Walk in the Woods

It was a nice day out and the dogs were getting frisky. There is a little stream out back in the woods with a trial running along side of it that needed some exploration.

My boyfriend and I decided to investigate it to see where it leads. We were heading down to the back of our land where the stream is when he said “why don’t you bring Lady along?” I thought, hey why not. She is a good girl and she needs to get out and see what the woods are like. She has never been on a trial before and I wanted to see how she would react. Would she freak out and not want to go and try running home or would she just come along for the adventure? I grabbed her halter and walked her out of the paddock. Pony of course tried escaping but lost the battle. He hates being left by himself; he ran back and forth trying to get to us.

To get to the stream you have to climb down a steep hill. I wasn’t sure how Lady would do so I kept talking to her, letting her know to go slow. She did great. We got to the stream in one piece but I had forgotten that she is not trained to go in water. I walked her up to the stream, I had a feeling that she was going to try and jump it so I moved off to the side. Not to my surprise, she jumped. Mud and water went flying and all in one second she was on the other side of the stream with the look in her eye as if she had just seen a ghost. I walked over to her and patted her on the neck and told her she did well.

Dude went running around as he always does. He loves the water! Charlie on the other hand, not so much. He tries his best to find a way across without getting wet. Then Dude runs up next to him and splashes him with a big wet wave. Lady was just standing there taking everything in. Again, this was her first true time being in the woods. We kept walking up the trial. She stayed right next to me and not once did she try and take off. Out in the distance, there is the sad sound of the pony whinnying.

We walked and walked. The dogs would run up ahead then run back. They were having a grand time. The trail then forked. Jim and I wanted to fallow the stream to see where it led but the trail didn’t go that way. Jim went ahead and made sure that there was a way for us to get through. Lady and I followed, walking under and around trees. She was so good. A couple of times me and her had to stop and wait for Jim to clear a path for us. Lady wouldn’t stand still; she wanted to go be with Jim.

We got to the part where the stream met the river. It’s a big river and Dude was in his glory! He jumped right in, no questions asked! Lady was just staring at it with the look in her eyes as if she was saying “please don’t make me go in there!” Charlie just hung back with Lady and me while watching Dude fool around in the rapids. We got to part of the river where there was a patch of grass. I tied Miss Lady up to a fallen tree and she just hung out and ate the grass. It was so nice to see her out and about in the midst of all the nature.

It was time to head back home. The bugs where thick and it was getting late. We got back to the stream near home. I took my shoes off and went in the water to try and help Lady understand that it’s not going to hurt. Again, I stood off to the side to avoid getting squashed by her if she were to jump. She tried, but I stopped her. I tried walking her in over and over and eventually she got it. She didn’t jump it, she ran through it but at least she went in. We walked up the steep incline and headed home. The pony was so happy to see us! Jim and I let Lady stay out on the lawn to eat some grass because she was so good. Jim has never really bonded with Lady before this day. They both did really well!

In all of the shock and sadness of Michael Jackson’s passing, I have to admit I have wondered….”What ever happened to his pet chimpanzee Bubbles?” Well, it seems I am not the only one to wonder…..here is a MSN news article I pulled today. It seems that ‘Entertainment Tonight’ has answered the curious question.

 Where is Michael Jackson’s beloved pet chimp?

ET can tell you where Michael Jackson’s former pet chimpanzee, Bubbles, is today.

Bubbles is alive and thriving at the Center for Great Apes in Wauchula, Fla., according to the center’s Web site.

The center reports that Bubbles was born in 1983 in a biomedical laboratory, and purchased as a young chimp by an entertainment trainer. The chimp was later acquired by Jackson and accompanied the superstar on his world travels. Bubbles retired at age six or seven, and thereafter lived at a California trainer’s compound with his chimp buddy Sam until 2005, when he moved to the Center for Great Apes.

The Center’s Web site reports that while Bubbles “is able to throw sand with amazing accuracy, he is extremely gentle with the youngsters, especially infant [chimp] Stryker. In fact, the baby can often be seen riding around on Bubbles’ back.”

His caregivers also report, “Bubbles can be sensitive and dramatic. If he has any kind of cut or scratch on his body … no matter how small … he will show it many times during the day to his caregivers and ask for sympathy.”

The Web site notes that interested parties can “adopt” Bubbles, and give the following “adoption” information: “For a donation of $150, you will receive an adoption certificate, frame quality photograph with biography, and become a member of the sanctuary for one year. For $10,000 you can become my exclusive adoptive “parent” for one full year and have the opportunity for a unique overnight stay in a guest cabin on sanctuary grounds.”

**Click here for pictures and info about Bubbles**

I pulled this article from Yahoo News this morning.

Dogs helping injured soldiers under gov’t program.

This was taken from the “Funny Times” and was written in April by Richard Lederer. I found it amusing and wanted to share with all you ‘dog lovers’ out there

Lucky Dogs

Here are a dozen reasons why it’s great to be a dog:

*Your friends never expect you to pay for lunch, dinner, or anything else for that matter.

*When it’s raining, you can lie around the house all day and never worry about being fired.

*If it itches, you can reach it. And no matter where it itches, no one will be offended if you scratch it in public.

*No one notices if you have hair growing in weird places as you get older.

*You don’t have to worry about table manners - and there’s no such thing as bad food.

*If you put on weight, it’s somebody else’s fault.

*Who needs a big home entertainment system?

*A bone or an old shoe or a peanut butter jar can entertain you for hours.

*You can spend hours just smelling stuff - and everything smells good.

*It doesn’t take much to make you happy. You’re always excited to see the same old people. All they have to do is leave the room for five minutes and come back.

*April 15th means nothing to you.

*You can sleep late every day.

*You never get in trouble for putting your head in a stranger’s lap.

Lady in the field

My friend Calli came down to visit me from Maine one weekend. I thought that it would be great fun to take her riding. We had never been riding together before so it was something we “needed” to do. My horse Lady, I don’t trust her with anyone due to her crazy, flip out moments. But my landlord had a horse, Moe, at the house that I knew was safe for her.

Moe was the type of horse that I could but my five year old sister on and not be worried. He was one big lug. He was a chestnut with a star and was about 16 hands tall; a big horse but with no worries. I had always enjoyed riding him because he never gave me any lip. If I wanted to jump he would jump, if I wanted to canter he would canter. He also had breaks, which is key. He was a great horse to ride, comfortable too. He was so good that when it came to dinner time, all I had to do was open the gate and he would run right into his stall without any problems.

Lady on the other hand, she is a whole other story. She was a rescue and an ex-racer so she came to me with only one thing in mind, to RUN! She doesn’t know much about anything when it comes to commands and keeping things slow and that’s why I don’t trust her with anyone else. I have been trying to train her to jump but when we get up to the rail she rears. Even if the rail is just simply sitting on the ground she freaks. If I want her to trot, it turns into a canter and ears back in I want to run mode. She really needs an experienced rider, someone who has the confidence and knowledge. Now, I’m not saying that that is me but it will be if I keep riding her.

There is a field at the end of my road that I have always wanted to ride in. Just hop on and take off! So, Calli got Moe ready and I got my crazy girl ready. We walked them down, I didn’t want to ride them because I was unsure of how they would be with all of the traffic. The field has a small wooden fence with a couple of breaks in it so that people can get through. There is a base ball field on one side and a soccer field on the other. We walked them through the break in the fence and hopped on.
Moe was great of course! Lady…not so good. She freaked! She was rearing and wanting to run, run home that is! I tried and tried to calm her down but she got so scared that she took off running toward home which involves crossing a busy road. I realized what she was thinking so I made an emergency dismount. The second I hit the ground she stopped, looked at me like she was asking “what are you doing down there?” I was so mad! This was the first time I have “fallen” off of her.

Calli came over to make sure I was ok. I got up all in a huff and got back on. I rode her around a little bit more just to make sure she knew that I was not going to give up. Eventually I really wanted to take off. So I jumped off of Lady, handed her over to Calli and hopped on Moe. When I got on him I knew it was going to magical. He took off running, moving like he was flying! It was beautiful! I had never been that fast and in control before. Having such a big animal under me, I could feel his power. My hair flying in the wind, the breeze on my face, it was amazing! I came back around to where Calli and Lady were and got off of Moe with a huge smile on my face.

It was time to go home. The horses were tired and we were tired. On the way back out of the field I knew there was a little brook in the woods and I thought that the horses would like to get a quick drink before heading home. I walked Lady down to it and she, of course, didn’t like the idea of being there. I turned around and walked us back out of the woods. When we got to the edge of the tree line I stopped just to get my bearings. I stopped, but Lady didn’t. One moment I was looking over at Calli and the next I was looking up at my horse’s feet and belly. It all went in slow motion. I curled up in a ball, trying to get out of the way. Her feet never touched me. I got up, Calli ran over to me to make sure that I was ok yet again. Lady just stared at me again like she was asking me “how did that happen?” I was ok, no cuts, scrapes, bruises, or broken bones. I was lucky! By this time, I was furious with her. We walked back home and I didn’t let her miss one step. I put her back in the paddock and that was it until dinner time.

Crazy ‘Cat Lady’ Travel Mug

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I bet you didn’t know…..

Turtles can recognize faces. They are one of the few reptiles that can be trained to do “tricks”.

The ant can lift 50 times its own weight, can pull 30 times its own weight.

Ferrets sleep for about 20 hours a day.

All elephants walk on tip-toe, because the back portion of their foot is made up of all fat and no bone.

Dogs and humans are the only animals with prostates.

Tigers have striped skin, not just striped fur.

Armadillos can walk underwater.

Starfish don’t have brains.

When a giraffe’s baby is born it falls from a height of six feet, normally without being hurt.

The cheetah is the only cat in the world that can’t retract it’s claws.

The fingerprints of koala bears are virtually indistinguishable from those of humans, so much so that they could be confused at a crime scene.

The placement of a donkey’s eyes in its’ heads enables it to see all four feet at all times.

It is possible to lead a cow upstairs but not downstairs, because a cows’ knees can’t bend properly to walk back down.

Americans spend more annually on cat food than on baby food.

Ants stretch when they wake up. They also appear to yawn in a very human manner before taking up the tasks of the day.

A zebra is white with black stripes.

A shark can detect one part of blood in 100 million parts of water.

A kangaroo can’t jump unless its tail is touching the ground.

A hummingbird weighs less than a penny.

A giraffe can clean its ears with its 21-inch tongue.

A cat uses his whiskers to determine if a space is too small to squeeze through.

Giraffes have no vocal cords.

On a large sea otter, there are approximately 650,000 hairs per square inch.

Certain frogs can be frozen solid then thawed, and continue living.

To escape the grip of a crocodile’s jaws, push your thumbs into its eyeballs– it will let you go instantly… (ya think?)

Armadillos have four babies at a time and they are always all the same sex.

I found this article posted on the Yahoo News last night regarding the whole “Fly Swatting” event that happened in the white house during an interview on tuesday between Obama and John Harwood. I thought I would share.

“PETA wishes Obama hadn’t swatted that fly

WASHINGTON – The group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals wants the flyswatter in chief to try taking a more humane attitude the next time he’s bedeviled by a fly in the White House.

PETA is sending President Barack Obama a Katcha Bug Humane Bug Catcher, a device that allows users to trap a house fly and then release it outside.

“We support compassion even for the most curious, smallest and least sympathetic animals,” PETA spokesman Bruce Friedrich said Wednesday. “We believe that people, where they can be compassionate, should be, for all animals.”

During an interview for CNBC at the White House on Tuesday, a fly intruded on Obama’s conversation with correspondent John Harwood.

“Get out of here,” the president told the pesky insect. When it didn’t, he waited for the fly to settle, put his hand up and then smacked it dead.

“Now, where were we?” Obama asked Harwood. Then he added: “That was pretty impressive, wasn’t it? I got the sucker.”

Friedrich said that PETA was pleased with Obama’s voting record in the Senate on behalf of animal rights and noted that he has been outspoken against animal abuses.

Still, “swatting a fly on TV indicates he’s not perfect,” Friedrich said, “and we’re happy to say that we wish he hadn’t.”

Deputy press secretary Josh Earnest said the White House has no comment on the matter.”

Here is the link to the news article showing the ‘now famous’ fly swatting by Obama

Also…who knew there was a device to catch flies and release them outside alive? I learned something new last night!!!

The Barn Cat Gretchen

When I moved into the house that I am living in now, the landlord had a cat that lived in the barn. She had gotten the cat from a friend who was ill and could no longer take care of her. I told my landlord that it was ok for her to leave the cat there in the barn and I will look after her. She had left some dry food for me to provide to her.

She wasn’t a very friendly cat at first. She used to sleep on the hay and I would just talk to her and tell her she was a good kitty. I couldn’t remember what my landlord had named her so I changed it to Gretchen, perfect for her country living style. She is a fat cat with tan stripes and a white face, a cutie. If I tried to go to her she would look at me with wide eyes and run off. After a while of talking to her and trying to win her trust, she started coming down off the hay. I did nothing; I just kept on talking to her to let her know that I wasn’t going to hurt her.

After about 3 months went by of me talking to her and giving her the space she wanted, I went over to her. I talked in a soft whisper voice to keep her calm and went slow. I was able to pat her and after a couple of minutes she let me pick her up. I felt so good! I did this every day and she has now turned into a nice little girl.

When ever I go down to the barn she is there to greet me. She cries and cries, for food of course. She hops onto the table that has her bowl and yells at me. Every time I walk by her, if I haven’t fed her yet, she smacks me! It hurts! She puts her nails out and literally smacks me as I walk by. I don’t get it; she catches birds and mice but leaves them there without eating them. She’s a barn cat! She should know these things! I still end up having to give her dry food or she will continue smacking me.

My Chihuahua, Charlie, doesn’t like Gretchen very much. He will chase after her from the house all the way down to the barn; barking, growling, and hair up. Gretchen just jumps up onto her table where her food bowl is and does nothing. She knows that he is too small and can’t reach her but he still tries. She looks at him and I know she must be laughing thinking “you can’t get me….muhahaha!” Charlie barks and barks, jumping around, trying to get to her. After a while he gives up and moves onto something else. Meanwhile, I’m stuck getting smacked. But it’s nice to have her around to pat and talk to. It feels good knowing that she trusts me now and that I can be her friend.

Well……Let me start off by saying that out of the three horses I own, two of them are the nosiest beasts in the world!! I have a 23 year old Off the track Thoroughbred named ‘Hogan’ that is the best TB there is! Anyone who meets him would verify that I also have the two “dummies” as we like to call them in this family. Now, they are certainly NOT dumb horses…but because they are SO smart and SO inquisitive, they get themselves into trouble on a daily basis….again, anyone who has met them would agree….hence the name the ‘dummies’.  The ‘dummies’ consist of a just turned 5 year old Quarter horse named ‘Seven’ and a just turned 2 year old Quarter horse named ‘Dually’. Now I have to let everyone know that these two are related..same daddy…so this could be the reason they seem to share a brain on certain days

Seven and Dually are both ‘thinkers’. You can SEE the gears moving in their small brains when you look at them…..you know they are thinking and calculating the next move they are going to make. They are both over curious by nature and have to check everything out…even if they have seen if over and over everyday. They are super quick to catch on to new things and I even taught Seven some tricks….she learned them in only about 10 minutes, and remembers her cues and performs on almost a daily basis!

This brings me to my story about the ‘Dummies’ and the Snapping turtle.

It has rained for the past decade here in CT, or so it seems lately! I try to get my horses outside everyday for the whole day unless it is nasty out or if it is thundering and lightening out…if it is nasty, they stay in their nice comfy stalls with all the hay, fresh bedding to roll in,  and water they want…not a bad deal if you ask me! Well, the other day was NASTY outside..and they ended up staying inside for part of the day. I got home from work and wanted to clean their stalls so I turned them out with a break in the pouring rain. They were happily out munching on grass when I ran home for about an hour. I was on my way back to feed them dinner when I saw them all up in the top paddock circled around something that definately had their undivided attention! As I got up to the paddock, I noticed a big ol’ snapping turtle right in the middle of the ‘two dummies’. Hogan, being the good boy he is, was standing off a ways as the innocent bystander. I am SURE he told them they were going to get into trouble, but being the nosies that they are, the two dummies found a ‘new toy’ in the turtle.

I thought it was kind of funny at first….they were snorting, and at full attention, and kept sneaking up behind the turtle to sniff at it. I grabbed my camera phone to get some shots because, while those who know them would believe it, I had to show my co-workers. The turtle seemed pretty aggitated  and I wasn’t sure how long they had ‘played’ with it, so I herded them up and put them in their stalls so I could return the turtle back to it’s pond next door. As I was getting the horses in, I noticed blood on Miss Seven’s nose….OH GREAT…..! Now, because I have two ‘dummies’, I see blood several times a month, so it was old hat to me. I put them in and figured I would assess the damage and clean Seven up after I released the turtle.

After I herded this 10-15 lb turtle into a rubbermaid tote with a broom….yes, you should have seen me….I carried it back and released it to it’s pond. The whole time I was trying to get it in the tote and carrying it back, it was hissing, biting at me and just all around mad! I can only imagine what ‘the dummies’ had done to really make it mad! But soon I would know….

I went back and got my boo-boo cleaning supplies and went to see what had been done and if a vet needed to come out. Turns out, Miss Seven had about 4-5 bites/scrapes all on and in her nose…AND Mr. Dually had one on his nose as well! Nosy beasts! So not only did the turtle warn them once with a bite…but they went back for more and got bit more than once!! I know exactly what you are thinking….”what dummies”….SEE why they have their name?!

So after a really good cleaning to get all the germs out, now my only worries are 1) snapping turtle returning, and 2)salmonilla !! Great. So I did call the vet just to give him a heads up and to see if I should worry. I should be ok, just have to keep them clean and watch for any fevers or ‘bathroom issues’.  Now the chore is to clean the cuts! They let me do it that first day, but by the next morning their poor nosies were probably very sore from being snapped between the fangs of the turtle and they didn’t want me to touch them AT ALL……so my adventure continues in the quest to keep them clean and healthy……oye ve!

Will I ever get a rest with these two????

Thought you would like to see some of the pictures I nabbed that day….not the greatest due to them being taken with my camera phone…but enjoy! I am sure there will be more adventures for the ‘dummies’ to come…..I will share as they do

http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u12/kal775/turtlefightJune2009/tf5.jpg

http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u12/kal775/turtlefightJune2009/tf3.jpg

http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u12/kal775/turtlefightJune2009/tf6.jpg

http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u12/kal775/turtlefightJune2009/tf7.jpg

http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u12/kal775/turtlefightJune2009/tf8.jpg

http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u12/kal775/turtlefightJune2009/tf19.jpg

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