorite thing about Gobie has always been what a lovebug he is. Some people really prescribe to the idea that horse shouldn't come into your space, that you should be able to touch them but not allow them to touch you, unless you tell them to or something. And I understand that thinking. A horse that takes liberties with your space can be dangerous, after all. But horses are really great at reading body language, and if you're subconsciously inviting them into your space, they're doing to do that.

Plus, Gobie's great at giving hugs.

...and kisses?

We're quickly working out when it's cool to get a little close and friendly, and when it's not. The weather was beautiful and the company was great so it was easy just to stay out in the field messing around with ponies all day.

And, let's face it, we're pretty adorable together.

After a little bit, though, it was time to leave. So we took the lead rope off and after a little wind-down and resocializing with the herd, Molly and I decided to see if we could get the horses running. They were pretty lazy about it, but finally we got them in to more than a jog.

This should be a poster or something.

But soon it was back to lazing around and grazing. Gobie and Honey of course found each other quickly. They are still best buddies. Bonnie says Gobie is up to his old tricks: claiming Honey as his own and playing keep away from horses and people. Tsk!

Having a graze with his girlfriend, Honey.

We didn't have a problem with that, though. We were able to love on Honey and Gobie that day without any drama. In fact all the horses were pretty mellow about having us visit. There was lots of rolling around in the grass and they seemed appreciative of any scratches and de-shedding efforts we extended.

Gobie and Honey ended the visit with a good drink from the bathtub trough and saw us out as we made our way down the driveway.

Having a drink with Honey.

Sam and I also brought our dog, Locksley, so he could see horses for the first time. You can read how that went here. (I'm happy to report that Gobie was a saint!)

What's in a name?

I've been thinking about calling Gobie something else. I know! This is kind of controversial. It's a hard decision to make because on the one hand he's been "Gobie" at the rescue for years and that's what I've known him as for months. On the other hand, this is a new chapter in his life. And, from a superficial stand point his name makes me think of two things:

Neither of which I feel particularly tied to!

So in the spirit of that I've created a poll including potential names that you can vote on. Also feel free to submit suggestions in the comments. Here they are:

Gobie
That's right! One of the options is to keep his name as Gobie.

Ash, Smokey or Punk
These names are all homages to my first horse, Cinder. They are all names related to smoldering fires just like Cinder was. Ash and Smoke as pretty self explanatory. Punk is defined as: as substance that will smolder and can be used to light fireworks, fuses, etc. Plus, I'm sure he will be a bit of a punk :)

Gotham or Salem
Whenever I have something to name, I always turn to names of place. It started when my sister named her dog Melbourne after a trip to Australia. Gotham would be after my favorite comic locale, and Salem would be after my honeymoon destination. I also think "Gobie" could be a nickname version of Gotham (a stretch, I know...)

Nottingham
This is also the name of a place, but it's also related to my dog's name, Locksley. Themes! I think it could be also shortened to Notti (sounds like: naughty) which is kind of cute.

Pan, Pipkin and Skelly
Pan would be after Peter. Pipkin and Skelly (or Skelton) would be after a character in Ray Bradbury's Halloween Tree. Literary themes!

Let me know what you think--I'd love your help!