Tuesday, January 19, 2010

Catching Up

I know I have been sort of absent from my horsey blog recently..... there's just no a lot going on at the barn these days!

For 2 weeks it was so cold everyone just stayed bundled up. I don't think I took the horse's blankets off for more than a few minutes to brush them every other day or so. I know, bad, bad, bad. I should have done it every day but......

The horses have been eating an incredible amount of hay, and drinking an incredible amount of water! I have been filling the 100 gallon tank in the paddock with 5 horses twice daily. The paddock with my "three skinnies" I fill up every other day. I figure the hay has less moisture content than fresh green grass in the summer, so they drink more to compensate....

The rain rot is getting better on Jazz and Montana; scabs coming loose and falling off in clumps now. I hate rain rot. I simply hate it. They both have a lumpy appearance from it and it just looks terrible. Now they're beginning to shed a little bit, so I guess in a few weeks most of the hair on their backs and rumps will be gone................ *sigh*. This is exactly what Major did his first winter post -track, in turnout. Par for the course for my TBs for some reason. Bleh. I hate it.

After being so cooped up with rain all the time, then snow, then bitter cold, I finally decided I had enough. Poor Jazz and Montana were stocked up every morning from just standing there and eating in their paddock and stalls, and getting little or no exercise. So I started taking them for walks up our mile long drive. They LOVED it! It made them so happy! Last night Kevin and I took them up the drive and Jazz was so excited I had to pull her back as hard as I could; she wanted to run, run, run! Stocking up is gone.

The weather has been simply wonderful for about a week; and as luck would have it, on the first nice weekend I could ride in don't know how long, I have to work part of Saturday, and then it rained all day Sunday...! Tomorrow, I decided I am going to get off a little early and Kevin and I are going out for a ride on our boys!

YAY!