monday musings by shyloh #114

The best part of the Christmas season? I get lots of treats! And when no one is looking, I use my magical, acrobatic powers to eat them all at once!

Allie left me unattended, forgetting she had treats in my grooming bag. I tore it apart, grabbed the Pony Pizzas, ripped open the box and gobbled them all down. They were so good!

What was left. . . 

Allie came back and discovered what I did, so she moved the grooming bag on the other side of the stalls. Then she left again. This is when I used my magical acrobatic powers to get that bag, rifle through it, tossing out the items I did not want, get the tub of Squeezy Buns, break it open, and devour all the treats. I didn't even take the time to unwrap them. 

I then got put on double secret treat probation. Allie says 18 days with no treats, one day for each treat I ate. 

But that didn't last long. Terry came the next day and shared Reba's treats with me!

Yum!

She also braided my hair, which I was not happy about and promptly shook out. 

Evil pony.

Then, once again, Allie was not paying attention and I got into the grooming bag. This time I went after the tub of peppermints. I had all night to plan how I was going to get to those. I stomped my hoof on it to break the plastic container, then tried fast as I could to eat as many peppermints as I could.

Me and Allie had a battle royale as I refused to lift my head. I did my best to be a vacuum and get the treats. Finally Allie used all her might to shoulder shove me away. 

Allie thought she had all the treats out of her bag and that she could safely leave it hanging on a hook while she was talking to Terry. I casually walked over to investigate the bag. Allie thought it was funny cause there was nothing for me in there. But she forgot about the Pop Rocks!

Haha! Pop Rocks are my new favorite candy. Allie really needs to be more careful. I guess it didn't help that it has been raining for days straight and I was in a curious mood! It was either stuck outside and not moving around too much because I don't like to get dirty, or being inside and entertaining myself. 

And don't worry, I seem okay after eating all that plastic. Doesn't bother my belly.

~Shyloh

a horse box

I have been seeing posts about these horse box and bark box things all over Facebook for a while now. Then Karley who writes a blog that I am new to reading, All In, did a review from the horse box that she ordered.

"Why are you flashing that thing in my face when I am trying to eat this delicious treat?"

Yeah, it was pretty cool! A Horse Box is a box of horsey items that get shipped right to your house every month. Each box is different, so you never know what you will get. It is kinda exciting, the wait for the box and the anticipation of what cool new things that will come in the box. I know I was excited for my box to arrive.

You can order a one month or a six month subscription of A Horse Box. They have mini boxes (what I got in my unsuccessful efforts to save money), regular horse boxes, and tack boxes.

The mini boxes have two to three items inside. The horse box has four to seven things in it. The tack box is a one time gift box that has the same items in it every time. This would make a great gift for those who show.

Ok, on to my box!

Nicely packed box and easy to open!

Majesty's wafers. I met them a couple years ago at Equine Affaire. Even though Shyloh doesn't need these supplements, it is nice to have. It included an Omega wafer, a Bio + wafer, and a Flex wafer. Good stuff, but not something I feel Shyloh needs.

Nicker Baits! I have been wanting to get some of these for Shy. I am sure she will love them. Looks like peppermint, banana, rock candy, and maybe sweet potato cookies

Dermacloths. Perfect for winter because they are rinse free. 

Muck Off body scrub for me! How nice since winter brings on the super dry skin that makes me itchy.  And I may or may not have had a little taste. . .hey, its sugar, mandarin orange and grapefuit!

And a sticker and pen.

So I technically got more than the two to three items in my mini box, which makes A Horse Box even better than advertised! What will next month's box hold? 

And. . .hats are clearly not as cool as hoodies and coolers. . .but I am still holding the contest. I mean, it's free, so what can it hurt to enter? Hit up this post and give it a whirl!

monday musings by shyloh #103

Way up high in the apple tree are all the delicious apples. When the two pastures were one, the big horses ate the apples within their reach. Now the remaining apples are so high the the two leggers cannot even reach. 

They have applied two methods to get apples for us. One is using the muck rake to shake the branches and rain a storm of apples on everyone. It can be quite painful if the apples hit you on the head!

The other method has Allie climbing the tree to pick the apples and throw them down.

At first, I was all. . .whoa! Two leggers do not belong in trees! Scary! What is going on? When the branches shook, me and the minions would all run around the tree, but not too close to it. Then we would zoom in, grab an apples, and zoom back to the appropriate safe distance, that we determined by scientific measurements. 

But after a while, me and the minions all realized that Allie in the apple tree was a good thing. We hung around waiting for our prized apples to be precisely dropped right in front of us! Much less work than all that running around. 

What service! 

Allie makes sure everyone gets their fair share of an apple or two or three. Even when Gunny is sometimes a jerk and tries chasing the other minions off the apples. He knows better than to try that with me me, though!

Lucky ponies are we to have our own treat tree and personal apple treat servant.

~Shyloh

monday musings by shyloh #95

Allie gave me the "talk" today. 

She said, Shyloh, you better be a good pony. We are going to do some work again. And at first, I was all like. . .

na na na. . .I'm not listening. . .

I tried showing Allie that I wasn't all all interested in doing work or listening to her babble.

I'm bored. Take me to my apple tree in the pasture. 

But Allie kept going on and on. Then she said something that perked my interest. She said if I was good, we wouldn't be working for very long.

Say again?

I am all for not working long. After all, I am a wild and free pony and last I checked, wild and free ponies did no work at all. They just ate.

I tried many times explaining the wild and free pony concept to Allie. She doesn't get it. She must be a slow learner.

Then Allie begged me again to be a good pony. Puh puh puh pleeeaaase, she said!

So I gave her my best, I'll be a good pony smile. Plus I heard treats may be involved for good ponies.

Allie tacked me up, the whole time just talking away. She put the old harness on me this time. I am not sure why. . .

But I am not thrilled. . .I did get to use my other bridle for two reasons. . .one, Allie was too lazy to change the bit and two, Allie thinks it doesn't fit right.

So off we went around the barn working on stopping, standing, walking straight, backing, gees, and haws. Oh, and working on walking like we have someplace to be as opposed to just plodding along. Important stuff in Allie's world. 

We had to follow the tractor because I would not stand. I wasn't afraid of it, I just didn't want to wait for it to go by.

But overall I was good and we didn't fight. I wasn't great though, just good. Allie didn't ask for greatness. 

And Allie stayed true to her word. We did not work very long at all. Yay! But when we got done, I had to stand around with that bridle on. I hate that!

Take it off already!!!

After I stopped my head tossing protest and stood still, Allie did take it off. Thank goodness. As soon as it was off I was like. . .

I was a good pony, can I have my treats pleeeease!

 And Allie was, okay fine have some pony treats. So I did! And that is how Halfingers do what they do best!

~Shyloh

product review: standlee hay products

Standlee Hay makes mostly different types of hay pellets and cubes. I have used their products such as the Timothy pellets, Alfalfa pellets, and the Timothy/Alfalfa mix pellets many times in the past since they are so easy to get at Tractor Supply. Usually, I used them as a treat for clicker training because they are small and easy to carry in my pockets. I have never used the actual hay products they carry, such as Timothy Hay, just because the barns I have boarded at always provided hay. 

My new barn mixed the Standlee Hay products in grain during the winter for extra calories to help keep the horses warmer. Shyloh and all the pasture horses had no problem gobbling down the hay pellets. There was never any left behind.

And I have discovered that Standlee Hay products makes Whinny Nicker Horse treats, as well. They come in a 4 oz bad, a 3 lb bag, or an 8 lb bag. 

Featured here is the 3 lb bag

For my product review, since I could not guarantee that Shy would have exclusive access to the pellets or cubes, I opted to go the treat route. And while the pellets and cubes are easy to find and stocked by every Tractor Supply, the treats are another story. I could not find them anywhere in my area and TSC was not able to order them into the store.

So I contacted Standlee customer service via email. I am not joking when two minutes after I sent the email I got a reply! Wow, talk about fast service! The reply acknowledged that TSC did not carry the treats, but offered a couple websites which did offer them.

I ordered the treats from Amazon and waited for their arrival. Amazon was a little pricier, but with the free shipping it was totally worth it. The treats from the other site were cheaper, but the shipping was outrageous! I think over all, compared to other horse treats of the same type and size, these treats cost a tad more. But the only ingredients in these treats are "sun cured timothy grass forage and sun cured alfalfa hay forages, cranberries infused with apple juice, and bentonite." (taken from ingredient list)  Bentonite is a clay that supposedly has detoxification properties, but I think it is used as a natural binding agent in this case. 

After our work one day, I gave Shy a broken cube. I think she liked them!

Tasting. . .

Singing the praises of the Whinny Nicker treats!

Then I went around the barn giving treats out to all the horses. The reviews were outstanding! I also shared with the pasture horses. . .

Dancer likes the treats!

Traveller likes the treats, with Rainy Day looking in and waiting for her turn

Even donkeys like the treats!

They were begging for more! Mobbing me is more like it. . .

I would definitely buy the Whinny Nicker treats again. I like that they are not super processed with a ton of artificial ingredients and sugars. And best of all, Shy loved them! They got many smiles of approval!

Big smiles for the treats!

cresty neck

Shyloh is going on a strict no more sugar diet! Holy cresty neck, Batman!! I discovered it the other day when I was messing around with her mane. Normally, I can't see her neck because her mane falls on both sides, but whoa! This is where all the fat has been going! 

This is strange because I took Shy off of her 1/8th scoop of grain one time a day a few months ago, and I have been getting comments that she was looking a little slimmer in the sides. Guess it all went to her neck. There are no other fat deposits anywhere else on her, which is good and the cresty neck is not hard. I know I need to be careful because Haflingers are prone  to Equine Metabolic Syndrome (EMS), so I need to be real careful. EMS can lead to laminitis and Insulin Resistance. I want to nip anything that can increase this risk in the butt.

Here is a great link on EMS from My Horse University. Scary for me! Another thing to endlessly fret about.

The worst part is that it is totally my fault! I love feeding Shy. She loves being fed. I truly see pure joy in her eyes when I give her treats. Although, she does not get processed treats, mostly apples, bananas, carrots, berries, granola. According to the article, I might have to cut out the apples and carrots. I did go to the store and get some dried split peas (which she loves) and sugar-free mints. Gotta get that cresty neck down!

Shy might have to be one of those pitiful looking horses with a grazing muzzle on come spring time. But for now, enjoy some photos from the weekend. I have some exciting news for tomorrow!!

Shy and Casi munching on some grasses

Shy playing with the cone

Shy, Chick, and Casi. . .she looks so little!

Me and Shy chilling outside

and we have a name!

Ta da!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It was meant to be. I told Mike about that name a few days ago, but he didn't really like it because we know a dog named Cheyanne and they call her Chy. Then I mulled it over at my dad's house. They liked it, so I texted Mike and told him I really liked that name. When I walked into the barn today, Leslie said, what about Shyloh, because she is so shy? And so it goes. . .

I took Shy into the arena today and Robin showed me how to use the lunge whip and exercise her the right way. She wasn't on a line, but she was trotting and cantering. At one point she kicked up some ground and a stone hit the side of the arena and she spooked! She took off and did a mini buck, but then had no problem going back to the same area. 

Mike showed up at the barn to see her, too! I swear, I always get the strangest animals. Every day I discover something new about her. She likes to lick. She will lick my hand, my arm, my shirt, the stall, whatever! I let her for now so she gets to know me and trust me. Leslie said I should put a sign on her paddock stating that she is in training and to only approach her with treats, so she comes to associate people with good things. 

Ever see that movie 50 First Dates with Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore? That's what I feel like with Shy. Each day, I have to regain her trust. I know, I know. . .I haven't even had her a week yet. But every time I go out there I spend a large amount of my time building trust. And that's okay.