California Smoke Out

It seems like every September, sometimes into October, smoke descends onto our ranch.

We wake up in the morning, open the back door and step into the haze.  It looks like fog, but it smells like a campfire.  The smoke stings your eyes and burns your throat.  But unlike a campfire, you can't move away from the smoke.  It's everywhere.

We are not close to the fires burning west of us, in Sonoma and Napa counties.  Those are a good two hours away.

And the the fires to the east of us, towards Lake Tahoe, are about an hour away.  Maybe less.

There are also fires to the north of us.

Normally, when I head down the mountain for work I can see the outline of Sacramento clearly in the distance.  This morning?  It looked like this.

Watch Me Fly

Wednesday, the farrier came to check on Jackson and to trim Finessa.

Finessa looks wonderful and is walking about happy as can be on her trimmed hooves.  The x-rays were consistent with founder but there wasn't anything truly bizarre that would keep her from getting a thorough trim.  I am very, very happy.  Our farrier has concerns about her, long term.  I have those concerns also; and have had them for quite a few years.  But, as long as she remains happy and comfortable, I'm not going to think about what will, inevitably, come at some (hopefully distant) point in the future.

Jackson is doing very well too.  Between his meds and his special shoes, he's a new horse.  He is in the pasture with the girls 24/7 now and moving well.  No more gimpy, prissy steps for him.  No sir.

Wednesday evening Lucy followed me around the pasture while I picked up manure.  From her standpoint, I come into the pasture to provide wither and back massages.  The fact that I have a muck rake and a cart mean nothing.  I pull the cart along, stop near a pile of poop, and prepare to scoop.  But no, Lucy stands between me and the pile, positioning herself so the preferred spot to be scratched is right in front of me.  She twists her neck and wiggles her lips, and sometimes offers to groom my hip.  By the eighth or ninth pile, my fingers get tired and I stop complying with her requests.

We were at that point Wednesday evening.  She was standing next to me and I was ignoring her, focused on my scooping technique.  She darted her head to her flank in a rather violent way, spun and took off.  I don't know what bit her, but it clearly hurt.  She ran through Pistol and Jackson, who were standing near the gate, and kept going -- screaming as she went.  (Yes, she is dramatic).  Pistol and Jackson joined in.  I stood at the fence line and watched them careening from one end of the pasture to the other.  After a couple laps, Lucy stopped.  As did Pistol.

Not Jackson.

He kept running.... and running ....and running.  His ears were forward and his mane was flying.  I swear I heard him say,

"Look at me!  I can run!  I can fly!"

He finally stopped; covered in sweat and ridiculously happy.  He stood bobbing his head at me before strutting off.  Gimpy?  Ha!  Not this horse.  Not anymore.

...which made me wonder.... where did I put his bareback pad?

Time with Tex

Last Monday was a holiday so I was home when Greg, our farrier, came to trim and shoe the horses.  Fortunately, it wasn't raining that day.  Greg worked outside on the east side of the barn, where the weak sun was soaked up by the black stall mats in front of the tie rails.

Tex is not a fan of the stall mats.  When I groom him and tack him up, I ground tie him next to the mats and he is able to relax.  Greg was fine with working with Tex off of the mats as well so trimming and shoeing went smoothly.  Greg is very patient with Tex, being careful not to touch him on the right side of his neck.  I had a pocket full of cookies, and I gave one to Tex each time that Greg worked on his right side.

Afterwards, I asked Brett to bring out Flash next so I could spend more time with Tex.  I stood with Tex on the grass, working all the dreadlocks out of his mane and giving him a thorough grooming.  Tex didn't flinch while I curried and brushed him, both sides, top and bottom, front and back.  He stood quietly, nodding his head at me and, seemingly, enjoying the attention.

Cold rain has returned, with a chance of snow next week, so it will be awhile before I am able to work with Tex on a regular basis.  But, I am happy that we have not lost any ground.

After the horses were finished, Greg trimmed Finessa.  Brett asked me to halter her because the donkeys run away when they see him coming with a halter.  I walked into their pasture and stood quietly.  They looked up from the grass under the far oak and took in the halter on my shoulder, and my stance.  Then they both walked over.  I gave them back and belly rubs before slipping the halter onto Finessa.  I offered her a cookie, which she took daintily in her lips, and then held in her mouth for a few minutes before chewing.  When Greg came into the pasture with his chaps and his file, she moved closer to me.  She leaned into me for all she was worth while he worked on her feet.  This is exactly how my foot was crushed back in May.  She leaned into me and then stood on my foot.  I was so focused on keeping her quiet, for the trimming, that I didn't push her off my foot initially.  This time, I was very careful that her little hooves stayed away from my foot.

Donkey Love

Here are some pictures Steve took of the donkeys.  When friends and family visit, the donkeys and the goats are by far the most popular critters on the ranch.

They love having their backs raked with the muck rake.  Here I am demonstrating the technique, with my model Tuffy.

Even Finessa, who is afraid of the much rake when it is scraping on the ground close to her, loves a good back scratch with the thing.

Heather discovered a new donkey favorite: insert knuckle into donkey ear and rub.  Result: donkey bliss.

How can you not love these faces?

Nobody can resist Tuffy and Finessa.  Why would you even want to?

Random Friday

1.  I went back to Physical Therapy this week.  My therapist did not look overly dismayed when I told her about the pain when I rode last weekend.  Instead she was focused on how quickly my back returned to okay afterwards --  two days instead of eight weeks.  She gave me more work to do, and instructed me to ride only at the walk initially and then increase it over the next two weeks as I am able.

2.  In the meantime, I think I broke my foot.  I feel like a walking hobbling disaster.  Three weeks ago, Finessa stepped on my foot.  She was just moving in closer so I could reach the spots she wanted scratched, and I gently pushed her off.  I remember muttering to her "that wasn't very nice" and then I pretty much forgot about it.  I am forever getting stepped on by the goats or the dog, and I drop things from time to time (heavy barn things).  X-rays were inconclusive so next week I go in for an MRI.  In the meantime, I can't bear much weight and have to wear sandals to accommodate the swelling.  Finessa is the one who is sweetly looking at the camera in this picture. She looks small but she's a solid 500 lbs.

3.  Brett finished up the section of fence he was replacing in the girls' pasture and moved them back on Thursday.  Lucy is an interesting character: incredibly demonstrative and sweet, but also incredibly jealous and, at times, downright b**chy.  If she were human, she would be the wife from hell -- pushy, demanding, nagging, and vain.  ...of course, she is a fun ride so maybe she would be worth it...

4.  And here's a picture of Tuffy -- just because he's so dang cute.

We Had a White Christmas

It was perfect.  My dad and the kids all arrived before the snow started to fall.  Christmas Eve day we had snow on-and-off all day.  Each time it stopped snowing, it would warm up a few degrees.  Then it would begin to rain, then sleet, then snow. I'd look out the window and sigh.  I don't know why I love snow so much.  I just do.  Despite it snowing all day, the rain washed away most of it, so we ended up with patchy snow.

Finessa, Camille and Tuffy

Christmas Eve we feasted on roast beef, roasted potatoes and Caesar salad.  Champagne.  Wine.  More wine.  Then bed.  Holidays in our family are all about the food.

Christmas Day was spent opening gifts, feasting on turkey and watching the snow melt.  In the evening the kids wanted to play Cards Against Humanity.  It is politically incorrect and a bit crass -- not something you would play with your mother and grandfather but that is exactly what the kids proposed.  Brett was buried in a football game and declined joining us.  My father is a retired university professor, quiet, serious, and about as far from silly as you can imagine.  I'm very much like him in that way.  But that evening, we were all laughing so hard that we couldn't breathe.  It was wonderful.  The best Christmas gift of all.

My father left Saturday for home.  Sunday night we had more snow; close to two inches fell over night and we woke to a winter wonderland.

The horses weren't impressed with the snow.  They watched me taking pictures from their pastures and wondered why I wasn't bringing them their breakfast.  Humans and their priorities.  Sheesh.

Lucy, Pistol and Jackson

Flash

Tex

The kids packed a sled and drove up the road to the lake where they found a good steep hill to slide down.  Camille took pictures -- I love this one of the lake.

This morning, I headed into the office (I was able to telecommute yesterday) and the kids headed to Kyle's apartment in Berkeley.  It was a magical Christmas.

Donkey Antics

Tuffy and Finessa were playing hard this afternoon.

Tuffy grabs a mouthful of mane and neck, while Finessa spins in circles.

They break apart and run, trotting with their heads high and ears flying behind.

Tuffy runs up behind Finessa, who lets loose with both hinds.  Smack!  Right in Tuffy's chest.

They run, cantering with their heads low, ears flying and hind feet throwing in an occasional buck.

They stop, look at me, and put on their most innocent faces.

...and then they are off for more fun.  Not my idea of fun, mind you, but clearly their's.

More Buttons

Lucy has more buttons that I can push than any other horse I've ever had. This morning I found more. We were working on trot-walk-trot transitions so I could practice my half-halts and she could practice balance. We trot in a nice frame, then I slow her trot, drop to a walk -- for a couple strides -- then go back into trot. We were down at the far end of the arena and when I asked her to go back into trot she cantered instead. A light bulb went off -- she knows how to do walk to canter transitions! We tried a few -- ooh la la. I've never ridden transitions like that -- smooth and easy and balanced like the fancy upper level riders do on their horses.

In addition to transitions, we did some more counter-canter and a few leg yields. We started our warm up by walking around outside the dressage court. Lucy loved it and was stretching down nicely so we went into the arena.

At about that time, Tuffy and Finessa decided to do laps in their pasture which is right at the base of the dressage court. They were racing each other, with puffs of dust coming up from their little hooves, screeching to a stop, climbing on top of each other, snorting, and taking off again. It was a bit much for Lucy. She threw her head in the air and stopped, snaking her neck back and forth like a cobra. I was concerned for a moment.

Then I remembered... this is Lucy, not Winston. I can ask Lucy to ignore the donkeys and she will. I took a firm contact with the outside rein and squeezed with my legs. She said, "oh, okay" and went forward nicely. No more silliness. No argument. No fight.

Just happiness. Pure harmonious happiness. Pinch me.

This Too Shall Pass

There is storm system north of us sending cloudy skies and breezy conditions to our valley.

The rain from last weekend soaked the ground and sunshine coaxed the seeds into sprouting; we have green grass springing up in the pastures.  Finessa has wasted no time in sampling it.

After breakfast and chores, Brett and I headed into Placerville to look for a mud room bench at the Antique Fair.  We wanted a small bench that we can sit on while taking on and off our shoes.  We found exactly what we were looking for, wedged it into the back of the Subaru and headed back to the ranch.  I wanted to ride before our lunch at MiraFlores winery.

We tacked up Winston and Mufasa in their stalls.  After all our work yesterday in the barn, it's finally horse friendly.

There are rings in the stalls for tying horses while they are tacked up.  Winston is good about being groomed and tacked up in his stall; we've done that at a few shows.  Mufasa doesn't like to be tied and will pull back so I used baling twine to create break-away loops.  You tie the lead ropes to the twine loop and that way the twine will break if the horse panics.

Mufasa stood quietly in his stall with one eye on Winston, next door, and the other on Brett.  The trust between Brett and Mufasa is steadily increasing.  They are so fortunate to have found each other.  Winston was a bit fussy, worrying about where everyone was and what they were doing.  We mounted and rode out to the dressage court, with Winston and I leading the way.  Winston walked into the arena without balking and we made a couple uneventful loops around the entire arena.  As I was getting ready to cross the arena and go the other direction, Winston decided he was done.  I understand that he was tired and no doubt sore from our work on Saturday but his behavior was unacceptable.  Once again, he plowed backwards dragging the arena rails and a pylon with him.  I know I should have smacked him with my whip and sent him forward and to work but, well, my confidence just isn't there.  I'm disappointed in myself.  Next time I will deal with it from the saddle.  And I know he will outgrow this and he will get fit.  He's six.  Its a difficult age -- kind of like the terrible twos.  Instead of grabbing the bucking strap, giving him a smart tap, riding out the inevitable buck and trotting off, I got him to walk forward by kicking.  Back in the arena, he threatened to go backwards again.  I kicked until he walked forward into a halt and then I got off.  The lunge line was hanging on the fence.  We worked on the lunge line, on transitions because they require obedience.  I hadn't planned to canter today but he ended up doing interval work -- canter-trot-canter.  He had to be prompt and he had to keep the gait going until I decided it was time to transition.  He has a bad habit of trying to make those decisions himself.  So, we did get some work done.  I will get braver.  He will get older.  This phase will pass.

Vanessa Pays a Visit

Yesterday, at 5:30 in the evening, our neighbor Al came over to talk to Brett about tree trimming. He brought his daughter, Vanessa, along to see the horses. Vanessa is crazy about dressage and rumor has it that she was very exited to learn that I rode dressage.

Vanessa hopped off the back of the quad where she was perched behind her dad. She stood shyly looking out at the horses in the pasture while Al and Brett talked about trees. I had been napping on the porch (the dr. says it will be a month before my energy returns) and slowly pulled myself out of my chair and walked down to the others.

I asked her name and I thought she said Finessa.

Wow! That's the name of one of our donkeys. Do you want to go meet her?

As we walked over to the donkey pen, she asked me my name. I paused a minute, thinking. I know some eleven year olds are taught to always address adults as Mrs. or Mr. and she is a very polite girl. But, her mom wasn't there to interject and I could also tell she is a kindred spirit so I said, Annette. She smiled at me, a quiet smile that softly lit her eyes.

The donkeys were happy to get attention.

As we walked past the barn to visit the goats she asked me if I knew that there are baby birds born in the barn in the spring. I said that I had seen the nests. She said that this year she rescued two that fell from their nests.

We sat for awhile with the goats. She wanted to know their names, of course. Nobody except me can tell Whiskey and Cowboy apart. Vanessa had it down immediately; I told her once, with no explanation of how I tell them apart, and she never confused the two. Whiskey stood next to her, leaning into the back scratch she was giving him. She marveled at how "social" our animals are; quiet, calm and very friendly. Vanessa fit right in with their energy.

Cowboy

Whiskey

Last, I introduced her to the horses. She wanted to know which was the dressage horse. I pointed to Winston and said He's half Appaloosa; she nodded. I continued, And he's half Hanovarian. The light in her eyes got very bright and she let out a big sigh. Winston walked over to us and she rubbed his face, then ran her hand down his neck, across his side and down his butt. This kid is good around horses.

Flash came over to investigate.
He has TWO blue eyes! 
Yes, I said, its not common to have two or to have them in the bay part of the face. Usually, there is one blue eye and the face is white over the eye. We agreed that blue eyes on a bay background are stunning.

Oh, she said, what happened to his neck? She had noticed the old scar, a dent, on the underside of Flash's neck. We don't know for sure what caused it, but we suspect it came from a rope.

Mufasa was standing between Flash and Winston, watching us. I told her that Mufasa is a bit head shy and we think someone must have hit him. She walked over to him and softly introduced herself. She whispered, He wants me to pet him but he's afraid. I caught my breath. Exactly. That is Mufasa exactly.

I told Vanessa that she can come visit the animals anytime she wants. I hope she does.