Busy morning! This time hubby didn't wake me at 4 am! Whoo Hoo!
Our old pony is starting to show his advanced age. This past winter has been hard on him. He gets a stall inside at night as he is the only one who won't try and rip things apart. Throughout the winter he has had access to places where he can not only eat hay, but he could search for greens.
I checked our paperwork and we got him as a 4 yr old from our friends in Missouri. I always thought he was a 2 yr old when we got him. That would put his age at 32. This is the first year that I've seen him lose weight.
He was a very happy camper all this week when I found patches of green for him to be tethered out on.
In all of his years of being tied out, he has never ever damaged a vehicle nor has he ever gotten tangled up.
This is 15 years ago when I had him tied to the tractor.
He surely has had a good long life being a Guard/Yard Pony. His first job on our place was being a teaser for our mares. His retirement job is Guard Pony and Entertainment Pony.
Here he is ON Guard in 2009. I physically had to get out and move him out of the way.
He is such a handsome fellow with such a fine temperament. He can prance and dance like a fancy high stepping pony. But considering that he has been handled every day since he arrived here, he is a breeze to lead around.
I love how he talks to me with his wee little whinny every morning and evening. He wants to make sure that I don't forget him.
And since I was going through older shots, I came upon a photo of our old 'string' of riding mules in 2005.
Left to right. Henry, Badger, Pipes, and Patchy. All from our Jack named Bruce. All half brothers.
Rich's main mount was Henry and mine was Badger.
Patchy now works in North Carolina as a pack mule doing training exercises with the military and was used to pack in supplies after last year's hurricane.
The others are no longer with us but always in our hearts. These guys were our 'cool' dudes.
Another quiet rainy, misty, cold yucky day in WI!
Thanks for sharing photos of all your beautiful family members. What a beautiful horse!
ReplyDeleteThanks, he is such a fun little guy. He is exactly as tall as my inseam at 31 inches.
DeleteI'm glad your Old Pony has such a good home with you in his advanced years. Does he have a name?
ReplyDeleteOh yes! Sorry, I forgot to say! His name is Lil' Richard!
DeleteGlad your pony could go in at night. Such a cutie. Lori
ReplyDeleteHe goes in on cold rainy nights or bad weather. The others hate the machine shed.
DeleteYour big critters are beautiful! Linda in Kansas
ReplyDeleteYes they were wonderful animals and gave us so much pleasure!
DeleteI have no doubt that he has had a very good life - and a long one too.
ReplyDeleteHe has! He is always the center of attention when we have visitors.
DeleteFun to see and read about your past equines!
ReplyDeleteThanks, we showed those 4 in mule shows but quit to really enjoy trail riding.
DeleteHe’s pretty and has done his job well. I hope he has many more good days.
ReplyDeleteI think he will do fine all summer with nice fresh grasses. It is next winter that I'll worry.
DeleteNice to see your herd! That pony sure has been a good one, did he ever have littles riding him?
ReplyDeleteI find once a horse starts losing weight and nothing helps to fix it, that their time is near. I hope your little guy can pick up this summer.
No, he is a stud, however since I only weigh about 110 lbs, I did teach him to ride which he did very well. We'd just ride to the mailbox and then I'd slide off and walk with him back home. [bareback]
DeleteHe was my little go cart once in a while around the place.
He learned that when he was 20. I decided that he is just a great little yard pony and let him be the awesome little guy he is.
I'm hoping he can enjoy another fine summer trimming and fertilizing for us.
You have some wonderful critters!
ReplyDeleteThank you.
DeleteHe is a handsome pony. I look at your mules and find myself wishing I'd had a couple. My oldest at 30 is still doing well.
ReplyDeleteI do enjoy the mules. I did have horses too, but Badger was like a big dog with me. His half sisters are the same way. Friendly and loving. I'm glad yours are doing well!
DeleteOh he is sure a cute weed wacker! Fun to see the photos and to see your four mules, I recall that one of yours did some pack work during the recovery effort in North Carolina...awesome!
ReplyDeleteYes, he is the only one left of our original 'string' of mules. In this photo Patchy was only 2 yrs old.
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