It's in their genes

I'm finding it interesting to compare the two boys, Jake and Spike, and their genetic predispostion for their careers.
Jake is the prankster. He has been that way since day one, with a little twinkle in his eye that asks, how can I make this more fun? He's missing his third incisor tooth on the top, no doubt from skidding into an immovable object while travelling at high speed and not paying attention. The more I hang around Jake, the more I understand his mother, Tatti. Jake inherits his sense of humour…Read more

Using the Herd

It takes a herd to raise a horse. What's interesting is being able to use the herd to tackle different issues.
Young Jake has become a bit of a punk. His step-dad, Cody, is the boss of the herd. He's 16 hands high, a plump 1300 pounds, and acts like a football linebacker: immovable. We call him 'The Rock'.Tatti, his real mother, is the boss mare. She is a bit of a loner and doesn't take crap from anyone, except Cody, of course. So young Jake thinks he's invincible. He imitates both of them at various…Read more

Jake & Spike - The Dynamic Duo

Around 10:30 every morning the shenanigans start. Bite, rear, bite, chase, gallop, stop, circle, bite, rear. It goes on for about ten minutes then they have to stop to catch their breath before starting all over again. Sometimes they get distracted and chase one of the ponies but that doesn't hold their attention for long.
It's great to have a weanling and a yearling together. The surprising part is that it's the weanling, Spike, who instigates most of the play. He'll jump on Jake and ride him out of the…Read more

Fat Head

Well, his head's not really fat, just getting bigger. Jake now wears an adult horse halter, albeit at the shortest holes. He's growing up. Except in his withers, which have a long way to go yet before they catch up to his butt.
We've not done much with the young lad this summer. That's one of the nice things about a yearling: it's okay just to let them grow up. No pressure. All we've done is come into the barn once a week to be tied, groomed and have his feet picked out. He's low maintenance!
I took him…Read more

Jake Starts Kindergarten

Jake turned one year old on June 9. The nice thing about having a youngster is that their time is well spent growing and playing and they don't place a lot of demand on my training time. Until now. At one year old Jake is becoming a bit of a young punk. He has a swagger in his rubber-legged stride that comes from more than just being three inches lower in the withers than the butt. Up until now he's respectfully held his own with his Uncle Cody and mother, Tatti, dishing out a few head butts but backing off…Read more

Measuring up

Jake's 13.2 at the withers and 14.1 at the butt. He's been that way for about a month now, showing all kinds of growth that sometimes makes him a bit grumpy and often has him resting a leg while he's eating his dinner. If he'll end up at 15.2HH that means he's 87% there in front and 92% there behind. He weighs in at 310 kg or 685 pounds, which is about 57% of the 1200 pounds I expect him to reach as a full-grown lad. His rascally antics have slowed down a bit. He still bites once in a while but otherwise…Read more

Who is this Tatti?

This isn't really about Jake, and yet it's everything to do with Jake.
I don't know who his mother is anymore. She's not the same lazy lump I rode before the blessed event of motherhood overcame her and I have the bruise on my butt to prove it.
Tatti is typically known as one of the seven dwarfs - 'Sleepy' - for the most part. She's the one you can count on to bring up the rear on a trail ride, sniffing every mailbox as we ride along, totally unconcerned about anyone or anything else, having a nice…Read more

Jake is now a Weanling

I guess it's now official: Jake is a weanling. I mean yearling. I mean he no longer drinks milk (sorry, dairy farmers!). He's been off the nipple since March 18, at a little over 9 months of age.
In a natural situation I believe that a foal will nurse until the mare has her next foal, although that is something I haven't been able to confirm. I can't think of a better way to get proper nutrition into a foal during the critical early growth stages than as nature intended it, so I was quite content to keep…Read more

Ice Days

I understand now how a parent must feel when the kids have a snow day from school. The herd has had a long string of 'ice days' - the fields have been treacherous with ice and the horses have wisely chosen to stay in the yard and shed. Luckily it's a huge shed so they can move around and I've been keeping them separated into two groups so that they all have shed space without scrapping.
Jake is the court jester. He's the one who annoys the heck out of all of them but I think he's the one who has kept…Read more

Out on the Trail

Jake's just cutting his third incisors on top at seven months of age but he's already an experienced trail horse. We pony him out with his dam, Tatti, and enjoy his company.
Ponying a young colt is not for the faint of heart. I wear my padded winter pants, thick winter coat and of course, my helmet, and I don't mind getting a few scratches on the old saddle we're using.
Tatti is a seasoned pony horse so she knows that all that movement on my part can be safely ignored, while she knows she has to pay…Read more