Hooves, Hay, and Life

The first couple of days of this week were crazy busy. I mucked right through it because I have to take care of business.

Below is a photo [cell phone] shot of our yearly hay supply. I am so thankful for our hay guy saying he has no problem delivering and stacking our hay for us. 

The skid steer is on the right side of the picture. 

This was our old round pen inside the large shed.

I have a father son team who like to come out together to do our mules. This is Danny working with  Sundance. 

The farriers took time to come up to the porch and visit with Rich for a while. We've worked with these guys for quite a few years. Danny has assisted his dad ever since he could hold a hoof rasp.

Both guys do custom blacksmith work and farrier at the same time. Often our veterinarian refers hoof and leg problems to these guys because they are so knowledgeable.
 

I am behind on removing burrs from the mules' tails this year. Sunshine sports a burr tail. I'll get to it sooner than later. Show Sheen and Hair conditioner work really quite well. It takes a lot of time though.

My new hat. This is safer than a Harris/Walz hat to wear in my area. It takes a moment or few to figure out what it says. 

I think I finally turned a corner. I spoke to a nurse and she recommended taking probiotics and avoiding acidic foods for a while. I had probiotics and I made bland food for myself for supper.

This morning was the first time since September 1st that I didn't wake up with nausea and a splitting headache. I am crossing my fingers on this and hope it continues.

One day at a time.

Burdocks and Bows

After spending two hours cleaning tails again, I picked up the loppers and machete and went hunting for burdock in the woods where the mules like to hide out from the weather.

The offending burdock grows in inaccessible areas to machinery. Rocks, logs, an steep inclines keep me from mowing. The only solution is to do the work by hand.

I think I got most of it picked up and piled. Now I have to wait for non windy weather to burn the piles. I ended up with about 4 piles. I make them small and also rake all the dead leaves from around each pile before burning. 

For now, the mules have to stay out of this section until I get things cleaned up. I have to admit that all of my work in this area for the past few years is starting to pay off. It may not look like it, but the burdock has been reduced significantly since I 'took' over the pasture work.

There is another section of woods that I'll address later. I missed the spring clean up of the area and didn't maintain it this summer. It looks like it should be easy to clean up with a skid steer and a brush hog, but the rocks that jut out of the ground would make short work of anyone's blades.

At least I have things to keep me busy, right?

Bow Season is in Full Swing around here and Glen the Hunter who hunts the meadow to the east of us texted that he and his daughter would be bow hunting this weekend. He wanted to know if we would be around as he'd like to drop off venison for us.

Of course!

I told Glen he could come down our driveway and park in the fence line for easier access. After two years, hubby has decided that Glen was an okay guy. I have to give the guy credit as he has made the effort to be friendly to my husband. The meat never hurts either. It is a great bribe to an old deer hunter!

A few years ago, the land owner of the meadow told Glen to just use our driveway to access hunting on their property. Of course having a strange vehicle come down our driveway and park on the edge of our land was concerning to an old veteran with Chronic and Severe PTSD. 

Glen realized that getting to know hubby and befriending him would benefit everyone. Glen and I exchanged phone numbers so he can text us for the two weekends a year that he'd be out roaming near us.

I think that is a great lesson in being neighborly.

The landowner should take a lesson from Glen the Hunter.

Glen and his daughter or son only come for bow hunting as they feel it is the ultimate challenge.

Gun season is for nutcases on the neighbor's land. I bring the mules out of the woods and keep them in the lot near the house.

After all, hunters get Buck Fever. Right?

I've never personally hunted a deer. I've sat with a few people over my life time and found it rather boring. I'd rather sit in my blind with my camera for a few hours and catch a photo of one. Less work.

Tails

 If your animals go into the wild woods, they get into burrs. I don't have a nice flat pasture that we can mow. In the wooded section there are numerous logs, huge rocks, rock outcroppings, and steep hillsides. Each year I try to work on chopping down or digging up the burdock.

This year I failed. And now I am suffering those consequences.

However, IF I can get someone to clip/brush hog the flat areas, I might be ahead of this next year.

I started on tails at 11:30.

The above shot is Sunshine's tail.

I cleaned it and braided it. Later I decided to just do the right thing and give it a trim. I love long tails like everyone else. However, these long tails get in mud and muck and snow and ice. After one ice storm a few years ago, the mules had iced tails. Those with long tails made clicking sounds as they walked. 

The tails grow back and less maintenance might be better!

I actually think her tail looks prettier trimmed! Less burrs to gather when we ride through the forest too.

Siera had the nicest tail of all. Here it is finished. I had a real hard time cutting it shorter. She is not a mule to get down into the brush and explore like the others so her tail is usually not too bad.

It was still long after I cut off about 6 inches! I may leave it for now.

Check out Sunshine's sister's tail. Typical of this mule who has NO fear and explores everywhere.

She did this in one week. 

I purchase cheap hair conditioner and use mineral oil and a spritz of ShoSheen on the burrs and tail. I rub it in and let it soak in. I have to keep applying as I work towards the center of the tail.

To this, with a trim.

I also had to trim her mane, it was plum full of handfuls of burrs. I asked her where in the heck she has been going to find all these burrs. 
She snorted and said it was her secret!

Everyone was done and I promise NOT to let a whole week go by without cleaning tails again.

All mules spent some time with me in the yard grazing.

Here is Fred. He is 37 years old, nearly 38.

He still has a lot of energy which is improved with soaked alfalfa pellets and Senior Feed. After all, I don't think he has much in the way of teeth left. 

The leftovers.

I finished after 4 pm after taking off an hour for lunch. 

It was worth it. 

Each mule was patient and quiet, just like they have been taught. In a way, I didn't mind it at all because I was able to spend time with them.

Just being with them is good for my inner self.

I hope their tails don't get too messy. I'm looking forward to some riding later this week. That is, IF I have time.

My nephew and his new wife are coming to visit on Wednesday!

Autumn

The photo above was taken at my mailbox. My neighbor lives on this ridge and we share the upper part of the driveway. It drops steeply down into a hollow.

There is something magical about the late afternoon light on all those maples and oaks. I could pull up a chair and sit there all afternoon to watch the leaves and trees. 

This week we've had some amazing sunrises. I mean brilliant and startling in colors. 

Sunrise at PeeWee's: Harvest time.
Sunday morning

The Sumac Tree I have been watching since August:

We had a killing frost two nights in a row so the garden flowers are all done it and turned into slimy gobs of gooey green. But at least I could appreciate them just before they turned.

Cosmos

Other jobs for the Autumnal weekend were replacing the stock tank heaters and pulling burrs from my an-ni-mule tails. The redheads always get into parts of the forest where stick tights and burdock are, no matter how diligent I am about pulling or cutting them down.

That is Sunshine staring at me. 

I'm happy to report that their winter coats are soft and fluffy. 

After this last blast of color, November ushers in the Brown Season or the colorless season.

I find it hard to be motivated to take photos of anything in our forest during November. 

But I generally use that time to tidy up the house and do indoor projects anyway.

I have a new 'old' Christmas Chair for this year that I found in one of the sheds. A old bent Hickory.

But since we are all thinking about the end of October.....let's enjoy these days were the temps are still above zero!

Do you like winter? Yes, I do.