What a Busy Week!

Wow. Sorry. Can't believe it has been four days since I posted. I've been running around like crazy. Sunday, we worked around the farm until, exhausted, I dropped into bed. The weekend caught up with me on Monday, and I did a few things around napping most of the day. Tuesday and Wednesday I worked all day and today I am hanging around the house. The freezer died on Tuesday :( So today I am cooking a turkey :) I'm working on cleaning out the cellar-way to make room for the things that go there from the porch. The porch needs to be cleaned off because the chickie-babies come tomorrow. I don't have to work tomorrow because I put my hours in on Wednesday. I have also been cleaning out half the pole barn from the winter storage to build a chicken coop. And, of course, I bought the wrong chicken wire. I need 5 foot - sigh - I bought 3 foot. Another chore :(

The girls are still doing softball. We are trying to get wood cut and split and stacked to dry for winter. Trying to get the lawn mowed. Trying to fix fences to put the horses out in the big pasture now that some grass has grown. Too many chores, too much to do in spring.

And this weekend, we are having someone come with equipment to help us move composted manure to where the garden is going to be and having that rototilled. Then I will have to hire my nephews to 'harvest' the rocks that will be sure to come to the surface. Then plant the garden.

Ok, now I'm tired enough from just thinking about it to go back to take another nap.

Oh, and we need to set up the pool. Sigh. The chores never end. And that is all on top of the normal, regular chores that need to be done every day. Feed the horses. Hay the horses. Grain the horses. Water the horses. Grain the chickens. Water the chickens. Feed the barn cat. Clean the stalls. Clean the water tanks. Feed the dogs. Water the dogs. Feed the cats. Water the cats. Feed the birds. Water the birds. Clean the cages. Pick up the girls from softball. Watch the softball games. Go to work. Go to work. Do your chores. Eat. Sleep. Clean the house....... ok, you get the picture... Sigh. No wonder I want to take a nap :)

On the other hand, the skinny gelding is doing well. He is enjoying some brushing and treats and his coat is already starting to get shiny. He's still got a long way to go, but he is doing well!

Ok, enough of a coffee break. Need to finish checking my email real quick - delete, delete, read, delete, delete, read, etc.

Hope you had a great week!

Happy Mother's Day!

Hope everyone had a wonderful day. My husband and daughters took me out to a local restaurant and we had the buffet. It was wonderful, as usual.

My biggest gift today was all the daughters were gone and just my husband and I worked around the farm. We got some strapping and chicken wire so I can make my chicken house. I got all the fences moved around and reset after winter. We got all the sumac cut down. We cleaned the area for the pool to be set up. I got the door off the run in shed.

Tomorrow, after the cordless drill is charged and since I found my big stapler, I can put the new chicken area together.

I'm going to clean the clutter off the front porch so the baby chickens can stay out there until they are feathered out so I can breathe.

I'm going riding tomorrow! One way or another.

Hope everyone had a great day :)

On a Mission!

Well, first things first. The horses are all well. My boys are totally not interested in the mare now that she is not in heat. Don't worry. She will be again, soon. Sigh.

The two horses on the previous post are doing well. Enjoying the groceries in front of them. The warm sunshine. The grass under their feet. Dry ground. All these things were in short supply where they were. Not now!!!!

I did call the local police department. Seems as I wasn't the only one who had concerns for the horses welfare. Called the local Humane Officers to report it, too. Sorry. Don't want me to call on you? FEED YOUR HORSES. Kinda simple, really.

You want to see my horses? Drive right on by. I literally live on the main road. There is no place in my fields that you can't see my horses from the road. Come on in to visit. I'll introduce you to everyone. Would I like to live out at the end of a dirt road and have the road end in my drive like my friends house that I ride at? You betcha. Hate living in a fish bowl.

So, anyways, since it's calling for rain in the morning, we are headed on a mission! Lxxx's mare seems to have shifted weight. Not really gained any, not really lost any - just her saddle doesn't fit any more. And, surprise, surprise, she seems to be a hard fit. That is what I'm finding out, also, with my wonderful thoroughbred. The saddle that fit last week doesn't quite fit this week. Sigh. Good thing I have 4 saddles.

So, we are doing a road trip! Saddle shopping. Get to sit my butt in a bunch of saddles and ooohhh and aaaaahhhh and then gasp at the prices. Good thing I buy mine on sale and when I can find them. Hopefully, we will be able to find a saddle for her mare.

So, out to the barn to tuck everyone in for the night. Don't know where the roosters are roosting. Haven't been able to find them for the last couple of nights, but they are out first thing, crowing up a storm!

I'll get more pictures and updates on the remaining 5 as I can... The two are doing well and I'll go take pictures in about a month to show you what a tube of wormer and a few bales of hay can do.... and who knows, maybe baby pictures, too!

9 year old unregistered pregnant quarter horse

This is the mare that we think is pregnant. She isn't in quite as bad of shape as the gelding. And it doesn't show up as well because she is black. She is skinny. You can feel every rib. There are angles where there should be curves.

People - this doesn't happen overnight. AND it won't be fixed overnight. If your horses look like this, they need HELP!

12 Year Old Registered Quarter Horse

These are very graphic pictures. I'm sorry for this, but this is the reality for some horses these days. These are two of the lucky ones.


He's doing well. Delivered him North on Sunday. The update today is his eyes are bright and he is enjoying his fill of hay and company in the sun and grass. He must think he died and went to heaven. This guy had such a worried look in his eyes when we first picked him up. He isn't worried anymore! I promise I will keep you updated and show some pictures of how he has recovered in the next few months....

Two down, Five to go....

Ok. I just got home. I left this morning at 8 am to drive one of the horses to a location where they could rehabilitate the possibly pregnant mare. Groan. Don't even get me started.

They have another rescue that needs tlc, so the two of the mares can be in together.

The gelding went north to a quarantine location.

I'm in the process of verifying the town the remaining 5 horses are in so we can get them the help they need and deserve.

IF you have the facilities to quarantine AND the know how and finances to bring back a neglected horse, please email me and let me know. They are located in mid-Vermont. I can't guarantee anyone anything, just want to make available to the officers names of people that may be able to help. (HINT: If you can't feed your own animals and the Vet won't give you a good reference, please don't email. Take care of YOUR OWN horses FIRST!)

There are 2 geldings, 2 mares, and a stud. We took the two worst ones. But the others aren't far behind.

I'm holding off on the photo's for 2 reasons. One - I'm too tired to drive back to work with my camera that my daughter borrowed today. Two - if they need the pictures, I want to be sure they have them first.

Ok - off to bed. Too many early mornings, too many miles in the last two days... I'll keep you updated.

Not as bad as I thought ... It's much, much worse.

Well, we have the gelding, and a mare. It's bad. I have pictures, but my computer won't read the camera. I will have to stop by work tomorrow on my way home to download them. It was so bad that instead of heading north to the final destination (no, NEVER slaughter, the home of the person that bought the horses :) we went to the vets instead. Had them evaluated. Made a couple of inquiries tonight to make sure we called the right animal control agency. I will give a formal statement this weekend.

These poor, poor horses. And there are still some there. Hopefully, when we call animal control and show them the pictures and they talk to the vet, they will go up and do something for the ones we couldn't get out.

So, I can't give out too much information as it's still in the beginning stages. But I promise I will keep everyone posted and post the pictures as soon as I get back this weekend.