So ... what about this ... get up when it's icy cold, ice on the water and an hour later it's already 16 degrees and at lunch 26 degrees .... nice ... finally the wind & storm ended ...
The "GetTogether" of this morning did not take place ... My neighbour Tony was the only neighbor to come so instead we sorted the tomatoes out together
All the horses were happy to be able to eat lunch outside
Tasty green mouths
And .... test ... test of new vegetables: chicory, paprika, beans ... and the rest we know already And .... what do you think of "moeke" "Mam". Doesn 't she look great ?
It was a little cold here this morning .... and the storm winds that rushed through the night, have left their mark
And the horses were happy that I broke the ice in their water bowls.
The places where there were puddles with water from the last rainy day ... had become skating areas ...
Oh yes ... did I mention that I live in Spain?Hahahaha what a joke...
After giving them their breakfast, I left to do some shopping and came home with a car filled up`with food for the dogs, cats & horses: foalchunk 80 kg, 25 kg of natural saltstones for the foals, 40 kg for the dogs & 5 kg for the cats .. .. voila everyone is served for a while.
The bag contained however only 2 salt blocks, the one in this picture weighs 18 kg ...
Meanwhile all the horses were outside in the sun so that I could do some repairs in the stable of the little ones.
And after dinner it was time to go to the market again ... but today I was apparently too early and had to wait another half an hour before I could take the remains.
Just a few cabbage leaves, a lot of lettuce and many vegetables of which I do not even really know whether horses can eat them (no I do not believe just anybody ... I prefer to look it up on the internet ... just to be safe... I'm not taking any risk with their health ...
I was back home at 4 pm. and some time remained to continue to temporarily repair the doors so the foals would be protected during the night ... Yes the storm is still active
The rescue cats Maxime & Baloo have already sought refuge in warm places for tonight
I haven't got much to tell about what happened today or I should talk about the weather again...archhhhhhhh ... Yes, even the horses are tired of this lousy weather...... storm&winds, rain, snow, freezing conditions ... they've all seen it now and would now like to get some warmth and sun on their bodies...
I even got some snowflakes on me when I went to the pharmacist in Jijona to buy some medicine for the horses to have some stock at home in case something should happen...
The icy wind has also ensured that the 3 littlens had to stay inside..... The yearlings were also inside most of the day ...
An ideal time to upload some pictures on the website.
But today I have not taken any picture of the foals ...
But still a picture of the rescuecat Maxime with Pineau together in their chair, ...inside, not far from the stove.
No, today you would not believe me if I say that we live in sunny Spain .... in the last 20 hours it has rained for more than 18 hours ... I' ve been living here for more than 6 years and have never experienced this .... I am repeating myself..... What's happening to our world?
This morning the ground was already saturated and there were puddles here and there ...
The horses rarely came outside but I left the kids and Filly inside... I really did not want to take any risk that one of them would get a cold again because they still are weaker than the big guys. Moreover, the wind started to blow again and so it was no weather to be outside :
I saw the big ones only run once today... when they were scared by big white monsters who were running on the road above them....but it appeared that only my rescue dogs had scared them ... the bad weather had apparently clouded their minds ...
Sorry that the pictures are so dark but the weather was just bad
and we had to turn the generator on to fill the batteries and provide us with electricity because of the lack of solar radiation ...
This is not the sunny country anymore to which I emigrated to
The weather was ok and it was a holiday .... and so I spontaneously grabbed my mobile at 2 pm and wrote the following message: "The horses need you & they need hugs: Today at 16h30, 1st 30'neighbourly therapygettogether...Good 4 u, good 4 the foals !I hope you all come.C u " and then sent it to my 3 neighbours ...
And at 16.30, the first neighbour Tony arrived... at first he still felt a little awkward among those big 4-legged friends.
And a bit later my neighbours Brenda and Michael arrived ... and the 4 of us went to work ...
A good therapy for all. The foals had a great time and the neighbours had a good experience.
Going to the market to get the greenstuff for the horses .... is not simply pick the greenstuff up and go home to give it to the foals .
As you could already read on the blog yesterday, I went to the market again...20 minutes driving down, over one hour looking, searching, picking up and shifting and then driving home again.
My car was full to the roof and that looks like this .
But then the work is not done yet
Back home everything is unloaded and placed in separate vegetable bins so everything can be washed. And you have to separate the bad from the good and also have to separate fruits from vegetables
Then you wash it all and then bring it down ...
At the end, this is what remains of the lot.
Overall, you are busy for 4-5 hours ...
And of course half an hour every day to clean and cut vegetables for their daily portions...
But the kids are super happy... and so that's why we do it ...for them ...
Opening your door and seeing horses in front of your house .... is a dream of many To hear a horse whinnying to you, saying you good morning (or rather "hey I'm hungry") ... is just fantastic
I fed the horses this morning, made some order in the feed room and at 10 am. I got prepared to go out to do some shopping because I was out of dogfood and I also had to look for some foal food.
And then it went wrong again ... I had to step over the threshold of the window and my left leg did not get high enough again so ..... ... straight forwards on the gravel again and landed right on the bad knee . This time I knew it felt really wrong ... and so I strumbled inside after a few minutes to get to my crutches.
I'm beginning to wonder whether the surgeon maybe has cut just one too many nerves during the last OP? It is clear that my brain thinks I've lifted my leg high enough when it's really not the case ... or is it the tiredness and am I careless
The other ranch owner has been so nice to go to the store for me and come back here with the dogfood and a few bottles of red wine
And this afternoon he has given the horses their lunch ... while I watched and gave instructions. . So he knows what the animals need if something suddenly had to happen to me ... like when I broke my back in October 2008 after a fall of my horse Chikiboy on a rock in the hills ... then all the work fell suddenly on him and the neighbours ... I do not want to think what would have happened if Paco and the neighbours had not been there for them ... I am eternally grateful to all of them.
Only difference ? Now we have 11 horses here instead of 2 and therefor much more work, especially with those who are still sick and need to have their injections ...and nobody else can do that for me .... so I must not get sick
And now they tell me that the market in El Campello will not take place tomorrow because it is a holiday .... the 3 kings ... the biggest partyday for children here in Spain ... and so the market is today ... The foals need fresh greens tomorrow ... so I have no other choice than to put myself together, get dressed again and to leave for Campello in half an hour on my crutch and with my metal backframe to collect the greens... Yes I know...that I am crazy ....
Psst: Don't tell Paco ... otherwise he might be a bit angry...first he comes over to help me .... and then I do go out.
Locked up... locked up .... yes I've locked myself up in the house .... then nothing can go wrong for the rest of today ... hopefully.
I don't dare to go out the way I look now .... a cap on my nose, a small cut of 2 cm on my jaw, blue legs and swollen knees, aching muscles in the arms (from the falls), scraped elbows and since tonight a slice-cap on my head .... others will propably say "clumsy mie"
So after I had given the horses their dinner and opened my head, I locked myself inside behind this computer to continue to work on the website about the foals ... it takes a lot of work because the mobile internet here in the hills is slow .... very slow and everything takes much longer to upload ... but then if you want to live surrounded by nature without a regular phone line, without a connection to public electricity or potable water, well .... they live a life that most people do not know anymore....and they can not imagine it .
No, really .... we have no official electricity supply, no gas supply, no central heating, no telephone, no TV-TDT connection ... we live surrounded by nature and we are autonomous: we have electricity thanks to the solar and wind installation that I installed, I have a mobile telephone and mobile internet, a satellite TV connection, and a wood stove for when it gets cold ...
YES REALLY this still exist anno 2010 and we are happy that we can do just a little bit to reduce spreading more gases that ruin our world
Pictures of the day:
Foals that snuggle up to sleep after their lunch while a rainbow comes out ...
It was actually pretty quiet today, although it started to rain again last night and the day was often a bit dark and heavely overcast. I went out with the other ranchowner to get more pallets this morning to put the food of the horses on, so the bottem can not get wet.
I also called the supplier of the foal chunk to say he doesn t have to come at the moment. The foals really do not like it and the 2 youngest do not even touch it So I will try a different brand first before buying a large amount.
Lunch tasted good though
This afternoon, my neighbour Michael stopped by again to hold Brownie while I gave him his injection ....
The state of Brownie worries me a bit because he did not eat enough yesterday and so I stayed with him tonight so he would eat enough grains and I will do the same tomorrow ...
And then Michael offered the foals some mints... I never saw that before but he told me that the British Queen gives them to all her horses. The foals found it weird and those who had touched it let it fall afterwards Our horse Negro loved them though....he ' s a left brain introvert and loves any kind of food And while I was mucking out the stables I saw Michael stroking the foals who liked it and it seemed the ideal time to go a bit further and .... so I took some brushes and we went to touch the horses with a brush as if it were our hands ... so they would get a positive experience and learn something at the same time And most of them could not get enough of it ....
Our Filly began to gibber, laugh ...
The gray and the eyeguy did not let me let go ...
Every day I am realising more and more that I have a wonderful group of animals that will become great horses, each with its own personality and character ... and that they will get the best start in 2010 with me
She wrote me yesterday saying that they have sent a box with 11x Equimax, Eraquell, Equiworm P, vitamin paste + 2 halters, 1 pony size, 1 full size and a rope. I told her I only saved 9 and that the others were here from before my rescue action:
Just crazy .... and just like that...without knowing me ... Strange really because I did not even ask ... and I would never ask for such help anyways... that is not "my character" or maybe I am too proud ?
In any case, it's not about me here, but about these foals and they can use everything.
I also received questions from others about how, what , when...about any help
In Holland there ispeterson51 & live.comwho collects everything and will send it over here at their cost. In Belgium the Cherry Tree ranch in Diest will collect anything .
To further clarify ... everything is nicely kept legally and will be declared as gifts ... everything is intended for those foals. Later, when the foals will go to their new families, I'll just try to cover my expenses (and therefore accounts are being kept) ... if anything is left over, which is doubtful given the high costs and care, it will go to another good "horses" target that you will decide or will be used to save other horses. Those who know me a bit, know that I'll do everything for my 4-legged friends .... sometimes even neglecting myself or others... but with just 1 goal...animal welfare ....
A morning without any problems ... The sun is shining and chases the morning chill away .... A bright blue sky with just a few white clouds ... A fence that's working ...
And 9 foals, who are eating their lunch outside ....
The message has been adapted to 12:14 because of additional information:
Is there someone who wants to come and house-dog-horse-sit for a few days, as I need to go Belgium for a few days
You have no expenses, as I 'll pay the ticket and there will be enough food and drinks in the house for those few days.
The co-owner of the ranch will come by every day to feed the animals and the neighbours are there if you need any help. It is more about having someone around and present so the dogs are not so long alone and to keep an eye on the foals. Requirements: an adult person, who knows how to deal with horses and dogs in a natural way, be free for several days.
Well it can only get better ... I hope the worst is over...
While eating breakfast somtehing was happening in the stables where the littlens are... it turned out that the "not so blind anymore" Filly has become so fit that she quickly eats her bowl of grains and then chases the 3 little ones away so she can eat it all. This was visible when the neighbour arrived ... (he came to help to hold little brownie so I could inject his antibiotics). Filly was really full of energy ... and even began to jump in the barn ...and thus we quickly let her outside with the big brothers ... and so at least the little ones could eat in peace. But that was not what she wanted and she now started to be silly and started to run in and out the other stable still hoping to get back to the kids.
Meanwhile I also had asked the help of my neighbour, who is an electrician: I had a pretty bad result with the shock fence for the horses, the foals were leaning against it and didn't sense that there was a machine on it so I got another machine, but that didn't change anything.There was no electrical reaction.
So I asked my neighbour to do some measurements.But such measurements are not possible on this kind of an electrical fence. But now I was still working on a change in the division of the paddocs and I had to put the wires differently and yes suddenly I felt the shockand not only me
The "eye"guy had his head meanwhile in between the 2 wires to get to a piece of grass on the hillside ... and suddenly the poor boy got a shock...backed up and lifted his head and took the upper ribbon along ... which scared him and so he ran away distroying nearly half of the ribbon holders of the paddock were he was staying ...
I almost sank into the ground Does it never end? Should something really happen every day? It was so quiet, calm and relaxed here before I saved the gang ... My courage sank into my shoes for a moment...
I took a long breath and my neighbour Michael already started to take the broken holders off and replacing them with others... and so you keep going. We've put the ribbons back and suddenly there was a very good contact
The littlens have now their own separate play area and hopefully have no need anymore to go to their neighbours, "the big boys" ...
And now I will leave you because I have a lot of work tomorrow morning .... making a different distribution format in the stables so I can seperate Filly during meals so that she leaves the kids alone .... and putting an extra ribbon on the paddock of the littlens...enough work you see ... Pictures of the day:
The Black Stallion and the gray are napping after breakfast ... while I m behind them, to work out the new distribution and am putting ribbons on to test it (therefore they are touching the ground) )
The 3 little ones evaluating their new paddock.
The harvest of the market day today ... lettuce, cabbage and lettuce leaves, a cauliflower and broccoli ...
View of the new distribution of the paddocs for the horses: each group comes from his stable now directly in their own paddock.
It already started yesterday evening .... storm with windspeeds...you don t want to be out in those ...
So, we all went to sleep at 23h15...
But this morning it still blew violently sometimes, even so hard that I was not able to work outside and I could not let the littlens outside... they are still recovering from a cold and cough ... The older foals did lay to rest in the wind ... fortunately the sun was shining.
Meanwhile, my Border Collie became unwell and the juices flew out ... he could not stop it ... and so I quickly put the torch on him and treated the necessary acupuncture points ... he soon became quiet, relaxed and fell asleep.
In the afternoon the wind laid down so I decided to let the littlens out .... but the door was not open yet or a strong wind blew past us and 1 of the new wooden barn doors flew into chunks.
After feeding the horses I wanted to stop by by my neighbour to help her with the torch treatment ...so I got a large lamp in one hand and the torch and a box of homemade cherry jam in the other hand (which my neighbour likes a lot) and left...
...just to get stuck with my left foot behind one of those vegetablesbaskets of the horses and to be catapulted forward ... to fall on my elbows (to safe the torch and lamp that I was holding in my hands) and full body in the gravel and I m not saying about what I've done to my thigh ... my whitish vest was covered in red spots of the jam and I was just laying there... ...The dogs had fun though.... eating the cherries and cleaning the mess up ...
The last day of the year ... it appears to be harder than expected.
This morning I was so happy with my new ideas how to divide the horses up in the stables and how to adjust the paddocs ... well that dream shattered a few hours later...
After feeding breakfast to the kids I went out to get everything that we would need for this long WE.
I went to the pelletsstore: "Ow, I just wanted to come to your place with the 30 bags" ...yeahyeah. ... I bought 2 bags and said he could come on Monday with his bags. And then I went to the horseshop for additional white ribbon of 40 mm ... there was only 1 role ... Now I have to wait for another 2 weeks for the other one...Also purchased a device on solar energy to connect on the cable that I can move if needed ... After getting home, I began changing the format of the paddocks and I put up the extra ribbon ... I let everyone out and everything went like I wanted .... untill I had to see about 2 hours later that the littlens were actually in the picador where Chikiboy and Negro should have been ... I can only guess that Negro has pushed the ribbons to go and get to the food of the little ones ... It was a terrible sight ... the kids were a little wild and Chikiboy wanted to lead them.... hell broke loose & ribbons got broken, a pole with concrete has been pulled out and Chiki & Negro ran off into the field .... Fortunately Negro is foodcrazy so he stopped when he found some fresh grass .... but he did not make it easy for me to catch him and take him back to the paddock ...
Meanwhile, the truck also came with the hay ... definitely not the quality we are used but in this time of year, there is nothing else he said .... the 20 bales of oats is just enough for a week and the 40 of hay .... well I ll mix it with the alfalfa ... They did assure me that it is good material ...
And now I go back to the gang ....
Lunch snacks in addition to bale of alfalfa: sliced banana, carrot, orange, melon, cucumber, turnips, lettuce, cabbage leaves, cauliflower, apples, ...
... I prefer to look it up on the internet ... just to be safe
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