Thursday, December 31, 2009

Happy New Year to you all...

Full on time of year isn't it.... Christmas has zoomed on by and all of a sudden we're on the threshhold of 2010.

I mentioned it to the horses tonight after riding Smokey and while picking up poo... of course as quick as the words were coming out of my mouth I was thinking "it's just another day" and the horses serenely munched on their hay wondering what I was on about. Why is there all this hype for a New Year, the year is going to bring joys and sorrows, love and heartbreak, summer and winter, just like every other year... what you choose to do with those things will make it a "good year" or not.

Like I say to a good friend of mine, any negative can be made a positive, you may need to stand it on its head and turn it inside out but it can be done.... if you want to....

So, I hope everyone can find the silver lining to whatever 2010 throws at you! :o)

And remember it's better to aim at the moon and hit the lamp post than to aim at the lamp post and hit the gutter ;o)

Happy New Year and for 2010 make your answer to the question 'how are you?' be "Great! I woke up alive!" xxx

Wednesday, December 23, 2009

Communication at its finest

and it's Marcus who is "hearing"... little blighter is always in my head!!! no sooner do I think something then he is 30 seconds later saying "I want......." I've got to stop planting seeds in his head, particularly when I'm hungry and craving junk food!

I can't believe it's Christmas time already! I've got hay cut in the paddock but not baled, we're heading off to Christchurch and the in-laws tomorrow, I'm sure I'll need another 2 bags of fruit flavoured candy canes before we go!

So although the Christmas pressure is on, most people should be enjoying a break from work at least, so from me and mine to you and yours, have a very merry Christmas, a lovely holiday break and an easy start to 2010. Stay safe, keep talking to your animals, may the Universe provide you with what you need and may you always have the knowledge that you have what you need to get through whatever it decides you need!

Merry Christmas :o)
xxxx

Wednesday, December 16, 2009

Phew! My Mac is Back!

Had a lesson yesterday, my coach, Diane has long been both Mac and my security blanket, someone knowledgeable who knows both Mac and my self imposed limits LOL. Hubby is as unhorsey as they come and is useless at feeding out those calm confident vibes to Mac, so yesterdays lesson was the first time I'd been on Mac since my superhero impersonation where I believe I tried to fly :o)

I really do try to set the sensitive soul up for success because he is SOOOOOOO sensitive, so it was magnesium, a couple of sessions of groundwork and the first time getting back on in a setting he knows well and is comfortable in.

Of course as I knew he would be, he was fine, so we're away laughing again :o)

"The Girls" (chooks) are still putting out an egg each per day *eek* I'm sure I'll find someone to give them away to LOL. They are great and the spookiest one of all is now settling in in grand form and reminds me so much of Mary, the most cuddley, the most trusting (and this is a chook who I really couldn't get near prior to uplifting her!)

The dogs are good, Zak my darling old boy is and always has been mum's boy, the only time you realise he may have slowed down a tad (will be 12 in March) is when you see Leaping Leo streaking past him out in the paddock.

Karma still has lameness issues, and PeeWee's keeps flaring up after a hard run around in the paddock (soft girls letting the team down!)

Dozer is, well, Dozer hehehe, the strong silent type. And Leaping Leo is well, still mad as a hatter hehehe. Such a dominant boy, who has to throw it in everyone's face to prove it all the time. One on one he's such a honey, but with any of the others around he's an attention seeking goon :o)

The goats are finally moulting the winter coat out and expanding at an alarming rate! The all look pregnant (and they're NOT!) but that's a common look for them :o)

And the horses? All good. Hay is nearly ready to cut again. Marcus is a terrible 3 yr old (man the ATTITUDE on that kid is horrendous!!! I blame the Rasmussen genes, it cannot possibly be from his mother!) and Pete is busy making me a portable chicken coop for Xmas so I can wheel the girls around the paddock and set the chicken mesh up around them and their wee coop :o)

So there we are, all updated with what's happening here for now...

Hope everyone's plans for Xmas are sorted and the shopping nearly done.

Wednesday, December 9, 2009

Smokey hits the big league

well, OK, a lesson with the big league anyway LOL.

He was great, clicked on pretty well to what Jody was wanting on the ground (uses Andrew McLean's methods) and then I jumped on him and we worked on putting his feet where we wanted them going around the arena (his first time in an arena, all scary stuff you know!)

Jody is lovely, very down to earth, very approachable, and fantastically open minded shown not just in her own training but in accepting what I do too :o)

She'll be back in town in March after Horse of the Year so I'll save up for that, and in the meantime yesterday I thought we'd better do a float session as a reminder ready for today, and decided to change his entire way of loading and get him self loading so I can do him on my own. Pete in the front with an enticing piece of carrot to help get him to leave my side and he was doing it like a pro. This morning was the same, but he had a wee mishap on the way to the lesson, got his bum stuck under the back bar till he freed himself, but was a very worried boy when we arrived wanting to come straight off! Unlucky for him he'd bent the back bar so it took me a minute to get it undone LOL.

Explained to him after the lesson that's why he needs to stand on his own 4 feet properly in the float and it won't happen if he stands nicely in there. A little procrastination but nothing worse than yesterday's practice session and on he went again. Very good wee man.

Sunday, December 6, 2009

A quick catch up as work waits...

The chooks have settled in fantastically and are just wonderful and gentle and friendly and these funny little birds I never even liked before have got a new fan in me :o) So curious!!!

Just bought a new helmet (eye is still wonky donk!) and jumped on Smokey after a month off and that long in spring grass (admittedly on rations) and he was great. Needed a wee session of ground work to alter his "I don't wanna be caught" attitude he'd developed, but as soon as he's getting regular attention again he's great.

He has his first ever lesson next week with Jody Hartstone who is visiting Blenheim so I'll let you know how it goes! Will be doing part of the lesson on ground work (Andrew McLeans methods) and part ridden.

They've all just been seen by the dentist who said Smokey is 4 and pretty much right on the button as he's about 6mths out from losing his 4 1/2yr caps. He was a very good boy :o)

Mac has been dumped onto some Alleviate for a couple of days as it's just been too wet to put a bowl of salt in the paddock for them and his attitude is softening again. I knew he was blaming me for things, but when the dentist turned up and Mac spazzed on him too and then wanted to know what I was punishing him for, I knew he wasn't in a good head space so roll out the Magnesium LOL.

Will be jumping on him end of next week and we'll be all guns blazing again :o)

Right off to talk to a horse...

Pets For Sale Joins the SPCA

Pets For Sale - Lost & Found and Adopt Pets in New Zealand.

Tuesday, December 1, 2009

Wonky Donk Eyes

Well here we are nearly a month after departing company from my "darling" (said very tongue in cheek for the first couple of weeks!) Mac and my eyes are still wonky! A visit to the eye specialist and he doesn't know what's going on either, so he'll review the CT scan from the hospital and see him again in a couple of weeks.

Mac was blaming ME for what happened and was pretty anti me for a week or 2 after the incident, a bit less grass has helped sort that attitude out quite well, but the eyes have actually slowed me down getting back on, and I'll still need to do some ground work with the frisky boys for a few days now before getting on anyway, so should be able to book a lesson for next week and tackle those "getting back on a psycho horse" nerves then LOL. I'll know if HE is going to be fine, but falling off hurts and I don't want MORE wonky eyes so have those subtle self doubt nerves hanging around. Will ride Smokey first and that'll help :o)

So eye specialist put some drops in the jammed open pupil and hey presto it certainly can close, so now I have these photos hehehehe, too funny really!

before a visit to the eye specialist...

after a visit to the eye specialist!


The chickens (6 girls) have settled in well and a friend took 4 too, so we've managed to save 10 out of over a thousand and give them an extended life :o) The girls are lovely and producing an egg a day each quite happily (we don't eat that many eggs!) I'm sure the dogs will love one each a week to help keep the numbers to use down!

And lastly "Talk To Your Animals" now has a facebook page. Facebook seems to be much more interactive than blogs so feel free to become a "fan" and join in :o)

Talk-To-Your-Animals on FaceBook