Rosie gets a new home

We decided that perhaps it was time to find Rosie a new home.  She really deserves more individual attention and we had hoped that we could find her a family that had kids that would love her as much as we have.  And we were going to be selective.  I put carefully written ads online, listing her as an adoption, and hoped that we would get some really good responses.  Rosie is definitely pony sized but rides more like a horse and is very well trained.  She isn't for a complete beginner as she's still got some pep to her and she's very responsive.  I got a reply to an ad from a woman named Julie.  She was looking for a kid safe pony for her 9 year old daughter to ride.  Her current horse has developed some issues and wasn't a good fit anyone.  One catch - Julie lives 3 1/2 hours away.  She was willing to drive out to see her so we made plans for yesterday.  Her 9 year old daughter Logan is absolutely adorable and did well on Rosie.  They loaded her up in the trailer and drove Rosie to her new home late yesterday.  We are thrilled that Rosie will have a girl that will love her and take excellent care of her and we know that she will bloom with Logan.  I am happy that she found an awesome home but sad to see her go.  We wish you well, Rosie, and many happy years with Logan!!

Wordless Wednesday - Rosie in the Creek

Looking Good

Rocky continues to gain weight and energy and to heal from being gelded and having his wolf teeth pulled.  Most of the old hair has shedded out and his new coat has grown in well.

We are hoping to turn him out with the rest of the herd soon.  The vet had told us to wait at least 10 days after he was gelded since there's one last chance for him to breed a mare right after being gelded (we certainly don't want that!) but 10 days out was safe enough.  I would like to wait about 2 1/2 weeks just to be cautious and to make sure that he's healed.  He is very interested in all of the horses in the herd, especially Zip, and calls to them whenever they come into the barn or one of them walks by.  We have made introductions over the fence with Zip, Rosie and Rooster.

I would love to know what Rosie was thinking.

Saying hi to Zip.  Zip just took it all in stride.

Alive and Kicking

Rosie has certainly come into her own.  She's rounding out nicely and really looks like the sturdy pony she should be.  She's quite the pistol under saddle and wants to go, go, go.  Her hair is growing back slowly - right now she has a deep red peach fuzz and I can't wait to see what color her new coat will be.

The darker batches along her chest is where she completely shedded her winter coat

Sweet Rosie

Rosie seems to very much enjoy her life these days.  While we were riding on the weekend, she had the whole field to herself and spent most of it soaking up the sunshine.

She is very unconcerned about people around her, even when she's laying down.  She loves to get attention and she is shedding like a fiend right now.  When we got her last July she was so emaciated and hadn't shed most of her winter coat.  It seems that her body is in overdrive now and she's got patches where she's shed out completely bald.  It's something that the vet mentioned can sometimes happen with horses that are really undernourished.  She looks pretty threadbare right now.

I got to hang out with her in the field and groom her with my hands

She was perfectly fine with me down on her level - Maccabee is always mugging for the camera

She loves to have her face rubbed

I hope her hair grows in soon!

Done, done, and done!!!

This was a 3 day weekend for me and we had a bunch of stuff planned.  Friday night was a much needed and long overdue hair cut (I'm planning to donate my hair to Locks of Love a bit later in the spring so this was just a trim).  Craig and T also picked up a new saddle.

Saturday was off to the hay auction.  Three and a half tons later - we bought really nice heavy small bales of mixed grass with some timothy, alfalfa and clover thrown in.  These bales are HEAVY.  They average about 60 pounds where most other small bales are between 40 and 50 pounds.  We were tired by the time they were all stacked!

Sunday was cleaning up, running errands and a ride in the big field with the track.  The weather was beautiful once the rain cleared and it was a fun ride.  We also dropped my car off to have a tie rod replaced and the front end alignment done.

Monday was up bright and early to head over to New Holland to check out the tack sale and then to the grain mill (with a stop along the way for Fastnacht doughnuts at the Amish bakery).  We picked up almost 600 pounds of custom blended grain - crimped feed with alfalfa pellets, soy beans and flax.  The horses love the new hay and are hoovering the new grain.  I didn't realize that the mill could do custom blends for us so now I have the "recipe" and will probably do it again.

Our field gets the full morning sun and is sunny on the hill for most of the afternoon.  The three redheads enjoyed some sun bathing while Maccabee looked for grass nibbles.

Back to work for me today...

Moving Day

This winter was a harsh one with some form of precipitation, mostly snow with some sleet and freezing rain thrown in, just about every 3 days during January and the beginning of February.  Since this was the second winter in a row of above normal snow, we decided that we needed to find another barn that would afford us more hay storage (we had hay on hold but we didn't have anywhere to store it).  We found something closer to home that would allow us to keep the horses out with access to a shed big enough for all four of them and have a place to store as much hay as we needed.  Plus we have a separate barn, access to an outdoor lighted riding ring, a large pasture with a conditioning track for riding, and some trails.  And it's close to the county park with riding trails - a very short trailer ride down the road.

We moved everything and everyone on Saturday morning (multiple trailer trips) and spent most of the weekend getting the barn set up including rolling out a round bale.  We even found some time to ride Zip and Rooster on Sunday morning.  Maccabee and I took a stroll down the driveway while the curious Thoroughbreds crowded along the fence on either side but he handled it well and listened to me.  T gave Rosie a good grooming in the barn while we strolled.

Sunday turned out to be a beautiful sunny day with a hint of spring in the air.  The horses enjoyed a romp around the field followed by a good roll in the mud and hay munching. 

Monday brought more precipitation in the form of rain but the weather forecasters are calling for seasonal temps and sun (glorious sun!!) for a few days.  I'm looking forward to spring!

Spring Rose

Wordless Wednesday - Yippee!

Kicking up their Heels

The temps are rising and the ice is finally melting.  The horses are enjoying the temps and the improved footing.  Saturday included a good gallop across the field.

All four were in on the action

Zip enjoyed a few good bucks

Rosie was a speedy girl and was in the lead quite a bit

Really extending

Having fun

They were really enjoying themselves and it was a lot of fun to watch.

Dashing through the Snow

The temperature this weekend warmed up a bit - it was literally freezing, 32 degrees F, which is warmer than it's been for several days (still very cold at night).  It snowed all day Saturday but with no new accumulation, just the 17+ inches that is already on the ground.  All the blankets came off the horses and they were playing in the snow.  It's so much fun to watch them kick up their heels.  Even Rosie joined in.

Maccabee

Rooster

Rosie

Zip

Rosie, Maccabee, Rooster and Zip

Rooster and Maccabee being silly

Maccabee and Rooster dashing through the snow

Rooster and Maccabee heading back to the barn

Rosie, Maccabee and Rooster trotting along

Rooster posing for a picture

Feeding Time

We feed morning and night with free choice hay available (the bale holder and round bale are just outside of the pic to the left).  The horses have a set routine and specific spots where they eat and the buckets are fed in a specific order.  The balance of the universe is off if anything is changed :)  Zip gets completely confused and it creates chaos. 

Zip eats closest to the barn and run in shed, next the water tub, and his bucket goes down first.  Next is Rooster, then Maccabee, and Rosie last.  So far, this works well and everyone finishes about the same time.  Even in the snow, the routine is the same. I can't wait for spring!

Saturday's Snow

I just checked the blog post for today and realized that half my post is missing (????) so here's the beginning of this post....

Saturday we had another snow storm come through.  Total accumulation was about 2 inches but it seemed like we were getting more while it snowed.  It was flurrying lightly when we left to feed the horses but it was coming down pretty hard by the time we were finished.

Maccabee heading towards the hay (looking away from the barn)

Zip heading to the hay (looking from the hay ring)

Rosie and Rooster, the bookends

Rooster's like a wooly mammoth

The horses have 24/7 hay, a run in if they need it, and access to a large water tub with a heater. They tolerate the weather much better than we humans do :)

The weather forecast is calling for 4-8 inches of snow tonight into tomorrow morning.  How many weeks until spring?????

Macro Monday - Snow on Rosie

Taken during Saturday's snow showers

The Wild Rose

The Wild Rose is a running joke in our family.  It's a nickname that we came up with for Rosie and it makes me chuckle because she's the furthest thing from wild.  It's been 6 months since she stepped off the trailer and into our lives.  She started to blossom almost immediately and doesn't look like the same skinny, sad, ratty little pony she was. She has surprisingly good teeth and is really sound for her age which the vet estimates at around 21.

Comparison pics - July 5, 2010 and December 31, 2010

She's grown a good coat for winter and is really fuzzy

She's standing on a slope in the right hand photo

She was so skinny!

Again, standing on a slope so her hips aren't even in the right pic

Not the same angle but you can see how much her ribs have filled in

She is a pleasure to have around and is so uncomplicated.  

Looking for treats

Hanging out with Zip

Wordless Wednesday - Synchronized Rolling

Happily Munching

We like to feed round bales this time of year so they horses have access to 24/7 hay in the colder weather.  Since Zip is the tallest, he will reach over and get to the hay in the middle of the bale - we call these "woodpecker holes" (some of them are about 2 feet deep).  Rooster digs holes closer to the outside and Rosie makes holes in the hay that falls inside the ring.  There's still a bit of grass so they will sometimes have some grass and go back to the bale.  I sleep better at night knowing they have plenty of forage to munch on.

No, he's not on the other side of the bale - his head is inside the bale
Rooster was wondering what I was doing
Rosie was eating, as always

By the way, we checked everyone's weight this week.  Rosie has gained a total of 135 pounds since July 5th.

Rosie, Rosie

We had been told that Rosie had been used for barrel racing but it was hard to imagine that seeing her so skinny.  Now that she's so much more substantial, T has been riding her about once a week (give or take).  She is so quiet and easy going on the ground but man is she a pistol under saddle.  That little pony has some go to her!!  She is completely bored and restless just riding around the ring but give her something to do and she's a different little pony.  She obviously knows the barrel pattern since she pretty much did it herself the first time T took her through it.  She must have been something to see in her prime.  The vet estimates her age at about 21 and she has surprisingly good teeth.  She brings a smile to my face whenever I see her even when she is selectively ignoring me.

Perpendicular

Rosie and the as-yet-unnamed new gelding have bonded very well.  He follows her all around and stays close to her. 

Rosie doesn't seem to mind at all

 

Macro Monday - Clean Up Crew

A couple of weeks ago, we began to notice that the same little bird was hanging around.  We leave the top half of a dutch door open on either side of the barn for ventilation.  We regularly have birds swoop in and out but this one seemed to be sticking around.  I think it's a young female sparrow and may have been a fledgling or fallen out of a nest when we first noticed her.  She can fly but only flies for a short distance - enough to get out of the barn.  She will come into the stall where Rosie eats and wait for Rosie to be finished.  Then the clean up begins.  She starts to pick through whatever crumbs Rosie has left behind.  Since she doesn't bother us or the horses and seems to not be afraid of people, we leave her alone.  She will walk right up to your shoe.  She also makes a visit to the pasture to clean up the crumbs from the rest of the herd.

Enjoying a half eaten alfalfa cube

Cleaning up grain crumbs

Watching Rosie

She walked between Rosie's legs

More grain crumbs

In the afternoon sun

Checking out the funny lady with the camera.