Archive for Natural Boarding
After Ten Months of Record-Setting Weather…
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Cash’s left rear – Photo taken two weeks ago
Ten months ago we moved from dry, rocky southern California to middle Tennessee. I had done my homework and had conversed a lot with my pasture mentor Melanie Bowles (The Horses of Proud Spirit Sanctuary). Still I was very nervous. Our guys and gals had been living on hard rocky desert-like ground. All barefoot. Their hoof trims every eight weeks amounted to maintenance trims as they were wearing their hooves much like they would if they were in the wild. But they were moving to the soft (it turns out mushy) green grass pastures of middle Tennessee and we were being advised by many that our herd simply could not be out 24/7 on the “rich grasses” of this area. Read More→
Yippee! At Last! No More Excuses!
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Finally. Enough days of dry weather sandwiched together to get the grading done and get the pea gravel delivered and voila! We have a round pen. Kathleen returns for the summer (another yippee) in a couple of weeks – with her cameras – and then work with Noelle will begin in earnest. No more excuses. A Join-Up and a lead rope are in her future :). Meanwhile she will spend time Read More→
The next Tele-Workshop is set for July 17: Diet & Nutrition
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This 6-pound stone was taken from the tummy of a horse. It was
given to us by Dr. Matt and we keep it on a prominent
pedestal to remind us how important it is that we get
the diet right for our horses.
By popular demand the next tele-workshop will be on diet and nutrition. A Crazy Little Thing Called Love (TW2) – OR – Why Would You Ever Let Your Horse Eat That? This topic is a slippery slope, like running a military obstacle course, but we have a super group of guests who know the subject inside and out. First Read More→
The Absolute Best Film About Wild Horses I Ever Hope to See
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Cloud (on the right), mustang stallion of the
Pryor Mountains winning a mare
Ginger Kathrens’ motion picture camera has followed the life of Cloud since the day he was born – the day she named him – more than nine years ago. Across those years she has filmed three incredible PBS Specials on Cloud and his wild herd, but the latest one Cloud: Challenge of the Stallions (I call it Cloud 3 :) is truly the best compilation of the the most amazing footage I’ve ever seen that tells a story story so remarkable Read More→
Noelle Has a Sweet Spot
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Unfortunately it was a tick bite, but at least it served a purpose. I could give her something she loved. This became the routine for more than a week, until the bite began to heal and was no longer itchy. I immediately looked around for another tick…nooo, just kidding. Anyway, around here you don’t have to look far to find ‘em.
I love it when Kathleen comes home, camera in hand. I tend to forget about these sweet moments until I start browsing through her weekend of photos. I didn’t even know she was standing behind me when this next batch was taken. Read More→
Other Things That Make My Day
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Kent Maddock was after us for months and months to allow them to acquire Scribbles. If you’ve read the book you cannot help but remember Scribbles. One December Kent called and begged, saying he wanted Scribbles to be a surprise Christmas gift for his wife Laurra.
“Ohhh that’s so sweet,” Kathleen cooed, and my resistance shield Read More→
The Soul of a Horse Facebook Fan Page Draws More Than 1000 Fans in Two Days
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Yesterday I spent the entire day uploading 77 photos of Noelle and Malachi to our new Facebook fan page for the The Soul of a Horse. I don’t think I have the patience to do this. And I know I don’t have the emotional stability to do it when it means going back through all the photos of our wonderful boy horse Malachi. But do it I did, buckets of tears and all. The one above struck me hard. It was taken Read More→
I Wish You Moments That Calm Your Soul like This Does Mine
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It’s been too long. This is where Kathleen and I ate our first several dozen meals after the move last September. Breakfasts. Lunches. Dinners (or as they say here in middle Tennessee: Suppers). We would sit sometimes for an hour without a word. Just watching
the herd. Listening to the symphony of the frogs at night. The birds. The crickets. Smelling the roses. Without alternative. Locked up in the house over a seemingly endless winter, buried in work and warmth, the roses were fewer and further between. And easy to ignore. I often looked at it as a good thing because I was getting so much work done. Not bothered by those smelly old roses. But my spirit suffered. Read More→
A Crazy Little Thing Called Love
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Finally we’ve got the date set for our barefoot TeleWorkshop. Sorry it took so long. It’s called A Crazy Little Thing Called Love – or – Why Would You Ever Let Your Horses Go Barefoot? It’s not a “how-to” but rather a “why-to” workshop designed for people who are not yet convinced barefoot is the right thing to do, the loving thing to do. And for everyone who is already there but needs ammunition to ward off and convince all those friends and “not-so-friends” who think you’re nuts. This is a two-hour workshop with Joe, Kathleen, and Eddie Drabek, one of the foremost natural hoof specialists in the country, jammed full of facts, undeniable truths, and real-life experiences, with lots of Q&A after. Send your farrier! Check it out.
Joe, Kathleen, and Benji will be at Road to the Horse
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Meet Benji, Kathleen, and moi at Road the the Horse, the World Championship colt starting competition March 5-7 in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. Benji will make a special appearance at the event; I’ll be signing copies of The Soul of a Horse: Life Lessons from the Herd; and – by popular demand – Kathleen will be introducing Read More→
This Morning Began…
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…like this. The calm before the storm! Read More→
Learning the Hard Way
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I was so proud of myself. I would go out several times a day and chop the edges of the pond so the horses would have no problem getting water. I would often watch them when they came to the pond and if a thin coating of ice had formed one tap with a hoof would produce water and they would drink. As the number of days below freezing began to build into the double digits Read More→
Happy New Year Y’all! Ours Began Awesomely!
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2009 was a tough year; full of struggles, change, and pain. And much to remember. But 2010 began with an awesome reminder of what our task on this planet is all about. Read More→
Two Month Report: Happy Healthy Mustang Joins Happy Healthy Herd; Life Lessons
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Sometimes I have to haul off and slap myself.
Seriously.
Something to force the brain to stop racing around like a crazed maniac and take a deep breath. To pause and smell the roses. Or at least look at them. How many times in my life have I closed my eyes and dreamed of the above picture? And here it is. Part of our life. And I’m fretting about how far behind I am and how much I have to do. Read More→
The Buckskin Emerges
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Journal entry of May 25, 2009 – Not only does Malachi continue to grow (I had to raise the plank that keeps Noelle out of his playpen this week) his whiteness is now giving way to the buckskin underneath. Especially on his neck. See the photos above and below. Kathleen doesn’t usually get to show up in these posts because Read More→
Quite a Morning Adventure for Malachi!
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What a spectacular morning! Malachi really stretched his boundaries on his at-liberty walkabout. Although today it was a race-about. He had never ventured farther than Read More→
Hard to Believe Malachi is 7 Weeks Old! Lots of New Photos Below
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This photo was taken at 3 weeks old, but our boy horse is almost two months now (see below) and is definitely proving every day that deep down every horse on the planet would prefer to be in relationship than not. Born of two wild unhandled parents he is completely unafraid of people or other horses. Perhaps too much so. I’ve brought everyone from the herd Read More→
Spending Quality Time with Malachi
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I’m writing this on the 17th day of Malachi’s life, but this photo and all the ones below were actually taken on his 12th day. I’m spending so much time with him and Noelle that I’m sorry to say I’m having trouble keeping up with everything else, like photos, newsletters, even email. By the way, all the fantastic photos you’ll see in this journal entry Read More→
Malachi – The Soul of a Horse Continues
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Malachi’s 8th day on the planet.
Malachi is the last book in the Old Testament of the Bible. In Hebrew the word means messenger, and in the Book of Malachi the message is that change is coming.
Malachi intended to write a book about change.
I didn’t.
In fact I didn’t set out to write a book at all. Kathleen and I were just trying to figure out how to keep and care for a small group of horses that had somehow landed quite unexpectedly in our front yard. We were asking Read More→
Morning Surprise – It’s a Boy!
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We’re giddy. Last night everything was normal. No liquids anywhere. And this morning there he was. And mommy is very much a mommy. And very protective. This morning I couldn’t touch Read More→
