(Bear with me: I'm learning a "new blogger interface" and there are some glitchy things to sort out!
Above, is our new horse Nico. Or is that "Neko"? And as mentioned, her name was "Candy" so now I'm transitioning her my chanting "Candy Candy Nico Neko" to her as I ride... no wonder she looks confused! Everyone at the barn has been so complimentary about how pretty she is (and she is!) So far, so good. She's had her feet and teeth attended to and I'm contemplating a saddle fitting as she's much broader around then Maggie or Crispin, my two previous mounts.
The farm where she is temporarily residing is entertaining. They have (in no particular order), chickens, ducks, ferrets, sheep, goats, donkeys, and most entertaining of all, alpacas.
Several of these individuals reside in a stall near Nico/Neko and utter otherwordly space alien sound effects: a cross between purring, humming and Chinese. They're friendly in an odd way, more like they're observing us to report back to that other planet.
The farm is a bizarre petting zoo. Sue, who is alpha-mare and Dr. Dolittle rolled into one crazy lady multi-tasker, keeps adopting animals from nasty circumstances. That's a good thing! Most of them are very sweet and have made the horses utterly bomb-proof around a menagerie But some of these animals are dodgy four-foot juvenile delinquents- the goats in particular. I have been warned that the goats will consume EVERYTHING including tack (saddles/bridles/straps and general horse-related gear for you non-horse individuals) and horse's tails. (There are several unfortunate equines sporting brutally chewed off stubby tails!) I warned Sue that if my horse's tail goes missing, there'll be goat stew. Never a dull moment!
Thus far the new horse- call her what you will!- is in general a good egg. I hacked her around the farm yesterday, after I had ridden in the outdoor arena and she was great. Didn't spook once, even though a trip around the farm passes not only the aforementioned mammal menagerie, but huge dumpsters, abandoned trucks, functional farm equipment, gargantuan piles of manure and spent bedding, random discarded tires, lawn furniture and general havoc. I'm having fun!
