Oh my gosh!  The Hurricane won’t kill you but the prep before the storm will.  If that doesn’t get you the cleanup after is sure to finish you off.

Well the whole “Wolf” thing came into play.  You don’t want to do too much too soon just in case it doesn’t come your way, but you’re afraid not to.  I was going with the thought we were going to get nailed and Bob said no it will turn away.  It was so impossible to predict until the last moment and then it’s path changed in mid stream.  So for four days I carried things I could never move, lifted things like Superman and worked at a speed that I haven’t done in years.

I was exhausted, and hurting all over.  I thought back to 2004 when Charlie was supposed to get us.  I didn’t remember hurting this bad and falling into bed passing out on my way down.  Of course not, I was 13 years younger.  Wow does 13 years make that much of a difference?  You bet it does.  I only realize that now that it’s over and I can think clearly again.  Four days to prepare and so far a week to cleanup, and we still have to undo and put things back where they belong.  The jump poles feel heavier this year for some reason.

A woman stopped me in Publix on Saturday and told me I looked tired.  Seriously!!!!  I just smiled and told her it was a tough week.  Hello?  Where have you been?

We only lost electric for seven and a half hours, but the phone and internet was down for four days, and it’s still questionable.  Verizon, for as much as everyone complains, worked perfect through the whole mess.  AT&T and Sprint lost towers.  It’s one day over a week and almost everyone has power.  We were not hit like South Florida or the Keys were.  We were Blessed.  Everyone I know just had a lot of  branch cleanup except for one couple who had a big Grandfather Oak land right on their brand new house.  They’ve only been in it for a couple of months.  They went up to stay with family in North Carolina and won’t even come back to look at what’s left.  I feel so bad for them.  They are still in shock and their insurance will only cover half.

So how did my plan go and what did I learn.  First of all I learned that I’m too old for this stuff.  Secondly I learned that my plan works.  The meteorologists said it was going right, then straight, then left of us.  Surprise!!  The eye came right over us.  By the time it got to us it was a Cat 1 or 2.  We had about 100 mile per hour winds.  But the noise that wind made was unbelievable.  I heard this horrible noise at 2:00 a.m., thought yes it’s here.  I thought that the one oak tree could come down right on my bedroom, gave the whole situation to the Lord, turned over and went back to sleep.  Bob however, got up with the flashlight and looked outside.  The next morning he said he’s getting out before the next storm comes.  He saw the big oaks bending over in the wind.  I told him we made it through with no damage, why would you leave?  He just gave me that look.

We figured our barn was good to 120 mph.  It wasn’t even fazed by the storm.  I kept the horses in because with my neighbors, I felt that UFO’s would be more of a problem than the barn caving in.  I was right.  I thought we’d lose some shingles on the house, but no, it was fine too.  God did a lot of tree pruning, so the property was a mess, and since it’s still mowing season that had to be cleaned up before we could cut.

I had extra horses because people were afraid and moved them to a safer place.  So I figured I’d go for extra grain, hay and bedding before any one else panicked.  I went on Tuesday before the storm was going to hit us on Sunday night.  Everyone else had the same idea.  I wasn’t so much worried that they would run out of grain as much as I was afraid their warehouse would get damaged and they would be closed after the storm.

Secured all the jumps in the corner of the pasture.  Tied them together to the fence.  Filled all the troughs, not so much to have extra water because we have a generator and extra gas, but to keep them from blowing around the pastures.  Secured all the gates, and removed hoses, and buckets.  Picked up anything that would become a missile.  Put break-a-way halters on the horses even though they would be in the barn.  The only thing that I had a problem with is the fact that I had name tags to braid in their tails and attach to the halters, but I didn’t have new ones for the new horses.  So I used tags from the horses that have crossed the Rainbow Bridge and just put the new horses names on with a Sharpie.

So the bottom line is don’t only prepare for the storm, think of what you are going to run into after the storm.  There was no gas after the storm, because there was no electric to run the pumps.  We had plenty of gas shipped in prior to the storm because of President Trump’ careful planning.  Fuel trucks had police escorts to get them to the stations.  People were going crazy trying to buy water.  Take old gallon jugs from juice or whatever and fill them.  Store extra gas for the generator or your vehicle because you don’t know how long everyone is going to be without it.  Get a generator.  Get name tags or spray paint to put your number on your horses.  Don’t do hoofs, it will wear off.  Put your cell phone number on, your house phone may not be working, but then your cell phone might not either.  Perhaps give a number of a friend or relative in another state for them to contact.  Same thing with your dogs and cats.  The shelters are filled with strays that have been picked up.

Make sure your shots are up to date.  Especially tetanus.  Mosquito control came by last night spraying.  The little monsters have been very active so shots for mosquito borne diseases are also a necessity.  Dump all standing water from the storm to keep breeding to a minimum.  Have your Coggins and any other important papers in a water tight bag or container.  Keep enough grain for a week to two weeks after the storm, but make sure that it’s protected from water.  Don’t forget to have meds for all people and animals to get you through a couple of weeks.  All stores and restaurants were closed for days because of no electric.  All food, dairy, and produce had to be thrown away so stores did not have anything even after they opened.

My Farrier was here yesterday and told me that he had been moving horses north for other people the whole week prior to the storm.  I asked him about the traffic on I 75, because it was crawling bumper to bumper for days before the storm, and to have horses stuck in a hot trailer when traffic is not moving will cause great harm.  He said they moved them at night.  The top speed was still only 40 mph but it was moving and cool.

It’s nice to know that all your plans and prep work are right on target.  It’s nicer not to have to try it out in real-time.  Thanks to all the people who sent up prayers for us.  We appreciated it and God was good.  Please keep praying for the people in the Islands, Keys, and South Florida.  They have a tough road ahead of them.  And especially pray for the Utility Workers, Police, National Guard, Fire Fighters, First Responders, and Volunteers who gave up their lives to come and save ours.  Also keep in mind the Animal Shelters who are taking in all the animals that have lost their homes and families.  Not to mention the wild animals who are without fresh water in the Keys.  The salt water mixed with the fresh.  They showed this morning on the news some Firemen who stopped and gave a bottle of their water to a dehydrated deer who drank two bottles of water and then went on his way.  How many won’t be that lucky?

There is so much out there that we are not even aware of.  The devastation that Irma has caused and now Maria is causing is going to last a while.  Be Thankful for what you have, so many no longer even have housing, or fresh water.

This has been a little long, but it makes up for last week.

Here we go with crying Wolf again.  That was a post from just a couple of weeks ago about being prepared.  The people in Texas were not prepared.  Houston was not told to evacuate.  What were they thinking?  I saw men putting their lives on the line to rescue a beautiful Quarter Horse from raging waters.  They all made it to safety.

So here I sit in Florida waiting to see if Irma is coming for a visit.  I have four extra horses whose owners were picking them up this weekend.  They are in Pennsylvania visiting family.  They had no idea that we are under a Hurricane Watch/Warning.

So to be prepared, I decided I’d better get more grain, hay, and bedding just in case they don’t make it back in time.  If we have trees down on the road, no one can come or go until we know that the electrical wires are not hot.  We’re about five days out from being hit.  I figured there wouldn’t be a rush on the feed store yet.  Surprise!  Everyone else was there being prepared.  One woman said that she had horses coming up from the Keys which will probably be evacuated today, Wednesday.  The last time the people on the West Coast evacuated because Charlie was supposed to come up that way, they all went inland to Orlando.  Charlie turned, ran up the middle of the state and guess where it went?  Orlando.  You just can never tell.

We’re high and dry.  For us to have waterfront property the rest of Florida would be submerged, another Atlantis.  But I’m glad people are taking this seriously.  There is no food or water on the shelves in the supermarkets, Costco, or Wal-Mart.  The governor has already declared that price gouging will be prosecuted heavily. $1,000.00 to $20,000.00 fine.  People are urged to call and turn these people in, they’ve already received 200 calls.  Everyone is taking this seriously.  Bob and I sat down at breakfast and made our plans of what needed to be moved and tied down. Now all we have to do is wait and watch.

Food – check.  Water – check, for all the people and animals.  Generator in working order – check.  Everyone has needed prescriptions on hand – check.  Now it’s a wait and see if we spring into action to lock down and tie down anything that may become missiles. Potted plants and furniture mowers and other equipment needs to be moved indoors. Hoses have to be disconnected because if the wind grabs them they will rip the water pipes off.  If we don’t have electric to the well, we won’t know we have a broken pipe until we do.  But with the generator, we will have water.

I’ve watched a thousand pound horse trying to hold their ground in major wind storms. Irma is packing 185 mile per hour wind.  Nothing would survive, neither house or barn.  Usually when a storm hits land, the winds diminish, but still we may not be in Kansas anymore Toto.  I told that to my brother yesterday and he wrote back, Just Follow The Yellow Brick Road.  I’ll get back to you on how we made out.

Prayers happily accepted.

When I lived up north I hated the fact that summer was almost over.  Well surprise! it is. Down here, we’ve got several months to go.  However, I do not let go of that old habit of preparing for the cooler and even colder winter months, starting in August.

It’s not quite time to pull out your winter underwear, but it is time to start thinking about washing those sheets and blankets (if you haven’t already).  I pressure wash my winter blankets, and it’s a lot nicer to do it when it’s 90 degrees and the back spray feels good, rather than when it’s cooler and you don’t want to get wet.

It’s also a good time to go over the sheets and blankets to see what needs to be repaired before everyone else descends on your repair person.  Besides, if you’re the repair person you don’t want to waste one of those beautiful fall days washing or repairing when you could be riding.

Your horses should be starting to lose their summer coats so don’t forget to curry them before they start doing it themselves on trees or fences.  That creates a whole different set of problems.

Well it’s still too early to worry about oiling the clips (but that’s always a good idea) and finding the heating units for the water, so do what you have to do and go and enjoy, the beach for now, and the glorious fall riding in a month or two.

I do miss the beautiful colors of the fall leaves.  Hey, did anyone ever notice that the colors seemed much brighter and more vibrant on a cloudy day than a sunny one.  No kidding,  if you haven’t, look and see them this year.

I know this post is probably like those commercials that run over and over again.  But if I need to be pushed into doing something I don’t really want to, I’m sure some of you do too.

Just “Get’er Done!”

We really don’t realize how much we touch things.  I’m not talking just to hold something, I mean really touch things.  Sometimes it’s for comfort and sometimes not so much.  Ever touch something just to see if it’s alive?  I usually do that through a stick.  Yuk!  There’s the loving touch that you may give someone, whether it be human or animal.  I love touching my animals.  Just a soft, almost caressing touch.  They respond very well, with love in their eyes.  There’s always the Wet Paint sign.  We all are tempted to touch and see if it’s still wet.  Why????

However, there is more to the touch than sharing your love.  Did you ever have a hay or hair splinter in your sock or piece of clothing?  Every time you move you feel that prickly sensation.  I hate when you shave a muzzle and have one of those tiny little pokey things somewhere.  You try to find it and pluck it out, but it eludes you.  Especially when it’s in your bra.  You take your foot out of your boot.  Look for the thing.  You put your foot back in your boot or shoe and there it is again.  I’ve pulled half the threads out of my sock and still can’t find it.  It’s so annoying, and scratchy.

Well did you ever think how it must drive your horse crazy when he/she has something poking them?  They can’t sit down and pull at things trying to find that one tiny sticker that’s driving them crazy.  Maybe it’s a sticker caught in their saddle pad, leg wrap, blanket, or girth.  One tiny little pokey, annoying, scratchy thing.  Have you ever just decided you can’t find it on yourself, so you try to ignore it?  Doesn’t work, does it?  Well they can’t tell you, and they can’t find it.  Always run your hands over a pad, fuzzy girth or any girth, leg wrap, blanket.  Yes it takes a little time, but if it was going on your body with stickers in it, you sure would.  I hate pulling stickers, or seedlings off socks before I wash them, but they may end up in my underwear, and I don’t want to have to deal with that nonsense.

Hears one that caught my attention the other day, and that’s why I decided to write on this subject.  I went to put fly masks on the horses.  As I was running my hand up to the top I felt something poke my finger.  As fly masks get some miles on them, the mesh starts to unravel, and there are those little poky things.  You don’t have to throw the mask out, just trim the poky ends with a scissor, but check on them often.  Just imagine a horse having to walk around all day with all these little spikes scratching against their faces.  Poor babies.

When I Hunted I used fuzzy girths, I still use fuzzy girths, and boy do they catch sticker clusters.  You know how they hurt when they are on your clothing.

Be mindful and run your hands over everything before you place it on your horse. He/she will be so grateful that they have such a wonderful human who looks after their comfort.

Now if I could only find that hay splinter that’s in my sock, I could go to the barn and feed.

A friend, actually x husband, just called to see how we made out with Tropical Storm Emily yesterday.  Sore subject.  It went above us, and it went below us.  It’s always the same story.  Now I’m not saying that I like storms, but our pond is drying up again, and the fish are all going to die, again.  We needed the rain, Tampa didn’t.

My point is that the weather people can’t get it right here in Florida.  When I lived in New Jersey, you saw it coming across Pennsylvania and bam, you’re going to get it.  Here you listen to the weather every morning, and sometimes in the evening, and you still don’t get what they tell you.  Now I know it has a lot to do with the fact that our weather is influenced by the winds coming off the Atlantic and the Gulf.  Living on a hill (Yes we have hills in Florida) seems to deflect the rain.  Which in one way is a blessing, and in other ways a curse.  You see this storm coming, you watch its progress on the radar, then you watch it split and go around you.  Very frustrating after you’ve tracked down all the horses, run them into the barn, run in the house and closed all the windows and then turn around and undo everything.

So why the old Fairy Tale about the boy who cried “Wolf”?  Because sooner or later you’re going to get hit.  Or so they tell me.

Every year the state puts out a pamphlet about Hurricane preparedness.  Our local horse newspaper puts out an article about being prepared for your animals.  These things are important, but when nothing happens for years at a time, people stop reading and stop being prepared.

Most “People Shelters” won’t take dogs (although they are being persuaded to by local authorities).  It seems more people are choosing to stay at home with their pets than leave and go to safety.  This includes people who have been threatened by Wild Fires and Hurricanes.  The Fairgrounds here in Tampa will take horses, but there aren’t enough stalls for the amount of horses we have in Florida.  So what do you do?

Now here we’re talking about Hurricanes and Tropical Storms, but there are Fires, Floods, Tornadoes, Earthquakes, and other disasters that occur in other areas of the country.  Although Tornadoes and Earthquakes do not give you any warnings.  Being able to track down animals after the fact is.

Have an evacuation plan in mind.  Also have all your paperwork, and a Disaster Kit available and ready to go.  I always keep my horse trailer stocked with first aid necessities, Coggins on all the horses, and extra equipment.

Recommended articles for your Disaster Kit, whether you live in Florida or other places.

• Food, water, and bowls, for each pet , buckets for horses.
• Paper towels, plastic bags, and spray disinfectant.
• Extra collars, harnesses, and leashes for all animals including cats.  Halters and lead lines for horses.
• Copies of your pet’s medical & vaccination records, including Coggins for horses.
• A two weeks supply of medications, along with a copy of the current prescription.
• Recent photographs of you and your pets
• Crates or traveling carriers large enough for your pet to stand up and turn around, these should be labeled with your pet’s name, your name, and where you can be reached.  If you can’t be reached give the name of a person you have designated as a home base.  Do this with people too in case you and your family get separated.  Have a relative, may be in a different state, that everyone knows to check in with.
• A first aid kit.
• Cat litter or newspaper.
• A manual can opener.
• A muzzle or materials such as gauze (to act as a muzzle).
• Pet comfort items such as blankets and toys.
• A list of hotels and boarding kennels that accept pets.  Make sure they are evacuation safe sites.
• Detailed instructions for someone else in case you cannot care for your pets.
• Microchip all your animals – This is always a good plan.

This article was mainly on dogs, cats, etc.  I threw in a couple of things for horses, but if you go back to my post on June 29th, 2016 “Be Prepared” it is more clear on what to do for horses.  We as horse owners usually have a multitude of other animals, because that’s who we are, so I thought this was an appropriate article.

As I was telling a friend this morning.  How do you tell the weather forecast in Florida? If you look up in the sky, it’s cloudy and your face gets wet – it’s raining.  If you look up in the sky and it’s blue and you get sun burn – it’s not raining.  See I can forecast the weather too, and I don’t make the big bucks.

So just because the weather people keep telling you that the “The Big One” is coming, just remember, some day it will.  Will you be ready????

I wrote this a while ago and never posted it.  Just found it.

The title comes from the Broadway Play and movie “The King And I.”

Just couldn’t think of a title that expressed what I’m feeling and what this is about.  It’s almost like a TV detective program.  I’ve touched on these ideas before, but this week has been full of detective work.  Uncovering the hidden clues.  I really like this part of my job.  Sometimes I’m right, and then sometimes, not so much.

Case Number 1.  Got a new boarder in.  A very large Warm Blood who is down on his weight.  He’s 20.  Not old for me, but the owner and most of the world, consider him to be “Old.”  Went through the usual questions about a new horse in my care.  Got good information, but there were several pieces to the puzzle I thought were missing.  Like really why is he thin.  What the owner told me made perfect sense, but I was not comfortable with it all.  So sleuthing I will go.  He was on a well-known senior feed.  But I’ve seen this many times before.  For whatever reason, the feed just is not working for a horse.  Some horses may do exceptionally well on a feed and then you get another horse that does absolutely horrible on the same feed.  The amount she was feeding sounded fine, but I don’t know this horses metabolism, and previous living conditions, so it may not have been ideal for him.  She felt it was the heat of last summer.  Usually the heat doesn’t bother them that much, unless he was stressed on top of it.  I asked her if he could have Beet Pulp or Alfalfa Cubes?  She said that he had never had any.  She dropped off the two types of grain that he was getting so that I could gradually change him over.  She is a good, knowledgeable horsewoman, but she had barn help feeding him.  Sometimes we are so close to the situation that we miss the simplest thing.  It becomes so familiar to us that we just don’t pick up on it.  It occasionally requires a clear mind, a different view, and an outsider to see more clearly.

It’s like my husband the other day.  He was looking for his glasses and he got me to join in on the hunt.  You can’t see the forest for the trees.  He was wearing them.  So detective Diane went to the ingredients on the bags of feed. This is something I could actually view for myself.  Not many people read the ingredients.  At least not often.  Manufacturers do change what they put in.  Well the first and main ingredient on the one bag was Beet Pulp.  Not much in the way of grain at all.  The second bag, the first and main ingredient  was Alfalfa, not much in the way of grain either.  Now remember I not only asked her if he was getting Beet Pulp, but I also asked if he was getting Hay Cubes.  She said no.  Obviously she didn’t read the bag either.  So I was changing him over to my grain anyway, adding Beet Pulp and Alfalfa cubes.  His other odd behavior is that he licks everything.  Your hands, your face, hair, jacket, hat, gates.  So I put him on minerals and salt.  I spoke with my vet and she said if that didn’t work it might be behavioral.  Really???  You just never stop learning about horses.  He’s quiet where he eats and is in a pasture by himself so he doesn’t feel threaten or in competition for food or space.  He loves people.  Has hay in front of him all day.  Finding out what his real story is will take some time.  Any situation is like an onion.  You have to peel it back one layer at a time.  I’m confident that as long as he’s upright and breathing, with no hidden medical issues, that I will put weight on him and get him back to what he should be for his age.  He just had his teeth done and had been wormed, with all his shots, two weeks before he came, so we’re good in that department.

Case Number 2.  With the cold weather down here, horses have a tendency not to drink enough water, so they colic.  It sounds ridiculous to me, coming from the north where horses have to break through ice to get a drink.  I couldn’t believe it when I first heard about it.  But my guess is that it has something to do with the local hay that is grown down here.  Also it will be down to the 20’s than in a few hours back up to 70, then back down, you get the picture.  Anyway my Quarter Horse was looking a little off.  Didn’t want her grain, would pick at her hay.  Was down a lot.  So I treated her for mild Colic.  Gave her table salt to make her drink more, a little Banamine for the pain.  Took her off grain (she wasn’t eating it anyway) and removed her hay.  Now that’s being just plain mean, when at the time there wasn’t any pasture.  I feel, and they believe, I’m starving them to death.  They like to munch on hay all day even in the pasture when there is no grass.  I have to give the other two hay in their stalls so she wouldn’t get any.  I’ve got an ugly bunch of horses at this time.  It’s like one of those pictures in the movies that the eyes follow you.  They stand at the gate and just watch your every move.  I can hear the whispers.  “There goes our evil mom, trying to starve us.  Maybe she forgot, she’s old you know, try to get her attention again.”  The mare is passing normal manure, no temperature, gums look fine, drinking water, gut sounds are normal.  She is in heat and has had trouble with her ovaries before.  The other side of the coin, her stomach is sucked up in pain, not eating grain, down on the ground most of the day.  She’s alert, but just not normal.  Kept in touch with my vet and finally declared, none of it makes sense.  So bring out the big guns.  My vet came, agreed on my findings.  It’s not a normal colic.  Neither was Desert and we had to put him down.  So we ran bloods to see what everything else is doing.  Hopefully it isn’t a liver problem.   But it just my be those darn ovaries again, but she has never had this type of colic issue in the past.  I’m just gathering all the pieces to the puzzle and we’ll see what the picture turns out to be.

Well, five days later she’s back to normal.  Blood showed everything working fine.  We’re thinking the dreaded ovaries.  Usually she just gets sore in the back and doesn’t want to use her right hind leg.  This is a new twist.

The jury is still out on the final verdict.  We’re waiting for the next heat cycle to see if it happens again.  Part of me wants it to be ovaries and part of me doesn’t.  What’s the next step?  Acupuncture and if that doesn’t work,  Ultra Sound.

With horses, it’s not always a detective program.  Sometimes it feels more like the “X Files” and we’re waiting for the “Mother Ship.”

Because this post was lost and was written a year ago, bottom line on both cases –  The Warm Blood gained weight and was placed in a new home with a teenage girl.  My mare – it was ovaries, went into her next heat just fine. Both cases, solved and closed.  Can’t wait for me next adventure.