Poor Old Bojangles

Found out that Bo is likely 27 years old. Explains the sore stiff walk, poor weight gain, and lack luster energy level, he is a geriatric horse..... someone along the line lied about his age. Oh well, we will spoil him just the same. Poor Ole Bo.

Artistic Debut

This weekend presented a new experience for two of my children, and myself. My oldest daughter Andrea was showing five of her original photographs at an art show in our community. This does not seem to be a daunting task, but Andrea is one of those quiet people who knows in her heart she has talent, but does not believe in herself enough to shout it from the roof tops. She needed me there for support, and was hoping to sell her prints to buy a new camera, so I am sure she was disappointed that she did not sell any prints today, BUT..... many people commented on her work, and told her what a wonderful job she did, which her confidence needed. Then a restaurant owner asked her to contact her about putting her artwork in her restaurant, this IS exciting, I don't think Andrea understands what an open door that is for her. So, she survived her first showing, and I am sure she is relieved, and hopefully inspired. I love her work, and I always look forward to seeing the world through her eyes.
Berenger was also there to support her, and basically was a well behaved little boy, and slept through a bit of the show... relieved that I did not have to leave, I think that would have plummeted Andrea into a panic attack! Oh, and as a footnote, Andrea has sold several prints to local doctors who have put her work both in their home and offices.... in case you were wondering. I am proud of my kids in all they do!

Random words of love and affection

My cousin posted on her facebook that her child randomly said "I love you mom", and my first thought was the many times that my kids brought me to tears with random words of love and affection! It brought me back a few years ago to a car drive where I fought not crashing my car when blinded by tears. My children had put in the Rugrat's Paris cd..... and played the song of Cyndi Laupers - I want a mom who will last forever..... They sang the song with all their hearts, and the tears flowed! At first I tried to hide my tears from my trio of singers, but realized that I could not as I pulled the car over and sobbed with pride, and happiness! Every time I hear that song, I am brought back to that moment, and yes, I still cry. I will remember that moment, it being so powerful, I am sure it is permenately etched into my mind, I am sure Alzheimer's can not even steal that memory!
Relative to this thought - I worked as a nurse in all aspects of nursing including intensive care, pediatrics, oncology, and psych..... one thing that I learned in this work was that people only needed one thing, only craved one thing, and only regretted one thing.... to know they are loved, and having not said it at the right time, or even at all. One patient's mother sat by her dying daughter's bed, crying with guilt because her last words to her daughter were "hateful". She sobbed through her fingers, repeating primarily to herself, "I should have told her I loved her despite the fact that I was angry at her, I should have told her that she was so important to me, and that I was trying to do what was best for her...... I should have told her I loved her!!!" The wailing grew as her daughter took her last breath, and the last thing I heard her mother say to her support person as she was led from our unit was "I was too late, I didn't say I love you".
I grew up in a family where the words I love you were not spoken, and in actuality, a swat on the side of the head was the only form of "love" expressed in my home. So growing up to be a partner and parent who used the words with ease was not the norm. It was a struggle for me to learn to say "I love you", but I persevered, and nothing trains a woman in the area of expressing emotions of love like raising a child. I had never known the power of love until my first born child was placed in my arms and like a breaker switch that is flipped to it's on position, flooding the room with light, my heart learned the meaning of love, the power of love... turned on by the warmth of an eight pound child. My love for my children continues to grow daily, and my ability to say it as well, fostered by the rare glimpse into the lives of those who had reserved the words, or worse replaced them with hateful, thoughtless phrases they would live to regret.
I learned to turn the angry words to loving words when challenged by my youngest who stormed to her room, arms crossed tightly across her chest as she stomped up the stairs after being told to go to her room for bad behaviour. She yelled at me with all her anger "I HATE YOU!" and thank God I had the presence of mind to respond the way I did, but some higher being had to have whispered into my ear.... say I love you because I did. Each time I answered her I hate you with"Well, I love you!" her anger dissipated and a smile broke out across her face... until it turned into an "I love you too, but I am still mad"! to which I responded "me too".
So learn from my wisdom, if you can call it that. Be sure to tell your children you love them, day and night, even if you are not comfortable saying the words. Eventually they will feel very normal and come from your lips easily and with meaning. Your words may be the ones that keep your confused teen from ending his life. Your words may be the ones that send your child to school smiling, energized and ready to conquer the world with the power of love! Show your children frequent Random Words of Love and Affection!

Spa day for the pony

Today was warmer than Saturday, so we had spa day for Bo today. He got brushed, got his mane and tail trimmed and he looks nice. Once winter is over, he will shed his thick furry coat and will look like a whole new pony! Today Berenger got his first pony ride on Bo. He had a big smile on his face the whole time! The lil' bugger loves that pony already.

How to fatten up a thin horse

When I was running a shelter for abused and unwanted farm animals, I gained lots of experience in helping underweight or malnourished horses to gain weight - not fat, but muscle too. Like with people, large does not necessarily equate healthy. With horses, a big round belly does not equate health. I have seen big round bellies on animals infested with worms, and animals fed lots of nutrient deficient hay. The biggest mistake people make when trying to help horses gain weight, is whopping the wormers and hay to them. Not always what they need.
The first thing I do with thin and out of condition horses is to measure their height, girth, and evaluate their condition using a condition scale. This looks at their overall health, hydration, physical condition among other parameters. (See www.omafra.gov.on.ca for a conditioning scale)
I always worm new horses on the farm on arrival, BUT, one must use caution when worming. Treating a worm infested horse can cause the horse to colic. Use caution when worming a horse with no known worming history. I usually administer half the dose recommended and then repeat the worming in 4 weeks, then again in 4-6 weeks, then every 8 weeks for one year. I know that is overkill, but it works. I also ask a vet to check the horse for other potential problems like EIA, or some other illness. It is also a good idea to have a fecal sample tested for parasites, and to have the horses teeth floated.
The other mistake people make is "whopping the feed" to the horse. Again, use caution. You can colic a horse doing this! I always start the animal slowly... even if the previous owner says the horse was on a quart of feed at their farm, any horse I get, goes on a one day fast (from grain) and is then started slowly onto my feed. I will often try to get a half a bag of what they had at the previous barn and mix it with my feed slowly transitioning the horse onto my feed.

In the case of ponies, and Bojangles, I fast the pony from grain for one day,
day 2-7 I feed a handful of grain, 1/2 cup of bran, 1/8 cup of vegetable oil, 1/8 cup of ground flax seed, and a tablespoon of vitamins and minerals once a day in the evening. I like to feed in the evening because the heat from the digestive process helps keep the horse warm through the night, this is especially good in the winter. I will also warm the water in the winter to save on calorie consumption in the horse (the body temperature will drop if the belly is full of cold water, and will need to increase calorie consumption to warm the belly/horse, this takes away from fat formation to help the horse gain weight). Be sure to keep an eye out for signs of colic when changing the diet. I will increase the number of times I check on the horse during this time, including a late or middle of night check.
Day 8-15 I increase the proportions to 1 cup of grain, 3/4 cup of bran, 1/4 cup oil, 1/4 cup of ground flax seed, and a tablespoon of vitamins and minerals once a day.
Day 16-21 the proportions increases to 1 1/2 cups of grain, 1 cup of bran, 1/2 cup of oil, 1/4 cup of ground flax seed and a tablespoon of vitamins and minerals once a day.
Day 22-29 I give 2 cups of grain, 1 1/2 cups of brain, 1/2 cup of oil, 1/4 cup of ground flax seed, and a tablespoon of vitamins and minerals once a day.
For the next 30 days I give the same proportions twice a day. Watch the horses growth and condition daily, and measure girth for weight change at least every 30 days. This is really important with ponies as they can gain weight rapidly.
This method has worked very well for many horses in my care. It usually takes the average underweight horse 6-9 months to get to a healthy weight. I also avoid working the horse during the first few weeks of this program, and if they are gaining nicely, I start a walking program with them to help build muscle mass, starting slow at first, then increasing the amount of work slowly, all the while watching for weight loss.
Returning a horse to good health and condition is difficult, requires patience, and diligence. Hang in there, and be attentive to minor changes with the horse. Good luck and I hope this helps!

Before photos - Mr. Bojangles aka Bo

Before photo of Bojangles taken March 26, 2010
There is a method for determining a horses condition called condition scoring, and Bo scored between a 1 and 2 which is not terrific. It is hard to tell but he is thinner than his wooly coat makes him look. I suspect that he was low man on the totem pole at his other barnyard and the other horses pushed him away from the best feed, and he got their left overs, and if he was pushed out of the shelter by the other horses, he would also have a hard time keeping his winter weight where it belongs. So my plan is to get his coat healthy, his weight up, and his muscle mass increased. With that he will perk up and get a little gumption. Watch and see how he goes!

I like to take before and after shots of the horses I get, as some have come looking shabby, thin, and very sad, and the transformation is amazing. Just for the fun of it, here is one of my past horses that went from rags to riches...... well, she looked the part anyway.

Nikki was a pony rescued by the SPCA. She and her foal were starving to death when found and cared for by the vet for a month, then brought to me for their further recovery. It took 9 months to get her back to good condition.


The picture on the left is Nikki in June 06 and the photo on the right is the same horse in September of 05. Nikkie came at one month after being rescued, and having vet care for one month, this photo shows her the day she arrived, imagine how bad she looked the day they got her! Yes, this is the same pony!!

Mr. Bojangles

Hi All. It has been forever since I last wrote on my blog, but I am back. The baby is growing like crazy, and is nearly two, and we decided he needed a pony. Of course, finding a good pony is very difficult. I thought we had found the one, but on second meeting she tried to kick me twice. So much for the well trained pony. Then I got a call that there was a pair of ponies in need of a new home very quickly, and I agreed to take them on. Well the morning they were to be delivered, the mare broke her leg and had to be put down before they left their home. The decision was made to still receive Bojangles. Upon his arrival, I noticed that he was thin, and in desperate need of some loving. He has come to the right place. This little gelding is going to look like a different little pony altogether come June! So, I invite you to monitor his progress, and cheer him on with me.
Berenger is very happy to have a pony, and I think that Bo is very happy to be here with us, he even seems to like the sheep. His first day here, he ate sumptuous hay - like a pig, drank lots of fresh Pleasant Valley Spring water, hung out with the sheep, and had a delicious bran mash supper fit for a king! Bear sat on his back for just a minute and both Bo and Bear seemed to enjoy it. Tomorrow Bo gets a spa day compete with manicure (hoof trimming), hair styling (grooming), and a leisurely day in the sun hanging out with his sheep friends. You deserve it Bo!