Fresh Eight Belles News

Hot Off The Presses from TheHorse.com:

Necropsy results are in- the filly suffered fractures in both front pasterns.

Not really new news there, is it? No, the NEW news, for all you who proceeded to TRASH her trainer, and accuse him of doping, along with EVERY other trainer who had horses in the Derby:

The Filly Was Clean. No outlawed drugs were found. And No Steroids Were Found.

In fact, the entire Derby field was Clean.

So, for those of you who stand (or sit, or hide) and accuse every Thoroughbred trainer of drugging their horses to run, y'all might wanna just take a look at some actual test results before you go and start pointing fingers.

Just something to think about there.........

My Turn For Tips

Now I will confess, normally the tips that are included here are saved for fall and winter months. However, with hay season upon some (and getting close for others,) these tips will apply now as well.

In a former life, I was a volunteer fire fighter. During that stint, I was able to pick up a lot of information that can be applied to horse owners and our facilities as well. At the same time, we also made our own hay (that I MISS like crazy right now,) and put it up in the barn. (OK, I confess, I miss the HAY. I do not miss- not for one nano-second- the actual MAKING of the hay. Or putting it up!)

With the hay shortages that have been an issue for the past two years, many people are bringing hay in by the truckload to store, so they have their year's supply. A few things to look out for when you are stacking your hay are:

- Bales that are MUCH heavier than others.
- Bales that feel warm to the touch
- Bales that feel damp to the touch

Those three things right there can bring about disaster- not just in moldy hay either. Spontaneous combustion can and does occur. Dry hay goes up fast, and burns hot. To avoid it, set those bales aside- open them up if need be, and use them up first. One tip I picked up from a man who had been making good hay for generations was the use of table salt. He always had several one pound containers around during hay season, and if any bales were suspect, he would dump salt on them as he set them off to one side. What this does exactly, I am not sure other than helping to dry the bales out. (I do know that heavy application of salt will smother a grease fire too, so maybe it also has a smothering effect on the hay as well.)

Along the same vein here, hay "chaff" is also highly flammable. Keeping your barn blown out with a leaf blower will help cut back on residue.

De-cobweb your barn! Cobwebs have an incredibly low ignition point, and have been known to drift down into hay in stalls, or across horses backs, while burning. Not a pretty scene, and PLEASE do everything you can to avoid it. Please.

Clutter in the barn:
Old feed bags, bailing twine, old tack, garbage, etc- anything that can lay around in the way will create more confusion and also more "food" for flames. Keep your alley's clean and clear, and also blown out with that handy dandy leaf blower.

If you have horses in the barn, keep a halter and lead at their stall door. If nothing else, be able to loop a lead around your horse's neck and lead them out to safety. Hang all your extra leads and halters on another spot, so that one halter can be grabbed and used with out additional confusion.

Have a separate containment area for the horses, away from the barn. Hate to say it, but horses will try to run back in at times. Cattle too.

Smoke detectors and alarms:
They are not just for every level in your home! If you have a barn, have them installed there as well! If your barn is too far away from the house to hear them, install a baby monitor. Check batteries religiously, twice a year at least, and test monthly.

Fire Extinguishers:
This is a serious part, so please, pay close attention here.

Fire Extinguishers Are Meant To Get You O-U-T.

They are not meant to put the fire out. They are meant to give you about 30 to 45 seconds to GET OUT. (Yes, that was seconds. Not a typo.) Check your extinguishers over monthly, and make sure that the gauge reads "Full". If you gave a dry chemical extinguisher, turn it upside down monthly as well, and keep the contents "mixed". If you are unsure about something, stop in at your local department and talk with the fire fighters.

One other thing you may want to do, is invite your fire department out for a walk through. Give them a tour, show them where water is. Let them take a good look around, and become familiar with the lay out of your barn.

Check those bales, and keep your barn clean! Spend some extra time teaching your horse to lead with a rope around their neck. Teach them to be blindfolded as well. Make some time to get to know your local fire fighters. And Check Those Smoke Alarms, In The Barn AND The House!

Horse Care Tips Award!

Callie from MidWestHorse was feeling creative, and made an award for giving horse care tips. Thanks to her generosity, we can have it also adorn the pages here of Oh HorseFeathers! Thank you Callie, very much for thinking of us! It made my day that much brighter!

In the spirit of the award, Callie also posted a bunch of really good care tips on her blog. She covered a lot of ground, and did an outstanding job of it.

Before I post a few more tips, I'd like to share this with two bloggers who are also doing and outstanding job:

Behind The Bit's Stacey Kimmel-Smith always has fantastic information available, in an easy to use format. Her links are outstanding, and her research is intensive. I admire her ability to research things so well, and present things in such a fantastic manner.

Tammara at The Barb Wire is also doing a great job teaching folks about conditioning for endurance. Her horses are lovely, and Tamarra is generous in sharing them with us. Conditioning has always been a "biggie" with me, and it is fantastic to see someone creating such a detailed journal on their progress.

There are a literal SLEW of people out there who deserve this award-- Callie kept it to 2, as will I, so that others can pass the award along, and have some fun with it as well.

Keep up the great job everyone! It seems that there are more equi-bloggers turning up each day, and its great to see! We all have different perspectives and insights to offer, and it seems that the blogoshpere is a fantastic place to do just that. It's fun, too!

The Great Breed Debate ~ And MORE!

There is a debate quite literally raging, and has been for about 10 or so days now, on a list I read. I *used* to participate in discussions on this list, but the past six or so months, it has really been a waste of my time. This week, the breed bashing and bigotry also spilled over into the Great Shoe Debate, or If Your Horse Goes Barefoot, You Are Going To Kill Him.

Right. Ok- that can be your little secret there kids.

Lest the Barefoot crowd be left out, you are doing yourselves no good- no good atall- by jumping up and down screaming about how those who choose to shoe are in turn killing their horses.

Oh- I forgot! On this list there is also the person who is so strongly anti-slaughter that darn near every post she puts up has to do with "outing" the latest lies and propaganda put out by the pro-slaughter camp. Even going so far as to say that reports of abandoned horses are total fabrications, and spread by the pro-slaughter people only to further their cause. I am beginning to think that not only is the saving of horses one of her driving ambitions in life, but it also seems that she is bent on eradicating meat buyers. Not just having them find new jobs- oh no. I swear she is looking for a way to *eradicate* them. Seriously. Like cement horse shoes for them.

In the Great Breed Debate- which started over an innocent question, asking about would Appendix QH be suitable for barrel racing- has moved up to trashing Quarter Horses, (apparently, a high number of them are thought to be "mush brained". HA~) Thoroughbreds- because we all know they are only good for running a mile and turning left. Arabians- because they are crazy. Just. Plain. Crazy. Appaloosas- which, as one poster pointed out, all have Navicular Syndrome. As I posted in there that there IS research out there that has proven Navicular to be a man-made disorder in its entirety, I was promptly "educated" that no, it is GENETIC, and there is NO WAY possible to fix it.

...... Insert a H-U-G-E eyeroll on my part, 'cause kids-

"It Ain't Braggin, If Ya Done It."

And I have Done It.

I have a tshirt that shows some really beautiful horses on it. I wear it all over the place to serve as a reminder to people. It says, "There Is No Bad Color On A Good Horse".

Makes sense to me, but somehow that message is sure to be lost on the breed bashers on that list.

After Oh Wise One (sic) passed along her tidbits of education to me, I decided that pretty much those wimmen over yonder don't need my insights. Frankly, my energy has better places to go, than to be directed at a PMS'ing lot of women who need a freaking hobby. (Like, oh, I don't know, maybe get up off of their collective butts and go DO something productive with their horses? Or go volunteer at a horse rescue? Do a bake sale to raise funds for a horse rescue? Something- anything- to get a blasted LIFE there.)

I have an issue (Oh Dear Lord, she has ANOTHER Issue!) with people who think that because they paid an astronomical amount for their horse, that they are Better Than You. I have a big issue with people who think it cool to spend their time, thus wasting MINE in situations like this, working to make other people look stupid. I swear, that is the main goal in life for some of those women. Talk about insecurity, and lack of self esteem! Good grief.... ya ever stop to think that you might feel better about yourself if you actually DID something, instead of pretending you do on the internet? OK, so *maybe* I can cut the anti-slaughter woman a teeny-tiny bit of slack. I know she is very active in buying up horses bound for the kill buyers, and rehoming them. She donates and supports rescues. She works her butt off, for something she believes in. While I do not agree with a lot of her posts, I do admire the fact that she is Doing Something For A Cause She Believes In. The rest of them on there.... it seems the only thing they are working for is to make themselves look better in their own eyes, so that they can pat their backs and congratulate themselves on how clever they are.

Puh-leeze.

Now hear this, ol' Sister Bertha Bettern' You, and the rest of you Holier Than Thou Disciples, I am going to say thank you for providing Blog Fodder. I am going to thank you for providing some entertainment in an otherwise quiet moment. I am going to encourage you to continue on in what you are doing, so that we here in the blogosphere can continue to chortle over your (in)actions, as we sweat, develop blisters, bleed, and cry in our efforts to make things better one horse at a time.

Keep it up there Ladies! While y'all may not have much of a hobby by some standards, at least you are entertaining those of us who DO have lives!

Yet Another New Blog!

Hey Guys!

I got bored...

NOT!

No, really, I have been meaning to do this for A-G-E-S now, and finally got around to it today. Come join us for a running commentary on daily life here at HorseFeathers! Command Central. (Complete with pics!)

Take a moment, and stop in and see what Cub and The Wrecking Crew are up to at:
Oh HorseFeathers! Daily Journal!

Guarenteed you'll laugh.... ;)