by Cowgirl on June 18, 2011
In light of the Father’s Day weekend, I thought I’d share a couple of stories about the father of my kids, affectionately referred to on this blog as Cowboy Dad. While my husband would never claim to be a cowboy, I call him that because I think he has some old fashioned characteristics that remind me of an old west hero. Knowing him, he will cringe as he reads this, because if Cowboy Dad has a fault, it would be that he denies the credibility of all compliments. But he is the best person I know.
by Cowgirl on March 31, 2011
My grandma was an avid horse lover. Maybe not as horse crazy as I am, because she had too much work to do to spend any time on horses. But I think that horses were always on her mind. I don’t know what kind of fool I’d be if it weren’t for my Grandma, but I sincerely doubt that I’d be the horse crazy fool that I am.
Some of my latest musings have been on the attire related to the western horse person. I saw one of the local “cowboys” at the gas station today, he was driving a Ford Escort and stepped out to pump gas wearing a starched western shirt, cowboy hat, boots, spurs, and nasty-tight Wranglers.
by Cowgirl on January 21, 2011
Horses are funny animals. If I had a chance to sit out there in the corral all day and watch them, I would. I have five horses right now, and they are each so different, it is so interesting to see how they act and respond to each other. I believe in animal behaviouralist’s technical terms, this would be called herd dynamics.
by Cowgirl on October 5, 2010
It was a beautiful Sunday afternoon in the fall. Leaves just starting to change, a crispness in the air, and I was so excited to be riding my mare Daisy, since she had been getting better and better on each ride throughout the summer. A long trail ride through new territory was exactly what I’d been wishing for.
Fencing is always a problem when you’re dealing with horses. It seems like it doesn’t matter what kind of fence you have: wood, pipe, electric tape, electric wire, high tensile wire, mesh wire, or barbed wire—a horse can find a way to mess it up or get hurt on it. A responsible horse owner will provide the best they can for their horses and just pray that nothing bad happens, because a fence injury can often render a horse useless.
by Cowgirl on September 9, 2010
If you are around horse people for any length of time, you are going to meet with strong personalities who are assured they are correct, to the point of everyone else being wrong. I would admit that I have been there….but I think I’ve arrived at the realization that I can never know enough, there is always more to learn, and anyone who will share their viewpoint with me is someone I can gain knowledge from.
by Cowgirl on August 16, 2010
If you missed me the last ten days or so, it was because I was on vacation. My husband’s entire family spends a week each summer on a remote lake in Minnesota, fishing, boating, swimming, and most importantly relaxing! I spent a lot of time reading and playing with the kids in the sand, water, and sun. The only thing that would have made the vacation complete is horses.
by Cowgirl on July 31, 2010
I loved taking our horses for water rides in the summer! There’s no better way to stay cool and still be outside with your horse than riding through the spray of an irrigation system or into a pond or creek for a swim. Summer days with no cattle work to do often turned out that way.
I think it’s something you’re born with….the horse thing is something that’s so strong you can’t ignore it. Horses give you a reason to wake up in the morning, a reason to get outside and breathe in nature, and a power to look past the small stuff and realize all you’ve accomplished that you can be proud of.
by Cowgirl on July 7, 2010
Part of working with horses on a daily basis is understanding that you cannot always control circumstances that involve a near-ton of weight on four fast-moving legs powered freely at the will of a flight-instinct animal.
by Cowgirl on June 15, 2010
I have never been a “cool cowgirl”. I grew up so far out in the sticks that being in style was never on my agenda, and keeping up with the times was about twenty years in arrears. Whatever we threw on made no difference to the horse so it really didn’t matter to us. I’ve been looking through some old photos of me riding, though, and some of my outfits are good for a laugh.
If you’re wondering how I got to be horse crazy, the photo above serves as an explanation. That is my mom, at about six months, on her pony Mickey, with her dad at her side. My mom grew up with horses, and her favorite was a horse named Old Paint, whom she kept from childhood until after she was married
by Cowgirl on June 11, 2010
When you have a young horse, the horse is going to check you out to see what you know. If he finds out that some things you ask you don’t follow through with, he may begin to think you can’t make him do it, and will start a bad habit of rearing to avoid whatever it is you want him to do. A horse that rears is very dangerous.
by Cowgirl on June 7, 2010
Summer is by far the best time for horseback riding! There is nothing like an evening ride when a hot day begins cooling off. These rides are best enjoyed bareback, as the horses seem to have a lighter step and are happy to go on a joy-ride, rather than work. My best memories of childhood are horseback with my brothers and sisters. After supper time in the evenings, we would all run down to the barn, grab a bridle and jump on a horse.
by Cowgirl on May 15, 2010
Driving cattle on horseback is a great training exercise for a green horse. Giving a horse a job and a focus will advance a horse in his training and provide opportunities to learn that would never be found in an arena.
by Cowgirl on May 13, 2010
I talked to my mom on the phone today. She said they have a new foal on their ranch, a dark brown horse colt with white feet and a big star on his face. She asked me to help them come up with a name for it, and I’d love to except for the fact […]
