March 27, 2008 – Cel phones and weanlings don’t mix

I learned that cell phones and weanlings don't mix tonight. I'm on call, and naturally got called as I was walking Rory along the road. I turned back up the driveway and answered it. First mistake - I kept walking.

Rory got a little quick as we walked up the driveway and the other horses came to see him. Second mistake - I kept walking. And the little (getting big now) broke to a trot and the horses bolted, kicking up their heels and Rory pulled harder.

I tried to grab the rope with my cell occupied hand but he got going too fast and I had to let go again. Crap! He ran up the driveway and round to his paddock gate just as he had last time. If I'd had both hands free I could have stopped him.

After collecting him we went for a short walk partway down the driveway and back. On the way back he tried to bolt again, but I snubbed the rope on a fence post (two hands) and stopped him before he really got rolling. Then we walked nicely back to the paddock where he got a scratch and some carrot.

On the way home I decided we'd better nix the driveway walks for now, or keep them very short. But I really think we'll be better off practicing some walking manners and yielding in the arena where he's got nowhere to go should he try to escape. And I need to take him out for practice more often.

November 25, 2008 – Houdini?

So they stayed put in the stalls Sunday night.

Last night I went out and they were happily munching away in their stalls. Rory was standing straight instead of squished up at the front, and very relaxed. He had a couple of patches of hair missing, but nothing serious. So I gave him a scritch and a pat and went to look after the other two chestnuts.

While I was grooming the brat, the teen who does night feed came by and told me Rory had escaped already. He was tied in his stall when she grabbed a halter, and was standing in the aisle when she got back with the horse. She stuffed Rory back into the stall quickly then took the other horse into his stall. Rory was back in the aisle before she got the other horse snapped to his tie.

She put him back in the stall and tied him again. But that quick release snap lets go too easily when he drags it around the feed tub. The BO went and put a bull snap on Rory's tie so the Houdini tricks should be done.

Before I left I went and checked on him. Both foals were lying down. I went into Rory's stall and gave him a rub for a bit. He was lying down a little too far back in the stall and couldn't quite get his head down. I felt sorry for him, but he'll learn. It's only the third night.

November 24, 2008 – Weaning time

The boys were cautious around the mare.

Friday night the BO asked me if I wanted to wean my foal this weekend. Rory is four and a half months old now, eating well, and quite independent already so it's time. I was expecting to do it next weekend, but a week either way isn't going to make a difference. Since the plan was to bring the two foals into the barn and put them together for the first day or two I suggested bringing them in that night. I hoped that having a barn full of horses for company would reduce the panic and stress on the boys.

After the other horses were in, we walked out into the field, put the foals halters on and led them away and out the gate. Neither mare was particularly concerned. One whinnied when she heard the gate, but didn't leave the hay. Rory got a little excited going into the barn, but didn't give me any trouble. He whinnied a couple of times.

They went into the same box stall, and we gave them some hay (left the water bucket out at first in case they got rowdy). They circled a bit and shoved past each other, but there was remarkably little calling. Both watched the mare in the next stall intently. The other foal later got a bit free with his feet, kicking at Rory pretty seriously - fortunately not connecting much. I found them in separate stalls when I arrived on Saturday morning. It's funny. Before they went out all the time, they looked huge in the stalls, taking up most of the floor space when they were lying down. They are bigger now than they were then, but they look tiny and lost in the stalls.

Saturday night they went into the standing stalls (which is where they will winter). The other foal took it calmly and was quite relaxed. He ate his dinner and nibbled on his hay. Rory wanted to turn around and check everything out. He got himself right up to the front of the stall trying to turn around. I did shorten his tie a bit so he couldn't get quite so far round. He didn't fight the tie at all, but he wasn't happy either. He did settle after a bit and snooze, still tucked right up at the front of the stall. They were fine when we left them for the night.

Sunday morning is my chore morning. So I went into the standing stall barn with my stack of feed buckets, shut the door and turned around to find the other foal looking at me over the bum rope from inside Rory's stall, and Rory looking at me from the other side of my stack of buckets saying "Got my breakfast?" They'd obviously been out for a bit as the aisle was covered in evidence. Fortunately foals don't make as big a mess as horses - they didn't trash the hay stack.

I moved them back to the box stalls for the morning so they'd have more room. Rory again looked tiny as he lay tucked up in the corner. In the afternoon they went out with another mare. I put the other foal out and went back for Rory - both were upset at being separated, but okay to handle. Outside their mothers could hear them calling and there was a good bit of whinnying back and forth - most of it from the other foal and his mum. Rory and his mum called a bit, but gave it up more quickly. The horses in the surrounding turnouts all came to see what the excitement was. Neither foal tried to bother the mare, I think in part because they could hear their mothers. She warned them off when they got too close to her hay, and they carefully went around her.

They were on their own for a bit over an hour when the mare got ridden. They settled enough to eat a bit of hay, but really didn't stop moving around.

Little lost weanlings

November 3, 2008 - Big changes ahead

I was out playing with Rory on the weekend. He got groomed and a little leading practice. Yesterday he took a little nip at me (without connecting) when I insisted he walk beside me and not crowd or rush past. I growled and threatened him for a few seconds and he didn't try it again.

He's so dusty that I took my spray bottle of water out to help keep the static electricity down and get the dust onto the brush. He was perfectly fine with being sprayed when I was braiding his mane for the shows that it didn't occur to me that it might bother him. But we all know horses. He decided that it was scary and tried to walk away from me. Good thing it's just water and I could keep spritzing until he settled. He stood still and just rolled his eyes at it after a minute or so. He looked so good with the dust off. Of course I couldn't get all the ground in dust out of his coat so as soon as I scritched him for being good I brought up a new layer.

He's getting the feeding thing figured out. I go out and dump the other mom's feed first, then Rory's mom, then the other mare's, and then hang Rory's bucket on the fence. He follows me around from tub to tub and then back to the fence to get his feed. I've been hanging out with him at a gradually increasing distance, just staying close enough to warn off any of the mares (mostly the foaless one - she always finishes first as she doesn't get that much feed) if they try to bother him. Rory doesn't get very much so he's usually done before the two moms are.

The other foal came to see what we were doing during yesterday's leading lesson, and stuck around after I'd slipped the halter off Rory. So he got a little leading practice too.

We're getting close to weaning time soon. The BO's are working out turnout plans for the winter. We're looking at another 3-4 weeks before weaning day. Rory's up for gelding on Friday (if all is well) so he'll be healed up by weaning time.  The other foal's scheduled for later. Which is actually a good thing. That way the healthy foal/weanling will be able to chase the recovering one around and help keep things draining. At least that's the plan.

I was afraid we'd be getting rained on tomorrow, but the forecast looks good with no precipitation expected.  I'm actually looking forward to the weaning. Once he's weaned it will be easier for me to take him out and around by himself and do more with him. Right now I have to bring mom in too and she's rather herdbound just now and calls for the other mare the whole time she's in. So I don't bring them in very often because I don't want Rory learning that anxious behaviour from her. When he's weaned we can start going for walks and learning how to pony off my QH. My QH helped me with the brat, and now he'll get to help with Rory.