Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Chrome's First Trip To A Creek

I walked Chrome a mile down the road and introduced him to a creek for the first time ever!! This was his first time ever seeing running water as far as I know and I've had him since he was five months old. :) Please ignore my hideous fashion statement in the second video below!

I decided to walk out to the thirty acres to find the horses instead of calling them up. You would think it would be easy, but it actually took a minute to find them lol. Check out this video.


Silly guys!

He looks totally Friesian in this shot!

Once I got him to the house I had to figure out how to carry my rubber boots.

I didn't want to carry them for a mile (wore my sneakers for the walk), so I put them in grocery bags and let Chrome carry them lol.

He wasn't bothered by them at all. :) At one point when he climbed up the slope of a ditch the boots fell off. He spooked, but not bad at all. When I went to put them back on he tensed for a second, but was fine as soon as I had them on his back.

My pretty boy. He's developing the wrong muscles in his neck for some reason. I'm trying to get a chiropractor to see him because he's also developing a dip in front of his withers, but I have to get his teeth done first (if he would call me back, getting pissed!), so we will see. It could just be the awkward stage of growth he's in.

The above picture better shows how he's using his neck. Ick.

Don't get me wrong though, he still has a nice neck. :D

Okay, here is the video of us at the creek.


He did so well! Such a good boy. And some pictures. :)

Doesn't look impressed, does he?

I LOVE this shot!!

This was the only shot I managed to get of him climbing down the slope to the creek.

All in all we had fun. I had to do some yielding and backing to remind Chrome when he got excited or nervous that he couldn't barge into my space, but he's getting much better about it. Even in his flat nylon halter!! I'm curious to see how he will be about crossing water while being ridden because if I refused to step into the water (like when I was wearing sneakers), he would too. The only time he went in is if I went in first. Still, for his first time he did great! :)

On the way back home he stopped to pee on the side of the road lol! I'm glad he's comfortable enough to pee and sleep around me hehe.

Once we got home I sat on Chrome's pedestal and took pictures . . . a LOT of pictures lol.

Faran was glued to Chrome as soon as he got back. He was NOT happy when we left without him and according to the neighbors spent the whole hour and a half neighing. Poor guy. In the above pictures they are digging through the sticks to eat the grass growing in it. :) So cute!

Look at the size difference between their butts and tails lol. Faran's is a lot shorter than it used to be, I guess because of the detangling we've been doing. It's still incredibly thick though! Oh and Chrome is not taller than Faran, he's just standing uphill.

While the boys grazed Zep came to see what I was doing.

You can probably see in one of the pictures how the halter has rubbed his fur off of his nose. So far it isn't rubbing his skin, but I'm worried it will. Do donkeys need a different kind of halter? Do I need to put some sort of padding on the halter? Any suggestions? Now that the barn is fixed I'm about to make a stall and lock him up so I can work with him several times a day and get him tame . . . wish me luck. I hope he doesn't spend the whole time braying or we might have to turn him loose to keep from angering the neighbors . . . we will just have to play it by ear.

Faran is so handsome. I can't wait for him to shed his winter coat. He gets that weird chocolate color when the sun fades his coat.

Watching the neighbor walking down the street. I remember when he was so small that he would stick his head through the panels. Now he can just look over. :)

Poor boy was tired after out 2.4 mile walk and play time in the creek.

Sleeping.

Handsome Faran!

They are so cute! Resting the same toe. :)

Hope you enjoyed the pictures. :)

8 comments:

  1. Nice pictures! I really like the ones with Chrome in the creek.

    For the donkey's halter, they don't need a different halter. I have a yearling sized halter for my donkey with no rubs but I don't leave it on her all of the time either. You can try adjusting the holes to make it bigger/smaller for a couple of weeks at a time or switching it out to a different size. Make sure it is clean as the dirt buildup will wear away hair faster than nylon.

    Good luck!

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  2. Nice video and pics! And don't forget you gelded Chrome, so his neck won't stay that nice thick stallion neck. Enzo lost his stallion nice neck once I gelded him also. But it's worth it to me! Since, I cannot handle a stallion nor any of the boarding places around me. Have fun!!

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  3. It's so beautiful out there! Chrome is such a good boy. Love the photos of him carrying your boots.

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  4. Chrome was so good. Pippi is not a fan of plastic bags, I doubt she would handle it as well as Chrome.

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  5. What would a chiropractor do for his neck? I mean he is a cross between a Friesian and an Arab. Two totally different horses, but they do seem to usually come out quite beautiful! He is a teenager... awkward and gauky. But with that said, I'm not sure of what you are talking about.... he looks like a young (handsome) growing gelding... :) Funny big ol' Faran was worried ... he had the donkey to keep him company. :)

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  6. Margaret, the chiropractor wouldn't be just for his neck. I also think there is something weird with his hind end, probably due to the club foot. I'm just curious what a chiro would find. I've heard somewhere (it's late and I can't recall where) that the dip in front of the withers can be due to something in the back, shoulders or neck being out of whack and that a chiro can adjust that for them. It's just something I would like to try. Not expecting a miracle cure or anything, but it can't hurt. :)

    Faran never really bonded with Zep. I mean, he acknowledges him as part of the herd and they play a little, but he doesn't really feel safe when it's just him and the donkey. Faran grew up with horses, so he feels most comfortable with other horses. I'm just glad they get along. Faran will learn that he's perfectly safe when he's left behind someday.

    Thanks for commenting!!

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  7. 30 acres is one big chunk of land to find two little horses and a donkey in.

    I am loving your dorky outfit. Yeah! Chrome trusts you so much. He was not sure about that loud water, but he got into it. Did I see a little synchronized horse dancing going on there?

    Looks like Chrome is the leader of the pack. Faran misses him and Zep follows him around. What a great family you have.

    Mango Momma

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  8. You can always get some fleece padding for Zed's halter. But also try and give him some time without it daily.

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