Annabelle Has responded very well to whatever treatment they gave her and has gone back to work at Broad Park in New Gloucester in the community riding program.
I'm happy that she is well and working. They really think she is special and that made me very happy indeed!
The original Red Pony. My A #1 trail pony. My friend. The love of Willie's life. The one, the only, Annabelle aka Anabellina, Penelope Jane, Miss Grump.
Here she is back in 2003 teaching Cassy to ride.
I sent her to Broad Park Equestrian Center, part of the Pine Land Farm complex in New Gloucester, when we were paying two mortgages. Broad Park is where they have the community riding program. The horses there are given exceptional care. Large comfy boxes and lush fields. Annabelle has been a lesson pony there. I stopped in to see her today. It's been a while since I'd seen her. She looked great. She's 22 now. She had a couple of weeks off due to some swelling in a tendon. They are thinking it may be time for her to retire. I am so excited that she will be coming back home! Red Pony Farm will have it's red pony again.
More on the Maine Equestrian Trails Alliance:
PLEASE READ This article and See the Piece Below on Maine equestrian Trails Alliance. I have created the first of what will be a quarterly newsletter that includes these 2 articles and more. It is ready for printing--which I am donating at some expense because I cannot do it myself. I would be delighted if there is a trail user out there who does professional printing and could offer to print for me at a discount with mention in the newsletter. Contact me today--I just thought of this idea but I really must get the printing started tomorrow. Moreover we need MEMBERSHIPS.
Another Riding Club?
There is a new Trail Club being formed in Waterboro with members from the towns of Buxton, Limington, Hollis, and Lyman as well as Waterboro. The primary reason for this group is to support the Maine Equine Trails Alliance. We have come to the realization that there is good reason for us to become as organized and many of the motorized vehicle trail users.
There are many Equestrians using local trail systems regularly who are negatively impacted more and more frequently by local town government as development progresses. Their singular voices of protest remain unheard.
Increasingly common are cluster projects which often times are built using an established trail as their main street, leaving users cut off from miles of riding opportunity and enjoyment. Unorganized Horseback riders too often remain uninformed of pending projects and stand little chance as individuals, of influencing governmental policy and decision making when they do hear about proposals to cut off trails.
We are confident that if Equestrian trail users across the state band together in small local groups to become the supporting structure of the Maine Trails Alliance, we would form a substantial body and therefore have an influence in keeping those local trails accessible.
In a recent account in Waterboro during the development phase of one housing project that planned to use an established trail head as its main entrance, the locally organized and State recognized snowmobile clubs came together with the landowners, and government decision makers to create an easement around the project that would allow continued access to trails.
It is time for Equestrian trail users to come together and create an equally organized and powerful voice in our towns and in our state. The work of the snowmobile clubs in the case described here benefited all users and one might well assume that if a group is already focused and organized and effective in this effort why bother.
Well, this easement that was agreed upon could have easily included a bridge. Not an uncommon situation in our state of brooks, rivers and wet lands. Without Equestrian input a bridge built to accommodate snowmobiles could literally block access to trails by horseback.
Scott Hatch V.P. of META has been hard at work and has engineered a horse friendly bridge plan that would satisfy the needs of all trail users. We are finding that the snowmobile clubs are open to our discussions and offers to collaborate in the effort of maintaining trails, negotiating access to trails in some cases, and bridge building.
Please become part of this exciting move to organize and be heard among the ever growing population of outdoor enthusiasts’ vying for access and control of the decreasing trail miles available for use. Go on line today at www.maineequestriantrails.org
And join.
Our dollars are building bridges of wood. Tell your trail riding friends to do the same. Go to your local riding clubs and get them to join as well. Consider joining your local snowmobile or ATV spring trail clean up days. Building strong relationships with other user groups is a valuable tool towards our goal.
Our camaraderie will build bridges of cooperation. Together we can ensure horse friendly trails will remain available throughout
Maine
long into the future.
Edna Leigh Libby –
META
Member
Bridge Materials Grant Program
The Bridge Materials Grant program is designed to foster mutual benefits for the grantors (equestrians), and grantees (clubs or organizations including but not limited to Snowmobile, ATV, and Land Trusts).
The benefits to the equestrian community are twofold
1. Written permission to use all trails associated with the bridge location.
2. A guarantee that the bridge is safe for use by equestrians. You may already be using trails managed by other groups that have bridges of questionable quality.
The benefits to trail managers are also twofold
1. Any new resource available to a trail manager allows existing funds to be shifted to other needs.
2. With the inclusion of equestrians in their trail planning and annual land use consent documentation a trail manager would have a new source of volunteers to assist with trail construction and maintenance.
We will be purchasing bridge materials in bulk. The funding will come from grants, fund raisers, philanthropic, and corporate support. And, most importantly, $20.00 from every
META
membership will be dedicated to the bridge material grant program. Management of this program will be handled by a sub committee of Maine Equestrian Trails Alliance.
The materials available will consist of 8x8 bridge stringers, and 3x6 decking. All materials would be treated to 4 atmospheres of pressure. The life span of a bridge will be 20 years. Bridge stringers could be produced up to 30ft. By ordering 12ft. 3x6 bridge widths could be either 6ft. or 12ft. Railings would be constructed from 3x6 where needed. (see drawings)
A $5000 tractor trailer load of material, will produce approximately 350f.t of 6ft. wide bridge. To have 3 or 4 distribution sites statewide with a full truckload at each site would give us the ability to handle close to 1000ft of bridge per year.
If a 10ft bridge opens up ten miles of trail the investment will be well worth our while. Many trail management clubs have large volumes that would be available to us in there entirety. We would be replacing existing bridges as the need arose thereby spreading out our investment in a shared use trail system over time.
(As of this printing, the first load of lumber has been sawn and is ready for shipping to the pressure treating processor. We now need new memberships to help pay for the cost of this treatment)
Scott Hatch V.P.
META
I really want to create a magazine. I know there are so many all ready--how many more do we need?
I want to call it: Grade Horse News
Grade horses are most excellent and are out there doing lots of cool things and getting very little attention!
I will collect news and photos of the accomplishments of Grade Horses at Endurance rides, Dressage shows, Events and back yards all over the US. I would compile them into a nifty little package with few advertisements and lots of product reviews.
What do you think?
Got any stories and photos to share? With gas prices so high I am not likely to get out of New England this year, So I NEED YOUR HELP.
I vow to create a first run for November 2008 distribution even if it is tiny and I don't make cent one.
The Fjord sister's manes are growing. Aren't they cute? I think they are dappling!
Shedding season is in full swing now. Willie started about 3 weeks ago but is now dropping hair like crazy. Willie has Cushings. It has upset the natural "ok you can stop growing hair now" signal in his little brain. So shedding Willie takes literally months to accomplish, since he won't be clipped.
Willie has an issue with things that make noises like clippers, spray bottles, plastic bags, the dentist power tools(I can relate to that one). He just moves away from them,even with enough tranquilizer to almost knock him over, with his 1800 pounds he can make a hole in a barn wall and leave. Willie doesn't see quite as well as he used to and my trying to take pictures up close this morning was not making him real comfortable. Picture 1 on the left was fine. Then I moved in to get a close-up of the hair coat that is still semi attached to him. Of course the camera had to make some whirling and clicking sounds which made Willie head out into the deep snow beyond the path. I turned and walked away a few steps so he could return to his hay. The I turned around towards him to find he was looking at me rather suspiciously. I told him it was just a camera and wouldn't hurt him. I rubbed it on him. But low and behold every time I snapped a picture the darn thing had to make another whirling sound.So Willie and I walked slowly around the little clump of trees where he previously made a path. I took hold of his tail and asked him to stop please. He did. As I started to move around his massive behind,
I stepped off the packed track and sank into a hidden puddle. I'm glad I had hold of his tail, I might have been sitting in it.
He finally let me snap a picture up close to his flank. Those are my fingers outstretched disappearing into his hair.
Balls of Willie hair fill up the long fingered rubber groomer and get tossed to the ground. Where they are discovered by nest building birds. This is a picture of a robin from back in Standish carrying a ball of Willie hair. I don't know how he/ she managed to fly with it. But fly she did, presumably back to a nest where some Robin chicks would later hatch onto a very soft foofy bed.
I put Lucy in with Smidge yesterday. They were both very happy.
There was some very exuberant leaping and buckings from Miss Smidgen as she hurried to keep up with Lucy as she floated in that lovely trot of hers, round and and round the labyrinth of paths the pony has created in her paddock.
This may look like a kiss. Trust me it is not a kiss. Smidge did not want Willie near her new companion.
Things got a little too rambunctious for my nerves at the fence line. I wish the electricity in the fence wasn't diminished in the winter when the horses are insulated by the snow they walk on! There is just enough to keep them contained when they aren't wound up. But during times like yesterday I think it wouldn't have been nearly enough. So Willie got pushed back 25 feet and the other divider fence went back up forming an alleyway between the two paddocks.
DON'T Wear Lip Gloss to the barn during shedding season!
Happy grooming!
Hay to Rescues
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