We don't have lights in the barn yet. That's okay, I'm kindof glad that I don't have to worry about electricity in the barn, and when I do something I hope to use solar panels to do it. Anyways, it makes barn cleaning after dark a little bit of a challenge. However, I am dexterous and hold a small flashlight in one hand to locate my targets, while also holding the pitchfork at the same time. I don't do this every night, but for mornings when I have to get up before sunrise to let the horses in while in a hurry to get out the door. I think what I need is a cap with a light on it to make things easier, but for now, the small light works. :)
In other news, Crystal is up to 975 lbs! (from 920) Her ribs are really filling in and the "shelf" near her spine is nearly gone. I can see the muscles in her hind end filling out. She has also been shedding quite a bit - reminds me of a foal with the hair shedding out around her eyes first. The hair underneath is so WHITE! Not a creamy white, but silvery white. It looks like she is going to be a gorgeous dapple gray!
In the meantime, she is the first gray I have had here with all of my bays and chestnuts, and it is interesting where all that white hair ends up. I noticed them covering the straps of her blanket and all over the brushes, me, my other horses when I groom them. Somebody should invent a gray horse brush with white bristles so you don't notice them so much. :) And then white blankets, etc. Who am I kidding - anything around horses is going to end up brown eventually!
Hoof-wise I noticed tonight that it looks like she's ready for another trim. The sole in her left front that I've been waiting for is half off - the other half should shed in a few days. But what I found interesting was that where I rasped around the edge of her hooves it now looks like the outside of the wall in that area has peeled off in the moisture. I'm sure glad I didn't rasp up very far at all! I can only assume it is the poor nutrition she had before I got her. I look at her hooves and see small ridges - not founder ridges, but nutrition ridges. I am not sure what they mean, but it looks like her previous owners fed her something nutritious about once a month... If I hadn't trimmed Arwen's hooves today, I would have worked on Crystal's.
In other news, Arwen is going to a month of training on Friday and I can't wait! Becky has been a pleasure to work with in the past, and I look forward to learning as much as I can while Arwen is there!
No comments:
Post a Comment