Because .......

Because these two idiots thought, 

This was something to eat.

They got sent to the brig....

And now these two are pouting!

Experimentation in horse cookies.....

Libby, Peaches, and the donkeys are quite particular when it comes to their food.

Grass in any form is what they prefer. 

Oh and of course they go nuts over Nickers and whinny's cookies. 

But that is about it. 

Discovering that Libby is 17 years old this year hit me pretty hard. 

I thought she was 13.

Time flies.

Anyway, my riding instructor suggested I start giving her some Satin Finish.

The first time I offered it to her I added a bit of senior feed to it to spice it up.

Everyone gobbled it up.

Second day they all took a few bites and turned their nose up at it.

Ummmm......

She always liked the horse cookies,but never went nuts over them.

She just ate them to please me I think.

Libby has an uncanny way of when her body says it needs something she will eat it.

Such as sand clear. She will only eat that periodically, and sometimes turns her nose up at it.

So I have been experimenting with cookies! 

Here is my first batch.

I tried making different shapes and the turd looking ones have held together the best.

My first batch I used just satin finish, a bit of senior feed, and water. The cup cake ones fall apart pretty easy.

Then I looked on the Internet and all recipes call for flour and oil as the binder to keep them together. 

Did not like the idea of the flour but did try it. Worked well.

Third try, I used wheat bran instead of the flour and still used the oil. 

Worked awesome.

So now when I take out cookies to the pasture I get nickers and lots of attention. Libby now will walk up to me instead of me having to walk all the way to her.

YES..... I am the cookie dispenser!

Oh and the senior pieces resemble choco chips, so they think it is extra special, cause I said it was. Lol

I can't give measurements as I just scooped. About two scoops of satin finish. One scoop of senior feed. And one and half scoops of wheat brand. One cup of oil, and enough water to make every thing stick together. I used a tea kettle of water and still had to ad some. Then filled cup cake tins half full. Baked at 350 degrees for 30 to 45 minutes. Or till hard. Don't want them to soft as they will break apart.  Then I left the cookies in the oven till the next afternoon when I got home from work and bagged them up.  They are not crunchy hard, just firm.

Just use your baking skills and they should come out ok.  

I do have a little muffin tin that I was going to put in my yard sail so I had to go dig it out, and those turned out the cutest.  They look like mini muffins.  

The experimentation continues. I want to invent a cookie that one can put medicine in. Like worming paste. I don't have issues with that, but some people do. Kind of like those pill pockets for dogs and cats. 

Hoof-A-Cure

Today was farrier visit day, and everyone lines up for their turn. 

Star of course uses her antics to get noticed. 

She normally does not pick things up unless it is a rope or a halter.

She will squeeze her way in for attention. 

"Looks like you need some help there!"

She is quite the little entertainer.

Everyone got their feet trimmed and feel so much better.

Michael Johnson, A great story teller....

I first heard about Michael Johnson and his great story's here:

THE PERFECT BIT

Horse and Man explains it much

better than I ever could.

I was hooked at the "Perfect Bit" story.

I

ORDERED

HIS

CD'S!

Yes!

And it is so WORTH IT!

Not only does the author himself tell the stories,

His voice really does draw you right into the middle of it!

Not all story's are about horses,

So this is really a nice set for ANYONE!

Check them out at his website:

Michael Johnson Books

(I have no vested interest except that I totally enjoy his stories and wanted to share them with everyone.)

R.I.P. Taumee!

Ten years ago a little black fur ball graced our lives.

Little did we know at that time the impact she would make.

At the time I knew she was going to be special and she needed a special name.

Tommy was the name but it could not be spelled any ole way.

I don't know how all the letters came to fit, but once they fit I knew it was 'her' name.

T A U M E E           M A H R H E E

Taumee went every where with us. And every where she went she brought cuteness with her.

As she grew she changed in appearance so much.

When she was four years old her coat grew in so thick it was very hard to give her a bath, it was so thick.

Taumee loved to pack things around and we used this favorite skill of hers to our advantage.

The first time was when Rick came home from a camping trip. She helped to carry small bags of his stuff into the house.

Next after a trip to the grocery store she would help to carry in the groceries.

Then when I had my motorcycle accident she was there to get things for me, and to steady myself in doing the every day things while I healed, and she never left my side.

She became my shadow the rest of her life.

When Taumee was about 4 years old, she tore her ACL. It was not a tough decision. The only thing tough was coming up with the $2,500.00 to give her the surgery that she needed. I ebayed my whole Princess Diana doll and plate collections. Lost big money on it but did make enough to pay for 3/4 of her surgery. Not one regret on that.

After we moved to the farm Taumee was lonely, and then Sydney came into our lives. We took Taumee with us and she picked Sydney out to come home with us. When Sydney had her puppies, Taumee was the aunt that showed them how to play. How to play her favorite game of tug if was. Babysat with the delight of having all these little ones around her. Sydney was their mom and she was good about feeding them, but that was where the love stopped with her. In thought maybe it was because all the puppies were black and Sydney was a blonde.

We kept one of the puppies, hence Sassy's membership to the family.

Sassy and Sydney play all the time, and Taumee would sit and watch them. She would let it go until the play got to rough and the tone of their growls would change. Then she would get up and run right between them to break up any type of disagreement that seemed to be getting out of hand.

Taumee loved all the grand kids. She would let them crawl all over her. Her favorite thing to do was to tease them with the ball. Upon her return with it, she would walk just out of reach of them, and circle around. Many times they would come crying: "Nana! Taumee won't give me the ball!"

She taught them patience.

Her favorite game was tug of war, and she always won. She would pull a grown man off his feet! She was never mean about it, she was just strong. If you gave her the slightest slack in the rope she would shake your shoulder out of it's socket.

Birthday parties were her favorite. Her treat was to lick the plate clean and then go put it in the sink when she was done. In her later years, when arthritis set in to her leg she did not have the surgery on, we did not make her stand up to the counter anymore to drop the dishes into the sink. Never once did she break a Corel dish. She thanked us for getting a dish washer. She then would put the dishes in there.

Taumee was not a cuddlier. She relished attention so much she would never sit still long enough for cuddles. She did love to be petted and hugged though. This she got lots of. She always had to walk in between your legs for her butt scratches. She earned the name of "wiggle butt".

Last night around 8pm I noticed that something was wrong with Taumee and the major clue was she turned down her cookies. She was never one to turn down a cookie! I called the vet when she went to lay down and just fell. This was a matter of about ten minutes. Another ten minutes and we were at the vets. He took one look at her gums, which were very white, and said she was bleeding internally. While we were discussing options Taumee was fading right before our eyes. The answer was clear. She was hurting. We were loosing her! As i held her, the doctor helped her to run thru green pastures with no more pain, to the rainbow bridge, and some day we will meet again!

Parker, our four year old grandson said, "Taumee is going to go see Poncho."

There will never be another one like Taumee. Her kind comes along only once in a lifetime, and we were blessed to be her family.

Taumee, you will be missed so very much! There isn't any words that can describe the heart ache of your loss!

See Taumee as "Auntie".