Hoof Adventures & Other Equine Experiences

Well, the first ACTHA ride is over and we made it home in pretty much one piece.  I’m sporting a swollen eye that is turning an impressive shade of purplish red, (That is one thing I do well, bruise!) and Dee has a small scrape down the inside of her right hind leg.  Stay tuned to learn the stories behind the wounds.  :0) I am still trying to wrap my mind around the whole experience.  It was a great weekend and I hope to have many more weekends like this with many improvements in horsemanship along the way. When we first arrived, the barn manager showed me how to get to the pen. We went through the barn with horses on either side of the isle and then through a hallway that was maybe three feet across (concrete walls that were 12 feet high) and six or eight feet long, then down another isle with horses on either side.  My first question was “is there another way for me to get here?”  she was nice enough to remove the few horses that were turned out in a nearby pasture so I could w

  My efforts to further Dee’s education have definitely gone “up a notch”.  Seems like every time we play there is a new element involved.  Our first trail ride as members of the American Competitive Trail Horse Association (ACTHA) is coming up fast…March 19!  We are signed up in the “Buddy” Division for that ride,  which means we are literally, just along for the ride.  We will not be able to complete obstacles or earn points.  The next day will be our second ride and we are signed up in the “Pleasure” Division for that one.  I really can’t wait, it seems like just the thing to keep us motivated!  It is going to be a great weekend and Randy and Shorty will be there to cheer us on.   Over the past few weeks we have come face to face with the neighbor’s cows (hence our blog title!), Found our way to the end of Marengo and beyond, and gone to the vet with no companion horse going along for moral support.   To the non-horse enlightened person these things may seem rather mundane and ha