Conference noted::equitation

    Sounds like the day from hell; I don't blame you for hating cows.  But
    I'd have to hate paying $12.00 a bale for hay, too.  At that rate, the
    bale would have to weigh 200 lbs to be worth it!
    
    Good idea for a note.  We all run into those Arrhhhggghhhggghhh things
    every once in a while.  Or even more ofter.  8^}
    
    -ellie

    I hate that I have to miss a trail ride this weekend because the
    carberator on my truck went and it won't be fixed (waiting for the
    part) until next week sometime....no truck, no way to pull my trailer.
    :-( Looks like it's back to replacing fence posts for the weekend....
    
    $12 for a bale of hay is incredible, I hate just the THOUGHT of that!
    :-)
    

    
    I hate cleaning Shealth's!  I would rather hire someone to do that
    for me and I don't care about the cost!  
    
    any takers?  
    
    louisa

I hate the fact that a major developer had just started construction on
yet *another* golf course for the idle rich here in Fulton County.  They've
managed to plow up the majority of the trails and trail access around the
barn.  The darned thing sits smack dab in the middle of dozens of
horse barns, so whatcha want to bet that when the housing community gets
built around the golf course, there's going to be complaints about
'the smell' and 'the flies'.  

We've already been told that when they start planting the greens, they
'don't want to see a hoof print anywhere near them'.  

The only time we can trail ride now is after 7:00 each night and on
the weekends.  

Just when Louie was starting to get the idea that backing up on the
trails wasn't necessary!

Oh well, there's always hope they'll run out of money!

    The thing I hate most, is when I am picking out my horses feet, and she 
    has stood in a pile and has then stood on some straw, this results in a 
    big smelly mass welded to her foot.   Due to being stood in all night 
    it gets well down into the sides of her frog, so, as you are picking at 
    the foul smelling mass, she gets board and starts to lean on you, which 
    then ends up in back ache.
    
    You can't win !!!!!

    I would pay $15.00/bale if I could just get rid of my neighbor, who
    called the building inspector everyday for 1 month....so the building
    inspector was forced to take me to court...I have 90 days to buy land
    or get rid of a horse!!!  
    
    SO GIVE ME COWS ANY DAY!!!!
    
    I REALLY HATE NEIGHBORS.
    

    Interesting things I have been reading......
    
    I am having steak tonight, anyone want to join me?
    
    I got the the barn and the little darlings had taken down 2 sections of
    the wire again.  The did eat all the weeds that I have been meaning to
    whack.  So I set out to fix the fence.  I got the one section done and
    was working on another one when a cow went through the section I just
    fixed!  Then the durn thing just stood there and moo'ed at me.  I
    grabed a handfull of rocks (we seem to have a few thousand around) and
    beened the sucker.  It took off and went through yet another section.
    Oh!  The fence was HOT too.  
    This whole incident led me to believe that even if I fixed the fence
    they would just go through it again.  I searced the barn and found a
    roll of barbed wire.  Now I have a hot wire along the top and barbed
    wire along the bottom.  The horses have been in hot wire for ever and
    know better then to get close to the fence so I am not worried about
    them getting hung up on the barbed wire fencing.
    
    Now, if I can only get the cow potty piles out of the horse pasture I
    will be happy.  Did you know that a fresh pile of cow poo and suck your
    boot off?  It can so bewear.
    
    YOurs humbly,
    
    Virginia.
    
    Ps.  Anyone have some Bactine?  I got a few booboos last night.
    
    

    I forgot one thing too.  After worring myself into a tizzy and buying
    that $12 hay, the girls just stared at it and followed me around the
    pasture while I fixed the fence.  Berry did chase a few cows off tho,
    she just loves to play chase.
    
    Virginia

    
    The way strangers (to horses) walk right up and start pounding a
    horse on the face.  And then, when the horse shies away or flips
    it's head up in shock, they act like the horse is a monster from
    hell.....
    
    Vriginia-
    
    Barbed wire isn't going to stop a cow, and you might have a problem
    if a cow knocks down the wire fence, and the horses can get into the
    barbed wire....

    Actually, the cows are kept in barbed wire to begin with.  WE just
    thought we could get away with separating the two sections with
    electric fencing.  The cows just got too hungry and broke through.  I
    think they have enough respect for the barbed wire plus, I just can't
    see them being able to take it down.  The hot wire will snap or
    streatch very easily, barbed wire will not.  As far as the horses
    getting into it.........I am certain one will take the oportunity to
    run my vet bill up but I can always hope now can't I?
    
    I under stand about people slaping at the horses.  WE have new
    $200,000.00 houses on two sides of the pasture.  The kids get up on the
    cinderblock wall and throw things at the horses to make them run or
    react or something.  I have talked to some of them and explained that
    they are just `mamma horses' and don't do much runing around.  I have
    found tennis balls, base balls, ping-pong balls, clothing, plactic
    bags, nerf balls, large sticks and many other things along the walls
    where these kids sit.
    
    One thing I hate about our neighbors..........All of the new houses
    backyards are to our pasture.  On neighbor shovels their dog mess over
    the wall and into our pasture.  Not to mention their weeds and other
    assorted things.  I got tired of this one day and picked it all up and
    put it into a heafty bag.  I tossed it back over the fence and heard a
    splash.  I jump onto a nearby horse (one is always trailing you around)
    and looked over the fence.  The back (which I forgot to tie off) had
    landed in their pool (which I had no idea they had back there).  Not
    being tied, everything that floated was..................
    
    Some days are worth getting up for.
    
    Virginia

    Cows can and do knoock down barbed wire. Our neighbor rented out his
    pasture to a local dairy farmer year before last. When we went to put
    our horses out in our far pasture(which is right across from where the
    cows were), they were all crowding around the fence watching us. 
    
    The next morning, we went out to clean stalls and found that 40 heifers
    had been wandering around our place over night! (You could tell they'd
    been there quite a while by the number of cow pies all over the
    place)... What a mess they made!
    
    When we checked, sure engouh, they had knocked down the barbed wire fence 
    right where they had been crowding around the day before.
    
    
    Re: neighbor's trash..."put it into a heafty bag.  I tossed it back
    over the fence and heard a splash... it landed in their pool "
    
    I LOVE IT ! ;-) Now, if you can come up with a similar solution for the
    little brats... Oh! How about picking up their balls and throwing them
    back at the kids? How's your pitching arm? A good fastball to the gut
    oughta persuade the "little darlings" that they have something better
    to do...

    Ah, I know the feeling when cows come a'callin.  Lost my Tenni in a
    pile last night in the dark.
    
    WEll, Saturday morning found me cleaning a deak hawk out of the field
    feeder.  It seems some larger bird used the feeder to gut and eat it's
    victim.  No big deal.  I off loaded 5 bales ($8.45 121lbs!) and opened
    3 of them.  It seemed that that cows had given up the fence crossing. 
    The ferier came out and was triming the girls when 3 cows busted
    through the fence and headed straight for the feeder.  I got my lunge
    whip and chased the little buggers out.  My friend was out and proceded
    to run another strand of barbed wire.  It seemed to work.
    
    Untill last night when I went out....There they were again, eating
    $60.00 worth of hay.  I was pissed and chased the little buggers out of
    the pasture again.  I have given up on the fence all together.  The
    reason the animals are separated is because the owner of the cows
    doesn't want our horses running the weight off of them.  Well tough! 
    If she is so concerend about it she can put up a fence.  I am draged
    the two bales that hadden't been broken open yet back to the barn and
    put the reast of the loose hay into the top of the feeder.  Now the
    horses have the full 15 acres to use and the cows can eat what hay ends
    up on the ground.  I now have to put hay out every few days.  And I
    don't think my horses are going to run the weight off of those cows
    now.  She should get a good price for them at the sale.
    
    Virginia

    
    I'd hand the cows' owner a hay bill........
    
    

    Virginia,
    
    I think I would check on cattle rustlin'.  Heck in CA, everything is
    legal, so post a no trespass sign and indicate that you will BBQ all
    trespassers.  HM... Sounds good.  55 gallon drum of BBQ sauce will do
    just nicely.
    
    bruce

    Ya know what I really hate? Knuckleheaded horses that come running in
    from pasture when I go to feed EXCEPT when there's a heavy rain coming
    down!
    
    We had a heavy storm(I mean DELUGE!) last night and I went out to feed
    and the !~@#!$#&$^% horses wouldn't come in! I had to go out in the
    pouring rain and herd them into their stalls! Any other night, they'd 
    have come running! Same thing happened this morning when it was raining 
    again...Hmmm....Maybe, they think I need another shower? Heck, I just 
    took one last year. Can't need another already! ;-)

    Gee thanks Bruce.
    
    You don't enter a note in here for months and now you are picking on
    me.  You bring the sause, I'll slap a side of beef and the barbi.
    
    One thing I get to hating is when I am trying to fix the fence (which
    has been every night now) and Berry decides she wants to investigate
    every too I have in my back pocket.  I chased her around last night to
    get my pliers back.  Sometimes I think she was a dog in her past life.
    
    Virginia

    I have a gelding like that, too, Virginia. He's a real pest. Whenever
    Im working around the barn, fixing fences, etc, he's right there
    underfoot. His nose has been whacked by my hammer (unintentionally!)
    a dozen times, because it's always where it should not be. He throws
    his grain bucket at me if I get up late and the am feeding is behind
    *his* schedule. He tips over the wheelbarrow so much that I have to
    close the gate between the paddock and the stalls when Im cleaning or
    it's a real pain. Once when I was riding my mare in the ring I had
    thrown my jacket over the fence that divides the ring from the paddock.
    He picked it up and started waving it around. I yelled at him to no
    avail. I got off my mare and went to retrieve it...he ran off with it
    and made like he expected me to chase him. I did once. He ran again,
    stopped, and dropped it in the only puddle he could find in the entire
    paddock. I hated him that day. :-)
    

    Now he sounds like someone's child.  I know Berry is just bored.  The
    other two mares are pregnant and just like to laze around.  Berry isn't
    and she likes to play.  I think the old (21 to be exact) TB has gotten
    after her a few times too.  She really spins away when the TB puts her
    ears back at her.  I have thought of saddling her up and doing some
    cutting with the cows now that they are good and fat.  Who knows, this
    weekend may turn out pretty durn good.
    
    Virginia

    Algiers is like that.  Every so often in the wintertime he'll pull my
    hat off my head and wave it around.  Once 2 half-arabs joined in the
    game.  He goes for tools (he "helped" build his pasture), unties my
    shoelaces, undoes the velcro on bell boots.
    
    My "favorite" time was when he grabbed my skin tight breeches and
    "snapped" them (just like an adolescent boy).  Didn't leave a mark on
    me, either....
    
    mary

    I think I have solved the Cow problem!  I found no cows or cow sign
    (broken fence, piles, chewed tack...) at all.  I think they have
    gotten tired of it all.  Actually, the other night I found some baling
    wire (it's not used anymore here, twine is used) and wired the two
    strands of barbed wire together so that the little doggies couldn't get
    through.  It seems to have worked.  I guess when it was easy to get in
    it was fun but now they have to work at it.
    
    Last night in the pature I found:
    
    One brandy new baseball, my son now has 3 from this pasture.
    A doll with it's head off.
    Two plastic Ralph's bags.
    
    It was very dark and I'm sure I could have found more.
    
    Virginia

    Since this has to do with my fence I will ask the question here.
    
    My husband is back from Saudi and we fixed the fence this weekend.  He
    found the fence stretcher too.  Men!  Anyway, the electric fence is
    working too.  Part of the insulated wire that went from the main fence
    to another section had worn through and was shorting on the metal fence
    it ran along.  WE fixed that and now have 3 strands of barbed wire
    (nice and tight too) and 3 strands of hot wire.  
    
    The thing I was wondering about is can a hot wire kill a bird?  I found
    two dead birds under the fence wires.  One, a beautiful young male Blue
    Jay, had its beak melted or shattered or something.  It wasen't a
    pretty sight.  The other one was just dead.  Could they have landed on
    the barbed wire and touched the hot wire and killed themselves?  
    
    Thanks.
    
    Virginia

    I don't thing the battery operated ones have enough power.  The plug
    in ones though, (especially the more powerful ones which are usually
    needed for cows) I have heard of them killing chickens, cats and small
    animals.  They cause the heart to stop.  The shock would be especially 
    potent if your barbed wire is well grounded and the animals can touch
    both together.  Birds can land on the hot wires on telephone poles
    unharmed because they can't touch ground at the same time.  I would
    insulate the barbed wire from ground, at least at any metal poles, this
    will lessen the potential of frying any birds.
    
    Check the power rating and look for the installation instructions.
    
    Sharon

    The unit we use is a plug in one and is made for dogs actually.  It was
    cheaper.  Anyway, the barbed wire would act as a ground.  I guess there
    is no way to keep the birds from doing that.   I have used electic
    fence before in the same setup and never had this problem before.  I
    hate to think tons of birds will die.  Also, they eat the flies too.
    
    Virginia

    Virginia,
    
    A little info on electric fences...The design of these fences is such
    that they do not have enough power to cause the type of injury you
    described to that Jay. I would agree that a high powered fence could
    possibly cause a small bird to have a heart attack, are the wires that
    close together?
    
    					John

    John,
    
    The hot wire fence is on the outside of a 3 strand barbed wire fence. 
    What is happening is this.  The birds are landing on the barbed wire
    because it is thicker.  They the go to scrape their bills on the hot
    wire because it is the closest thing to them.  We have hopefully solved
    the problem why moving the wires futher apart.
    
    We have noticed alot of cats around lately too but no more birds.  I
    wonder if the cats have been cleaning up the dead birds before we get
    out.
    
    Virginia

    I bugs me when people ask me why I have my horses blindfolded.....
    (I use fly masks on all the critters, and they love them!)
    
    ....but I usually explain what they are...and allude to sunglasses. 
    Most humans can relate to the benefits of sunglasses.
    
    
    I also hate that my 7 month old GSD puppy can learn to leave my mare's
    tail alone......and ended up rushing him to the vet at 9pm last nite
    because he needed his lip stapled back together.

    >....but I usually explain what they are...and allude to sunglasses.
    
    I'd been using screens as an analogy because the masks serve the same
    function and it's hard to see *into* a house through a screen window. 
    Ya have to put your head up to the screen and shade your eyes. ...
    
    But, sunglasses are a good analogy because we wear them 
    on our heads for protection. Maybe, I'll switch...or better yet: combine
    the 2...
    
    "They're like sunglasses. You wear 'em on your head. You can see out but
    people can't see your face. But, they're really "screens" to keep the
    flies off the horse's face."