Ducklings Doing Okay

They're sharing Little Pig's pen in the kitchen. What a strange group they are when they huddle around Little Pig for warmth (Little Pig is a guinea pig). We still have 11 ducklings now and they look pretty good and seem contented. Side effect: the fly population in the kitchen has suffered considerably. Even at this age the ducklings can pluck them right out of the air for a quick snack.

News about Amigo and the Ducklings

Amigo has been out three times this week. The first was last Wednesday, and wow was it easy to tell he hadn't been ridden in a while (I'd been away). He got upset very easily. I tried to push him through it, but he started to tremble & that's dangerous. So I changed the pace. Apparently, he needs time to consider things, and if he's pushed before he takes the time to think about a new situation, he first begins to tremble, and then he will in desperation begin evasive maneouvres. So for the rest of the ride I tried letting him consider things before responding to queues. This worked pretty well for him on that ride.

Yesterday I took him out again, this time without another horse to follow. He balked a fair amount. For the first part of the ride he was allowed to think about things, but for the second part I was pushing him through balks that seemed to have no reason. I used the reins to very gently slap him on the shoulder or rump (it was more like a tickle); this annoyed him enough that he began to move each time it happened. He still will hardly canter for me, but I was very pleased that he has begun going willingly through creeks. He even went right into a dark treeline, down a steep hill, over a creek, and up again in a place where almost every horse I've ridden there has needed me to lead him through the first time. I was very, very pleased when he did that. It shows real willingness.

In the middle of our ride, in a large meadow where nobody ever goes, we got soaked with a driving rain. It's been a long time since I've been riding on a sopping wet horse with rain streaming through my hair and down my face. I'd forgotten how wonderful it can feel. Both he and I enjoyed the relief from flies and heat.

Today we went out again, with Molly riding Ben. Amigo did many things very well on this ride. First, he went through the covered bridge (where he had refused before) without any hesitation, though he did arch his neck, snort, and step very high. Second, he was the hero of the day when he plunged into Lewis Creek with me on his back. He went straight for the deepest part of the creek. The water came up to my shins. Ben had been refusing to go down, but once Amigo was in, he followed and went right through it, too. This cut off nearly a mile of the ride on the way home. I was very happy with him for doing that. Lastly, he let me wash him with the hose and stood still for it. He has learned so much!

On the other hand, he still likes to balk and can do a very annoying walk that is something of a meander. Instead of going straight, each step he looks for a way to change the momentum to going back the other way. This is definitely not "going forward willingly."

About the ducklings--we have lost 3 of them to some kind of illness. One more doesn't look as energetic as the others, and I fear this is the next one to go. What a shame.

A Conversation with my Boyfriend (or, Yes, it is About the Farm)

Van and I usually stay sort of "connected" online most of each work day. Here is a bit of today:

SB: hey, van?
what's the difference between html and xml?
Van: html is one kind of xml
SB: can xml be opened in firefox?
Van: usually
Van: ie too
SB: thx
Van: sure

Later...

SB: whoa, we just had some drama on the farm
Van: oh yeah?
SB: big fuss among the chickens, so i went running out
saw a bobcat standing between the barn & the paddock
: looking at the ducks & chickens
: they were all squawking and hissing
Van: damn
: but the bobcat looked at me, then turned & ambled--ambled!--into the woods
: so casual, like, okay, this one's yours
Van: heh
SB: so i went back inside
: and a few hours later (30 min ago)
: the same kerfuffle in the barn
: i went running out, and so did Danny, picking up a stick on his way
: actually, before i ran out i looked out the window & saw the same bobcat
: in the paddock this time
: with a white rooster in its mouth, dragging the rooster along
: that's when we went running out
: Danny with his stick
: i said, Danny, I'm not comfortable with you taking on a full grown bobcat, stand down, let me go first
: he very reluctantly let me go first
: but by the time we got to the gate into the Home Meadow,
: all we could see was a trail of white feathers.
: Bobcat, 4 (this week!)
: Me, 1
: The brown duck is missing
: the guinea hen is missing
: the mother duck is missing
: and now the white rooster
: so i knocked on matt's door
: and told him he was down by one rooster
: he said
: "Sei la vie."
: (or however that is spelled)
: we had a conference
: the two of us decided to keep the last rooster here (he has a friend who wants it)
: so that, when the bobcat comes back (note that I didn't say "if")
: he will get the rooster and leave my ducks alone
: Now, that's neighborly.
: dontcha think?
Van: heh

Ducklings, etc.

Ducks grow exponentially. Each day they almost double in size. Ours are doing fine, despite the fact that we haven't a clue as to how to raise them. But somehow they are getting enough food and water and warmth and space.

Yesterday Rachelle and I took pictures of Jack, as you can see. He's become quite the looker.

Dante had his hoof trimmed yesterday and is already walking much better. I plan to take him to Mel's Meadow in an hour or so; he should probably just be on turnout for a while until he starts to run around on his own.

Later... Well, he couldn't quite make the trip. He wanted to, but after limping along a bit he went back to the barn. I guess he's still a little sore. So only Ben went.

On my way back I got some photos of the children hanging around with the ducklings. Actually, with the ducklings + 1. Somebody else was soaking up some rays.

All the animals feel safe around Danny. And he's just happy with his book...

Some People...

Fleetfoot Jack's previous owner showed up in a pickup truck with a horse trailer behind him and got out and demanded that I give him "his pony." Jack was nowhere in sight, otherwise I expect he would have loaded him up just that instant. In fact, now that I think about it, I bet he thought Jack would be in the Top Meadow, away from the house, and had planned to just take him from there without saying anything at all.

Wow. Fleetfoot Jack, a.k.a. Odin, came to us ill and contagious in mid-November 2007. I asked the owner to come and get him and left a check in the barn to pay him for some hay he had delivered. He never showed up and never replied. All but one of our horses became very ill with strangles, and little Jack suffered some pretty severe symptoms. So I paid the vet bills, and fed the little guy all winter, and tamed & began his training with the help of the children, and now that he's worth some money, the owner wants him back.

What is the right answer here? Shall I bill the owner for six and a half months of board? That's, let's see, $1625. The vet bill was gosh, for Jack alone it was probably only about $200, but for the other horses that he contaminated it was much, much more, perhaps thousands. I doubt I can get the owner to pay for the other horses' vet bills, but I suppose that depends on who actually "owns" the pony.

Anyway, I called the state police because the guy said he had called the state police, and they said they never heard of him. I mentioned that I didn't want this man on my property and that I doubted he would have pulled this kind of prank had there been a big man living here along with us, and they said that if he ever came back I should call them right away.

Never a dull moment....

Mama Duck Disappeared

We have no idea what happened to her. She's just gone. And one duckling is gone, too. Actually, Lucy found its little body, trampled by a horse hoof. They were on their own for a few hours after their mother disappeared and before we knew anything was wrong. The boys don't know about the trampled duckling; I'm letting them just guess until I can figure out the best way to tell them. Not, for example, while I'm trying to slog my way through a day's work.

Dante is limping painfully as the crack moves down his hoof. Cordell is coming tomorrow to trim & remove the shoe. I tried to do it last night but I don't know how to do it without hurting Dante.

Cocoa and Amigo are in Mel's Meadow today. We have to get there by going on a trail through the woods. That should be interesting come winter...

All I have time for now.

What I found in the Barn Today

What Amigo is Like

He's a huge horse, could totally kick ass in any sport, but he trembles about everything wherever he goes, poor guy. Needs miles. Climbing onto him is like climbing onto a monster. It's not just that he's tall--he's also broad and powerful, so the hardest part of mounting is just getting my leg over (all the way over) his back.

Amigo is very friendly, very sweet, smiles at people, is first on the scene for food or scratches. Very smart. Has bouncy gaits because he lifts his feet high and places them carefully.

I keep calling him Comanche. Argh. I don't want to call him that. But it just slips out.

Will make an excellent husband or beginner horse once he has his confidence. His eyes have a lot of learning to do. New shapes startle him, shadows, rocks, logs. But he doesn't jump or spook. Just trembles. Balks some.

Plan for this week: Rachelle to ride him as much as possible. Magic will also ride him.

Progress with Hot Cocoa

It happens with all the most challenging horses, and I don't know why. You feel it. You can be in the house thinking about something completely different, but suddenly you feel it and you know. This is the time. And if you act, right then, you can make surprising progress, push past some logjam in the training, and emerge from the tangle free and ready to go forward.

I felt it today with Cocoa. Between checking for messages on my phone and getting something to eat, I felt it. Now. Right now.

So I went out and got Cocoa, brushed him, saddled him, and bridled him. Then I led him over to the fence (outside the ring), got onto the fence, and began fussing over him, scratching his neck, rattling the saddle--basically desensitizing him to me being above his head. Each new step in this long process was tense for him, followed by relaxation. He was very interested in the bridle, and chewed it a lot. That was a good thing. It kept his mind off what I was doing to his back.

He danced away from me many times, but I pulled him back in and praised him when he got into position. He responds very well to praise. After just 10 minutes of this, he would line himself up next to me on the fence and tolerate me shaking the saddle and scratching his neck from above on both sides. That's pretty good.

Then I decided to put my leg across the saddle--not to get on, but just to have him experience me being on both sides of him. His reaction was a violent surge backwards, stiff-legged and snorting. He pulled back against the bridle and then relaxed slightly when I scolded him and asked him to line up again. He did line up (I thought he would refuse, but he didn't), and I tried the leg over thing again. He was stock still, no longer chewing on his bit, but focused completely on me and on what I was doing. But he held still. He stayed right up against the fence while I put my leg over the saddle again, and this time he didn't spook. He stood still. I pounded my foot up and down on his saddle, rattled it with my hand while leaving my leg on it--even stood up a bit higher and leaned more on that leg--and though he was tense and watchful, he did as I asked him to do and stood still.

Bring out the champagne--this is amazing progress for that horse. And wow is he ever going to be a good riding horse!