Archive for August, 2009
Here is an honest woman! Don’t fumble, fellas . . . they do exist! In the Horse & Rider magazine, June 2009, pages 77-80, Margo Willows . . . of South, Dakota, admitted, “I don’t know anything about cattle.”
Wanting to become a better rider and competitor while cutting cattle on horseback, Margo went on a quest to identify the different colors and characteristics while working with cattle. This article, produced by Alana Harrison and photos by Caroline Fyffe, lists Charolais as #1, Brahma as #2, Red Angus as #3, and the Longhorn as #4. There are many species of cattle, all used in cross breeding to produce color, conformation, character, stamina in severe weather conditions, and dollar investment.
That’s Okay . . . Margo, there are millions of us guys that “don’t know spit” about cattle! And that’s . . . NO BULL . . . !
Three All Around Champions:
On page 29 in the Field & Stream magazine, September 2008, is a photo ad of one of the great quarterbacks in NFL football . . . Brett Favre. He is champion #1. Wrangler Jeans is presented on the same page, and I consider their pants as champion #2. During my lifetime, I can’t count the number of pairs of jeans I’ve worn out . . . too many, I reckon!
I recognize another champion in this advertisement: the chocolate lab that Brett is playing with is champion #3. Some folks might call this curly-haired lab a Chesapeake Bay Retriever. Whatever! Most labs make wonderful pets with a heart of courage and strength. The labradors are teachable; they have high spirits, are obedient hunters, faithful friends, and to some breeders, considered all around champions.
Did I mention that the photo is a Wal Mart advertisement? Well, I won’t . . . Someone will probably think I should include their company as champion #4, or that their brand of pants is better. This BLOG would turn into an advertising political war. Help me out here, Brett . . . ! IN MY OPINION, you are the great champion!
My parents-in-law have a cabin in the deep woods by a beautiful river. My husband and I love to go out there in the summer to swim, and in the winter to cozy up to the fire and drink hot chocolate. The sense of isolation is so calming and peaceful; much different from the suburbs that we live in. Last winter, however, my husband and I realized we were not alone when we started hearing the howls of wild wolves.
I was frightened at first, but my husband assured me that wolves rarely prey on humans. They like to stick to elk, deer and the like, and usually eat what they are accustomed to. These wolves were clearly not accustomed to eating humans, and they had plenty of other prey to focus on. I learned to keep my wits about me while outside and, after awhile, no longer feared the wolves. In fact, I grew to love the haunting sounds of their howls, and even spotted the pack through binoculars once. To honor the wolves, my husband and I bought a beautiful piece of 3D wall art featuring a howling wolf that now hangs in the cabin.
I recently visited a friend who lives in Arizona and stayed at her home for about a week. The weather was incredibly sunny and warm, and her ranch was a little slice of heaven! We enjoyed horseback riding, horseshoe tossing and bird watching all week long. We even ate at an authentic Mexican restaurant, and I had the best tamales I’ve ever eaten.
One of the highlights of the trip was simply staying at my friend’s beautifully decorated home. From the outside, her home looks like a modern sprawling ranch, with a beautiful copper-colored terra cotta roof. But on the inside, she has decorated it to be a true old-fashioned, Southwestern, down-home abode – no pretentious furniture or overly modern decor. She had stunning worn wood floors, rustic hand-carved furniture and amazing Southwestern wall art to top it all off. It inspired me to redecorate my home to look like an authentic ranch home, even though I live in the suburbs!
Respect and responsiveness is a testing series that Clinton Anderson is starting to help horse owners train their horses. In this first test, Clinton is setting up the groundwork for horse owners that have animals with unpredictable and bad behavior.
The article is published in the Horse & Rider magazine, June 2009, pages 32-34. Photos by Kevin McGowan show six test positions of the trainable horse and the appropriate response the horse should make.
When it comes to judging the conformation of your horses, do you have all the facts?
In the Horse & Rider magazine, June 2009, pages 41 & 42, a conformation clinic is offered. John Pipkin is a judge for AQHA, APHA, NRHA, NRCHA, and A&M University and has judged more that 300 shows nationally and internationally. His criteria for evaluating the conformation of horses is balance, structural correctness, quality/breed characteristics, and muscling of the horse.
For more information and phots using conformation criteria for judging your own horse, read the article and/or visit Horse and Rider, @ EquiNetwork.com.