The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

If you have ever owned/loved a horse you will understand what I am going to say. 

Horses bring out the best in you,

and

horses can bring out the worst in you!

We love our horses,

and so we care for them...

day in and day out,

several times each day,

no matter what the weather,

no matter how we feel.

We hay them.

We grain them.

We keep their water fresh.

We keep their bedding clean and dry.

We clean up their manure.

We groom them, clip them, bathe them,

keep their sheaths clean.

We pay vet bills.

We pay farrier bills.

We drop money on horse care items without even batting an eyelash.

We take them out to graze,

and round them up again.

We love our horses...no matter what.

And in return.....

they teach us patience, perseverance, humility.

We become better people when we spend time with our horses.

Most of the time.

And then there are the other times,

when our horses can elicit a string of profanity from our mouths that would make

our mothers blush!

It is at these times, when our worst side shows.

Unfortunately, my worst side emerged yesterday.

You see, Moonbeam, my haflinger has a hoof abscess.

I have been soaking and dressing his draining hoof this week.

The good news is... 

he is getting much better.

The bad news is...

I am pretty sure he broke at least one of my ribs yesterday while changing his dressing.

During his dressing change,

he started to crowd me in the aisle.

I turned my side to him and pushed, attempting to push him back into the middle.

He pushed back, and moved forward,

pinning me to the stall wall with his 1500 pounds.

It all happened in a split second.

I felt the crush.

I herd the pop in my chest.

The pain ensued.

(An all too familiar pain.)

And yes, I cussed a blue streak!

(And landed a girly punch right on Moonbeam's side.)

He meant no malice.

He didn't think.

He is quite often oblivious to his massive size.

He did to me what he would have done to another in his herd.

My feelings were hurt,

not to mention my chest.

Eventually, though, rational thinking prevailed

and I realized that for the most part

our horses consider us just one of the herd

and treat us like they would each other.

I suppose that is all we can really hope for....

to be one of the herd.

After all, our horses do not love us in the same way our dogs love us.

Do they?

The affection our dogs give to us without asking for anything in return,

might just be a little much to ask of our horses.

And so, we continue to love and care for our horses,

through the bites, the kicks, the stepped-on-toes,

the bruises, the fractures...

all the while knowing that the love we hope our horses feel for us,

is something quite different.

And yet, it's enough.

Don't worry, these types of occurrences are rare.

Our horses are usually quite pleasant and cooperative.

Moonbeam is moody right now.

His foot hurts.

He'll get back on track.

And so, as you read this, I am driving my sore ribs to West Virginia to pick up

Ginger and MaryAnn

our two little Kunekune piglets.

And no, in answer to a question I keep receiving,

we will not be eating them.

They will become part of our farm family.

And I will have lots of pictures for you on Monday!!

Have a great weekend!