Update on level rider

www.levelrider.com
So I e-mailed the company and got a very prompt reply. I wanted to know about an english saddle level. Skip (that is the owner) replied asking me to call him.
So I did. We chatted for a wile, he was riding his filly at the time and stated he wants me to have a level and write about it! Cool! I was just about to buy one but sticking my nose in products (as always I research before buying) and I get free stuff, kind of how I got into nurtural horse and helped them develop their new rein straps. Cool eh? I will for sure write about the level when I get it and try it.

Useful item for any level rider

Every so often I come across one of those items that before I even buy it I go "wow that is so useful!"

Well this one has that. Level Rider

It is a saddle level for your western saddle. I wish they made it for english too. I am going to buy one for myself and use it for my students.
I think every rider could benefit from this tool. I mean how often have you a) shifted your weight to the opposite leg because your saddle was slipping b) had a saddle slip or c) had your instructor holler at you because you were leaning to one side.
Sure putting your heels down sticks in your head after a wile, but what about things like lead changes. I noticed with my students when asking for lead changes the ones that leaned to one side or the other were the ones that had the hardest time doing lead changes. To remedy this I would make them ride without stirrups for a wile. I wish I had this tool a few years ago. What a neat idea! I hope they come out with an english version soon too!

What I like to wear

Big puffy, down filled coat that makes me look 200 pounds heavier than I actually am, hair tied back and usually windblown. Dirt on my face, horse slobber on my hands and all over my coat and a horse in my arms. Yup sounds like a moment in the barn. Here Indigo takes the opportunity to reach over the line of sight to slime my other arm. Those sunglasses, yeah the only ones that a horse hasn't stepped on yet. I usually leave them in the car or house just in case.

Below, well she demands payment of the cinnamon hearts in my pocket for her wonderful talent of smiling for the camera. Anyone know a hollywood agent? Move over Mr. Ed

More on treats

So further thought on trailering and giving a horse treats to do it.

Asking a hard to load horse to come into the trailer for a treat, grain, hay, buddy etc. is extremely pointless. Now before you get your panties in a bunch listen to the explanation of how a horse feels about this situation.

Say you and your friends were at the grand canyon. Remember this reference from a few posts ago? Yeah well they said they would give you a one hundred dollars to jump off. You look down into the canyon and theres many, many feet of sharp rocks, ledges, trees and other things that will hurt you. You know you are going to die if you jump. But they protest. They say "We did it and we are alright." You look again, no way would you even be able to jump as far to miss the first ledge with large pointy rocks. You back away and refuse to go, knowing you would see the end of your days if you jump, despite the fact your friends said they were ok.

See where I am getting?

When you take a single carrot and ask a horse that is afraid to load in the trailer you are asking them to jump off the grand canyon for that money. They think a dark, closed in, scary, noisy, maybe windy box may end their lives. It would be like a wild horse walking into a cave. That cave might have bears or lions in it and if they go in there most likely isn't an exit directly in front of them. You can use food in ways such as every time the horse puts a foot closer he is rewarded. I've used that for my pony after the fact he would load normally. I wanted him to have a reason to want to load other than me asking him. You need to have that trust there as your parachute. You need to show your horse that trailering isn't scary and it's actually better to hop on the trailer than balk. Remember it takes two to fight.

So after some time on the side of the canyon and you decided you wouldn't jump your friends say "Oh yeah, by the way you get a parachute" So you decide to jump after all and got that $100.

Form vs use: bitting

The original purpose of this blog was to educate the horse community on the proper, and more importantly, improper use of a bit on a horse. Since I have been short on time lately I give you this paper I wrote my first year of university. The teacher was astounded by the resarch. Enjoy. I will for sure revise this at another date.

There are over forty recognized diseases and ailments caused by regular bitting of a horses mouth and many times more that amount in behavioral problems. Almost every horse owner has done it, bitted their horses and had a behavior problem and then proceeded to blame the problem on the horse. Webster defines the adjective “cruel” as willfully or knowingly causing pain or distress. So why is it every time a horse runs away with a rider, grabs the bit with it’s teeth, and refuses to let go or shakes his head so violently he nearly unseats his passenger, we still put a bit in a horses mouth?
There is a list of diseases and other ailments caused by bits that goes way beyond traditionalist training diagnoses on the horse, and delves into science. Sometimes these ailments are not caused by the bit but they can be aggravated and worsened by the use of one. Some horses are more susceptible to these diseases than others due to the conformation of their head, neck, back, and mouth.
A very common disease that more than half of horses ridden with a bit contact, is mandibular periostitis or better known as bone spurs. The area of the mandible when inspected on the skeleton of dead racehorses showed that most of them had very large bony growths right where the bit would rest on the bars of the mouth. This disease is not limited to racehorses, any horse with a rider with heavy or inexperienced hands can bring it upon a horse. Other injuries such as stepping on the reins or being tied by the reins and pulling back, along with several types of bitting rigs can cause mandibular periostitis.
Less common, but still probable is the injury of the inter dental space of the maxilla. This injury can be caused by a jointed bit of any kind. When a rider exerts pressure on the reins the bit acts in a nutcracker effect, pushing up into the roof of the mouth and causing trauma. In older horses it is common to see the first molars to come in contact with the bit eroded away. Equine dentists file the first molars to create what is known as a “bit seat”. Wolf teeth are commonly compressed painfully or even pulled out of place. Most horses have them removed at a young age because they are in the way of the bit.
The list of bit induced oral problems is equaled only to a list of respiratory diseases. A very common problem caused by flexion of the poll and the opening of the mouth with the bit in place is asphyxia. When the horse is asked to carry it’s head and neck in such a position that the soft palate becomes elevated as the laryngeal entrance becomes significantly smaller cutting off or decreasing the air flow to the lungs due to the reflex of breathing and swallowing.
The saliva created by the tongue moving over the bit needs a place to escape and the horse either has to do that by swallowing or drooling. It would be expected that horses cannot swallow and breathe properly at the same time it simply is like rubbing your stomach and patting your head in unison.
A horse that breathes normally when loose in a paddock suddenly emits the sound known as “roaring” typically emitted by RAO (Recurrent airway obstruction) diagnosed equines is an effect of bitting. The horse will only emit this sound when being worked bitted, and it will go away completely when worked without a bit. The name of this condition is known as dorsal displacement of the soft palate (DDSP).
DDSP occurs when the apex of the soft palate rests on the epiglottis and creates a barrier that does not allow air to efficiently enter the larynx. The noise the soft palate resting on the epiglottis can be characterized as a roaring, gurgling, or a decreased ability to inspire. Some horses can overcome this by using a flash, grackle nose band or tying the tongue to reduce the action of the horses mouth when bitted.
Other respiratory diseases that are afflicted upon horses, which are ridden with a bit include, collapse of the larynx, low blood oxygen levels at the time of exercise, Exercise-induced pulmonary hemorrhage (EIPH), pulmonary congestion, and Synchronous diaphragmatic flutter. There are many more diseases concerning other parts of the body veterinarians believe to be related to the bitting of a horses mouth.
Trigeminal neuralgia is possibly the most common ailment. Almost every horse owner has experienced it. A horse that violently shakes his head when being ridden. Many vets have blocked several of the cranial nerves in an attempt to stop the bazaar ridden behavior. In reality it is the bit to be blamed Of course there are few other cases that head shaking can be place upon, such as neurological issues, not only the bit.
This condition can be caused by sensitive horses anticipating the pain and pressure of the bit in their mouth. A past injury such as, an injury of the spinal column, tooth problems, ulcers on the tongue, breathing problems, a sprained or strained muscle of the back, and/or neck when being ridden can aggravate and lead to this condition long after the initial injury has healed. The list can go on and on for the bit related problems of head shaking.
Some horses can become dehydrated when they refuse to drink because of a painful lesion caused by a bit having been previously in their mouth. Some horses gain scar tissue on their lips and corners of their mouths by bit’s that pinch and an overzealous riders hands. Others refuse to eat and have permanent scarring in their minds and mouths from the memories of the length of steel that was inserted there.
The bit not only affects the cranium but also affects the spine, the surrounding muscles, the back, legs and many tendons because of the use we put it up to. An example is metacarpal and metatarsal osteitis or splints caused by the horse being constantly on the forehand. When the leg strikes the ground in such a manner it creates trauma in the metacarpal and metatarsal bones and depending on your horses conformation he may, or may not, develop splints because of this.
Bits are not the only thing we stick on a horses head that can cause medical and mental problems. Bridles and bazaar contraptions come in every size, colour, and fancy sparkling styles you could possibly imagine and you can attach them to your horses head and bit every way fathomable. The most popular English bridle is the Caveson. It consists of two straps that attach to the bit, a nose band, a brow band a throat latch, and all the straps connect to create the crown piece which goes over the poll. With the bit in place in the mouth the only other misunderstood part of this bridle is the nose band. The Caveson nose band is used to keep the horses mouth closed when he opens it excessively to avoid the bit placed in his mouth.
There are many types of nosebands out there. Almost all of them are designed to place some of the bit’s pressure on the nose and keep the horse from opening his mouth excessively when being ridden. The whole idea of nose bands when not directly attached to the reins is to provide support for a horse being ridden with a bit.
The Aachen Caveson, or flash nose band is designed to keep the horses mouth shut. When the horse continues to fight this type of nose band the results are usually the rider tightening it. An overly tightened nose band can lead to asphyxiation because the delicate nasal passages are compromised in an unnatural position by the flash attachment. When the nostrils cannot flair properly and the horse cannot breathe through his mouth due to anatomical conformation. He is stuck to breathe the best he can.
Another problem the flash nose band creates is ulcers of the mouth. With a regular Caveson already designed to keep the horses mouth shut and a flash keeping it tight shut the horses teeth, especially if not serviced, can cut into the cheeks, pinch the tongue and create infected, painful sores in the mouth. Crank nose bands work similarly. to the Caveson but are tightened with a pulley strap mechanism to result in maximum tightness, which human hands could not otherwise achieve by pulling a strap through a buckle.
The Grackle or figure eight nose band was designed to keep the horse from opening his mouth or crossing his jaw when being ridden. It was also said to keep the horse from getting his teeth completely on the bit and allowing him to run away with his rider. This bridle; however, does avoid the teeth, and letting the delicate cheeks become free of being pinched by a tight nose band.
The drop down nose band offers a different degree of mouth closure. The nose band is situated where the mouth will have the most leverage to open, about an inch above the relaxed non-bitted mouth and below the bit when the horse is completely bridled. If tightened it can also restrict airflow like the flash nose band. It is designed to place some of the pressure of the bit on the more sensitive areas of the nose. It does not allow the teeth to be in constant contact with the cheeks but still keeps the mouth closed to keep a horse from avoiding the bit.
Western bridles are very similar in bit’s except the nose band. Classical western riders do not use nose bands, but those riding in speed events often have tie downs. Tie downs are used to prevent the horse from excessively raising his head. It is also referred by some riders as an aid to keep the horses balance. Would you be able to walk across a tightrope if your arms were tied to your waist?
The jointed snaffle and non-jointed bit exert pounds per pounds that your hands are placing upon the reins on the horses mouth. Add a curb chain and it is roughly amplified by ten. The mouthpieces of most bits can vary in thickness, type of metal, ports, number of joints, and a vast assortment of other add-ons to cause pain and injury to the horse. Other attachments help to work with the anatomy of the horses mouth but in the end there is still a solid object being placed in the most sensitive cavity of an equines body.
The most commonly used English bit is the loose ring, egg butt, Dee ring and full cheek snaffle. Each usually have the same mouth action but with different attachments for the reins and functional uses, such as, for horses that get pinched on their lips or cannot stand the rattle of a regular loose ring snaffle. When the reins are pulled upon by these bits they exert pounds-per-pounds of pressure onto the bars of the horses mouth. If jointed once the bit will fold, press on the bars of the mouth, and poke into the hard palette. This action is often referred to as the “nutcracker effect.”
Some bits, such as, the strait bit (mullen mouth) and ported or curved bits allow less or more room for the tongue to move around. The strait, non-jointed bit lays flat on the tongue, compressing it. Bit’s with ports or a curved mouthpiece allow the tongue to lay in a more natural position. Of course there are double jointed bit’s, which allow the tongue to lay in a more natural position. When the reins are pulled upon with this bit in a horses mouth the usual V shape of a single jointed bit turns into a U.
Curbs and bits with shanks add an increase of pressure exerted on the horses mouth and poll. The longer the shank on the bit the more severe the pressure when a curb chain is added and a rider holds the reins. When a rider pulls back on the reins that are attached to a curb bit the shank moves rearward, the curb chain tightens on the mental nerve and puts pressure on the poll causing the horse to have no escape but give into the pressure. The mental nerve connects the lower lip, chin, and just behind the chin to the brain giving it feeling.
Western bits with large ports can create additional damage further back in the horses mouth on the hard palate. These bits are designed so a rider should use almost no bit contact on the mouth and use other forms of riding aids such as the seat, legs and neck reining. The port does not move. If a horse were to suddenly throw his head up in the air and a rider holding on to the reins in a regular western fashion the port would poke sharply into the hard palate and cause trauma. Horses being ridden in western with a port have actually been euthanized because the port of the bit ruptured the soft palate into the nasal cavity. Such injuries can happen quite easily if a horse steps on a rein.
Unfortunately, in most associations a rider would be disqualified as it is an offense to ride without a bit in a horses mouth. Some English events such as hunter and some jumping or western barrel racing allow the use of a hackamore, bosal, or side pull. Even when the hackamore and side pull are used it still exerts pressure on the sensitive nose and cartilage structures of the face as well as the poll because of the shank action.
Hackamores can be just as unnerving to a horse as a bit because they use a shank under the chin in the same fashion as a curb bit. A side pull is gentle and provides good steering but limited breaks. A bosal is essentially a nose band made of rawhide woven over metal or a stiff core. The bosal applies pressure both on the nose and under the chin when rein pressure is applied. The Mecate reins are also usually made of horsehair and rough to encourage the horse to neck rein and move away from the irritating rein pressure.
The only bridle that has been known to allow horses with previous bitting problems to put it in their past are the no-bit bridles from various companies. These bridles do not harness a bit and the control comes from the nose band, and two rein straps that cross between the underside of the head just after the chin and before the cheekbones. To turn this bridle, one should apply indirect pressure on the opposite cheekbones. Stopping power is applied to the bridge of the nose where the nose band lies and gently tightens the rein straps under the head. These bridles feel identical to any snaffle bit but provide a happier, more in tune horse and virtually no ways to harm the horse. Of course anything can become harmful if used improperly.
It is easy to see why some horses are only controllable when ridden in a rope halter or bit less bridle. There is no pain. When pain is involved the horse goes into flight mode, looking for a way to escape the pain and discomfort of a bit or other mechanical device, which humans use to control the horse.
In conclusion, there are many way’s in which, you can use a bit and each and every one of them have the possibility of causing mental or physical damage to the horse without a rider even on their back. There are also many more add-ons and different types of bits and bitting devices not mentioned here. The information provided above should make it easier in future decisions about bitting your horse.

Boots

Tag from ponygirl

My blundstones. I wouldn't trade them for any boots in the world and I wouldn't hesitate buying another pair since these ones have lasted me 8 years and now I got a new pair.
I think you can tell the second you put on a pair of shoes if they are gonna be good. Some shoes you may not like but they eventually wear in and become the pair you should, but don't wanna trash.

Every time we go on a long shopping trip I wear my blunnies. Everyone else complains of back pain but not me.
The other day my friend Michelle came with me along my farm chores. I gave her the old pair of blundstones to wear. She exclaims "wow these are comfy no wonder why you like them so much!" I rest my case. Try on a pair of blundstones and you'll never go back. English, western, everyplace in between they are just right.

Here are the new ones, or one rather since I was sitting on the gate. Indigo approves of them but they still don't smell like the old boots she says. Oh the farms and miles those boots have traveled. I bet they smell real good. I have to keep them on the dryer or else my dog tries to claim them and would probably eat them if she had the choice. My mom tried to take them from her one day and she snarled real nasty like as if to say "those are MY smelly things!"
Mom has even had to throw them into the patio a time or two. Yeah those boots have been through a lot of shit and so have I. I wouldn't trade them or the shit though, it's part of who I am and who I will be.

"Horsaii"

Inspired by mugwump chronicles

There are some of us that are born with a desire to break the bank, spend endless hours in the worst weather conditions, forget sleep and most of all ourselves for a chance to be with horses. There are those that grow out of it and those that never think of anything else but horses.

I recall the first time I saw a real horse that I can remember. I am sure there were times before this but none as vivid as this one.
I seem to have the ability to remember things from when I was young in shocking clarity. I was barely two years old when my one grandmother died. She was schizophrenic and had cancer. I remember her coffin, a delicate pastel purple with dark lilacs painted on the corners.
Another memory from when I was two was picking out my first dog, Baby, our yellow Labrador. Baby was a faithful companion but that is not what I remembered the day by.
We went to a local farm where they sold antiques out of their cute little rustic barn. I don't remember the four puppies there because something else like magic had captured my full attention.
My parents talked business with the lady and I watched from between two fence boards, eyes glued to the vision in front of me.
A man on a chestnut horse running faster than anything my little eyes had ever fell upon. They were galloping down a fence row, the man's hat had blown off but held on by stampede strings around his neck. He leaned into the horses mane; brown hair whipping his face as the hooves that carried them both hovered just above the grassy earth with every stride. I could hear each beat with the loud thump of my heart. They seemed to run forever before turning around and galloping back down the fence. I was captivated.
I probably stood there for a few minutes but they seemed like hours. Etching the image into my mind and soul.

I went home that day and designated an old steam trunk we kept on the porch the stable. This is where I kept all my "horses" There was a chestnut like I had seen, a grey, a white and my favorite, the long limbed, powerful black stallion. I would open the trunk and take off at a gallop and leap as far as my young legs would let me onto the lawn. It was my imagination, it stretched and still does. The back yard was a huge meadow that went for miles and miles. We hid in the evergreens as our forest and stood by the pond that was the ocean.
I played horses at school, found friends that played with me. We would run around nickering and winning until the teacher would call and we would gallop to the line up to see who won the race.

In reality when I go past that same cute little farm where we got my dog, the fence they raced is only 120 feet and the man that flew on that horses back is now old and crippled. The horse is still there but something tells me he doesn't get ridden much anymore. I stopped one night when no one was around and patted that old gelding over the fence, silently thanking him for awakening my dreams and creating memories.

If only.

My mother has always loved horses so I can say it probably is hereditary. Her best friend was a farrier and wild cowgirl in heart and soul. The thing that sticks is the grandmother I mentioned. My mother used to tell me stories, I know they hurt her at one point. Now she makes sense of it all that she was witnessed and experienced the bond and calm that one finds when spending time around horses.
When my grandmother had one of her "episodes" she would get her basket and take a walk across a couple fields to visit the local equids. Along the way she would gather grasses and weeds to feed them. My mother reported that when she returned she seemed to be in her right mind. No doctor or medicine in the world was or is capable of doing that for her condition.

So I invite any of you (I know there isn't many but spread the word please!) who reads this to blog, in your own blog and write about the first memory of a horse. You don't have to be horsaii but everyone goes through a stage in life where we are captured in the hypnotizing hoof beats of equus.

Those moments

I had one of those days, they are very rare.
Everything just went like I wanted it to. Pretty much.
I worked and everything seemed easy. I got done work and went to see Indigo. The sun was shining and it was warm. It felt so good. The horses were just dozing in the warmth.

I told myself I was only going to just hop over the fence and see her. Well you all know how that goes. I went into the barn and got a hoof pick and two brushes and hopped over the gate to groom her.
Indigo thrives on human contact. She loves to be brushed, pampered, petted and most of all fed the little sweet morsels I keep in my trunk. That horse can hear the rustle of a plastic wrapper or a ziploc bag from miles away I swear. She is sneaky too. I hear the other horses walk up but Indigo creeps up and then BAM you have horse licking the back of your head and shes standing there demanding your attention weather you want it or not.

So I groomed her and she stood stock still only turning around to lick at my already slobbered jacket from the day before. She is falling asleep in the sunlight and grooming just totally chilled out about being a horse and being fuzzy and there being warm sun.

Remember how I mentioned that there are rare moments I can hug her and she will just stand well today was one of those days. I thinkt he warm sun had her so at ease I buried my face in her warm sunny mane and inhaled her sweet horse scent (she smells different than any horse) then I just rested my head on her warm back and slowly scratched her furry belly. She just stood there totally chilled, eyes blinking sleepily, ears lopped off happily and my grooming tools and gloves at her front hooves. I rest my head there for the longest time just listening to the gurgle of her belly and silence of the winter air (with no wind, finally!).

I love her coat in the winter. Well I love it all the time. She gets this gleam to her hair no other horse has. When I had my head on her side I could see thousands of little rainbows in her white hairs. For a white, speckled horse she sure has a lot of colours. I admired the tiny prisms in her hair for the longest time. She stood content in my company and I in hers and her horsey scent. Well until I reached into my pocket and put a candy cane in my mouth. She craned her neck around, snuffed at me and then started licking my shoulder in affection to the belly scritches she was getting. There was probably some subliminal "feed me" messages in there that got to me.

See I hand feed her. Her and Naigen are the only two of my horses that ever got/get hand fed. Naigen was just a sweety and was gentle and patient about everything. Indigo, well she wouldn't get any if I had to stick stuff in buckets. The others would gobble it up first or she would have to share. Shes pretty good about sharing when I walk up to a pasture buddy and offer. However if that pasture buddy comes up to us all bets are off and the ears are laid back. No one touches me. No one touches her when I am there. I don't want to be trampled because another horse is chasing her. They damnwell know they wait until I approach and there will be no attacking when I am with or handling another horse. There is consequences for this like being chased and segrigated from the herd and attention until they change their tudes and come back without the angry teeth and hooves.

Anyway, hand feeding. Hand feeding DOES NOT create nippy horses if you do it right. This means the horse only gets treats when you offer the hand and when they grab at your hand there is consequences. For Indigo all I had to do was maul her muzzle in rubs. She hates her nose being touched. Indigo knows a few tricks. Well mostly she has to do something and I open my hand and offer the food to her, not her lipping/biting my hand. She is not allowed.

She knows how to smile and boy does she. Before I even ask her to do a trick she goes through a whole routine to see which one I just might open the vending machine on. First she smiles. Then she smiles again. Then she turns her head away and then comes back to smile again. This is about the time I usually ask her to smile and she graciously does so again for a mint, candy cane, horse cookie, apple, carrot or whatever else I happen to have that then becomes horse food.

She has never been nippy. Not offered once to bite. She knows shes gotta do something before I open the hand. She just tries to figure out what that is and respects that invading my space or hand is not the way she gets the goods.
Tricks are a good way to feed your horse treats and make him do something for them. They learn quite quicky you are a vending machine that takes behaviours instead of quarters.

Take my pony for example. Keebler does target training. Since he has bit before (unintentionally, he tried to take something from someones hand and took more than the treat not realizing it ended and skin began) he gets his treats dropped in a pail but to the same effect.

He knows I give treats but hes gotta do something first. Keebler does target training. He touches various objects. It's quite fun and especially if you have a horse that has a very high play drive (can you say geldings!?) I don't think he could ever get bored of it.

Another example was my friends gelding. He hated his mane being pulled so I sat there once and every time she pulled hair out he would get a horse cookie. He now loves his mane being pulled and doesn't fidget at all. The food renforced the positive things about standing still, took his mind off his aggrivation and made it a pleasant experience.

So I am going to give anyone who reads this a challenge. Teach your horse something new and do it with a food reward. If you are worried about nippy or beggars use a bucket designated only for this training.

Some motivation try:

Picking up feet (each time the horse picks up his foot give him a treat or have a helper give a treat)

Streching. This is something I reccomend doing with long carrots or licorice. Make your horse streach all the way around and touch their hip on each side and if your horse can get further than their hip kudos to them! It may take a few tries for their muscles to enable them to reach there and sometimes various sessions but it is a very positive treat giving session for their body. Then make them reach between their front legs as far as they can. Some horses even "bow" and then stand on a stool and as high up above their heads as they can reach.

Fear of plastic bags: I used this one on Keebler. He was terrified of bags. I put a carrot inside and got deeper and deeper bags every time. Now he stuffs his head inside and doesn't fret about flapping plastic that he was terrified of for 5 out of his now 8 year old self.

Trailer loading. Now I am not talking about putting a flake of hay inside the trailer and trying to convince the horse that it's not scary. You wouldn't jump off the grand canyon for 1 million dollars would you? Thats how a horse feels about using food for trailering. I am talking about making a horse less anxious about trailers. Try a treat for each food. In a relatively short period of time you will find your horse is putting feet on and hopping on the trailer just to get that morsel.

etc...what does everyone come up with?

After work I went out to see Indigo. She was excited as always to see me. This pic is a good example of how her mane grows whiter. On the top it starts about October and grows white. The white hair grows strait up and falls over about the beginning of may. It looks like shes got a fat cresty neck in the winter.

So as I was putting on her halter I was thinking about riding and how much fun it is in the snow so I clipped the lead rope on the side of her halter and tied a knot in the other side and hopped on. She was not at all enthused. There is a HUGE drift right off of the old silo foundation thats a good 3 feet tall. I made her walk through it and she was not amused. I wish I had my camera. The drift was so big her belly made a drag mark in it and it was so damn cute. Fat woolly neighs.

Riding a horse bareback through snow drifts when they are lifting their legs all high and funny has to be the weirdest sensation. I almost tumbled off her butt when she skittered up onto the old silo foundation then back down. Sheba noticed me riding her and got all interested and started following us around, which made Indigo MAD. She was like "QUIT FOLLOWING ME!" It's funny because when Sheba comes close to Indigo and ticks her off she bites her own side. I often find slobber marks on her barrel near her hip and I know Sheba was near her and making her angry.

Maybe I'll actually go out and ride her in the fields sometime. Time, yeah thats a good one. Anyone got some spare time they want to sell me?

Probability

"A mare homozygous at the bay loci, EEAA, is crossed to a stallion who is heterozygous at the bay loci, EeAa. What is the probability that their offspring will be bay?"

What I have been looking at all week. It's tiring on top of taking on a new barn and horses to take care of. I've seen Indigo twice this week. I am sure she misses the cookies.

Anyone know how to do probability? Want to help me? It's confusing as all hell.

In the mean time here is a cute effin pic of a friends old horse lazing in the sun last summerr. I want the snow to melt.