# Meet Pearl, New Horse



## Baymule

I have haunted the Kill Pen facebook sites forever, looking for a Tennessee Walker that slapped me sideways. I found her. I showed her to my husband and he already named her. I called the location and paid for her. We are going in the morning to pick her up.

She is VERY skinny and will need lots of TLC. She is 12 years old and 14.3 hands. 

Pearl's color markings are called Sabino.

https://www.twhbea.com/color/sabino/?v=7516fd43adaa

http://www.horse-genetics.com/sabino-horses.html

Horse colors and markings can get real detailed, DNA testing and so forth. I am quite happy without DNA testing to tell me something that is already pretty plain. She may/may not be registered, there are no papers. Don't really care about that either. She will be for our enjoyment, not for breeding. I see no point in adding to the over population of horses, it is much easier to go get one than it is to breed, raise, train one.


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## Latestarter

Congrats! Another hay burner for you!


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## Baymule

Almost home with her!


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## B&B Happy goats

Oh Bay, i am so happy for you.....love the markings and coloring,  i have no doubt you will have her up to par shortly......congratulations  on your rescue girl


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## Wehner Homestead

She’s beautiful Bay!! I’m so happy for you!


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## luvmypets

What a special soul, she seems so gentle. I look forward to watching her progress with you


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## Baymule

Loaded up. 






Pearl is in quarantine on the Pig Palace, now named the Horse Hotel. She has hay, water, shelter and a little moving around room. She hasn’t stopped eating hay yet. 






Pearl is going to get free feed hay and all the fresh water she wants. We got her a mineral salt block. This evening I will start giving her pellets, a cup or two, and increase it daily. 

@Devonviolet


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## Wehner Homestead

DD1 wants a horse so bad. DH isn’t inclined. We were doing lessons on riding but the instructor got pregnant and it was too much. I’m torn. We live on a farm and they are only young once...ugh!


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## B&B Happy goats

Wehner Homestead said:


> DD1 wants a horse so bad. DH isn’t inclined. We were doing lessons on riding but the instructor got pregnant and it was too much. I’m torn. We live on a farm and they are only young once...ugh!


Go for it woman....you only live once, besides  it will keep her busy and away from trouble.


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## Baymule

@Wehner Homestead  I saved my nickels and dimes when I was a kid and amassed the small fortune of $200. At age 12 I announced that I was going to buy a horse, watched the Houston Chronicle ads and called about an Appaloosa filly. I got directions, the whole bit, and my Daddy took me to see her. My Mom about had a cow. I bought her, my Daddy found a place to board her and I spent every moment I could with her. Taking care of and riding my horse was the best part of my teenage years. 

He!! YES. Buy your daughter a horse. You are 100% right, they are only young ONE time, then they are grown and gone. Have all the fun and make all the memories you can. And while you're at it, get a horse for yourself too, riding together will be the best memories of her childhood.


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## Wehner Homestead

Now to convince DH and find a horse broke enough for DD1....stay tuned! Lol


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## B&B Happy goats

I LOVE YOU BAYMULE...YOU GOT THAT RIGHT ON !  .....I  only wish that i even had a possibility  of doing something  like that with either of my parents..... @Baymule


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## Baymule

I gave her 2 cups of pellets. Not one morsel escaped her. I m going to wait a couple of days to worm her.


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## Baymule

Wehner Homestead said:


> Now to convince DH and find a horse broke enough for DD1....stay tuned! Lol


I know you see the posts that @promiseacres makes of the family camping and riding horses. Now THAT is what I call family fun.


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## B&B Happy goats

Pearl looks like she has found her piece of paradise  with you. I'm  soooooo happy for her and for you


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## promiseacres

Baymule said:


> I know you see the posts that @promiseacres makes of the family camping and riding horses. Now THAT is what I call family
> 
> Someday we need to plan a BYH trail and camping trip...


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## Bunnylady

I'm dying to see some weight on that animal, and I'm betting you are too (refeeding a starved horse sure takes a heap of patience, doesn't it?), but she already looks blissfully happy. Congrats on your new horse!


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## B&B Happy goats

Well good morning miss Pearl, i hope you are just lovin your new home, I'm  sure your new momma is feedin you lots of great stuff. I wouldn't  be surprised  to find her in the kitchen baking you a oat cake...i  know you will love her  as much as she already loves you...would you please give miss bay a big old sloppy lick across the cheek  for me...i know she'll  be tickled pink if ya do....eat alot and heeeeee, say hello to Bay


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## Mini Horses

I have always been an admirer of horses  Parents from WV & dad in Navy (mostly on ship) and we live in Norfolk, VA because of that.  Trips to visit GPs meant seeing the little mine ponies and getting to ride any horse/pony my grandad could arrange with neighbors.  

ALWAYS  wanted my own  & dad agreed but mom nixed.  Hey, we lived in an apartment, eventually a house in a residential area.  Dad & I wanted land, mom NO.   So the USN sent us to Cuba.  While there dad traded his rowboat for a horse that was known by others to be a touch "wild".  We did not.  I had ridden it accidentally shortly before the buy.   Yes, several single guys had cowboyed him and he responded by bucking them off -- several times.    Being a 12 y/o girl (as you were with first, Bay) I wanted to love and brush and hug....the horse responded and in kind, we built an unseparable bond.   I could do anything with Joker -- we loved each other!!   He was great for me to ride, sensible, gentle, responding.  Let a man get on him and he was wild again!    Jekyl & Hyde.

Mom fumed at the original ownership  ($12.50 a month board at the bases family corral).   Dad & I loved it!
Broke my heart when I had to sell him to return statside.  Only option.   I still have video of us.  A big chestnut gelding with a white star...who loved a little girl who worshipped him. I even brushed his teeth     What does kid know??  He let me.


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## B&B Happy goats

oh mini.......


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## Baymule

Pearl’s morning report. Not a blade of hay left. We gave her more hay and 3 cups of Feed. She licked it all up, chewed with lips closed, not dropping any pellets. Several poop piles, good, insides are in working order.


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## Latestarter

All good so far! Let's hope it continues so! That's gotta be one happy horse.


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## Bunnylady

Baymule said:


> Several poop piles, good, insides are in working order.



Does anyone else even approach a horse person's obsession with poop?!

I still remember checking the ground in the pen of a horrifyingly skinny horse we had come in a few years back. For the first couple of days, his poop looked like mud; I have no idea what he'd been eating. Seeing it become fibrous and formed was a huge relief!


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## Baymule

I had a breakthrough with Pearl. I found her scratchy spot, where the bottom of her neck joins her chest. I started scratching and she stopped eating hay, even stopped chewing the mouthful she had. I walked back a few steps and she followed, wanting more.  I scratched some more, stopped and she went back to her hay. I went out the gate and she came to me, so I went back in and gave her more scratches. 

Training note; always leave on a positive. Then their last memory of you is that it was pleasant. Walk away leaving them wanting more, don't keep on until you become annoying.


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## B&B Happy goats

It's  all about the poop....animals , people....gotta have good poop!  Love the moment you shared with Pearl, gotta love that sweet spot


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## B&B Happy goats

Goodmorning to Bay and Miss Pearl, hope you both are fallin in love with each other....waiting on more pictures ...have a awsome day together


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## OneFineAcre

Congratulations on the new horse.  She looks like she's happy with her new home and family.


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## Baymule

I gave her 4 cups of feed this morning and 5 cups of feed this evening. Her flanks are still sunk in, but looking a little smoother. She is hungry! We keep hay in front of her, she is already looking better. I'm not doing much with her yet, I just want her to get enough to eat and settle in a little bit.


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## B&B Happy goats

Baymule said:


> I gave her 4 cups of feed this morning and 5 cups of feed this evening. Her flanks are still sunk in, but looking a little smoother. She is hungry! We keep hay in front of her, she is already looking better. I'm not doing much with her yet, I just want her to get enough to eat and settle in a little bit.


Looking forward to seeing the new and healthy Pearl...she is so lucky you found her


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## B&B Happy goats

B&B Happy goats said:


> Looking forward to seeing the new and healthy Pearl...she is so lucky you found her


Would you consider adopting this old nag ?


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## Baymule




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## B&B Happy goats

Baymule said:


>


Dang, I was serious, don't eat much ,know where to poop and have my own companion goatssssss


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## Baymule

Well, that's different! Since you know where to poop, come on over! Sure hate stepping in that stuff!


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## canesisters

I've rescued 2 skinny seniors and it seemed like it took FOREVER for their skinny little necks to finally fill out.  Someone told me that horses gain weight backwards (hips first, then shoulders, then neck).  I'm curious to see if you and Pearl have the same experience. 
She's pretty now, she's going to be breathtaking once she's healthy again.


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## Simpleterrier

I know I know but I can't help it. So how long until she is market weight and in the freezer with Mr pig?


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## Simpleterrier

Just kidding @Baymule


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## Baymule

Simpleterrier said:


> I know I know but I can't help it. So how long until she is market weight and in the freezer with Mr pig?


How fortunate that Wilbur is in the freezer now and we had that pen and shelter for her.


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## Baymule

This afternoon, the sun came out. Cold, but not raining, and sunshine! Pearl stopped eating to go stand in the sun and bask in it's rays. I got a lead rope and brushes, looped the lead over a fence post and brushed her. I gave her more hay, this evening she got 6 cups of pellets, been slowly increasing how much she gets. Her flanks were so caved in  and now they have filed out a little. It was nice to see her feel good enough to stop eating for awhile and go soak up some sunshine.


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## B&B Happy goats

"Hay" Miss Pearl  and Baymule..... hope your day great and the bonding is getting stronger


Baymule said:


> This afternoon, the sun came out. Cold, but not raining, and sunshine! Pearl stopped eating to go stand in the sun and bask in it's rays. I got a lead rope and brushes, looped the lead over a fence post and brushed her. I gave her more hay, this evening she got 6 cups of pellets, been slowly increasing how much she gets. Her flanks were so caved in  and now they have filed out a little. It was nice to see her feel good enough to stop eating for awhile and go soak up some sunshine.


I am so enjoying pearls story and your journy with her....this is going to be awsome for both of you


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## robhuncor

Pearl looks beautiful, is she the Tennessee Walker that you wanted?  Do you know how old she is?  Take it slow with the grain, starved horses have to get their guts used to feed again so suddenly hitting them with a lot of rich grain can cause colic or laminitis. Usually you start off with just hay while they get their guts back in order.  So far it sounds like she's managing ok with the grain though.  Good luck with her.


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## Baymule

Thanks @robhuncor ive had her 4 days. She has a long road back to recovery, it is going to take time. She is pretty now, once she is slicked out she will be stunningly beautiful.


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## Southern by choice

I am so happy for you! 

I think I am even happier for her! I know she will have the best place and best person to care for her.  


I share this little blurb for you and @Wehner Homestead 
Before we got goats the girls wanted a pony.
My sister had horses and we knew the crazy expense.
My DH was like NO, no pony!
I said your girls are little once and every little girl wants a pony. You will be their HERO! Forever!
After awhile it clearly was not something we could do here. And very expensive.
He mentioned getting goats.
We got goats.  

Moral of this story... If he'd a just gotten that pony....

 I am sure one pony would have worked out far less then the bajillion goats we have and all that goes with it!


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## robhuncor

Even scrawny she is beautiful now so when she fills out it will be amazing! In my 30 years in the horse business, I've seen some horrible cases of neglect and it takes a lot of patience.  It can be quite complicated and time consuming to get them back to health but each case is different and it is very rewarding in the end.  I think the process is good for the humans helping as well as the horse!  It forges a bond and gives you a sense of accomplishment like no other.


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## B&B Happy goats

I'm  still so happy for you and Pearl


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## Baymule

She whickered at me this evening when I took her pellets to her. She was pacing the fence, wanting her pellets. I was happy that she felt good enough to pace the fence and happy that she now recognizes that I bring her feed. She did behave well when I poured her pellets in the tub, no crowding or ears pinned back. 

I forgot to give her more hay and had already taken off my farm shoes and sat down. DH still had his boots on, so he went out there to give her hay for the night. Pearl came to the fence and he patted her and hugged her neck. 

Pearl got a small watermelon from the garden today. She ate most of it and enjoyed it.

I checked her for sand in her gut this morning. The way you do that is to take several fresh horse poop balls and put them in a jar. Add water and shake. Let it settle. If there is sand in the bottom, the horse has sand in their intestinal tract and needs help. There is a horse product called Sand Clear which is Psyllium husk. It pushes the sand out and cleans up the gut. I looked carefully at the jar this evening and there was no sand in the bottom. 

this is Pearl yesterday, she already looks a little better.


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## B&B Happy goats

You go PEARL MOMMA !  She is looking better ...


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## Baymule

@robhuncor this is a gelding we bought in January 2017. He was thin, but nowhere near as skinny as Pearl is. She is going to take a lot of patience. 











This was May of 2017






His mane is now all grown out and he is a pretty boy!


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## robhuncor

What a transformation for the chestnut gelding!  So shiny and plump!  From the pictures of Pearl, she's very thin but, interestingly, her feet don't look bad for a neglected horse.


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## Baymule

robhuncor said:


> What a transformation for the chestnut gelding!  So shiny and plump!  From the pictures of Pearl, she's very thin but, interestingly, her feet don't look bad for a neglected horse.


Can you take a close look of the bump on Pearl's back, about where the back of the saddle would be? I tried looking it up and found something called "hunter's back" and that a bump like that can be caused by an ill fitting saddle, which would be the more likely conclusion. Do you have any knowledge or experience about that? Most of what I was reading said that their horse had no pain from it. I have pressed down with my hands and she doesn't react.


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## Amelie the Bee Keeper

I can't wait to see what she becomes! She is lovely and I think, when you get a bit more meat on her, you could maybe show her


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## Amelie the Bee Keeper

Baymule said:


> Can you take a close look of the bump on Pearl's back, about where the back of the saddle would be? I tried looking it up and found something called "hunter's back" and that a bump like that can be caused by an ill fitting saddle, which would be the more likely conclusion. Do you have any knowledge or experience about that? Most of what I was reading said that their horse had no pain from it. I have pressed down with my hands and she doesn't react.


That bump is natural (looking at the skeleton) so since she is underweight, I would wait until she has more weight to judge


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## goatgurl

wow, your pig weighed almost as much as pearl.  congrats bay, she is going to be a beautiful girl.  she is one lucky pony. I miss my horses so much.   like the others i'll be anxious to see what she looks like in a few months.


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## Baymule

This morning Pearl was pacing the fence wanting HAY! And FEED! She tore hay out of my hands before I even got it in the trough. Now she stands at the fence, pawing impatiently while I get her pellets. She is feeling much better, I know it's a bad habit, but I can't help but be amused that she now feel good enough to be pitching a little hissy fit.


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## B&B Happy goats

Baymule said:


> This morning Pearl was pacing the fence wanting HAY! And FEED! She tore hay out of my hands before I even got it in the trough. Now she stands at the fence, pawing impatiently while I get her pellets. She is feeling much better, I know it's a bad habit, but I can't help but be amused that she now feel good enough to be pitching a little hissy fit.


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## B&B Happy goats

"She is your horse and you are not required to defend her behavior to anyone" if she is at the fence demanding her feed....then i say she is happy as hel... you saved her butt from the glue factory...enjoy her your way Bay


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## frustratedearthmother

First thing that comes to mind is "fat and sassy."   She might need a reminder that it's Bay's way or the ... well...it's Bay's way!


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## Bunnylady

Baymule said:


> She tore hay out of my hands before I even got it in the trough.





B&B Happy goats said:


> "She is your horse and you are not required to defend her behavior to anyone"



The behavior that Baymule described and I quoted here is simply unacceptable, no matter how hungry the horse is. It is a behavior that folks who do rescues often encounter when refeeding a starved horse; they are "soft" with the animal because they feel sorry for it, but the horse sees that as weakness, so as soon as it feels strong enough, it begins challenging them, often over food. This isn't a behavior that Baymule will have to defend_ to_ anyone, it's a thing she may soon have to defend herself _from (_food aggressive horses are just plain dangerous), so I'm sure she knows she needs to nip it in the bud.


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## B&B Happy goats

@Bunnylady, my comment was a reference to something  i had posted on another thread,  it was ment to amuse Bay and in no way was a reflection to anything that you had said. Or posted.... im sorry if you took it that way as i hadn't  read your post, please accept  my apologies  Barbara...just went back a few pages and couldn't  find the post you are referring  too ?  
 But since  my comment was not meant  to be a reflection  or a reference  to what had said by you, i guess this is a mute  point.


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## Bunnylady

@B&B Happy goats Yes, I know you were joking, but there are horse greenhorns reading this thread who may not realize how serious a matter this is. I worked as a feeder at a barn for a few years, and I know first hand that, when you just come in, put down the feed, and leave, an awful lot of horses will assume that they can push you around. I lost count of the number that I had to remind that it ain't their feed until I says it's their feed . . . and believe me, there's nothing like snarling at a skinny horse for trying to grab a mouthful of hay to make you feel like a bully. But having had to carry a weapon (usually a lead rope) into a stall for _weeks_ because the horse inside would attack anyone carrying feed or hay really drove home to me how bad food aggression can be.


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## Baymule

@Bunnylady I couldn't agree with you more. We bought a skinny gelding in January 2017 and as he felt better, he got some nasty manners to go with it. I put my hand on his chest and made him back up. I poured out his feed and stood in front of it, and made him back up some more. Only when he stopped fretting did I step aside and tall him Take it. He got over being pushy real quick. I still do it every so often just to remind him who the "lead mare" is. LOL LOL  I never let him reach in the bucket to get a bite of feed before pouring it in his tub, either.  You might remember him, a pretty chestnut with blaze face and stocking legs. he is fat and roly-poly now. 

I put the hay in through an opening, thus not walking in the pen/shelter. This is my pig pen, designed to feed and water without me having to go in there and risk getting bit by a hog. We built it less than a year ago. Some of the pigs are friendly and I am ok with them, some of them give me the creeps and I would never walk in their pen to feed/water without my husband being outside. I also carried a pipe to fend them off. So this pen is wonderful for raising pigs and much safer. That is why Pearl was able to start eating the hay before I even dropped it in the trough. 

I do make a point of taking her feed in there, talking to her, petting her and making her wait as I pour the feed in a tub. She does not back her ears or act out. yes she is impatient because she is hungry, but not in a pushy, ill mannered way. She is feeling better, she paws when she sees me coming with feed. I don't like a pawing horse.  I am amused for now, but hoping that she calms down when she gains weight. The little chestnut gelding did. 

I have even made horses stand away, while I pretended to eat their feed, just to show them that I was the boss. I made smacking noises, telling them that it was delicious and MINE.


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## promiseacres

Don't take @Baymule's hay.... she might kick...  
 it's good to hear she's feeling better. Am sure you'll nip any naughtiness in the bud 
Feeding a 1000# food aggressive animal is no joke.


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## Baymule

Wouldn't you know it? Here we are discussing food aggressive and Pearl got a little too anxious as I poured her feed in the tub. All I did, I swear, was to put out my arm, palm up in a "stop" signal and she tossed her head...… WHAM! It IS a Pig Palace with low ceilings (pigs are short) and Pearl whalloped her head on the ceiling. Talk about a DO NOT CROWD ME lesson!!!  She shied away with me telling her, "I didn't do that to you, you did that to yourself." I put my arm up again, palm up, and held her off for several minutes. And that's_ all_ I did. She came towards me several times, but "tell it to the hand" stopped her in her tracks. That mean ol' hand knocked her in the head and she didn't want any more of it.  I went soft on my posture and she came in to eat. I rubbed her neck and talked to her. It should be interesting to see how she behaves tomorrow. 

After our discussion, I got to remembering a mare I once had. She was 16.2 hands and weighed over 1200 pounds. She challenged Sparkles, my TWH mare who was and at 31 years old, still is the lead mare. Sparkles chased her away from the herd, not letting her eat, so I took her tub further away to feed her. Sparkles went out of her way to chase that mare away. I upturned a bucket to sit on, just to watch the herd dynamics. This went on for days. Sparkles would not let her near. That poor mare stood on the outer fringes, badly wanting "in" but Sparkles wasn't having it. Finally, after a week, Sparkles let her join the herd. Thoroughly chastised, the mare took her place in the herd, #2, right behind Sparkles. 

This big mare got food aggressive. At over 1200 pounds, it could get to be a problem real fast. I got a plastic grocery bag and shook it at her, chased her away from her feed and to add insult to injury, picked up handfulls of feed and pretended to eat it. I just did to her what I observed Sparkles doing to her. I did this for several weeks and every so often, gave her a 'tuneup" lest she forget.


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## B&B Happy goats

Baymule said:


> Wouldn't you know it? Here we are discussing food aggressive and Pearl got a little too anxious as I poured her feed in the tub. All I did, I swear, was to put out my arm, palm up in a "stop" signal and she tossed her head...… WHAM! It IS a Pig Palace with low ceilings (pigs are short) and Pearl whalloped her head on the ceiling. Talk about a DO NOT CROWD ME lesson!!!  She shied away with me telling her, "I didn't do that to you, you did that to yourself." I put my arm up again, palm up, and held her off for several minutes. And that's_ all_ I did. She came towards me several times, but "tell it to the hand" stopped her in her tracks. That mean ol' hand knocked her in the head and she didn't want any more of it.  I went soft on my posture and she came in to eat. I rubbed her neck and talked to her. It should be interesting to see how she behaves tomorrow.
> 
> After our discussion, I got to remembering a mare I once had. She was 16.2 hands and weighed over 1200 pounds. She challenged Sparkles, my TWH mare who was and at 31 years old, still is the lead mare. Sparkles chased her away from the herd, not letting her eat, so I took her tub further away to feed her. Sparkles went out of her way to chase that mare away. I upturned a bucket to sit on, just to watch the herd dynamics. This went on for days. Sparkles would not let her near. That poor mare stood on the outer fringes, badly wanting "in" but Sparkles wasn't having it. Finally, after a week, Sparkles let her join the herd. Thoroughly chastised, the mare took her place in the herd, #2, right behind Sparkles.
> 
> This big mare got food aggressive. At over 1200 pounds, it could get to be a problem real fast. I got a plastic grocery bag and shook it at her, chased her away from her feed and to add insult to injury, picked up handfulls of feed and pretended to eat it. I just did to her what I observed Sparkles doing to her. I did this for several weeks and every so often, gave her a 'tuneup" lest she forget.


Cool story Bay, if anyone can recondition Pearl, it's you. She will learn things...your way


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## Baymule

It's not so hard, just speak their language. People always want to pat a horse. In response, I pat them. Right on their forehead, pat, pat, pat, pat,pat, pat.....while they look at me like I am nuts. "Is this annoying?" YES! "Well when you do that to a horse, it is annoying." In the horse world, there is NO PATTING. They do not pat each other. Ever. Patting is not in their language. 

A mare licks her foal, long, loving licks and it is soothing, calming. So give your horse long, loving strokes with your hand. Horses will scratch each other with their teeth, so scratch your horse's favorite spots. 

In the same way, horses never pick up a 2x4 and club each other over the head. So why do people do it? I am no trainer in the sense that I can teach a show horse, but I can listen to them when they speak through their actions. There are people here on this forum much, much better than I, but I think Pearl and I will works things out,  that will make both of us happy.


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## Amelie the Bee Keeper

Bunnylady said:


> @B&B Happy goats Yes, I know you were joking, but there are horse greenhorns reading this thread who may not realize how serious a matter this is. I worked as a feeder at a barn for a few years, and I know first hand that, when you just come in, put down the feed, and leave, an awful lot of horses will assume that they can push you around. I lost count of the number that I had to remind that it ain't their feed until I says it's their feed . . . and believe me, there's nothing like snarling at a skinny horse for trying to grab a mouthful of hay to make you feel like a bully. But having had to carry a weapon (usually a lead rope) into a stall for _weeks_ because the horse inside would attack anyone carrying feed or hay really drove home to me how bad food aggression can be.


I had to put away this 17h giant (Great for someone who is 5'2") and he had some hay in his stall. Welp! He was a good boy that time but all I need to do is a wide turn and push him. I hate how pushy some can be but I have learned! You should not mess with the short lady at the barn or else there will some payment!  JK, I wouldn't do anything bad to a horse as I am very sensitive but I will give them a good little smack on their shoulder. I am not like that lady at my old barn who hit a horse very hard on his face!


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## Amelie the Bee Keeper

Baymule said:


> Wouldn't you know it? Here we are discussing food aggressive and Pearl got a little too anxious as I poured her feed in the tub. All I did, I swear, was to put out my arm, palm up in a "stop" signal and she tossed her head...… WHAM! It IS a Pig Palace with low ceilings (pigs are short) and Pearl whalloped her head on the ceiling. Talk about a DO NOT CROWD ME lesson!!!  She shied away with me telling her, "I didn't do that to you, you did that to yourself." I put my arm up again, palm up, and held her off for several minutes. And that's_ all_ I did. She came towards me several times, but "tell it to the hand" stopped her in her tracks. That mean ol' hand knocked her in the head and she didn't want any more of it.  I went soft on my posture and she came in to eat. I rubbed her neck and talked to her. It should be interesting to see how she behaves tomorrow.
> 
> After our discussion, I got to remembering a mare I once had. She was 16.2 hands and weighed over 1200 pounds. She challenged Sparkles, my TWH mare who was and at 31 years old, still is the lead mare. Sparkles chased her away from the herd, not letting her eat, so I took her tub further away to feed her. Sparkles went out of her way to chase that mare away. I upturned a bucket to sit on, just to watch the herd dynamics. This went on for days. Sparkles would not let her near. That poor mare stood on the outer fringes, badly wanting "in" but Sparkles wasn't having it. Finally, after a week, Sparkles let her join the herd. Thoroughly chastised, the mare took her place in the herd, #2, right behind Sparkles.
> 
> This big mare got food aggressive. At over 1200 pounds, it could get to be a problem real fast. I got a plastic grocery bag and shook it at her, chased her away from her feed and to add insult to injury, picked up handfulls of feed and pretended to eat it. I just did to her what I observed Sparkles doing to her. I did this for several weeks and every so often, gave her a 'tuneup" lest she forget.


That is smart and funny too but horses who are [food] aggressive are no joke! Best way to teach them is like what other horses would do to them


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## frustratedearthmother

Baymule said:


> ight on their forehead, pat, pat, pat, pat,pat, pat.....


I used to work with a vet who would do that to distract a horse... pat, pat, pat...(or more correctly - tap, tap, tap, tap, tap) right between their eyes.  Works like a charm!  But, it works because it is annoying enough to the horse that it diverts their attention.


----------



## High Desert Cowboy

Baymule said:


> Wouldn't you know it? Here we are discussing food aggressive and Pearl got a little too anxious as I poured her feed in the tub. All I did, I swear, was to put out my arm, palm up in a "stop" signal and she tossed her head...… WHAM! It IS a Pig Palace with low ceilings (pigs are short) and Pearl whalloped her head on the ceiling. Talk about a DO NOT CROWD ME lesson!!!  She shied away with me telling her, "I didn't do that to you, you did that to yourself." I put my arm up again, palm up, and held her off for several minutes. And that's_ all_ I did. She came towards me several times, but "tell it to the hand" stopped her in her tracks. That mean ol' hand knocked her in the head and she didn't want any more of it.  I went soft on my posture and she came in to eat. I rubbed her neck and talked to her. It should be interesting to see how she behaves tomorrow.
> 
> After our discussion, I got to remembering a mare I once had. She was 16.2 hands and weighed over 1200 pounds. She challenged Sparkles, my TWH mare who was and at 31 years old, still is the lead mare. Sparkles chased her away from the herd, not letting her eat, so I took her tub further away to feed her. Sparkles went out of her way to chase that mare away. I upturned a bucket to sit on, just to watch the herd dynamics. This went on for days. Sparkles would not let her near. That poor mare stood on the outer fringes, badly wanting "in" but Sparkles wasn't having it. Finally, after a week, Sparkles let her join the herd. Thoroughly chastised, the mare took her place in the herd, #2, right behind Sparkles.
> 
> This big mare got food aggressive. At over 1200 pounds, it could get to be a problem real fast. I got a plastic grocery bag and shook it at her, chased her away from her feed and to add insult to injury, picked up handfulls of feed and pretended to eat it. I just did to her what I observed Sparkles doing to her. I did this for several weeks and every so often, gave her a 'tuneup" lest she forget.



Mares!  They love to hate each other.  When I was cowboying, we ran over 75 horses that we divided into 3 smaller corrals, one large corral, and the idiot pasture.  We’d put everyone into the large gen pop corral and over a week separate some into the other corrals.  We had the gator pit (mostly half drafts), the colt pen, and the b**** pen for the mares.  Idiot pasture was reserved for the owners Percheron mares, the name is self explanatory.  Jack did great in gen pop with his dad and brothers.  But bro is a fighting beggar and went to the colt pen where they wouldn’t try to fight back.  When we got home, Bro would push Jack around the same way, so I put him in the round corral and we had a talk.  Then we’d go back and if he acted up I’d chase him out until he’d lower his head and ask to be let in. We love em, but they got to understand who’s the Alpha.  With two or three, that’s easy to establish at feeding time.  Sounds like Pearl is coming along fine.  I do like a Tennessee walker, they’re definitely a smooth ride.  You could put a beverage on your saddle horn and there wouldn’t be a ripple.


----------



## Bruce

B&B Happy goats said:


> Would you consider adopting this old nag ?


Only if you are willing to eat hay and grain.


----------



## robhuncor

Baymule said:


> Can you take a close look of the bump on Pearl's back, about where the back of the saddle would be? I tried looking it up and found something called "hunter's back" and that a bump like that can be caused by an ill fitting saddle, which would be the more likely conclusion. Do you have any knowledge or experience about that? Most of what I was reading said that their horse had no pain from it. I have pressed down with my hands and she doesn't react.


Sorry,for some reason I have not been receiving the new posts.  I agree with Amelie - that bump looks like a part of her spine that isn't normally sticking out there but should recede when she gains weight.  
My experience has been almost exclusively with Thoroughbreds, mostly mares and foals, some stallions and horses off the racetrack.  In my job, I often made rounds with the vet and wrote down all his comments and the results of his reproductive exams, and all other conditions he treated.  It was a great learning experience.  I have seen the conformation of a lot of different horses in all sorts of condition.  That bump looks normal.


----------



## robhuncor

Pearl might be feeling well enough for a little lunge work.  I'm no trainer, you sound like you have an intuitive feel for your horses so you can tell if she's ready, but it might help to focus her on you as the boss - and also work off a little excess new-found energy!


----------



## Baymule

robhuncor said:


> Sorry,for some reason I have not been receiving the new posts.  I agree with Amelie - that bump looks like a part of her spine that isn't normally sticking out there but should recede when she gains weight.
> My experience has been almost exclusively with Thoroughbreds, mostly mares and foals, some stallions and horses off the racetrack.  In my job, I often made rounds with the vet and wrote down all his comments and the results of his reproductive exams, and all other conditions he treated.  It was a great learning experience.  I have seen the conformation of a lot of different horses in all sorts of condition.  That bump looks normal.


Thank you. After researching it more, I believe you are correct. She is just very, very skinny.


----------



## Amelie the Bee Keeper

robhuncor said:


> Sorry,for some reason I have not been receiving the new posts.  I agree with Amelie - that bump looks like a part of her spine that isn't normally sticking out there but should recede when she gains weight.
> My experience has been almost exclusively with Thoroughbreds, mostly mares and foals, some stallions and horses off the racetrack.  In my job, I often made rounds with the vet and wrote down all his comments and the results of his reproductive exams, and all other conditions he treated.  It was a great learning experience.  I have seen the conformation of a lot of different horses in all sorts of condition.  That bump looks normal.


Could you share that information with me as I would love to look at it so I can learn? It is fine if you don't want me to look at it


----------



## robhuncor

I was just going by what I've seen myself over the years.  And also having rescued a pregnant mare with a broken pelvis.  In spite of that, she was sound and when she had gained some weight and given birth (with no problems, amazingly) you could hardly see her pelvis was slightly dropped on one side.  She was fine for the rest of her life.


----------



## Ferguson K

Following her journey. 

I have two KP rescues. We rescued five last year. One I gave to a friend because she has a luxating patella. No good for riding. One was bat**** crazy and tried to kill several people. She went back. One had a terminal illness and we lost her after several months of fighting. The other two were worth their weight in gold. 

Luck of the draw with these things but we were well aware of the risks. 

She looks fairly healthy aside from being thin. Looks like she came from Kaufman?


----------



## Baymule

Yep, Kaufman Kill Pen. It's buying a pig in a poke, but WTH, we'll take the chance. So far, she is a nice mare. She could get a personality make over once she gets some weight on her, we'll see. Kate, you know how it is...… I saw her picture and just had to go get her. LOL LOL  what I find amazing is that her hooves are in such good shape, trimmed and neat. Someone just rode the heck out of her and didn't feed her. There are no founder rings on her hooves, I have to laugh at that, she sure hasn't suffered from overeating! 
How are you doing? Do we have a baby yet?


----------



## Ferguson K

It is definitely a risk getting them from there. The two we still have at the house both had major, major illnesses when they arrived. The blind mare had Rhino and the colt had strangles. Your mare seems healthy and active and that's really good!! We kept all five in QT for 90 days, which is 3x as long as most people recommend... Good thing too. Sven's strangles didn't show up until around day 45. He would've been in the herd by then by most standards.

And trust me I definitely know how it is. The blind mare we drove 18 hours to pick up because she looks JUST LIKE a young version of my mustang mare. We knew her eyes were bad based on the videos and pictures, but the vet confirmed she had detached retinas when we got her home. Poor thing. She has a seeing eye buddy ( a Shetland ) that keeps her safe among the three able bodied horses.

As gorgeous as your mare is I can't WAIT to see her once she fills out and fills in. Mom raised TWH and said she looks very well bred. I love the sabino markings. She has sweet eyes too. You can't hide a mean personality behind sweet eyes. Somewhere that mare has papers I'd be willing to bet on it. 

You're lucky she's got good feet. We've been working on the feet of the three year old for a year now. He's finally getting 'good' feet at almost four years old. He also shot up from 14.1 hands to 16.1 hands and gained 500+ lbs. Hahaha. 

No baby yet. Going in at ten today to set my appointment to get him out!


----------



## Baymule

We were planning on at least 45 days, possibly more to keep her from being bullied. Thinking I'll lean heavily into 90 days now. Thanks for the heads up. 

I am so happy for you. You have a HUGE loving heart and I know you are going to make the best Mom ever. That's one Blessed baby to have you for his Mom.


----------



## kdogg331

Wow gorgeous horse! Glad to see you are making some progress already and I hope it continues. 

I would love a horse of my own one day but they're so expensive and I'm trying to save for other stuff. Maybe one day though. I might get sheep or goats in the meantime though or at least some bunnies. I really want a mustang eventually because they're just raw horse and speak horse, they haven't been ruined or spoiled by people yet, so may be easier to train and connect with, plus healthier and good feet, but of course they also probably need a lot of horse experience which I don't have


----------



## Baymule

@kdogg331 if you have never had a horse, your first horse should be an older, experienced, been-there-done-that horse. Age should be from 10 to 18 years old. Don't be afraid of getting an older horse, they have a lot to give and would be a good teacher for you.


----------



## Ridgetop

Absolutely agree with Baymule on that.  Some mustangs are great and some aren't.  Either way, you want to get a horse and RIDE!  When you adopt a mustang, (which is what is sounds like you want to do) most are only 12-18 months old, still too young to break, let alone ride.  Get an older horse between 10 and 16.  You will have more fun, and get all the experience and enjoyment of riding and caring for a horse.  If you get a young horse that is not even started, it can be a couple of years before you can ride, and several thousand dollars into training him.  Then the horse is still green and has to be introduced to traffic, trails, water crossing, curbs, trained to trailer, etc.  All this is doable but very expensive and can take years.  Buy a sound, trained horse about 12 to 14 years old and have another 14 years fun riding him!

Pearl looks nice.  I wonder if the pawing is a TWH things.  Our Jubi (now gone at 30) used to paw when she was in the trailer, in her stall waiting to be fed, tied and wanting to go, etc.  Her daughter does the same pawing behavior.  I hope she continues on as well as she looks to be doing.  Exciting!


----------



## Rammy

My horse, Chase, pawed the ground when I went to feed her. She was a QH. Its been over 2 years now that she is gone. Still, for a split second, every now and then, I expect to see her in the barn when I go feed.


----------



## B&B Happy goats

Good morning Bay and Pearl, hope you both have a fantastic  day today.,And Bay, you do say the the most wonderful  things, but i hate to cry...thank you


----------



## luvmypets

Bay we need more pics!


----------



## Baymule

luvmypets said:


> Bay we need more pics!


I'm going to take pics on Tuesday, she will be here for 2 weeks. Already her back bone doesn't stick up quite as much, her flanks aren't so drawn in and she is looking better.

This evening when I fed Pearl, she really tried to get to her feed. I put up "talk to the hand" and she whammed her head on the ceiling again. She danced around, wanting to EAT and I put up my hand. When she finally stood for a brief moment, I gently pushed her chest, telling her Back, Back. She backed a few steps and for a mere moment, she stood still. I stepped aside and let her have her feed. I scratched her neck and shoulder. 

I am teaching her to wait while I feed her. By making her back up, I am teaching her that I am in control. Even though it is for brief moments now, as she learns, the time will lengthen until she is calm and knows that she will get fed.


----------



## frustratedearthmother

Sounds like Pearl is getting some good lessons!  She's gonna be fine...


----------



## Ridgetop

Brief moments are all it takes.  Always better to stop while winning!  Love it that she is punishing herself by ramming her head while she can see that you are not touching her.  The magic hand raises and !!!  POWEY!  I love how you pretended to eat the food.  I did that with all my dogs when they were young, so that they would never learn to growl at the children or at me if I had to snatch their food away.  I believe in being in control since so many of our wonderful dogs and animals are more powerful than we are.  Our brains are all that keep us at the top of the food chain!  LOL

I am an Alpha Bitch!


----------



## Baymule

Ridgetop said:


> I am an Alpha Bitch!





Yesterday a man from the electric company came by to look at where we want a security light. I impressed on him to CALL and make an APPOINTMENT before trying to come on the property. I pointed at Trip, "See that big white dog? Don't think for one minute that because he is on THAT side of the fence that he won't be on THIS side of the fence if you are trespassing on HIS property. He jumps fences." 

Trip was laying in the corner, up front, closest to where the man parked his truck. We had to go into pasture #1 to measure, and the man asked if it was ok. I told him yes, because I was with him. Trip came to investigate and I pointed my finger at him and calmly said No. That's all it took. Trip stood down, but it was obvious that he really wanted to get closer. 

Yes mam' I also am the Alpha Bitch!!


----------



## B&B Happy goats

ALPHA  BITCH  here also


----------



## Amelie the Bee Keeper

Baymule said:


> I'm going to take pics on Tuesday, she will be here for 2 weeks. Already her back bone doesn't stick up quite as much, her flanks aren't so drawn in and she is looking better.
> 
> This evening when I fed Pearl, she really tried to get to her feed. I put up "talk to the hand" and she whammed her head on the ceiling again. She danced around, wanting to EAT and I put up my hand. When she finally stood for a brief moment, I gently pushed her chest, telling her Back, Back. She backed a few steps and for a mere moment, she stood still. I stepped aside and let her have her feed. I scratched her neck and shoulder.
> 
> I am teaching her to wait while I feed her. By making her back up, I am teaching her that I am in control. Even though it is for brief moments now, as she learns, the time will lengthen until she is calm and knows that she will get fed.


You should try clicker trainning


----------



## Bruce

Man I didn't know I was spending time with so many bitchy women!


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## Latestarter

Gosh Bruce... and here I thought it was pretty apparent/obvious...


----------



## Rammy




----------



## HomesteaderWife

Absolutely beautiful horse- can't wait to see more photos!


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## Baymule

Latestarter said:


> Gosh Bruce... and here I thought it was pretty apparent/obvious...


I know where you live.....


----------



## Bruce

Fortunately you don't know where *I* live!


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## Ferguson K

When Sully was alive, at his peak he was 220lbs... People didn't think a four foot tall dog could jump a four foot tall fence, a lot.

It was always fun.


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## Baymule

Trip only jumped out-off the property one time. Weeks of come to Jesus meetings down the fence line convinced him not to do that again. He can jump all the interior fences he wants. I don’t care.


----------



## Devonviolet

Ridgetop said:


> I love how you pretended to eat the food. I did that with all my dogs when they were young, so that they would never learn to growl at the children or at me if I had to snatch their food away. I believe in being in control since so many of our wonderful dogs and animals are more powerful than we are. Our brains are all that keep us at the top of the food chain! LOL


That’s funny. I have pretended to eat the dog food, with all my dogs. I have always been able to take their food away from them, to prove I’m Alpha.

We did have a problem the first time we gave our LGDs bones (as puppies).  The next time, I grabbed the scruff of Deo’s neck & held his head back while I said, “Gentle, gentle”, and slowly put the bone where he could get his teeth on it. I had to pull it back a couple times, ‘cause he tried to snatch it from me. “Gentle, gentle”.  Eventually he got the message, and now all I have to do is say “Gentle”, and he gently puts his teeth on the bone.  Violet only needed “Gentle” training once, and she has always taken it gently in her teeth.


----------



## B&B Happy goats

@Bruce.   New England is small, i know it welll...all i have to do to find you is follow the HOOF prints..... and i would surly do that for Bay any day....


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## Bruce

There are other goats up here.


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## Baymule

I have continued with "talk to the hand" while Pearl tries to get around me, she even tries to run in behind me, but I head her off. I feel like a cutting horse after a calf. LOL So this evening, after we did the feed dance and I let her eat, I scratched her on both sides, then pushed on her chest and told her to back. She did! Pearl backed away from her feed that she so desperately wanted! I let her stop and stand for a moment, then stepped aside and let her eat again. This tells me that she is compliant, not a hot head and will listen to me.

I am real excited to report something that I had not mentioned, but she has no more wet farts! Her gut and intestinal tract was so messed up, to start with, that she pooped undigested pieces of hay. When she had gas, liquid gooshed out and splattered on her back legs. She passed liquid when she pooped too. I figured her gut bacteria was dead or practically nonexistent due to her being so starved. I gave her the Garlic Barrier for worms twice, then gave her 8 ounces of live culture yogurt. I gave her Garlic Barrier again. Tomorrow I will finally worm her with the horse wormer, an ivermectin product. I will wait a few days to let it clear out of her system, then give her the yogurt again. But the GREAT NEWS is that her intestinal tract is back on track and no more wet farts! I don't see pieces of undigested hay in her poop any more, I do believe Pearl is on her way to good health. Also tomorrow I will take new pictures, it will be her 2 week anniversary with us.


----------



## B&B Happy goats

Baymule said:


> I have continued with "talk to the hand" while Pearl tries to get around me, she even tries to run in behind me, but I head her off. I feel like a cutting horse after a calf. LOL So this evening, after we did the feed dance and I let her eat, I scratched her on both sides, then pushed on her chest and told her to back. She did! Pearl backed away from her feed that she so desperately wanted! I let her stop and stand for a moment, then stepped aside and let her eat again. This tells me that she is compliant, not a hot head and will listen to me.
> 
> I am real excited to report something that I had not mentioned, but she has no more wet farts! Her gut and intestinal tract was so messed up, to start with, that she pooped undigested pieces of hay. When she had gas, liquid gooshed out and splattered on her back legs. She passed liquid when she pooped too. I figured her gut bacteria was dead or practically nonexistent due to her being so starved. I gave her the Garlic Barrier for worms twice, then gave her 8 ounces of live culture yogurt. I gave her Garlic Barrier again. Tomorrow I will finally worm her with the horse wormer, an ivermectin product. I will wait a few days to let it clear out of her system, then give her the yogurt again. But the GREAT NEWS is that her intestinal tract is back on track and no more wet farts! I don't see pieces of undigested hay in her poop any more, I do believe Pearl is on her way to good health. Also tomorrow I will take new pictures, it will be her 2 week anniversary with us.


I am so happy .... for you and Pearl...sounds like your girl is on her way tp beauty queen status !


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## Ridgetop

Yay!  Sounds like she is a thoughtful, intelligent mare.  It is always nice to deal with a kind horse who thinks.  They will stop to reason things out instead of freaking out.


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## B&B Happy goats

Bay, when we were out in the country roads on our toy riding,  we came across a neat house that in the front ,by the road ...had a handsome morgan gelding....we slowed down and stopped....him and i locked eyes as he ran to the fence, i got off the side by side and crossed my arms and slowly approched him....he was just streching his neck as far as he could, when i was in front of him i still kept my arms crossed as he smelled and started lovin up on me, i didn't  give him any scratches till he took my shirt cuff into his mouth and gave me a tug ....i fell in love...even as we quietly rode away we still were looking at each other...what a ladies man !  Coat, mane and tail were beautiful, you could tell he is well taken care of.....


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## Rammy

You couldnt figure out how to stuff him in the backseat of your car? Bummer!


----------



## B&B Happy goats

Rammy said:


> You couldnt figure out how to stuff him in the backseat of your car? Bummer!


Lmao , we were on the side by side....trust me it was total lust !  That was one good lookin horse.....


----------



## Baymule

Today marks two weeks that we have had Pearl. She has gained some weight and must feel better. The dogs ran all around her, Carson the puppy ran under her belly. She finally got annoyed when Trip went up behind her to sniff her back legs. Pearl laid her ears back , began a squeal and was raising her back leg. I snatched at the halter, AAHHNNNTTTT!!!!!! And she stopped as quick as she started.


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## B&B Happy goats

Totally  awesome


----------



## Latestarter

She's looking real good Bay! Once again, another disguised diamond discovered by Bay!


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## Rammy

She looks great. Makes me want to go get one from the kill pen and save its life. Need to get a trailer.


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## robhuncor

What an improvement!  She's already lost that skeletal look.  Here on the the Thoroughbred farm we would start some hand walking to gradually build up some muscle and condition.


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## Baymule

My round pen is in the 2 1/2 acres that I have my other 3 horses in.... can't take her there. I moved it several months ago. Oops. @robhuncor you are right, I can take her for walks. I have a lunge line somewhere..... LOL


----------



## Bruce

Baymule said:


> She finally got annoyed when Trip went up behind her to sniff her back legs. Pearl laid her ears back , began a squeal and was raising her back leg.


Can't blame her for not wanting a nose up her butt  Of course Trip was just learning the scent of one of his new charges.


----------



## Ridgetop

She is looking really nice with a little more flesh on her.  She listens to you well, that is great!


----------



## Amelie the Bee Keeper

Rammy said:


> She looks great. Makes me want to go get one from the kill pen and save its life. Need to get a trailer.


 I know right! My barn does that so why not!


----------



## Rammy

Reason I havent is because my next door goobermooch neighbor shot at my other horse with a soft air pellet gun so much she didnt want to come out of her stall.  She was seriously traumatized by it. You clanged the handle of a bucket accidently and she would jump out of her skin. I cant put another horse thru that. I miss having a horse.


----------



## Amelie the Bee Keeper

Baymule said:


> My round pen is in the 2 1/2 acres that I have my other 3 horses in.... can't take her there. I moved it several months ago. Oops. @robhuncor you are right, I can take her for walks. I have a lunge line somewhere..... LOL


If you have a round pen that has a tallish fence try free lunging. It is nice as the horse is able to learn commands like walk, trot, canter, woah, AH AH AH, etc. All you need is pretty much a round pen, and a lunge whip. At my barn, who rescues horses, they will use that and will also help exercise cooped up horses and ones who aren't sound. It is such a good exercise for the horse.


----------



## Amelie the Bee Keeper

Rammy said:


> Reason I havent is because my next door goobermooch neighbor shot at my other horse with a soft air pellet gun so much she didnt want to come out of her stall.  She was seriously traumatized by it. You clanged the handle of a bucket accidently and she would jump out of her skin. I cant put another horse thru that. I miss having a horse.


Yell at them and put up a wall/fence nest to them


----------



## Southern by choice

This just brought tears to my eyes. You are a good person Bay.  
You have been blessed with a special gift.


----------



## Rammy

Amelie the Bee Keeper said:


> Yell at them and put up a wall/fence nest to them


This guy is a piece of work. If you read my thread you will see what hes done. My pasture is fenced with 5 strand hotwire and he still trespasses at night. I have cameras up and he manages to stay off them. Im not home during the day so thats when he would do stuff behind his privacy fence. He doesnt seem to bother the cows. Havent found or seen any marks on them like I did my horse. Yelling at him wont do any good.


----------



## Amelie the Bee Keeper

Rammy said:


> This guy is a piece of work. If you read my thread you will see what hes done. My pasture is fenced with 5 strand hotwire and he still trespasses at night. I have cameras up and he manages to stay off them. Im not home during the day so thats when he would do stuff behind his privacy fence. He doesnt seem to bother the cows. Havent found or seen any marks on them like I did my horse. Yelling at him wont do any good.


If he doesn't stop, try and get the law involved


----------



## Wehner Homestead

Amelie the Bee Keeper said:


> If he doesn't stop, try and get the law involved



She’s done that. They believe him and not her.


----------



## Amelie the Bee Keeper

Wehner Homestead said:


> She’s done that. They believe him and not her.


That really sucks! Oooh! Maybe a survalence camera so she can get some evidence


----------



## B&B Happy goats

She's  done that also....


----------



## Rammy

What they said. Read my posts Rammys Ramblings. Its all there.


----------



## Baymule

I wormed Pearl today with ivermectin. The vet said it was time and she would be ok. I've been worried that it might be too much for her starved condition. She has gained weight, amazing what regular feed and hay can do. She now knows that she can't rush in to eat, but must back up, stand and then I let her eat. She's coming along!


----------



## B&B Happy goats

Baymule said:


> I wormed Pearl today with ivermectin. The vet said it was time and she would be ok. I've been worried that it might be too much for her starved condition. She has gained weight, amazing what regular feed and hay can do. She now knows that she can't rush in to eat, but must back up, stand and then I let her eat. She's coming along!


She is one lucky lady to have you as her rehabilitation  owner, and loving momma.


----------



## HomesteaderWife

@Baymule - That mare is looking so great- what stunning color she has. I can't wait to see more pictures. I miss having horses a lot!


----------



## Poka_Doodle

I'm late to this, but I just want to say Congrats, she's beautiful!!!


----------



## B&B Happy goats

Will Pearl be posing for pictures soon ?


----------



## Baymule

B&B Happy goats said:


> Will Pearl be posing for pictures soon ?


I'll take some Friday.


----------



## B&B Happy goats

PEARLS fans are waiting


----------



## Baymule

She has gained weight and is looking much better. She also has learned her manners at feeding time and backs up with a touch on her chest and now stands and waits until I step sideways for her to go eat. We're talking about saddling her up next week and me riding her, just a little.


----------



## Amelie the Bee Keeper

Baymule said:


> She has gained weight and is looking much better. She also has learned her manners at feeding time and backs up with a touch on her chest and now stands and waits until I step sideways for her to go eat. We're talking about saddling her up next week and me riding her, just a little.


I would try and put a saddle pad and saddle on her first to see how she reacts since I don't want to see ending up in the ER Bay!


----------



## Baymule

Amelie the Bee Keeper said:


> I would try and put a saddle pad and saddle on her first to see how she reacts since I don't want to see ending up in the ER Bay!


Don't worry, I won't be stupid. I like me and I like me better without broken bones. It will be a steady process.


----------



## Goat Whisperer

Baymule said:


> Don't worry, I won't be stupid. I like me and I like me better without broken bones. It will be a steady process.


Well said 

She is a beautiful horse! She is looking so much better! I love reading your threads. I am amazed!


----------



## Baymule

Pearl is so pampered. I feed her twice a day. In addition to her pellets, she gets a cup of BOSS on top of the pellets. I smash alfalfa cubes with a hammer and flake them apart so they will absorb water better and soften up. I add beet shreds to the alfalfa and soak them while I feed the sheep and chickens. And she gets all the hay she wants.


----------



## Bruce

Your sheep must be really jealous.


----------



## Baymule

Bruce said:


> Your sheep must be really jealous.


They get spoiled too, just not the goodies that Pearl gets, they don't need to gain weight.


----------



## Bruce

Pearl is gonna be mighty disappointed when she gets up to proper weight and you cut off the treats!


----------



## kdogg331

Baymule said:


> @kdogg331 if you have never had a horse, your first horse should be an older, experienced, been-there-done-that horse. Age should be from 10 to 18 years old. Don't be afraid of getting an older horse, they have a lot to give and would be a good teacher for you.





Ridgetop said:


> Absolutely agree with Baymule on that.  Some mustangs are great and some aren't.  Either way, you want to get a horse and RIDE!  When you adopt a mustang, (which is what is sounds like you want to do) most are only 12-18 months old, still too young to break, let alone ride.  Get an older horse between 10 and 16.  You will have more fun, and get all the experience and enjoyment of riding and caring for a horse.  If you get a young horse that is not even started, it can be a couple of years before you can ride, and several thousand dollars into training him.  Then the horse is still green and has to be introduced to traffic, trails, water crossing, curbs, trained to trailer, etc.  All this is doable but very expensive and can take years.  Buy a sound, trained horse about 12 to 14 years old and have another 14 years fun riding him!
> 
> Pearl looks nice.  I wonder if the pawing is a TWH things.  Our Jubi (now gone at 30) used to paw when she was in the trailer, in her stall waiting to be fed, tied and wanting to go, etc.  Her daughter does the same pawing behavior.  I hope she continues on as well as she looks to be doing.  Exciting!



Sorry, I haven't been on the site in a little while. Anyway, thanks for the advice guys. You definitely have good points and that is actually my plan to get an older horse. Definitely not afraid of older horses and for my first horse I do plan on looking for an older, calm, bombproof type horse. The mustang thing was more of just a dream/one day thing. I know I have nowhere near enough experience right now. But I do love them and one day plan on getting one. And once I have more experience, I also want to train it myself, at least mostly, so that might save on some of the expenses. But that's obviously a long way off. Also, I actually don't mind not being able to ride right away and just having like a pet until they are ready to be ridden, groundwork, walks, and lunging, and all that is almost more fun anyway. But that said, I definitely don't have anywhere near enough experience so I wouldn't be getting one anytime soon.



Baymule said:


> Today marks two weeks that we have had Pearl. She has gained some weight and must feel better. The dogs ran all around her, Carson the puppy ran under her belly. She finally got annoyed when Trip went up behind her to sniff her back legs. Pearl laid her ears back , began a squeal and was raising her back leg. I snatched at the halter, AAHHNNNTTTT!!!!!! And she stopped as quick as she started.



Wow she looks amazing!!


----------



## Wehner Homestead

Pretty sure it’s picture day for Pearl!!


----------



## Baymule

It's raining. I'm sick. Not gonna happen today!


----------



## Rammy

Cowgirl up!


----------



## Baymule

Rammy said:


> Cowgirl up!


Sometimes ya' gotta do what you have to do and let the rest wait for another day. sniffle, hack, cough, brrrr reach for blanket, get suited up and go check Miranda to see if she is in labor, blow nose, sniffle, get a bowl of hot potato soup, sniffle, cough, hack, blow nose......rinse-repeat.


----------



## robhuncor

Baymule said:


> Sometimes ya' gotta do what you have to do and let the rest wait for another day. sniffle, hack, cough, brrrr reach for blanket, get suited up and go check Miranda to see if she is in labor, blow nose, sniffle, get a bowl of hot potato soup, sniffle, cough, hack, blow nose......rinse-repeat.


----------



## B&B Happy goats

no lambs.   , no picture's  of Pearl,     Bay is sick


----------



## Bruce

You got your priorities straight Bay. You and DH get better!!! We can wait for pictures of Pearl.


----------



## Ridgetop

Stay inside, light a fire or curl up under a blanket and keep that soup coming.  Pearl will wait for you and Miranda will too. 

Get well!


----------



## farmerjan

Baymule said:


> Sometimes ya' gotta do what you have to do and let the rest wait for another day. sniffle, hack, cough, brrrr reach for blanket, get suited up and go check Miranda to see if she is in labor, blow nose, sniffle, get a bowl of hot potato soup, sniffle, cough, hack, blow nose......rinse-repeat.



Sorry..... and with the crappy weather, you really do need to stay inside as much as possible and not get a chill.


----------



## Baymule

My sweet husband just took the flashlight and checked on Miranda. He made me tacos for supper too. He is a darlin'.


----------



## Rammy

You will wake up and find three tiny reindeer, I mean lambs, under the hay rack in the morning. Get well soon!


----------



## Amelie the Bee Keeper

Any updates?


----------



## GypsyG

Wasn't yesterday supposed to be photo day?


----------



## Baymule

Today was sunny and would have been a perfect day for pictures. But we stayed in blowing our noses. I only went out to feed and come back in, I dressed like there was a blizzard outside. LOL This sh!t has got to go.


----------



## Latestarter

Sorry you're still fighting it Bay... Hope you and BJ get it kicked sooner as opposed to later. Being sick is the pits.


----------



## GypsyG

Baymule said:


> Today was sunny and would have been a perfect day for pictures. But we stayed in blowing our noses. I only went out to feed and come back in, I dressed like there was a blizzard outside. LOL This sh!t has got to go.


I am sorry that you are feeling under the weather.    I hope that you get to feeling better real soon.


----------



## Bruce

Maybe you need some full strength Mama Wall's!!


----------



## Baymule

Thanks ya'll. Talking to other people, this stuff lasts 3-4 weeks before it finally goes away. We're 2 weeks in, 1 or 2 to go.  At least it has been nasty weather so we weren't tempted to go outside and overdo ourselves. It's driving us nuts.


----------



## Bruce

3-4 WEEKS!!!!


----------



## B&B Happy goats

Hope you're  both feeling better soon


----------



## Finnie

Dear Miss @Baymule ,

I am a lurker and a fan. (Does that mean I am a stalker like Mr. @Senile_Texas_Aggie ? I think it must.) First I would like to say I'm sorry you and DH are sick, and I hope you are on the mend. Second, what briefly brings me out of lurking is something I ran across recently over on Backyard Chickens. (Where I am an actual active member, and not just a lurker.) I found this ancient thread written by you, about your horse Joe and the time you won the story contest in the TSC magazine Out Here:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...-supply-contest-3rd-post-46-update-52.436771/

The links to the actual story are too old to work any more, but all the wonderful comments by people who did get to read it make me really wish I could read Joe's story too. Do you by any chance still have a copy of the story in a format that you could attach without going to too much trouble? I wonder if something as simple as taking a picture of it and posting the picture would work. 

I realize I could have asked this question over on BYC and bumped that old thread up. But I kind of felt that right here would be more appropriate because this is where current people are following Pearl's wonderful story, and these people would probably like to read about Joe as much as I would. Or if you updated it over there, people here could follow the link to it. 

Please don't dig too hard for it. I don't mean to cause you extra work while you're not feeling well. But I hope that my hunch that this is something you would have saved and cherished is correct. I'd like to read the story that brought tears to so many people's eyes. 

Thank you, and kind regards,
Finnie


----------



## Baymule

@Finnie, I have a copy of that old magazine somewhere. I'll try to find it. But here is a picture of Joe and Amos, my neighbor's 89 year old father. I wrote the story about that day. If I can't find it, I remember it well enough that I can write it again. We  are keeping our 3 grand daughters for the weekend, age 2, 3, and 11. Then Christmas, out of town for a few days. But I promise you, I'll get that story for you to read. That's Joe's eye in my avatar, he's 29 years old now and still the love of my life. 







Haha, that's back when I had red hair, it's white as Joe is now. I finally got tired of coloring it and let it grow out......I was white headed at 34...….


----------



## Sheepshape

What a lovely story about you buying a horse when you were a girl, Bay. How these creatures can enhance our lives!


----------



## Rammy

Baymule said:


> @Finnie, I have a copy of that old magazine somewhere. I'll try to find it. But here is a picture of Joe and Amos, my neighbor's 89 year old father. I wrote the story about that day. If I can't find it, I remember it well enough that I can write it again. We  are keeping our 3 grand daughters for the weekend, age 2, 3, and 11. Then Christmas, out of town for a few days. But I promise you, I'll get that story for you to read. That's Joe's eye in my avatar, he's 29 years old now and still the love of my life.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Haha, that's back when I had red hair, it's white as Joe is now. I finally got tired of coloring it and let it grow out......I was white headed at 34...….



So thats where that Tx spirit comes from. Your a redhead underneath!


----------



## GypsyG

Photo updates of Pearl are overdue!  

Joe is gorgeous!  What breed/s is he?


And just out of curiosity...  Do you have a bay mule too? I love mules! If not, what is the story behind your screen name?


----------



## Baymule

Joe is a Quarter Horse. We bought him when he was 7 years old. He has always been an old soul. Calm, gentle and sweet, safe for anyone to ride. Joe is now 29 years old. 

I did have a bay mule. I raised her from my Tennessee Walker mare. She hated anything and everything that wasn't a horse. She stalked the dogs, I wouldn't let them in the horse pasture. She stalked the sheep up and down the fence. At our old place, she attacked dogs that came on the property. She stomped a coral snake one time! Every other animal got along except her, so I sold her to a man who loved mules.


----------



## Ridgetop

Did she tip toe up until she was close enough to get them?  My old TW mare hated our goats and would sneak up as they lay sleeping along the fence.  Then she would take a bite at them.  Luckily, after the first time she tried to kick them through the corral bars and caught her leg in the bars, I had attached heavy pvc horse mesh to the corral bars so she couldn't get a big bite, just a nip! 

Josie the Mule tries to sneak up on our LGDs occasionally.  She has gotten used to them in 6 years, but they are wary and keep an eye on her when she is close by.  I think I catch her grinning as they make a big circle around her when she gives them the bad eye!  lol

YES!  Horses and mules _do_ tip toe or I guess it would be tip hoof!


----------



## Baymule

This is for @Finnie 

Joe and Amos

We had 16 acres where we kept our horses. I made a feed run one Saturday and stopped at the neighbor's before I unloaded feed. They had recently gone to Alabama to bring her 89 year old father home with them, as he had become unable to care for himself. Virgie told me that she sure wished she had a horse for Amos, her father, to ride. He had told everyone that his daughter was coming from Texas to get him and he was going to ride back to Alabama on a big white horse, waving to all of his friends.

I told her that I had a ton of feed to go unload and that I would saddle up Joe and bring him over for Amos to ride. I told her it would take me about an hour. I stacked up 40 bags of feed, caught Joe, brushed him out and saddled him up. It had rained recently and washed him clean. It was a beautiful October day and Joe's white hair sparkled in the sun like diamonds. Nineteen year old Joe carried me at a trot back over to the neighbors place. 

In the meantime, Amos had taken a shower, put on cologne, dressed in new blue jeans, cowboy boots, a black pearl snapped western shirt with red embroidered roses and topped it off with his Stetson hat. Amos was ready to ride. Virgie's husband, Roger, helped Amos get in the saddle. Joe stood like a statue. Amos took up the reins, clucked to Joe, Joe took a couple of steps and stopped. My joke about Joe was that he had two speeds-slow and stop. Amos clucked to Joe, Joe took a couple of steps and stopped. WHOO-EEEE! Amos was riding! Virgie took picture after picture. Joe posed for pictures, a light wind ruffled up his mane. Amos chattered about riding Joe back to Alabama and waving to all of his friends. Amos was having a great time, Joe was a perfect gentleman. I was so proud of him. 

Joe was happy to pose for pictures and take a few steps for Amos. Amos was happy to be riding a big white horse. We were all a bunch of happy goofs, watching an old man on an old horse on a perfect day. After that day, Amos claimed Joe as his horse and would waggle a bony finger at me and admonish me to take care of "his" horse. 

Time passed and Amos became more and more feeble. Virgie took care of him, bathed, fed and even diapered him. After bringing him home from the hospital, she told him he was home. A few minutes later he was gone. Roger and Virgie took Amos back to Alabama for burial. On his casket was a picture of Amos riding a big white horse, waving to all of his friends.


----------



## frustratedearthmother

Did ya have to make me cry tonight?  So glad Amos got to meet Joe.


----------



## Baymule

New Pearl pictures! She has gained so much weight, probably close to 300 pounds. Her backbone stuck up so far, her ribs showed and now she has muscle along her backbone. She still has a ways to go, but we are making progress.


----------



## Rammy

Yeah, me too. Riding Joe sure made him happy.


----------



## Rammy

You can still see where her hips are shallow looking, too, but she looks so much better than when you first got her. 
Cant wait to see what she looks like in a few more months.


----------



## B&B Happy goats

You got me tearing up on the Joe and Amos story....but what a improvement in Pearl, she just looks so comfortable and like she has been with you forever....great job Bay


----------



## Baymule

It was a gorgeous day today. You'd never know it stormed last night, thundered and lightening, and we got 3 1/2 inches of rain.


----------



## Ridgetop

Can't wait to see her all shed out and up to weight this summer.


----------



## Finnie

Baymule said:


> This is for @Finnie
> 
> Joe and Amos
> 
> We had 16 acres where we kept our horses. I made a feed run one Saturday and stopped at the neighbor's before I unloaded feed. They had recently gone to Alabama to bring her 89 year old father home with them, as he had become unable to care for himself. Virgie told me that she sure wished she had a horse for Amos, her father, to ride. He had told everyone that his daughter was coming from Texas to get him and he was going to ride back to Alabama on a big white horse, waving to all of his friends.
> 
> I told her that I had a ton of feed to go unload and that I would saddle up Joe and bring him over for Amos to ride. I told her it would take me about an hour. I stacked up 40 bags of feed, caught Joe, brushed him out and saddled him up. It had rained recently and washed him clean. It was a beautiful October day and Joe's white hair sparkled in the sun like diamonds. Nineteen year old Joe carried me at a trot back over to the neighbors place.
> 
> In the meantime, Amos had taken a shower, put on cologne, dressed in new blue jeans, cowboy boots, a black pearl snapped western shirt with red embroidered roses and topped it off with his Stetson hat. Amos was ready to ride. Virgie's husband, Roger, helped Amos get in the saddle. Joe stood like a statue. Amos took up the reins, clucked to Joe, Joe took a couple of steps and stopped. My joke about Joe was that he had two speeds-slow and stop. Amos clucked to Joe, Joe took a couple of steps and stopped. WHOO-EEEE! Amos was riding! Virgie took picture after picture. Joe posed for pictures, a light wind ruffled up his mane. Amos chattered about riding Joe back to Alabama and waving to all of his friends. Amos was having a great time, Joe was a perfect gentleman. I was so proud of him.
> 
> Joe was happy to pose for pictures and take a few steps for Amos. Amos was happy to be riding a big white horse. We were all a bunch of happy goofs, watching an old man on an old horse on a perfect day. After that day, Amos claimed Joe as his horse and would waggle a bony finger at me and admonish me to take care of "his" horse.
> 
> Time passed and Amos became more and more feeble. Virgie took care of him, bathed, fed and even diapered him. After bringing him home from the hospital, she told him he was home. A few minutes later he was gone. Roger and Virgie took Amos back to Alabama for burial. On his casket was a picture of Amos riding a big white horse, waving to all of his friends.


Thank you for posting this, @Baymule . That is a very sweet story, and well worthy of winning the contest. I'm sure you helped your friends Virgie and Roger to have some good memories during a difficult time in their lives. Yeah, difinitely a bittersweet tear-jerker.


----------



## Baymule

Today was my first ride! Pearl is awesome. She is spirited and wants to go. And yes, she will”hit a lick”. She glides in that famous Tennessee Walker gait. She has a good stop, VERY responsive to neck reining. I only rode her up and down the driveway, we’ll go down the pipeline on our next ride, then out the front gate. We are so proud of her. I am thrilled with her. 

Our oldest granddaughter and a friend are spending the weekend, so they rode while I led Pearl. 

My husband took some great pictures. Do I look happy or what? 






Isn’t Pearl beautiful?






She has gained a LOT of weight, still has some to go. 






I love this picture. Mt husband captured the wind in my face, hair blowing, Pearl's mane lifted, and a big grin on my face.


----------



## B&B Happy goats

That is so awesome,  you both look happy and full of joy.....and both look like your in great shape ! You go girl, ride the wind with Pearl


----------



## Rammy

She definetly looks better since you saved her.  She is one lucky horse.


----------



## Wehner Homestead

I love it! Your smile says it all!!!


----------



## Southern by choice




----------



## promiseacres

you both look like you're having fun


----------



## Devonviolet

Baymule said:


> Today was my first ride! Pearl is awesome. She is spirited and wants to go. And yes, she will”hit a lick”. She glides in that famous Tennessee Walker gait. She has a good stop, VERY responsive to neck reining. I only rode her up and down the driveway, we’ll go down the pipeline on our next ride, then out the front gate. We are so proud of her. I am thrilled with her.
> 
> My husband took some great pictures. Do I look happy or what?
> 
> I love this picture. Mt husband captured the wind in my face, hair blowing, Pearl's mane lifted, and a big grin on my face.



WOOHOOO!!!    

That is so awesome!!!  I totally agree!  My favorite photo is the one of you riding Pearl down the driveway!  You both look like you are having so much fun!


----------



## Bruce

Baymule said:


> Do I look happy or what?


Sure isn't "or what"!!


----------



## Ridgetop

So glad that she is well trained already, and that she gaits really well.  You never know when it is a rescue.  I think you will have a great time riding her.


----------



## Baymule

Ridgetop said:


> So glad that she is well trained already, and that she gaits really well.  You never know when it is a rescue.  I think you will have a great time riding her.


It may sound silly, but those pictures of her at the slaughter lot (on page one of this thread) just spoke to me. I knew it was buying a pig in a poke, but I am a risk taker. My husband goes along with my crazy train, isn't he wonderful?


----------



## Southern by choice

Baymule said:


> It may sound silly, but those pictures of her at the slaughter lot (on page one of this thread) just spoke to me. I knew it was buying a pig in a poke, but I am a risk taker. My husband goes along with my crazy train, isn't he wonderful?



Yes, it is wonderful to have a mate that is supportive, even if they may not always "get it". 
I love the pictures. Especially the wind in the hair pic. Such happiness.


----------



## Baymule

Southern by choice said:


> Yes, it is wonderful to have a mate that is supportive, even if they may not always "get it".
> I love the pictures. Especially the wind in the hair pic. Such happiness.



That's my favorite picture too!


----------



## luvmypets

You two were meant to cross paths, truly a beautiful bond.


----------



## Baymule

luvmypets said:


> You two were meant to cross paths, truly a beautiful bond.


Yes we were. She still isn't real trusting, but we are getting there. She is a sweet girl and will have a good life here. I wish she could tell me about her life, but probably just as well that she doesn't. It couldn't have been a very good life, but she sure has a good life now, plenty to eat, no abuse, no hitting, and lots of love.


----------



## Bruce

Hopefully she can forget much of her former life. I'm sure she will learn to trust now that those bad things associated with "whatever" aren't happening now. Lucky Pearl, lucky Bay.


----------



## Ridgetop

A good husband is worth everything (as is a good wife, guys!)  All 3 of you are lucky!  LOL


----------



## Baymule

I had to go back to page one and get the picture of her at the slaughter kill pen. She was so skinny, look at that scrawny neck. She didn't know where she was going, but I did. hmmmm…...it was love at first sight. 







Then I had to get a picture from a few days ago to compare the difference.






Today we went for our second ride. I am pleased. We rode about 6 or 7 miles, through the woods on the property next door, down a dead end road, back to the county road, down another dead end road, then to the corner. At the corner, I stopped her, she was fidgetedy, wanting to GO. I turned her around and we paced the 2 1/2 miles back. During our ride, she passed several tests. Pearl is not afraid of flapping plastic bags. Pearl is unafraid of culverts and the horse eating troll monsters that lurk within. She went past with barely a glance at the dark interior. We went over a narrow one car width culvert that spanned a 20 foot deep gulley with running water at the bottom. It was a steep drop off. She never broke stride, didn't look over the edge and shy, snort, or even flick an ear. Pearl is unfazed by barking dogs. 

On the county road, here came a neighbor in his John Deere cab tractor. Not knowing if she would turn inside out and go to pieces, I stopped her and spoke calmly to her. Our neighbor is a old cowboy, he knows and trains horses, one of his sons makes his living being a cowboy, the other son cowboys on weekends. He saw me and slowed way down and got over to the other side of the road. We waved at each other as he went by. Pearl was perfectly ok with the tractor. A neighbor drove by and stopped to admire Pearl. The only problem Pearl had with that is she wanted to GO. 

She enjoyed getting out and going for a ride and so did I. She's no spring chicken, but neither am I. There's a lot of life in both of these ol' gals and down the road we go!


----------



## frustratedearthmother

That's fantastic!  She seems to take things in stride - literally, lol.  Did you know she was broke to ride when you got her or was it all a gamble?


----------



## Baymule

frustratedearthmother said:


> That's fantastic!  She seems to take things in stride - literally, lol.  Did you know she was broke to ride when you got her or was it all a gamble?


There is usually a short paragraph and hers said broke to ride. But yeah, it was a gamble. Then because she was so far down, weak and skinny, I wouldn't ride her until she regained much of her health.


----------



## BlessedWithGoats

Praise God! So happy for you!


----------



## B&B Happy goats

Congratulations  on anothe Pearl milestone together....love all the pictures but the first is my favorite. ..you both look like you have been together forever.


----------



## Carla D

Wow Bay! She looks so amazing.


----------



## Carla D

Baymule said:


> I had to go back to page one and get the picture of her at the slaughter kill pen. She was so skinny, look at that scrawny neck. She didn't know where she was going, but I did. hmmmm…...it was love at first sight.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Then I had to get a picture from a few days ago to compare the difference.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Today we went for our second ride. I am pleased. We rode about 6 or 7 miles, through the woods on the property next door, down a dead end road, back to the county road, down another dead end road, then to the corner. At the corner, I stopped her, she was fidgetedy, wanting to GO. I turned her around and we paced the 2 1/2 miles back. During our ride, she passed several tests. Pearl is not afraid of flapping plastic bags. Pearl is unafraid of culverts and the horse eating troll monsters that lurk within. She went past with barely a glance at the dark interior. We went over a narrow one car width culvert that spanned a 20 foot deep gulley with running water at the bottom. It was a steep drop off. She never broke stride, didn't look over the edge and shy, snort, or even flick an ear. Pearl is unfazed by barking dogs.
> 
> On the county road, here came a neighbor in his John Deere cab tractor. Not knowing if she would turn inside out and go to pieces, I stopped her and spoke calmly to her. Our neighbor is a old cowboy, he knows and trains horses, one of his sons makes his living being a cowboy, the other son cowboys on weekends. He saw me and slowed way down and got over to the other side of the road. We waved at each other as he went by. Pearl was perfectly ok with the tractor. A neighbor drove by and stopped to admire Pearl. The only problem Pearl had with that is she wanted to GO.
> 
> She enjoyed getting out and going for a ride and so did I. She's no spring chicken, but neither am I. There's a lot of life in both of these ol' gals and down the road we go!


That’s so heart warming to hear. The two of you are bonded souls.


----------



## frustratedearthmother

Really can't wait to see her all slicked out in the spring!


----------



## Ridgetop

Wonderful to see the difference in her condition BUT!  My favorite thing is the way she responds to everything and is not spooky at what she has experienced with you.  Fewer problems to work on means more riding time to enjoy her!  Sounds like her gaits are super comfortable too.  Yeah!    Must have been well broke before she got in with someone who did not appreciate her.


----------



## Bruce

Great news Bay! She sounds like a wonderful animal.


----------



## Rammy

Somebody has a horse on CL for $300.
Thought about getting her, but it says shes 9 yrs old and theyre not sure shes broke to ride? Id think a 9 yr okd horse would be broke at that age.


----------



## Baymule

There's a lot of halter broke only horses out there. They generally end up on a truck to Mexico for slaughter.


----------



## Rammy

Id like to get her but just dont have the space for her now with the cows here. No grass. Need to move them one way or another so I can reseed my pasture.
 Plus, would be worried goobermooch would hurt her like he did Chase.


----------



## Baymule

Rammy said:


> Id like to get her but just dont have the space for her now with the cows here. No grass. Need to move them one way or another so I can reseed my pasture.
> Plus, would be worried goobermooch would hurt her like he did Chase.


Get one that is already broke to ride.


----------



## Ridgetop

Absolutely what Baymule said!  Get a horse that s already broke - there are plenty of them around too.  I like slightly older horses that are well trained so I can enjoy other peoples work.  LOL

 By the time you get the unbroken horse broke, you will have missed years of great riding time.  So many unbroken horses around because a lot of people will get a young horse not realizing how much time, experience and training they have to put into a horse.  Or they underestimate their own knowledge and experience.  Once they realize they don't know how to train it, they then realize they don't have the money for a professional trainer.  Then they buy training videos or read a book about how to break a horse, but the first time they try to do something they get scared or just keep putting it off.  Finally, they just let the horse sit in the corral while telling their acquaintances that they "just have to start training that horse". 

I have seen a lot of it out here.  The worst example was when I was buying my daughter's first pony.  I called the ad which advertised a "gentle child's pony".  The owner said he was selling it because his 3 year old didn't like riding.  The pony was also 3 years old and the owner had bought it when the child and colt were both 1 year old.  He thought the colt and child could "grow up together"!  I didn't even ask if he had bothered to geld it!

Get a nice little well broke horse so you can enjoy it from day one.  It will still take a few weeks or months to really understand each other, so you might as well be able to start right away.  Then post pictures so we can see you enjoying yourself!

I gave my daughter-in-law a nice little wild caught 2 year old mustang to break.  She did all the ground work beautifully, but sadly pregnancy and 2 children got in her way.  Finally she is having it trained professionally - it only took 8 years!  That little horse should be great for my grandsons once they put some miles on it.  Really smart and nicely put together little dun.   I am tempted to ask for him back when we move to Texas.  LOL  He is nice and short, only about 14 hh.  Easy on and off as I get older.  I am beginning to consider a Ffiord pony though for mounting ease!


----------



## Rammy

Id love to get another horse, but as Ive stated before, Im afraid my idiot stalker neighbor would hurt it like he did my other horse. I cant afford to move even though Id like to and to get more land, like 5 to 10 acres. Its just a wish.


----------



## Baymule

@Ridgetop get a Tennessee Walker when you move to Texas and we'll ride together.


----------



## Finnie

Ridgetop said:


> Must have been well broke before she got in with someone who did not appreciate her.


She must have had a good owner once upon a time. Bless you, @Baymule  for giving her a GREAT owner now!


----------



## Ridgetop

My mule is a TWH mule.  She is gaited.  She is also 16.3 hh!  Sigh . . . .    Sooooo tall.  I can easily get another TWH here, I would like one around 14 hh so easier to get on and off!  LOL  I was told by my trainer that she could find me a nice one.  Short TWHs are not popular although the little mare dh bred is only 15.2.  She is beautiful and a wonderful ride too.  My daughter-in-law has her now since she needed a gaited horse to ride with the people in Nipomo.  DH gave her Skittles since I wasn't able to ride for a few years.  No one to ride with and too much to do.  Josie the Mule is a great ride, I just need to drag my mounting block with me when trailering out!    It did make me popular with my ETI friends. 


Would love to ride with you.  The trails look wonderful, so many trees.  Here we have very steep, open, rocky trails.  Thus the mule!  One of the trails at Montana De Oro is named Broken Nose, for obvious reasons.  Picture a straight drop on rock ledges about 6' apart, with occasional railroads ties wedged in place for footing where the cliff has fallen away.  You need to give the front horse about 6 lengths before starting down in case of accidents!  That is at the beach camp near San Luis Obispo.  Our local trails here are scary in places.  Once my neighbor and I took a trail and halfway up we realized that all the dirt had washed away and our horses were trying to scale an almost sheer rock face!  It kept getting steeper and we couldn't lead the horses up since there was no way we could have climbed it on foot!  When we finally got up it (no room to turn around), we realized it would be worse trying to go down!  Luckily, we forced another path through the brush on the side of the cliff coming back.  Even worse, but luckily not slick rock, it had some dirt and brush growing out of the cliff.  The whole time we were terrified that it might peter out at a sheep drop and  would have to back the horses up and out.  That trail used to be a nice ride 20 years ago but over the years it had washed away to a very dangerous trail.  If we had realized before we got halfway up what it was like, we would have never attempted it!  We were lucky our horses were sure footed.


----------



## Baymule

As of yesterday, Pearl is out of quarantine. She ran up and down the pipeline with her tail up like a flag. We let Joe, our 29 year old cremello QH out to meet her. They both ran up and down, having fun. Then we opened the gate to let Prince and Sparkles join the fun. They all spent the afternoon running, playing, huffing and puffing. I put Joe in the pen with Pearl to feed them both yesterday evening and will feed them together this morning. Joe needs a little extra and is a slow eater, so this will be good for them both. The rest of the time I will let them all run together.


----------



## Bruce




----------



## Baymule

Pearl was PISSED at me when I went to feed this evening. She does not like Joe in her pen and laid her ears back to let me know it. I'm going to keep them together for a few days until he knows that he is fed there now. Pearl is just going to have to deal with it.  She will have to learn to share and play nice.


----------



## Bruce

Poor Pearl. From favored spoiled status to "one of the crowd".


----------



## Baymule

Joe is my Old Man and love of my life. I once sold a real nice mare because she terrorized him. She picked on him and he was scared to death of her. Ummmm no, not happening. A man admired her and we struck a deal. Gone. 

Pearl might be a little selfish and miffed that she has to share, but she is not mean to him. It is all in the herd dynamics. Joe is always on the bottom of the pecking order but I will not allow another horse to be downright mean to him.


----------



## Bruce

Because YOU are the alpha horse in the herd!


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## Baymule

Bruce said:


> Because YOU are the alpha horse in the herd!


Yup, I sure am.


----------



## B&B Happy goats

As it should be........


----------



## Baymule

After I fed Joe and Pearl this morning, I let them out. Then I opened the gate to the horse pasture and let Sparkles and Prince out. 

Sparkles. Almost 33, fat and sassy. 




 

Joe, love of my life, he’ll be 30 next month. 



 

Prince is so full of himself. Mr Horsie Hottie went over to say Hello Gorgeous to Pearl. He is such a flirt. 



 

Then he showed off all his horsie attributes. 



 



 

Look at what I can do!


----------



## Rammy




----------



## frustratedearthmother

He was sure full of himself, lol.  But, it's something ya never get tired of watching!


----------



## B&B Happy goats

That just put a smile on my face, thank you for sharing


----------



## Bruce

Boy he sure is showing off. Did Pearl swoon?


----------



## Baymule

She was very impressed, it made Joe jealous and he kept chasing Prince away. It was hilarious.


----------



## Bunnylady

Horses bucking and showing off, oh yeah! All that power, all that grace, all that farting!


----------



## Rammy

Reminded me of Chase when she got frisky. She woyld do that and flag her tail arched over her butt and sounding like a stallion. Some people thought she was an Arab the way she would act.


----------



## goatgurl

used to be an old mare that was part of a bucking string a friend of mine had for rodeoing back in the day.  her name was miss may but everyone called her april showers because every time she bucked out of the chute she would kick, fart and pee all at the same time.  if you were close to the chute or the fence you were gonna get wet.  not sure why pictures of prince made me think of her.  i'm just catching up bay and I gotta tell you the picture of you and pearl 'in the wind' just made my heart swell.  i'm so happy for the two of you. I was thinking back to what prince looked like when he came to live with you.  one might call him a little pudgy now, lol.  they both have come a long way


----------



## robhuncor

All your horses look so well cared for and happy!  The old ones in particular are looking fantastic!  You would never guess they are 30+ !!


----------



## Baymule

robhuncor said:


> All your horses look so well cared for and happy!  The old ones in particular are looking fantastic!  You would never guess they are 30+ !!


Thanks. That is a lovely compliment.


----------



## Baymule

Got some real horse drama going on here. I put Joe in with Pearl so I could give him extra Feed along with her. They have become glued at the hip. I turn them out on the pipeline pasture and turn out Sparkles and Prince. Prince is enamoured with Pearl, the two geldings are plumb mooney eyed over the speckled beauty and vie for her attention. 

Joe is insanely jealous is Pearl and doesn’t want Prince near her. Prince is the instigator and I think he picks on Joe just to get him all riled up. 

In people terms, here’s a geriatric octanarian badly in need of a pallet of viagra, courting a pretty young thing. Enter the handsome hunk as the spoiler. He may be a hunk but both of these guys are like a dog chasing a car, if they caught it they couldn’t drive it. 

There’s a whole lot of posturing, kicking and squealing going on. Instead of gaining weight, Joe has worried it off, despite the extra Feed and care. He looks like a starved rescue fresh out of a kill pen. Mr. Jealous can’t stand for Prince to get near Pearl and runs back and forth between them. The little snot, Prince enjoys all the drama and keeps stirring it up. I got news for these two fools, I am fixing to put them all together in the horse lot so I can plant Bermuda on the pipeline. There is no fool like an old fool. These two idiots are going to have to work things out.


----------



## Baymule

Got some real horse drama going on here. I put Joe in with Pearl so I could give him extra Feed along with her. They have become glued at the hip. I turn them out on the pipeline pasture and turn out Sparkles and Prince. Prince is enamoured with Pearl, the two geldings are plumb mooney eyed over the speckled beauty and vie for her attention. 

Joe is insanely jealous is Pearl and doesn’t want Prince near her. Prince is the instigator and I think he picks on Joe just to get him all riled up. 

In people terms, here’s a geriatric octanarian badly in need of a pallet of viagra, courting a pretty young thing. Enter the handsome hunk as the spoiler. He may be a hunk but both of these guys are like a dog chasing a car, if they caught it they couldn’t drive it. 

There’s a whole lot of posturing, kicking and squealing going on. Instead of gaining weight, Joe has worried it off, despite the extra Feed and care. He looks like a starved rescue fresh out of a kill pen. Mr. Jealous can’t stand for Prince to get near Pearl and runs back and forth between them. The little snot, Prince enjoys all the drama and keeps stirring it up. I got news for these two fools, I am fixing to put them all together in the horse lot so I can plant Bermuda on the pipeline. There is no fool like an old fool. These two idiots are going to have to work things out. 

View attachment 58143 

View attachment 58144 

View attachment 58145


----------



## Baymule

Got some real horse drama going on here. I put Joe in with Pearl so I could give him extra Feed along with her. They have become glued at the hip. I turn them out on the pipeline pasture and turn out Sparkles and Prince. Prince is enamoured with Pearl, the two geldings are plumb mooney eyed over the speckled beauty and vie for her attention. 

Joe is insanely jealous is Pearl and doesn’t want Prince near her. Prince is the instigator and I think he picks on Joe just to get him all riled up. 

In people terms, here’s a geriatric octanarian badly in need of a pallet of viagra, courting a pretty young thing. Enter the handsome hunk as the spoiler. He may be a hunk but both of these guys are like a dog chasing a car, if they caught it they couldn’t drive it. 

There’s a whole lot of posturing, kicking and squealing going on. Instead of gaining weight, Joe has worried it off, despite the extra Feed and care. He looks like a starved rescue fresh out of a kill pen. Mr. Jealous can’t stand for Prince to get near Pearl and runs back and forth between them. The little snot, Prince enjoys all the drama and keeps stirring it up. I got news for these two fools, I am fixing to put them all together in the horse lot so I can plant Bermuda on the pipeline. There is no fool like an old fool. These two idiots are going to have to work things out. 

View attachment 58143 

View attachment 58144 

View attachment 58145


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## Baymule

Stupid posts!


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## Bunnylady

Anybody who believes that geldings are "dead from the waist down" hasn't known very many of them.Most of the nastiest fights I have seen (one resulting in a fatality) were geldings, fighting over mares.

@Baymule You should be able to delete those extra posts, if not, you could contact a mod. I've been having periodic issues with the site, too (I thought it was just me), and someone probably ought to be told about it.


----------



## Bruce

Site is really slow right now. I posted something in my journal and after the "swirly" thing stopped the page didn't change. But when I reloaded the post was there. I've double posted due to that "behavior" more than once and yeah, I delete the extras.



Baymule said:


> Got some real horse drama going on here.


Poor Joe! He does look awful skinny.


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## Rammy

I was having trouble this morning, too. Couldnt load it at all. It seems to be working fine now.


----------



## B&B Happy goats

Poor Joe, they just don't  ever get it....its not all about the tally wacker !


----------



## Rammy

Its not?


----------



## Baymule

I've had horses come and go, but have never seen Joe act like this. He better get over it.


----------



## Bunnylady

I saw this kind of thing happen with a 14-year-old Paint gelding called Dakota. I'd known him for several years, and he'd always been near the bottom of the pecking order in any group he was in, and apparently content to be there. At this time, he was in a pasture with my two QH mares (Latte and Sunny) and a Quarab gelding called Mojave. Mo and the girls were a group, and Kota was a sort of satellite group of 1, and they all seemed to be satisfied with that arrangement. Then the barn owner moved 4 Appaloosa mares into the adjacent pasture. Kota became absolutely besotted with those spotted females. He paced the fence, calling to them, and violently attacked the other three if they got near them.  I once saw Kota get in a kick fight with Latte, the horse that we all knew had the biggest attitude on the place, and win. We were all stunned to see mild-mannered Dakota acting like this. I even had to set up an extra water trough, because the one that was in place was on the fence line, and he wouldn't let Mo or the girls near the fence.

Things entered a new level of craziness when a new horse, a 17-hand Warmblood gelding named Unity, came on the place. Unity was turned out with the Appy mares, a situation that pleased him immensely, but drove poor Dakota to distraction. Kota and Unity bickered over the fence for days, but by the grace of God I was there when they knocked the gate off its hinges and Kota got in the pasture with Unity and "his" girls. One of the scariest things I have ever done was to get between those two squaring-off band stallion wannabe's and lead Kota off before serious damage got done.

That situation only got resolved when Dakota's owner moved him to another place (financial reasons). I hated to see them go, but in a way, it was a relief; the fence dividing those two pastures was in pretty sorry shape, and it was only going to be matter of time before it got knocked down when nobody was there to intervene.

As uncomfortable as it is for me to see Joe looking like that, it must be ghastly for you. Is there any way (other than rehoming) to break this up and give him (and you) some relief?


----------



## Baymule

Nobody is getting rehomed, nobody is going anywhere. I turned them all out together this evening in the regular horse pasture. Things will work out.

And yes I hate seeing Joe looking like this. He has health problems already and I work hard to keep weight on him.


----------



## B&B Happy goats

How is Joe and the other horses getting along now that some time has passed ? .....it has been almost a month and we need a Pearl fix please


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## Baymule

Pearl has figured out that she is also in feeding order. At first she was all over the place, frantic for Feed. Sparkles is first, then Prince, Joe and then Pearl. She has quit blasting through the barn and goes around to her end. LOL 

Got all their hooves trimmed a couple weeks ago. Winter hair is coming out, she should slick out nicely.


----------



## B&B Happy goats

So like ummm....pictures will be shared in the near future ?


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## Baymule

There is 3 days of sunshine, starting tomorrow. Not promising anything. I’ve got to get in the garden!


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## B&B Happy goats

....three days of sunshine... today is march 20th


----------



## Bruce

Here too but that will change tomorrow. 100% cloud cover rising chance of rain. Rain and or snow Friday and Saturday pretty guaranteed.


----------



## B&B Happy goats




----------



## B&B Happy goats

can you say PEARL pictures please


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## Baymule

B&B Happy goats said:


> can you say PEARL pictures please


I was talking to her a few days ago, telling her that we need to go for a ride. We've been working our butts off around here, after fall and winter of rain, rain, rain, drizzle and gloom. These sunny days have us outside working! I need to go ride.


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## B&B Happy goats

Baymule said:


> I was talking to her a few days ago, telling her that we need to go for a ride. We've been working our butts off around here, after fall and winter of rain, rain, rain, drizzle and gloom. These sunny days have us outside working! I need to go ride.


Peal needs a good romp too, go have a blast together....


----------



## Blamo'sBestBuddy

Congrats! What a pretty horse Pearl is!


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## Baymule

Pearl is shedding and her color is lighter.


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## B&B Happy goats

Baymule said:


> Pearl is shedding and her color is lighter.



How can i tell, you haven't  posted any new pictures of Pearl...


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## Rammy

Yeah!


----------



## Baymule

I'll give her a good brushing and snap her picture. She is a different horse than the one we brought home. Our friend and neighbor, Robert, put a gate in the fence that opens from our horse pasture onto his property. He lets the horses in to graze. He says Pearl won't let him touch her, he can get close, but no touching. She had to been terribly mistreated. She loves me, though. And I love her.


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## Bruce

Maybe you can show Pearl that Robert is OK. If she trusts you and you trust him, maybe she will figure out he won't hurt her.


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## Baymule

She and I are still working on trust, but she has come a long way. I like your idea, @Bruce.


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## B&B Happy goats

please show us Pearl........


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## B&B Happy goats

Still no pictures ......


----------



## Baymule




----------



## B&B Happy goats

Baymule said:


>


----------



## B&B Happy goats

how long must we wait ?


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## Baymule

Maybe not so long now, my phone finally started taking pictures again.


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## Bruce

Because you started point it at things and pushing the picture taking button?


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## MiniGoatsRule

She looks amazing! I think that she and Joe would get along. Are they pastures together?


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## MiniGoatsRule

Pastured*


----------



## Baymule

MiniGoatsRule said:


> She looks amazing! I think that she and Joe would get along. Are they pastures together?


Yes, we have 4 horses. Joe is retired and so is Sparkles, a 32 year old Tennessee Walker mare. We also have Prince, a blaze faced, stocking legged chestnut, about 10 years old.


----------



## Beekissed

Bruce said:


> Because you started point it at things and pushing the picture taking button?


 Bruce, sometimes you make me laugh so hard I cry down my leg!  

Yeah, I want to see Pearl too....and the rest of your horses, for that matter.  I love to see me some horses.


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## Baymule

@B&B Happy goats this is for you. I just snapped a pic of Pearl. She is still thin, but I see small improvements that don’t show up in a picture.


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## B&B Happy goats

THANK YOU SO MUCH...I just love Miss Pearl ...she sure has come a long way on her road to recovery, she looks nice Bay ...she sure is one  fortunate horse having you  find her ! ...I just went back to the first page of this journal and looked at the first picture you posted of her ...you really need to put these two pictures together...hard to believe it is the same animal...great job ,


and thank you for your fast reply to my request for a picture of her.....


----------



## Mini Horses

B&B Happy goats said:


> and thank you for your fast reply to my request for a picture of her.....



HEY -- what's a few MONTHS between friends??? 


She is so very improved from buying her.  Trust -- it will grow but, yes, sounds like a male treated her wrong, big time.


----------



## Baymule

At the top of a horse’s front legs, is a muscle that protrudes in a rounded shape. @Mini Horses you know what I mean, I’m not describing it very well. She had no muscle, it was flat. Well, now that muscle is there, not real big, but it is there. Victory.


----------



## AmberLops

Wow she's gorgeous!


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## B&B Happy goats

AmberLops said:


> Wow she's gorgeous!


Did you look at the picture when Bay first got her ? .....total diffrence  .....


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## AmberLops

I just did! Oh my goodness...she looks like a completely different horse!
You did good Bay


----------



## Baymule

Thanks y'all. Her picture just spoke to me. She was so skinny, so what we call "pore" she ate hay for 2 weeks and barely came up for a breath of air. She now follows me around, wants to hang out with me and has come a long way. She is still thin. It has crossed my mind that maybe she was starved all her life and just never had any muscle mass. Maybe there is no muscle to restore because she never had any in the first place. If that is the case, it may take a long time to build her up to what I consider to be a healthy looking horse.

She lost all that shaggy dead hair and slicked out real nice. She is a dream to ride, for all the abuse she obviously suffered, she had good training.


----------



## Pastor Dave

It's a bit of a stretch, but I rescued a German Shepherd once that was a year and a half and looked like a walking skeleton with hair. He did very similar. Hair changed out to a beautiful coat and body toned up. It's amazing how a malnourished animal can get healthy. I am sure the larger the animal, the longer the repair time and a lot more effort! Your horse looks great!


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## robhuncor

Riding should help muscle her up also.  Her coat looks so much healthier and I love her color change!


----------



## Baymule

robhuncor said:


> Riding should help muscle her up also.  Her coat looks so much healthier and I love her color change!


Thanks! Pearl will take a long time to get her right. She is a beautiful soul on the inside, I have to bring her outside up to health.


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## Bruce

Where are you in Eastern NY @robhuncor? You might be near @RollingAcres, she's in the Capitol region.


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## robhuncor

I'm in the most south eastern corner of Dutchess County right next to the Connecticut border, about 2 hours from the capitol region.   I used to spend the yearling sale season working in Saratoga Springs every August.

Some of the things we do on the horse farm where I work is sales prepping of young stock, care of pregnant mares and foals and layups of racehorses. Bay, when we have a horse that needs building up a bit, the guys use a supplement called Body Builder to help condition them.  I don't work hands on with the horses (I'm the office manager) but I know it's given daily on the feed pellets. Our feed is 14% protein, good quality that comes from Kentucky.  The supplement cost is about $1/day and it's given until the horse improves or sometimes on a daily basis for poor keepers.  A splash of corn oil on the feed is another option.


----------



## Baymule

I use a 14% Feed and free Feed hay. I have used corn oil in the past, thanks for the reminder.


----------



## Baymule

I sure am glad that Pearl is a calm horse. Whether that is from age, been there done that, or just her personality, where ever it came from, I am glad. When we have our two little grand daughters, ages 3 and 4 (almost 5) they go with me to feed the horses. they pet the horses and chatter incessantly. I give them safety cautions and am trying to teach them proper behavior. I was setting out some square bales yesterday, both of them were petting Pearl. I told them to stand at her shoulder to pet her.

I turned around and two giggling girls said "We walked under her tummy!"

Before I could react, the 3 year old said "Watch!" and she took off. I barely got NO out of my mouth and it was done. She charged at Pearl from 5 or 6 feet away and scooted under Pearl's belly shrieking with delight. 

Pearl startled, ears laid back, hind foot raised and just as quickly, she realized it was a small child and dropped her foot, ears forward and continued eating her feed. 

Thank you Dear Lord for a good horse.


----------



## B&B Happy goats

Ohhhh, that could of  been horrible  , good girl Pearl


----------



## thistlebloom

Good girl Pearl!!  

When I was a teenager one of our horses was big old bay gelding named Moses. He was clever and curious and could open gates if you didn't put the precautionary chain around them. One day my mom had a friend visiting with her young 4 year old son.
Moses let himself out onto the lawn and was happily grazing. The little boy who was also playing on the lawn ran up to Moses and wrapped his arms around a hind leg. "Donna I caught your horse for you!" he hollered.
Mom nearly had an aneurysm but Moses stood perfectly still until she could walk up quietly and disengage the kids arms from his hind leg. Close call!


----------



## thistlebloom

Bay, I could so picture your grandgirls playing under Pearl, and the youngest, your ringtailed tooter (!!), scampering under to show you. Heart stopping! Pearl is worth her weight in gold, what a sweet mare.


----------



## Baymule

Hahaha, @thistlebloom you remembered my nickname for her, she sure is a ring tailed tooter! Her parents were talking about their kids and decided that if life flung misfortune at them, the youngest would come out on top. That kid is tough, independent and WILL get her way.


----------



## Bruce

But maybe Grandma can convince her that "her way" around horses needs to be modified! That was scary just to read. I don't know a lot about horses but I know you approach from the front and keep a hand on them if you walk around back. And you never have a finger out when feeding them, not if you want to keep it.


----------



## Baymule

Bruce said:


> But maybe Grandma can convince her that "her way" around horses needs to be modified! That was scary just to read. I don't know a lot about horses but I know you approach from the front and keep a hand on them if you walk around back. And you never have a finger out when feeding them, not if you want to keep it.


Actually you can do all that and more to all my horses. I approach them from all sides, I do show them the consideration not to spook them, but they are not spooky. If I was short enough, I could walk under them. I give them lots of "hands on" and there is a reason for that. I do all I can to make them as bomb proof as I can. In this instance, it paid off. Just the same, I am teaching the kids as fast as I can how to behave around animals.


----------



## Mini Horses

thistlebloom said:


> Mom nearly had an aneurysm but Moses stood perfectly still until she could walk up quietly and disengage the kids arms from his hind leg. Close call!



Insurance terms consider a horse "an attractive nuisance" ….. they draw you to them!    While they can be calm & safe, the potential is there for great harm.   Rates can be better for a cattle farm than a horse farm  Guess cattle aren't so pretty..

Hmmm...…..haven't seen any pics of Pearl of late.  Camera broke?


----------



## Bruce

Baymule said:


> Actually you can do all that and more to all my horses.


I should probably have been more specific. My "knowledge" relates to unknown horses with unknown people. I'm sure people can do much more with their own horses since they know the animal and (hopefully) the animal trusts them. Still, best never to sneak up behind your own horse I suspect.


----------



## promiseacres

Bruce said:


> I should probably have been more specific. My "knowledge" relates to unknown horses with unknown people. I'm sure people can do much more with their own horses since they know the animal and (hopefully) the animal trusts them. Still, best never to sneak up behind your own horse I suspect.


I agree. Our own horses are very much the same.... I worry when my kids are around other horses and have emphasized to the kids that not all horses know how to behave. So I tell them to ALWAYS talk to the horses when approaching, ect. With Mom's horses here they have seen horses that aren't as calm and easy.
I am sure @Baymule is the same with her grandkids.


----------



## Mini Horses

Bruce said:


> Still, best never to sneak up behind your own horse I suspect.





promiseacres said:


> . So I tell them to ALWAYS talk to the horses when approaching, ect.



Absolutely......


----------



## Kusanar

Hey @Baymule How is Pearl doing now?

I just read through this whole thread in 2 days. She looked great in the last picture!

I have a sabino too, but mine is "maximum expression" he has just enough color that I can tell he's a bay or maybe a dun (one less than dime sized brown spot on his right flank, about 10 brown hairs on his right butt cheek, and a black spot about half the size of a dime on the inside of a hock). He's the white one on the left, the one on the right is a plain old bay tobiano.


----------



## Baymule

@Kusanar your horses are lovely. What breed are they? And just look at that grass!! Rich, lush grass! I have serious grass envy! We have worked so hard trying to get grass established, the soil is pure white sand. 

Pearl hit a plateau. She stayed the same for awhile, then lost weight. She needs grass and I don't have much of that. Last fall we had some clearing done with a forestry mulcher, this spring I sowed Bahia grass seed. I kept the horses off all summer, but I've been letting Pearl graze it. I put her on it in the mornings, give her feed, feed her again in the evening, then take her out. She is showing improvement. I'm starting to think that I may never get her roly poly fat. But I'll sure keep trying. I truly think she needs fresh green grass, that is the key. I'm growing it as fast as I can! I've grazed her in the sheep pastures and in the yard too. Come spring, I'll close the horses off the pipeline and sow that in giant Bermuda grass. In the meantime, Pearl gets special treatment.


----------



## Kusanar

Baymule said:


> @Kusanar your horses are lovely. What breed are they? And just look at that grass!! Rich, lush grass! I have serious grass envy! We have worked so hard trying to get grass established, the soil is pure white sand.
> 
> Pearl hit a plateau. She stayed the same for awhile, then lost weight. She needs grass and I don't have much of that. Last fall we had some clearing done with a forestry mulcher, this spring I sowed Bahia grass seed. I kept the horses off all summer, but I've been letting Pearl graze it. I put her on it in the mornings, give her feed, feed her again in the evening, then take her out. She is showing improvement. I'm starting to think that I may never get her roly poly fat. But I'll sure keep trying. I truly think she needs fresh green grass, that is the key. I'm growing it as fast as I can! I've grazed her in the sheep pastures and in the yard too. Come spring, I'll close the horses off the pipeline and sow that in giant Bermuda grass. In the meantime, Pearl gets special treatment.


Stud, the sabino white is probably 3/4 twh and 1/4 percheron. Papi, the pinto looking one is a registered twh but I have never seen his papers. 

As for the grass, that field is absolutely nuts... we haven't gotten the dividing fences up yet so it is all one big field and the boys eat their favorite places. They couldn't keep up, so we baled their field with them in it and got enough hay in 1 cut to last them the winter.

Have you thought of growing fodder for pearl? Might help. Essentially you put barley seeds in a tray about 1 seed deep and water it, you feed 7 days later at 3-4 inches growth and feed the entire thing as a mat.


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## Baymule

Your paint has the classic TWH stance.


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## Kusanar

Baymule said:


> Your paint has the classic TWH stance.


He's a goof ball. Will never be saddle broke. He is scared of his own farts and the squirrel that stepped on a leaf 2 miles over... you can tack him up and get on, but the first time something spooks him even a little bit his brain turns to liquid, runs out of his ears, and he turns into quite the nice little saddlebronk. Last time I tried riding him he bucked in a circle (rodeo bull style) until I came off and he apparently stepped on my chest and decided not to put weight on the squishy thing because there was a perfect hoof print on my chest but no sore places or bruising so he must have barely put pressure on me.

I dont bounce so well anymore so not trying that again...


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## Kusanar

Papi sneaking up on a killer water tub that he was sure was going to attack him...


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## Mini Horses

Both are beautiful animals.  Love the name on the white.

Bay you might try adding beet pulp to Pearl's grains.   It's known to help keep weight on them.  Most Sr feeds have it in there.  My old guy stays slick with his sr feed.  Worth a try.


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## Kusanar

Mini Horses said:


> Both are beautiful animals.  Love the name on the white.


Thanks! Oh, btw... I have a mini too... believe it or not, he's a silver dapple


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## Mini Horses

Oh I believe the color....still have a dozen of them.  The old guy is buckskin & min pinto..three dots of brown & tiny white on coronet but can throw some great tobiano.  I had a dapple mare on show one year and at trainers I commented how nice a horse she was and what great color!   Who owns her?  He says, she's yours -- that's Page with a shave & spring coat.       Mine are all aged now, retired as pasture ornaments.


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## Kusanar

Mini Horses said:


> Oh I believe the color....still have a dozen of them.  The old guy is buckskin & min pinto..three dots of brown & tiny white on coronet but can throw some great tobiano.  I had a dapple mare on show one year and at trainers I commented how nice she was and what great color!   He says, she's yours -- that's Page with a shave & spring coat.       Mine are all aged now, retired as pasture ornaments.


Pip in summer coat. Had to roach his mane for a few years, stud used it to pick him up by when he (stud) was a youngun


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## Baymule

I have a 32 year old retired TWH mare. A dream to ride but ALWAYS hunting boogers. She jumped out from under me frequently. Gravity takes over when one is hanging suspended in thin air. Haven’t ridden her in 7 years. She gets to live out her life, eat and be happy.


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## Kusanar

Baymule said:


> I have a 32 year old retired TWH mare. A dream to ride but ALWAYS hunting boogers. She jumped out from under me frequently. Gravity takes over when one is hanging suspended in thin air. Haven’t ridden her in 7 years. She gets to live out her life, eat and be happy.


Lol, my Arabian did that more than a few times, he was hard to spook, but when he did, he went from 0 to 40mph and left you hanging in the air wondering where the horse went like a roadrunner cartoon!

Papi is interesting, he VERY clearly has a thinking side of his brain and a spooky idiot side. He will use his brain while you tack him, mount him and even ride him, but if something spooks him, his brain switches over and the spooky side has no idea that he's being ridden, realizes something is on his back, decides it's a mountain lion, and tries his best to save his life from the thing that is going to kill him. As soon as the weight is off his back (and you are flying through the air) he switches back and calms back down almost instantly. If he was a normal horse that would get uptight when you got on him, he might actually be easier to train, but he never has a moment where he is simply tense, he goes from relaxed and ears flopping to full out panic in less than half a second and I'm just not good enough to stay on when he does that and I haven't found anyone stupid enough to be the crash dummy. 

If I had a good well trained horse and another good rider, he MIGHT be ok with being ponied, I figure at least that way, the pony rider could keep his head up and make him bolt forwards rather than head down and bronking and then maybe get him to calm back down and slow back down. A few times of that and he may figure it out, but I don't have either of those things handy.


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## Mini Horses

Mini Horses said:


> Both are beautiful animals. Love the name on the white.



MANE   I swear I typed MANE not name.....darned auto correct on Ipad!  It's not a horse oriented appliance.


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## Kusanar

Mini Horses said:


> MANE   I swear I typed MANE not name.....darned auto correct on Ipad!  It's not a horse oriented appliance.


Lol, it happens, yeah... that just grows... I don't do anything special to it, or even maintain it really, it just does that... He looks pretty goofy right now though, he managed to rip out his entire tail somehow so he's got this pathetic feather duster on his butt and all of that mane everywhere... I've thought about removing some mane to give him a tail again! lol


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## Bunnylady

I'm not sure that auto correct is even human-oriented, maybe more humor-oriented with a rather sick sense of humor. 

Spooky horses are the very devil to work with, aren't they? You never know what will set them off.





The Tobiano-Sabino on the left is "Wig-Out-First-Ask-Questions-Later-Syd," who has taught me more about looking for potentially spooky stuff than I ever wanted to know. I never know what is going to turn into an impromptu de-spooking session. One time, I was giving the minis a bath in preparation for some event, and as it was a bit cool out, I broke out the hair dryer to speed the drying process up. Even though I had used it on Blondie just a few feet away, when I turned it on near Syd, she wigged. When I held it higher than her head, she wigged. When I accidentally bumped it with the brush, she wigged. Anyone who saw us would surely have thought I had totally lost it as I waved the hair dryer over my head, tapping it with the brush and swinging it this way and that until she finally stood quietly and just let me work.

I know that things that flap, and things over her head or back  are likely to set her off, so I was quite prepared for her to have trouble with the wings on this costume (animal costume contest at our fair a couple of years ago). She never even blinked - but I know better than to expect that reaction the next time I try something new.


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## Kusanar

Bunnylady said:


> Spooky horses are the very devil to work with, aren't they? You never know what will set them off.


Yep, and luckily, Papi is fine to work with on the ground (it's like flying a kite sometimes but he doesn't drag you or try to trample you) and is pretty low maintenance, neither fat or skinny on grass or grass hay, barefoot, no grain unless I just feel like giving them a cup or so as a treat, no health issues, so he's nearly free to keep around as a pasture ornament so there is no real pressure to endanger myself to try to make him useful. 

Well, he is low maintenance other than that one time he tried to cut his foot off, that was quite a bit of maintenance, but he's all healed back up now and it's all good.


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## Bruce

Kusanar said:


> Thanks! Oh, btw... I have a mini too... believe it or not, he's a silver dapple
> View attachment 78396


He looks ready for winter in Siberia!



Kusanar said:


> I'm just not good enough to stay on when he does that and I haven't found anyone stupid enough to be the crash dummy.


Clearly you need to be belted to the saddle


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## Kusanar

Bruce said:


> He looks ready for winter in Siberia!
> 
> 
> Clearly you need to be belted to the saddle


Lol, he is ready for winter anywhere it gets super cold and doesn't snow... His legs are only about a foot long, he's not real good in the deep stuff. We had a 18" snow once and he stayed in the shed for over a week before it melted out enough he could leave (there was hay and water in there, he wasn't in NEED of leaving the shed)

Uh... I have seen horses buck like he does with a dummy belted to the saddle... the head flew off... I think I'll pass... lol


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## Baymule

Today we worked in the feed and tack room. We stopped for lunch and I decided to saddle up and ride Pearl. It was 70 degrees, sunny, breezy and beautiful. We went out the gate, I got on and she took off in that famous Tennessee Walker gait. She felt good and was excited to be going somewhere. Her ears were pricked forward and I thought about @thistlebloom riding Syringa. Those pointy ears frame the best pictures.

We rode about 2 miles, she only slowed down going up hill. Then the Chicago screw that held the rein to the bit shank came out and suddenly I only had one rein, and holding the other rein dangling. Hmmmm..... Pearl was gliding at high speed so I gently slowed her down. Finally I got her to stop. She was dancing, wanting to go. I was able to thread the rein through the shank of the bit, doubled it back to me and held both ends. It looked like a good time to turn around.

Pearl gaited almost all the way home, finally slowed to a walk. Old girl was hot and tired. My knee was killing me but I got off at the gate and walked her to the portable building, unsaddled and walked her to cool her off.

We both had a great time.


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## thistlebloom

I'm so happy to hear this! Yay Pearl and Bay!  
Sounds like a great ride, nothing like an eager horse moving along at a good clip.
So where's the pointy eared picture frame?
Oh, right, you were clinging to one rein  with no extra hands for a Kodak moment 😄.

Those darn Chicago screws! One of mine came undone on my nice headstall/homemade sidepull. Fortunately I was only a few hundred feet down the trail and had my other bridle in the trailer.


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## Baymule

Here it is! It wouldn’t load earlier, phone was about dead. LOL


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## Kusanar

Ugh, I had snaps on my reins and had one unsnap leading up to a jump! Luckily the horse I was riding was super honest and loved jumping so he handled it fine, cleared the jump, and let me stop him somewhat easily on the other side. That could have been BAD with any other horse...


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## Bruce

Baymule said:


> We both had a great time.






thistlebloom said:


> Those darn Chicago screws!


Time for some Blue LocTite!!


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## B&B Happy goats

Nice seeing both you and Pearl out for a stroll , bet you both had a great time


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## Mike CHS

That does give the picture a nice perspective when it's framed around her ears.


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## Baymule

I had a WOW! moment today. We have had Pearl for 2 years. She is fairly easy to catch, but walks away from me, usually annoyed. She will follow me with a feed bucket, but what horse won't? I let her out after she eats and if I want to pet her, I have to hold her halter to keep her from walking away. I always talk to her, always pet and scratch her, then let her go. 

This evening I opened the gate to let her out and scratched her chest. I didn't hold her halter. Pearl wrapped her neck around me and I rubbed and scratched her neck. I rubbed her side, belly and ribs. Then I switched sides. Pearl still didn't walk away and again wrapped her neck around me. I gave her lots of rubs and scratches. In 2 years, Pearl has NEVER asked for attention. 

I put out a few flakes of hay, Prince and Sparkles stood in the barn eating hay, so I put some flakes outside for her. She stood in the doorway, watching me instead of going to the hay. I closed up the door to the feed room and walked Pearl over to a flake of hay. I talked to her and gave her some more rubs and scratches. 

This has taken 2 years for Pearl to decide she can trust me. One of those WOW! moments I wanted to share 'cause I knew y'all would know how big it is


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## Palomino

Congratulations! That must have been so gratifying! 
The fancy pinto mare I have is like that. She has never had much handling, so I can catch her in a small pen, but she does not come to me unless I have feed and I cannot touch her unless she is haltered. I hope one day she decides to be like Pearl.


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## thistlebloom

That's wonderful. I know it makes your heart about burst out of your chest. Good job Bay.


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## Baymule

We had our granddaughters for the weekend. Pearl got some love from the youngest.





Then she took the two little girls for a ride. We went to the corner and back, about a mile. Pearl was a champion, she knew she had precious cargo aboard.


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## B&B Happy goats

Sure wish I had a grandmother like you when I was a kid   ...


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## thistlebloom

What a great girl Pearl is. Those are the best memories your making having your grandkids stay with you and doing farm stuff. Those grins are priceless.


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## Baymule

The ring tailed tooter (youngest) wanted to go fast. She asked if next time, would I get a faster horse.   

Turns out that Pearl's affection for me didn't last long. She was in heat and sized me up as a possible Baby Daddy. Poor girl, she backed up to me, wringing her tail. I don't know what made her decide that I was a handsome hunk of a stallion. I had to break the news to her that THAT wasn't going to happen! As soon as she was out of heat, I was an annoyance again, who happens to bring her feed.


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## thistlebloom

Baymule said:


> The ring tailed tooter (youngest) wanted to go fast. She asked if next time, would I get a faster horse.


 That kid's hilarious! 
Sorry Pearl has demoted you to fence post status. Maybe she can hear her bio clock ticking and was feeling a bit desperate.


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## Baymule

November 5, 2018, to now. I finally see Pearl gaining weight close to my goal for her. I didn't realize just how far down she was. She had no gut health, liquid farts, cow pies instead of horse apples. Her digestive tract mush have been utterly destroyed. She has been up, starting to look like a living animal, then go on a losing streak and skinny again, to the point of her ribs sticking out. It's been frustrating. I've thrown everything at her but the kitchen sink. I've fattened up some skinny horses before, but nothing like Pearl. She has come a long way.

She is being fed twice a day, 3/4 scoop of 14% pellets, 3/4 scoop cracked corn and a double handful of black oil sunflower seeds. Her butt is finally losing that bony pointed look, her backbone is getting fleshed out, still sticking up a little, but nothing like the mountain range it was. Her flanks are still drawn, but a huge improvement. She is shedding out now and her color is lighter than it was. 

Lately, she has been feeling real good. She has broken out in a full gallop, tail up and racing Prince to the barn. Yesterday when I went to feed, Carson rushed the fence barking (it's a game Prince plays with the dogs) and she kicked up her heels, bucking, and took off running. I've never seen her do that and it brought a big smile to my face. 

2 years and almost 5 months, it's been a long road, but we are finally getting there.


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## thistlebloom

So good to hear about her improvement! I can picture that happy sight of her bucking and racing Prince. Good job Bay. 😍


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## robhuncor

So glad to hear she is finally improving! 
 Just some thoughts from the Thoroughbred breeding farm lady (me  ).. Has a vet ever evaluated her? Do you ever use sweet feed? De-worm and/or check for ulcers?  Float teeth?  Sometimes sharp teeth really affect a horse's condition.  Sometimes a course of ulcer medication can help also.  Just some things I would think of but pay no attention to me - you are probably right on all this.
You are doing a good job and she definitely has a good quality of life!


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## Baymule




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## Baymule

Yes we took her to the vet, had her checked out, she’s been wormed multiple times, tried different feeds. We were told she was 12, vet said 15, so I’m guessing 17 now. I just never had a horse whose health was so destroyed. She also has heaves, but light riding doesn’t hurt her.


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## robhuncor

She is so lucky she ended up with you!


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## Kusanar

Glad she's doing better, especially with an older horse (she's not OLD but she's not a spring chicken either) it gets hard to get weight back on them once they drop it. If you can keep weight on an older one they maintain a LOT easier than they gain.


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## thistlebloom

Speaking of horses ages, here's a link to an interesting article on aging a horse by their teeth. It's newish information on the method taught by Dr. Galvayne in 1885 that is still widely adhered to.

("newish"shows my age I guess. This came out in 1994)


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