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Intermountain Branch – Jefferson County
Horse Council
June ‘07 Newsletter
SUMMER SCHEDULE – Essentially, we don’t have one.
Monthly meetings are suspended until September. In the meantime, we will
be in touch with any rides/events we can get organized. Note that June
is mostly past, so if you have any ideas, give David Richards
(303-674-8681) a call.
PICNIC – A people and horse picnic is being planned
for the near future. Dates and place are to be finalized. A notice will
be sent out shortly.
POKER RIDE – Circle September 15 on your calendar.
We will need volunteers and participants. First planning meeting at
David Richards’ house (5008 S. Elk Ridge Road) at 6:00 PM, Thursday,
June 28.
FIRST ANNUAL TACK SALE AND HORSE FAIR – A good
number of vendors and demonstrators made this a successful event. With
the fees collected and sale of donated tack, we made $150 above our
expenses! While the financial result was better than expected, the
increased awareness of IB-JCHC was probably the better outcome. The
intended beneficiaries of the Tack Sale & Fair are Harmony Horse Works
(horse rescue) and a fund for the purchase of an equine rescue harness.
Laura and Harvey Pendland have generously allocated a $1200 legal
settlement to the harness fund.
JUNE'S MEETING PRESENTATION
We enjoyed an interesting presentation by Dr. Carl
Heckendorf who is with the State Veterinarian’s Office of Homeland
Security. Dr. Heckendorf explained the benefits of “chipping” horses
with identification devices that aid in the recovery of horses in cases
of theft or emergency evacuations. The devices could also allow the
tracking of horses that are exposed to diseases when traveling to events
such as horse shows.
Additionally, we were able to inspect the emergency
preparedness trailer that is located off of Shadow Mountain. This
trailer is equipped with all sorts of equipment to aid in the rescue of
horses in the case of accidents or emergencies. Calling 911 can bring
this equipment and trained personnel to your situation. Dr. Heckendorf
is a recent arrival to the Evergreen area who has purchased a property
at the end of Buffalo Park Road and has ten or more horses installed
there.
WEST NILE VIRUS VACCINATIONS – You should have done
them by now! If not Ashleigh Olds has the stuff for $25. Its an
intramuscular injection, so with a little advice, you should be able to
do it yourself. BTW, check around and see if you have any rain filled
buckets or the like that could become mosquito breeding places. We found
the critters thriving in our horse trough. You can get horse safe stuff
to kill them, maybe at Murdochs, since Stateline is vanishing.
STATELINE GOING OUT – The clerk at the Applewood
Petsmart advised us that Stateline was closing its operation there.
There is a sale on now with 30% off but not much left. Apparently, there
has been a change in Stateline ownership. Their catalog operation will
continue.
IDEAS THAT SEEM TO WORK – We have been using those
Blocker Tie Rings (Murdochs, $20) that look like a half a snaffle bit,
to tie our steeds. They work OK for well-mannered horses, but better for
idiots that spook easily. You can rig it so it is a solid anchor, or, if
your horse panics when tied, so the rope slides free when pulled very
hard. Our problem child usually forgets what spooked him before he has
pulled a 12 foot lead through the ring, and he doesn’t wreck himself and
the barn. Of course, you could call Barbara Wright and find out how to
fix your horse’s mind, rather than relying on gadgets.
In the department of Doesn’t Everyone Know It, I
learned last weekend that if you loop your lead twice around a rail and
then tie the standard slip knot, the knot will not tighten up when the
horse pulls back and you will actually be able to untie it without a
pair of pliers.
IDEAS THAT MAY NOT WORK - We bought in on the
Predator Wasp idea this year. These are the tiny, stingless wasps you
get by mail that are supposed to kill the larvae of the biting flies in
your stable. It is too early to tell if they work, but the literature
that comes in the packet tells you what the advertising does not. The
wasps do not predate on what we call horse flies and deer flies, and I
am not sure about the nasty little bugs that bite the horse’s legs. They
do like house flies, but house flies don’t bother horses. |
