Poco Goes Home…

…and Molly returns.  Molly did great at her new home for the first seven weeks.  She got along with the other horses and Lee had the help of a trainer to work out the few quirks that she had.  Then all of sudden, things went very south.  Molly started beating up on the other horses, tried kicking Lee a time or two, and was constantly irritated and on edge.  Since Lee boards her on the farm where he lives and the horses she was trying to kill are owned by the owner of the property, Molly has been evicted.   When she got back here to the farm yesterday, she and Sassy hooked up right away and ran around the pastures terrorizing everyone else until Satin put her in her place.  Now things are back to normal and Molly is leader of most of the herd, once again.

Poco was adopted by the same people that have Chester, Tootsie, and Peppermint.  The poor girl has gone without love and affection for years, but now she’s going to be doted on and spoiled rotten!  After introducing herself to the other horses, the only thing she wanted to do was stand at the fence and be loved.  She and Chester hit it off right away, but Poco didn’t know what to think of little Tootsie and kept her at a distance.  Peppermint just wanted to kick Poco, but I think Poco thought it was a bit of a joke that this little tiny dog-sized creature was actually trying to kick her. 

 

Chester and Peppermint are good buddies, but only when Peppermint is in the mood.  Which isn’t very often.

 

Then there’s the rug rat, Tootsie.  Who is just as spoiled and ornery as ever! 

 

I made the mistake of sitting on the ground to get a better angle for pictures of her, forgetting that she likes to roll on your legs.  I was barely on the ground when she came over and climbed into my lap, then rolled her body down my legs.  Then she got up and came back to my lap to do it again. 

 

Please excuse my filthy feet.  I had to chase loose ponies over half the county this morning and didn’t have time to clean up before taking Poco.  You should have been here, I’m sure it would have been amusing.

Whenever something scares her, it’s not her mother she goes running to… it’s her Uncle Chester, who loves and protects her like she was his own.

  

Speaking of Chester, his adopters had to have their satellite dish moved today.  It used to sit on a pole out in their pasture, but one night when they were watching a movie they kept losing signal and couldn’t figure out why.  The next day they saw Chester scratching his butt on the satellite!  So now the dish is safe on the roof of the house and Chester will just have to find another way to scratch those hard to reach places.

 

I got to visit with another of the Fairmont horses yesterday at his new home.  Apollo is looking great and his adopter is madly in love with him.  He’s proven himself to be an incredible all-around horse and loves to trail ride.

So many happy endings in one post.  I wish they were all like this!

Stampede!!!

Well… a mini stampede anyway.

Every morning when I head over to the quarantine to feed everyone is usually already in the barn hiding from the bugs.  At dinner time everyone is usually out in the pasture enjoying the cooler weather and shade.  All I have to do is get their attention, then stand back out of the way!

 

 

 

 

 

The hearing is still set for Thursday, last I heard.  Please keep your fingers crossed and break out the rabbit’s foot!

 

 

Because if I have to give these guys back to the asshat that starved them…

 

… well, let’s just say I won’t be happy.

More Comparisons

With the Fairmont hearing coming up soon, I wanted to show you some more comparisons of what the horses looked like when they were seized and what they look like now.  You’ve seen the big horses, so I thought we’d concentrate on the ponies and minis today.  The first picture in each pair was taken on 4/13, the second picture of the pair was taken 5/25.

 

Note the backbone and skinny butt on Peppermint. 

 

She’s fatter now than she was right before having Tootsie.  No wonder I didn’t see it coming!

 

Blondie was one of the healthier minis.  She wasn’t that thin and her coat wasn’t nearly as bad as some of the others.

 

But she still looks a heck of a lot better now.  What a pretty girl!

 

We all know what poor Shortcake looked like six weeks ago.  Shaggy, so thin her back and hip bones jutted out, and an overall poor appearance.

 

 

Her coat is now a gorgeous strawberry color and she’s got a nice layer of fat and muscle on her top line.  She’s also fatter after popping out baby Huey than she was when she was seized. 

 

Poor Frankie.  She was so misunderstood.  We thought she might be a Cremello because she appeared to be white with slightly darker points and blue eyes.

 

So much for Cremello.  Where’d those spots come from?  At least we got the blue eyes right!

 

 

Michelle is coming out later today to help me bathe some of the little misfits that won’t shed out.  I’ll get pictures of the others after we’re done.  Should be fun!

More Updates on the Fairmont Horses

Anne’s daughter, Emily, came over and took some pictures of everyone on Saturday and you know how I like to share. 

Don Juan is very much bald at this point but his hair is beginning to grow back and he feels as soft as velvet right now.   He’s upset about being apart from his women, but he’ll just have to get over it. 

 

Once I started grooming Chester the hair came out in great greasy gobs.  The poor guy was such a mess from the lice that he scratched himself bloody in places.  His hair is just now starting to grow back and he’d stand still for hours if someone would just rub and scratch him.

 

Sierra has done a complete 180 degree turn since yesterday.  It’s like someone just flipped a switch on her and now she seeks out attention and loves to just stand there and be petted.  She’s gained a lot of weight since being separated from Don Juan and is looking great.  I had thought she was a younger horse but I got a look at her teeth tonight and she looks to be around 15. 

 

Matilda is also learning to trust and spent a good 15 minutes being petted and adored by teeny boppers tonight.  At first her eyes were wide and she was as tense as a board, but after the first twenty or so cookies she began to relax, lower her head, and willingly get closer to people for more cookies. 

 

Peppermint and Tootsie… because how could I not include those two?  Peppermint is slowly gaining weight on Equine Senior feed and is now producing more milk for the munchkin.  Tootsie is growing up fast and has become quite the character!  She’s so small that she loses mom easily when coming or going out of the barn.  She just sees a set of legs and follows them… even if they belong to humans or the big horses!  She loves people and will often stray from mom to play with the humans. 

 

Shortcake has still not foaled and she’s not producing milk at all.  However, Blondie’s bag was HUGE today so she may foal before Shortcake.

And this… this is how you tell your Ivermectin is working as it should.  See all those little red things in there?  Those would be worms. 

  

For days after worming everyone with the first dose of Ivermectin, the “land mines” were FULL of bot larvae and threadworms.   I wormed a second time yesterday and I've only seen a few worms so far.  I’ll worm again in a month with Safeguard, as Doc suggested.

Tootsie Roll

I have so much to show you.  Like the starving donkey that arrived back on the 11th and Willow’s foal that was born on the 13th.  But I’m tired.   A nice hot shower even sounds like too much effort right now. 

 

But since I know you’re wondering, I’ll tell you what Doc said about Tootsie tonight.  He thins the legs will straighten with trimming and exercise, but she has a little conjunctivitis in the left eye, which could mean cataracts down the road.  Since both Rusty and Dagwood have a small cataract, we can make a fairly safe assumption that one of those boys is the father.

 

 

Otherwise, she and Peppermint got a clean bill of health today.  He also examined Blondie and Shortcake.  Blondie should foal within the next three weeks and Shortcake will probably foal by the weekend.  That poor girl looks so uncomfortable!!

 

 

Peppermint and Tootsie had a grand time being hand-grazed in the tall grass today.   They both laid down for a long nap when they got back to their stall.  Little Tootsie is way too cute for words!

Baby #1

I don’t have much time, but I had to share right away!  Peppermint, who I had no idea was so close to popping, had her baby this morning!  I thought for sure Shortcake would be the first to pop out a foal – just goes to show what I know.

 

 

 

Mom and baby girl both seem to be doing ok, but baby’s feet are way too long and need some help ASAP so she grows straight.  Doc is coming out tomorrow afternoon to check both girls over and I’m headed to town to get some straw so I can bed down a stall so mom and baby can be alone for a bit.  The rest of the herd has been very gentle with her and everyone has been very curious about the little tyke.

I need name suggestions!  I was thinking Tootsie Roll, but haven’t really decided if I like that or not.  She’s black now, but will probably grey out as she gets older.

Introductions – Everyone else

I think this is everyone else, but don’t quote me on that. 

Casper isn’t a mini, but he is a very small pony.  Maybe Welsh?  He’s very skittish and doesn’t think humans are necessary, but he’s coming around slowly.

 

Jubilee is also a small pony, and is very pregnant.  She’s a sweetie who discovered quickly that humans = treats and being petted doesn’t hurt.

 

Peppermint is a cute little mare, a little on the large side to be a mini so may be a small pony.  I’m no expert, so you tell me.  She’s also becoming friendly very quickly and loves to have her head rubbed.

 

 

Daphne is very shy and tends to stay by herself.  She doesn’t really have any buddies that she hangs with and is always the last one in to eat.  I haven’t seen anyone picking on her, I just think she prefers solitude.  She did take a liking to a little boy that came to visit today and walked right up to him and allowed him to pet her.  She just doesn’t have a use for the big humans.  I can’t really blame her.

 

Frankie is a cute little blue-eyed girl that was one of the first to become friendly towards us. 

 

Dagwood is one of the five mini studs in dire need of castration.  He’s become enamored with people and treats, but chases poor Casper around constantly.

 

Blondie is Dagwood’s girl and is probably carrying his baby.  She looks like she’s about to pop any time and her udder is starting to bag up.

 

Opie never leaves Blondie’s side and seems to be very young, so I’m assuming he’s her last offspring from a year or two ago.  He’s very shy, but figured out what treats were tonight and let me rub his head just a bit.

 

Possum is stealing everyone’s heart!  He’s the smallest mini in the herd and also one of the friendliest. 

 

Peanut is a mare that actually doesn’t seem to be pregnant, or at least not very far along.  She’s shy and hasn’t come close enough to discover treats yet, but it shouldn’t take too much longer.

 

River is Chip’s main girl and the two of them are rarely apart.  And of course she’s pregnant.

 

Sorry for the picture overload tonight, but I just can’t wait to tell you about the two new arrivals to the farm that happened earlier this week.  More on that tomorrow! :)