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[RC] Wine Country Ride - sandy . l . holderHi All, This past Saturday's Wine Country ride was quite enjoyable and the weather turned out to be picture perfect (not as hot as we all thought it might be). I could probably write a ton on ride management (they were terrific) as well as the vets (we love you) but I want to share a particularly interesting albeit funny story. For those of you who don't know me - and being a relative newbie its probably a lot of you - Tally was rescued from near starvation in Oct '01. He's a handsome ~15 hand grey arab gelding who we (riding partners, mentors and trainers) have put a bit of time into to "get there", and "there", this past weekend, was the 30 mile ride in Napa. It's only the start of his second year in endurance, and although at 14 its probably a bit later than most, he's been coming along wonderfully and just keeps getting better. Keep in mind that when I purchased him, he was a nervous wreck and still is at times, so he's really progressing well. We checked into the ride location about 12:30 p.m. on Friday, set up camp and put out his lunch - hay, water and a few extras to entice him - and to get him to do the EDPP things that all endurance horses have to. Well, he wasn't eating everything in site, so we went for a walk to stretch his legs and see if he'd drink better out of the horse trough, as he's gotten so good at doing on the trails. On the way, back, he found someone's leftover oat hay, and although I typically don't let him eat things he doesn't get regularly at home, I'd found at his last training ride that he particularly liked oat hay (or better yet, the hay that my girlfriend had brought for her horse), so I let him pick at it for awhile before we headed back to our site (directly across from where we were). Later in the day, as a treat, I decided to grab a few handfuls of the oat hay and take it back to him. . . and here's where the good stuff begins and where you really can tell that there are wonderful people out there! I'd just sat down in my camp chair with a friend when a lady from across the way, cautiously approached. You could actually say she was a bit sheepish. Well, she introduced herself and apologized profusely about not wanting to interfere with my horse, but wanted to know if I needed any hay (maybe I didn't have any, and endurance people being so good to each other, she wanted to make sure I was ok). She and her family and friends and seen me pick up some of the oat hay and take it back to my boy. . . and given that our bale of grass hay was behind the trailer, they thought I might not have any and if so, were more than willing to share!! Joyce - you're a wonderful person and so are your family and friends. She shared a flake, which I promptly took back and he devoured. As it turns out, when we were done with the ride, and my boy had his pick of anything and everything (hay, a sloppy mixture of beet pulp, etc., even a warm wheat mash) all he wanted was some more of that good oat hay they'd brought!!! Talk about a funny situation (and a reminder to bring some with me in the future). Well, all I can say is I'm still learning - and, well, feed them what they'll eat (always with a measure of caution) but don't be too surprised if it's what your neighbor's horse is eating. Oh, and one other thing, be thankful for all the wonderful folks you meet out there!!!! Sandy & Tally (who couldn't imagine, after he'd turned his nose up at it, why that beautiful Morgan at the vet check would actually eat his sloppy beet pulp mixture) _________________________________________________________________ The information transmitted is intended only for the person or entity to which it is addressed and may contain confidential and/or privileged material. Any review, retransmission, dissemination or other use of, or taking of any action in reliance upon, this information by persons or entities other than the intended recipient is prohibited. If you received this in error, please contact the sender and delete the material from any computer.
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