Weather man says it should be warmed up to the 30's degrees mid week! Lately I have been thinking anything over 5 degrees, is warming up. Typical mind games we play with ourselves. What seemed cold in the summer, now will give me a thrill of short sleeve weather 50 degrees.
Ginger My Pony In Her Small Paddock
They don't mind but I do. There is no nuzzling between us. I not only have a cold air mask on so I can breath but still would not want that cold frost they brush off on me on my already cold cheeks. Only my eyes peep out of my defense to keep myself somewhat warm, by wearing layer over layer and wool instead of that thin cotton of long forgotten hot days of summer.
While mucking (cleaning) out their stalls, there are oodles of times stepping into the heated tack room to un-numb my fingers and breathe in the 50 degrees we heat it at. Somehow I now think that is hot and so welcomed.
The three cats, Gracie, percilla, and Crystal act like they are in hibernation, content to spend the whole day inside the tack room, perched on saddleblankets that cover the saddles, or in unlikely spots like the egg basket on the counter where I mix feed morning and night for the horses.
Percilla Is The Half Grown Kitten In The Basket, Gracie Is The Black and White Cat Sitting On The Blanket Covering One Of The Saddles.
In winter because Hawk and Refa are in their thirties they have a hard time keeping on weight, so they get a touch more of Senior grain mix in their dishes and some salt added in the winter. I lost a beautiful white Arabian gelding to colic one winter and the vet said I should add the salt to feed to get the horses to drink more water in the winter. It makes them thirsty. The outside water containers are heated but at night their buckets in their stalls are not, so the water is cold and horses are not crazy about cold water. We also give them lots of hay because that keeps them warm. They continually move about pushing it here and there looking for the good stuff which is bits of clover blossom or dry leaves of the small amount of alfalfa that sometimes appears in their hay. Because of the high wind chills and great amounts of snow falling this winter I have kept them in their stalls until things clear. That means using a lot more bales of wood chips $5.00 each. A cost that is necessary to prevent rotten hooves and sores from too much exposure of manure to their skin when they lay down at night. Keeping their stalls clean is more work and time consuming in winter because they do not have the lush pasture to graze on.
Somehow we all are suriving, waiting for those summer days again. I keep busy in the house because we no longer use the two small greenhouses because of the high cost of fuel. I pulled out another one of my loves, Quilt patterns. My sister sent me a new web blog; I wasn't familiar with, called "All About Applique" which has enough neat ideas and information to keep one busy for the whole winter! While browsing through all the delighful settings I came across a beautiful stain-glass quilt named 'In Memory of Barbaro", a Kentucky Derby horse that broke his leg and eventually lost its battle and died. It is the most beautiful image of a horse that I have ever seen! I immediately went to Sheril Drummond from Lexington, Ky blog sight called SERINDIPITYwhich shows the horse again and sells the pattern. I sent in my $13.35 for the pattern! I have done applique quilts before but this will be the challenge of my life to repeat what she has developed with her beautiful artistic talents. She too has so many things to pull up and look at in her blog. I recommend going to both sights, you will not be disappointed even if you do not quilt. It is just a joy to see all the beautiful art they have developed.
I admit I am a little rusty on my quilting because the past years I spent all my extra time in the geenhouses planting seeds, making cuttings of plants and growing flowers for the following summers gardens. The extra days and hours this winter have been spent reading, sewing, and again quilting. I am so excited about this new horse I will be getting, even though it will be displayed on the wall instead of in my barn!
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