Horses in the Olympics?

Throughout my years as a show horse I have heard the word "Olympics" passed around quite a bit. I thought it was something people did for game and sport. But now I know that horses are involved as well. I guess the "Equestrian" aspect of the Olympic Games is unique. We don't do a lot of participating in those big human sports. I don't know why... who wouldn't want to see us in all aspects of our lives? I love watching the mares outside--even when they are just grazing, now that to me is a sport to watch!


Here are some of the horse sports I would like seen in the Olympics:

The Lip-Curl Games.

The Graze-a-Lot Games would be
much fun for horses

• Graze-a-Lot. Let's face it, we love to eat. After all, it's what we were made to do. We don't eat three square meals a day as humans do, or we are not made to do it that way. We are grazers. So, I think the Olympics should hold a game where we graze and the horse who grazes the most in one day wins.
• Roll-On. There is nothing like a good roll in the sand or grass or mud. Yes, mud is terrific. It cools our bodies and keeps the bugs away. I propose a Rolling Games for horses in the Olympics. Horse will be scored on how quickly they can roll from one side to the other and how many times they can roll in one sitting.
• Swish and Shake. We're horses, flies love us! So we swish our tails, shake our heads. How many flies can you swish or shake away? Let's judge it.
• Ear-Pinning. This is a horse thing humans might not understand. When we want to make our point, we have many ways to show other horses, but ear-pinning is one of the most serious. How many other horses can you intimidate when you pin your ears?
• Lip-Curl. You ever get a good whiff of something and you can't help but raise your head and curl your lip to make that scent know you mean business as you take it fully into yourself? Well, here's a good Olympic sport for us horses; Give us a good scent and let's see who can curl their lip the best.

So, what do you say, humans? Should your horse be in the Olympics?

For more on the Olympic Equestrian sports, see my mom's article: http://www.examiner.com/article/watch-the-equestrian-olympic-games-live-on-tv-or-computer

What is this?

Mom's been hanging around the barn more lately. I am not sure why, but I am suspecious. First of all, she brought a new veterinarian to the barn. Mom knows how much I hate vets (they smell funny) over a week ago. He didn't do much, just stood in my stall with me and talked to mom and auntie Sylvia and auntie Jessica. He stood for awhile and pinched my neck, then I think he stuck a needle in, but mom had me distracted by having me walk forward a step.

In any event, the next week he was back! I wasn't going to fall for THAT again! This time I showed him I meant business and when he went to pinch my neck I got upset and moved around the stall (which is great since we moved to this new place, because my stall is so big I can really get a good walk in). Mom ended up halting me by the stall door and the woman who was with the vet was talking to me and mom was talking all soft, so when the needle came I wasn't prepared.

Mom's been taking me for more rides than before. Even when the bugs are bad, which lately has been daily, so I have been staying in my stall and the other horses have been staying in as well, and at night we get to enjoy the outdoors without the bugs.

Things have changed within the last few weeks. My little Pony friend no longer stays out in the paddock with me, but my stall stays open so I can come and go as I please. And Pony is right next to me in the adjoining area. Artie, Hot Rod and Tex have all been in my big paddock and I have been confined to the grass-less one. I really miss grass. It's not the same to have to eat soaking wet hay, even though mom puts some of it near the fences and around the paddock so I have to move around to get it and I am not far from the other horses.

I am still waiting to find out what is going on.

What?? A Horse was Dragged? Neigh! Ok, Mom Says No.

My mom says that last Sunday there was news that a horse was dragged by a truck. I was horrified!! But mom assured me that it was not as the news stated, or that people wanted to believe it had happened.

Apparently, this old man had the misfortune of having his wife's Arabian mare get loose. I wish I could see her. I bet she's really pretty. Not as pretty as my Pony, but Arab mares can have really nice....  Ahem. Anyway, she ran to the neighbor's lucky horses.

One thing I can tell you for sure, as a horse and as a gelding, some mares can be real bitches when they are having 'that time of month.'

I guess she is one of those mares. *Nicker*

Still, I thought, she didn't deserve to be dragged! But, once again, as it turns out, there is more to this tale. Mom wrote an article about it, which you can read here: http://www.examiner.com/article/man-and-horse-stafford-ct-horse-was-not-dragged .

Phew!!

I do not feel as bad for her. She should not have given this old man so much trouble! My mom once led me while she drove a tractor. I did not care. But then again I am not a mare, nor am I an Arabian. They may be pretty, but they are... *snort* (Yes, I am shaking my head here)

In any event, I wish people would stop being mean to this old man. From what mom and Aunty Sylvia told me, he was not experienced in handling us. He would not have had trouble handling me because I do not give my mom or anyone any trouble (no matter what they might tell you). But she tried to throw him into the woods. Neigh!! That is bad! So, this man did what he had to to get the mare home. He tied her to the truck. Mom says he drove home very very slowly but she slipped on the dirt and fell down. The old man stopped immediately so she would not get dragged. He cut the rope and that is when she chose to behave, so he led her home. She caused a lot of trouble. Bad mare, bad mare.

She should not have been such a bad girl and she wouldn't have fallen down. I have to admit, though, that I am guilty of that mistake. I remember once being so excited to get into my stall, I ran in and turned fast. All four of my hooves slipped on the shavings and I fell on my back. Ouch!! I remember that well. It hurt when I landed, but once I was back on my feet, the pain went away. We horses can do dumb things (wait! Did I say that??)

Mom said there were pictures and that my uncle Correy took the call from the neighbors. If these neighbors knew the old man did not have experience handling us, how could they let him handle a bitchy mare in heat? And then stand by and take pictures? I know I am just a horse, but I am confused. Shouldn't they have helped him handle the horse or at the very least loaned him a halter or a trailer?

What do I know? I'm just a horse... of course!

They Starve Horses????

My mom says that I am very lucky. She told me that she has written articles and seen TV shows about people that actually don't feed their horses! What???

She said this happens all over the world and that she even saw one case on TV where the people had hay and grain in the barn but did not even bother to feed it to the horses. The horses were so hungry, they were eating the barn! Yuck!

I know there are paddocks that don't have grass in them because I have been housed in some of them during my life, and I know how hungry I felt when my hay ran out and I had nothing to eat for a few hours. It was terrible! I cannot even imagine what it would be like to not have anything at all to eat for weeks at a time or longer. *shudder*

My tummy always lets me know when I need more to eat and that's quite often. I am a horse after all, and we are made to graze most of the time. We cannot go that long without food!

So, listen up, humans. Your horse, like me, needs forage like grass and hay as his or her main diet. I guess, from what I have heard, that humans eat something like 3 meals a day and go without in between. I do not know if this is true, but we horses are not made that way. We have small stomachs and are made to have food moving through on a continuous basis.

My mom is very careful with my diet because I am what she calls "insulin resistant." I still get treats, but few and usually sugar free. Mom gives me yummy green hay in the winter. But the spring is tough because I am kept off grass during the daytime. I guess that's when the sugars are the highest. I don't know anything about this, just that it tastes yummy all the time and it makes me a bit depressed to see the others out eating grass and I cannot be.

I felt sorry for myself about this until I heard about these poor starving horses. I don't think I will complain anymore when I am kept off grass. Oh, who am I kidding? I will still complain. But I will understand more.

I hope all those horses not getting enough to eat out there all find food and I hope humans punish the terrible people who let them starve. Is a horse allowed to think such thoughts of humans? Hmmmm.

Time Flies Like a Fly

It has been quite awhile since I wrote. It is so difficult for me to get these hooves to punch only one key at a time. In any event, since we last spoke, mom has moved me to a new barn. This place is smaller than the other barns I have been to, but my stall is huge! I have a back door and a front door. One leads to the barn, the other outside to a pasture.
During the day, I have a friend, but I didn't when I first arrived back in August last year. I have to admit, it was pretty exciting at first to have so much pasture and grass all to myself... and to be able to go in and out of my stall whenever I wanted....! I couldn't believe it was real. I walked in and out, in and out, in and out just to test my new freedom. It was pretty cool.
At night I had the other horses in the adjacent paddock to talk to. Mom was right that there was a horse there that I had known at a past barn. His name is Hot Rod. He was a baby when I last saw him, and now he is much bigger. Not bigger than me of course. But, it was nice to see a familiar face. Hot Rod was supposed to pull a cart of some sort in races, but he told me he deliberately went slow because he's heard that race horses have to work really hard and run a lot, and he did not want to do this every day.
The other horses included a tall palomino they call Artie and a black, stocky guy they call Tex. Artie was nice enough to me, but Tex gave me a bit of an attitude when we first met. I told him I was the top horse in a herd of over 20 horses at the last barn, but he didn't get it, or chose not to, I am not sure.
There was only one girl there, which was disappointing at first. She is really small, but she explained that she is a pony, not a horse. I knew a few ponies at the last barn, but they were all boys who thought they owned the place. But this pony was a girl and super nice. She took to me right away, but I played hard to get at first. Can't make yourself too obvious, I always say.
After a week or so, I started to feel a bit lonely, being the only horse in the paddock. The others would talk to me over the fence, but that meant we all had to stand together by the fence and we would eat all the grass and have to separate to get more.
Mom, being the great mom she is at divining my needs, talked to the barn owner and ever since, I have the girl pony in my paddock during the day. Her name is Salem, but everyone calls her simply Pony.
I have been at this barn for quite a few months now. I have made friends with all the horses, though I love the few times mom lets me go play with my old friend Hot Rod.
Pony and I get to spend days together unless the weather is bad, then we are all generally in the barn together. At night I have the place to myself and mom opens my back door so I can come and go. But I still get to talk to Pony, Hot Rod, Artie and Tex over the fence.
Now that spring is here, grass has started to grow and mom seems very happy she doesn't have to buy so much hay. I like grass better than anything anyways.
Well, that's today's posting. I will talk to you soon.