Thursday, June 19, 2008

Stink

One of my favorite things is to see my horse looking out her stall window. Ever since she was a little baby, she's always looked out the window to see if we are coming. Sometimes, if I don't get out of my car and to her stall fast enough for her expectations, she starts pawing the ground in frustration.

I love having a horse that loves people. She helps me connect to people I might otherwise not naturally connect to. No person is an exception for her affection or exempt from her expectations - if you're standing around with idle hands, you might as well be giving a back rub to a most grateful recipient. If you're lonely or depressed, she assumes that the best cure is to cuddle a very large animal - and she's usually right.

Friday, June 13, 2008

Summer has begun

So, I anticipate many hours spent with my favorite horse.

Wednesday, June 11, 2008

Cat Dairy Farm

This video reminded me of my own heritage (or so I thought at one time). When Krista and I were 7 or 8 years old, we lived on a farm in Oregon, which included horses, dogs, cats, ducks, chickens and milk goats. On Saturday mornings, after feeding all the animals and milking the goats, we would sit down for a family breakfast. That's when Dad started telling us about his childhood/our heritage.

He told us about the "cat dairy farm" where his family raised milk cats. He gave us detailed accounts of:
  • Breeds, which produced the best milk
  • Feeding schedules
  • Challenges of "herding cats" to the milking stanchion
  • Risks involved (which included scratches)
  • Importance of shelter (since after all cats don't like water)
  • Proper de-worming and medication routines
  • The benefits of eventually having machinery to do the milking, rather than the "old fashioned" way they used to have to do it, when he was a kid, etc.
Needless to say, we were fascinated by our family history and intrigued to know more. I mean how many people have you met who came from a cat dairy farm? I believe it was sweet Grandma who finally let the "cat out of the bag" and told us the truth.