This past winter, I mentioned in a post that it is hard to write a theme related blog when I am doing nothing related to that theme; horses that is. Depending on what town crier you listen to or newspaper you read, the heat index has been 105 – 115 degrees. No one even talks about the "real" temperature anymore because there is nothing real about it.
Heat index is to summer what wind chill is to winter.
They are both awful gauges of unpleasantness to give the Big Fat Lying Weatherman more doom and gloom to report.
"More sultry days ahead!" they report with glee.
Although the shade of the barn is always an option, my horses have headed out to pasture. There is a creek running through it and they loaf under the trees. Each were equipped yesterday with a fly mask to ward off the "eye flies" that seem to be out in full force, adding to already miserable conditions.
When I drove by the pasture on the way home tonight, I noticed Baby's fly mask was gone and Windy's had become quite disheveled, one ear in one ear out and hanging below one eye. (You really had to be there.) So I stopped the Durango and in sandals and dress clothes, picked my way through the ditch and under the fence to fix her fly mask. While messing with her, Ginger came up to me and showed me that she had laid in a cow pie and had cow manure spread over the side of her fly mask and was not in the least bit pleased about that! So I fixed Windy's mask and removed Ginger's. I glanced around to see if Baby's was near, but couldn't find it. So there you have it; today's horse story.
This coming weekend, CT Horse Sales is having their August horse and tack sale. Although I'm not able to go to the sale (because I will be hanging with horse trainer, Colleen Hamer, who will be working with my horses and that pesky trailer ramp), I took the opportunity to go through my tack room (trailer, garage, car and every other nook and cranny) and identified tack that I am no longer using and most likely never will again. I cleaned it up and made a quick inventory of items before I boxed it up. I came up with sixty-one items! 61! Sixty-one pieces of tack that has been in a drawer or hanging on a hook, gathering dust! Oh my gosh, if there are 61 pieces that I have no intention of using again, just how many pieces of tack did I keep and more importantly, might not use but can't muster up the courage to part with just yet! So if you need tack, get to that sale! I know of 61 things you can't live without!
Our Trail Challenge & Scavenger Hunt event is over half-way full! Entries will be taken up to September 1. If you are waiting to send in your entry, don't wait much longer. The ride is limited to 50 entrants. More information on this event can be found on the Nebraska Horse Council's website.
(Thanks to Christine S's husband for taking the picture shown above of Christine & me at last week's Platte River Ride. Since I am usually the one taking the picture, I so seldom see any of Windy & me. I especially enjoyed him capturing a moment with a friend.)
Ooh! I wish I could attend the Trail Challenge ride. Sounds like just what I like!
ReplyDeleteI hate those eye flies so much! yuk! But I'm surprised that you keep your horses' fly masks on at night. Have you ever worn them on your own face at night? I tried that once and it was....Zero visibility!
Not a whole lot different than a cow pie smeared on it, actually. After it rains, I also have to take off the fly masks, too, because the horses roll in the mud and smear mud all over the masks.
Thank goodness the fly masks are easily washable.
I hope we never see heat indexes like yours up here. We don't even have A/C. We had temps in the high 90's early in the season, but so far the temps have stayed in the mid 80's during the day and down into the upper 50's to low 60's at night.
Just think, winter will soon be here....just another month and a half for us until we can expect our first snow fall.
eeek!
~Lisa
I`ll say this again! We would kill for temperatures like that. The rain hasnt stopped, my leather tack has started to get mildew on it!!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteThe flies here this year have been really bad! I think they`ve developed a "shock & Awe" style of attack! Thats a great photo!
We've had every bug know to horses and people, including those awful tiny biting flies and gadzillions of mosquitos. I use fly masks on my horses, and it seems to help, but sometimes there's the pasture trek to look for a lost one!
ReplyDeleteWe've been hot, but not as hot as you. Hope you get some relief soon.
This was a very horsey post, actually.
ReplyDeleteSorry you're having some horrendous weather. We've got skeeters, more than we've had most years, because of all the rains. My poor Scout is always scratching his ears like a puppy dog.
I always enjoy your blogs! :)
ReplyDeleteWinter was bad & this riding season has not been great. Looking forward to the Fall temps... (hope this doesn't jinx it!)
Your temps are waaaay worse than ours, hope you cool off soon. We've been hot and humid and the bugs are awful this year. Doesn't seem like those fly predators are working at all.
ReplyDeleteI'm sure you'll do well with the 61 items for sale. Good luck.
That picture is great. I know what you mean, I seldom get a picture of me(not that I'd want one anyway) because I'm always taking the pics. Hang in there.
Our temperatures are not as bad as yours, but ours are still too hot to have a good ride. I feel the blogging pressure too - no riding to talk about. "Well, today, I hosed off the horses. Well today I groomed the horses!" Our weather is supposed to break Thursday. Hooray.
ReplyDeleteI LOVE the photo of you at the water's edge. Beautiful.
A spot opened up in the lot at our barn and we're moving Jamboree out of the stall and into the lot. HOWEVER we are waiting until next month so she can have a fan and fly spray pointed at her through this miserable weather.
ReplyDelete90% of the time I believe horses are happier out of a stall. This is the other 10%.