Ice has nothing on my naughty pony

It snowed Saturday and while it wasn't a ton it did ice over pretty well. It made for crunchy and slippery walking. The forecast for today called for more wintery precipitation, but I wanted to see how my pony was faring so I drove out anyway. The roads were pretty good, until I got to Bonnie's driveway which was a little dicey. But the horses all looked cozy in the field. Gobie came right up to the gate to be let in to the work area. I was surprised, but pleased to see how deftly he seemed to be managing the snow and ice.

Steady feet.

The other horses wear blankets, but not Gobie. His coat is plenty bushy to keep him warm. However, I did spot an icicle hanging from his mane!

The spot on his shoulder and neck where he had been rubbing hasn't gotten any better. I'm not sure what's going on with it but I'll have to put something anti-itch on it I think. I'm a little worried that the ointment would make him a bit cold, though, and ointment wouldn't really fix whatever the root cause of the thing is.

Despite that one worrying spot, Gobie seemed to be in a frisky mood. In the work area I made a bucket of food for him--the supplements, and some black oil sunflower seeds. I gave him a good brushing to help his hair stand up and get some muddy bits off. A couple of treats later, it was back to the field with the rest of the gang.

The sound of the horses crunching around on the icy snow was pretty impressive--it echoed through the trees. You could also hear the crunching in the woods--maybe deer? It caught the horses on alert for sure.

Bonnie came out to say hi. We chatted a bit out the weather, how the horses were doing, and the farrier visit scheduled for Monday (which may be rained out!) She tossed in a few flakes of hay for the horses, and they charged up to the fence to eat.

I managed to get a pretty entertaining video of the horses romping around in the snow, including some pretty fancy moves from that naughty pony of mine.

Enjoy!

Maryland Horse Expo

We went to the Maryland Horse Expo this weekend at the Fairgrounds in Timonium. It was the first time I got to go to the horse expo as a horse owner--last year we went so I could longingly gaze at all the stuff. Even though I could have legitimately bought something, I still left empty handed. Probably for the best!

Sweet sign, right?

There were several events taking place in the various arenas, including a horse variety show (where a black horse and a white horse tromped around to epic music) and a clinic on how to train unbroke horses.

Mounted, for the first time!

It was all very educational. The real reason for going to the expo, though, is to check out all the things for sale. Even if you aren't planning on buying anything it's fun to look at the sheer volume and variety of all the things.

Pony toys!

So many boots.

Dog treats. (Don't tell Locksley we didn't get any!)

Aside from the consumerism, there are rescue groups and other horse related groups. HorseNet Horse Rescue was there, and we dropped by to say hi. We also visited the Draft Horse rescue.

Twins?

At one of the rescue groups they had sections of over-grown hooves, a matted horse's tail, a horse skull, and the cross section of a hoof with navicular disease. It's amazing to see the condition some horses arrive to rescues in, and their resilience when they recover into healthy, happy ponies.

There was loads to learn at the expo. I was happy to come across an organization passionate about horses pulling carriages--with a nod to their historic relevance. They had this one-horse, vintage looking carriage set up in their booth.

Classy hat, not included.

I also did some homework on things like saddle pads, saddles, and bitless bridles. There didn't seem to be a lot of deals to be had on the things I was interested in so it looks like the internet will be my friend of purchasing. All the same, it was a fun afternoon and all the stimulating and people watching was pretty good.

The beginnings of a life-long pony addiction.

Freezing and here to stay?

We've been having crazy weather this winter--50s some days, in the 20s the next. This weekend was particularly cold. Even though the reports claimed today would be the warmest out of the long weekend, it certainly didn't feel that way.

Perhaps speaking to the cruelty of the cold (or perhaps the adeptness of the barn cats!) there was a foreboding sign right as I stepped out of my car.

aww. 

It's a shrew (I think) and I don't know if the poor thing met its end before or after it froze, but I could believe such a small critter could freeze to death in this weather. There were even some crows perched in a tree not too far up, and while they usually would fly off at the smallest indication of my interest in them, I think it was too cold for them to even bother. In fact, they let me watch them for several minutes, as they made cute croaking sounds to each other.

The horses looked pretty cozy, though. Or at the very least they didn't seem to mind the cold as much as the rest of us.

Standing the in sun helps. 

I went out into the paddock to give Gobie some love, even though he was perfectly willing to come greet me at the fence line. I didn't want to take him away from his hay, since all that eating and digestion helps keep a pony warm. He was looking pretty good, if not a little muddy, but it was nothing that a good hand brushing couldn't cure.

He did come closer to the fence after I left him to go pull together some vitamins and seeds. I gave him his bucket through the fence, and he made quick work of the token food.

Noms, and frozen puddles.

He also took the opportunity to have a drink from the trough. It was heated, or else the water would have been frozen. It made me really grateful that Bonnie had heaters for the tank. Horses don't like drinking cold water in the winter, so something to keep it from getting frozen and to have be more palatable is fantastic.

Sluuurp.

I hope Spring hurries up! The fickleness of this weather has totally spoiled me and this cold snap is totally lame.

PS, we also payed Gobie a visit last weekend but it was pretty short, sweet, and unbloggable!

Holiday Treat

It's been unseasonably warm lately, but this week we're back to some more winter appropriate weather. I was actually looking forward to it, since for Christmas I bought some warm mash for Gobie--and it's far more appropriate to serve warm mash when it's cold out!

Lucky for us, it was freezing out this evening.

As usual, Gobie was at the gate waiting for me to let him in to the work area and give him some lovin'. But first we had some business to attend to: another dose of regular deworming. I think Bonnie did the other horses earlier but I always do Gobie myself--I think because she's not comfortable managing him on her own. Each time it's time to take his medicine, he gets a bit better with it. This time was a breeze and we were done in no time!

So it was back to pleasantries! Gobie got a quick once-over to get some dried mud and dust off. And so I could admire the state of his excellent winter coat.

So. Fuzzy.

But on to the main event! The mash I got from Dovery Saddlery. They had different measures available: one for horses and one for ponies. I got Gobie the smaller size. There were also lots of different flavors, but I opted for peppermint because he's so fond of his peppermint treats.

 Deco's Mini Monster Mash - Peppermint Piaffe! Fancy, ya'll.

The mix included: wheat mash, alfalfa, oats, un-sweetened beet pulp, cracked corn, ground flax seed and peppermint candies.

 Dry, in the bucket.

All you had to do was add water. I brought 6 cups hot water in a thermos from home. You can also use cold water, but it takes longer to soak and it kind of defeats the purpose of having warm mash!

With hot water. Let soak for 15 minutes.

The reason why hot mash is great: in the winter horses don't like to drink cold water which can lead to dehydration and digestion issues. Bonnie has at least one of her troughs heated, so it's not a big deal for these horses. But if you don't have a heated trough, offering warm mash can help your horse get some much needed water, and keep their guts in order. This brand of mash says it's can be fed as a treat or as a nutritionally balanced meal that "helps to improve digestion and gut flow."

But the best reason to feed mash is, of course, horses seem to really like it!

 Get that over here!

As soon as I put the bucket down, Gobie was ready to eat.

He practically DOVE into it.

omnomnomnom.

It actually took him a little while to get through it all, even though we had the "mini" size there was a lot of it. It was a little messy--he got some on his face (which was easy to wipe off) and on the ground (which was easy for him to nibble up).

 ...and the bucket, licked clean!

 Gobie definitely enjoyed his mash, and it was a well deserved treat. Some of the other horses gathered at the fence line to watch, longingly.

 Other horses, u jelly?

Definitely recommend the warm mash! We'll probably get some more when it decides to stay cold. The holidays have been great in the treat department--Bonnie really thoughtfully got Gobie some apple and oat biscuits, too. At this rate I'll have to start training him to be a riding pony to keep his cute figure. Ha!