Rome Wasn't Built in a Day

And neither are great horses.

Let's put this in perspective.  A horse is pretty much a baby until about the age of 3.  Then they are a teenager.   Maybe they are mentally and physically able to start a job, but sometimes not.  Or they are  ready with one, not the other.   By 5 or 6 they are physically mature.  Usually around the age of 12 they are pretty settled in their jobs, and fairly well trained and experienced.   With luck and good health, they continue their jobs up until about the age of 20, or even past that, but in the late 20's certainly, it's time to slow it down or retire.   And it all depends on if they have good genetics and a good, healthy life.

Joker had some concerns about wearing blinders for the first day or so.

Most of you know that Joker went to training this fall to learn to pull a cart.  Well, my original goal was have him be cool with pulling something, while not being concerned about ropes and straps and such all over him.  The idea was it would make him easier to train to ride next spring if he had this experience.   Joker passed my goal within the first 2 weeks - he took to pulling things like he was born wearing harness (well, he is a Morgan!).  So we adjusted goals and said ok, can he pull a cart?  That's a hard thing for a horse to learn.  They are prey animals.  Carts are sometimes noisy, and heavy, and it's pretty much a predator chasing them that they can't get away from.  Not all horses can do that.  I know Deuce can't, and that horse will let me drag things from the saddle!  Driving horses need to be sensible so they aren't afraid of things, and also have good brakes.  Joker has both.   He pulled a tire without batting an eye.   Moved on to working in "shafts" made out of PVC pipe like it was the most normal thing we've done.   When we put a small cart behind him, but not actually connected to his harness, and let him feel what it was like to pull something with wheels, he yawned.   Now, Joker has had a lot of work from last year at training and here with me at home, and going to shows.   He's seen a lot of weird stuff.

Training isn't glamorous.   We started with pulling a tire.

Then moved on to PVC "shafts" to get ready for a cart.

First day pulling a small cart.  Like a boss.

And he was pulling a small cart by himself in 30 days.   That's NOT normal in any way.  I didn't intend to use him as a driving horse, but since he seemed like such a natural, we bought him a better fitting harness and I found a cart that would be suitable for training and low level showing.   We set yet another goal for him - he needed to be safe driving around the pastures at the walk and trot, and then he could come home.  He was doing so well I figured he'd be home just before Christmas - which would be fun because then on Christmas Day I'd hook him up to his cart with some bells and drive him all over and have a great time.

Joker, his trainer, and our new road cart.  What a lovely picture.

Then I got a text from the trainer, letting me know that Joker had started some naughty behavior when pulling his cart down a small hill - taking off a bit, throwing his head around, etc.  I figured it was just a teenage tantrum phase, he was due a little hiccup in training.   Well, it happened 3 sessions in a row.   Trainer said she was getting concerned that Joker was in physical discomfort - if his front legs or feet hurt, it would be likely he would complain about working down a hill.  So I watched him work, and I thought I saw a slight but inconsistent head bob to his movement - it meant that he was sore on one front leg.  Sent some video to the vet and to the farrier.  Farrier said possible abscess.  Vet said maybe an abscess, but also could be sore muscles from his new job and the new cart.  So we eased up on his workouts a bit, keeping him in the arena where the ground is level.  I thought I saw a head bob there, too.  Gave him time to let a possible abscess work its way to the surface and burst (which would give him instant relief).   Finally called the vet for an exam.

So the vet came out and watched Joker move, did some tests on his joints to find the problem area, nerve blocked him, and then did some x rays.  The bones in Joker's front fetlocks (ankles) are inflamed.   Little guy was hurting.  So it was decided that the best thing to do was let him rest for a while, reevaluate him in the spring for work.   The good old "rest and test".

The question now is why did this happen?    The vet saw Joker at the end of summer, approved driving training for him  - it's appropriate for his age and maturity level.    It wouldn't put weight on his back (which he isn't ready for) but would ask him to use his muscles and his brain.  The trainer doesn't work him hard - when he shows that he understands the day's lesson, he's done.   The faster he learns, the shorter his workouts are.   All very age appropriate.   He was given 2 or 3 days off a week to just be a horse, so his body could recover.  The vet said this is kinda unusual for a horse with Joker's build and his workload, and she's not going to guarantee he'll fully recover with rest.

I chatted with Joker's breeder - we've stayed in touch and she follows along with my updates on FaceBook, has watched Joker grow and learn to do things.  She let me know both of Joker's parents were late to mature - both didn't stop growing and fill out until 5 or 6, she didn't really ride them much until that age or after.   She said to her eye, Joker is still growing, it could simply be that his latest growth spurt happened while he was working, and it was just too much.  She's suggesting give him another year before I think about either riding or driving him.   And not to be surprised if he's not ready to ride until he's 5 or 6.  

General consensus among the horse people who have worked with youngsters is the same - he just needs time to grow.  Time to step back, let him have the winter to be a kid, next spring repeat what I did with him last year, maybe next fall send him back to work if he seems physically recovered and ready.  I respect and trust my vet, but boy I hope my equestrian friends are right.

I don't have answers.   I am disappointed, but we love Joker and will do what's right for him, and scrap the plans I had for next year.  Luckily, since the trainer let us know that he seemed uncomfortable, instead of assuming he was being naughty and working him harder, Joker's issue was caught very early.  

My first day driving Joker!

Joker is home now.   I had intended to keep him by himself for a few days while he settled back in, but all the horses settled so quickly we put him out with his buddies.   Willie is thrilled to have his best friend at home again - he followed Joker around for hours, always keeping his nose on Joker's neck, or back, or eating from the same hay pile.    Joker went right back into the home routine, going to his stall door at feeding time, following commands.   We have already settled into a routine of icing his front legs during meals, trying to help the inflammation go down.    He gets time to rest.   When I feel he's ready, I'll start taking him for walks on the trails, or leading him while I ride Deuce.   See how he feels.  The farrier is going to work with us to make sure Joker's feet are good and healthy and can support him properly.   Maybe we just do what we did last year - which is ok because he learned a lot and I had fun with him.  And we just hope whatever he has going on just needs time to settle.

Willie is thrilled that his buddy is home again.

Feeding time routine now includes icing front legs and nibbling hay.

Joker's Rome was in the early stages when it had an earthquake.   Now we start rebuilding, one brick at a time and hope it all stands strong for years to come.

Happy Trails!

-J.

Hang on, Little Tomato!

Know what I love about my barn and my barn cats?  The barn is nice and bright and airy, there's usually a breeze in the aisle.  My barn cats are all sweet (in their weird, barn cat ways) and 2 of them are pretty good hunters (Mugsy...he's just sweet.  We'll leave it at that.)

Know what I don't like?   My barn cats are good hunters.  And birds and other things fly into the barn, can't figure out how to get out, and are easy pickings for my feline mafia.   I'm a little disgusted sometimes at the gifts that are left for me in the doorway.

Hello, little one

This past week I was putting some things away in the hay stall, which is also where I feed the barn cats.   I saw a small flash of green that I almost stepped on.  A little ruby throated hummingbird.  It wasn't moving.  I stooped to pick it up, thinking it was dead, and it moved.   I took it outside, and it didn't try to get away. Ok then.   I had some sugar syrup mixed up for feeding my bees, way too syrupy for a hummer, but I watered it down, offered it and birdie drank like crazy.   So back outside...and it wouldn't fly.  Well, now what?

I got a small feed bucket, lined it with paper towels, and put the little bird in it while I thought this over.  She wasn't clearly on her way out.   Maybe she's just exhausted and needs to rest and get a few meals?    I put her bucket on the screened in porch in the shade, cover it with a towel.  Find a shallow lid to put sugar syrup in.  Another lid for plain water.   Sit myself down and go to our friend Google.  And yes, it seems that sometimes they just get tired, need to rest in the dark for a bit, eat, and then are fine.  So let's try that.

Well, evening comes, she's not trying to fly away.   Hubby comes home, and helps me feed her.   I say hummers need bugs for protein.  He goes and gets a freeze dried cricket (chicken treats) and grinds it into tiny bits, puts it in a little cup.   I have no idea if she'd eat it but worth a try, right?

We went to bed, thinking she'd probably pass overnight, but at least she's safe and has food available.

Morning came, she was still with us.   So we fed her by hand, dipping her beak into a small cup of nectar I made.   She'd eat, but not fly.   We agreed to take turns checking on her.  At this point, she's family, so we named her Little Tomato.   There's a Pink Martini song called "Hang On, Little Tomato" that was inspired by an ad for Hunt's Catsup.  The song is about a tomato who doesn't get picked to become catsup and is sad.  Seriously.  It's a nice song.

I called our vet, who doesn't take care of birds.  I called a local avian and exotic vet.  That vet wanted the bird to come through a rescue/rehab, which I couldn't find.   So I called every wildlife rescue I could, and the only place that would consider taking a hummingbird was an hour and a half away.   That place asked me to send photos of her, so I did.  They declared it was most likely a cat attack - she's missing some tail feathers but didn't seem damaged in other ways.  They said feed her, put her in the sun, and she'd be ok.  I was also to give her a sponge bath because her feathers were sticky from falling into her nectar cup, and sticky feathers won't fly.    We were also to feed her every 10 minutes.   Ok then.

Tomato after her sponge bath.

So we did as we were instructed.   I wiped her down with a damp paper towel.  Blotted her dry.  We took turns feeding her.   She perked up some.    And put Little Tomato to bed for a second night.

Woke up with a hummingbird right where we left her.  I got the idea that if she could perch, she could sit on the base of a feeder and feed herself.  Seemed to work great - I put the feeder in her bucket, she sat on the perch and went right to eating.  We still hand fed her, but not as often.  We tried some test flights - she made it almost all the way across the porch twice.  So we thought today is the day!  Little Tomato is going to fly!

And by that afternoon, the heat seemed to have gotten to her.  We were told to leave her in the sun, but the heat index was 104, so we kept her in dappled shade.  I think it was still too hot.  So once again, we fed Little Tomato before bed, tucked her in, waited till morning.

Day 4 of taking care of Little Tomato was rough.  She seemed to have labored breathing.  Her left eye was squinting.   She didn't make much effort at flying, and the few attempts she made were clumsy and ended in crashes.  

All those dark spots are full of pollen.

But I said how long can a bird live on sugar water?  She needs protein.  I have a few frames from a beehive that swarmed that are full of nectar and pollen - I keep it in the barn fridge to feed my other hives this winter.   Pollen is a good source of protein.   What happens if I try to make a pollen smoothie for her?  I got a toothpick, pulled some pollen out, mixed it into her nectar.  She drank a lot of that.   Little Tomato also felt pretty sticky.   I said you can't fly with sticky wings!    So I put a bit of warm water in a bowl, put her in and let her have a bird bath.  I splashed under her wings, got her nice and rinsed off, wrapped her in a paper towel, hand fed again, and let her dry.  

Pollen smoothie for Tomato

Fun on the Farm

I promised myself I'd try to keep up with the blog.  Things might seem day to day for us, but I know for those sitting at home, they are thinking "wait, what did you guys do?"

So first, we added to the farm family - I got chickens!   Hubby built a coop and a run.  It took forever - weather, other projects, life just took over, but I call it the Poultry Palace.   There's a nice coop with roosts and nesting boxes, and then a run that is partially roofed, all fenced in, and I can see it from the kitchen windows.   So finally, I was ready to get chickens!

What I found was it's sometimes hard to get chickens that are coop ready.  I wanted youngsters, but not chicks.   We ended up with 5 week old Olive Eggers that I named Janis and Etta.  They will lay olive green eggs.   But we wanted a few more chickens, and a friend offered to let me borrow her brooder, so I got week old chicks.   I said I'd get 2.  I came home with a Buff Orpington, a Speckled Sussex, and a Rhode Island Red.  I named them Stevie, Cher and Reba.   If you've never heard of chicken math, you were just introduced to it.

Cher, Stevie and Reba, 2 weeks old

We swore we didn't want to raise chicks.   Now it's something we're glad we did.  They were so cute and fluffy, and they would sit in our hands and eat or peck at our fingers or just snuggle.   I'd walk into the garage and call "chick chick!" and they'd start chirping.

But then they got to be teenagers around 4 weeks and I said ok, once the weather breaks, it's time to send these kids outside!   So yep, at 5 weeks they went out.  Chicks grow fast!    They are all much happier now that they can walk around and do chicken things all day.  The little ones were not getting the concept of roosting at night.   I should have probably charged admission to see us catching them and putting them in the coop.   We even gave them "training roosts" that are lower and thinner so they can feel more secure.  It took a while to get the concept.   But, as hubby says, there's not a whole lot of room for brains in those heads.

Reba, Cher, Stevie, Etta and Janis.  They grow so fast!

But they sure are cute when they come running for treats, and when I have a little flock of chickens following me around in the run.  When they are older and bigger I'll let them out in the yard, but only when I can supervise - too many predators around.

Look at that full frame of honey!

My beehives finally did what I was hoping for - they made lots of honey!   I extracted honey in April, and then again in June.  I think I ended up with a total of about 90 pounds.   Some day I'm going to figure out how to convert that to cups of tea, at half a teaspoon per cup...   But for now, we've put it on ice cream and I've baked with it and I understand from the other half that it's also good on blueberries.  And no, I have no intention of selling any honey.   I said I worked hard for this over the last 2 years.   I was going to enjoy this year on my own.

My other bee news is I am now a North Carolina Certified Beekeeper.  I passed the written and practical exams and took the first step in the NC Master Beekeeper Program.  I wish this meant I'd learn to avoid getting stung, but nope, still happens now and then!

Learning to go over stuff, instead of tripping over stuff.

Joker is still having training sessions with me as often as possible.  We take breaks for super hot weather, but other than that, I try to work him 4 or 5 days a week.   He's been learning about going over stuff - poles, cavaletti (raised poles) and some other things that help him sort out his balance and where his feet are and teach him how to rate his speed and adjust his stride.   He's doing really well, especially for a gangly 3 year old.   He seems to enjoy his lessons.  I haven't found anything yet that worries him, and I want to keep it that way.  He trusts us, so we are careful not to let him get hurt.  At the end of every session I lead him to the mounting block, and I stand on the block and put my arms over his back, and he just stands like a bored teenager.  He's not mentally or physically ready to be ridden, but this is good practice for him.   I have some plans to show him again in September, and then I think we'll send him back to school for a bit.

Deuce...he's had a rough time.  He was finally cleared to go back to full work, and at first, he was doing really well.  And then his workouts got kind of "meh".  Like he lost interest in what he was doing.  I tried changing things up on him, giving him a bit of time off, wondered if I should try hauling him somewhere for lessons or a trail ride just to get some new scenery, and then he started some very strange behavior.  When I put his saddle on, he could hardly walk.    And when he did, he was crossing his front legs.  So had the vet out, she scratched her head because he passed all the neurological tests just fine - he knows where his feet are, that's not the issue.   So I said you know, I feel like this comes from his back.   She said ok, how about we take x rays of his back, because  this is weird.   And there you have it - Deuce has what's called Kissing Spine.  The spinal processes in a few vertebrae rub together  and it's painful.  The vet said "this horse is in a world of hurt, I cannot believe he hasn't been bucking you off".  Nope, Deuce was willing to try to work, but the pain was enough that he just couldn't bring any energy into it.   But he never did anything to get rid of me.  He's a good  boy.  

Deuce's "normal" spinal processes - see all the space?

I said "Doc, even I can see this isn't right!  There's no space!"

So Deuce got steroid injections in his back, which really helped, and then he got shockwave therapy, which brought him  back to the speed demon we know and love.    We have to  make sure that he's holding good posture,  and I do a lot of varied work with him to keep him strong, but the vet feels he can go back to being competitive, and based on our last few rides, I think she's right.   Will he ever be "cured"?  No.  But we can do the therapy needed to keep him comfortable and happy at work.  The vet feels his long layoff from his leg injury allowed enough muscle wasting for his core muscles to weaken and his back to hurt.   So no more extended periods of rest for Deuce!

A stroll around the farm after an early morning workout

The boy loves to work, he didn't want to take his bridle off.

Old Chuck isn't having a good summer.  In May he seemed  like he was limping some.  So we soaked his foot, hoping for an abscess, since that's  easy to fix.  Didn't help.  I  gave him some NSAIDs, we did ice,  rest, etc. for a few weeks.  Didn't help.  Vet came out, x rays weren't really pointing to anything,  but he's had arthritis in his feet, and steroids have helped him before, so we tried that.   It helped some, but not much.  Same with shoes.   So we did an ultrasound, and found Chuck tore a ligament between his ankle and hoof.  So the old guy gets time off to rest, ice, and shock wave therapy.   We'll reevaluate his situation in a month and see how he's healing.   Not the greatest news, but also not quite the end of the world.   I offered  to let hubby ride Deuce, but I think we're going to wait and see what happens with Chuck's leg before we decide if we need a spare horse  around here.  Plus it's the middle of a hot summer, so hubby wouldn't be riding much, anyway.

Chuck in all his UV protective gear.

And poor old Chuck has pink skin under that white hair, and he was starting to sunburn badly.  We bought him a UV protective sheet to wear during the day.  It's a fine mesh that protects his skin, and it keeps the flies and gnats off him.  I think he likes it.

Willie and Joker, sharing a salty snack

And Willie, he babysits Joker (since we don't want Joker trying to play with Chuck right now) and is happily staying fatter than I'd like to see him.  Still sweet as ever, and doing the job no one else wants by putting up with the kid all the time.

Joker, for the love of god, please stop growing!

So now you are all caught up.  I think.   At least until the next great idea we have.  

Happy trails!

-J.

Showtime Shenanigans

Sometimes things seem like a great idea...until it's time to make it happen.

The Southern States Regional Morgan Show is in Raleigh every Memorial Day weekend.  Last year I went to watch and get a feel for the show.   This year I said eh, let's enter the kid in every class he qualifies for, see what happens.

It ain't cheap, these breed shows.  When I calculated my total for class fees, a stall for the week, office fee, USEF fee, blah, blah, blah, I showed the total to hubby.  He said well, I think we should call it "training and entertainment", and for a few days' worth, it ain't bad!

How do you argue with that kind of support?

Getting a haircut!

So there's training the horse to do the classes, but since he's so young and inexperienced, we also tried to expose him to anything he might see at the show.   So we tossed all sorts of weird toys into the pasture - 2 liter bottles with rocks to rattle around, squeaky dog toys, balls, etc.   I did chores for a week while carrying an umbrella until it wasn't scary or even odd.   Rubbed him down with jingle bells to mimic the sound of harness jingling.   If it was weird, we got him used to it.  

Then grooming every day for a few months to make his coat extra shiny, clipping him to make sure he was nice and neat looking, making sure his bridle and new halter fit properly, keeping everything cleaned and oiled.  The truck and trailer were washed inside and out, trailer packed with anything we might need away from home, and for me to camp in at the fairgrounds - feed, hay,  water buckets,  and snacks and drinks for me.  All the clothes and equipment we'd need to look our best.  Then a weather forecast that called for serious heat the week we'd be gone, and no AC in the trailer.

The trailer was in dire need of a good cleaning.

And then the realization that Joker has never been to an overnight show, and he went to one show last year, and it was poorly attended and very quiet.   This would not be the case this time around.  There are almost 500 stalls at the fairgrounds, and almost every one of them would be full.  But we'd be fine, right?

The show office opened on the Monday before the show, so I thought I'd stop by and get my stall assignment and look around, see if I was forgetting anything.  The show started Thursday.  When I got to the grounds, it was already humming.   The show office warned me that if I planned to show up on Wednesday afternoon, I might have problems finding a spot to park my trailer.  Grooms were getting stalls ready, cleaning tack, setting up areas for the riders and trainers to sit and relax between classes.   I walk through all this, looking for my stall, and think "what have I done?"  I'm bringing my baby to this big show for his first time out.  I've never done this breed show thing.  I've never traveled with Joker.   I haven't slept in the trailer for ages. I'm a one woman band and most of the other competitors have trainers and grooms and people to help.   I've never even competed in Sport Horse anything, so who knows if we've been practicing right...

Packing the trailer is the equestrian version of Tetris

Anyone have a paper bag for me to start breathing into?

Too late to back down now.   So home to finish packing up the trailer, guessing how much hay I'll need, setting aside extras in case something is lost or broken.    While I could ask hubby to bring something to the show grounds if I forgot it, I didn't want to have to do that.

When the time came to head to the show grounds, I was too nervous to drive.  Hubby said he'd drive, I could follow in my car and he'd drive it home.   We got Joker set up in his stall.   Hubs found a spot in the shade to park my home away from home.   Not terribly close to Joker or to the bathroom/showers on the grounds, but shade was a priority if it was going to be that hot.  Got some of my stuff unpacked.  Walked Joker around a bit to let him see things.  Got a bite to eat.  Hubby left to go home and take care of the animals and said he'd be back in the morning to watch us.   So it was me and Joker, left alone....

And then it happened:

Got my fan.  Got my hay.  Happy boy!

Joker stood in his stall and happily ate hay.  He walked around the grounds with me quiet and relaxed.  He took the sights and sounds and all the weird in stride.  We met people.   We took a stroll in the big indoor arena with a nice, quiet horse and she bolstered Joker's confidence when a horse pulling a small cart came in and Joker really worried about that thing behind the horse.   Other horses moved into the barn and Joker calmly watched the activity.  The nights cooled off enough that I didn't have any trouble sleeping.   Since I opted to stay at the grounds and sleep in the trailer, I had plenty of time to chat with people, hang out and get something to eat at the hospitality events, and just genuinely enjoy myself.  All that training, coupled with Joker's good brain and laid back attitude paid off.

You know how the story ends, and how pleased we are with the kid.   Hubby decided that we should keep on building Joker's resume, and look professional while doing it, so I got a nice set of "luggage" for our next adventures.   I'm hoping to see new friends at future shows.

Sunrise from the trailer.  Time to feed and get ready for the day!

And Joker enjoyed a week to relax and think about his venture into the big leagues before he went back to training.  Ready for our next outing!

Happy Trails!

J.

All the big training barns had their areas all decked out...

Yes, they even brought fake shrubs and stone columns

And then there was me.  But I was neat and tidy!

My new grooming and equipment bags, in my barn colors, with the farm monogram.

Whew - catching up!

Deuce here.  Mom got really busy and seems to be forgetting to tell you about me and my buddies, so I'm gonna step up and get the job done (like I always do).

The kid is a weirdo

It seems it's been almost a year since you heard from us.  Well, a lot of stuff happened.   Mom ended up sending that kid, Joker, to school.   He was getting too big for his britches and mom needed some help teaching him things - some things were new to my mom, too.  So off he went.   He was gone all summer long.   Which meant for us at home, it was nice and peaceful.   But mom went to visit him all the time since he wasn't far away, and she showed me some photos of what Joker was learning.    That trainer did alright with him.  Kid is still a train wreck, though, even if mom and dad think he's a good colt.  Mom said she's going to start showing him this year a little bit, and then send him back to the trainer maybe in the fall.  I say send him now, he's nothing but a nuisance!

This is what mom says Joker was doing at school.

But I know he was goofing off

The kid doesn't learn!

Really?  This is what you do at school?

Mom put us all on diets again for the summer.  Old Chuck finally slimmed down.   Yeah, that shocked everyone here, too.  So we can't fall him Fat Chuck anymore.    He still only goes for a short ride every now and then, so it's not like he's gonna be a possible Olympic threat, so don't get too excited.

Willie won't slim down but mom doesn't seem to mind too much.  He gets more peanuts than I think a horse that isn't working should, but mom told me to be nice to my brother.   I still think he's kind of a chump for how he sucks up to mom and dad but it gets him treats so maybe he's onto something.

Chuck thought he was big stuff at the trail challenge

Mom and Dad went away for a long week during the summer, so we have a new farm sitter.  She's ok.  She seems like she knows what she's doing but I think she needs to listen to me when I say I need carrots.   While she was watching us, old Chuck jumped the fence!   Well, it wasn't the real fence, it was the temporary fence mom and dad put up to keep us in our pens with muzzles, but still, Chuck jumped it!   He had gone to a trail challenge earlier in the summer so now he thinks he's a big show horse, I guess!    Mom and Dad went away again in January, and we were all like hey Chuck, you gonna do your big jumper horse impression again?

If I had gone, I'd have wiped the floor with  the competition 

Mom getting driving practice in with me

And me, I had a quiet year.  Mom told me I had to rest my leg.  I didn't like it.   We argued a lot about if I had to be in my stall, or if I would be quiet out in the pasture.  Mom built me a pen in the yard so I could hang out with her while she did chores, and it was ok for a day, and then I let her know I didn't need a pen and broke it down.   That got me in more trouble.   Finally I was allowed to go for walks with my mom.  She'd walk next to me and we'd walk laps around the pond together in the evenings.  I like walking with my mom.   She talks to me a lot and we make decisions together.  She needs my advice.   Then we got to go for some sort rides, just walking.  We did a LOT of walking.   Then mom decided she needed to practice what she was learning with Joker, so she got those long reins and put them on me and started walking behind me, and we walked all over the farm doing that, too.   It took all year, but the vet finally said my leg was ok again and we could go back to work.   Mom and the vet decided that I need to stop chasing cows and doing things that are quick turns and hard stops, so now it seems like we are training for something new to both me and mom.   I'm all for it!  I love new stuff!    I told mom don't worry, I'm super smart so I'll figure it all out.   And you wanna know what happened once the vet said I could start working hard again?  It rained.  All the time. I don't like rain, and I really hate working in mud.   Mom says she isn't as crazy as she used to be and doesn't really like riding in the cold rain.  I'd do it if she asked, but I'm kinda glad she thinks that way!  But now it's spring and I think we can start getting back to work for real!

Back at work!

My new saddle and pad.  I look pretty awesome.

Mom got me a new saddle, too!   We wore out our old one and it couldn't be repaired.   She bought me a new saddle pad with blue flames on it, too!  This saddle is different than our old one, or my show saddle, and I think it's got something to do with our new job.   We'll see.

I hope mom doesn't think we're gonna take Joker with us to shows, because I'm not sharing the limelight with anyone!

-D.

Mom helped with a project at NCSU gluing numbers on bees.  She's weird.

She said it's cute, I say mom is kinda creepy