An Afternoon Nap

"Jeez Gabe, it's a good thing you've got your feet well planted.  It looks like you might keel over any second.  A big lug like you would make a heck of a thud."

"Hmmm, are you in there?  That's not really your most attractive pose you know?"

"Lucky for you there aren't any flies out right now, huh?"

"And it's a good thing you don't use a pillow, you'd make a God-awful puddle if you started drooling."

"Do you suppose you'll regain consciousness anytime soon?  Your're kinda blocking traffic."

"Ah well, I guess I better move on and find something else to do before the temptation to reach up and go thwap, thwap, thwap with that thing gets to be too much for me.  Enjoy your nap."  Not that it looks like anything could disturb it...

Sweet Talker

The weather here has been of the extremely dreary and wet variety, very unusual for December in NY.  I am glad we don't have snow, but the mud is unspeakable.  Emma and Ramsey don't even want to poke their noses out of the barn, which is just as well as I have yet to come up with a suitably waterproof hoof boot for Ramsey.  I was thinking about a motorcycle-tire-tube, but I haven't figured out the proper size.  My one foray into motorcycle shopping did not work out so well.  Anybody know what size tube will fit a bandaged baby-donkey foot?  The bottom of the foot is about 2x3".  Any input would be welcome.

The mud and the drear has all of us hunkered down with not much happening.  However, I did finally manage to get a little video of Gabe talking to me.  Gabe talks a lot, but every time I point the camera at him, he stops.  Generally, he starts talking to me as soon as I step outside every morning and he keeps it up until breakfast is forthcoming, which often takes about half an hour.  Unfortunately, for the poor, big doofus, his voice can only be described as cute, bordering on adorable.  

My good friend KC got to enjoy one of his serenades a couple of months ago and was charmed.  She tried to capture it on her camera-phone, but, as usual, the big lug quit as soon as he had any attention focused on him.  I finally managed to capture a bit and I am posting this for her as she is also suffering from the drear at the moment.  Turn your volume up and try to ignore the horrific mud.

For you KC!

The Bopsy Twins

Do you all need a break from relentless cuteness of baby Ramsey?  Have you been wondering what happened to the other equines on the farm?  Honest, I haven't forgotten them and they aren't being neglected too awful badly.

In fact, because of the heat, the bugs, the heat, the humidity, the heat, the drought and of course the heat, they have been quite happy to stand in their breezy, shady shed and do nothing.  I should be doing more to further Gabe's training, but what he needs now is mileage and fine tuning.  Since my schedule mostly leaves the heat of the day open for working the horses, it just isn't gonna happen until the weather breaks.  Neither of us can stand it and the heat and fly stress leads to so much frustration on both sides that it is more likely to do harm than good.  At least, that's what I keep telling myself. 

Besides, Ramsey is growing so fast and he is going to be a baby for such a short time, I have decided to say to hell with all the other "should-be's" and spend my time with him and Emma.  I think it will pay off in the long run.  The lessons Ramsey is learning now will be with him forever and I want to get it right.  Good training and good manners are the best protection an equine can have in this world.

In the meantime the Bopsy Twins are doing what they do best...

They've also heard about last weeks Olympic games and have decided to get in on the action.  They're going to compete in the Synchronized Spots classes.  What do you think, will anyone be able to beat this team?...

Maybe I should have named him Oliver...

"Please, Mom, I want some more."

Baby Q&A

First, Happy Independence Day!  A little late maybe, but I've been a bit distracted:)

The grazing muzzle is working out quite well so far.  Emma, being the brilliant donkey that she is, figured out how to eat out if it in no time at all so I am feeling more comfortable about leaving them alone for a while.  Maybe tonight I will get to sleep, that would be a novelty:).   I went out last night while it wasn't so brutally hot and completely stripped and disinfected her stall and the rest of the barn, trying to get rid of any lingering odors from the birth.  There was nothing that I could smell, but I am sure she could and I think it may have contributed to her obsessive need to clean the baby.  In the wild, mares and jennets will get their babies up and away from the birthing site as soon as possible because the birthing fluids draw predators.  I think the scrubbing has helped, she seems less anxious about it today.  I guess I should have done that immediately, but I was trying to keep things as quiet as possible for them.  There just never seems to be a clear path to doing the right thing.  I am going to continue with the muzzle for a couple more days and then, hopefully, we will be able to put it away.

A couple of people have asked me what the horses think of all of this.  They have been intensely curious...

but well behaved.  I have been very careful to keep them separate for now.  I was worried that Gabe might think that the baby is an intruder and try to squash him, and he might have at first.  Now he accepts him as just another donkey, which is both good and bad.  He is mostly indifferent to Emma except for when he wants to play chase-the-donkey.  Since little junior here only weighs about 20 pounds as opposed to Gabe's 1200, I think it is best if they just visit from afar for now.

As for Tessa, she is VERY curious about the baby and I know she wouldn't hurt him.  She would, in fact, be very careful with him.  She just might try to steal him though.  Tessa has demonstrated that she has very strong maternal instincts of her own (she mothers Emma) and she would really like to have this baby.  So I think that she too needs to admire from afar....

Another frequent question has been about baby's rather unusual color and lack of any light points.  I can point directly to where that came from.  This is Emma's father and the father of her baby (if you missed the story about how this happened click here)...

I wasn't at all surprised when this baby turned up looking just like dad/granddad.  I'd have been more surprised if he was light colored.  I don't think the baby's color will change all that much, but I don't know enough about donkey coloring to say for sure.  Based on what dad looks like, I doubt it.

And some thoughts about a name...I have had a lot of great suggestions, but at the moment, I can scarcely remember them.  I need a few minutes to read through all the the wonderful comments and suggestions all of you have offered and which I greatly appreciate.  I was so upset yesterday about baby's poor, bitten tail that I hardly thought about anything else.  I also needed to get to know him a little more.  What I know now is that he has a huge personality.  He is absolutely fearless and independent (frighteningly so).  He is very energetic, a playful little devil and also extraordinarily sweet and affectionate.  He has proven beyond any doubt that donkeys are born wanting a good butt scratch and when I hit just the right spot and that tiny lip starts quivering...well, you just might swoon from the shear adorableness...

He even knows how to point out the right spot already...

And then, it's time for another power nap...

The Great White Snout

Having a Big Pink Snout can be a distinct disadvantage in summer.  Despite having free access to shelter from the sun, it's still rather prone to sunburn.  As a redhead with ridiculously sensitive skin, I can relate.  So, every morning now I smear sunscreen all over Gabe's Big Pink Snout and it becomes instead The Great White Snout....

Always lurking around the corner, watching and waiting for the perfect opportunity to sneak up behind you and wipe all that nasty gunk off on whatever part of you it can reach.   Beware The Great White Snout...

Updates, due dates and baby pools

Look who's back...

Friday afternoon I rode Gabe home from his temporary exile.  I had thought that Emma would have had her baby by now and she wouldn't have to worry about him, but y'all know how that has worked out.  Tessa at least was glad to see him...

I tried to keep them separated for a while to make things easier for Emma, but Gabe used his teeth to pull the fence post out of the ground and let himself in.  I finally banished both him and Tessa to the shed (now dubbed the painted-shark-aquarium) so Emma can stay in the barn where she is most comfortable and I can most easily keep an eye on her.  I also ran a loop of fence wire over the the top of the post.  I think he will likely decide that that particular trick isn't as much fun as he thought.   I know it is terribly mean, but I can't help but hope that he get a nice good zap on that big pink snout. 

Ever since Memorial day when I thought Emma was going into labor and then she quit, the baby has been very quiet.  After two weeks of no movement, I finally saw the baby kicking yesterday morning and again this afternoon.  I was very relieved to see it, I've been rather worried about Baby.  Of course, I have, once again, been trying to figure out when this baby is due.  I have gone back to the few hard facts that I have:  On Dec. 3 I had a blood test for estrogen sulfate drawn on Emma to tell me whether or not she was pregnant.  The mare or jenny tested has to be AT LEAST 4 months pregnant for this test to work.  What this means is that, unless I have messed up the math completley, Emma has to be at least 11 1/2 months pregnant. 

Emma's blood test came back off-the-charts high.  When I spoke with the neonatal vet at Cornell about this test and the vet who drew the blood, they both told me that the high level probably indicated that Emma was at least 5-6 months pregnant when we drew the blood and very possibly farther along than that.  That would make her at least 12-13 months pregnant right now.  Donkey gestation is 11-14 months. 

What all of this means is that....I have absolutely no idea when the baby is due.  Which brings us (in a rather long winded way) to the baby guessing pool.  Emma has fooled everyone. The latest date submitted was June 11th, a date that, when I first read it, I scoffed at just a bit (sorry).  I thought "no way can Emma make it all the way till June 11."  Foolish, foolish me.

So, this leaves a bit of a quandary.  Do I start over from scratch and let all of you submit a new guess or do I take all the names on my first list and let Emma draw one out of a hat?  I am putting it up for a vote.  What would you, dear readers, like me to do? 

Note:  if no consensus is reached I reserve the right to arbitrarily flip a coin and decide.  Democracy can only go so far on a farm after all.

A Day in May

It's been busy here the last couple of days, it always is in Spring. I've had a number of appointments to deal with and yesterday morning, Tessa was acting colicky.  I went out to the barn and found her lying down and she didn't want to get up.  It isn't unusual for her to be napping except that it was breakfast time.  Napping and breakfast do not coexist unless something is wrong.  I got her up and got her moving.  We walked up and down the driveway for half an hour with no results and Emma was getting upset so I decided to take Tessa out to the round pen instead.  Emma is more used to that so it doesn't bother her.  Tessa on the other hand, doesn't like leaving Emma, so it makes her a bit antsy, which I thought would be all the better.  An ansty horse always  has to go to the bathroom.  It worked, within 5  minutes I had the results I'd been hoping for and Tessa was feeling just fine:)  Since we were there and Tessa obviously needed to get some more exercise, I worked her in the pen for a few more minutes, got another pile and decided all would be well.

When we got back to the barn, I found that Emma had managed to get the feed room door open (because I was distracted and didn't lock it down completley) and had eaten Tessa's untouched breakfast.  Not exactly a huge crime since Tessa only gets two tablespoons of grain each day.  However, she also gets a full-sized-horse dose of selenium and vitamins.  I was worried that it would be too much selenium for Emma and spent the rest of the day watching both of them like a hawk.  Fortunatly, they are both fine today.  I do think I will skip Emma's selenium ration for the rest of the week though.

Riding Buddy and I went out for a ride this afternoon.  We had a nice ride, but Gabe is going through a testing phase.  He and Riding Buddy's mare have developed an intense love affair and he doeasn't want to leave her behind.  Once he does leave, he wants to get right back to her.  He wanted to do his own thing and ignore my cues so we spent most of the ride working through that.  We made progress, but I can see we need to spend more time at it.  It is all pretty typical of a young horse exploring and testing the boundries and the timing is classic.  He has settled into what he thinks is his new home and he is testing out the herd dynamics.  We'll work through it.  I just have to find enough time....

When things get hectic like this there is at least, the one quiet hour I always set aside to go walking with Tanner.  The woods are beautiful this time of year, so alive and vibrant.   A few days ago, we had one of my favorite kind of days.  It rained hard in the morning and was threatening more rain later.  I know it may sound dismal, but it's not.  The woods are so alive on a spring day like that.  The new leaves are such an irridesent shade of green that it seems like the light comes from them rather than the sky.   I have tried to capture that qualtiy of light in a photo, but it never works.  I am not sure it is possible.  Maybe a real photographer with a better camera could do it, but I have never seen a photo that quite gets it so I am not sure.   What I do know, is that it is a special kind of light that is rare and elusive.  Something that, in my mind I always think of as life-light.  And I know, that sounds kind of kooky, but it is how I think of it.  It is a thing that you can go out and be a part of, revel in, but you can't capture it.  I've tried, but it's not quite there...

An Excursion

Gabe and I went on a group ride this afternoon to one of the local watering holes.  Gabe did very well, it's nice that he will hop on and off any trailer I point him at and happily go travel to new places. 

He did prove himself to be the class clown.  While all six of the other horses with us stood quietly at the hitching rail, Gabe just couldn't contain himself.  If he wasn't begging to be allowed at the table...

or talking to the girls...

then he was trying to chew on his buddy's saddle or on his buddy or his lead rope or.....  He wasn't nervous or worried, he just wanted to be in everyone's lap...

and he really, really wanted to go in and play a game of pool. 

A Nice View

I had a wonderful trail ride on Gabe this afternoon.  We've managed to get out on the trails a few times since he came home from the trainer's (sort of, he is staying at a friend's place until the baby donkey FINALLY gets here).  He's been very good, but testing and questioning me a bit.  Today, it finally started to feel like we are speaking the same language and working as a team.

It always takes some time to adjust to a new horse and it takes more time for a young horse to get to used to a new rider.  I am sure that everything that I do is a bit different from how the trainer did things and the first few rides after Gabe came home were mostly about the two of us learning to communicate with each other.  Things started to click this afternoon and we both really had a nice ride.  Gabe enjoys going out, seeing new places and moving through the woods.  To me, this is very important.  I don't like riding horses who hate their jobs and aren't having any fun.  It takes the joy out of riding and without that, I may as well stay home.  Gabe is a smart, energetic and curious young horse who wants to get out and explore as much as I do.  We're going to have a lot of fun together. 

Foal Watch

Two days ago, Emma's udder quadrupled in size.  The next day it doubled again.  Today, bigger still.  There is no milk...yet, but it's getting there.  We were having a stretch of very nice weather.  However, tonight, it is in the 30's with lots of very cold rain coming down.  Mind you, I am not whining about the rain, we REALLY need it.

Gabe was due to come home today.  Actually, he was due to come home two weeks ago, but I talked the trainer into keeping him another two weeks in the hopes that Emma would have her baby while he was gone and the weather was nice.  No such luck of course.

I can't do anything about the weather, but I did take Gabe down to my riding buddy's house rather than bring him home.  Thank God for good friends who will take in an 1100 pound, walking appetite on short notice in order to keep things peaceful and safe for a pregnant donkey.  Thanks Riding Buddy.

We're as ready as we're going to get and the weather is lousy.  Perfect time for a baby to show up.  I did look into my crystal ball in the hopes discovering what the future holds, the response was just two words:  sleep deprivation. 

Stay tuned, I'll try to update as soon as anything changes.

Back in the saddle

I had a great ride with Gabe this afternoon.  We went out on the trails for about two hours and Gabe did fantastic.  He's even starting to pick up a nice neck rein.  We rode through an area with a couple of really spectacular old hemlocks.  One of the trees had a hollow trunk and had an active honeybee hive in it.  The trainer knew I would be interested in seeing it since I keep bees.  He said that there have been bees in that tree for the last twenty years.  Honeybees are in such terrible trouble, it was an unexpected gift to find an active bee tree. We marveled that those couple of trees had never been logged and neither of us could figure out why they had been left.  It's a miracle that they are still standing.  Maybe those bees have managed to protect their home all these years, it's a very old hive.

The weather has suddenly remembered that it is March and it was horribly cold yesterday and last night. Today though, was in the 30's and sunny and ended up being a great day for riding in the woods. The trainer told me that if I ever want to part with Gabe, I should call him first. It's a good sign when the horse trainer wants to keep your horse:)

Gabe

I'm headed over to the trainers to ride Gabe this afternoon.  It will be interesting to see how he feels after a few weeks of steady riding.

Hi-Ho Hi-Ho, It's Off to Work He Goes

I mentioned a while ago that I was planning on sending Gabe off for training on April 1. Well, I got a call this morning from a friend who also has a horse going to the same trainer. She wanted to know if I would trade training slots with her.  She was supposed to take her horse over today, but she had a crises to deal with.  She could still truck Gabe over for me though if I would swap with her. I didn't have to think about it too much....put Gabe to work two weeks ahead of schedule? Sounds like a good idea to me. That boy needs a job. Good thing he had a nice, long nap in the sun this morning, he is going to need it.

The girls weren't too upset to see him off, but were a little bewildered.... 

"Geeze Em, we were just finally getting him properly trained and housebroken.  Where do you think he disappeared to?"

"I don't know Tess, you did say something about bootcamp a while back.  I didn't know he'd get sucked up and disappered by a big, blue alien though.  How do these things happen?"