Monday, July 2, 2007

2 July 2007

The Barn Swallows in the big barn are getting sooooo big, I took this today. It appears that there are five babies and not four. I was lucky to catch this shot of momma or daddy with his/her head inside the babies' mouth!!! They have their feathers and are starting to perch on the side of the nest. They are overflowing LOL, the nest is full to the brim with baby birds. The parents have stopped cleaning up after them as you can see and they are pooping over the side of the nest now. When they were smaller the parents would pick it out of the nest and drop it over the side to keep the nest clean.

Here is another shot of brat baby. Mike asked if all horses have personalities and the answer is YES, they are like people and each has an individual character. I handle my babies from the day they are born so they are all loving and easy to be around and I know each one's whinney, likes, dislikes and personality. I wish more people would understand that these arent just dumb unfeeling creatures along with all animals for that fact, they do have feelings. I have had horses depressed, yes depressed. When Gee came back from the track the last time and she was so thin and had been abused it took two weeks before she started acting her normal self. She is a very clean horse and will do all her business in one corner of her stall unlike some who just do it everywhere and walk it into the sawdust LOL. She was trashing her stall every day, and just standing with her head hanging where she normally nickers and talks the whole time I am in the barn until I feed her. When Wiggle came back from that trainer who mistreated and starved her she was the same, you could see it in her eyes, it also took her over a week to register that she was back home where people cared and two weeks before I started seeing her usual bouncy, pushy character starting to emerge again. This is why I could cry every time I see these animals on the television who have been starved and neglected and also why I have so many horses, because I just can't bear to think that any of my animals will be subjected to that sort of life and would rather sell them to people I have met. If I sell them at a sale there is a very good chance that they will end up with the killers as horses just arent selling and havent for the past 5 years or so, especially in the area that I am in. The killers will pay more for them than people who want them for pets. You can pick up a weanling for $150 - $200 here at the moment, a riding horse for $300-$400, it is so sad. Oh well after that dissertation, if I can just change one person's perception of horses or any animal for that matter and get them to realise that their animals have feelings and have them treat them right, it will all have been worth it.

Well on that note, it has been another gorgeous day, beautiful weather but tomorrow will start the warming trend. I am pretty much up to date with the chores. Off to try to catch up on a few more visits. (((((Hugs))))) to those that need them.
Lori
xx

6 comments:

Pony Tail Club said...

We agree. We could never even consider selling a horse. There are too many bad homes out there, so once they come to us they are part of the family for life.

CG said...

It breaks my heart to think that in the UK horses can be worth more as meat than as anything else. I agree with the personality things you say. Every horse and pony I know at the riding stables has their own set of habits, quirks, likes and dislikes. They have their own friends amongst the other horses too. One of the great things about nbeing around horses again, for me, is getting to know these animals as individuals.

{{HUGS}}to you Lori xx

Anonymous said...

So interesting...you have given me a deeper appreciation of horses. That is for sure. Thanks for the wonderful commentary this morning along with the usual beautiful pictures.

For a non-horse person I have come to really appreciate them after spending the last few months here!

Thanks for answering my questions Lori. I hope you and Larry have a great 4th.

Lulu said...

In 2003 I had a mare lose her foal during delivery. I gave "Lucy" 2 days with her dead foal, so she could grieve...and then turned her out and burried the foal. She was depressed for well over a month before she finally started to snap out of it.

Many people don't give horses much credit for having feelings and personalities....but I know different.

Elaine said...

It is neat to follow the growth of the swallows.

I used to raise and show cats and ran into the same kind of problems when it came time to sell. I tried hard to make sure the kittens would go to good homes, but there were a couple of times it didn't work out.

Have a good 4th!

Rising Rainbow said...

Officially there are no more killers in the US. All the plants have been closed down. Whether or not that means those unwanted horses will end up at killers in Mexico or Canada it is still to early to tell. But that doesn't change the fact that there are a lot of neglected, abused and unwanted horses out there, and like you, that's the last thing I want to have happen to my horse children. I can bear to see my children mistreated, it's enough to make me want to stop breeding too. Finding homes that are good and will keep a horse for life are not that easy to come by. Breeding horses is definitely not for the faint of heart.

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