Decisions That Break The Heart

Natural, a chestnut Standardbred, came into my life for $250 24 years ago.  The vet who looked him over thought he was six or seven years old.  That makes him about 30.  And I’m about to lose the boy.

It didn’t dawn on me until I was talking to the U.S. Animal Nutritional rep (now known as Vetri Science) that those horse owners who live in warm climes don’t automatically calculate the wear and tear of winter weather on their equines.    (This rep and I have talked at length about our horses and she has been a kind ear listening to my emotional  exercise in coming to terms with putting my horse down.)   And she was the one who fine-tuned that thought. That those of us in cold weather states have decisions to make that aren’t always easy.

Natural will not be able to face the snow and ice of a Michigan winter.  As much as I keep mentally protesting, I’m coming to grips with that statement.

And so, if I lived in Florida, I would probably not be faced with this decision.   At least not right now.  Sometimes life doesn’t seem fair.

It has been excruciating  this summer as I have tried modality after modality thinking I can “fix” him.  And nothing has worked.  Not massage, not chiropractic adjustments with acupuncture, not healing herbs, not pain relieving essential oils, not pharmaceuticals.  Nothing.

How can this be, I keep asking myself.

As fall weather has now come into southern Michigan I realize that no miracle is imminent.  While we were experiencing temps in the 70’s, I was able to pretend there was lots of time until inclement conditions.  Not so anymore.  And its breaking my heart.

I’ve thought about which experience is harder – going through a medical crisis and having the decision to put your horse down made for you, or this sad drawn out “waiting”.  I’ve been through the first;  my quarter horse got mauled by dogs several years ago.  This seems harder.  But then again, Natural was my first. 

I hope, dear readers you will continue to lend your support as the time draws nearer and bear with me as I use this blog as a vehicle of remembrance.  

Cattle > Stall Mat Drilling > Green Hay

As I started my stroll out to the donkeys (well actually I rode my bike), my sole intention was to show you the difference in hay between the old batch and the new bales.  But I got sidetracked.

First I had to say hi to the boys who live next door.  That's Norman in the middle.

The steer on the left, who's name I don't know, is the brand new addition to their menagerie, and  mooed constantly for the first 24 hours in his new home.  Thankfully, he seems to have settled in.

When I got to the shed I discovered Rick had redrilled holes in the stall mats to allow for urine seepage.

  




We were delinquent this year in not cleaning out the holes in the spring;  I recently pointed out to him that holes were clogged and no draining was occurring.

Rick came up with the suggestion to put holes in the mats two or three years ago and it works quite well if we stay on the ball.

I use the term "we" loosely.  This part of donkey maintenance is always his job.

You can see how three little donkeys always use the right side to do their #1 business.
The area is darker than normal - Rick cleaned the area with the hose before beginning. This makes it look a little grimier than usual.
And, you can see daylight through that back portion of the right wall. Guess who was digging outside of the shed.  Could it be G-u-n-n-e-r?? The prince of doggy diggers...

Three little faces are mesmerized as I move around clicking shots.

Finally, I get to the hay to show you the huge difference in color.

As you can see, the bale on the left is much much lighter.  Same farmer, first cutting as usual, purchased in June.  Could it have been left from 2013?

The donks had been leaving remnants of their hay meals before we brought the new batch home.  Now they consume every sweet morsel.



Yum, yum, yum.  As I've mentioned, its wise to separate a pile for Luigi (in the background) so there's less posturing during mealtime.  Poor Luig always gets the short stick.

 

Dudley waits for me to finish the photo session so we can get back to the house!

DIY Milk Can Table Completed!

If you recall, dear readers, I started a milk can table project earlier this summer (see post of 7/6/14).

This was the look I was trying to duplicate.










After I painted the donated milk can (from dear friend Bev) it was Rick's task to try to figure out where to purchase an already cut piece of wood. After all he is a carpenter.  Well, the project got bogged down at that point.  Rick was striking out finding something affordable and of the right size.  He told me of some at Lowe's but felt the largest option was too small.  He kept looking.

Other life events came along (like retiring!) and the milk can table stayed on the back burner.

We host an annual bocce party and lo-and-behold a couple of days prior to the party (during the bustle of cleaning the house) Rick appears with a completed table.  Shockeroo!

 He ended up using the largest piece available at Lowe's, stained it red with lots and lots of polyurethane on top of the stain.  For a split second I was silent as I had envisioned painting the top to match the can.  But as I continued to look, I realized he had chosen the right finish.

The grain of the wood is set off so well with that red glow.








And of course two dogs have to inspect as well.

Carrots In Abundance = Joyful Donkeys

Its that time of year.   #2 carrots (I guess you could call them rejects) are ready to be scooped up at the Farmer's Market.  I go as often as I can to score a hit for donkeys and for us -- grocery story versions don't come close in sweetness.

The crate is secured in my car trunk -- I've left carrots (in a crate and a bucket WITH a lid) in the garage and invariably either dogs get into them or donks do on one of their walkabouts.

The farmer always tops them off for me so you can see donkeys, Natural and horses next door have been enjoying them.  And of course the dogs.  They can hear me cutting up carrots from a mile away and race to my side in the kitchen.  And when I'm handing out sweet treats to three donks, dogs raise their voices in protest until I share.

Oh my, croons Luigi, they're so so good.
  

Delectable morsels soon disappear between gentle but greedy lips.

Scenes from the horse farm

Some days when I'm visiting Natural (the best horse in the world), I am determined to snap portraits of my boy, who is on the decline.  And some days I don't want to be encumbered with the photography burden.  Just carrots and hugs.

Well, a few days ago I was in the photo mood and here you have it.

While hiking to the far back 40 to find the boy, I approached a large flock of geese who was sharing grass delectables with the regulars.  I totally disrupted the peace and quiet and off they flew.

If you look over the hill, past the tree line, that's where the boy was grazing.  Sometimes going out to the farm is a cardio workout, but its heaven for the horses.

My beautiful, beautiful boy

Don't you just love the sight of a barn.

Donkey Shed Friendssssss

For a least a couple of years a little garter snake has made the hay bales in the donkey shed his home.  Often I have lifted up a flake and there he'll be taking a nap.  Yes, sometimes he startles me with a quick slithery exit, but I feel comfortable with his presence.

And then there were three.

Apparently my little snake friend either corralled some pals into joining him or he hooked up with his lady friend and started a family, because now there are three slithering bodies in the hay.   I'm not squeamish around mice or frogs or snakes, but I have to confess uncovering three of them unnerves me.  I'm trying to get over it.

Recently it was "molting season" for my little friends.

And then there was a third skin down alongside a bale.

Yes, its a little harder to see.

Isn't it interesting to see the variations in markings in the close-up above.












Although I will embrace most manner of critter, I'm putting my foot down at salamanders.  We use an old shallow wheelbarrow bed as a cover for the bigger manure wheelbarrow (primarily so the dog can't feast on it, but also to keep out the rain). Recently I had left it uncovered and when I approached the big wheelbarrow saw a salamander in the empty upturned cover.  I helped him out by tipping the cover but no, no, no I was NOT going to pick him up.  Then Rick tells me that as we were preparing for a Labor Day bocce party, he discovered THREE salamanders in the court.  OK, I say YUCK!  The thought of picking them up gives me the creeps.  

So a shout out to the salamanders in the vicinity.  I have no problem being neighbors as long as you keep a wide berth.  Thank you for your attention to this matter.

Late Summer Beauty

Just have to show you the hibiscus coming into full swing now.

The plant is just loaded with blooms.

So gorgeous...

And this little orange fleur is popping up in the pasture.  Fran says no thank you, I'll eat around it.

The honeysuckle plant that was itty bitty when I brought it in from the farmer's market this summer is coming into its own.  Delicate vines and delicate flowers, lovely.

Sneak peek on the next blog installment -- who sheds their skin and hangs out in the hay bales...