More snow?! Ugh!

Yep, you read right. We got more snow. Of course, that would have been a surprise only if you had been living under a rock for the last two weeks. Since I know you don't , you have seen, probably dealt with, all the white stuff piling high. What a pain!!! Give me spring!!!

Amanda is doing a great job at the farm! Her work ethic seems to be great and I appreciate her help.

Today, I got on Missy. :D I cannot tell you how great that felt! I'm still flying high! She used her new bridle, but I'm not sure the bit fits. I measured it with the other bit she's been using and it seemed the same, but when I looked at it in her mouth, I'm not sure. I'll have to get Klara to look at it for a 2nd opinion. At any rate, we had a great time. We walked up and down the driveway and I could just feel how happy she was. I cannot wait to start her under saddle training again!

Sunday, we head to Portland for the United Way Summer Champ Camp Fair. With any luck, we'll get people to sign up that day! I need to update the brochures and get them printed.

Anyway, the next session is in March. (why did we skip Feb???) Couple of reminders: PLEASE!!! Dress warmly!!! By then the weather may have changed so make sure to dress in layers!!! AND NO SNEAKERS!!!! Assume we will be riding! We all know how to dress appropriately! If proper footwear is not worn, you will not be allowed to get on a horse, bareback or not!!!

Ok, I'm off my soapbox now. :) Keep warm!! See you in March!

New Pictures!

Hi guys!

This is going to be short, as the ponies are waiting for me....

Yesterday I took some new pics of the ponies and the farm. I am including the link to the new slideshow. Hope you enjoy - and please comment to let me know you saw it!

http://s394.photobucket.com/albums/pp26/wbfmgr/?albumview=slideshow

Have a great day!

First Adopt-a-Horse Session

Today was the first session and the five girls - Ashley, Taylor, Savannah, Emily and Ally - who showed up did well! We learned some parts of the horse and even discussed part of my last blog. Then, given the nice weather - albeit cold - we took Joey and Jelly into the arena and barebacked. The ponies did well for not having a rider on their back in a few months! i think the girls did, too. Of course, watching Savannah 'fall' off Jelly was rather hysterical.

Please be on the lookout for an updated slideshow on the website. When I get my act together, I plan on bringing my camera and taking some pics of the horses in the snow.

Our newest addition to the WBF family, Amanda, was also there and it was great to meet her. She will be at the barn to help out, working under my supervision, in exhange for some time in the saddle....once the weather gets better, of course! At any rate, welcome Amanda! I look forward to working with you!

This week begins my Wednesday sessions with Kylie and Emma. I am very excited about this. The first part of our sessions will be focused on the horse and learning the parts, feeding, first aid and other important issues.

For those who didn't make today's session, we hope to see you next time! Stay warm, and stay safe!

Baby, It's Cooold Outside!

Wow! If you have been outside at all lately, you know that it's COLD. And I don't mean just a little uncomfortable, I mean freeze-your-nose-hairs cold. Yowza! It has made doing chores a bit tricky, as the Kubota won't start and of course the ever present frozen water buckets. Nonetheless the horses need to get out and they need to have hay - and lots of it! - and water.

There are several ways to keep a horse nice and cozy when it's cold out and here are three of the main ways:

1) offer shelter - if a covered area cannot be offered, a tree will be good, too.
2) blanketing - this is good for thin (malnourished) horses and those horses that shiver and are older who can't produce enough insulation with their own hair.
3) free choice hay - this is by far the best thing for them. By giving them additional hay, their body will work more to digest the hay and will therefore warm the horse from the inside.

I opted for choice #3. Well, kind of. Although, they do not have hay in front of them all the time, I did give them more hay at lunch and an extra flake for dinner. it woudl be great to have some beet pulp or forage extender to mix with hot water as a nice mash for dinner, but we don't have any and there is no hot water in the barn.

At any rate, things are good at WBF. We are looking forward to seeing everyone on Saturday for our first Adopt-a-Horse session. Be on the lookout for a new helper, Amanda. She has been riding for a couple of years and is a welcome addition to the farm! Welcome, Amanda!

Say goodbye....

Well, as of today two ponies have left the farm. Snow has gone to a place where hopefully someone can deal with her......idiosynchrosies. Tex has gone to Bill and Klara's friend's Sue and Clint's house (where Missy came from). With any luck, he will come back a new pony.

It's sad when we have to say goodbye to ponies, but in these two cases, it truly was for the best. In one of the cases it was becoming a safety issue and that is simply not acceptable. At WBF, our main concern is everyone's safety. We cannot have unsafe ponies for our riders and therefore a tough decision had to be made.

Tomorrow, we go back to work and school. YAY! I can't wait to see the ponies tomorrow and get back to doing what I love to do.

Don't forget: Next Saturday is the first day of our Adopt-a-Horse winter program!! The ponies will love the attention and we will love getting to see all of you!

Zeffy - Captured in a Painting!

This is what I got Klara for Christmas. It's a Graphite painting of Zef. Debbie Flood, a Maine artist from Belfast, did the commission and I'm so pleased at how it turned out. I think it really captures his power and strength and beauty. She did an amazing job - Thank you, Debbie! You can view Debbie's other work at her website http://www.debfloodart.com/ . Here are Debbie's own words about the painting: "Thank you for giving me the chance to paint him, Wendy! This is a young Friesian Colt, Zefiros Van Der WilsonBrook. I so enjoyed painting this one, it is Graphite on 11 x 13 Strathmore drawing paper. This horse resides on a wonderful farm here in Maine. You can check out his home here: http://www.wilsonbrookfarm.com & Wendy has a neat Blog here: http://trainerwendy.blogspot.com She's a certified riding Instructor at this farm."

The ground is pretty well frozen and the horses slip and slide during turn out and turn in. I feel compelled to fix the problem and may work on it a bit this afternoon. It's simply not safe for man nor equine.

This week, I start my On the Ground lessons with Kylie. I'm so excited. I've missed her shining face at the barn. Between grooming, learning about feeding and other barn management things, I'm sure we'll discover a lot in the coming weeks.

Hope you all are looking forward to coming up in a couple of weeks. It should be lots of fun and the horses I'm sure will love the attention.

Happy New Year!

Well, it's officially 2009!!! I expect this year to be just as good - if not better! - than 2008.

It was nice to hang out with Klara and her family last night. No worries, no stalls to clean or horses to feed, but just hanging out. We don't often get a chance to do that so it was nice to just BE with each other as friends, rather than business associates.

I bought Missy her halter...again. The first one I bought was too big for her. So, I went to Adam's Horse Supply and got another one - this one was cheaper, so I got a matching lead to go with it. :) I love spoiling that girl!

We are looking forward to the first Saturday where we all gather with our adopted ponies and have some fun. I know the ponies will love the attention!

Wishing you all the very best and most fulfilled new years!