ravenous draft

The following photos are very disturbing. . .do not scroll down if you don't think you can handle it. . .

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These are the photos of a draft horse at dinner time. It is just awful. 

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Shyloh looks terrified.

See how she runs the other horses off their food? See how she won't let the other horses eat? No? Me either.

But, I guess because Reba is big, she intimidates people. Especially those who don't know much about herd dynamics or how horses eat. 

All Reba does is simply eat some food, then slowly walk to the next pile of food to see if there is anything better there. She does not eat all the food then go on to the next pile. She does not pin her ears or chase other horses off. The other horses could stay (clearly, they sometimes do) or check out another food pile. 

But apparently, walking around checking out all the food turns feeding time into a "circus." Ugh. Just let horses be horses! And also, I really need my own horse keeping facility.

/end rant.  

what's in your bucket blog hop

More blog hop from L at Viva Carlos!

So, What supplements and other feeds does your horse vacuum down everyday? 

Shyloh is a Haflinger and needs minimal calories to maintain her weight. I think I have said before how Jaime is just amazed at the little bit of hay she eats and still stays plump. Of course, if Shy could talk and you were to ask her, she would say she needs ALL the hay! But we know that is not true.  This blog hop was timed perfectly, as we just had Shy's hay tested at the MSU Stallion Expo.

Hay snack

Shy gets two flakes of hay in the morning and one to two flakes at night, depending on if she got an afternoon snack or has been on the round bale. The flakes also depend one weight, if the flake feels light, another one will be given to her.  Her flakes are grass hay. 

The breakdown of her hay is:

8.8% Crude Protein, which is considered average

34.7% Acid Detergent Fiber which is considered low (which is good)

56.5% Neutral Detergent Fiber, with is considered average (low is good)

809 kcal/lb or Equine Digestible Energy, which is on the low end, but perfect for a Haflinger in no work.

My hay!

I am going to break it down a little further, since acid and detergents sound like something you never want your horse to eat. 

Crude Protein is simple, it is the amount of protein concentration in the hay. Grass hays have the least amount of protein, legume hays have the most.

Acid Detergent Fiber is made up of components that are poorly digested. So if your horse has a lot of hay pieces in the poop, this number is probably high. The lower the ADF number is, the more digestible the nutrients in the hay will be.

Neutral Detergent Fiber is made of of insoluble fiber. These give the hay the bulk and make it filling to the horse. You also want a lower number for this.

Equine Digestible Energy is how much energy is takes to digest the hay, self explanatory. 

Free treats!

That is the Shy hay breakdown. Since she needs so little hay to survive, she must make up the rest of her nutrients by a ration balancer. Shy used to get a vitamin crumble, but I have not been overly pleased with it. It did the job, and we just finished the bag, but now we are switching. Shy is getting ADM Stay Strong. It is a metabolic mineral pellet (has the vitamins and minerals, plus pre and probiotics) and if formulated for easy keepers and starch sensitive horses. So no extra calories and no oats, corn, molasses, or alfalfa. I am interested to see how she does on this.

Shy also gets loose salt, just because when she was pasture boarded I bought a 50 lb bag of salt for her to make sure she was getting enough and she will eat all 50 lbs of this bag, dammit! In 20- years, when that bag is gone, Shy can just get a salt lick in her stall. 

In addition to the salt, Shy gets Magnesium. I started her with Magnesium and B vitamins when I first got her. I had done some research and  because she was so jumpy I wanted to try something.  Later, I took her off the B vitamins and continued to keep her on the Magnesium because there is some research that claims it helps prevent laminitis.  It's not a high dose, so it can't hurt her. Plus, it is banana flavored and she likes it. 

Shy also used to get raspberry leaf from a local herb store for her nasty squirting issues. Either it lost its effect or just being around Isaac is more that the raspberry leaf can handle. . .I ended up taking her off that. 

A little before show season, I start to feed Shy Healthy Glo, also from ADM. It is a fat supplement (I do not give her a full serving), but it adds a little shine to her coat.

Shiny pony

So to recap: grass hay, ration balancer (vitamin, mineral, pre and probiotics), loose salt, Magnesium. I buy it all in bulk (it is cheaper that way) and bag it up myself. Fun! Oh yeah. . .and whatever dropped grain that she vacuums up for me when we clean stalls. But I don't count that. And treats, but those don't count either.

What does your horse eat?

trick or treat

Happy Halloween!!

Yesterday would have been a perfect day for trick or treating. . .today, it is all rain. So far, only three kids have come knocking at my door. 

I was deciding whether or not to go to the barn all day. . .if I went, there would not be much I could do, so I decided to save the gas. Then I got a message from Jaime. . .she was going to put the horses in the barn to let them dry out for a while. 

She said Shyloh and Reba looked like they wanted in anyway since they were up at the gate.

Wet ponies in a muddy pasture

Of course all the other horses with sane minds came in right away. Not mine. She ran right to the round bale (to get in the barn from diet pasture, Shy must go through round bale pasture). Shy wouldn't let Jaime catch her, she was being such a brat! Jaime tried to coax Shy in with a flake of nice dry hay but Shy was having none of it. Sole horse with unlimited round bale!! How could she pass that up?

So Jaime, trying to be nice, left the barn door open so Shy could go in of she decided to be normal or got lonely. It didn't long before Shy wandered in. . .but Jaime had left the barn area. By the time she made it back, Shy caught on quick to the plan and scooted right back out to her precious round bale. 

She doesn't care, eating hay blocks out everything else: rain, loneliness, just everything.

So Shy made a conscious choice to stay in the rain all by herself. Just for some hay. My horse will never fit back into her harness, will she? She is determined to be large and in charge.

I also didn't get to put Shyloh's Halloween costume on, so I will do that tomorrow. I hope it turns out cute. 

monday musings by shyloh #106

Before I can even talk about me, Allie asked me to do a PSA about her giveawy. Today is the last full day to enter to win this Horze women's college jacket. So you better enter for your chance to win!

Now back to the important stuff. . .me. There is so much more of me now! I find it to be quite wonderful, even though Allie complains that my tack doesn't fit. Oh well, work is over rated, right?

But Allie has been going on and on (as she often does) about my lack of self control with my precious round bale. All day access to hay is the best thing ever invented!

I heart eating! It's my most favorite thing.

Allie thinks it is not. . .and I have been deemed the Supreme Ruler of Minions (and Reba when she is in heat). I am permanently housed with the minions (and Reba when she is in heat, like now). The minions don't eat much, therefore I know do not eat much. 

I am sharing this super small pile with Meatball. When it gets low, I will run him off so I can have the rest.

But when I do eat, I make sure I eat my fill over the minions. I am the boss. And I get the most hay. Which really isn't much at all. 

Sharing with Reba. Gotta close my eyes to savor every bite.

I'm the only one left cleaning up all the scraps.

And to make matter worse, a "chastity" board was put at the bottom of my stall! Now I won't be able to share Isaac's hay or steal is grain. I guess two leggers were confused as to how both of Isaac's buckets and Notch's buckets were ending up in my stall. I have that much talent.

My stall is on the left end, then Isaac's, then Notch's. See how there is a bottom board now between me and Issac?

Allie says she is NOT buying new tack to fit my ever expanding girth, so my girth must accommodate my tack. I call bull. . .I need no tack at all. Why can't I just eat all day?

This is for FH at The Three Muleteers. Gunny's love of food dominates over his fear of people.

~Shyloh

sweety pie shy gets to work

Shyloh was incredibly affectionate today. Being all snuggly is not her M.O., but I'll take it when she gives it out. I was grooming her and she  put her head on my shoulder and just held it there for a while. It was definitely an "awwww" moment. Especially since after I pet her head or rub her neck, she always shakes it off afterwards. 

I went out to the barn with a plan. I had been re-reading a book sent to me by Dreaming on training a horse to drive. I know Shy can drive, she (we) just need to get some confidence in ourselves. So, I thought to take a few steps back and really drill in her commands, mostly whoa and stand. We always have trouble with stand.

I tacked her up in the barn, it is getting cold outside! And Shy promptly tried to get into Clutch's food. 

Her head almost fits through. .  .

Which brings us to another problem. . .Shy's ever expanding girth. Seriously, I could not buckle her harness girth! I think Shy may have to live permanently with the minions because she clearly has not demonstrated that she can handle herself with the round bale. And, as if she does not have access to the round bale all day, when she comes inside, she tries to steal Isaac's food! Jaime even had to change out her buckets so she stops getting to Isaac's and dumping his. How she does this, we have no idea. 

No self control

Anyway, Shy got her harness on and we stopped for a quick photo shoot. . .

Go Blue!!

Then I took her to the round pen. I lunged her and worked on her commands. I was pleasantly surprised that Shy was spot on. My only issue was that her trot to whoa was more of a slow down shift to a stop than a quick stop. However, I think that may be okay because I don't want a sudden and jolty stop. And then we she did stop she turned into me and started to walk towards me. 

Ready to work!

While we were lunging, I was dragging the whip behind her, through the leaves on the ground. Shy was fine with that until she heard it coming up next to and in front of her. That made her stop. I clicked her on and she would walk until the sound came up next to her again. But hey, a stop is better than a bolt forward. Shy eventually got over this. 

See the hay baby?

Then I line drove her around the round pen. This is were we worked on stay. Shy was a rockstar with stay! We made this short and sweet since she was doing so well. Why is it that going back into work after time off, Shy is always so good? It is after she has been in work that she starts being a butthead. I think a couple more sessions of this then we can work on hooking the plastic sled again. Then maybe Shy can shed these extra pounds. . .

And another shout out to the Horze college jacket contest! Click here to enter now!

monday musings by shyloh #101

My How-To Guide on how to keep a Haflinger in perfect(ly fat) condition:

1. Provide a round bale and 18 hour turn out with large draft horses. Us Haflingers cannot regulate ourselves and feel we have to be near or eating the round bale at all times.

This dive into the round bale gets an 8.9 for form and function.

Notice the drafts giving this Haflinger time to eat all she pleases before they have their share

2. Watch as Haflinger naps near the hay to make sure no draft horse takes any more hay than is absolutely necessary. 

This Haflinger even has a watch horse watching over her and the round bale.

3. To burn calories, have a Haflinger tug-o-war with the two legger every time they want you to leave the pasture. The Haflinger will put all her might into not budging from the round bale. 

This Haflinger protests at leaving her precious hay.

4. Put a grazing muzzle on the Haflinger. This is not to prevent the Haflinger from eating as much, it is just to provide a 5-10 minute session of extra calorie burning as she works at getting it off.

Haflingers get super sad when their access to food has been restricted. Then they get angry!

See the muzzle hanging down? At least this Haflinger has the decency for once to not leave it at some random spot in the field to be searched out by a two legger..

5. Stop giving the Haflinger her night night hay, only so she can burn extra calories by stealing the hay from the every growing  Percheron baby stalled next to her. . .

Look into my eyes. . .you are getting very sleepy. . .give the Haflinger all of the hay. . .

6. Watch as the Percheron willingly shares all of his grain with the Haflinger by dropping it over on her side of the stall and onto her water bucket.

Haflingers tend to not be picky about where their food source is coming from. . .the ground, a wet water bucket, another horse's mouth. . .

7. Finally move the Haflinger to the diet pasture with the minions, much the the Haflinger's displeasure. Minions are instantly entranced by the beauty of the Haflinger and follow wherever she goes. Haflinger is highly irritated, but then decides that they can be bent to her will and uses them accordingly. The hinny is upset whenever he can't see the Haflinger and one pony is in awe of a "big" horse that looks just like him. 

This Haflinger is sharing secrets with the minions on bad behavior.

The minions are following their new leader.

The minions are excited that a "big" horse gets to hang out with them. The "big" horse is not as excited, but thrilled at the prospect of bossing minions around. 

8. Break the two leggers heart and stand at the gate where her drafts are (or is it where her round bale is?) wanting to be with them (or it).  Either way, the drafts are equally as upset that the Haflinger is in the diet pasture. 

This Haflinger looks as if she is in foal. . .with twins. I assure you, she is not. 

9. Constantly remind the two legger that none of this is helped by the fact that pony time or potential pony exercising time has been drastically reduced due to other, less important obligations such as school and work.

Exercise must be gotten in various ways. . .after a tough workout, the halter is usually awry. 

10. Continue to try and convince the two legger that the Haflinger is just preparing her body for winter. 

Winter pony!

11. Surprise the human by taking first place in halter mare class. Apparently this judge loves perfect(ly fat) Haflingers!

The extra fat makes the Haflinger's body just shine and glow!

And that is how it is done!

~Shyloh

i scream, you scream, shy doesn't scream for ice cream

What is this?

It looks colorful and quite possibly tasty. 

Let's have a bite. . .

NOOO!!! Yuck yuck yuck yuck.

Let's chalk ice cream up to another food that Shyloh hates. The list is not very long and includes things such as chocolate, whipped cream, and ravioli. I think it is mostly a texture thing. . .

But after Shy took a bite of that cone, she tried her hardest to get the ice cream out of her mouth. Then she drug her mouth through the sand and even through a pile pf poop. Because my horse is hygienic like that. . .and poop is clearly cleaner than ice cream in her mouth. 

Nothing to do with the ice cream story, Shy just looks super shiny and really dark here.

I tried to get Shy to take another bite, because seriously, who doesn't like ice cream? And I even got sprinkles on it for her. But she kept running from me. She wanted nothing to do with the ice cream. Then I wanted her to try the cone, but Shy was done with trying things for the day. I had to completely rid myself of the ice cream before Shy would let me come near her. 

In other news, we have a fun show with the draft club down in Ohio this weekend. So of course, Shy decided now was a good time to attempt to gouge her other eye out. 

Why pony?

She is not going to be happy when she actually gets her eye and can't see. . .although I could be wrong about that. She has no problem letting me put stuff over her head so she can't see anything. Oh weird horse, I can't help but love her!

Also. . .am I crazy (and that is rhetorical) but does Shy's forelock look like it is growing? Maybe? 

we got a bath!

Yup, we. Because I got just as wet as Shyloh. But no matter, it was 80*!

So Shy got her first bath of the year and at this barn. The set up is completely different from the old barn. . .we have to bathe outside and there are no cross ties, posts, or anything to attach to a horse to prevent them from running away. Which means I have to hold Shy and do all things that make up giving a horse a bath. 

I was prepared for this to be quite a difficult task. First off, since Shy willingly stands out in rain with no problem and since she willingly goes in giant puddles and splashes around with no problem, I was expecting a problem giving the involuntary bath.

Once again, I was pleasantly surprised by the pony. She really didn't care. I started spraying at her feet to get her used to the water, then worked my way all over. Aside from Shy wanting to eat grass, I could spray, lather, rinse, and repeat without even holding the lead rope! 

Wet pony!

Shy even let me get her head, which was an issue last year. As long as the water doesn't spray in her ears, she was very cooperative. Shy even took some drinks from the hose!

Thirsty pony

As our usual post bath ritual, I took her to graze a bit and dry in the sun. 

Then I braided her tail up. It is getting so long!

By the time I was done, it was dinner time. I took Shy back in her pasture. Of course, she was not completely dry so she rolled. 

She has to get every last inch of her covered in sand

I knew it was coming, so I couldn't be mad. 

Ka-Pow!!!

There is a new horse out there and Shy has wasted no time letting him know who is boss. She won't let him come past this log. . .

Traveller. . .staying to his Shyloh designated area.

If he tries, she runs him away. I mean runs. . .I have never seen her move so fast! Bossy mare! I watched the horses work out their eating situation and get settled before I left.

No soup for you!!

I never thought I would hear myself say that I can't wait for Sunday and I can't wait to be in Ohio! Clinic day!!