Pedicures of the Equine Kind

Although I absolutely adore going home, returning to the farm usually means a shift in my daily routine and sleeping schedule. Ever since returning to a ‘life of luxury’ (aka no official job title ~ outside of my freelance meanderings ~ with set start times), we’ve seldom had to use an alarm clock and we’ve pretty much been able to sleep in until we’re ready to start our day. However, when returning to the farm, around 7:30 or 8 am, the day starts whether we like it or not! Dad is up and in motion, with jobs ready to be accomplished, racing from project to project, conquering the world with each and every breath each takes! Regardless of whether I went to bed at 2:30am (like I did last night), there is no sleeping in for me. Ugh. I don’t do so well on less than 7 hours of sleep. However, this morning I was really excited to bolt out of bed, like a kid on Christmas morning. Today we were taking the horses, along with Daisy the mule, to the local Mennonite farm, where the animals would have their hoofs trimmed and cleaned. I’ve never had such an adventure before, and any opportunity to visit with the Mennonites is a rare moment indeed.

So we rounded up the team, loaded them on the trailer, and made our way just down the road to Elias’ farm and shop. Along the rafters, a string of horseshoes stood proudly on display. But today, no horseshoes would be attached. They’re basically for road geldings, used to protect the animal’s feet from wear and tear. Our horses are field horses. And it was time to give them their pedicure!

Such an awesome experience, seeing the personalities of each horse shine through. Lady was calm and collected, patient while the craftsman tooled away at her hooves. Flossy was a bit more difficult and restless, whilst Stanley was downright stubborn and not wanting to be there in that moment. Daisy is too young for her hooves to be trimmed, but Dad took the opportunity to put a face harness on her. Simple success! And this halter will remain with Daisy for her life’s duration. A bit of her innocence has been lost, but luckily, she still remains acutely affectionate and remarkably cuddly. Oh how I love having the team in Dad’s backyard. They add such character and warmth, to have and to love whenever we decide to return back to the country.

An additional bonus to our excursion was the ability to photograph the experience. Because Elias has a great working relationship with my Father, he was happy to oblige my whimsical wishes to take photographs. Fantastic! Hope you enjoy them :).