They're Ba-ack!!

I went out this afternoon to feed and check the horses, wondering what I would find after yesterday's game of "pasture roulette."

Sure enough, Hokey and Diablo were back in the west pasture again! But Sultana was where she belonged, thank goodness. I think I know how the chain on the gate broke yesterday - she rammed the gate hard enough to do so. I saw her run into it today. It happened shortly after all the horses' heads snapped up and every one of them froze.

Sultana and Trouble

I suddenly heard a tremendous crackling sound in the underbrush north of the pasture and along the grain elevator property.  At that, all the horses bolted and galloped around in a frenzy, including Tanna who rushed the gate and rammed into it.

Out of the underbrush emerged one of the largest dogs I have ever seen, and it was loose.

His head was massive, and I felt uneasy and afraid myself. The dog pushed through the brush along the fencerow, making more noise and causing continued chaos among the horses. As the dog got closer, he paused, and eyed me for what seemed like an eternity. I turned and quickly hustled toward the safety of the barn.

A man at the grain elevator realized the dog was bothering the horses and called him to heel, then shouted an apology to me across the field.

While I am not happy to have a dog bothering the horses, especially one that large, at least now I have an idea of how Tanna got in with the other horses yesterday.

Now, if I could just figure out Diablo and Hokey's trick for getting into the west pasture...