A couple of 'firsts'!

Yesterday was a big annual event here at Red Pony Ranch. It was the day that the boys moved home from their leased pasture and everyone starting coming into the barn every night for the winter. It's funny, but the timing on this is decided pretty much by me AND the horses. They know the routine and stand at the gate when it's time to come home, rather than by where I give them their grain. Coming into the barn usually coincides with the start of our 'rainy season'. I like them to be able to come in at night and dry off, including their feet, and make sure they each get their hay, grain and vitamins. There is still probably a month or so of grazing in the pasture, so they don't get full hay yet, just enough to keep them busy overnight. Once the winter pasture is eaten down, then I'll start throwing hay out in the morning too.


Bailey loves his stall. I am very fortunate that he is a neat boy in his stall, and since he weighs as much as all the other horses/donkeys combined, his poop is a big portion of my cleaning effort! I weight-taped everyone today and while Bail is too big to hit the weight markers on the tape, he came up at 224 cm around his heart girth. I keep a chart of everyone's weight and make changes as needed.


Yak is almost too small to stick his head out over the door! He's got such a beautiful head, but all that hair makes him look like a little buffalo! Maddie is in the stall just next to him, but I don't think you can see her in the picture. Yak taped at 354 pounds which is way too heavy, so he'll be getting a reduction in his hay. Maddie came in at 318 which is perfect for her size.


Little Bit, also known as Fabio for all that hair and the way he swishes it around, is the least happy camper in the barn. He doesn't necessarily like being inside, and he's not really crazy about hay either. I like to bring him into winter being a little heavy because invariably he drops about 50 pounds over the winter. He's taping at 425 now so that's about right. He will eat some beet pulp and pick on hay, but is pretty much a grass pony. Two years ago I let him get too thin, so now I really keep a close watch and offer him different things to get him to eat until the grass starts growing again in late February and March.


The donkeys LOVE their stall and love being in. They do NOT like rain and when it's raining during the day they hide under one of the big cedar trees with pouty looks on their faces. I would be happy to leave them in more often if they weren't such PIGS in their stall. I hear that most donkeys are neat and go potty in one or two places (which they DO out in the field) but their stall is another matter. It takes me as long to clean their stall as it does the four others combined. Good thing they're so lovable and adorable!


The other first of the day was a little present from one of our new girls. This adorable little egg was the first egg from one of the three young australorp hens we got a few weeks ago. I put a regular sized egg and a school-boy apple in the picture for size comparison. Good girl!! I'm sure the other two are not far behind. Thanks, girls!