Marah's Belly - Six Weeks Due

We didn't have any foals born here last year and only have one due for '09, so we're waiting anxiously. Marah is (officially) due on July 7th, about six weeks from today.

I just love watching their sweet round bellies fill out and imagining the foal.

Colt or filly?

It could be grey or chestnut .... maybe black, but probably not bay.

The sire is my endurance horse, GWAIHIR TOS.

Interestingly enough, we didn't have breeding dates on Marah's previous foal. She went into labor in October and didn't deliver until January. We don't know if she was having early labor or if she carried a long time, but we'll be keeping a close eye on her over the next few months.

Spring time in Texas

... didn't I already do a 'Springtime' Post?

well. I'm going to do another one, and probably at least one more before I'm done. We don't usually have much spring, but this year has been a good one.

We have yellow and bright pink cactus roses, I can never decide which I like best.

The wildflowers are rioting this year, with all the rain we've had. The pastures looks like a busload of kindergartens finger-painted all over them, but the photos just don't do them justice ... I'll have to keep trying, but I do love the cactus flowers.


And, of course, our other most notable springtime herald, the infamous 'rattlebugs'. Ug. This was just a baby, only about 2 1/2 ft long.

For the most part, we live in peace, but these guys are much too common and dangerous in our area to let them be. We've had dogs and horses bitten, lost one dog, and they've come much MUCH too snapping on one of us. They tend to be sluggish early in the spring -- slow to move out of your way -- as well as being foul tempered (more than usual) and aggressive. They're more awake now, but that doesn't mean they'll really get out of your way if they hear you coming. It's funny I've always been told that, but it's not been my experience. The last one I got close to, walking, coiled and prepared to fight until I backed off. So it doesn't hurt my feelings too much to see them on the road like this.


edited to add another flower pic: I'm not really a warm fuzzy about flowers and such, but I love to contrast of the delicate beauty of our wildflowers in their rugged rocky beds and the cactus.

WHAaaat!?!

... I .. um..... ...never mind.

It's All about Telpe

~
Telpe.... yes, regular readers will remember Telpe.

So I captured a couple of shots of her nose a couple of weeks ago ... and have been debating as to what kind of jaws she had poked her nostril into.

The top ones did look like punctures to start with, so at first I guessed that she had battled a fanged snapping turtle of enormous proportion. (you can't tell as well in these photos, but the bottom wound was "V" shaped.)

I've revised this theory several times as it heals, because it really looks like -- of all things -- a human bite, on the top. I say that because it looks like it was made by blunt teeth in a half-round pattern. Of course -- I can't imagine any human being able to open their jaws wide enough to get the whole horse in their mouth like that. ...

The obvious answer would be a horse bite - but isn't that much too simple? (and of course, the pattern seems to narrow)

... and so while I've been pondering this mystery - the kids

run in last night to inform me that the grey filly had ripped her leg and a bone was sticking out.

- yes. Could there be any doubt that it was Telpe.

Thankfully, they were wrong about the bone, but she did skin her left gaskin.

This snap was taken the second day. Since it was sliced and torn down from the top, it couldn't be stitched because with the skin tag attached at the bottom there isn't any blood flow to the flap. So the vet simply snipped it off, gave her a couple of shots and we're starting with a simple spray on bandange. You can easly see the thickened edges of the skin. The bare muscle is an area larger than my hand and yes, the blood (and stuff) is seeping through. It's quite sore and swollen, but Telpe is happy as the proverbiable clam since she's tucked back into the indoor stall and is getting lots of extra special attention each day.

From Where ...?

In our area we have a lot of natural cedar and an equally overwhelming amount of invasive juniper.


The so-called trees in our pasture look mostly like this:












or even, the few that we've trimmed to look like a more normal kind of tree look like this:











But, after nearly 15 years in this area, this year I noticed something a little different. I noticed this tree.

and not just one, but I could see two others who'd had similar treatment from where I was standing.

Closer examination revealed a tortured and destroyed inner circle.

My mind being the overly complex and complicated kind, didn't consider anything like a wet spring and unusually heavy growth following a couple of years of dry or take into consideration the high winds we've had -- it immediately leaped to thinking how I could use such a thing in the world building or conflicts of my next novel. What could be the meaning of so many random trees being flattened from above? Spacemen? The Hand of God? Monsters or Monstrous Beasts?

What wonderful ambiguity, misunderstandings and conflicts these 'topped' and flattened trees could cause naive or superstitious characters. ...!

More on Writing ~

I've been riding more than writing lately -- which is both good and bad.

We've been to a couple of events which I haven't posted about yet, so here it is. A miserable endurance ride over Easter weekend ~ my fault mostly for being over-confident and under-prepared ~ but we were out riding in the worst of the spring storms and simply decided enough was enough. I hate that we had to pull, but we'll ride another day. A couple of weeks later, Miree and I went to another CMSA Shoot and again, she did her typical good-hearted baby-best. Our times are slow, but that's still ok at this point. We placed 2nd(tied), 4th, 4th, and 3rd out of four for an overall dead-last. Not where I'd prefer to place, but I know she's doing a great job for her age and level of training and I know that by bringing her along slowly I'll have a better horse over the long term.

Otherwise, ...*looks at date of last post* *blush* It's not that I've had nothing to write about, but that my mind has been going in so many directions it's been a little hard for me to focus. The weather here has been awful and raining -- so I should have plenty of time to write -- but I've been worrying over several different projects rather then moving forward on any particular one and while that is progress, it's not as noticable on the 'outside'.

We're working on (re-) fencing our south pasture when is a pretty major project and coming along slowly. And we're still riding, although the endurance schedule slows down in this part of the world for the summer, we'll shoot at least once a month all summer. Beri is coming back well from her tie-up and will be back on the shooting circuit so I'll alternate her with Miree.

The Reason Why

... I'm reminded time and again that it's all worth it.

... the waiting and watching and the worry. ... the feed bills and the vet and the worry. ... and the dreaming and the worry ...

- but when one is born, you remember there's nothing softer than the feel of brand new fur and nothing sweeter than the smell of their warm milk-breath.

- you have the years of just being together and learning to be friends while learning to halter and lead and get hoof-trimmed and get in the trailer.

- then you have those first short, easy rides. Miree's driving as well, so we've been doing a little of that.

- and then you have the big day when you take them in public for the first time and put a little pressure on, always of course, in front of a crowd.

When one comes through as well as Miree did last weekend, there is no feeling in the world that can compare.

We had a great day her first day shooting. She showed herself to be settled and sane and willing -- and gave a little more with each stage, showing improvement throughout the day -- but more than just a good day, Saturday was both a culmination and a starting point of what I dreamed of when I put her sire and dam together almost five years ago.