We Love Visitors!

I love it when I can get a signal on my cell phone at the barn...because often I can't.

When I can, I'm always thrilled to answer a call and have someone say, "Are you at the barn? We want to drop by."

This particular photo was taken when my friends Jeff and Rae were out for a drive with one of their dogs, Erin. Erin had never met horses before and Jeff and Rae felt like she was up for an adventure. The three horses in the picture happen to be very young Friesians. They were really curious about Erin.

Erin sniffed. The three horses lowered their heads and snorted a bit. I'm pretty sure Erin yawned and said, "You guys may be big, but you're amazingly boring. Snorting does not impress me in the least!"

And I'm fairly certain at least one of the Friesians said, "Whatcha doing on that side of the fence? If you wanna play, you gotta come in! Snort. Snort."

Erin has manners and good sense. She politely stayed right where she was. It was fun to watch the interaction between four animals who had never met before. It was even more fun to have company.

If you're ever out and about, drop by! I don't know where Tango was in this photo, but I'm sure he'd come out to see you. He might even do a trick or two!

Jeff and Rae are coming out again tomorrow with more dogs. Tango wrote it on his calendar so he won't forget!

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Tango

I decided I should introduce you to my pets before I start posting old columns from equine magazines. Tango seems like the perfect place to start since I already have photos of him on my other blog http://ignitetowrite.blogspot.com/

Some horse owners don't consider their horses as pets, but I sure do. I adore Tango. I have to remind myself that he's not a dog on a routine basis. Let me tell you about Tango's beginning. Five summers ago I rescued Tango. I got a phone call while I was on a family vacation in the mountains of Tennessee. "There's a horse who's going to slaughter tomorrow if you don't commit to buy him now," the caller said. Being the sucker that I am I asked for the rest of the story. It seems that an Amish man purchased Tango's bay mother when she was pregnant. She was expected to deliver a bay foal but instead Tango came out about as black and white as they come. This Amish man could not drive a "flashy" horse, so after keeping him for his kids to play with for a couple years, he was ready to sell him one way or another. I bought Tango by the pound and brought him back to the farm where I was boarding an elderly thoroughbred. The plan was for someone (not me) to train Tango.

Unfortunately that didn't happen, so being overly confident and eternally optimistic I managed to test fate. One beautiful summer evening in August my friend and I went out for a trail ride. "Tango's calm," I said, "He'll be fine." I guess the sweet smell of summer and a new horse took the place of common sense. Tango hadn't been under saddle much yet and before the evening was over I managed to end up on the ground. When I fall it looks like Barney the Dinosaur in a train wreck and this time was no exception. There was no gracefulness in the way that I ruptured my spleen.

That was then and this is now. Tango is amazing. He moves like a dream. I can show him in pleasure driving classes and dressage.Tango is also Houdini. Want to know why? One winter when Tango was slightly off (lame) I couldn't ride him much. So instead, I taught Tango tricks. I taught him to push a ball. I taught him to pick up cones. I taught him to bow and give kisses. AND I TAUGHT HIM TO USE HIS MOUTH TO PULL THE END OF A ROPE.So, Tango pushes. He pulls. He gets out. Dumb me. Smart Tango. He knows where the grass is greener!

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Nothing Better!

I can't think of a single thing (aside from my faith, family, and friends) that makes me happier than my animals.

I have three dogs...Kelly, Maddie, and Annabelle. With the exception of Maddie, all my dogs are rescues. Later on, I'll go into greater detail about my dog rescues!

I also have a horse, Tango. I rescued Tango when he was a little over a year old. Tango was small when I got him but he's not now. Turns out, Tango is part draft horse. He's awesome! I show Tango pleasure driving and right now, Intro level dressage.

Journaling is therapeutic to me. I decided it would be fun to journal about my animals with other animal lovers. I use to write a column for a horse magazine. Maybe tomorrow I'll share one of those columns...maybe I'll write about something else!

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