tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-49597395772462885272024-02-07T04:13:13.144-05:00Argo's JourneyA 17 year old Wild Kiger Mustang's Journey to the East.SkyBar Farmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18259491221540240852noreply@blogger.comBlogger46125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4959739577246288527.post-21287139053733127342011-04-09T09:40:00.001-04:002011-04-09T09:42:18.284-04:00BLM ~ Kiger Mustang Demo at Equine Affaire<object width="640" height="510"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/xir_UCYIxVE?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/xir_UCYIxVE?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="640" height="510"></embed></object>SkyBar Farmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18259491221540240852noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4959739577246288527.post-76770644114265346422009-04-02T07:02:00.003-04:002009-04-02T07:09:10.082-04:00How many of you have done this before?<div style="text-align: center; font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">The world always looks brighter from behind a smile. ~Author Unknown</span><br /></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2KO6uwtBaeB96910sCVuvtS3SkI2rEbbMdo_Ehw3x_YHcwX1do7z1PpP8Pf9KPUUxzsz4qPFCIbSeQk7ng8mzwpWVKWgsZQtURkBognyFCVemOFNu5xlyEW0_v4aZjfBn5xtiYQYTsfFt/s1600-h/Wendys+horses.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 302px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2KO6uwtBaeB96910sCVuvtS3SkI2rEbbMdo_Ehw3x_YHcwX1do7z1PpP8Pf9KPUUxzsz4qPFCIbSeQk7ng8mzwpWVKWgsZQtURkBognyFCVemOFNu5xlyEW0_v4aZjfBn5xtiYQYTsfFt/s400/Wendys+horses.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5320048417361982722" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;">I have. You have to love the insanity of youth.<br /><br />Argo posts coming soon. Stay tuned.<br /><br /></div>SkyBar Farmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18259491221540240852noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4959739577246288527.post-66711435429395696592009-03-24T06:58:00.001-04:002009-04-02T07:11:27.846-04:00Farewell Good Friend<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">How lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard. ~Carol Sobieski and Thomas Meehan, Annie</span>
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<br /><div style="text-align: center; margin-left: auto; visibility:visible; margin-right: auto; width:450px;"> <object width="435" height="270"> <param name="movie" value="http://www.profileplaylist.net/mc/mp3player_new.swf"></param> <param name="allowscriptaccess" value="never"></param> <param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param> <param name="flashvars" value="config=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.indimusic.us%2Fext%2Fpc%2Fconfig_regular_noautostart.xml&mywidth=435&myheight=270&playlist_url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.indimusic.us%2Floadplaylist.php%3Fplaylist%3D61088907%26t%3D1238670644&wid=os"></param> <embed style="width:435px; visibility:visible; height:270px;" allowScriptAccess="never" src="http://www.profileplaylist.net/mc/mp3player_new.swf" flashvars="config=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.indimusic.us%2Fext%2Fpc%2Fconfig_regular_noautostart.xml&mywidth=435&myheight=270&playlist_url=http://www.indimusic.us/loadplaylist.php?playlist=61088907&t=1238670644&wid=os" width="435" height="270" name="mp3player" wmode="transparent" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" border="0"/> </object> <br/> <a href="http://www.profileplaylist.net"><img src="http://www.profileplaylist.net/mc/images/create_gray.jpg" border="0" alt="Get a playlist!"/></a> <a href="http://www.mysocialgroup.com/standalone/61088907" target="_blank"><img src="http://www.profileplaylist.net/mc/images/launch_gray.jpg" border="0" alt="Standalone player"/></a> <a href="http://www.mysocialgroup.com/download/61088907"><img src="http://www.profileplaylist.net/mc/images/get_gray.jpg" border="0" alt="Get Ringtones"/></a> </div>
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<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-style: italic;font-size:180%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">Farewell Good Friend</span></span>
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<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgR5JMdCPLsrQoURY5YtFozMglfJuBvpoKY3RirUHphEIWjHpRSCiYtbVfxAMpkPVtB0_BZoDTBilOPDeoT1CvrC3xm_G7IQmNED19TD1JLqCOcM_Q0YI-_qKs9Y9aj6iF7SnQmPUoAOh3W/s1600-h/Kody.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 208px; height: 158px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgR5JMdCPLsrQoURY5YtFozMglfJuBvpoKY3RirUHphEIWjHpRSCiYtbVfxAMpkPVtB0_BZoDTBilOPDeoT1CvrC3xm_G7IQmNED19TD1JLqCOcM_Q0YI-_qKs9Y9aj6iF7SnQmPUoAOh3W/s400/Kody.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5316704506098093602" border="0" /></a>
<br /><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Your road has been long,</span></span></span>
<br /><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-style: italic;">For me, the journey to brief.</span></span></span>
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<br /><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-style: italic;">From the moment of your first breath,</span></span></span>
<br /><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-style: italic;">You belonged with me.</span></span></span>
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<br /><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-style: italic;">You've guided me and protected me,</span></span></span>
<br /><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Always, have you been loyal to me.</span></span></span>
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<br /><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Your heart always pure,</span></span></span>
<br /><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Your soul endlessly deep.</span></span></span>
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<br /><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Know you were so loved,</span></span></span>
<br /><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-style: italic;">and forever, your memory I keep.</span></span></span>
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<br /><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-style: italic;">You were and always will be,</span></span></span>
<br /><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-style: italic;">such a huge part of me.</span></span></span>
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<br /><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Go now and sleep,</span></span></span>
<br /><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-style: italic;">and feel no more pain.</span></span></span>
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<br /><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Find beloved Kish, and both of you,</span></span></span>
<br /><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-style: italic;">wait there for me.</span></span></span>
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<br /><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Godspeed and find your well deserved peace,</span></span></span>
<br /><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-style: italic;">My dear loyal friend, a part of my heart, you will forever keep.</span></span></span>
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<br /><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-style: italic;">SkyBar's Kodiak Bear</span></span></span>
<br /><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-style: italic;">December 28, 1997 ~ March 23, 2009
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<br />Dogs are miracles with paws. ~Attributed to Susan Ariel Rainbow Kennedy<o:p></o:p></span><p></p> <div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqXVtrjq0FQf3c5MLvnOkBaz5zVyds5A6DVup6lPk7qSHKXUmKHXMBzumXJB7tAZxGzMtNTl0Xa6lxCxCCISXl_RzVJ1B0X3zWc5jOz682gvzXGVjIHOHwoH7hlX0Q4ZBL2InqWydir4Ts/s1600-h/Image3.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 316px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqXVtrjq0FQf3c5MLvnOkBaz5zVyds5A6DVup6lPk7qSHKXUmKHXMBzumXJB7tAZxGzMtNTl0Xa6lxCxCCISXl_RzVJ1B0X3zWc5jOz682gvzXGVjIHOHwoH7hlX0Q4ZBL2InqWydir4Ts/s400/Image3.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5316704506057027682" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Kody and Kish playing Tug-O-War, 1999</span>
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<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguQjUdPLE0zSHM-UB_kzBz7Y-B4LeZXgs09xSNlodLSXSyDQcE68LL6ZOrr8mro7qF_d5Ouk9bpJvb7koaB2LYcLfPcfAbkLLZyRdYi1Avk_hIk2Lz8GH28QDYYVlWuFMxvG8cb7f6_0pB/s1600-h/iadogtraina.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 299px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguQjUdPLE0zSHM-UB_kzBz7Y-B4LeZXgs09xSNlodLSXSyDQcE68LL6ZOrr8mro7qF_d5Ouk9bpJvb7koaB2LYcLfPcfAbkLLZyRdYi1Avk_hIk2Lz8GH28QDYYVlWuFMxvG8cb7f6_0pB/s400/iadogtraina.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5316704409450114610" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Kody 2nd from right, 1999</span>
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<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyTrRIDRg7cbDi4k4qYL6b-67P15ryTQLyY_O9WkPmMCcKWEG_SJq1OdEeSApwmNlCCdwc3q1PojFP07NeBUzp-L4cHR0cLknV9ncuCVAXeDQVJn-zQuIRYSbmnMAfUmuYKxJjqiO5yttE/s1600-h/Image5.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 358px; height: 378px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyTrRIDRg7cbDi4k4qYL6b-67P15ryTQLyY_O9WkPmMCcKWEG_SJq1OdEeSApwmNlCCdwc3q1PojFP07NeBUzp-L4cHR0cLknV9ncuCVAXeDQVJn-zQuIRYSbmnMAfUmuYKxJjqiO5yttE/s400/Image5.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5316704403471623858" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Kody (in back) with his half sister, Akira, in 2000 at a GSD Specialty Show</span>
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<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7-u_8lDF9-V4_VQ220tkAr1Vl3PQmn2LR3ZXECf-R6CvKKVEdd1248Wky8OqqLVtWoSS5B9BTAXz9GGUhVB6el7p0LD4IQZd3l25NA0gZk_ndFO-rTZBDkPc4YldJ_AtXZDLZomy1sLDD/s1600-h/Image6.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 279px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7-u_8lDF9-V4_VQ220tkAr1Vl3PQmn2LR3ZXECf-R6CvKKVEdd1248Wky8OqqLVtWoSS5B9BTAXz9GGUhVB6el7p0LD4IQZd3l25NA0gZk_ndFO-rTZBDkPc4YldJ_AtXZDLZomy1sLDD/s400/Image6.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5316704402894607874" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Kody during the summer of 2005</span>
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<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhM62ixzOSnvsuMc8nABpFImBVVOVYftb-evff9NKhG8l1_UJyNGTTEZBcaHDss7eJTIPQobmvUPRwgziKo4v-2B5CYke7Ed38CXJUx3k3hbbrc3ab0rfucQW2-TrEdj6XfjX28tyCfB-pW/s1600-h/Image7.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 302px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhM62ixzOSnvsuMc8nABpFImBVVOVYftb-evff9NKhG8l1_UJyNGTTEZBcaHDss7eJTIPQobmvUPRwgziKo4v-2B5CYke7Ed38CXJUx3k3hbbrc3ab0rfucQW2-TrEdj6XfjX28tyCfB-pW/s400/Image7.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5316704394153755602" border="0" /></a>Kody January 2009
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<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-VnFPhNi0OIKtCn8vQrBoEM4siklxMXaPrqpnZgMMvpLu6L9U6Oj1Rbyixq_w8WKg8_SQ4nmAK6aJGaMxg94MJqUmRW5n9wswr1Y155pnm8kPt0F_zNsoVYplVfJz-9eMnEOeIUgqPgSH/s1600-h/Image8.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 298px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-VnFPhNi0OIKtCn8vQrBoEM4siklxMXaPrqpnZgMMvpLu6L9U6Oj1Rbyixq_w8WKg8_SQ4nmAK6aJGaMxg94MJqUmRW5n9wswr1Y155pnm8kPt0F_zNsoVYplVfJz-9eMnEOeIUgqPgSH/s400/Image8.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5316704389667635410" border="0" /></a>
<br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Kish ~ Kody's ever loyal Dam</span>, 1994 - 2000
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<br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Dearest Kish, protect him and love him, till I'm there with you both.</span>
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<br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Don't cry because it's over. Smile because it happened. ~Theodor Seuss Geisel, attributed</span><o:p></o:p><p></p> </div>
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Eisenhower</em></strong><br /><strong><em></em></strong><br />Before I get into the meat of my post I wanted to give a quick update on Argo.<br /><br />Well the weather is still unchanged, cold, snow, rain, mud.... well you get the point. Winter. Which means my time with Argo has basically been feeding him, breaking ice, and talking to him during my feed and watering activities. Rinse and repeat. His coat is in need of a serious brushing. Oh how I long for that day. As far as progressing on gentling, we are at a standstill. We have not lost any ground, but we have not gained any either. I am sure once the weather begins to warm up and I can spend more time with him, we will begin to progress yet again.<br /><br />Keep thinking warm thoughts, that's what I am doing.<br /><br />On to other things. If you have not noticed, I have been tinkering with some things here. I just changed the comments form. It allows for those with blogs to have their last post loaded into the comment form. I'm not sure if I like it yet. We shall see. Let me know your thoughts on it. Give me a thumbs up or down in your comments.<br /><br />Also, you have probably seen the Unite, or Die Graphic to the right and have been wondering what the heck that is all about. If you click on it, it will take you to an outside link that will explain it better than I can. I want you to realize this is not a Republican or a Democrat subject. This is an American subject.<br /><br />We are in precarious times right now and it will take everyone of us to get out of it. We can not be standing with our hands out waiting for our government to take care of us. That is not their role. We must understand and learn our history so that we are not doomed to repeat it. What our government is doing with <strong>our</strong> money needs to be highly scrutinized. Do you know that our Representatives and Senators did not even have time to read the latest pork handout, prior to voting on it? We need to be informed Americans. We need to watch what our elected officials are doing and letting them know how we want them to vote. Remember they are supposed to be representing us, not themselves and not just our Federal and State Representatives, but our Local ones as well.<br /><br />So please take a moment and click on the Unite, or Die graphic. I think you too will agree with most all that is stated there, and if you don't, well this is America, where we still have the right to our own opinions, for now.<br /><a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/85717/skybar/7ab41d09f2662c7356e352d412ccdce8.png" border="0" /></a>SkyBar Farmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18259491221540240852noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4959739577246288527.post-55923550589655863092009-02-08T07:06:00.002-05:002009-02-08T07:10:47.549-05:00Silent Sunday<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoBS-KPT8-FmQhOtkDMgcPFXwx8Hpu5iFVmdYGAkpYUaMM-iVJR4cIQXDTJhyphenhyphenW6fD4APwPUmwsGp_eo5GLc-Jl3j2PMDlG7Z8INVBJQxdGgZvBNisVe8p6A7OjUjLeYtzK3OSdWVbc2Yed/s1600-h/Argo+BW2a.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 306px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoBS-KPT8-FmQhOtkDMgcPFXwx8Hpu5iFVmdYGAkpYUaMM-iVJR4cIQXDTJhyphenhyphenW6fD4APwPUmwsGp_eo5GLc-Jl3j2PMDlG7Z8INVBJQxdGgZvBNisVe8p6A7OjUjLeYtzK3OSdWVbc2Yed/s400/Argo+BW2a.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5300397691589486770" /></a>SkyBar Farmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18259491221540240852noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4959739577246288527.post-2566369808541586182009-01-31T08:00:00.000-05:002009-01-31T08:00:01.116-05:00Argo is a Steelers Fan Too!<div align="left"><strong>"I hated putting on that purple uniform, and I hated that raven bird. What really ticked me off is when we played Pittsburgh our whole stadium seemed to be filled with Pittsburgh fans." Tackle Orlando Brown, on playing in Baltimore for Art Modell's Ravens (1999).<br /></strong><br /></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAzKU0S2MSip49BgZuwDOTR2DPMjrxkHzAWYSU6jkuWU0qpv7fTGUhx6Qr3cTisAiRivd1ZSnxYFzNyNav4BXiJuxjIzl81o3rEpVoP4pN3Gp5qYMBMFbVtZJCMLwpnc9TjiVxr5EdtMkW/s1600-h/citysteelerlights.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5296817228895662930" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAzKU0S2MSip49BgZuwDOTR2DPMjrxkHzAWYSU6jkuWU0qpv7fTGUhx6Qr3cTisAiRivd1ZSnxYFzNyNav4BXiJuxjIzl81o3rEpVoP4pN3Gp5qYMBMFbVtZJCMLwpnc9TjiVxr5EdtMkW/s400/citysteelerlights.jpg" border="0" /> <p align="center"></a>Now you didn’t honestly think Argo would have been a Redskins Fan or worse yet a Brownies Fan did you? Nope he is definitely a Steelers Fan.<br /><br />He even got dressed up for the day. His favorite Steeler is Troy Polamalu, he said they have the hair thing in common. He asked me to color his hair so there would be no mistake as to who he would be rooting for.<br /><br />Argo and I know that Pittsburgh is destined to win. This is Super Bowl 43 and his favorite player is number 43.<br /><br /></p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5296817236423309682" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 367px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUspgQzZD-jWFyUl88AvTZh9ZxS0g8DhvcYVle-a92nK3UjRy-SkWXmJseLgXWANmFfGmwdbnVB8WC4Zlh5xwYqabY8hujYaaOHGXZ1NibSmwFBaUyUEFN3TvKQxIZtycd3Nd8-sRUw31U/s400/Steeler+Argo.jpg" border="0" /> <p align="center"><br />He lives in Steelers Country what did you expect?<br /><br />He asked me to post his favorite Troy Video.<br /></p><p align="center"><object height="405" width="500"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/jK8AhS4KSZc&hl=en&fs=1&color1=0xe1600f&color2=0xfebd01&border=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/jK8AhS4KSZc&hl=en&fs=1&color1=0xe1600f&color2=0xfebd01&border=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="500" height="405"></embed></object></p><p align="center"><strong>"The tradition of the Pittsburgh Steelers is in winning and in playing good defense ... We’re proud to be a part of the Steeler Nation and we don’t want to let that Nation down." Dick LeBeau, Pittsburg Steelers Defensive coordinator<br /></strong><br /></p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5296817239002795490" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 111px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoLsJSGs7z7uDTlKKeMRGdVdfU_qApvbSwxYkK9Onlim6Z4rmj_g1DUW4XoQB6ts3_8hcx11AO7ip46_eLEMhI-71Tkd0S7LJQnBi5XxFUCR9YKIKKbBqb6RUwhEobXJe1vfgMVrXhhJuY/s400/nfl_pittsburgh.gif" border="0" />SkyBar Farmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18259491221540240852noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4959739577246288527.post-88611301259982429942009-01-29T11:32:00.007-05:002009-01-29T11:47:10.643-05:00Fuzzy Wuzzy Argo and Other Rambling Tails<strong>Aerodynamically the bumblebee shouldn't be able to fly, but the bumblebee doesn't know that so it goes on flying anyway. ~Mary Kay Ash</strong><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5296755596078425234" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 241px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZPz-qQY1BCz-7J_dtSVcIsbB1COhaAedSXSgdD-ep-0F1YRx4Dltt_9NkDULXFqwHdlQB9AHD9OUEr47MGovHnlZYUUej-u2A_WA4qs5yM2pMKiDy3Edvfm55-9H76YWfi_1pIQbRtepJ/s320/JanArgo2.jpg" border="0" /><br /><div><div><div><div><div>Well the weather just stinks, especially when you have a horse that lives outside 24/7. I wish I would have progressed to the point with Argo that he would be in the big barn so I could play with him in the indoor, but we work with what we got.<br /><br />Time with Argo has been extremely limited due to bitter cold and working to keep him comfortable with plenty of hay and non-frozen water in his tub. I snapped a few pictures though during the sub zero temps. Sorry for the blurriness, it was cold and I had to take my gloves off to run the camera.<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5296755600545568034" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 241px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqLHAlv2LebBkvHRtktfeQjWyYxcEI-pwAOaHwtRm0dOx4RkQXx9zaZR7HabIh7Ze73hEpGs_NYdo80n5TZj5PSzC_B4KLW5LXis8UrN4SgKHWYqgs8lCLoqHOME5I5-iDg3O1wTndJTFq/s320/JanArgo3.jpg" border="0" /><br />In other news with Argo though:</div><div><br />I have been working on getting that dang snap off of his halter. He is getting much more comfortable with the abominable snowman hands touching his cheeks, jaw and forehead. We have practiced with me holding the snap in my hand. The first 72 times he would back up the moment he felt my hand around the snap. He slowly became comfortable with it just resting in my hand while I stroked his cheek with my other hand. We are now up to him feeling slight pressure when I hold the snap. The first time he felt it, he quickly stepped backwards. I make sure he always has an escape from me. He feels safer and more confident in our sessions when he does not feel trapped. He now will hang out with me while I gently grasp the snap and hold it, so for now the snap remains.</div><div><br />What amazes me during our little sessions is the way he watches me with his eyes. I try not to stare into them, but it is so hard not to watch those huge windows to his soul. Each time I am with him, I feel another thin layer peel off of him. Little by little he learns to trust me a little more. As I stroke his forehead, I am amazed by the sensitivity of Argo. Just a breath from me and he reacts, not in a jumpy way, but I can feel his skin underneath my hand tighten and then relax. I have never been around a horse that is as sensitive as him. I now understand why my friend’s mare, Mystic does not like a stiff brush used on her. I always felt it was the princess in her, but now I realize it is her sensitive nature. </div><div><br />I began touching the area where his neck ties into his shoulder with a crop. This was quite comical to watch the first few times. Now though he has pretty much gotten used to it, almost to the point where I think he enjoys the scratching now. He is more protective of his left side than his right, so we start with the bad side and when he allows me to touch his left side, and then he gets his much deserved treat. He has quickly figured out that if he works with me, he gets rewarded, and the longer he holds out, the longer I will pester him. He is an extremely quick learner when you think about it. 17 years in the wild and then plopped in my lap, that’s a lot to overcome and he has been a shining example of how special the Kiger Mustang is. I’m not sure if I will ever adopt another one, but I’m not, not saying that I wouldn’t adopt one in the future.<br /></div><div> </div><div>I can’t wait till I can curry that coat of his and look at that tail, it will be so gorgeous when it gets a proper brushing, his mane is in wind knots right now, but we will get there, we have nothing but time.<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5296755588123757154" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 241px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkQxlMsVf0s7tegk0hAPmOlkA9Kx6iQFLk5EqiajWOjAInp7mk_xYOleaXYeCRPC-8W5eEFZB_JGelRHFhjzQRxJ5IuwhIhf2xCs-WpxkjuEQbjpmXFJf4ZvUNLCkHRckme8FFPJwDdAvv/s320/JanArgo.jpg" border="0" /><br />Argo also has been getting more used to my dogs. My dogs normally in the past, always followed me into the stallion paddock, but since Argo arrived, they have not gone past the fence line. I worried he would be alarmed, scared, charge them, etc..., if they ended up in the paddock. I think they sense what could possibly happen and are respectful to Argo. That does not keep them from doing their antics outside the paddock though, which always gets quite the snort and blow from Argo.<br /></div><div></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5296755574714691170" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 241px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3ROhxstDB59oTGyTdgJajHmZJrY3YJURZJK__W3UEjW7NeIzItM998leIyiXsXSB4qmqCj-H_0SdQqITJZDFrRQnGq1g7p7n3dVBgbwxv-YehwlunrhARkmO3kZ3IpQBAsckf_GlS9Db-/s320/3Amigos.jpg" border="0" /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5296755586314870562" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 241px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhePBzVaRUjlGMWbi0sFC6xNDzxc5fA2e86SSblUrg3ZobuiaUM8Ic0wZUKktKW-hwGkUD5LLRWr9OUM92yNADWVwnnn8JjHx2WCcqPLH4-tlllfnDa_aixq2S-uPort2gpeC363aYkGXtm/s320/BobandTracker.jpg" border="0" /><br /><div>I mean come on, what would you think if you had that charging out of the barn towards you at full tilt with the food lady and her red wheel barrow? </div><div></div></div></div></div></div>SkyBar Farmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18259491221540240852noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4959739577246288527.post-33067276743694709222009-01-21T08:00:00.001-05:002009-01-21T08:00:01.577-05:00Not so Wordless Wednesday<div align="center"><span style="font-size:130%;"><strong>Stuck!</strong></span></div><br /><div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDX2wCs0kBidsWuLcwjrr2eikiawDjESe6B8f6jelmDco8jo4xf7zuqfDqD4BrDMjjNNLEDs5Mmfot_VtynEFr9Rbd5R3frkGsWUQAIPEuShilVUQrE_goKEHxkgbAbTgy4L0DVorxd6bv/s1600-h/Argoswheelbarrow.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5293692499882912306" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 302px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDX2wCs0kBidsWuLcwjrr2eikiawDjESe6B8f6jelmDco8jo4xf7zuqfDqD4BrDMjjNNLEDs5Mmfot_VtynEFr9Rbd5R3frkGsWUQAIPEuShilVUQrE_goKEHxkgbAbTgy4L0DVorxd6bv/s400/Argoswheelbarrow.jpg" border="0" /></a> If you have been reading and keeping up with Argo, you will know the significance of this picture.<br /></div>SkyBar Farmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18259491221540240852noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4959739577246288527.post-59630847033319040862009-01-05T13:16:00.002-05:002009-01-05T13:17:46.840-05:00Argo Receives an Award<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiegYxLUrba10ytgJ0N9C5ugrZQP1Te3ezFaCkdnUuT0NW9VlHaG5YlKa4Z8JR9K-boHpChkqXX80yv-uqq5VnbSaGH_hupPJdXx6R3fMwoLVUJYhXq-V0a9wR1sy-Gd2iIEDK8HbxjiTv6/s1600-h/butterflyaward.png"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5287875334573411362" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 166px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 200px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiegYxLUrba10ytgJ0N9C5ugrZQP1Te3ezFaCkdnUuT0NW9VlHaG5YlKa4Z8JR9K-boHpChkqXX80yv-uqq5VnbSaGH_hupPJdXx6R3fMwoLVUJYhXq-V0a9wR1sy-Gd2iIEDK8HbxjiTv6/s320/butterflyaward.png" border="0" /></a><span xmlns=""><br />On Sunday, I received a note in my email saying I had been bestowed an award from a fellow blogger, <a href="http://deserthorses.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Desert Horses</a>. Cheryl Ann has a lovely blog where she details her life in southern California, (okay, I'm just a bit jealous) with her horses, dogs and family. I love viewing all the warm temperature pictures and I love her brand of humor. Thank you; I am honored to receive this award. I promise to keep up with the pictures and posting. :0<br /><div><br /><p>The rules for this award state that I have to pass it on to other blogs I enjoy. Gosh there are so many to choose from that I read as often as I feasibly can. Let's see…<br /></p><br /><ol><br /><li><a href="http://savingargus.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">From Hell to Heaven: Saving Argus</a> ~ Katie's story of saving Argus from a life of neglect and torture is awe inspiring to me. Her way with words is just simply amazing. You feel like you are right there with her. I followed Argus story since almost the beginning of his rescue. I have cried, laughed and prayed more reading this blog than I have any other. Simply put, this blog is a must read. Currently, Argus is battling Pigeon Fever and needs all the well wishes and prayer that you can give him. He is extremely special.<br /><br /></li><br /><li><br /><div><a href="http://crazyhorsewoman.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Adventures of a Horse Crazed Mind</a> ~ If you want to laugh until you cry, this is definitely the place to do it. I adore her spin on everyday life. One of my favorite recent posts of hers was from over the holidays; <a href="http://crazyhorsewoman.blogspot.com/2008/12/bom-chicka-wah-wah.html" target="_blank">Bom Chicka Wah Wah…</a>, left me in stitches.<br /></div><br /><p><br /></p></li><br /><li><br /><div><a href="http://www.junkdrawerblog.com/" target="_blank">The Junk Drawer: Humor for the Masses</a> ~ This by far is one of the most hysterical reads on the internet. One could literally spend days reading Kathy's archives and be rolling in fits of laughter the whole time. Must read, is the post about getting her father hooked in to the information super highway, titled <a href="http://www.junkdrawerblog.com/2007/07/adventures-in-tech-support-when-your-82-year-old-father-wants-to-be-on-the-bleeding-edge-of-technology.html" target="_blank">Adventures in Tech Support.</a><br /></div><br /><p><br /></p></li><br /><li><a href="http://mugwumpchronicles.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Mugwump Chronicles</a> ~ A fantastic read! Her blog is very insightful and causes me to pause at times with her words on the current horse industry. Her life stories keep you hanging on to every word. Her series, <a href="http://mugwumpchronicles.blogspot.com/2008/11/me-mort-and-melinda-moline.html" target="_blank">Me, Mort and Melinda Moline</a> kept me wanting to read more. She is an amazing writer. Another favorite is when she writes about her experiences with the Big K.<br /><br /></li><br /><li><a href="http://beautifulmustang.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Beautiful Mustang</a> ~ A blog about a gorgeous Mustang mare who was adopted by Linda around the same time I adopted Argo. She like me has entered into the arena of owning her first mustang, I am sure Beautiful will not be her last though. She has offered many an encouraging word to me. She is a wonderful woman with a wonderful horse.<br /></li></ol><br /><p><span style="font-family:Georgia;color:#333333;">Please check out these wonderful blogs!<br /></span></p><br /><p><span style="font-family:Georgia;color:#333333;">The instructions for the award:<br />Place the logo on your blog. Add a link to the person who nominated you; nominate other blogs for the award;<br />add links to those blogs; leave a message for your nominees; and give a reason why their blogs are cool.<br /></span></p></span></div>SkyBar Farmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18259491221540240852noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4959739577246288527.post-66639581466926722472009-01-03T17:26:00.004-05:002009-01-21T05:49:39.072-05:00On the Scenic Tour<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8isdWIq66UWKYqULu43Y_hd6kVjJhIZ_kBSqludqfH8JJ2cwvKbRQZWz15-q955zLkewMzZ-IYNPg20Wd-reCyGiZTikzjX0d-4KycciGwalrGdokjq-6YTiArFDhlA092cNCzbUZTclC/s1600-h/winter+drive.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5287198667408818290" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8isdWIq66UWKYqULu43Y_hd6kVjJhIZ_kBSqludqfH8JJ2cwvKbRQZWz15-q955zLkewMzZ-IYNPg20Wd-reCyGiZTikzjX0d-4KycciGwalrGdokjq-6YTiArFDhlA092cNCzbUZTclC/s320/winter+drive.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div><strong>When you look at your life, the greatest happinesses are family happinesses. ~Joyce Brothers</strong></div><br /><div><strong></strong></div><br /><div>For some time now I have thought about where my life has been and where it is going. It’s funny how events can shape us if we allow them to. I had always had my life planned out as to where I was going and what I was going to do and for the most part, what I have worked so hard for and dreamt big for, has been achieved, not all, but most. My road map diverted and took scenic routes at times, but I managed to get back on track. I still have plenty of goals I want to achieve, but I am happy for the most part with what I have done with my life. No regrets, only experiences.<br /><br />The loss of both my parents within the last 3 years has made me put a lot of things in perspective about what is important and what is not. Both my parents struggled to the very end with debilitating diseases. My mother, struggled her entire lifetime it seems. My father battled three forms of cancer for seven years, before losing his fight. Through it all though, they knew what was important; family. My road map went entirely off track when their health headed south. Some ridiculed me for my decisions in wanting to be there for my parents, but more encouraged me to know what was important; family. So I have been on the scenic tour for some time, some of it welcome, some not so much, during this time though I have learned a few things. </div><div><br /><br />My children are growing faster than I expected them too. I guess I thought somewhere back when, that they would stay four foot tall and 10 years old. Much to my surprise they haven’t! I want to cherish the precious few years I have left before they leave to make their mark in the world.</div><div><br />I desperately love my husband. Not that I didn’t already or before, but I miss him when he is gone five and a half days a week now with his new job. I miss the smell he leaves of himself on the pillow next to mine. I miss him accusing me of my 492 looks when he has done something I do not approve of. I hate being the one to make the coffee Monday thru Friday now, he does it better. I want him with me so I can love him.<br /><br />My horses really don’t mind, nor do they get ruined if I don’t ride every single one of them every week, so that I can have more time to do what is becoming more important in my life; family.</div><br /><div><br />A simple phone call can be all it takes to make someone’s day turn bright.<br /><br />A simple kindness to someone can mean more than you can possibly believe to them.</div><br /><div><br />These are just some of the things I have learned on my little scenic tour.</div><br /><div><br />I know this does not seem to relate to Argo, but in a lot of ways it does. He and I are more alike than I realized. He has been on the scenic tour since he was first captured in October 2007, and he is still trying to figure out where the map will lead him, as am I. Argo is slowly learning and accepting what family truly means. When his muzzle brushes across my jacket as he reaches for his grain, there is slowly becoming a greater softness in his eyes, an acceptance of me so to speak. A willingness to want to be with me; family.</div><br /><div></div>SkyBar Farmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18259491221540240852noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4959739577246288527.post-62497188842798349362008-12-31T21:30:00.002-05:002008-12-31T21:35:26.750-05:00Happy New Year!<div align="center"><strong>An optimist stays up until midnight to see the new year in. A pessimist stays up to make sure the old year leaves. ~Bill Vaughan<br /></strong><br /><br /></div><p align="center"><a title="Orkut and MySpace Glitter Graphics" href="http://www.glittergraphicsnow.com/"><img alt="Glitter Graphics" src="http://i287.photobucket.com/albums/ll149/glittergn/newyear/newyear001.gif" border="0" /></a></p><div align="center">My hope for you is to have a wonderful New Year! </div>SkyBar Farmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18259491221540240852noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4959739577246288527.post-15894515983944735402008-12-25T06:03:00.003-05:002008-12-25T06:13:29.202-05:00Christmas Greetings from Argo<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJM2_nkrnUez4H6Eyno6wCGqAZqSDwJOKeRpOi6j-r9stiFa4PJV5510GEpotuNWuvdHnI2vuBMgQA_1QYsGqQx8Txz0pgdbxsOkSZyomPtC8cYlsjVTBBOyZr4qjcqxLOQSo84H7pfGk_/s1600-h/Argoxmas.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5283684116953686722" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 392px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJM2_nkrnUez4H6Eyno6wCGqAZqSDwJOKeRpOi6j-r9stiFa4PJV5510GEpotuNWuvdHnI2vuBMgQA_1QYsGqQx8Txz0pgdbxsOkSZyomPtC8cYlsjVTBBOyZr4qjcqxLOQSo84H7pfGk_/s400/Argoxmas.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div><br /><div align="center"><strong>The God of Peace be with you all</strong></div><br /><div align="center"><strong></strong></div></div>SkyBar Farmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18259491221540240852noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4959739577246288527.post-47040387332205382512008-12-22T12:57:00.002-05:002008-12-22T13:00:25.153-05:00Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSryBBia_h5ZOEZcZQYV3P8d-NAbJsa-nfdJmyFm715sSeElSMj_IIPm6rBVnw9fKd01HUVVgC0KSmbS8HYuH1-QeaLW9xG9xU04XlGsFZ1mwIVpHhAEWQbtOXZXpY9R6PJdXaAaXprnQ7/s1600-h/Argo+in+his+shed.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5282675683917355266" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSryBBia_h5ZOEZcZQYV3P8d-NAbJsa-nfdJmyFm715sSeElSMj_IIPm6rBVnw9fKd01HUVVgC0KSmbS8HYuH1-QeaLW9xG9xU04XlGsFZ1mwIVpHhAEWQbtOXZXpY9R6PJdXaAaXprnQ7/s320/Argo+in+his+shed.jpg" border="0" /></a><span xmlns=""><br /><div><p><strong><span style="font-family:Georgia;">Every mile is two in winter. ~George Herbert</span><br /></p></strong><br /><p>I have no room to complain about the weather, compared to others, but let me just whine for a little bit. I woke up to 4 degrees this morning with a -19 degree wind-chill. This makes barn chores really a chore. Okay, I feel a little bit better now.<br /></p><br /><p>On to Argo updates:<br /></p><br /><p><strong>First # 1<br /></strong></p><br /><p>Last week was a bunch of firsts; they are beginning to come in steady streams now. Argo now fully expects to be hand fed each meal. He no longer looks at me when I come in and appears to think he is merely entertaining me. When I bring his meals, out the come in the form of the red wheel barrow, I take his bucket of goodies into the field and leave the wheel barrow outside the field which holds his lovely hay. In the past he would stand by the fence, longingly looking at the precious, red vision of beauty, and stand there looking at it and then looking at me. I would have to whistle at him and shake his bucket of goodies to get him to begrudgingly follow me to his shed for his goodies. Once there though, he would quickly forget about the dreamy vision of the red wheel barrow. He would gladly stuff his muzzle into his feed pan that I so willingly hold up for him and eat his meal. Only after we had our moments would I give him his hay. Now though for the past several days, he has watched me put the barn horses out to pasture, and he whinnies at me, as if to say "Hello, don't forget me!" Once the red wheel barrow and I get to his field, he waits for me to come in, to make sure I have brought the goodies, and then he turns away from me and heads to his shed. This, my friends is a big, dang deal! Argo has turned his back on me. Argo never turns his back on anything. Except for Flash, and I didn't blame him there. Flash is a bit impetuous and is kind of like the person we all know that talks incessantly and we literally tune them out. I digress though… Argo knows that by turning his back on something, he leaves himself vulnerable, 17 years of living wild has ingrained that into him. So what does it mean that he has turned his back on me? I did really over think this one. When you spend your days alone for 10 hours cleaning stalls and performing barn chores and playing with horses, you have way too much time to think about things. Again, I digress. My opinion on it is Argo has learned the routine, he knows the hay won't come until we have some time together and that he is only delaying the inevitable and hey, the abominable snowman, wrapped in polar fleece, really is not that bad, she brings goodies. This is a big milestone for Argo and I in my opinion.<br /></p><br /><p><strong>First # 2, or should I say try # 64<br /></strong></p><br /><p>Argo lost his 15 ft lead rope several months ago, but the bull snap was still attached of course to his halter. At first it did not bother me that it was dangling there, now though it has become an annoyance to me. Each time I let Argo eat from his bucket that I hold up for him, I attempt to touch the snap. Believe me when I say this it's not easy. I am currently on try 64, yes I'm counting, and I'm weird that way. First I started just touching it with my index finger on my left hand, while holding the feed pan. He would feel the change and quickly step away, but just as quickly comes back in for the goodies. And again I would touch it, until he would just stand there and let me touch it. Then we progressed to me cupping the snap in my hand, again he would step back and then just as quickly come back to me. So as I said we are on try # 64 of removing the snap. Maybe by try 100 we will have it off.<br /></p><br /><p><strong>First # 3 or more like a progression of my thumb<br /></strong></p><br /><p>While Argo has been eating out of his feed pan that I so lovingly hold for him, are you seeing a pattern here? I had begun touching him with thumb under his cheek. This of course was met with, "OMG! What was that?" very quickly though it turned into a tolerance of my thumb. It has gently progressed to four fingers and my thumb scratching his jowl and under his chin, which he is really beginning to enjoy, as am I. I now have progressed to taking my index finger and stroking his forehead while he is busily eating the goodies. I also have been able to touch his halter underneath his head and both cheek pieces.<br /></p><br /><p><strong>First # 4 Kara sings to Argo<br /></strong></p><br /><p>This morning as I was so lovingly holding Argo's feed that is now in a smaller bucket, I was so bitterly cold and just wanted him to eat so I could be done, Argo decided the smaller bucket was not to his liking. For several minutes Argo did his little dance, like a small child saying "No Mommy, I want the blue one, not the red one! (Insert whine)" My cheeks were on fire from the cold, but I did not want to give up, so I began singing Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire. Where is the sanitarium truck when you need one? Argo was priceless. I am sure you have all seen dogs tilt their head when something strikes them odd, well this was exactly what Argo did. Just priceless! He must have taken pity on me or just wanted me to shut up because he quickly came in and dove into the smaller bucket with the goodies. I continued to sing Christmas carols to him while he ate. He finished breakfast in record time. I was somewhat offended.<br /></p><br /><p></span></p></div>SkyBar Farmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18259491221540240852noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4959739577246288527.post-11276061422803824632008-12-16T11:42:00.005-05:002008-12-16T11:53:39.264-05:00Circle of Life<strong>If people behaved like governments, you'd call the cops. ~Kelvin Throop</strong><br /><strong></strong><br />Usually, I do not get this fired up about a subject that is not directly affecting me, but I guess, in several ways this issue does directly affect me. Below is an excerpt from an article that was recently published in the <a href="http://www.rgj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=200881212028" target="_blank">Reno Gazette Journal</a>. Don’t get me wrong, I love my horses and I love Argo, but I questioned the need for him to be captured from the very beginning.<br /><br /><strong><span style="color:#009900;">Plan to round up wild horses in Nevada angers some<br /></span></strong><br /><span style="color:#009900;">“The U.S. Bureau of Land Management has started removing 1,480 horses south of Battle Mountain and plans to begin removing 450 more in January south of Gerlach, agency spokesman JoLynn Worley said.”</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#009900;">“Without the actions, she said, the animals could starve this winter because of extremely limited forage. The horses will be sent to a BLM coral just north of Reno to be readied for adoption or long-term holding.”<br /><br />“We shouldn’t be rounding up any more horses until we resolve the issue of tens of thousands of horses that already have been rounded up and are in holding pens,” said Matt Rossell, outreach coordinator for the San Rafael, Calif.-based animal rights group In Defense of Animals.”</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#009900;">Chris Heyde, deputy director of government and legal affairs for the Animal Welfare Institute based in Washington D.C., disputed the agency’s conclusion that an emergency exists. “They’re not starving, and they’re using it as an excuse to remove more horses,” Heyde said. “They can survive if we can keep our little fingers off them.” Worley said leaving the herds alone could cause large die-offs and damage rangelands.</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#009900;">BLM officials have said the agency faces a crisis because of the skyrocketing costs of caring for the horses in long-term facilities where the animals live out their days — some for as long as 20 years.</span><br /><br />You can read the entire article <a href="http://www.rgj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=200881212028">here</a>.<br /><br />When is the public going to scream at their lawmakers and ask them to be more responsible with our money? Starving Wild Horses! They are not domestic. We already have an unwanted horse crisis as it is within the domestic horse population, why does the government feel the need to capture more to throw them into long term holding to live out their days.<br /><br />I know this will upset some people, but unless you want to put all these Mustangs in your backyard, take a dose of reality. Wild Mustangs are a natural part of the eco-system. When they die they become food for another part of the eco-system, whether it is a predator bird, the Mountain lion feeding her cubs, or a coyote scavenging for remains, all the way down the chain to the horse decomposing into the Earth and replacing what was used. This is part of the natural balance of the Earth. The BLM has screwed up this ecosystem to a point where now they are going to start begging our law makers to give them more money to feed the mustangs in long term holding. The BLM is going to ask for a bailout during a time when none of us can afford to bail ourselves out.<br /><br />Has anyone thought of what the impact to the other predatory animals in the 10 Western States is going to be with the calculated removal of the Wild Mustangs? I have done a quick bit of research on this. <a href="http://www.mountainlion.org/newsroom_article.asp?offset=175&news_id=564" target="_blank">The Mountain Lion Foundation</a> has been doing a study involving the lions in regards to their eating habits and Wild Mustangs. It has been found that the mountain lions are taking down mustangs for food. Furthermore, the <a href="http://ndow.org/about/pubs/pdf/reports/predator.pdf" target="_blank">Nevada Department of Wildlife</a> is scratching their heads as to why they are losing Big Horn Sheep to the big cats. An excerpt from their predator management plan: “Wildlife Services will attempt to control resident lions if they are in conflict with bighorn sheep.” Hummm, do you think it could be because you are surgically removing a possible alternative food source? Also, what did you think would happen to the Sheep, they are also a food source for the mountain lions?<br /><br />This same report talks about protecting Mule Deer from Coyotes. Another excerpt from their management plan: “A total of 148 coyotes were removed by various methods from the entire Wilson Creek project.” Want to know my thoughts on why the coyotes are being removed? Money that is received from hunters wanting to hunt trophy mule deer is the biggest motivator. Do you know how much an out of state tag costs for someone wanting to buy a license to hunt? $142.00. A state resident is charged $33.00. Factor in that a lot of out of state hunters use a professional outfitter to help them find a trophy buck which can cost at a minimum $4,000 to the hunter to use the outfitter. Hunting is big business; just ask the <a href="http://www.nra.org/">NRA</a> or my husband on that matter.<br /><br />To protect the bighorn sheep, mule deer, elk and some grouse in this report, their submitted budget for fiscal year 2006 was $367,549. That’s not their total budget; this was for just eliminating/removing mountain lions, coyotes and ravens!<br /><br />I’m not even going to get into the grazing cattle on this post. Suffice it to say, lobbyists are directing what our lawmakers are doing in Washington. For my thoughts on how the cattlemen are also pushing for the extermination of the Mustangs you can read my post on it <a href="http://argosjourney.blogspot.com/2008/11/mustang-problem.html" target="_blank">here</a>.<br /><br />Follow the money and you will see the Wild mustangs are being exterminated because of greed and money. The government is not worried about the starving wild mustangs; they are worried about the money that they can line their pockets with, and the Wild Mustangs are in the way of that.<br /><br />We all need to take action on this, even if you have no stake in what happens to the wild mustangs, mountain lions, coyotes or for God’s sake ravens, because the fact remains that the government mismanages our hard earned money every day and unless we start telling them how, when and where our money is to be spent, they will spend us straight into oblivion.<br /><br />You can contact your representatives and congressmen by going to the following website <a href="http://www.usa.gov/Contact/Elected.shtml" target="_blank">http://www.usa.gov/Contact/Elected.shtml</a>.SkyBar Farmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18259491221540240852noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4959739577246288527.post-86750354075180346192008-12-12T14:18:00.003-05:002008-12-12T14:32:55.729-05:00Breakfast is Served<div align="center"><strong>All happiness depends on a leisurely breakfast. ~John Gunther</strong></div><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5278985645703785442" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 274px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE0utMnA_A_gaozbcs91I88P08A3A00HfM8S-Klu4qT3b70YcFjNZdlVvrvPrm9QdvoS54txFP823akuGraa2Kdn8wepVsKb7hEk-C0aFqqYLmE2ZfqLSQVQvg8UnaRaud0t3gPPbSwFhf/s320/Argo+eye.jpg" border="0" /><br /><div align="center">Mini goal achieved! Argo is really starting to enjoy the idea that I hold his breakfast up for him. Actually, I think he is enjoying it a little too much.<br /></div><div align="center"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5278985638165633858" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglOmHIgD8uyvYIbdVepwhdLxbttxp4zjmNe3PkcHRdRTD_juRakaqQAIXbL9aIdEdDJSqf-N-wBb0N9gqLNQSXxIGa4xepCEKpMCJMsPvHUlujJQzD3yy10UIsAKKdC2T9feYvm7cjM2sb/s320/Argo+eating2.jpg" border="0" /></div><div align="center">Humm..., it smells like breakfast.</div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5278985634626245698" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIKhmW-9-EmR77QF7osEMSvQlR3j9VYtXm71ausyI46RKmlg5n1N5Epn9IW36v_3EsFj1zYJ5Sn_GW9oR795qUMuK5qiRuD6is-R1Ma69ftNdKKz_k-SKWWqqIMEg92omRveoNMWY4BaTP/s320/Argo+eating1.jpg" border="0" /></div><div align="center">It tastes like breakfast<br /></div><div align="center"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5278985639467108674" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ-4HR-5oidKrhBNYQeSygYQWc2UXcQseZLbg9JXxrf2AXsNUgCc67otdFVvZsU21iw2TchcTw88vKy0inFW_pXerLjUhi0rOUvmrCb5uWraGIcyCAnyeZhsCU9-4_Q2usjPRal6-aBPBn/s320/Argo+eating3.jpg" border="0" /></div><div align="center">Wait... I feel a thumb scratching me while I'm eating breakfast.<br /><br /></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-Nid9yqU7zaIkG2pEEKc7St4H9KGMJ4s7I1bYjNsYVxNdqFZDV72EnlG3034Jwl98AT6KV9gUf2-wz0NChV7Ayjb1blVLKqcjV_9kRpWyXl0rVbZnrdYCad6xu851msJR_Vd9Up6Klwl2/s1600-h/Argo+head+BW.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5278985647396257218" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 199px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-Nid9yqU7zaIkG2pEEKc7St4H9KGMJ4s7I1bYjNsYVxNdqFZDV72EnlG3034Jwl98AT6KV9gUf2-wz0NChV7Ayjb1blVLKqcjV_9kRpWyXl0rVbZnrdYCad6xu851msJR_Vd9Up6Klwl2/s320/Argo+head+BW.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div align="center"> A content Argo after breakfast</div>SkyBar Farmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18259491221540240852noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4959739577246288527.post-35920793301645868032008-12-09T11:58:00.002-05:002009-01-21T05:50:11.340-05:00How do you achieve a goal?<span xmlns=""><p><span style="font-family:Georgia;"><strong>Difficult things take a long time, impossible things a little longer. ~Author Unknown<br /></strong></span></p><p><span style="font-family:Georgia;">When I started on this journey with Argo last May, I had thoughts of how it should progress. My main goal has always been to be able to safely halter and lead Argo in a year. That was truly my only goal. Granted, I was not sure exactly how I would get there, but I read a lot and asked even more questions and drew upon the experiences I have had as well as experiences others have had when it has come to Mustangs. I know there are a few out there who have taken on the task of gentling a mustang of Argo's age, but there are many more who for whatever reason, have chose not to try to gentle their older Mustangs. Needless to say, there is no book out there for "How to gentle your Senior Mustang". If there were I would be the first in line.<br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family:Georgia;">I read some of the blogs from people who are participating in the <a href="http://www.extrememustangmakeover.com/" target="_blank">Extreme Mustang Makeover</a>, and I am just awed as to how quickly they are able to handle their mustangs. Now granted, they are much younger mustangs, but I am still in awe. I wonder though how solid those horses are at 100 days when the head for the competition. I know with my domestic horses, I would never be able to think them solid enough at 100 days, but that's just me. Good Luck to all and stay safe.<br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family:Georgia;">Some friends of mine thankfully think more about my well being than I do </span><span style="font-family:Wingdings;">J</span><span style="font-family:Georgia;"> and have given me some suggestions on working on the trust department with Argo. First, "Get off the damn' ground!" I know, I know, I was compromising. This morning went much better. He still does not trust the camp chair, so I am going to throw my cheapness to the wind and park the camp chair in the corner of his shed. This morning, I sat on a bucket to start (again a compromise). Argo likes buckets, they bring food. Then after he was comfortable with that, we progressed to standing. Well, after 3-4 minutes of Argo him- hawing and walking back and forth, he decided he could try to eat from his feed pan with me holding the feed pan AND me standing. What a sight. Argo had the "Just Spook It" look going on. All four feet splayed as wide as he could get them, just in case he needed to instantly teleport somewhere else. I at first had to look down and away from him for him to eat, and then in my "baby talk" fashion I told him how brave he was, and what a good boy he was. Nut house here I come. I then began to turn my head to face him just a little bit and he kept his head in the feed pan. Argo still had all four feet splayed out for an easy exit, but still had his head buried in the feed pan. That was until the scary <a href="http://argosjourney.blogspot.com/2008/05/mountain-lion-barn-cats.html">Mountian Lion Barn Cats</a> came strolling in to see what was going on. If you're unfamiliar with the story you must read it. Argo didn't realize the cats were there until they were already milling around my legs. "Just Spook It" came back to life and he took a jump backwards and snorted at the cats that were totally oblivious to Argo having a minor heart attack. They proceeded to use his newly constructed shed as their personal scratching post. Argo cautiously came back to finish his meal keeping one eye on the cats and the other on his feed. I am very pleased. Of course it does not take much to thrill me these days.<br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family:Georgia;">Some other advice I have received and will try out tonight is to hold the feed bucket on my hip. By having it in front of me, I am not letting Argo be comfortable. Horses, when they greet each other, do so at the shoulder, so by having the pan on my hip, I am offering a more comfortable position for Argo. I'm inviting him in as to taking an aggressive stance by having it in front of me. Once he takes a bite, then I will retreat a step and invite him to come to me again and then hopefully he will come and take another bite. Makes sense to me, and it is what I do with my Quarter Horse babies. I need to remind myself to go in baby steps with Argo. He might be a full grown horse, but he is wild and he had a lot of years to learn to trust his instincts. I need to remember that. The Post It note will be attached to my forehead tonight and thank you Karen and Melissa for the advice and keeping me safe. I think I will achieve my one and only goal, but I'm not sure if it will happen in a year.<br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family:Georgia;">So I ask this question; how do you measure your goals? What steps do you take in achieving them? Do you write them down or are they in your head? Do you get upset when you do not feel the timeline you have set is achievable, or do you just keep going at the pace you're going and throw the timeline out the window?<br /></span></p></span>SkyBar Farmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18259491221540240852noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4959739577246288527.post-47521530128104056262008-12-08T11:02:00.004-05:002009-01-21T05:51:17.780-05:00May I have my breakfast, pretty please?<span xmlns=""><p><strong>When the world says, "Give up," Hope whispers, "Try it one more time."~Author Unknown</strong></p><p>A friend who has a ton of wisdom and advice when it comes to Mustangs and more specifically Kiger Mustangs has mentioned that I need to push the envelope with Argo. She gave me some great suggestions to get started on. Such as, if Argo wanted his stipend of grain he had to take it from his bucket in my lap.<br /></p><p>Well, Argo was not impressed with me and my small camp chair in his shed for several days on end, for 15-20 minutes at a clip, so I have had to compromise. I figured he was not comfortable with the camp chair for one, and I did not want to leave it in the shed for him to figure out and possibly destroy. It's a good chair, and believe you me they are hard to come by around here. Secondly, I figured out through trial and error, that he would come closer if I did not look at him directly. Well today we had a breakthrough moment.<br /></p><p>Picture this, I am sitting on the extremely hard and cold ground, cross legged, with thick, clunky, winter boots and Carhartt overalls, (can we say accident waiting to happen when the overstuffed idiot gets rolled over because she has crappy knees and is too cheap to buy another camp chair?) with his big rubber feed pan sitting in my lap, and casually looking at a knot in the wood in his shed. Argo does this little pace, begging for me to just leave, but please leave the feed pan with my little itsy, bitsy bit a grain please. I sit my ground literally and just softly talked to him, telling him what a big doufus he is for being so silly and not just taking the chance, in my "your such a good boy" sweet voice. And then it happened…. With me looking at the very symmetrical knothole in a board, I felt his muzzle push down on the feed pan and grab a bite, and then of course him jumping back, like I was going to spring on him at any moment. Again, he is a sweet, big boy, but we have a ways to go in the trust department. I continued to calmly sit there as my leg began to cramp up, pleading him with my sweet voice, quietly to come back and take some more. All I have to say is Thank God he is a boy! His stomach won out over his mind. He came back and continued to eat the rest of his little meal, and I practiced slowly turning my head to look at him face to well, forelock. He jumped back once, but quickly came back to finish. I continued to talk to him telling him how good he was and what a big, grown up boy he was, all in my sweet, baby talk kind of voice. Good Grief! If someone had seen me, I would have been admitted to the nut house! I did manage to keep the tears in check. I couldn't imagine the leg cramping up and the frozen cheeks as well.<br /></p><p>I hope to be able to get him more comfortable with this in the coming weeks and then add in my dressage whip to start rubbing him on his shoulder while he is eating. Maybe, I will spring for a camp chair too!<br /></p><p>Sorry no pictures this time. I will have to try and do this when Morgan or Zared (I can hear the whining about the cold already) are home so they can take a few pictures of the stuffed marshmallow and her Big Doufus.</p></span>SkyBar Farmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18259491221540240852noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4959739577246288527.post-43249380629612391012008-11-27T07:27:00.010-05:002008-11-27T08:05:15.879-05:00Happy Thanksgiving with Winter Pictures<div><br /><div align="center"><strong>Let us remember that, as much has been given us, much will be expected from us, and that true homage comes from the heart as well as from the lips, and shows itself in deeds. ~Theodore Roosevelt</strong></div><br /><br /><div align="center">I just couldn't pass up taking pictures. I must admit it, I love snow. I hate the cold, but I appreciate the beauty that snow offers to the landscape around me.<br /><br /><br /></div><div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5273315731319058882" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_XuXI3loAvWPhRT1VLG9Zij1UPDjsV5AfYBthr1E6pkuMP5eZulLk7FJDkOeCN891yz5HjGkOpmByNw8ydb8tHwhHqje7klB9tBxebBQOEwf52VYT5eUwvXTG00kL5DafAp0FhpJlK-BB/s320/winter+drive.jpg" border="0" /><br /></div><p align="center"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5273315728112320242" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDafxiIOEM0kccOCkMGriStwpf_oEL1G5_7xs3NyBcXkRWQNTvBSZqIbENK_yLezd8Era9I7SWTr_CUlj_Er1gOiSr0y0lTvPPjep7imm_WMNmV2CEXDR3WH96tjqqUvCeBbS7WHSqxwZf/s320/November+snow+3.jpg" border="0" /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5273315721125488050" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvijwwdomFp9lsH-7eA7X09oRSZ8Rh9aBk3sgz4hYaRZBw3ScEpKfjcImBnzJ3S2STYGmXwOkU_VHWCuHf5jPeLIhjRbjKoZswsrYdqaDWQ0bENahquwxszT_Mqdp4LshvGg2zCv52XuYf/s320/November+snow+2.jpg" border="0" /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5273315718814043794" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghaUmHVD-T1sGfDC8REPSs_NZjHh0Om4Q0Pip1eWaM94DNZvn05GXi5TtYjoNtP87Y8pZZSQmN3qUOl_NPvqC1DrBMMD9-Jnqn4sJ9GoU-8lLJo000IGlq8EGMmqYRQPDNs3WvYgvC09Vo/s320/November+snow.jpg" border="0" /><br />And of course, pictures of Argo.<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5273318335563193154" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmyzt_HGJdZ-wSYjvZdxjevF7s6N02nsU_imrIUsDnMG6a4LWB_GdIcKT9d_pc476agBl7vO-qML3Ls2o8CfKo1FEbNYJ9JUkzJAQ1EYmPZCqcOQgePrg9Jjqaa1kmTjYDbd1sahJNlxxg/s320/Argoa+November+26.jpg" border="0" /><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5273317468884997250" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 266px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9y46qQyHKRjFSTYn0RLxXYu4cBXsV5yS2hxAMIysIaiWKxIBsVZg9UCBG_eBqb3_bre1Agtlw_eo57J4ffQsWJ_qVZ9FJex3SJ9rSGuqx3LFcds6WwjbNu1aEXMjAAAbdlBu_cgz696ym/s320/Argob+November+26.jpg" border="0" /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5273317472977953810" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqdWTgSfTnYle44I_esqew5ZJmcevRBKzKyv3hfj8V9wwyyVv-GjgnMWjJ0MU8UNT3Ihp_SuWw-kBtnX2T-io34JVbwjjMHeaP4S_pnwTMpIo42NxhrVBtUuTyBtac4-lpalhyphenhyphenmKAZ_tYH/s320/Argoc+November+26.jpg" border="0" /><br />Bear with me while I experiment with different photo options.</p><br /><br /><p align="center"><strong>I love Thanksgiving turkey. It's the only time in Los Angeles that you see natural breasts. ~Arnold Schwarzenegger</strong><br /></p><br /><br /><div align="center"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5273322238282066434" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 308px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 75px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_XikeovMpVePQ48HVNUrePQB5Ph-eB58NQ2SCl_v12UUkKoURKfM5oniiAit_EOOWfd3sHElOu4-LHv9Lh5BQ7A57yaRaHNRrpeM_gttA7F5GStu-AJy69JRo4u15f1xj8L05NJ4z0A2p/s320/happy+thansgiving+tag.jpg" border="0" /><br /></div><br /><br /><div></div></div></div>SkyBar Farmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18259491221540240852noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4959739577246288527.post-58895366730972029302008-11-25T08:46:00.004-05:002008-11-25T08:54:23.748-05:00Argo’s First Pennsylvania Snow<span xmlns=""><span style="font-size:12;"><strong><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="font-size:100%;">What is soul? It's like electricity - we don't really know what it is, but it's a force that can light a room. ~Ray Charles</span><br /></span></span></strong></span><div><div><div><br /><p><span style="font-family:georgia;">Last Thursday, Western PA residents experienced their first measurable snows fall. I knew that Argo would not be any different, but I did have the thought go through my head that he was probably thinking "Is this it? Heck this is nothing!"<br /></span></p><br /><p><span style="font-family:georgia;">We are under a Winter Storm Warning as I type this. According to the Weather people we are supposed to get anywhere from 3-6 inches by tomorrow night. I have learned not to believe them. They get everyone in a panic. People rush to the store and buy enough goods to feed small armies for 4 months. My family and I lived in Iowa for 5 years, now that area can get some snow. When we moved back here I just shook my head at the lunacy of people racing around like they would never see the light of day until April, over a couple inches of snow.<br /></span></p><br /><p><span style="font-family:georgia;">It was fun to get some pictures of Argo though as the big, fat snowflakes were coming down, while he was patiently waiting for the food lady while she snapped some pictures.<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5272591557654286914" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 234px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizU4905rEUqjvZ4D-SMq7REseybBDyBOslcbGZW1ihyphenhyphenlzT8-QdJIUX0vDS7_rsKEBy-fMoR5ijwNlWl3Qu5Ba-nvYid3vuypktENp78Ljd69dRig_ASA9yHNyG575jBQtrmEZ8Ik3bpYYm/s320/PIC-0126.jpg" border="0" /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5272591562898732802" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZE7knSZKn97YzGgIUAbAp96REMh6flIRsK-5G7E82A96HErY02fyQdSK6GjhcZKnkZThGTvOowg-K3v73BeBSVjuESRoEKvac3LEtTSjVR67PMpt4ftjpzEXp4v_q0WAQOWBavVss2JdT/s320/PIC-0127.jpg" border="0" /></span></p><span style="font-family:georgia;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5272591569062368914" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXIV2OiNSK-2KsebSSsGlz1lv0IX6xWUPOu2pYPfuJaRAL52CHqaeTZ_c0E2HBW14bd1JULBmTxUyq4pF1qlbaQhbQFWz10q887Ig7hyphenhyphen_0TNk7zT2ppePed_Bj6iVOTxNYIwfrX0xsXLDU/s320/PIC-0131.jpg" border="0" /><br /></span><p><span style="font-family:georgia;">Also, on the news front with Argo. Babe showed him that his shed will not eat him. He has been going in for his evening meal, and based on what I have cleaned up, he is quite comfortable in there for several hours.<br /></span></p><br /><p><span style="font-family:georgia;">In the morning last week, he was still in his shed when I came to feed him, so I quietly shut the gate. It amazed me how stock solid rigid he became. I imagine this was how he was when run into chutes and stocks. He did not move a muscle. I placed his food in, and he relaxed a little. I climbed up the gate as he stood there and for the first time was able to stroke his neck. The feeling was unbelievable. I felt the tears run down my cheeks, I know I get way too emotional when these little breakthroughs happen, but I am still in awe every time they do. To touch something Wild is just a thrill; to feel his muscles loosen under that touch tells me that he is accepting me. It is so amazing to me that a creature that lived his life in the wild for 17 years will stand here quietly in a 10x12 shed and allow this blubbering woman to hang over a gate to stroke his neck. When he exhaled, I hadn't realized I had been holding my breath as well; we both shared the moment and when he looked at me with those eyes I saw an understanding in them. His eyes speak so much to me, ever since I first saw pictures of him. I watch him and I learn from him as I hope he is learning from me. </span></p><p><span style="font-family:Georgia;font-size:85%;"><br /></p></span></span></div></div></div>SkyBar Farmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18259491221540240852noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4959739577246288527.post-56175481449929936012008-11-21T07:05:00.006-05:002008-11-21T11:35:51.899-05:00The Mustang Problem<strong>It might be more worthwhile if we stopped wringing our hands and started ringing our congressmen. ~Author Unknown</strong><br /><br />Just a note: Scroll down to the bottom and turn the radio off, prior to watching the videos.<br /><br />I had planned on a totally different post, but I cannot get the plight of the Wild Mustangs out of my thoughts. Argo could have so easily been one of the doomed mustangs. Through him, I have become very defensive of these “Living Legends”. The more I read the more questions I have.<br /><br />I am posting a few videos that were not made by me. Some of them are graphic. Please, I advise you, do not let young children watch them before you have seen them.<br /><br />For some history on their plight:<br />Wild horses were thought to be scourges of the land in the late 1800’s, they interfered with grazing areas for cattle in the western states, and Cattlemen basically had open season on the Mustangs. They shot them, tortured them and drove them over cliffs to their death. The cattlemen basically felt that they were eliminating pests and animals that were grazing on precious land that their cattle herds needed. Mind you most of this land was not owned by the cattlemen. A few horsemen saw the value in taming some of these wild horses and using them as ranch horses. Some even battled the cattlemen to protect the wild horses. Through those people who fought to protect the horses in the wild, the federal Government heard their heartfelt pleas and in 1971 the mustangs came under federal protection.<br />That law has been called: Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act of 1971, Public Law 92-195, as amended by the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976, Public Law 94-579, and the Public Rangelands Improvement Act of 1978, Public Law 95-514.<br /><br />Their objective was “The goal of the Wild Horses and Burro Resource Management program is to achieve and maintain healthy, viable wild horse and burro populations on the public lands.” * This law was meant to protect the wild horses and burros from harm and gave the BLM the authority to govern how the herds are managed.<br /><br />Enter in a whole new set of problems though. I am a firm believer that whenever the government gets involved, even when they have the best of intentions, plans can go awry and the greed of men takes hold. There are several large lobby groups that have an interest in eradicating the wild horses and burros. In 2005, the law meant to protect the horses, basically started the wheels in motion for their demise.<br /><br />The following video is one view. I don’t necessarily believe all that this group states, but it does provoke me to think about the different groups involved and do my own research. I implore you before you make any decision, do your research, and don’t just rely on what I have to say, or videos or what others might say. Do your own research.<br /><br /><br /><br /><div align="center"></div><br /><object height="349" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/PlcvCf_Yp0s&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0&color1=0xe1600f&color2=0xfebd01&border=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/PlcvCf_Yp0s&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0&color1=0xe1600f&color2=0xfebd01&border=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="349"></embed></object><br /><br />I was unable to find exact numbers, but it is thought that anywhere from 4 to 8 million cattle are currently grazing on public lands, compared to 23 to 27 thousand wild horses and burros grazing on those same lands. The lobbyists for the cattlemen will tell you that the horses are destroying the lands and are competing with the cattle for food and water. I don’t believe this for a second. Cattle do graze differently than horses in how they pull forage, but you have wildlife out there as well eating off those same lands and drinking from the same water sources.<br /><br />Statements have been made that the horses are starving in the wild. I have not found proof of that yet. I have seen pictures of mustangs in extreme stress after capture. That is totally different. The gather process can be very hard on a horse. Imagine being chased for several hours or days by a helicopter. The video below shows you the gather process. Take note of how sweated the horses are.<br /><br /><object height="349" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/k9NLTcwwvOs&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0&color1=0xe1600f&color2=0xfebd01&border=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/k9NLTcwwvOs&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0&color1=0xe1600f&color2=0xfebd01&border=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="349"></embed></object><br /><br />As of this point there are approximately 33,000 wild horses in holding pens, compared to 23,000 – 25,000 in the wild and nowhere for them to go except long term holding. Last year alone the BLM captured over 7,000 wild horses and burros. Why? They already have holding pens that are way over capacity. The cost to the BLM to feed and care for the horses in holding pens is approximately 27 million dollars a year. Folks this is your tax dollars at work. The BLM’s solution to this overpopulation was to euthanize them. I do not have a problem with euthanizing per se. The BLM has gotten themselves into a bind though and before they send 2,000 horses to their death, I want to know how they plan to prevent this from happening again. Obviously there are not enough homes to adopt them into, especially given the current economy, so why has the BLM continued to gather and capture wild horses?<br /><br />Enter Madeleine Pickens, wife of billionaire <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/related/topic/T.+Boone+Pickens?tid=informline" aptureproxy="27">T. Boone Pickens</a>,* she has offered to adopt and give sanctuary to 30,000 of the wild horses currently in the holding pens. Madeleine is a horse woman, a long time breeder of thoroughbreds. I appreciate her offer, I don’t know where she is going to put them all, but I think her biggest concern should be sitting the BLM officials down and asking, better yet, demanding, how they are going to prevent this from happening again.<br /><br />The average life expectancy of a wild horse is 12-14 years. (There are exceptions to this obviously.) A yearling filly can become pregnant and produce a foal during her two year old year. Gestation is approximately 11 months. With that in mind one mare can produce approximately 13 foals during her lifetime, based on a 12-14 year life. There is a solution to this and it has already been put to use in some herds, mare contraceptives. “PZP has been successfully applied to control fertility and limit the size of several small populations of wild horses on eastern barrier islands since the early 1990s. Population-level field trials of an injectable, time-release, pellet form of PZP that will allow almost 2 years of fertility control with a single treatment are currently underway in many western herds. The Assateague team also developed noninvasive methods to assess the pregnancy rates of, and detect ovulation in, free-ranging treated and nontreated, individually recognizable mares by analyzing reproductive steroid metabolites in their feces and urine.”*<br /><br />This contraception can keep a mare from producing a foal for 2-3 years. There are arguments for and against this idea though. Some say, not having a foal, can cause mares to become aggressive and damage the herd dynamics, others talk of the cost. I feel if the BLM is already throwing away 27 million dollars a year to feed wild horses in holding pens, the cost would be minimal. Remember as well, last November at the Kiger adoption, the BLM brought in approximately 95,000 dollars. What is that money being used for? Where is the accounting of how the funds were dispersed? Why can’t 1/3rd of that go to contraception use for the herds they claim to protect?<br /><br />I don’t claim to have the answers, but I do have lots of questions and a lot of concern about government waste. I implore you to make your government answerable to you before they allow this tragedy to happen all over again. You can contact your representatives and congressmen by going to the following website. <a href="http://www.usa.gov/Contact/Elected.shtml">http://www.usa.gov/Contact/Elected.shtml</a><br /><br /><object height="349" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/10_t1rPbs5g&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0&color1=0xe1600f&color2=0xfebd01&border=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/10_t1rPbs5g&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0&color1=0xe1600f&color2=0xfebd01&border=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="349"></embed></object><br /><br />The wild horses have no voice, please be their voice. Demand that the United States government change how they manage the wild horses and burros.<br /><br /><object height="349" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/Sj04S8_4XN8&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0&color1=0xe1600f&color2=0xfebd01&border=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/Sj04S8_4XN8&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0&color1=0xe1600f&color2=0xfebd01&border=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="349"></embed></object><br /><br />The above video was done by a young woman who visits the corrals often. To see more of her videos and link to her blog, please visit: <a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/sheepgirl66">http://www.youtube.com/user/sheepgirl66</a><br /><br />*Cited works<br /><br /><a href="http://www.federalgrantswire.com/wild-horse-and-burro-resource-management.html">Federal Grants Wire</a><br /><a href="http://www.blogger.com/*%20http://www.fort.usgs.gov/WildHorsePopulations/Contraception.asp">Washington Post<br />Fort Collins Research Center</a><br /><br />Links for further reading<br /><br /><a href="http://www.thehorse.com/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=13130">The Horse</a><br /><br /><a href="http://voluntaryinstinct.org/index.html">Voluntary Instinct</a><br /><br /><a href="http://americanherds.blogspot.com/">American Herds</a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.blm.gov/wo/st/en/prog/wild_horse_and_burro/Fact_Sheet.html">BLM Quick Facts</a>SkyBar Farmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18259491221540240852noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4959739577246288527.post-60080915399020679282008-11-13T09:04:00.004-05:002009-01-21T05:53:03.400-05:00The Curious Thing about DNA<span xmlns=""><p><strong><span style="font-family:georgia;">Curiosity is a willing, a proud, and an eager confession of ignorance. ~S. Leonard Rubinstein, <em>Writing: A Habit of Mind</em></span></strong><em><span style="font-family:georgia;"><br /></span></em></p><p><span style="font-family:georgia;">There has been talk going around the Internet of the need for me to DNA Argo, to satisfy others curiosity. I for one am here to say, </span><span style="TEXT-DECORATION: underline"><em><span style="font-family:georgia;"><strong>not ever going to happen! </strong><br /></span></em></span></p><p><span style="font-family:georgia;">The following are direct quotes posted on the Internet that are directly related to the subject of DNA from Argo, and my decision not to submit samples of hair for DNA. </span><strong><br /></strong></p><p><em><span style="font-family:georgia;">"I would be very curious myself to know if he indeed was your stallions sire"</span><strong><span style="font-family:georgia;"><br /></span></strong></em></p><p><em><span style="font-family:georgia;">"I'm just very curious and interested in this...I also wonder why you wouldn't have any intention of DNA testing him. Is it just because you cannot yet get hair pulled? I had my mare done.... she is a matriarch in the Kigers and has quite a history. I think she deserves to have her DNA on file for comparison reasons even though I do not expect to get any foals from her. Who knows how many babies she had out there in the wild?"<br /></span></em></p><p><em><span style="font-family:georgia;">"I also hope that you might consider DNA testing at some point in the future. It might just provide clues about Kiger herd behavior, history and gentic influences may advance inclusion of grey in the registries. There have been several noteable greys in the breed, and they deserve recognition for their contributions."<br /></span></em></p><p><span style="font-family:georgia;">My thoughts on the matter of DNA are: it is an invaluable tool to a breeder, whether it is to determine color markers or to verify parentage, this is in my opinion, is the only reason to DNA a horse. As far as the Wild Kiger herds are concerned: they are wild, part of the beauty of owning a mustang is the unknown parentage. Further, I have no plans of breeding Kiger Mustangs so therefore there is no need to DNA Argo. I have no care as to what his parentage is or what he possibly sired. I just truly want to give him a place in the world where he has no worries and can enjoy a peaceful, quiet retirement and be where he is truly appreciated for what he is; a senior aged wild Kiger Mustang. His color is what attracted me to him, when others scoffed at it, and then his soulful eyes pulled me in further.<br /></span></p><p><strong><span style="font-family:georgia;">The world is full of fools and faint hearts; and yet everyone has courage enough to bear the misfortunes, and wisdom enough to manage the affairs, of his neighbor. ~Benjamin Franklin<br /></span></strong></p><p><span style="font-family:georgia;">The history of Argo that has been told to me thus far has been extremely interesting. Stories of the "Gray Ghost" abound in Oregon. Does his DNA have anything to do with that lore, absolutely not, so why on earth would I feel that pulling some hair would somehow complete me or complete Argo? Do you think he really cares? Why does Argo need to be put out there for dissection into an already hugely conflicted Kiger community? I have no desire to enter that arena. I have enough drama in my life as it is and I do not need to invite more of it into my life. The Kiger Mustangs never asked for or wanted the spectacle that surrounds them. Seven separate registries represent a breed of I believe less than 1500 horses. Why do you ask? Got me, no one can seem to agree on anything. Most of the Kiger registries will not even accept Argo, purely based on the fact that he is gray. The </span><a href="http://www.kigermustangs.org/reg/index.php"><span style="font-family:georgia;">KMA</span></a><span style="font-family:georgia;"> though has accepted horses for registry whom aren't even Kigers, who were not born on Riddle or Kiger Mountain, but elsewhere, some even from states other than Oregon, because they had the desired color and markings. Go DNA those horses and find out who their parents were. The KMA is one of the registries who would refuse Argo registry solely based on his color. From their website:<br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family:georgia;"><em>To be eligible for registration in the Kiger Mesteno Association, there are several factors that are considered. First, the horse must be the offspring of a registered Kiger, or must have documentation that it was gathered from the Riddle Mountain Herd Management Area (HMA) or the Kiger HMA. Secondly, the horse must then pass an inspection based on both conformation and dun factor, and <strong>must be one of the acceptable colors (Dun, Red Dun, Grulla, Bay, Black, Claybank and Roa</strong></em>n).</span><em><span style="font-family:georgia;"> There are many Mustangs from other BLM Herd Management Areas, as well as other breeds that have the dun factor but are not considered a Kiger.<br /></span></em></p><p><span style="font-family:georgia;">But yet it has been proven several times that they have allowed what has been termed "Found Horses" (horses who have been gathered from HMA's other than Riddle and Kiger Mountains) to be accepted into their registry all because they have the right color.<br /></span></p><p><strong><span style="font-family:georgia;">*Note: I have no care either way about the Found Horse issue; it is a non-issue to me. The issue has been literally beat to death and is for people other than me to debate it. I only present it as basis for Argo's exclusion from registry, based on color alone.<br /></span></strong></p><p><span style="font-family:georgia;">No, I will not submit Argo to be the Kiger Communities' sacrificial lamb. Neither he nor I ever signed up for that. I saw a horse that had been ripped from his only home, the wild, at the age of 17, because from what I believe was the greed of breeders worried about their precious dun color being diluted; that being a big part of the reason he had been gathered. I hoped and prayed someone would take him home at the adoption last November. I could not stand by and wonder what his future would hold if he would have stood day after day in long term holding, reduced to a mere number because of human greed. I will certainly not feed into or continue that greed by allowing him to be put under a microscope by pulling hairs so that others can satisfy their own curiosity. </span><strong><br /></strong></p><p><span style="font-family:georgia;">So, in closing, I am sorry that I may have offended some readers, but I have been tremendously offended by the words written about Argo and me, about what I should be doing and what a travesty and shame it is that I will not DNA Argo. To the Kiger owners and Fanciers out there who appreciate what they have without the need to delve into what others should be doing, Thank You for being you.<br /></span></p></span>SkyBar Farmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18259491221540240852noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4959739577246288527.post-32562117575484546932008-11-10T21:17:00.002-05:002008-11-10T21:26:17.678-05:00Argo Gets a Girlfriend<span xmlns=""><strong>Flirtation: attention without intention. ~Max O'Rell, John Bull and His Island</strong></span><br /><span xmlns=""></span><br /><span xmlns="">Well, as I had posted in my Catch-up post, I was to be bringing my broodmare, Babe, home from summer pasture. Babe came home on the first of November and on Sunday she got to meet Argo. To say she was not impressed is an enormous understatement.<br /><br /></span><span xmlns=""><div><div><div><br /><p>Babe is a grand old girl at the age of 16. She has given me some of my finest horses. She is a "No Fluff, No Muff", kind of mare, the perfect horse for me. Babe started out her younger years as a bareback bronc horse, traveling from Rodeo to Rodeo for several years, before coming to me at the age of 7, after being rehabbed by a dear friend. She has for the most part been the foundation of my breeding program. Believe it or not her sons and daughters do not share her love of throwing their rider and then trying to snuff the life out of them, hence why she was cut loose from the Rodeo string.<br /></p><p>Babe is what every barn owner wants and desires in a herd leader. She has a commanding presence to her and is a wonderful mare for the other horses to look up to. She is fair in her dealings with squabbles, but will not spare punishment for those horses that need a good butt whooping. Just a flick of her ear and horses' stop and rethink what mischief they thought they were going to get into. Babe has also been a fantastic mother. She teaches her foals to respect her and humans, and puts a good willing mind on them as well. All of these traits made her the perfect choice to be a pasture mate for Argo during the winter months, while I continue to debate how and when to introduce Flash into the pasture with Argo.<br /></p><p>Argo, once he saw Babe in the pasture was stoic in a sense. He basically wanted to see what she would do. Babe walked in, glanced at Argo and kept walking past him like he didn't even exist. I think if Argo could have, he would have shrugged his shoulders, as if to say "so what, she's a chick!" That was until she went to his hay, now you're messing with Argo's stomach, and he does not like to share. He marched right over there and told her off! Kind of. With a half hearted kick that he gave, he was quickly reduced to shrugging his shoulders again as Babe squealed and double barreled at him. Then as if she could care less about his hay, she walked off. Poor Argo…. Later in the day though the two of them were working out the hierarchy of a herd of two, Babe not allowing to be pushed and Argo willing to share his hay.<br /></p><p>Babe has also happily shown him that the shed in his paddock is not an evil, Argo eating black hole, but a fine place to dine on what the food lady has lovingly placed out for breakfast.<br /></p><p>Yes, Argo is pleased with himself, as Malarky and Flash seethed over the fact that he was seen smooching a girl.<br /><br /><br /></p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5267219210282207234" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiOjVreCLBB2WZkBYvLwvp7PmGaipnSOcZSKJxnV3OLcJo8QxHWTl_E-T4p3vBGHpYm7VRxFHfh6Ts5x4pUHf33b0ZOIsq3kClpKb6tc554NFUulykaD4tyzt4UhzgzmiSDjvjg64GNjTZ/s320/Argo+and+Babe+1.jpg" border="0" /><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5267219208784910578" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAyIkKn7s796L0DBmQ9un37koemOx_e2ccbld59Evt9C7E9lTZWPfIiq-JJseV-FhOLpvh7WTJRzMvwD4Eixd9i3WZy2tvvttIWD-4y4z6X58PyuaLOjLSOMUzBk9J0Tg_Z-FwhiBrWKSh/s320/Argo+and+Babe+2.jpg" border="0" /><br /><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5267219212181029154" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 312px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUEywlRqjdJN_z-PmRRc-E3i6h4dX009Zheh946zVQC1hRS93ugv9ROm76fRWpaGArRdIaiX2vttpybngaMf34qu1zBp1ZXtWj9bTf7F5yhgUrsxknkunFv2mQbj8qCSsR6gthh2JS2yB4/s320/Argo+and+Babe+5.jpg" border="0" /><br /></p><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5267219213095721730" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 288px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcI4fj9k6YLtZkJYD7APrKANdwpfkWi_lEN0RXUgNksMlDrCkKV5aEI4mDU6WcZtqwBjZe4Ac7S2gieey5E4ESVhuHvdPFFwz4zJId5Fckl9V1S5eJADTjOZf6DpwyccfdPtt9WnnX4ie_/s320/Argo+and+Babe+4.jpg" border="0" /><br /></span></div></div></div><br /></span>SkyBar Farmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18259491221540240852noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4959739577246288527.post-74531100546325829852008-11-07T13:17:00.009-05:002009-01-21T05:54:46.412-05:00One Year Ago…<span xmlns=""></span><br /><span style="font-family:Georgia;"><strong>Sometimes even to live is an act of courage. ~Lucius Annaeus Seneca, <em>Letters to Lucilius<br /></em></strong></span><br />Happy Birthday Argo! I have made November 7<sup>th</sup> Argo's Birthday. This date represents so much. Even though he had already been gathered the month before and his world had been turned upside down, he had courage to survive the un-survivable. As of today, Argo is 18.<br />The Kiger Adoption weekend started in Hines, Oregon, November 7<sup>th</sup>, 2007. Approximately 125 Kiger Mustangs were available for adoption. Argo was there, waiting, watching, and being the quiet, soulful Kiger Mustang that he is.<br /><br />This is Argo, shortly after he was captured in October.<br /><div class="separator" style="CLEAR: both; TEXT-ALIGN: left"><a style="MARGIN-LEFT: 1em; MARGIN-RIGHT: 1em" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHBTCEm5k8UhgLUSzP7580jlQWpGLrLALVgtVSLDft-rMmTtRG6BAXz1XbP8O8Uj1de_H_EruGT_YAW5m90CHPw1-WWlb136wxRwae0kgwnlQUfXRS9aHYEVQP7wVtvE2M9W_tFmVNwW_0/s1600-h/Argo+after+gather+07.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHBTCEm5k8UhgLUSzP7580jlQWpGLrLALVgtVSLDft-rMmTtRG6BAXz1XbP8O8Uj1de_H_EruGT_YAW5m90CHPw1-WWlb136wxRwae0kgwnlQUfXRS9aHYEVQP7wVtvE2M9W_tFmVNwW_0/s320/Argo+after+gather+07.jpg" border="0" rg="true" /></a></div><br />Argo during the adoption in November, thank you Angela for the picture.<br /><div class="separator" style="CLEAR: both; BORDER-RIGHT: medium none; BORDER-TOP: medium none; BORDER-LEFT: medium none; BORDER-BOTTOM: medium none; TEXT-ALIGN: center" align="left"><a style="CLEAR: left; FLOAT: left; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 1em; MARGIN-RIGHT: 1em; cssfloat: left" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXFj7tUH0ckS_CJGAm4bTvGNo9a0STJgxSeLEKwhQrsdzDQixwDG18MsaLE8DvfZ2XNY3VXE6mH9mZpTjnXKjXpv2svxJwxuiIF1Nuk-XXVj6MXOdwFuDvFAJAxBRTrzR7dAutX3lni9Sh/s1600-h/DSCN0681.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXFj7tUH0ckS_CJGAm4bTvGNo9a0STJgxSeLEKwhQrsdzDQixwDG18MsaLE8DvfZ2XNY3VXE6mH9mZpTjnXKjXpv2svxJwxuiIF1Nuk-XXVj6MXOdwFuDvFAJAxBRTrzR7dAutX3lni9Sh/s320/DSCN0681.jpg" border="0" rg="true" /></a></div><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: left"></div><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: left"></div><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: left"></div><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: left"></div><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: left"></div><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: left"></div><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: left"></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Argo was the oldest Kiger offered for adoption. The next oldest ones were 7 years old. Argo was the only gray. The rest were Duns, Grulla, a couple Bays and Black.<br />95 Kigers were adopted that weekend. The starting bid on all the horses was $125. The highest bid on a Kiger was $7,800. Those 95 Kigers sold for a combined dollar amount of approximately $95,000. The average price would have been around $1000. The 16 Kigers that were not adopted were offered on an internet adoption in January 2008. There were a few Kigers that were also gathered, but not available for adoption due to health reasons. All 16 horses that were offered on the internet adoption were adopted. Argo was not offered in that adoption. He was by then considered a Sale Authority Horse.<br /><br />Argo in December.<br /><div class="separator" style="CLEAR: both; BORDER-RIGHT: medium none; BORDER-TOP: medium none; BORDER-LEFT: medium none; BORDER-BOTTOM: medium none; TEXT-ALIGN: center"><a style="CLEAR: left; FLOAT: left; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 1em; MARGIN-RIGHT: 1em; cssfloat: left" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQBtanb6x5_e9oNYvoH8BrAlw2dYRd5etwQ67H4E9tUD43oOPQZDQ9fc0rH_-KHXhZHEvoZ5IA9cL7EuyrotudDn-yWVF71xIvAgVEfHxD9LOEd0lfJ6Fx01HeheLDKRnORsDOeWwgMGsu/s1600-h/pic293611.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQBtanb6x5_e9oNYvoH8BrAlw2dYRd5etwQ67H4E9tUD43oOPQZDQ9fc0rH_-KHXhZHEvoZ5IA9cL7EuyrotudDn-yWVF71xIvAgVEfHxD9LOEd0lfJ6Fx01HeheLDKRnORsDOeWwgMGsu/s320/pic293611.jpg" border="0" rg="true" /></a></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Argo in May once he arrived here in Pennsylvania.<br /><div class="separator" style="CLEAR: both; BORDER-RIGHT: medium none; BORDER-TOP: medium none; BORDER-LEFT: medium none; BORDER-BOTTOM: medium none; TEXT-ALIGN: center"><a style="CLEAR: left; FLOAT: left; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 1em; MARGIN-RIGHT: 1em; cssfloat: left" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNsanuv8pz8Ksnbs4ByqJN4jLi6cY8tS79lRpBj_B2xsfyjmAJ9hxu9l_67pTKhUXf7IYrcGwt3m3hMPcMizoT8P6ZqdprJ_NT53I80eqqCi5NZKLW66rhpRpSxT29Fk8dify7CQES6ZNb/s1600-h/Argo+Day+1+002.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNsanuv8pz8Ksnbs4ByqJN4jLi6cY8tS79lRpBj_B2xsfyjmAJ9hxu9l_67pTKhUXf7IYrcGwt3m3hMPcMizoT8P6ZqdprJ_NT53I80eqqCi5NZKLW66rhpRpSxT29Fk8dify7CQES6ZNb/s320/Argo+Day+1+002.jpg" border="0" rg="true" /></a></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Here is Argo today.<br /><div class="separator" style="CLEAR: both; BORDER-RIGHT: medium none; BORDER-TOP: medium none; BORDER-LEFT: medium none; BORDER-BOTTOM: medium none; TEXT-ALIGN: center"><a style="CLEAR: left; FLOAT: left; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 1em; MARGIN-RIGHT: 1em; cssfloat: left" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxlE5JLRgLwdtu1YnW7zxUBdalY725I1APvPCzSO4lvBlc6ZdA1G66QMMn8finq7l7ceyd87ezXIIP7bGM2X5T7ooVa3O9oKijrxkFf2mDareGrp_p6aNCBMM_YTevA7KDHaKJY72Bw9aT/s1600-h/Argo+head+shot.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxlE5JLRgLwdtu1YnW7zxUBdalY725I1APvPCzSO4lvBlc6ZdA1G66QMMn8finq7l7ceyd87ezXIIP7bGM2X5T7ooVa3O9oKijrxkFf2mDareGrp_p6aNCBMM_YTevA7KDHaKJY72Bw9aT/s320/Argo+head+shot.jpg" border="0" rg="true" /></a></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="CLEAR: both; BORDER-RIGHT: medium none; BORDER-TOP: medium none; BORDER-LEFT: medium none; BORDER-BOTTOM: medium none; TEXT-ALIGN: center"><a style="CLEAR: left; FLOAT: left; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 1em; MARGIN-RIGHT: 1em; cssfloat: left" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6QCI-9UqYa30n6hb9XZBIwS3CTQ9jsN-PMUx4laboosABs7NYECJZMxXn4II5syY22vOgZJyeZgl4uIGX_EVO8-eXFjPh_q5RwKrshDCBS_o8_oAoticDXb6QTC1KxQ8Tanq46rlpHZDz/s1600-h/Argos+body+shot.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6QCI-9UqYa30n6hb9XZBIwS3CTQ9jsN-PMUx4laboosABs7NYECJZMxXn4II5syY22vOgZJyeZgl4uIGX_EVO8-eXFjPh_q5RwKrshDCBS_o8_oAoticDXb6QTC1KxQ8Tanq46rlpHZDz/s320/Argos+body+shot.jpg" border="0" rg="true" /></a></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Argo was offered up in a special Email bid in February. The people at the Burns facility saw something special in Argo that a lot of people missed in November. His structure was the same as it was after the gather, structure never changes, just flesh. In fact, you can see his excellent conformation in the picture after his capture. His strong hip, short pasterns, great neck set and beautiful slope to his shoulder.<br />I still feel strongly about the fact that he should never have been gathered, only because he was gathered for the wrong reasons. Greed and money, is what I believe, forced his capture. Ron Harding who was influential in the protection of the Kiger herds had often called Argo, "Baby" as a youngster, and had stated that he should never be gathered and offered for adoption. He felt strongly that Argo had characteristics that needed to be passed on to future generations of Kigers, regardless of his color. It was thought for years that he was a claybank, but even when it was realized he was gray, he stayed with the herds. Ron Harding unfortunately is no longer with the BLM. I believe if he had been, Argo would have never been gathered and offered for adoption.<br /><br />Through Argo, I have met some of the most dedicated and amazing horsemen and women, I am truly thankful for them. Some I have never met in person, only through e-mails or over the phone, have we conversed, but their dedication to the horse shines through. Keep inspiring others to stay on the true path.<br /><br />I am thrilled though, given Argo's options, that he found his way to me. The journey that he and I have embarked on is one like I have never experienced. I have never before owned a Mustang, let alone one who had been in the Wild for 17 years. He has shown me a side to myself that I had never known was in me. He has taught me patience, perseverance, spirit, and protection. His voice has become my voice. The wild mustangs all over the Western States have no voice, save for the dedicated people who truly appreciate their spirit, not the ones who bicker and fight and will continue to scam and lie and tell half truths to the unsuspecting person who only wants to realize the dream of holding the lead rope of a living legend as it steps off their trailer and into their soul.SkyBar Farmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18259491221540240852noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4959739577246288527.post-7958336196967730542008-11-06T05:14:00.004-05:002009-01-21T05:55:43.113-05:00Updates on Dell's injury<strong>If you're going through hell, keep going. ~Winston Churchill</strong><br /><br />I want to thank everyone for the concern and well wishes for Dell.<br /><br />I felt it was not fair to Argo to post here about Dell and his updates, so I have started a new blog for Dell and his injury updates. Hopefully, I will have time to post about other things going on around the farm.<br /><br />The new blog is <a href="http://skybarfarmstuff.blogspot.com/">SkyBar Farm Stuff</a>.SkyBar Farmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18259491221540240852noreply@blogger.com0