The horses have been "cooped up" in their dry lots (well, at this point, mud lots) for about a week. They each have about 1/2 to 3/4 an acre of space in their paddocks, so it's not like they are confined to an itty-bitty area. They stretch their legs and have plenty of room to move.
I haven't turned them out on the grass pastures because it's been raining and rain equals mud and horse hooves on mud equals torn up pastures and dead grass. I probably pamper my pastures more than is really necessary, but I will not turn horses out on muddy pastures. I'd like to keep them grassy and green, not big, weedy mud pits.
Anyway, the pastures were dry enough last night that I could turn them out this morning. The way Gabe acted you'd think he's been cooped up in a 10x10 stall for the past week! Sheesh! Snorting and prancing and arching his neck on the walk from his paddock to the pasture. He was bouncing along like he was spring-loaded!
They get turned out around 6 a.m. and at that time, the dew is still heavy on the grass. I'd rather wait to turn them out until after the dew dries, but if I want them to go out, that's when they have to go out, work schedules and whatnot.
After snorting and prancing and wiggling all the way to the pasture, Gabe couldn't wait to be FREE to kick up his heels. He leapt and bucked and snorted and farted around the pasture as soon as I removed his halter. He tore around the corners and did circles around Calypso who was happy to just stand and munch on the nearly knee-high grass while giving the youngster the evil eye.
Do you know what happens when you combine dew-soaked, nearly knee-deep grass with a Thoroughbred doing his impression of the Indy 500 around the pasture?
You get a horse who lands on his side when he thinks he can take that sharp turn at a pace a notch or two higher than he should. Yup. Gabe took a tumble this morning. He wasn't even flustered by it. Up he leapt right back up and continued his crazy, bucking circuit around the pasture.
My heart leapt into my throat and my stomach clenched painfully when I saw him go down. The only thing running through my head was "Oh shit, he's broken a leg. Shit." It's pretty scary to see a horse go down, especially when it's the big goofy Thoroughbred you've completely fallen head over heels in love with.
The big nut. I hoped he learned something about centrifugal force, wet grass and high speeds this morning!
Yikes. Sounds like you need to cut back on the Supreme Unleaded.
ReplyDeleteIt's the Thoroughbred in him. They all have super nutty moments. He really isn't getting that much grain at all, and it's the low sugar/low starch formula because I wanted to avoid the crazy TB energy spikes. Who knows. It has been quite chilly in the morning around these parts. It dropped to about 43 last night...brrr!!!
ReplyDeleteOur trainer, the Cowboy says that "the hotter the food, the higher the stupidity." I like to watch the horses when the weather changes from hot to cool. They pick up a spark, or something, and really strut their stuff.
ReplyDeletesaddle mountain rider...he is a wise Cowboy! I had a mare that I just couldn't keep weight on without stuffing her full of high-energy/calorie feed. It became a vicious circle because the feed made her HOT HOT HOT so she burned off all the calories I was so diligently dumping into her to keep her at a decent weight. I do love watching the horses in changing cooler weather: The tails come up, the necks arch a little more and there is a lot more bounce in their step!
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