A Case of Mistaken Identity...?

"Its a bear! Its a wolf! A dear maybe.... one of those horse eating bike things ? Ohhhh wait no just Ace... are you okay mom?..." That would be my interpretation of what went through Rio's head this morning as he spun around with out warning, side passed and backed half way across the ring and decided to continue his 90mile an hour pirouette with me shouting in his ear to knock it off. I could see that kind of reaction to a bear or a dear, which yes we do see around our neighborhood, but another horse that lives 2 stalls down from him... one that he saw leave on his trail ride & knew would be back at some point really.... really Rio???

When this happened we'd just finished a short ride. I spent 45 minutes actively pushing the darn horse around the ring trying to make him extend his trot and pick up his feet.... its hot and he's had 3 weeks off so I wasn't too upset at his laziness. I was thinking to myself just how ineffective and crappy my seat an legs are right now and that I needed to get to the gym  and back in the saddle on a more regular basis as I pulled my feet out of the stirrups to stretch my sore muscles and gave him a free rein to cool out... big mistake to let my guard down! I'm relatively amazed that I didn't eat dirt given how much my legs would have liked to have been jello at that point on top of not having stirrups.  In fact despite Debby's interpretation that I was hanging on for deal life I actually felt pretty secure up there which was equally amazing given how little I've been riding lately... Just think what I could do if I actually made the effort to get in shape and take a few lessons?

I would love it if Rio would rein back, half pass and pirouette in a controlled setting, but I think we'll avoid this scenario  if we can the next time around!

Just one of those days I guess!....

What's That Yellow Thing In The Sky....?

Could it be... could it really be? The sun has made a reappearance in the "SUNSHINE" state? Its been pointed out to me by my endearing brother-in-law who sometimes takes my facebook quotes a little too literally (I'm not completely stupid... but that's a topic for another day...)  that FL is still very behind in our water levels thanks to dry summers the past two years in a row. But, man I feel like its done nothing, but rain this summer and for someone who loves to be outside and riding the horses its been a major bummer. Thanks to Tropical Storm Debby it felt like we were never going to see the sun again. Mom and I were even joking that we should start building an ark. 

In light of being cooped up inside this week I had to share a cartoon that was just too appropriate, and good for a smile...

 If you haven't heard of Jean Abernathy & Fergus I highly recommend liking her on FB and checking out her website. She is a brilliant artist and Fergus cartoons are always priceless.


On a happy note the sun was back out today! Yeah! With tutoring clients out of town I had some time to enjoy the sunshine with a long overdue trip to the barn. Rio showed again just how great he is walking around the ring sedately with my friend's 3 kids ages 5 and 10 despite not having been ridden or worked in weeks. 

It was so nice to be outside! I think everybody must have felt that way because the normally quiet barn was full of people tonight!


Hopefully I'll get a chance to ride a bit more Friday, Saturday and Sunday I'm looking forward to Christian's lesson... how can I torture... I mean challenge her this week... and riding with Alice & Moon Sunday... yeah for a break in the rain and Moon's new boots!


And, on a side note please pray for the families and animals in Colorado and surrounding states who are dealing with fires and drought! Its heart breaking to see pictures of the devastation there right now. No matter how long I stay away Colorado will always be home to me!

No Rest For The Wicked...

When I think of summer I think of time to rest and relax, time to spend with family and friends, and time to spend riding my horse. I realized being in the teaching profession that may be a bit of an illusion that I need to wake up from. Not everybody gets the whole summer off. Real or not real... apparently God had other plans for me this summer! Not that I'm complaining too loudly. Work and money to pay for the pony is always a good thing.

I haven't ridden or taught a lesson in 2 maybe 3 weeks so there's not much of anything horsey to discuss except that I miss my horse! I've now got a total of 7 tutoring clients, and 3 riding lesson clients that periodically take lessons when I have time which are keeping me busy in their own right. Somewhere along the way I also agreed to teach the art camps at my mom's pottery store. Between the work and all the RAIN riding has been pretty much impossible. 

Have I mentioned how much I hate rain?

I did get to visit my Dad and Bushia and Grandpa last weekend for Father's Day. I haven't spent a Father's Day actually doing something with my dad in probably 10 or 12 years so it was a nice to see him even though it meant coming back to a busy week unorganized.

I am looking forward to a visit from a former riding student of mine this summer! Lauren, who I've watched grow up is coming out from Tallahassee for a visit and I will be taking some time off to spend with her and her mom! So I foresee lots of horsey time in our future if the rain will give us a break! When Lauren started riding with me she was in third grade and she is now a sophomore in high school! Where, I ask you, has time gone?

On a side note, I'm looking for a partial leaser to share Rio's expenses with. I have one other girl who rides him and a friend who gets on him for training purposes maybe once a month so it would be an on site lease 2 x a week shared time with the other 1/3 leaser & myself. If anyone knows of anybody interested who is a responsible teen or adult with intermediate riding skills you can pass my e-mail on to them SamanthaB.EDU@gmail.com

And, if you're looking for something fun to do bring yourself or your kids to Hot Pots and visit me!

Happy Summer Vacation!

Rio Gets a Pedicure...

Rio had a visit from one of his favorite people this week! Vince the farrier. I have to say I never fully appreciated my good experiences with farriers until I moved to Central Florida. In over 20 years of horse experience and ownership I think I've used maybe 5 farriers all of which have been absolutely wonderful. Every time I changed farriers it was almost always due to a move, never a farrier problem. And, I can't even count the number of times my farrier has saved a horse from bigger problems. My mare Katie would not have remained as sound or ridable as she did up to the very end of her life if it had not been for good farriers. 

I never knew just how lucky I was until I moved from Tallahassee to the central Florida area 2 years ago. In our first year I think I went through 4 farriers in the course of a year and my "never lame" horse had more issues in one year with his feet then he has in his entire life... see previous blogs for just a few examples of our trials and tribulations. I thought maybe it was just me and my bad luck, but after talking to several other people in the area I realized not so much! Apparently its hard to find a decent farrier in this area. 

Even my non horsey friends probably have heard the saying your horse is only as good as his feet, If you stop to think about it you have to question God's design of this beautiful animal. Horses weigh easily 1000 plus pounds on average and they carry all that weight on four relatively small feet... its the equivalent of you or I walking around on our fingers... I kid you not... check out dressage Trainer Jane Savoie's awesome comparison of the horse and human skeletal system.

Not only do you have a problem with their feet if they aren't being trimmed correctly, or if the horse develops some sort of foot issue, but how they move and stand with foot issues can translate up the body to bigger muscle skeletal issues causing difficulties when being ridden, and potential soreness or injury to the horse in other areas. 

For the last 10 months Rio has been trimmed by Vince our barefoot specialist out of Ocala and I have never been happier with his feet or his performance then in that time frame. Add to that the bonus that Vince is very patient with the horses, and takes the time to explain everything he is doing to the horse  and you can't ask for much more. He is always honest with you, only trimming the horse if it truly needs it, and able to explain ins and outs of his job in English as apposed to farrier talk so that even the most beginner person can understand the concepts.

I love my farrier for all those reasons, but Rio just loves him because Vince always offers a good scratch before and after he finishes trimming him...

If you're looking for an awesome barefoot farrier Vince travels from Florida up the coast to Virginia on a regular basis! I highly recommend him!