What did you do today?

[wertygam]

Today i was doing absolutely nothing!

[Nanno]

Today I trimmed everyone's hooves, and just as I was thinking, "I should probably wear gloves when I do this," the hoof knife slipped and sliced my thumb. It's not bad or anything, but it was a reminder never to take sharp tools for granted. While trimming hooves I also discovered that some of my goats have scabby irritations on their pasterns, much like scratches, a.k.a. greasy heel on horses. Yuck! I gave ivermectin to the four goats who had it and I applied Nu-Stock ointment to the scabs. I hope it goes away quickly.

Babies all got their first CD+T shots today. I was going to tatoo them as well, but I realized I'm out of green ink. I have lots of black, that's impossible to read unless you have Saanens.

[DownUnder Gal]

How are the goats' pasterns now Nanno? Did the treatment work? My goats got scabby heels last winter - it was dermatophilus. I used a mixture of sulphur powder, petroleum jelly and vitamin E oil and it worked a treat.

[Nanno]

The pasterns are healing nicely, thanks! The Nu-Stock I'm putting on them is made of sulfur, mineral oil, and pine tar so it sounds almost exactly like what you did for your goats.

Yesterday was a blast! I took my horse Jet over to Salida and competed in an obstacle course challenge where we won the jackpot class! I don't usually get to MAKE money riding horses, so it was great! It was even better because I found $20 fluttering in the parking lot and since no one claimed it at the office by end of day, I got to keep it. It was my lucky day I guess.

[Charlie Horse]

I've been spending evenings working on removing the dirt roof of a fruit cellar that was built around 1959.  We had a soggy melt this spring and water dripped through the roof and got everything I had stored in there wet.  Now the mildew is raining down and the beams are showing huge cracks suddenly.  There's the main log beams with planking, a layer of newspaper, tar paper, clay, dirt and then a newer layer of black plastic sheeting and more dirt.   In some places this is all 10 inches thick so no wonder its collapsing.  I'm going to put a new more ordinary roof on it and use it as a garage and storage.

   

After months of no rain we finally got some the other day.  It was so humid the next morning we got fog in July.  It made for an interesting view.

   

Fortunately I had a tarp over the dirt remaining on the roof-- When that clay gets wet it becomes a very amazing glue.

[Nanno]

That'll be a nice shed once it's got a proper roof on it! So many sod-roofed sheds are either sod all the way around or they are made of logs and are rotten by time they're this old. Cinder blocks are great!

Phil and I took Finn and Sputnik for a hike up the Greenhorn Trail today but we were forced to turn back early when the rain moved in. We hustled on the way back but still got pretty wet by the end. The boys weren't happy about it. Then as we neared home the heavens opened and a torrential downpour hit us. The poor goats in the bed of the truck looked like drowned rats. I'm not worried about them though. It was a very warm rain. The bucks were cozily ensconced in a shed with a bunch of their lady friends. I don't let the bucks hang out with the girls at night, so they were mortified when I came in there and dragged them out into the soaking wet. Phil and I were drenched by the time everyone was tucked into bed. We had to undress on the porch and leave our clothes outside because it looked like we'd been for a swim. Good thing we have no close neighbors!

[GoldenTreePackGoats]

Sounds like quite the downpour! Nick worked in the forest for the DNR last year building trails and with WA hitting record rainfall he always came home soaking wet, regardless of the best rain gear on the market he would strip before coming in. I'm glad it was a warm rain, sometimes I have to put a goat coat on one of my does because Pluto gets in a mood and won't let her in the barn. It's not a problem during the summer but when it's 40F degrees and raining she needs a rain jacket.

[Nanno]

We've gotten rain almost every day for the last four weeks. Today was supposed to finally be clear so Phil and I were planning to drive Finn and Sputnik this afternoon. Well, as soon as Phil was done working the thunderstorm gathered and we barely had time time bustle our goats around the yard for our daily walk before the lightning cracked and the heavens opened. It's supposed to rain a lot more during the next week. It's been a month since anyone was able to cut hay. Usually I get hay in July, but the fellow I often buy from only had time to cut one field back around the 4th and he's been on hold ever since. Several of our trees have been struck by lightning, and this past weekend a lightning strike knocked out our internet and it took a couple of days to get it sorted out. Phil had to order a new router. 

We were supposed to have a torrential downpour last Wednesday when I went to Salida for the Colorado Obstacle Challenge at the Chaffee County Fair. But we got very lucky and the rain held off until after the event was over. Jet and I won the Gambler's Choice jackpot at Chaffee Fair two years ago and we decided to try again. The competition was a little different this time and it wasn't a gambler's choice. Instead of doing as many obstacles as you could in two minutes, this time you had to do all the obstacles in as fast a time as possible. My horse did very well and we won the jackpot race, which paid for my entry fees and my gas with some leftover for celebrating (which means I bought a new riding helmet). It really was my lucky day because I also found $20 fluttering around the parking lot which I left in the office in case anyone inquired. No one claimed it so it was mine by day's end! 

My nephews Robert and Sam also competed on their pony, Honey.
   

Sam won the leadline class (he was the only competitor) with my mom at the lead.
   

Robert won third place in the youth division. He was by far the youngest competitor in the ring so I wasn't sure if he would be in the ribbons, but he and Honey made a really great team! 
   
   

I love Robert's cowboy vest.
   

My niece Lily did not try the leadline class. She could have, but she got stubborn and said she would only ride if she could wear a skirt. The dress code is jeans, of course. A compromise was reached with a skirt over jeans, but by then Lily's stubborn streak had taken hold and she decided she wouldn't ride at all. But she didn't mind sitting up with me on Jet and even taking a little bareback ride around the grounds after the competition. 
   
   

[Nanno]

There were some fun obstacles on the jackpot course. The most exciting was the water box (not pictured). My horse Jet is great with water and has no fear of a tarp-lined box full of it, but this one was unique because in my division they floated a piece of plywood on the surface. The plywood had holes in it, so when the horse stepped on it the water fountained up through the holes, and if the horse stepped hard enough he got splashed in the face. Jet stepped in pretty confidently the first time and got wet so he promptly backed up. But when I asked him for a second try, he stepped right in (carefully this time!) and walked across without a fuss. That was for the non-timed, non-jackpot class. By the time we hit the timed jackpot event, Jet had that water box dialed and skipped across like an old pro. 

Here are a few of the other obstacles. It was a fun day!  
   
   
   
   
   

[DownUnder Gal]

Terrific action shots Nanno. I like the pool noodle obstacle; looks like Jet didn't mind that a bit. He sure is a big, handsome horse. Pity you couldn't wear your new hat

I loved visiting Salida!