Hay HAY Hay

New Friends

The New Guy

A few days ago I posted a photo of this handsome horse that appeared in the barn last week. His name is Charlie and he is a 18+ hands, 2002 lbs. Belgian Draft horse. He doesn't belong to us, but since Tiffany is at the neighbor's, our neighbor was kind enough to bring him over so we'd have a horse to drive.

Charlie just returned from a one-semester stay at Michigan State where he was used in the draft horse driving class. He has also spent a few seasons working for the Amish. He's a real sweet guy and very laid back.

Jubilee has established herself as the alpha horse, and seems to have a big more spring in her step as she reminds the new guy who is in charge. However, Charlie seems to respect his elders and the two of them are getting along fine.

Fun Friday Video

Peace

It's amazing how animals can connect us with what's really important. Take Jubilee and Charlie-- give them some water, food, and companionship, and they're two happy campers.

There's nothing like watching animals for a few minutes to take your mind off of human problems: finances, violence, politics. For other creatures it's simple things that keep them going, and keep them satisfied.

Sidekick

Our neighbor stopped by the other day, and our Golden Retriever/Malamute mix was very excited to see a new person. The neighbor said, "Kobe, we've got to turn you into a farm dog."

Alas, while Kobe was born on a farm, being a true farm dog isn't in his future. Perhaps it's the Malamute in him, but he has never been very good at the recall command (okay, and maybe his owners deserve some blame for that, too-- but when we got him we had a fenced in yard for him to roam around in). And we live right on a very busy road, so letting him roam off-leash is out of the question.

Would I like to have a pet that dogs my every step as I tend to the outdoor chores? Yes-- it makes me feel a bit safer knowing that there's a sidekick around. Fortunately, I do have another four-legged sidekick who oversees my every move-- Sassy the cat!

Sassy basks in the fall sun as she watches me clean out stalls

While her mousing skills are questionable, her ability to supervise is extraordinary. The only times she won't follow a human around is during breakfast and when the human is messing with the fire in the wood boiler. This 11 lbs. tri-colored fur ball shows no fear around the two draft horses we've got stomping around. She always is present as I round the horses up from the field and bring them into the stalls for their evening meals. It's a tough job wrangling a 2000 lbs. horse, so I'm happy she's there to assist :-). 

Sassy always makes sure I make it safely down the hill after visiting the horses in their pasture.

And she always comes running at the promise of food or a head scratch.

 I used to think she was such a pest when she first started coming around, but I'm glad she didn't give up on us. She has turned out to be a lovely pet, and we are very thankful to have her as part of our farm family. 

It's Always Nice...

It's always nice to to walk into a barn and find one of these waiting for you!

Stay tuned for more details about this handsome guy!

Fun Friday-Farmer Style

Toot-a-loo, Tiffany...

I write this post with mixed emotions: guilt, humility, relief, and happiness. I have made the decision to sell Tiffany (a.k.a. the Sassy Belgian or Miss Thang). While I am not a religious person, I believe that everything and everyone in this world is connected, I believe that we all have a destiny, that we all have a place, and that we all belong somewhere. I believe that if we do all we can, offer ourselves and our intent to the Universe, and let things play out, that everything will be okay in the end.

“No matter how scared, or tired, or ill you are; no matter how lost, or confused, or desperate you become; no matter how lonely, depressed or cranky you feel…if you just do what you can, with what you have, from right where you are, it will always be enough.” - The Law Of Relevance,” the Universe of Mike Dooley

Today's Tiffany is not the horse I bought in July. She was mellow, sweet, and did everything she was suppose to when I bought her. I was very wary of getting a horse that I couldn't handle, and her previous owner let me drive her several times, ride her, and come by his barn during the week to get her out and brush her. I think the major factors in the change in her behavior are: a) she has always lived in a large herd of horses, but when she and Jubilee moved to our farm, Tiff became the "alpha" horse for the first time (and she liked it), b) she started testing me from day one, and sometimes I was slow to respond--she sensed a weakness in me early on, and continued to test it.

I have never made the choice not to keep an animal that I have adopted or bought. If you bring that animal into your life, it's your responsibility to look after its health and well being. On the other hand, I've never had a pet that tested my range of experience like this mare. She gave me a reality check on my ability to handle a large, spirited, confident, and intelligent animal. I have years of experience around horses, but having never owned one before, I have been amazed at how challenging it can be. When you ride other people's horses, you get leave at the end of the day, and the owner/trainer is left to deal with any issues that may arise. When they're yours, you are responsible for the animal's actions and how those actions may affect other beings.

Tiffany is not a mean horse. However, she has always had the intent of having things her way, which created a few issues for an inexperienced owner like me (and Jubilee). The girl's got personality, but she needs a more experienced owner that can handle her attitude.

I felt a huge rush of relief and happiness when our neighbor called and offered to take her to his place. Relief that I wouldn't have to deal with mood swings, and happy that the selling process was taking a baby step forward. Happiness that I would be able to find another horse that would be a good fit for our farm.

For the time being, Tiffany will be staying with her former owner and draft-horse-expert neighbor. He will be working with her to get her ready to sell.

Tiffany has taught me a lot-- a lot that I would not have learned from a mellow old gelding. These lessons have helped me become a better horse-woman, and helped me learn my limitations.

Countdown to Chickens

It's snowing pretty hard outside-- something about the bleakness of winter always makes me think of spring, warm weather, green grass, blue sky, and warm weather projects. Today I took the plunge and ordered chickens-- they will arrive from the hatchery in April. That means we have a little over four months to prepare for them, which includes buying the necessary supplies and building them a secure place to live. Yes, I could have bought them from a feed store, but this way I have a set deadline on when they will arrive (and I'm a girl who likes deadlines).

I loved this clip from the Muppet Movie. Our chickens won't be this talented or flashy, but I'm hoping this new project will be fun!

Work for warmth

This was awaiting me beside the barn when I arrived home yesterday evening:

"This" being a five-foot high stack of firewood. I knew something was up when I pulled into the driveway and saw large tire marks in the gravel. So our weekend project will be stacking up wood piles only to keep unstacking them throughout the cold season.

This is the fourth (and final) load of wood we will get for our wood boiler for the winter. Last winter was very mild, and being newbies to rural living, we had to kind of scrounge for wood all season. Luckily, we have really great neighbors who kept us supplied. But, this winter we wanted to be prepared, so we ordered all of our firewood in advance. I managed to stack a fraction of it with about 30 minutes of work early this morning. I stack all the pieces that I can comfortably pick up, and Will chops the rest into manageable logs.

I wasn't sure how I would like heating our house with wood-- even though last winter was mild, I hated going out to stoke the fire. Mostly because many of the logs we had were HEAVY, and really hard for me to toss into the chamber. But, this season has been much better because we have smaller pieces of wood.

It's nice getting a functional fitness workout stacking the logs. It also is a great reminder that energy doesn't just happen-- there's hot, sweaty worked involved, whether your house is heated by coal, natural gas, electricity, or wood.The only difference between these is who is doing the work-- you or someone else.

My favorite benefit to wood heat is the unlimited hot water we have all winter long :-).

See you later, Ali!

Ali will soon be leaving us for Alabama. She is almost finished with her University coursework and is moving back home for a few months before returning to Michigan in May to walk for graduation. She stopped by the farm earlier to say goodbye to everyone.

Not only did Ali make great progress with Tiffany (including getting her to half-pass and do flying lead changes), she came out to take care of the horses and barn cat Sassy when we were busy or out of town. I honestly never worried about our animals when they were under Ali's care because she is knowledgeable and most importantly, dependable! We know she is going on to great things, and feel very fortunate that our paths have crossed.

The older I get the more I realize that things happen for a reason. People come into our lives for a reason. And everything in life is a learning experience.  We all learned a lot from Ali, and we are going to miss her!

And I really hope Ali doesn't mind that I swiped this super cute photo from her Facebook page!