Summer Heat

Temperatures have been sizzling hot here - in the 90s with such a high humidity that it makes you feel like you have walked into a sauna when you step outdoors. (If you've ever been to BreyerFest, then you know the kind of heat and humidity I am describing.)

The horses feel that heat, too. So, when I did a barn check yesterday afternoon, they weren't sure that a couple of peppermints made leaving the coolness of the old barn worthwhile.

After considering it for a minute, Abby started ambling over to see me, Sultanna tagging along behind her.

Sultanna's color is simply stunning. I am going to see if I can get better photos of her today.

Trouble came out of the barn to nibble on some pasture, but Hokey stayed indoors where it was cool.

While checking the mares, I discovered a minor cut on Sultanna's chest. Tim is out of town so I texted him photos of it, but like me, he wasn't too worried. I'll keep an eye on it and make sure the wound is healing and doesn't become infected while he is gone.

Since temps are expected to be in the 90s all week long, I plan to do barn checks earlier in the day before the heat has a chance to ratchet up. Wish me luck with that -  I just took Pepper out to do her business and at 5:15 AM it is already warm and sticky outside.

This heat and humidity makes me consider doing the barn checks at 2:00 AM !

A Barn Run for an Injury

I got a panicked call from my sister, Leslie, this afternoon. She is in Michigan at a conference, and the teenager who is checking her horses while she's gone had sent her pictures of an injury Skippy had incurred.

 It was on the underside of his jaw.

Leslie called me and asked if I could go out and check on him, and treat the wound or call the vet if need be. I was happy to go, but I was leery of treating a blind, injured horse alone so I called my daughter, Lisa, and invited her to come along.

Out of all our kids, she is my horsey girl, and so she hopped into her car and joined me.

Naturally, Skippy and Cocoa were in the far end of the pasture, and neither would come when we called. So we had to hike out to them.

As we approached, Skippy decided to be social and came over to say hello. Blind since birth, Leslie has had him most of his life, and so he knows the pasture and barn very well. (Skippy is in his mid twenties.)

 Lisa offered him a carrot and that was all it took - he was now our best friend! He really is a sweet boy.  I checked under his jaw and was pleased to see that it was just a scrape and, aside from cleaning it and putting antibiotic ointment on it, nothing else needed to be done.

 We gave Skippy a final carrot and pat, took his halter off, and began the hike back up to the barn.

 Our new best friend decided to follow us up (probably hoping for more carrots.)

 It was amazing to watch Skippy negotiate the pasture. He actually turned and went a different way than we did - unerringly finding the gravel path to the barn.

After a couple of pats and another carrot, we said goodbye to Skippy. I will go back tomorrow and treat the scrape again, but I phoned my sister and told her that all was well with her boy.