Mud, Dust & Shedding~

We've had a week of cloudy, rainy weather - reminiscent of Washington!  Everyone tells me the rain is needed - that it's been a very dry, mild Winter & I do believe it.  I'd hoped to attend an endurance ride in Kansas this weekend, but with all the rain - the steep slope & lack of space to turn around at Farah's stable - it would have been impossible with the truck, camper & trailer.  The weather was threatening in SW Kansas - Tornado Alley & did I want that worry?  No...

 It was one of those days...  Usually they happen on Monday's but for me - I should have known when I was trying to move out the stove, slipped, fell backward & landed with my left wrist first.  The pain wasn't too bad, so I hoped for a sprain & went ahead, determined to spent time with Farah.

Guilty!  Now to the legs~

I should have taken a before picture!  If you can imagine mud from the tip of the ears, covering almost every inch!  With no grass to roll in, Farah - who loves to roll - has a spot in her paddock.  When it's dry - it's dust, when it's wet - well...  I had put dust masks in the truck, then forgot them when I transferred things to the Bronco. 

 When I noticed that Farah's tail was 6" shorter than it's ever been, I asked the lady who works at the barn if Farah's crazy neighbor might be grabbing at it?  No, I watched as she stood at the outside door of the stall, on a slope that puts her tail right under her rear feet if she backs up.   Once the mess was scrapped off, hair everywhere, I put her in the wash stall & washed out her tail.   She danced, pranced, moved from side-to-side & made it miserable on us both. 

Beautiful Countryside~

I decided to take her out on a walk to let it dry before putting it into a tail bag.

The road~

 I'm planning to do some riding on this road - it's not very long - but has a couple good hills where we could maybe get in a gallop or two.  I'll be trailering out on my own soon too -  as the weather improves.  I'm also doing some research into the history of horses on the Wabash Trace - to lobby for continued Equestrian use - at least for the ten-miles that are advertised as available to horses. 

Surface rock~

 As you can tell from the photo above, this type of gravel is far from decent for horses, definitely requiring shoes for any moderately paced work.

Weight coming back on~

Farah was good until we lost sight of the stable.  I'd wanted to walk quite a way further, but after watching as she circled me at a gallop, bucked, reared & otherwise was a kite at the end of the lead - I turned back.

By the time I'd stopped at the store & returned home, my wrist was twice it's size.  I went through all my wrist braces, all for the right hand - I've broken that one several times...  Only one for the left - so we picked up a new one today.  No cast for me...  I've ridden 50-miles carrying my stick with a broken right wrist.  I hadn't wanted to miss the Golden Ears Ride, in British Columbia.  With eight river crossings, it was always challenging.  At the first one, Khari had refused.  I lent my stick to my friend, who whacked her & in we went!  No more problems the rest of the ride!  :-)

My consolation prize?  Tickets were still available to the FEI World Cup in Omaha tomorrow!  (I'd sold ours after I found out the date conflicted with the endurance ride.)  Since these new tickets are even more expensive - I'm hoping we'll have good seats!

In Retrospect~

Yesterday, I'd scheduled Farah's yearly exam with Dr. Black at Nebraska Equine.  Again, taking the recommendations of friends & from everything I'd read - this is the place to go.  Pilchuck Vet had forwarded all Farah's records - she was due to have her tooth checked again & for vaccinations.

On I-80

Butch hitched the Bronco, we picked Farah up, dropped Butch in town & were on our way by noon - our appointment was for 1 p.m.  Trucks rule!  I was surprised at all the truck traffic.  Of course since I was the one doing the driving - I noticed it more.

We've arrived!

The day had gone from sleet & 24 degrees in the early morning, to sunshine & some wind.  The Google Lady's instructions were great - right up to the last turn - where we had about 100ft. to go from 60 to zero & make the turn from four lanes to a gravel road.

Poor mare~

Dr. Black is an imposing man - well over 6', direct & extremely knowledgeable.  Farah, as usual walked in like she owned the place & was soon anesthetized.  The two of us have more in common than I thought.  Dr. Black explained the tooth that has given her difficulty is being squeezed out - on both sides of her jaw.  Her jaw is somewhat short.  All her teeth can't rest flat on the bottom & instead, the last are where the jaw begins to curve upward.  (I had my wisdom teeth removed for the same reason!  :-)  This creates pressure on the next - so over time, those teeth will probably die.  Reduction of her usual hooks - otherwise all looked really good.  No scale here - but Dr. Black taped her at 1,050 - 50+ pounds down from the top end of her weight range. We've been working on that~

Dr. Black & Farah

Next, vaccinations - a five-way.  She was given Prestige V + WNV Combination Vaccine & a Rabies.  We completed her Health Certificate & used the Coggins we had from the trip out.  Farah snapped out of the sedation - one she'd received before - at Pilchuck.  I walked her out into the sunny afternoon & we headed back to Glenwood.  Butch was waiting on the main street so we could pick him up :-)  We put Farah back into her stall/run - gave her hay & headed home.  We planned to go out after our evening class to check on her again.  We didn't get the chance.

Just two-hours later, I got a call from the lady who helps out at the barn.  She'd found Farah down - down in the worst possible place - in the doorway between her stall & the paddock - in a very steep spot...  Being an RN - Candace got a halter on, got her up & called!  We made record time getting to the barn & called Dr. Black on the way.

Farah was standing, but looked dazed when we arrived.  Very stiff  - her stride in the rear short & choppy.  She was shivering in the wind, I was so thankful that we had her blanket in the truck!  We started walking her - more for our benefit than hers.  She pooed a nice pile - that was good to see!  She became more alert, her eyes brightened as the sun set... 

I called our Go-To Man - Dean Essex, DVM.  Even long-distance he diagnosed a reaction to either the sedation - which she'd had before - or the vaccine adjuvant.  He told us to stop walking the mare & wait for Dr. Black - who made the 40+ mile trip in record time.  Her gut sounds were fine & temperature, normal.  Farah's heart rate was 44 & she wasn't dehydrated.  (Her HR had been 40 at the clinic.)  There was a slight swelling at the injection site.  Farah was given Banamine & blood was drawn to be tested for any other possible issue.

There was an inside stall open, Farah had stopped shivering.  Dr. Black too, thought she was having a reaction to the adjuvant.  By the time he left, Farah looked much more comfortable.  I think we were home maybe an hour - when we both had to go back to check on her.  She looked so much better - we watched as she took a nice long drink of water.  Sweet relief!

Informative Chart~

Dean taught me better - I knew better - than to schedule more than one thing to be done at a time.  With everything new-to-us here - I'd forgotten the basics.  Dean's protocol has always been to give each vaccine as an individual shot - in a different spot or side of the neck.  That way - if there's a reaction - you know where it came from.  This was the first & will be the last time we do a five-way.  I even hesitate with certain vaccinations - but with the traveling Farah does & numbers of horses she's exposed to - I feel it's a necessary evil.

We drove out again - first thing this morning & seeing her head over the stall door was as good as it gets!  The swelling at the injection site was completely gone.  Temperatures had warmed back up, we removed her blanket, gave her carrots & put her back into her stall.  She busily began eating the wet beet pulp we'd brought & her hay.  Dr. Black called to follow-up; saying that her blood work came back normal. We'll be watching her closely for the next few days.   I've very thankful he was right there to take care of her!

A Tint of Green!

After church, we drove to Council Bluffs & bought a new door for the back of the house - one with a screened window that opens.  Next, we stopped to check on Farah, who was enjoying the 80+ degree day.

 Now, I'll know - if we have what is being called a mild Winter, then the first flush of green here at home will happen St. Patrick's weekend.  (27-years this weekend since we moved to the Homestead in WA.)  Little did we imagine then - that all these years later - we'd be working to clear along another creek in Iowa!

South side of our back fence, cut vines on the right~

This little fox was the first piece of yard art I bought for the Homestead & the only larger piece we brought with us.  He'd sat out on the hill along the creek, then later up in the woods.  I thought it fitting he find a new home along Tinkle Branch :-)  He'll be groomed with a new coat of paint this year!

Clearing!

Butch started in, cutting through all the tall grass & weeds, behind our south fence & to the west on the property we're purchasing.  Once that was done - I took my pruners & starting cutting all of the horrible, nasty vine Greenbriar that had grown into the trees & shrubs.

Greenbriar stem & creek in the background~

I just thought Blackberry was bad... Let me tell you - it can't hold a candle to this stuff.  So sharp that my work gloves were shredded by the time I was done.

Vine in the middle of the frame~

 With vines going well over twenty feet up into the trees.  I had to pull, tug & even wrapped some around other trees, to gain enough purchase to pull them down.  I could almost hear the trees sigh with relief.  I also found what looked to be grape vines?  They had wrapped themselves around the trunks of the trees all the way to the top.  I almost think some type of Ivy - but time will tell - unless I can get it fully killed before it leaf's out.

The "piles"

The piles don't look very impressive, but you wouldn't want to try to walk through here!  Next, I'll have it all to cut into pieces & haul to the fire to burn.  My goal - is to eventually earn the Yard of the Month title from our Glenwood Garden Club.  I think it's years away!  We also planted our second tree, a Black Austrian Pine - up near the top of the hill.  It gets huge, is hearty to 40 below, deer resistant & can live 500 years!

A very warm day!

 Tired & dirty, we sat out with cold drinks, watching the sun set behind the trees.   Six-months here now & so appreciative of the friends we've met & community that's welcomed us~

St. Patrick's Day ~

  The temperatures are back up & after a week of some pretty bitter cold, the warmth felt just fine! Farah had started to shed, then stopped.  Now, she's back at it.  Shannon & I decided to meet in the middle at Waubonsie State Park. 

Farah watches Haily

Last Sunday, Farah got her first shoes since our move.  This shoeing is different in many ways from what we've done.  A flat shoe, rather an an Eventer rim -  totally different type of dirt &/or mud here.  Pads with frog support - we've not used those before.  Only in front - (we usually do all the way around) & a different type of packing material.  Clips on the hind.  Today would be a little test, no rock though.  When in Rome...  :-)

Shannon & Haily going down~

We'll take the advice of our Farrier & see how it goes.  Far from flat - the steep short hills are good for a workout.  Shannon set a nice pace & we really enjoyed some longer stretches of trotting.  Farah had no issues, she moved out with a super easy stride.

Down the trail~

There was one tree & a couple shrubs that were actually opening their buds!  Otherwise, the overall look of the woods is still void of green.  We did find two decent size trees down across the trail, but easily got around.

Friends? :-)

Both mares seem to like each other :-)  Haily has figured out that I carry cookies or!  Carrots were the treat today!  We did a couple nice gallops & that's so fun with the soft dirt footing.  Farah really likes to dig in.  We're hoping to go to Kansas for an Endurance Ride the end of the month.

Shell Bark Hickory!

Shannon's husband identified the tree above!  I'm so excited to learn about all the new to me species of plant life here in Iowa.  I found a recently published book on the topic that I plan to order.

Shannon & Haily

It really was a prefect day - nice to enjoy being Out!  Farah really gave me a great ride, only a minor spook.  As we were coming back to camp - where Butch was studying & Nika relaxing in the sun - Haily decided that Nika just might be worth spooking at :-)

Back at Camp~

Butch washed Farah down, she loved it.    I'm anxious to give her a real bath...   Next week we make the trip to Nebraska Equine for our first visit with Dr. Black.  I've relied on Shannon & Roxi for referrals & Dr. Black is highly regarded.  Pilchuck has forwarded Farah's medical records - so I'm hoping for a seamless transition.

Butch & Farah

We had an unexpected issue with Farah's weight - but she soon picked it back up.  I'm looking forward to getting her on a scale to confirm that she's staying in her usual range.  We were sitting at the picnic table - I'd seen Farah drop her head to scratch her leg.  A second later she was off at a trot across the open field!  After outdistancing us, she had a good roll & began grazing.  She played with us for a few minutes before letting Butch re-clip the lead :-)

Farah's stable is close to our favorite place to eat!  We headed toward Tobey Jacks, but as we turned up the main street, were stopped by this team!

Main street Mineola

A huge auction to benefit the local Fire Dept. was in full swing - a cannon was going to be fired, silent auction of rooms full of items & of course rides in the buggies!  There were two teams waiting for passengers.

On our way!

What a fun ride!  We circled town for half-a-mile, these guys moving out at over 7 mph!  The big hill we went up, didn't even slow them down!

Two gorgeous drafts~

I'd given Farah all the rest of my carrots, these guys were so great!  By now I was starving, so inside we went, talk about food!  Butch had the mandatory green beer & even my Margarita was tinted!  :-) Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Nebraska Horse Trail Riding Expo.

The weather forecast had called for snow, but the morning dawned just gray & cold.  The thermometer working to rise to 20 degrees with a breeze.  No problem, perfect weather to make the drive to the Chance Ridge Equestrian Center in Elkhorn, NE.

A very large & very nice facility~

The Nebraska Horse Trails Committee has hosted this yearly event since 2015 & just from what we saw, do a wonderful job!  Daily entry fee was only $10. a great bargain!  Complete with vendors, lectures, demonstrations & clinics, it was a horseman's nirvana!

Inside the groups trailer~

This re-purposed trailer holds commercial grade equipment for trail-clearing events.  It would be the envy of some Back Country Horsemen Chapters!  I do have to admit though - that the fully equipped trailer that BCH used in WA - was overflowing compared to this very organized interior :-)

No messing around with Nebraska law!

With the proceeds from last years event, the group purchased the Mule below!  Very handy in this country of flatland's & rolling hills.

Nicely set up to do the job!

Butch is thinking that he'd like to have one of these as his town run-about!  :-)  The list of this groups accomplishments is long & impressive!  The state of Nebraska seems to be very friendly to it's Equestrian Trail Riders & there were many informational displays.  Even though the state is home to a variety of game & bird hunters, they make it possible for horsemen to share the wealth of parks & recreation spots.  Check out;  OutdoorNeraska.org/horsetrails - to find horse-friendly campsites & trails.

Very nice logo too~

Walking through the vendor booths - we were both struck with the friendliness of the people here!  Everyone takes the time to talk, the time to make you feel welcome & often swap stories.

Wonderful handwork!

One of my personal favorites, was the booth of Wild Hunt Tack.  Jessica hand makes many of her items.  This browband, all quality leather has a grove with tiny hooks at each end - making it possible for you to buy as many different beaded inserts as you might desire & interchange them!  Jessica is willing to do custom colors too!

 Reading our program, we couldn't help but sit in on Tom Seay's (Best of America on Horseback's) presentation on Trail Etiquette!  The stands were almost full - Tom made directed comments as we late comers arrived - so I had to reply;  "Washington!  Lizard Lake!"  That really caught his attention & he instantly recapped the story of our ride!  :-)

To say that he had the crowd in stitches is an understatement!  :-)  His tips included; park next to the biggest, fanciest rig.  That way if you've forgotten something - they're sure to have it.  Another - camp near the people with the neatly stacked pile of firewood, because they are the ones who love to  Dutch Oven cook & will invite you to share!

Tom & me~

We couldn't remember how long it had been, almost four-years went way too fast & yet here we were again!  Time to head south one of these days & check out Tennessee!  Tom did get serious too - when it comes to safety on the trail - sharing stories of unwanted helicopter rides for riders who ran into difficulty.

Goodies for us both!

When walking through the vendor hall, we'd spotted the EquestriSafe booth & went back to pick up another ID tag.  They have some really well made products & with an embroidery machine right there - we purchased a new ID bracelet for Farah - with our phone number & a Velcro rescue info. tag for me.

As Butch commented, another Ford man!

 Farah's new Farrier gave a presentation on shoeing & we were disappointed that it was not better attended.  It did though - give us a chance to ask questions about shoes & shoeing in such a different environment from what we've been used to.  We also met face-to-face Troy Lynn of Top Trail - who I'd conversed with long-distance.  She was a wealth of information on the Middle Of the Trail Distance Riders Association.

Back Country Horsemen of Iowa were represented with brochures & t-shirts available - we have our work cut out for us!  There are so many "friends" of whatever park groups here - we'll be figuring out a way to entice them to join BCH & be counted nationally!

 I met face-to-face several Facebook friends & that's always so fun!  We returned home with a bag full of goodies & plenty of reading material!

Indian Caves State Park, NE~

The weatherman had promised a sunny day.  I'd heard about Indian Caves State Park - but had thought that it was quite a distance away.  Shannon & I had been trying to get together for a ride for a while now, but we'd been stopped either by snow or cold.

Entrance~

This time, the weather cooperated & we were both excited to get out!  We discussed our meet-up plan & I couldn't find the exit # in Iowa?  No!  It was in Missouri & Shannon actually lives in MO!  :-)

Farah patiently waits~

Butch was up for taking us - he likes to see the new-to-us riding places as much as I do.  It's always a relief to me!  Google maps on my smartphone took us right to where Shannon was already waiting in just over an hour.  From there, we turned west & next thing we knew, we were crossing the state line into Nebraska.  It was a three state day!  By the time we arrived the day was going from wonderfully warm - to almost hot!  We filled out the form at the Ranger Station & wound our way around to the horse area. 

On our way!

Sitting up high on hills, this park is beautiful, with the miles of trails lacking most places we've been.  The only disappointment - if you can even call it that - was the park had just experienced a planned burn.  This must be done to control the brush & invasive plants - but I'm interested enough to look into it a little more.  Everything was charred & still smoking in places.  I didn't take a photo of the sign - but I was amazed to read the park is home to the Southern Flying Squirrel! 

Lower view point~

Shannon told me this was her favorite conditioning area - with lots of very steep hills.  I had to think she was pulling my leg.  After all, this is the mid-west, not the mountains.  Boy was I wrong!  We did nothing but climb & climb again!  Even Farah asked to stop to get her breath on the steepest - called; "Thigh master"!  The trail went along the top edge of the bluff - with steep drops off both sides.

Along the high point~

As Farah admired the view here, I reminded her she is probably one of the very few horses who have seen both the Columbia & the Missouri!

At the Columbia River - 5-2-15

The wind had been blowing when we started out & was really whipping up on the ridge.  You could see for miles & miles!

Farah & the Missouri

To say we did some climbing was an understatement!  Shannon's pretty mare Haily & Farah seemed to have an understanding.  When Farah stopped - at a large, burned tree - Haily moved forward & right past it!  If either was in the lead - the other was not to be left behind!  Put two endurance riders together & between swapping stories & riding - we had a ball.

Still on the Ridge~

The ridge went on for quite a way - the signs of Spring we'd hoped to see just weren't there.  The landscape had a stark look due to the burn.  It did open up views that will be gone once the tree's leaf out & things do get a chance to turn green.

Heading down~

The footing here, as you can see, was perfect for our unshod horses.  While we were out riding, Butch & Nika were hiking around the park & went to see the caves!

Petroglyph of Horse & Rider

 Butch got this great photo of one of the several amazing petroglyphs of unknown date or origin.  This area is rich in history.  After seeing Butch's photos, I want to go back & do some more exploring.

Our route~

When we returned to the trailers, both mares were sweaty with their winter coats soaked.  The wind if anything had picked up & we heard a large tree crack & fall.  Both mares had a good roll in the grass & good drink of water.  We'd only found one place on the trail that had water, the other spot was dry.  Once I got home & downloaded my Garmin I was amazed to see we'd had over 1,700 feet in elevation gain in the ten-mile ride!  I won't doubt Shannon again!  Great ride at a super great place!