Turkeys and ferns and a bear, Oh My.

thumpersgirl · 08-11-2008, 07:55 PM

The weather has been a bit cooler here lately and we all know what that can lead to with horses. Yesterday, all 5 boys had their feet done and then 'painted' up because it's getting dry here. We had taken the horses out for a ride on Friday (all except Punk) and they were fine but feeling a bit frisky since it's cooler out. No biggie. Sunday, after they had their feet done, we trimmed all their bridle paths and tacked everyone up to hit a trail. We weren't going on a long ride as I had to talk my Dad into babysitting Brandi and he doesn't like to do such as she's a handful for him. Punk gave us a little bit of trouble getting him ready but nothing serious. I tacked up Rocket (got to ride my big beast yesterday!) and by that time, everyone else was ready. Since they had just had their feet done, we hit a trail behind the house instead of going on the road.

Punk was great about Josh climbing on so we figured he'd be okay. Ziggy almost ditched H when she climbed on but that was 100% her fault. For whatever reason (I wasn't watching as I was finding my mounting block to get on Rocket with), she did not hold onto the reins at all when she got on and well. . . Ziggy is only 6. He's not had a million rides on him and he will not stand there if you try to climb on without holding the reins. Thankfully, she didn't fall off. He didn't buck or anything, just took off at a fast walk as soon as she started pulling herself up.

Jazz, Punk and Ziggy were all a bit jumpy but calmed down about 10 minutes into the ride. Jazz is always a bit sassy when being ridden and was snorting and side stepping at ferns that were blowing in the wind.

We got to the corner where we normally go right and went left. The last time we had rode through, there was a large bees nest in the tree at the corner. It was knocked down and torn to shreds (recently). There were also several mauled raspberry brushes. I was taking note of it all but didn't really think a whole lot of it.

When we were about 1/2 way through our ride (say about 30 minutes), we ran into 3 turkeys on the trail. Of course, that was a reason for Jazz to snort and act like a fool.

Punk did great (this was only his 2nd 'real' ride). We waited for the turkeys to get out of our way and continued on a bit. A few yards from where the turkeys had been, we heard a crashing sound in the woods. At first, I didn't think anything of it until I got a glimpse of what caused said crashing. About 100 feet away, a bear was running through the woods. Of course, he was running away from us but once the horses got wind of him, they were good and fired up.

At that point, we figured we should probably turn back for home anyway as we had been gone for a bit. We decided to go back out a different way and took the road for the last little bit of our ride. In order to do that, we come out in a clearing by a neighboring camp. Rocket is normally the lead horse but I had pulled him back to the rear to be by Punk after the bear incident. Rocket was the only one not freaked out by the bear and Punk was pretty fired up. Punk likes to use Rocket as his security blanket. At the edge of the field, there is a bunch of junk. No one would go by it and I couldn't get Rocket up and around everyone to go. As I was fighting my way up there, Punk decides 'to heck with it, he's not scared' and starts to go. How sad is it that the 3 year old was more willing to go than a 5, 6 and 8 year old? Rocket was willing but I couldn't get up there fast enough.

The rest of the ride went fine with the exception of the moron in the car that when screaming past us. I was very impressed with how well Punk did. The worst of it was, I had just posted on a thread a couple days ago about how we rarely see the bears around here. Open mouth, insert foot.

Oh, and Papa was mighty happy to see us back. Seems my little darling was quite a handful for him and made a present for me while I was gone.

BarnBum · 08-12-2008, 06:31 AM

Weather getting cooler ?? Oh man, I so wish !! Not here !! Humid and hot !!

Glad you had a great day !! I think the horses use the cooler weather as an excuse to be foolish !!

tuffsmom · 08-12-2008, 06:47 AM

It sounds like you had a great ride. I'm glad all the horses were good. They are 72 this weekend. Horses are going to be jerks.

thumpersgirl · 08-12-2008, 08:20 AM

BarnBum, we had low 70's all weekend. It's not been real warm so far this week either (not that I'm complaining!).

I agree, the horses seem to use the cooler weather to act foolish.

Thankfully, none of mine are too sassy.

**gbarmranch** · 08-12-2008, 08:29 AM

I am glad no one took off from the bear scent

.. and yes, it is funny how mature some youngsters can be, and how silly some of the older ones act..

thumpersgirl · 08-12-2008, 08:51 AM

Me too, Val! I've never had a horse take off from the scent. My Mom had one that would bolt if he got whiff of one. The ones I've got now just snort and prance and get nervous. I can live with that. Heck, I don't like running into bears in the woods so I sure don't blame them for not liking it.

Punk cracks me up. He's our 'baby' and he just has no fear. He trudges through it all.

**seerfarm** · 08-12-2008, 09:14 AM

Well, certainly not a lack of interesting things along your ride.....

I am just glad that no one got to silly. It does however make for a great training experience, as long as everyone arrives home safely.

I am sure that Papa however enjoyed his Thumpling time, it makes for a great Nap excuse later in the day!

thumpersgirl · 08-12-2008, 09:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by seerfarm

Well, certainly not a lack of interesting things along your ride.....

I am just glad that no one got to silly. It does however make for a great training experience, as long as everyone arrives home safely.

I am sure that Papa however enjoyed his Thumpling time, it makes for a great Nap excuse later in the day!

My parents' place is out in the sticks near a 'wilderness area' so there's lots of wildlife out there. As you said, it makes for great training experience. I have to chuckle at what some people call 'trail rides'. Our trail rides are through the woods on trails with all sorts of stuff (animals, trees to go over/under/around, creeks to cross, etc.).

Not so sure Papa enjoyed watching Brandi. She pooped her pants while we were gone and he wouldn't change it.

pvf · 08-12-2008, 09:45 AM

Defently an interesting trail ride.. Glad you had fun,

sorry grandpa didn't

thumpersgirl · 08-12-2008, 03:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pvf

Defently an interesting trail ride.. Glad you had fun,

sorry grandpa didn't

Oh heck, I almost always have fun. For some strange reason (really am not sure why), I don't usually tend to be on the horse that acts up. I must have ESP or something when it comes to that.

Not that it's never happened to me. I'm sure most of you remember my pretty purple leg which by the way, still has an itchy knot in it.

Even though Papa (and Uncle Dennis - Brandi's Godfather) didn't have a whole lot of fun babysitting, she had fun driving them nuts.

Sassy · 08-12-2008, 03:34 PM

Sounds like an adventure

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08-11-2008, 07:55 PM
thumpersgirl Greenbroke Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Posts: 3,388	Turkeys and ferns and a bear, Oh My. The weather has been a bit cooler here lately and we all know what that can lead to with horses. Yesterday, all 5 boys had their feet done and then 'painted' up because it's getting dry here. We had taken the horses out for a ride on Friday (all except Punk) and they were fine but feeling a bit frisky since it's cooler out. No biggie. Sunday, after they had their feet done, we trimmed all their bridle paths and tacked everyone up to hit a trail. We weren't going on a long ride as I had to talk my Dad into babysitting Brandi and he doesn't like to do such as she's a handful for him. Punk gave us a little bit of trouble getting him ready but nothing serious. I tacked up Rocket (got to ride my big beast yesterday!) and by that time, everyone else was ready. Since they had just had their feet done, we hit a trail behind the house instead of going on the road. Punk was great about Josh climbing on so we figured he'd be okay. Ziggy almost ditched H when she climbed on but that was 100% her fault. For whatever reason (I wasn't watching as I was finding my mounting block to get on Rocket with), she did not hold onto the reins at all when she got on and well. . . Ziggy is only 6. He's not had a million rides on him and he will not stand there if you try to climb on without holding the reins. Thankfully, she didn't fall off. He didn't buck or anything, just took off at a fast walk as soon as she started pulling herself up. Jazz, Punk and Ziggy were all a bit jumpy but calmed down about 10 minutes into the ride. Jazz is always a bit sassy when being ridden and was snorting and side stepping at ferns that were blowing in the wind. We got to the corner where we normally go right and went left. The last time we had rode through, there was a large bees nest in the tree at the corner. It was knocked down and torn to shreds (recently). There were also several mauled raspberry brushes. I was taking note of it all but didn't really think a whole lot of it. When we were about 1/2 way through our ride (say about 30 minutes), we ran into 3 turkeys on the trail. Of course, that was a reason for Jazz to snort and act like a fool. Punk did great (this was only his 2nd 'real' ride). We waited for the turkeys to get out of our way and continued on a bit. A few yards from where the turkeys had been, we heard a crashing sound in the woods. At first, I didn't think anything of it until I got a glimpse of what caused said crashing. About 100 feet away, a bear was running through the woods. Of course, he was running away from us but once the horses got wind of him, they were good and fired up. At that point, we figured we should probably turn back for home anyway as we had been gone for a bit. We decided to go back out a different way and took the road for the last little bit of our ride. In order to do that, we come out in a clearing by a neighboring camp. Rocket is normally the lead horse but I had pulled him back to the rear to be by Punk after the bear incident. Rocket was the only one not freaked out by the bear and Punk was pretty fired up. Punk likes to use Rocket as his security blanket. At the edge of the field, there is a bunch of junk. No one would go by it and I couldn't get Rocket up and around everyone to go. As I was fighting my way up there, Punk decides 'to heck with it, he's not scared' and starts to go. How sad is it that the 3 year old was more willing to go than a 5, 6 and 8 year old? Rocket was willing but I couldn't get up there fast enough. The rest of the ride went fine with the exception of the moron in the car that when screaming past us. I was very impressed with how well Punk did. The worst of it was, I had just posted on a thread a couple days ago about how we rarely see the bears around here. Open mouth, insert foot. Oh, and Papa was mighty happy to see us back. Seems my little darling was quite a handful for him and made a present for me while I was gone. __________________ Some people are like Slinkies; they're good for nothing, but make you smile when you push them down a long flight of stairs.

08-12-2008, 06:31 AM
BarnBum Greenbroke Member Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Sunshine State Posts: 3,609	Weather getting cooler ?? Oh man, I so wish !! Not here !! Humid and hot !! Glad you had a great day !! I think the horses use the cooler weather as an excuse to be foolish !! __________________ Murphys Horse Law - A horse's misbehavior will be in direct proportion to the number of people who are watching !!

08-12-2008, 06:47 AM
tuffsmom Seasoned Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Nebraska Posts: 4,072	It sounds like you had a great ride. I'm glad all the horses were good. They are 72 this weekend. Horses are going to be jerks. __________________

08-12-2008, 08:20 AM
thumpersgirl Greenbroke Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Posts: 3,388	BarnBum, we had low 70's all weekend. It's not been real warm so far this week either (not that I'm complaining!). I agree, the horses seem to use the cooler weather to act foolish. Thankfully, none of mine are too sassy. __________________ Some people are like Slinkies; they're good for nothing, but make you smile when you push them down a long flight of stairs.

08-12-2008, 08:29 AM
gbarmranch Administrator Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Tennessee Posts: 29,233	I am glad no one took off from the bear scent .. and yes, it is funny how mature some youngsters can be, and how silly some of the older ones act.. __________________ Quality FoundationQuarter Horses http://home.earthlink.net/~vpgann Minds are like parachutes – they only function when open – Thomas Dewar

08-12-2008, 08:51 AM
thumpersgirl Greenbroke Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Posts: 3,388	Me too, Val! I've never had a horse take off from the scent. My Mom had one that would bolt if he got whiff of one. The ones I've got now just snort and prance and get nervous. I can live with that. Heck, I don't like running into bears in the woods so I sure don't blame them for not liking it. Punk cracks me up. He's our 'baby' and he just has no fear. He trudges through it all. __________________ Some people are like Slinkies; they're good for nothing, but make you smile when you push them down a long flight of stairs.

08-12-2008, 09:14 AM
seerfarm Super Moderator Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Portal, Ga Posts: 7,833	Well, certainly not a lack of interesting things along your ride..... I am just glad that no one got to silly. It does however make for a great training experience, as long as everyone arrives home safely. I am sure that Papa however enjoyed his Thumpling time, it makes for a great Nap excuse later in the day! __________________ The man who questions opinions is wise. The man who quarrels with facts is a fool.

08-12-2008, 09:45 AM
pvf Regional Forums Moderator Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Minnesota Posts: 6,446	Defently an interesting trail ride.. Glad you had fun, sorry grandpa didn't __________________ www.prairieviewfarms.net Raising Reg. Paints and Quarter horses

08-12-2008, 03:34 PM
Sassy Started Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Northern Alberta, Canada Posts: 2,332	Sounds like an adventure __________________ A horse which stops dead just before a jump and thus propels its rider into a graceful arc provides a splendid excuse for general merriment. ~ DUKE OF ENDINBURGH ~