22 posts tagged “gimli”
It's been raining/snowing (precipitating) here a lot the last couple of weeks, so there's mud everywhere. True to form, Morgana is picking up her mom's bad habits, namely rolling in the mud. See:
And then there was Morgana's first snowfall:
For a brief period of time, Merry was just about the cleanest of the herd:
These were taken by the husband of one of my law school friends when they came down for Easter, and posted here with his kind permission.
Everyone was so fuzzy then! They've all lost a lot of hair the past couple weeks. Everything is much greener now, too.
Next set of photos posted will be of the new paddocks!
It is so, so very cold out today. It was something like -25 degrees F last night/this morning, and we're in for a repeat tonight. It's currently -10. Yes, actual air temperature. Not sure what the windchill is.
I couldn't get any of the household vehicles cranked this morning, so I didn't go to work today & have arranged with my boss to not go in tomorrow either, since it looks to be more of the same. The horses all have blankets on (Merry's new, warm one just arrived today, so I'm going to go out later and swap him out of the old sheet & into it) and are pretty much hiding in the barn. Can't really blame them.
Today I took Gimli and Myf out into the arena together so they could get to know one another. I may start putting Myf in with Gimli at night. Annie can get a little cranky with her at times and a 12 x 12 stall is really more room than one little Shetland needs all to himself.
I had hoped for a bit that they'd both get a little wound up and play -- take advantage of the big space -- but this was the most action from either of them.
Meanwhile, other people were having snits...
It amazes me the way she respects that little fence even in full snit mode. She and Merry are two of a kind, though. Bossy-boots, the pair of them. In the end they were hollering back and forth to each other about how upset they were more than they were talking to their respective missing redheads. Gimli and Myf paid no attention to their carrying on.
While Gimli does play with the big boys, I think it's going to be nice for him to have a buddy who is, at least temporarily, his own size. She'll get bigger, but not as much bigger as Merry and, to a lesser extent, Zahr.
So after a disappointing trip last Wednesday to look at a Swedish mare who might've been a really good deal, but who turned out to be nothing I want deal with, I renewed my hunt for a nice Welsh pony mare. I found this girl in Wisconsin and actually decided to send an e-mail inquiring about her this morning. They have her filly from this year on the sale page (right above her listing), and her '07 colt on their foals page. Cute babies.
I am a little concerned about her age (22), but I'd only really want her '09 foal & to use my breeding to Khan on her (for '10, I'd say). Maybe breed her to Merry after that, but I should think I could retire her at that point or after the Khan baby with no regrets. It's not like I have any need to be breeding constantly. I'd just want a couple babies out of her and then she could hang out and just be, maybe get fussed over by the occasional little girl.
Speaking of little girls, Gimil has been giving rides! I need to get some pictures up, but he's given rides to our neighbour's 18mo daughter and to my mother's cousin's five year old. The five year old was adopted from China and currently lives in the L.A. area, so the whole pony/farm thing was very thrilling for her. She just wanted to keep riding, but Gimli and I aren't used to this whole five-year-old-girl thing, and we got tired way before she did. (Side note: she was very pleased to find out that Gimli is the same age she is. It was pretty funny.)
Finally got the farm sign up this week & have a few pictures of it.
Gimil (and I) posing in front of the sign. Please try to ignore me - I wasn't exactly prepared to have my picture taken. As much as I love my Birks, they aren't exactly classy. Focus instead on how cute Gimli looks in his wee saddle. He's practicing for giving little kids rides.
See...
Spring has been a here one day, gone the next proposition so far this year. At least we're getting rain consistently rather than snow, now. I've shifted my fence panels around a bit so the horses can go out on the grass for short bouts on the days when it's not completely soggy. They're pretty thrilled about that.
Planted a bunch of trees & bushes around the farm -- oaks, pines, dogwood, and chokecherries, plus an ornamental pear and some low juniper and a river birch. Most of them are pretty little now, but they should eventually turn into nice windbreaks for the place.
My mother painted a sign for the farm with my horse-head logo she designed for me (which you can see on the blog here) on it. It's not up yet because it hasn't been warm enough consistently to varnish it, but when it is I will post a picture of it.
Had the vet out this past Friday. Merry & Gimli have been deemed 'slightly overweight', but Zahr's weight is finally up where it's supposed to be. Yeah! Merry's excess should come off once I start riding regularly again. I have plans to create a track around the inside of the arena so I'll have someplace with decent footing to ride even when it's a bit wet. The black dirt we've got here is great for growing things, but it's frighteningly slick for riding when it's wet.
The pregnant barn cat I got with the birch tree (long story) is due to have her litter in another week, according to my vet. Poor girl is so round now, I can't imagine how she's going to make it another week, but there you have it. I'm hoping for mostly boys 'cause it's easier and cheaper to neuter than to spay. Rose (momma kitty) is quite friendly, so I'm hoping she'll stick around after the kittens are weaned, but she's totally fearless & I'm a little afraid that she'll come to a bad end. Her son, Tyler, from her last litter who came with her is a total wimp, on the other hand. I had him neutered & am hoping he'll just keep himself to the tackroom. Unlike his mother, he's not all that keen on trying to get out & go exploring. He's also discovered that being brushed is one of life's great pleasures. Why leave when you've got brushing, food, and shelter?
So by the time I got home tonight it was -6 degrees. This is one degree colder than what they claim our high is supposed to be tomorrow. The horses were pretty much hiding in the stalls (Merry & Zahr were squished together in Merry's stall when I went out to feed), so I brought them in a little early and stuck blankets on everyone.
Zahr got the heavy quilted one a) because he seems to get cold easier than Merry and b) because Merry hates that blanket. It doesn't have a front closure, so you have to slip it on over the horse's head and Merry doesn't care much for blankets anyhow, so it's a real battle getting it on him. I just put my cotton sheet (which has a front buckle) on him for a little extra insulation, & he was real good about the whole thing once he figured out that, if he stood patiently while I fumbled with the buckles & straps, he'd get treats. Sometimes it's nice having a food-oriented horse.
Zahr was very good about having his blanket put on, which pleased me. Only flinched once. He sems to be getting more confident over-all. He'll stare suspiciously at things and blow, but it's more like what Toad used to do when she didn't like something than the all-consuming fear he was showing before. He's less likely to bolt and more likely to listen, I find.
Gimli, of course, could have cared less what I did to him. The treats were nice, but I didn't need to bribe him to get the blanket on or have him stand while I fiddled (and by the time I got to him, my hands were getting pretty numb, so there was a lot of fiddling). He can be so very naughty, but he's very, very sane.
In other horsey "news": I'm officially declaring Merry 15.1 hh. I measured him a few weeks ago & he was almost 15.1, but not standing square -- I figured if he'd been standing square, he'd have made it to the .1 mark. At least, unlike so many of the show Arabs these days, Merry has normal feet & not those super long/tall things that have to add at least an extra inch (if not two) to a horse's height.
I wish I could just stay indoors (in bed) all weekend, given how cold it's going to be. Chores need to be done, though. I suspect mucking will have to take place in half-barrow stages. Fill the wheelbarrow up half-way, run into the house for a bit to thaw my hands, run back out to fill the other half & empty it, then run back inthe house...
