Alligator Snappers
Posted by ShadowfaxArabians, May 8 2007, 09:51 AM
My morning started out interesting! 
We've had tons of rain the last couple days and the creeks and river are all flooded going over the road several places...it apparently washed some new critters into our neighborhood namely 2 huge alligator snappers. For those of you who don't know Alligator snappers are HUGE-EXTREMELY EVIL snapping turtles!! They can lunge very quickly and their necks can snake out about 3 times farther then you think they should be able to. they also can spin very fast! EVIL...EVIL...EVIL!!! Some of the biggest are supposed to be able to take off a hand.
Anyway I'm out doing chores and look down at the pond and there these two turtles are rolling/wrestling/mating...not sure if they were fighting or mating. The smaller one was about the size of a dinner plate and the other was about twice as big. Needless to say we don't want them in our pond (they kill fish and could hurt my dog who loves to swim). I went in to tell my husband to come out and shoot them but he wasn't dressed yet so I had to...I don't like shooting and the only gun we have that is small enough that I'm comfortable shooting is a pistol. My husband (who loves anything to do with guns and hunting) was so proud of me because I actually went out and shot at them. I killed the bigger one but missed the smaller (you try hitting a target that is moving and rolling in the water!!). My husband called me while I was on the way to work and told me he shot the other one!! I'd have gotten them both if we'd have a small caliber rifle. It was crazy cause the smaller one didn't hardly act scared or try to get away.
When I get home from work I'll see if the carcasses have washed up to the side and if so I'll take pictures.
traveling with my girls
Posted by ShadowfaxArabians, May 6 2007, 09:32 PM
I was so proud of my 2 fillies! Yesterday morning they both loaded right on the trailer like 2 pros. It was our first time pulling our trailer so we had to work out a few quirks such as the safety chains being too short. We also had an exciting moment about 2 miles from home when one of the fillies managed to bump the escape door latch just right and open it!! I looked in the mirror and saw her head sticking out and said "oh my God, she's gonna jump!!!" Thankfully my husband, who was driving, was able to pull over onto the shoulder immediately and I got it shut before she had fully made up her mind to try and get out. We then bailing wired the escape door shut for the rest of the trip!! I was very glad I had her on that side of the trailer instead of the other filly. She is a bit more sensible. We had oiled the latches about a week ago and didn't realize that that one opened so easily. When we arrived at our destination both fillies backed right off the trailer and stayed very calm. I was so happy that they weren't upset about being at a new place. They'd never been away from home before.
Also Yesterday morning we got Highspeed Internet!!!! WOOOOHOOOO!! I was so sick of Dial-up!!
It was an all around good weekend!!
Teaching Trailer Loading
Posted by ShadowfaxArabians, May 4 2007, 11:10 AM
WOW!! I've had fun the last 2 evenings. I taught two of my fillies how to trailer load and it went so much better than I thought it might! the 4 year old only took an hour and she went in and out of the trailer 4 times near the end of that time. My 3 year old took 2 hours. She's just more stubborn but after she went in once she didn't mind going in again. I'm so glad it went smoothly because they both get to take a 3 hour drive on Saturday to visit their new boyfriends (an Ansata Ibn Halima son and a Magnum Psyche son).
Anytime I walked them away from the trailer I would lunge them and do direction changes and in general just keeping their feet moving. That way when we went back to the trailer and I started putting their feet on it it seemed like a rest instead of work.
My only problem now is getting them comfortable with backing out. I have to really force them to back out because they're scared of that step down. I can't wait until we get our ramp made so that we won't have that problem. I've been teaching them without the partition in the trailer so that I'd have more room to maneuver. Now that they've both loaded several times, this evening they get to load with the partition. I'm hoping that they won't freak out about the change and having to enter such a narrow space. I'm so proud of them both though! They never acted scared of the trailer they just had to figure out that it was possible to step up onto it. If I've said it once I've said it a thousand times those two fillies are the sweetest in the world!! Especially the 4 year old!
I have a Trailer and a new filly!!
Posted by ShadowfaxArabians, Apr 22 2007, 01:49 PM
Wednesday night my maiden mare had a beautiful filly! She's bay and as sweet as can be! It took her about 12 hours to learn how to nurse during which time I had to bottle feed her. She is for sale $1000 obo go to my website to see her Psymply Fates Melody
Thursday I got my trailer! I'm so relieved to finally not have to borrow a trailer!
A TRAILER!!! and a maiden mare
Posted by ShadowfaxArabians, Apr 18 2007, 03:18 PM
YAY!!!! I'm getting a trailer tomorrow!! ok so it's old, a 1980, but is solid and sound, very little rust, and it will be my own! No more borrowing!!
I'm also waiting for my maiden mare to foal...she's had clear wax off and on for the last 10 days. She is at day 336. Yesterday she started to hold her tail slightly raised at all times and her udder/teats finally look full! Also her milk looked like it might be getting cloudy instead of clear.
I might also have some other exciting news in a few weeks...but I'm not allowed to say anything about that yet 
Mares and babies
Posted by ShadowfaxArabians, Mar 24 2007, 10:19 AM
I've been busy staying up nights again. My second mare, Belle, should foal anytime. Her udder is massive (she is one mare that could probably feed twins) and her backend is relaxed. Last pregnancy she went to 337 days and we're at 336 today so I'm getting hopeful. She hasn't waxed but usually only waxes the evening before if she waxes at all. She hasn't been restless at night yet but she's been very pissy to the other mares. I'm afraid she's going to hold off having this foal as long as possible though because it's been rainy and wet and she hates foaling in the barn. The sun is out today so she's out in the pasture...who knows maybe we'll have a daytime baby. Normally she foals around 6am.
My maiden mare, Psyren, is also beginning to bag up which is interesting to watch. She is my first maiden so I've never seen the process of the udder descending. She is due the 26th of April.
One last thing I've found odd. My February colt's testicles are already descended...they were fully descended when he was 2 weeks old. I don't know if that's normal for Arabians...the only other colt I've had was a QH and his were no where to be seen at 6 months old when I sold him. I always thought they didn't descend until the horse was at least a year old but apparantly they do.
Sold my Foal!!
Posted by ShadowfaxArabians, Feb 16 2007, 03:06 PM
I'm so excited!! My new foal, Mithril, is only a week old today and today I sold him!! I have a signed contract and down-payment in my possession!! And from visiting with the lady I think he is going to a wonderful home! All I can say is that I am one blessed woman! 
Mithril Ithildin - New foal
Posted by ShadowfaxArabians, Feb 13 2007, 02:02 PMI just realized that I didn't put on here that Mandy's foal was born Friday Feb 9th. I was up checking her every hour on Thursday night and she was slowly dripping milk. I was so certain she was going to have it Thursday but of course she stopped her labor because I was checking on her. Friday evening at 9:30pm I checked on her and she was dripping milk a little faster (not enough to collect) so I decided to check on her in 30 minutes. At 10:00pm I went back out and there was her colt. I missed watching him be born by seconds. He is adorable with the funniest markings on his face. See pictures of him on my website http://www.shadowfaxarabians.com/mandy's_colt.htm I will be updating it as he grows!
waxed teats
Posted by ShadowfaxArabians, Feb 8 2007, 02:05 PM
My Mandy mare has waxed!! We are now down to days or hours!! her flanks are also sunken right in front of her hips. She was kinda acting like she was starting pre-labor last evening but a few hours later she was calm and eating hay. I was so excited last night that I was up and down several times waking up before my alarms. Amazingly I'm not very tired today so hopefully I'm able to wake up easily tonight as well. I'm really hoping to catch the birth on the digital camera. It has the ability to do short videos so I'll post it on here if I happen to catch it.
With the weather being so cold we have heat-lamps set up in the barn and I have my other supplies handy...oooohhh I just can hardly wait!!
Foal movement
Posted by ShadowfaxArabians, Feb 6 2007, 09:35 AM
Last evening I felt the coolest thing! I felt Mandy's foal move! I was rubbing her side and felt this big movement. It kinda felt like a tennis ball rolling under her skin. Based on the area I felt it I'm going to guess it was the foal's hock or point of the hip. I've felt unborn foals move before but never like this! It moved like that twice almost like it felt the pressure of my hand and was moving away from it.
Mandy's vulva is relaxing and she's starting to hold her tail funny. Her belly is also hanging lower. I think I'm going to start foal watch tonight. There's no wax on her teats yet so for now it will probably just amount to getting up once in the night to check on her. I would not be surprised to see that foal arrive within a week...of course it's just as likely that she'll take longer...LOL...it's never easy to predict!
