HAPPY BIRTHDAY MADEIRA!

Madeira turned 11 years old yesterday.
We had some friends come over to celebrate her birthday with us. She enjoyed her bran cupcakes with the elaborate toppings, and of course we shared some of the toppings with other horses around.

Later after the horses were all "tucked in" we moved the celebration into Raul's house. Isn't it amazing!? Raul and Madeira share a birthday!
We had a delicious dinner and some more cupcakes, with real frosting.
Happy birthday Raul and Madeira!

Kim update

Couple weeks ago on a cold, rainy Saturday I found and other skinny, old horse shivering on front of the stalls, trying to keep from the the wind and rain, that was beating down his back. He looked as if he had given up hope for eating and did not follow the other line horses to the pasture at feeding time. I didn't recognize him at all, but turned out he was Powder, another old friend of mine, a horse I had used for wrangling a long time ago.
He too was painfully thin. His ribs, spine and hip bones clearly visible from under almost unnaturally long winter coat.
There were no more empty stalls available, so from the ranch manager's suggestion Kim got a roommate for just one night. Kim was skeptical at first, but they had known each other for years and soon figured out, that they both were in the "same boat." Horses are kind of "love the one you are with" type of animals anyway, and by the morning when the guys separated them upon finding another stall for Powder, the two were calling for each other.

I wanted to say THANK YOU to some very kind hearted friends of ours, who gave us a donation for Kim. We are overwhelmed by you kindness and generosity.
Kim thanks you most of all. Although still painfully thin, she has become alive again. She got her hooves trimmed and medicated, we filled her stall with shavings and bought lots of extra food, which we are feeding to Kim, and now also Powder. We are looking into some eye medicine for Kim, her eyes are running badly. But she whinnies out loud when she hears us coming and can't wait for her special treatment. We take her out of the stall to eat some fresh grass and groom her, and she follows our voices even without a lead rope. We did also buy medicated shampoo, but it has not been warm enough for bathing her yet. She is still a very sorry sight, but she is soo happy now, and that is what matters. This is how we want her to live the rest of her days... Happy!
So thank you! we really don't know how to thank you enough.




Thank You!!!!

Kim

The stall between madeira and Faith has been empty since momma pony moved out into the pasture and although I know Madeira enjoyed bossing momma around it has been serenely quiet between the two cranky mares.
A couple of weeks ago, right after the big storm Raul found Kim shivering in the pasture, struggling to find food.
Kim is an older mare, nearing thirty, if not over. A few years back she went completely blind and was retired from the rent string after having worked as a trail horse for more than 15 years. Her best friend Nevada, an older gelding became her eyes and her protection. She never left his side, until a couple of years ago when Nevada was sold and taken away.
The day Raul found her stumbling about she moved into the stall next door to madeira.
Raul had called to tell me about her, but still the sight that awaited me in that stall was deeply saddening.
I remembered her as a beautiful proud looking appaloosa. About 14 years ago she was one of Virpi's and my favorite horses to ride, sweet and willing with a good amount of energy and gentle spirit.


Now when I looked into the stall the only thing I recognized was the heart shaped brand on her left shoulder. She stood there literally skin and bones. Her white, filmy, blind eyes had sunken in their sockets. Her hoofs had not been touched for years. From the grooves in them I could tell that they had overgrown countless times and the excess had at times broken off itself. Her entire body was covered with a concoction of mud and manure caked stiffly into her coat.
I cannot describe how awful I felt seeing her that way. And I couldn't understand why a horse had to be reduced to this before anyone did anything. Her retirement had merely ment to be forgotten into the pasture. It was hard to believe she was the same horse, that had carried us all those years ago.

Raul had already started her on a special diet, and I decided to add a weekly bran mash to it. It was the least I could do. Her Thirty year old teeth weren't in shape to eat rough forages anymore. The only part of the alfalfa she seemed to be eating was the sweet, rich, leafy ends. The rest lay stomped on the floor as good as bedding. That is why she had been starving in the pasture. Out there the "good stuff" was eaten by the strong members of the herd before the weaker ones ever got near it. What was left over for the lower ranking herd members was the roughage, which Kim had not been able to eat.
Tess and I tried grooming her, but the rain rot was so bad, that every stroke of brush peeled off more hair, than dirt leaving ugly bold spots along her back. Joe (Jake's owner) was kind enough to lend us a blanket that fit perfectly on Kim.
It has been about three weeks and now Kim comes to find us immediately when she hears our voices. She seems cozy and warm in her blanket, in a stall where no other horse can push her off her food, and she is incredibly thankful of the extra treats and attention she is getting. Even madeira and Faith, who both greatly protested against sharing their food and affection with this other mare in the middle, have given up. I don't know if they realized, that she can't see or if they just couldn't figure out why this odd horse was not reacting to their pinned ears and bared teeth. Yesterday when Virpi was feeding her bran and scratching her neck, she seemed utterly content. She kept sighing as if not believing her luck and at the same time trying to figure out why all of a sudden she was getting this special treatment. But she has decided to enjoy every bit of it and we are determined to make the rest of her days the happiest she has ever known.


This is Virpi riding Kim in the summer of 1993. If you look closely, you can see the heart brand on her left shoulder.

Stormy day

Happy new year! Virpi and I sang our way to 2008. Private garage karaoke party and some good old Finnish tunes.
I had some time off between Christmas and new years day. Had time to read a novel (I usually only read educational books,) which my best friend Kirsi sends me from Finland every Christmas. She is making sure that I won't forget my Finnish.
I went ice skating with uncle Jarmo and his girlfriend Nina at the Winter lodge. and then, Chris and I spent some quality time in a movie theater. We saw "the water horse" and "PS. I love you." Loved them both. This is 3rd Ave. San Mateo on Friday the 4Th.
Storms have raged through the bay area for the last couple of days now, leaving behind fallen trees and power lines, floods and mudslides, traffic trouble, and thousands of homes without electricity.
We sat in the stalls with our horses through the worst part of the storm on Saturday. I just love, love, love the rain and the earth needs it so badly here. But all that drumming, thunder and lightning was freaking out the horses.
The poor baby ran around her paddock wide eyed trying to huddle close with Samuel's baby in the next stall through a panel the wind had ribbed apart. They only calmed down when I came in to sit with them. Baby is so attached to me now, that she thought, as long as I was with her everything would be fine. When the thunder finally faded and I tried to leave she got anxious and bit me on the arm. poor thing. Most horses were in their stalls, but some stood out in the paddocks afraid to go in from all the drumming on the tin roof. Austin, an older heavy breed gelding just a stall away from the babies stood outside his back turned towards the rain and he was calm as a rock. As i looked at him I got a mental message that he was keeping an eye on the babies. He said he couldn't leave them out there alone, he had to be there to assure them that everything would be OK. I told him that the babies were all right and that he should go in before he would catch a cold (the poor guy is suffering from tumors too,) and amazingly he just walked right in as if I had taken a burden off his shoulders.
The pasture flooded badly and the ranch horses stood in the muddy pools with their backs against the rain, the ocean stirring wildly behind them. Some playfully fought for the few spots of higher ground.
the rain never stopped. But for a few minutes here and there it calmed down from a furious drumming enforced with the wind to a regular moderate rain fall. And that's when we took the opportunity to let madeira and steal out to walk around for just a few quick minutes.

The last weekend of 2007

Travieso feeling good, stretching his legs a bit, loving life. One could never tell that just a few months ago he came so close to death. His scar is merely a cosmetic imperfection on his neck. Now barely visible under his coat.
He is a marvelous horse.

Madeira cuddling with Travieso. That only happens at certain time of the "month." Poor Travieso is all confused??? He cannot figure out why sometimes she is so loving and other times she kicks at him with flattened ears.
It's a female thing. He will get it in a few years.

Travieso was very interested in the baby though. He came galloping over when I brought the little one out.





And then, of course Madeira came slowly and calculatively, and chased him away from HER charge. She has adopted the role of a foster mother.

A good roll in the slobby mud does a body good!
Always remember to roll on both sides!

Look at my beautiful lady. She looks like she was molded out of clay.

A very relaxed and content Madeira with her little "mini-me" shadowing behind her.











Steal back to work. What a tough life. He is not lame anymore, but still weaning off the medication, on a special diet and now all he needs is a bit more exercise.

Steal's front hooves. If you look closely you can see the horizontal groove almost exactly in the middle of his hooves. From the coronet to the groove is the growth of his new hoof. Note the dramatic change in the degree of the hoof angle. This is the product of barefootedness and Good trimming after being in badly shod shoes, that stretched out his toes for so long. Laminitis is not caused by bad shoeing, but it definitely aids the illness. If the toes are too long and stretched out there will be separations of the lamina from the hoof wall. Then all you need is some endotoxins in the blood stream and BOOM... worst case scenario.

Baby was shy to come close when I was ON Madeira.

But she is a big girl now and it was time she came along on a "big horse" walk out on the trail.

Madeira was such a good helper.

There was so much to see on the trail.

Baby enjoyed it very much. She felt like an important big horse.

And of course we had a little snack on the way. Madeira really changes color in the winter, and it's not just the darker winter coat, she becomes a greyish mud brown.

Visiting Cruiser and Fire on the way back.

Raul cozying up the stall for my mud pony.
Now all I have to do is brush the dried up mud cakes off my lady's beautiful fur.

Momma bobbed her head into Madeira's stall to say Hi. She is happy in the pasture, made a lots of friends and ranks quite high in the herd.
But she comes to hang out and say hello to us and her baby all the time.

The dusk at the ranch is my favourite time. When all is quiet, most everyone else has gone home. The horses are peacefully munching their evening hay, birds asleep on the branches, and I just stand there lulled by the relaxing sound of the ocean in the background, taking in the last of the sun.

Check out the bottle of wine we had at aunt Kaija's holiday dinner. (I just had to take a picture of it.) It's "Madeira." So sweet, rich and red, almost liquor like strong. Madeira.

Wonderful couple of weeks have gone by. I missed a weekend at the ranch while I was visiting my favorite family in Bonsall, close to San Diego, for a long weekend. And if you would never believe that I could have fun without my horses, well, I had a fantastic time! I had a special spa treatment. We had coffee at the famous Hotel Del Coronado. We went to the beach, had Hot chocolate at the Pannikin (my favourite.) I got to watch Daniel at the art of fencing. And Just hang out with my favourite people in the world; Heather Daniel and Isabelle. Certainly I missed Madeira, but she is always in good hands when I'm away.


Well Back at the ranch this past weekend Madeira and Steal got their hooves trimmed, and Little Candy too received a special, complimentary trim from our trimmer.
Her hooves were curving up badly and I had been asking for the ranch shoer to trim her for the last two months, in vain.
Afterwards we all went for a walk, Candy in tow.




Virpi rode Steal on the way out just a little. He is doing well and can be ridden slow at walk for short distances now.

Beverly came along with Cruiser. His main agenda was to get as much of green grass on the way as possible.

On the back gate we met Irene walking Jet.
















And White Chocolate and Fire came to greet us over the pasture fence.

Afterwards we all hung out in the arena, including Baby.
Baby is such a big "horse" now. She wants to be part of the herd so badly, and she is so curious about the other horses. We can't of course leave them in without supervision, although baby is very respectful of her elders, and moves out of their way quicker than they can think. But as long as the humans are in charge, the horses won't have to challenge each other.






I did let Baby say Hi to Madeira. Madeira is so gentle and loving.









Steal in the other hand was jealous when his human was playing with the little rascal.

But the baby can Fly!
It's as is she's got wings...

Baby had to leave the arena before Tuff came in though.

But we let then socialize over the fence.

Steal the trooper.

Another great weekend passed by so too fast. I snapped this cute photo of Steal an Madeira on our walk Sunday, when we didn't make it all the way to the creek as we usually do, because I had decided to walk Steal without the Caballo boots and he was a bit ouchy. So we ended up taking a brake early and I took off his muzzle so he could take a few bites of grass. He lives for those moments now, that he isn't allowed to eat much extra outside of his regular daily feed, which remains 100% grass mix with no alfalfa.
So Steal has gotten his walk routine down so well that he actually needs no one to hold his "hand" to get himself to the creek for a bite of grass. (I would say that the point to point game has worked.) No barn sours allowed. He walks enthusiastically all the way to the creek and waits till Madeira and I arrive, to take off his muzzle. We are of course right behind him, but Madeira is a slow walker. In order to keep up with Steal she would have to trot lightly, but since her newfound confidence and trust in me, she puts absolutely no energy or effort into trotting after Steal.

Group of riders passing us on the trail.

Unlike Travieso, who trusted me to crawl into his stall and sit with him while he layed down after just a couple of weeks from his arrival, Madeira used to never feel comfortable to lay down to even roll when people were around. Getting close enough to snap a photo of her rolling was a difficult task. You had to be fast and have a great zoom. However for a few years now she has liked rolling on the beach while I hold the leadrope, and slowly she has started to roll in the arena with me standing close to her.

She is an extraordinary horse. She is totally hyper sensitive about everything (which I have successfully developed into a great lightness) and her innately right brain horsenality is extra flighty. But now, here she is completely comfortably laying down after a roll while I go and sit with her. It is a great compliment for me to have her trust me this much, knowing that not just anyone could have accomplished this with her type of horse.

I want to greatly stress the point that I did not make, or even ask her to lay down. (I don't have that savvy yet.) I simply allowed her to roll because she felt like it and as she layed down I calmly walked up to her, gave her a treat and sat down stroking her gently. I also did nothing to hold her down, but allowed her to get up immediately when she wanted to. And after the treats from my pocket were gone, she did. One day she will lay down from a request, and it will be completely from her own will without loosing any dignity. Until then, we savvy up!

I hopped on her afterwards for a bit. One of Madeira's favourite thing is to herd the other horses around, and she will readily do it with me, which is great, because that way I can exercise two horses at once. Here we are moving Travieso.



And afterwards they kiss.

I had to get on Travieso too. He is much more comfortable to sit on than Madeira.

Baby is still coughing badly, and looking more lethargic than last week. All that desensitising last weekend payed off, and I was able to easily take her temperature which was 101.0

A little on the high side I thought, but I was assured by the Ranch manager that it was OK for a foal.

Raul told me when I called on Monday, that the baby is now receiving antibiotics. So hopefully she will soon be OK.

Momma was ridden last weekend for an hour and did great.