It is amazing how God works and the inspirations that come from His faithfulness.
Already, there are three partners in our racehorse that are graduates of The Seeing Eye, myself, included. On Sunday, I received an unexpected call from yet another Seeing Eye graduate who wishes to join the partnership.
She has informed me that any of her earnings, past what will go directly back into the partnership, will be donated to The Seeing Eye, in her name. This has inspired me to do the same with part of my majority interest in him.
I currently own 42% of Marq Your Bible aka "Marcus" and I now wish to also donate at least 2% of my earnings, past what goes back directly to the partnership, to The Seeing Eye. I have been inspired by this new member and also by the faithfulness God has shown me and I am feeling led to do this.
So, now, Marcus will not only be owned by 4 graduates of The Seeing Eye and 2 other women, who are not blind, but he will be racing for the wonderful organization that we all love, that has provided 4 of us with amazing dog guides, The Seeing Eye Inc of Morristown, NJ.
Marcus will be taking a short break to do some more growing. He has nothing wrong, but has been growing so much lately, that we just feel it is in his best interest to let him grow. He will start his vacation next week and be brought back into training Jan. 1st, with a hopeful first race to be around the middle of March.
Become a fan of this wonderful horse that is now going to be racing for such an extraordinarily great cause
You can find his fan page on Facebook and also the farm fan page, Perfect Peace Farm, where you will receive updated news on what he is up to and see pictures of this totally gorgeous boy.
Marcus' fan page:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Marq-Your-Bible/193529944025899?ref=ts
Perfect Peace Farm fan page:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Perfect-Peace-Farm-LLC/173890696024170
Go Marcus, Go!
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A little background on me and my connection to The Seeing Eye.
I am currently working with my 4th Seeing Eye Dog, Dextra, a 2 year old female yellow Labrador Retriever, who I received in April 2011.
I received my first Seeing Eye Dog, Ginger, a female German Shepherd, in July 1994. I have been blessed by this organization and the 4 great dogs I have been given. I received my 2nd guide, Zach, in May 1995, a male black Labrador Retriever, and my 3rd, Nalley, a male Golden Retriever, in April 2002. Nalley is still with me, at the age of 11, enjoying retirement.
These dogs have guided me at college, through graduation, on various horse farms and other jobs, down the aisle at a friend's wedding, been my ring bearer at my own wedding, guided me on the train trip we took for our Honeymoon to Saratoga Springs for the horse races, at several other race tracks, including to Churchill Downs for the Breeder's Cup in 2006, been with me when I sing solos at church, when I'm in choir, and countless other things, where they help me maintain independence. I am forever grateful to The Seeing Eye for their dedication to breeding top quality dogs, training the best guides for those seeking a dog guide, and the support they give students while in class and graduates after we return home with our dogs. It is a wonderful organization that I am pleased to be a part of and hope and pray that I can give back to, in part, with some of the earnings of this racehorse. I will be combining my love of dogs and horses all in one, it doesn't get much better than that!
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Thursday, October 20, 2011
A Full Circle
When I was 7 years old I went to Camp Holiday Trails, for the first time. It was a camp for disabled and sick children. The issues ranged from other kids being blind, like myself, to children with Cystic Fibrosis, Diabetes, various forms of cancer, etc.
I had recently seen a show on TV called "Adventures of Black Beauty", loosely based on the novel, "Black Beauty". I had fallen in love with horses from the first time I saw him running across a green field on the television screen, at my Grandparents house. To this very day, I can still picture it in my mind.
When I arrived at camp, I was delighted to discover that they offered horseback riding to the campers. i couldn't wait for my very first ride on a horse, which didn't come for a few days. When it finally was my turn to go down to the stables, I walked down the row of stalls and petted each horse and stopped when I arrived at the stall of a beautiful black horse with a small white star. I couldn't believe it, I was looking at horse that was the spitting image of "Black Beauty".
A few minutes later the riding instructor gave out horse assignments and I was overwhelmed to find out that I was about to ride Smokey, the black Quarter Horse gelding, that I was staring at. he was only a 2 year old, but was quiet enough to be used by this program.
His owner tacked him up, as he was privately owned, and not owned by the camp, like the rest of the horses. She told me a little about him and before I knew it I was following them to the small riding ring and after I got a helmet, I was put onto his back.
The riding ring had a blue stone type footing around the outside, making a nice sized oval, and to the inside of that was a grassy area with one tree, to provide shade to those kids who were waiting their turn to ride.
I rode Smokey for at least 10 minutes, when he suddenly stopped and stretched out his hind legs. The riding instructor called for me to be taken off of him, as they didn't want me on him, if he needed to use the bathroom, since it was my first time on a horse and he was still young.
Just to be safe, he was taken back to the barn and untacked and that was the end of my first ride.
The next week, I went back down to the riding stable and this time I was assigned Sir Edwards, a little grey Welsh Pony, who was the spitting image of Merrylegs, from the "Black Beauty" novel.
It was really hot, so all the horses and ponies were tacked up and we were all put on one and with each of us having at least one leader, holding the horse or pony, we went for a trail ride down the country road, that led up the mountain to the camp, where the cabins were, so there was hardly any traffic, in fact, I think only one truck went by the whole time we rode.
I loved that little pony, he was so awesome! He was at least 28 years old, I think, at that time.
I returned to Camp Holiday trails for the next two years and each year I got to ride Sir Edwards, but Smokey had left the program. I rode several others, along with Sir Edwards, but I always got at least one ride on him.
After I was 9, I stopped going to camp, not sure why that happened, but I missed it.
When I was 18, I was offered the opportunity to return to Camp Holiday Trails for the week long camp for blind children, as a teen worker. I arrived on Saturday afternoon, with the other camp counsellors and teen workers, which there were about 10 to 12 of us. The teen workers were to stay in the infirmary complex on cots.
As we drove onto the country road that led to the camp, I was delighted to see horses still in the pasture and hoped they still offered riding. I knew I would not be riding, as I was a worker, but I was hoping to get to help with the horses, at least a little bit.
I was given permission to go down to the stables on Monday morning, with the campers and see if they could use my help. I was again, delighted to see the riding instructor, who had been there when I was a child, was still there and she actually remember me.
Because of my horse experience, she gratefully accepted my help and I was assigned a little Shetland Pony named Princess, to groom, tack up, and help children with, when they rode her.
She was a cute little pony, a bay and white pinto, about 12 hands, at most, and reportedly 33 years old.
I asked about Sir Edwards, and was told that he lived to be 36 years old and had died only a few years before.
After I tacked up Princess, I led her to the very same riding ring and waited in line for the instructor to get the kids mounted, one at a time. There were a lot of children, so two kids would take turns on each horse or pony.
The first kid I was given to help with Princess, was not only blind, but only had one arm. I think he could see a little bit. He was so excited to ride Princess and truly enjoyed his time on her.
After his time was up, he was helped off and I went to get the next child. As I approached, with Princess, I could hear that the little boy was upset and afraid. They were trying to get him on another pony, but he totally refused, so I was called over, as Princess was the smallest in the group and they thought he might be less afraif of her.
I stopped Princess in the shade of the tree and listened for a few minutes, as they continued to try to coax this little boy, who was totally blind, to even come close enough to touch Princess, but he refused. I asked someone else to hold Princess for me and I walked over to him. I introduced myself and then told him that I was blind, too, only with some vision, but not very much. I told him that I loved horses and that Princess was very gentle and would not hurt him.
I am not sure what it was, exactly, that I told him, that made him trust me, but before i knew it, I had his hand and we were walking towards Princess. I introduced him to her, at her head, then we trailed her neck, back, and to her tail, so he could get an idea of how big she was and what she felt like.
After a few minutes of getting to feel Princess, he decided it was okay to get on her, but insisted that I be there with him. I told him that I would lead Princess for him and all he had to do was enjoy the ride.
As we headed out to the rail, after his stirruprs were adjusted, I glanced over my shoulder and noticed he was hunched over and his head was down. I knew it was from nerves. I started to talk to him some more about Princess and he talked back with me, but he stayed hunched. Then I had an idea. I moved to a place where I could stop Princess, safely, and not be in the way of others. I held onto the reins and then stood next to him. I told him, "I want you to not focus on being nervous, but start to feel her moving under you. See if you can tell when she is moving each of her legs." I explained to him that at a walk, a horse moves each foot at a different time, to make a 4 beat rythm. He agreed to try and so I started to walk Princess, again. I kept talking to him and asking him to feel for her legs to move and then I realized his voice sounded different. I again, glanced over my shoulder and was amazed to see him sitting straight up in the saddle, his face turned upwards, and even with my limited eyesight, I could see the biggest smile on that little boys face.
It felt so wonderful to help him. A joy filled me. As we continued to walk around the ring his confidence built. There was a pole on the ground and I asked him if he would like me to lead Princess over it, to see if he could tell when she was going over it. He agreed to this and knew exactly when her leg moved differently to raise up higher, to step over the pole. he was so excited, I could tell it in his voice, that he was truly enjoying his first experience on a pony.
I was amazed at how things had come full circle. I had been given my first horse experience at this camp, in that very ring, and now here I was helping a little blind boy have his and overcome his fears, to experience something totally new and different.
The limitations put on blind children, by some, cause them to be nervous about trying new things, but some of us are lucky and are not told, "You can't do that." or "You shouldn't do that." with the only reason being our blindness. Yes, I've heard these things, but not from those who matter and had influence on me and my development as a strong person. Some call me brave, courageous, and other descriptive words, because of what I have done in my life, despite my disability, but I just see it as I am doing what comes naturally to me. God gave me a gift with horses and I am using it and God allowed me to help a blind child and to experience the joy that came with it.
I had recently seen a show on TV called "Adventures of Black Beauty", loosely based on the novel, "Black Beauty". I had fallen in love with horses from the first time I saw him running across a green field on the television screen, at my Grandparents house. To this very day, I can still picture it in my mind.
When I arrived at camp, I was delighted to discover that they offered horseback riding to the campers. i couldn't wait for my very first ride on a horse, which didn't come for a few days. When it finally was my turn to go down to the stables, I walked down the row of stalls and petted each horse and stopped when I arrived at the stall of a beautiful black horse with a small white star. I couldn't believe it, I was looking at horse that was the spitting image of "Black Beauty".
A few minutes later the riding instructor gave out horse assignments and I was overwhelmed to find out that I was about to ride Smokey, the black Quarter Horse gelding, that I was staring at. he was only a 2 year old, but was quiet enough to be used by this program.
His owner tacked him up, as he was privately owned, and not owned by the camp, like the rest of the horses. She told me a little about him and before I knew it I was following them to the small riding ring and after I got a helmet, I was put onto his back.
The riding ring had a blue stone type footing around the outside, making a nice sized oval, and to the inside of that was a grassy area with one tree, to provide shade to those kids who were waiting their turn to ride.
I rode Smokey for at least 10 minutes, when he suddenly stopped and stretched out his hind legs. The riding instructor called for me to be taken off of him, as they didn't want me on him, if he needed to use the bathroom, since it was my first time on a horse and he was still young.
Just to be safe, he was taken back to the barn and untacked and that was the end of my first ride.
The next week, I went back down to the riding stable and this time I was assigned Sir Edwards, a little grey Welsh Pony, who was the spitting image of Merrylegs, from the "Black Beauty" novel.
It was really hot, so all the horses and ponies were tacked up and we were all put on one and with each of us having at least one leader, holding the horse or pony, we went for a trail ride down the country road, that led up the mountain to the camp, where the cabins were, so there was hardly any traffic, in fact, I think only one truck went by the whole time we rode.
I loved that little pony, he was so awesome! He was at least 28 years old, I think, at that time.
I returned to Camp Holiday trails for the next two years and each year I got to ride Sir Edwards, but Smokey had left the program. I rode several others, along with Sir Edwards, but I always got at least one ride on him.
After I was 9, I stopped going to camp, not sure why that happened, but I missed it.
When I was 18, I was offered the opportunity to return to Camp Holiday Trails for the week long camp for blind children, as a teen worker. I arrived on Saturday afternoon, with the other camp counsellors and teen workers, which there were about 10 to 12 of us. The teen workers were to stay in the infirmary complex on cots.
As we drove onto the country road that led to the camp, I was delighted to see horses still in the pasture and hoped they still offered riding. I knew I would not be riding, as I was a worker, but I was hoping to get to help with the horses, at least a little bit.
I was given permission to go down to the stables on Monday morning, with the campers and see if they could use my help. I was again, delighted to see the riding instructor, who had been there when I was a child, was still there and she actually remember me.
Because of my horse experience, she gratefully accepted my help and I was assigned a little Shetland Pony named Princess, to groom, tack up, and help children with, when they rode her.
She was a cute little pony, a bay and white pinto, about 12 hands, at most, and reportedly 33 years old.
I asked about Sir Edwards, and was told that he lived to be 36 years old and had died only a few years before.
After I tacked up Princess, I led her to the very same riding ring and waited in line for the instructor to get the kids mounted, one at a time. There were a lot of children, so two kids would take turns on each horse or pony.
The first kid I was given to help with Princess, was not only blind, but only had one arm. I think he could see a little bit. He was so excited to ride Princess and truly enjoyed his time on her.
After his time was up, he was helped off and I went to get the next child. As I approached, with Princess, I could hear that the little boy was upset and afraid. They were trying to get him on another pony, but he totally refused, so I was called over, as Princess was the smallest in the group and they thought he might be less afraif of her.
I stopped Princess in the shade of the tree and listened for a few minutes, as they continued to try to coax this little boy, who was totally blind, to even come close enough to touch Princess, but he refused. I asked someone else to hold Princess for me and I walked over to him. I introduced myself and then told him that I was blind, too, only with some vision, but not very much. I told him that I loved horses and that Princess was very gentle and would not hurt him.
I am not sure what it was, exactly, that I told him, that made him trust me, but before i knew it, I had his hand and we were walking towards Princess. I introduced him to her, at her head, then we trailed her neck, back, and to her tail, so he could get an idea of how big she was and what she felt like.
After a few minutes of getting to feel Princess, he decided it was okay to get on her, but insisted that I be there with him. I told him that I would lead Princess for him and all he had to do was enjoy the ride.
As we headed out to the rail, after his stirruprs were adjusted, I glanced over my shoulder and noticed he was hunched over and his head was down. I knew it was from nerves. I started to talk to him some more about Princess and he talked back with me, but he stayed hunched. Then I had an idea. I moved to a place where I could stop Princess, safely, and not be in the way of others. I held onto the reins and then stood next to him. I told him, "I want you to not focus on being nervous, but start to feel her moving under you. See if you can tell when she is moving each of her legs." I explained to him that at a walk, a horse moves each foot at a different time, to make a 4 beat rythm. He agreed to try and so I started to walk Princess, again. I kept talking to him and asking him to feel for her legs to move and then I realized his voice sounded different. I again, glanced over my shoulder and was amazed to see him sitting straight up in the saddle, his face turned upwards, and even with my limited eyesight, I could see the biggest smile on that little boys face.
It felt so wonderful to help him. A joy filled me. As we continued to walk around the ring his confidence built. There was a pole on the ground and I asked him if he would like me to lead Princess over it, to see if he could tell when she was going over it. He agreed to this and knew exactly when her leg moved differently to raise up higher, to step over the pole. he was so excited, I could tell it in his voice, that he was truly enjoying his first experience on a pony.
I was amazed at how things had come full circle. I had been given my first horse experience at this camp, in that very ring, and now here I was helping a little blind boy have his and overcome his fears, to experience something totally new and different.
The limitations put on blind children, by some, cause them to be nervous about trying new things, but some of us are lucky and are not told, "You can't do that." or "You shouldn't do that." with the only reason being our blindness. Yes, I've heard these things, but not from those who matter and had influence on me and my development as a strong person. Some call me brave, courageous, and other descriptive words, because of what I have done in my life, despite my disability, but I just see it as I am doing what comes naturally to me. God gave me a gift with horses and I am using it and God allowed me to help a blind child and to experience the joy that came with it.
Thursday, October 13, 2011
Foals in the Pasture
In the spring of 2004, we were expecting two foals. Messenger of Light aka "leia" was in foal to Waquoit, due in late March and Street Dasher aka "Bunny" was in foal to Land's End the Colonel's Fox, due in late May. Leia's foal would be apurebred Thoroughbred, hopefully destined for the race track and Bunny, an Anglo-Arabian, was carrying a foal by a Welsh Pony, hopefully destined for the top as a hunter pony.
As Leia's due date approached, I kept a close watch on her. I set up the camera in the foaling stall, ran the cables to the house, so that I could watch her from the comfort of my den. I knew she was getting close and started to stay up at night, sleeping in a recliner that was next to the small TV that I had hooked up to the camera. Finally, I knew she was definitely close, probably within 24 hours. I watched her all night, barely getting any sleep. My husband got up about 7 or so and I told him that I thought she was close, but I desperately needed some sleep. He promised to keep a watch on Leia for me. He even offered to clean her stall. So, i told him that when he cleaned her stall that he could let her out, but she would need to come back in as soon as he was done.
So, I laid down about 8 AM and slept for several hours. I knew he would come to get me if Leia went into labor. When i woke up, I went to the den and saw him sitting in his recliner and there was no Leia on the TV screen. He told me he had decided to keep Leia out a little longer and would go out to bring her back inside in a few minutes. I said, "OK, but don't wait too long." I was starving, so I went to get something to eat.
I sat down and started to eat and I asked if he could look out the window to check on Leia, because of my vision, I can't see that far. So, he got up and looked out the kitchen window and suddenly started yelling, "Red Alert! Leia's having her foal!"
I lept up, leaving my food on the table, threw on my barn boots, grabbed the foaling bag kit and raced out the door, with him behind me. I raced to the paddock and found Leia down and a foal laying a few feet away. Leia had luckily laid down where a round bale had been, so it was one of the cleaner spots in the paddock. As I assessed the situation, Gordon rushed to get Bunny and another mare, Shadow, out of the paddock. Bunny didn't want to leave her friend, but reluctantly left when Gordon opened up the gate leading to the large back field.
Gordon then came back to help me. The foal was up on it's chest and Leia was working on delivering the placenta. I checked the foal quickly and discovered that it was a filly and she was large and appeared healthy. Leia stood up and delivered the placenta. Gordon and I then picked up the filly and moved them to the foaling stall.
I dried the filly off and we put betadine on her umbilical stump. She was quickly to her feet and looking for her mother's milk. As with Luke, Leia was an excellent mother and we decided to call the long legged dark bay filly, Princess. She had a few white hairs, so we guessed she would be turning grey, just like her sire, Waquoit.
I was a little upset with Gordon for not putting Leia back in the stall, after cleaning it, like I had asked, but since everything turned out alright, I got over it quickly, as he learned his lesson.
A few weeks later, Leia and Princess left for Leia to go be bred to Zillionair, a rare colored cremello Thoroughbred.
Bunny was not due until late May, but as April turned into May, I started to think that there was a chance she would carry this foal shorter than the last two. She had carried Tell A Tale for 361 days and Belle for 350 days. On day 332, I checked her in themorning and she had a decent size udder and I talked to her and said, "Tonight you start staying inside for me to watch you."
After breakfast, I turned her out in the back field with Shadow and Belle. Belle loved being back with her mother. Belle was almost 15 months old and was so beautiful.
That afternoon Gordon and I sat down to watch the Black Eyed Suson Stakes from Pimlico and enjoyed the race. After the race, I was preparing to head out to feed the horses and bring Bunny in for the night. Gordon went into the kitchen to put something away and the next thing I heard was him yelling, "Red Alert! I think Bunny's had her foal!"
I lept up so fast and almost ran into the back door, I couldn't believe it. I shoved my boots on and ran as fast I could to the back field. They were in the far back, but were slowly making their way towards me. As they got closer, I saw Bunny and Belle walking side by side and Shadow was circling them at about a 30 to 40 foot distance. Inbetween Bunny and Belle I saw an extra head and got them to stop and Bunny, trusting me, let me get inbetween her and Belle to see the new foal.
It was still soaking wet, but since it was up, it was obviously strong. But we were still quite some distance from the barn, so I scooped up the foal into my arms and started carrying it. Gordon finally made it out to us and offered to help, but I was doing okay. I just told him to open gates and stall doors, on the way and to make sure that Belle and Shadow didn't follow Bunny and I.
Bunny and Belle kept right with me as I carried the foal, who weighed around 60 pounds. As we exited the back field, heading into the paddock to the right of the barn, Gordon was able to get Belle to back off enough to shut the gate. This made Belle very upset, she wanted to be with her mother and the foal.
Once we got into the foaling stall, I set the foal down and checked it over, "Another filly!" I called out, with excitement. She was so cute, had a huge star on her face, a white snip on her nose, and 3 white pasterns. But, like Princess, we could tell that it looked like she would be turning grey, as Bunny was grey.
It took some effort, but the filly eventually nursed and was totally healthy, despite the early foaling date and surprise of being born in the pasture. Because she was born about the time that the Black Eyed Susan was being run, we decided to call her Suzy.
When Suzy was strong enough, I reunited her with her big sister, Belle and Bunny was perfectly content for Belle to help out with Suzy's care. It was so sweet to watch the three of them interacting. I had heard of this kind of behavior in wild horses, where a mare's older daughter helped with a younger sibling, but it was the first time I had truly witnessed it first hand. A lot of times people don't allow this kind of interaction amongst their herd, for fear of the older sibling hurting the younger one, but Belle was so gentle and loving, she'd do nothing to hurt Suzy.
Leia and Princess returned, when Leia was confirmed pregnant to Zillionair and shortly after that Bunny was confirmed in foal to Farnley Belshazzar, who had been the sire of Tell A Tale, born in 1999.
I registered Princess as Quoit Blessed and she was eventually sold to a client, as a racing prospect, when she was a yearling. She was given a chance to race, but due to some bad training, running her the wrong distances, and some bad luck, which caused a tendon injury, she never won, 4th being her best finish. Princess is now the dam of two beautiful Jazil fillies. I look forward to them racing. They were born in 2010 and 2011, so I still have to wait a bit longer to see them race.
Suzy was registered as a Half Welsh Pony as Perfect Peace What a Blessing, sometimes seen with no space between "what a" to make it "whata". I sent her to be trained by Sarah Warmack at Hilltop Farm VA, when she was 3 years old. Sarah did a wonderful job with Suzy and started her show career. Despite the starting of the decline in horse sales, we were able to get close to our asking price for Suzy, as she was so nice. Suzy is a super nice mover and is always winning her hack classes and winning or getting top ribbons in her over fences classes as a Hunter Pony. She was sold when she was 4 years to Kristin Mangum. Suzy competes up and down the East Coast at A Circuit level shows, winning ribbons at HITS, Warrenton, Culpeper, Deep Run, Upperville, etc. We could not be prouder of her success and look forward to hearing even more of her success as she continues to mature and develop.
As Leia's due date approached, I kept a close watch on her. I set up the camera in the foaling stall, ran the cables to the house, so that I could watch her from the comfort of my den. I knew she was getting close and started to stay up at night, sleeping in a recliner that was next to the small TV that I had hooked up to the camera. Finally, I knew she was definitely close, probably within 24 hours. I watched her all night, barely getting any sleep. My husband got up about 7 or so and I told him that I thought she was close, but I desperately needed some sleep. He promised to keep a watch on Leia for me. He even offered to clean her stall. So, i told him that when he cleaned her stall that he could let her out, but she would need to come back in as soon as he was done.
So, I laid down about 8 AM and slept for several hours. I knew he would come to get me if Leia went into labor. When i woke up, I went to the den and saw him sitting in his recliner and there was no Leia on the TV screen. He told me he had decided to keep Leia out a little longer and would go out to bring her back inside in a few minutes. I said, "OK, but don't wait too long." I was starving, so I went to get something to eat.
I sat down and started to eat and I asked if he could look out the window to check on Leia, because of my vision, I can't see that far. So, he got up and looked out the kitchen window and suddenly started yelling, "Red Alert! Leia's having her foal!"
I lept up, leaving my food on the table, threw on my barn boots, grabbed the foaling bag kit and raced out the door, with him behind me. I raced to the paddock and found Leia down and a foal laying a few feet away. Leia had luckily laid down where a round bale had been, so it was one of the cleaner spots in the paddock. As I assessed the situation, Gordon rushed to get Bunny and another mare, Shadow, out of the paddock. Bunny didn't want to leave her friend, but reluctantly left when Gordon opened up the gate leading to the large back field.
Gordon then came back to help me. The foal was up on it's chest and Leia was working on delivering the placenta. I checked the foal quickly and discovered that it was a filly and she was large and appeared healthy. Leia stood up and delivered the placenta. Gordon and I then picked up the filly and moved them to the foaling stall.
I dried the filly off and we put betadine on her umbilical stump. She was quickly to her feet and looking for her mother's milk. As with Luke, Leia was an excellent mother and we decided to call the long legged dark bay filly, Princess. She had a few white hairs, so we guessed she would be turning grey, just like her sire, Waquoit.
I was a little upset with Gordon for not putting Leia back in the stall, after cleaning it, like I had asked, but since everything turned out alright, I got over it quickly, as he learned his lesson.
A few weeks later, Leia and Princess left for Leia to go be bred to Zillionair, a rare colored cremello Thoroughbred.
Bunny was not due until late May, but as April turned into May, I started to think that there was a chance she would carry this foal shorter than the last two. She had carried Tell A Tale for 361 days and Belle for 350 days. On day 332, I checked her in themorning and she had a decent size udder and I talked to her and said, "Tonight you start staying inside for me to watch you."
After breakfast, I turned her out in the back field with Shadow and Belle. Belle loved being back with her mother. Belle was almost 15 months old and was so beautiful.
That afternoon Gordon and I sat down to watch the Black Eyed Suson Stakes from Pimlico and enjoyed the race. After the race, I was preparing to head out to feed the horses and bring Bunny in for the night. Gordon went into the kitchen to put something away and the next thing I heard was him yelling, "Red Alert! I think Bunny's had her foal!"
I lept up so fast and almost ran into the back door, I couldn't believe it. I shoved my boots on and ran as fast I could to the back field. They were in the far back, but were slowly making their way towards me. As they got closer, I saw Bunny and Belle walking side by side and Shadow was circling them at about a 30 to 40 foot distance. Inbetween Bunny and Belle I saw an extra head and got them to stop and Bunny, trusting me, let me get inbetween her and Belle to see the new foal.
It was still soaking wet, but since it was up, it was obviously strong. But we were still quite some distance from the barn, so I scooped up the foal into my arms and started carrying it. Gordon finally made it out to us and offered to help, but I was doing okay. I just told him to open gates and stall doors, on the way and to make sure that Belle and Shadow didn't follow Bunny and I.
Bunny and Belle kept right with me as I carried the foal, who weighed around 60 pounds. As we exited the back field, heading into the paddock to the right of the barn, Gordon was able to get Belle to back off enough to shut the gate. This made Belle very upset, she wanted to be with her mother and the foal.
Once we got into the foaling stall, I set the foal down and checked it over, "Another filly!" I called out, with excitement. She was so cute, had a huge star on her face, a white snip on her nose, and 3 white pasterns. But, like Princess, we could tell that it looked like she would be turning grey, as Bunny was grey.
It took some effort, but the filly eventually nursed and was totally healthy, despite the early foaling date and surprise of being born in the pasture. Because she was born about the time that the Black Eyed Susan was being run, we decided to call her Suzy.
When Suzy was strong enough, I reunited her with her big sister, Belle and Bunny was perfectly content for Belle to help out with Suzy's care. It was so sweet to watch the three of them interacting. I had heard of this kind of behavior in wild horses, where a mare's older daughter helped with a younger sibling, but it was the first time I had truly witnessed it first hand. A lot of times people don't allow this kind of interaction amongst their herd, for fear of the older sibling hurting the younger one, but Belle was so gentle and loving, she'd do nothing to hurt Suzy.
Leia and Princess returned, when Leia was confirmed pregnant to Zillionair and shortly after that Bunny was confirmed in foal to Farnley Belshazzar, who had been the sire of Tell A Tale, born in 1999.
I registered Princess as Quoit Blessed and she was eventually sold to a client, as a racing prospect, when she was a yearling. She was given a chance to race, but due to some bad training, running her the wrong distances, and some bad luck, which caused a tendon injury, she never won, 4th being her best finish. Princess is now the dam of two beautiful Jazil fillies. I look forward to them racing. They were born in 2010 and 2011, so I still have to wait a bit longer to see them race.
Suzy was registered as a Half Welsh Pony as Perfect Peace What a Blessing, sometimes seen with no space between "what a" to make it "whata". I sent her to be trained by Sarah Warmack at Hilltop Farm VA, when she was 3 years old. Sarah did a wonderful job with Suzy and started her show career. Despite the starting of the decline in horse sales, we were able to get close to our asking price for Suzy, as she was so nice. Suzy is a super nice mover and is always winning her hack classes and winning or getting top ribbons in her over fences classes as a Hunter Pony. She was sold when she was 4 years to Kristin Mangum. Suzy competes up and down the East Coast at A Circuit level shows, winning ribbons at HITS, Warrenton, Culpeper, Deep Run, Upperville, etc. We could not be prouder of her success and look forward to hearing even more of her success as she continues to mature and develop.
Monday, October 3, 2011
Back to the Barn
I have been trying for over 2 years to get back to the barn on a regular basis. During a very difficult pregnancy, with my youngest child, I was put on bed rest, and was threatened with hospitalization, if I didn't be a good girl and stay out of my barn. After she was delivered, she was a very high needs baby that ended up with colic and reflux, she also was so overly attached to me that it made it very difficult for me to even do household tasks.
She is now 2 years old and is still high needs, but it is more emotional than anything else, these days. I try to get to the barn, but she would scream the whole time I worked with the horses and it really wore on me, making me choose not to hear her scream, so I stayed in the house, letting my wonderful husband do most of the horse work.
It has depressed me not to get to be with my horses, so I am now pushing the issue and thankfully, so far, she seems more receptive to being at the barn. Now old enough to communicate more, she can talk to me, from her stroller, as I work, and she can talk to her sister, or the horses.
On Sunday, as a family, we all went out to the barn. My oldest daughter, now 6 years old, got a set of kid sized horse brushes for her Birthday and it was time to truly teach her how to properly groom, versus just taking a bristle brush to the horse's coat for a few minutes.
My husband took the camera out and snapped pictures of the two of us, as I taught her how to use the curry and a more proper use of the stiff brush. He also kept an eye on our younger daughter.
Our oldest suffers from allergies, which unfortunately, does include a mild allergy to horses, so after about 15 minutes, she started to sniffle a bit, so I let her go play, while I finished grooming Belle.
Belle, who has been featured in some of my recent stories, is now 8 years old, and despite being 3/4 Arabian and 1/4 Thoroughbred, is one of the calmest horses on the farm, totally blowing the theory that some people have that "all Arabians are crazy" or "All Thoroughbreds are hot." She stood so calmly for my daughter's grooming lesson, I was so proud of her.
After I was done grooming her, I took her out of the barn and stood her up for a conformation picture, something we hadn't done with her in years. It took only one take, to get the above picture. Belle is the bay, you can't see it, but she has a huge blaze on her face, to go with the 4 white socks.
After I put Belle back in the stall, I pulled out her half sister, Myra, who is a 6 year old Half Welsh Pony. They are both daughters of Bunny. I have not gotten to Myra's story, yet, and I will, trying to go in order, somewhat, in my horse stories, unless something just comes to me.
I groomed Myra and then took her out for her photo shoot. Like Belle, I had not taken any conformation pictures of Myra in years. I cleaned them up as best as I could, but there are some mud stains on them, due to all the rain we've had. Myra is a grey, now almost white, so I did as much as I could, luckily, she wasn't too stained.
While Gordon continued to watch our girls and take pictures of them, I put Myra back in the barn and then fed the horses. It felt so great to be out there and working with them. I felt so lifted and energized, that not only did I go in and make 2 pizzas for dinner, I added brownies as a dessert!
Today, I took both girls out, before my husband got home and fed the horses and was so happy that my youngest didn't fuss one bit! She just talked to me as I came near her and talked to her sister and to the nearest horse to her, Mayo. She was so good and it makes me so enthused that I can actually now start going out to the barn, again! I can really truly start working with the horses, training Myra and Belle, grooming everyone on a regular basis, and just getting to know them all again. I can't tell you how happy I feel right now.
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