Separated at Birth??

Is it possible that Kentucky Derby winner, Orb, and Hokey are twins, separated at birth?? They share several similarities, including their color.

And, a propensity for this:

Hard to tell them apart, isn't it??

(As Tim pointed out, Orb 's halter costs more than Hokey himself!)

Mending Fences

Tim's away, and so I am in charge of the herd. (With lots of help from Lisa.) After work, I stopped by to fill the water trough and see how Diablo was feeling - her feet are tender again, and Lisa reported that she was lying down this morning when she did her own barn run. (Not abnormal behavior, but when you have a horse with sore feet, it's something you watch a little more closely.)

The herd was way out in the west pasture, and since my own car (with my basket of treats in the trunk) is in the shop, I didn't have any sweets to entice them to come up. But that was okay - I didn't mind hiking out to see them. And, I especially wanted to observe Diablo and see how she was moving and if she continued to be tender. 

I walked out to the the wooden paddock and saw this:

One of the top rails on the enclosure had been knocked down.

 The boards are new - obviously Tim has repaired the fence recently.

It's not a critical fence, just one that sets the paddock aside from the pasture, but there were wood screws sticking out of both ends of the downed rail, and those could harm the horses. So, I hefted the rail and worked to see if I could repair the fence.

Not too bad! 

I shoved the screws into their holes and then tied one end with some baling twine that was on the ground. It won't take much for a horse to knock it off again, but it should hold until Tim returns later this week and gets a chance to repair it.

A Fourteen Horse Day

I just had a fourteen horse day.  What's that? A day when, for whatever reasons, you end up spending time with fourteen different horses!

And that makes for a Very. Good. Day.

Mike Shurig, Craig's best friend from high school, is in town for his father's 90th birthday party. He and his wife are staying with us, and Sue just happens to be a horsey girl. So naturally we had to head out to the barn.

That was the first six horses (Dolly is away being bred.)

 Sue offers treats to Hokey and Trouble while Mike looks on.

Leaving the guys back at the house, Sue, Lisa, and I then headed to Brookston to see Beau, Skippy, and Coco at Leslie's. They were our next three horses.

Sue fell in love.

Who wouldn't? He's only the cutest pony EVER!

Our last five were the gaited horses residing in the blue barn on Tim's farm. Their owner is out of town as is Tim, so Lisa and I are horse sitting all the horses on Tim's property. Sue and I helped Lisa water, hay, and grain the horses.

I like fourteen horse days.

Evening on the Farm

The horses were happy and relaxed tonight. It was a beautiful late afternoon, not too hot and not too cold. The horses ambled up for treats, but they really were not in too much of a hurry. (Maybe because Lisa had already spent an hour with them earlier in the day!)

From far left: Mason, Diablo, Diamond, Abby, Dolly, Hokey, and Trouble. Hokey is coming toward me hoping for one last treat.

Cutest Pony Ever

I am horse sitting Leslie's herd this weekend. And she has the cutest pony ever.

See what I mean? And I say that as someone who is not really into cuteness. But Coco is a different story. I see him and just want to hug him. (And I did while I took these pictures.)

Coco is 26 and Leslie brought him home from the Indiana Horse Rescue the same day I got Abby. Like most "old men," Coco grows hair in unusual places.

 He has a fine beard. (I want to braid it!) You can see it extends clear up his jowl.

 "Armpit" hair.

Chest hair (the long, blonde hairs in the upper left hand corner.)

 Long hair springing out from his flanks.

He's a happy boy with about 7 acres to roam and enjoy.

 I found where he had spent the night - a soft grassy bed in the middle of the pasture.

Yes sir, definitely the cutest pony ever!

Derby Day Decorations!

Today is the 139th running of Kentucky Derby - the oldest sporting event in the United States. I watch just about every year even though I don't really follow horse racing.


While I am not going to make a Kentucky Derby pie, I did "decorate" to celebrate the occasion!

Picky, Picky!!

Sorry, Hokey! I'll remember next time that you're not fond of sugar cubes.

(And give yours to Abby instead!)