Recent content by always learning

One non-shady reason to withhold papers is that the animal was sold so cheap that the seller felt justified. I've sold purebred goats that the new owner never finished paying for, so they didn't get the papers. There are a lot of crooks out there, but there are also a lot of good people who just...

If you have a mailing address for the people, I would start with a letter. Explain the circumstances of the purchase, provide dates and names if possible, and how you are curious to know more about her. Ask if there is a convenient time for you to call, and give them your address and E-mail (...

Sounds like when she was younger you let the "cute factor" get it's way, and now that she's mature you have a lot of training mistakes to overcome. If she likes to backup when she's frustrated, I believe I'd make her backup all over the place. Have a switch long enough to reach her hindquarters...

The one above her eye almost looks like a kick mark, but the one behind her ear is in a strange place for fighting injury. Anytime an animal gets bald spots, I usually check for parasites first, but those are even in an unusual place for scratching rub-off. You didn't say how long it had been...

I used to just bust the ice on the tub and lead the ponies and cattle (less than 10 total), and take a " drink if you're thirsty" attitude. They usually drank a lot of that cold water, but only if they already had their grain, otherwise they were too distracted waiting for grain to drink. Then...

Angc---thanks for the link, I'll check it closer later. I have water in the barn, but it's spring fed and comes from the faucet pretty cold, which is nice in the summer, but the animals drink more in winter if the chill is off. Goats even like it a bit warmer. I was carrying a 2 gallon pail(I do...

Seems to be slight misunderstanding. I was talking about the immersion style, but only planned on using it long enough to heat the water, then unplug and remove, then use the water to warm up the other buckets. My winter watering is done 2xaday inside the barn. Somehow using electric to keep...

After being around ponies and larger most of my life, I got my first mini in '14, so she's had one NY winter with me. I've never blanketed her. she's in at night also, with shelter if out for the day. I do brush snow off when she comes in, so it doesn't melt on her in the warmer(but still cold)...

Have always ran cold water for my livestock, or carried hot from the house to take the chill off water pails in the barn. Water left in buckets will freeze between chore times in my barn, so I encourage at least a couple good drinks while the chill is off. This year I thought I'd try a bucket...

Furstplace--had a mini donkey that rolled in his tie stall, always seemed to know just how much slack he had. Meg, every time she was moved to new grass, would walk to the anchor point, then go out and walk a circle around it, only when she had her chain measured would she go to eating. If she...

Paint pony brought up a point I fully agree with about tying. Over the years,(and there have been a lot of them), I've always tied my animals to stay tied, and most are tied with chain and snap. My Arab stud would chew lead-ropes, but respected chain. Another thing I did with all of mine, the...

Gotta agree with Paintpony on the being careful " picking up stones". It's not a good idea with a young male with attitude. I remembered a 4-H teenager, who also showed in Jersey cattle open classes. She was practicing leading a yearling bull around the corral at home, when she spotted a piece...

I'm glad your getting some control back. A 2yr old horse (of any size) is like a teen-ager. Some you never have any problem with, but others just have to test the limits and see what they can get away with. And, if they get an inch of slack in control, they'll take a mile.

Seems to me that if you don't gain control soon," annoying" will turn to " aggressive" before you realize it. He's apparently learned how to irritate you to get his own way, try pushing back, and I don't mean with the flat of your hand. Use something pointier, like a knee or elbow, so he notices.

How is he with a bath? My senior milk goat isn't too keen on being brushed, but if I take her out and run the hose on her (when she's chosen the wrong place to lay down and her hindquarters are too dirty to milk) she'll stand nicely and seems to enjoy the water..Then I use the flat side of a...