Virtual Brush Box

Thank You #2

Saddleseat rider Buffy Bourbon was kind enough to comment on a show post [Third]. Stalking her digitally (waves hi) led me to the Hobby Horse Clothing Company. I don’t ride Western (yet?) but I’m not against bling, so I perused, which lead me to the page for the Froglight Illuminated Hoofpick. Our barn is a retrofit, so the lighting is not ideal. I ordered one through my local, Carousel Tack Shoppe.

Cons: As with some reading lights, it is disorienting to have the light move instead of staying put. On more than one occasion, I have zapped myself in the eye with the light when I flipped the hoofpick over to use the brush.

Pro: A handy flashlight to see if I’ve gotten all the dirt out.

Time will tell if it is something without which I cannot live, such as heated car seats*, or just a cute idea.

(*Seriously, have you tried these? Awesome. Keeps you warm in the winter without stifling heated air and is portable heat therapy for the overly ambitious weekend warrior. A luxury yes, but one that I will defend with tooth and claw.)

Thank you, Ms. Bourbon.

Thank You #1

A New Path was kind enough to comment on a Twelve Days of Christmas post [3 Feed Sacks]:

“I finally have all mine on the same feed – Safechoice Senior (the only senior my old guy will eat). The others will eat anything that looks like grain.”

Clearly, no one other than us is responsible for what we feed our horses. However, we had been pondering Nutrena for a while: bring home the brochure, talk about it, forget & move on. Having the name brought up again, particularly in connection with palatability, was one more prompt in that direction.

I don’t recall our thought process for Original rather than Senior, but Mathilda loves it [Update]. Rodney was on it for less than two days before he started acting cranky, the way he does when his stomach bothers him. New barn rule: Thou Shalt Not Mess With The Thoroughbred’s Digestion.

Thank you, A New Path.

2014 Show Schedule LW&TCDR

General Theory
Attention SSF horses: put on your show shoes and get back to work. The performance horses, that is. The school horses have been trucking along with lessons and Winter Tournament shows.

Onwards to the 2014 show season.

While last year’s heavy show schedule was wonderful, it is not a viable way to continue. If I were single, pet-less, and oozing dollars, I would a) go to every show on the calendar and b) attend from set-up to take-down. OTOH, if I were those things, particularly the first two, I wouldn’t be me.

Therefore, I am going to try – try, I say – to trim down the number of shows. Plus, I will do a few more as day trips, thereby saving money on hotel and food. I favor shows that have championship classes, i.e. more chances to ride. My instructor favors shows that have higher year-end points.

Specific Locations
I am attempting to loosen up. I moved my name from the bottom of the About page to the top and added the scan of a nametag [About]. Yet, I still find myself too paranoid to say exactly where I will be and when [Identity].

So, here is your broad hint. I will be showing in Academy classes at shows in Georgia, Alabama, and possibly Tennessee, in the Southeast US. If you are involved in the saddleseat world, the particular shows shouldn’t be too hard to figure. Or, if you look back over last year’s posts, ditto.

Come say hello.

Or, come say hello after my classes. If you talk to me before a class, I will stare at you blankly.

Update: origin of title phrase discussed here. Well, there goes another expression [Eeny]. I always thought this one had to do with rising waters & impassable roadways.

Guest Post: Malealea Lodge & Malealea Development Trust

Ellen Broadhurst, author of The Chronicles of the $700 Pony [Half Halt 2006] & The Further Adventures of the $700 Pony [Half Halt 2008], is now living the ex-pat life and touring the world with her family. The information on Malealea was written by her son Tom for a school project. Photos by Ellen. Welcome Ellen & Tom.

Malealea village is in Lesotho which is a county entirely enclosed by South Africa. The population of Lesotho is just over 2 million and 40% of the people living there are below the international poverty line of $1.25 a day. Malealea village is a poor village in the southern province of the kingdom of Lesotho. It is about an hour and a half drive to Maseru, the capital of Lesotho.

Malealea Development Trust or MDT is a non- profit organization in Malealea village. MDT is an organization run by Malealea Lodge and Pony Trek Center which is a lodge and pony trek center in Malealea village, Lesotho. MDT has 5 main focuses, Education, Health and well-being, Infrastructure Development, Environment and Micro development and Income Generation Projects.

(switching over to Ellen)
Pony Trekking is the primary “activity” at the Lodge. The ponies and guides are provided by local people, and the Lodge oversees equipment and managing bookings. I thought about going for a short trek, but given the age of the children, I decided it would be better to stick to hiking.

In general, the animal husbandry practices I observed were in line with what I’ve have seen in other ‘less developed’ areas. People depend on livestock for food and livelihood, so they are cared for with those ends in mind. Horses are of course not pampered the way the tend to be in the US, but are treated as work animals. Overall, most horses we saw were in good flesh and were fit; not unexpected given the rough terrain and assumed frequent use. They looked like hardy souls in general. There were exceptions, and I did see a few youngsters definitely in need of feeding up, but the Lodge is careful to coach the guides who provide the horses, and tourists are encouraged to report any animal treatment that they feel is really out of line.