• Post Reply Bookmark Topic Watch Topic
  • New Topic
permaculture forums growies critters building homesteading energy monies kitchen purity ungarbage community wilderness fiber arts art permaculture artisans regional education skip experiences global resources cider press projects digital market permies.com pie forums private forums all forums
this forum made possible by our volunteer staff, including ...
master stewards:
  • Nancy Reading
  • Carla Burke
  • r ranson
  • John F Dean
  • paul wheaton
  • Pearl Sutton
stewards:
  • Jay Angler
  • Liv Smith
  • Leigh Tate
master gardeners:
  • Christopher Weeks
  • Timothy Norton
gardeners:
  • thomas rubino
  • Jeremy VanGelder
  • Maieshe Ljin

meet the 'dream team' preparing for the long ride in...part 2: tony bologna macaroni

 
pioneer
Posts: 112
34
hugelkultur medical herbs homestead
  • Likes 2
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
tony bologna macaroni...marty's packer!..crazzzzyyyy little toot...class clown...and the apple of all of our eyes

so, i think it was ms. cherry hill that coined the phrase that there are no problem horses...only problem riders...i think there is SOME truth in that there statement...marty seems to think there is ALOT of truth in that statement.

i really don't care...cause whatever the case might be...we have a knack, as it would seem, for honing in on HORSES WITH A HISTORY!!! and the worse the history seems to be...or the worse that horses future seems to be...the more the reason we have found to bring em here...that's cause of marty--my marine cowboy!!! :)

first, let me set the record straight...we are NOT in the business of rescuing horses...im not touching that with a 10 foot pole...however, of the 4 we now have 3 would fit into that category...and there have been more than a few that were headed for an ill fated ending, which have come through our little neck of the woods and have ended up with a pretty sweet story book ending...

for the next few...however long it takes...our focus around here will be with tony...the class clown! thought some of yall might enjoy the ride with us...should be quiet amusing from the outside looking in.

what we know:  right before our move last year, marty spotted a surrey in a man's garage (small town, right on the hwy)...no for sale sign...nothin...so, we simply pulled up into the driveway...and asked the man if he wanted to sell it....everything has a price, right?  we had 2 weeks to move everything we could 5 hours across the ouachita mountains to a small leaking cabin with a leaking shop and what do we do...we see a surrey...and we decide to fall in love with a surrey..."oh, and lets look out back...ill show you who i was going to use to pull it...BUT..."he says...uughhh...THERE IT WAS...and i knew it then...that this was gonna be a new ride...cause i know my cowboy!

as we headed round back...i almost felt sick to my stomach...and felt sicker with each step...when we finally reached the end of the stretch...there was little peanut...in a 30 ft round pen...which he had been in for four years...tree stumps and scrap metal littered the little area...there was no room for peanut to lay down or move out from a walk with any degree of safety...there was no shelter...no other horses...just peanut back there...forest for his view in the back...out building for his front view...and for his side views...more scrap metal...and there was peanut...fat enough, good straight back, hooves in decent enough shape...pretty little boy and well built, actually. "well, we got him," the man said, "he had problems...and just wasn't what we bargained for...we named him peanut, because when the grandkids come, they like to feed him peanuts." so, i reached out to pet the poor critter...matted mane...wintered coat...really not that dirty, hell, he couldn't lay down...and he jumps to high heaven!!!

Dear Lord!!!

any way...after the three of us running around in that mess of a pen (well, mostly i was trying to hide behind whatever i could hide behind)...for about 20 min or so...marty finally had him caught and haltered...really, it was a pretty sad state of affairs...my heart was at this point, pretty broken...there was my cowboy...just standing there...watching...observing...there was this little man who had bitten off more than he could chew and a bit humiliated by it all, and a little halflinger...who would in that moment become a part of our forever family...cause i know my cowboy...and i know he knows horses...and i trust that...'time to go home' :)

somewhere, between that little town and our house...as we were now hauling a full blown surrey, and a new little halflinger, peanut got a new name...tony...from where that came, who knows...marty just renamed him tony...so, thus begins the saga of tony...tony bologna macaroni...marty's packer!..crazzzzyyyy little toot...class clown...and the apple of all of our eyes.

upon being turned out, he, of course, went nuts...and bucked and farted, and snorted, and just let off a whole lot of steam...cowboy, softly says, "he's got a lot of ghosts in his head."  YA THINK???!!!???

we would have to uproot tony one more time in less than 2 weeks, but, he wouldn't be alone to face it...he would have his new family...and we were all headed to a new place, a new time, and lots and lots of new adventures!

which brings me to today...almost a year out...a year spent on groundwork...with a little halflinger...that would absolutely try to knock down the side of the barn to keep from being touched...twice a day...EVERY DAY...hands are on tony...now, we lead...he comes running when we come to the pen...many of his ghosts are gone...

cowboy says, "time to start."

hehe...let's begin...

 
master pollinator
Posts: 4967
Location: Due to winter mortality, I stubbornly state, zone 7a Tennessee
2124
6
forest garden foraging books food preservation cooking fiber arts bee medical herbs
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
I am enjoying your stories, please keep them coming!

My experience with horses has been limited. Talking to them over the back fence as I garden, a few nose rubs. They had a pony and a full size riding horse. It was so funny, when the pears were ready, the horse would pick one for the pony, then get one for himself! Those two had to be found a new home, they moved from an acre home to 7 acre pasture, too far away. I still miss seeing them. I've been on a few hour long guided (thank you very much!) trail rides. I am that inexperienced.

Another near neighbor has four beauties. I always wonder what's going on in their heads, when for no reason they take off at full gallop! They look like they are having a great time.

A few years back, we brought a large load of their manure to our garden. While loading it up during a break, one came over and sniffed my neck. Snorted at me and ran back to the others to tell them all about me!

Beautiful creatures!
 
teri morgan
pioneer
Posts: 112
34
hugelkultur medical herbs homestead
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator

Joylynn Hardesty wrote:I am enjoying your stories, please keep them coming!

My experience with horses has been limited. Talking to them over the back fence as I garden, a few nose rubs. They had a pony and a full size riding horse. It was so funny, when the pears were ready, the horse would pick one for the pony, then get one for himself! Those two had to be found a new home, they moved from an acre home to 7 acre pasture, too far away. I still miss seeing them. I've been on a few hour long guided (thank you very much!) trail rides. I am that inexperienced.

Another near neighbor has four beauties. I always wonder what's going on in their heads, when for no reason they take off at full gallop! They look like they are having a great time.

A few years back, we brought a large load of their manure to our garden. While loading it up during a break, one came over and sniffed my neck. Snorted at me and ran back to the others to tell them all about me!

Beautiful creatures!



thank you joylynn...so much for letting me know...i am very much enjoying permies.com.  we have been quite isolated up here in these hills since we moved...and my decision to get off of facebook has pretty much cut off my ability to express myself and share tales of the wonderful adventures i am having here :)  being a burned out teacher, i oft wonder what good is all of the knowledge if it isn't shared...i think every moment of life is of itself a story to be told :)  but, sometimes summarizing is a HUGE problem for me and i fear i become to windy!!! lol... anyway, i always have the excuse that i am trying to achieve whatever lies ahead of the pioneer status!!!  really, i just hope that maybe someone might just can use something written, as i sure have been helped A LOT from reading posts on here and asking questions!

my plans are to document our time with tony here...cause there really are a lot of people out there who would love to give a wonderful home to a little horse...and Lord knows, there are a lot of little horses out there who need a wonderful home...but, there are so many things to consider when entering into any commitment...and for many of these little guys and gals...the slaughterhouses or even worse is the end game for fallen commitments.  broken hearts and disappointments for their humans.  when an unused horse makes it to retirement on an unused pasture to live out his/her life is a perfect solution for them...and one that is worthy of a horse that has given so much joy and story...we are always happy to see an old horse grazing in a pasture next to his/her pasture mate :)

any way...thanks again, your feedback gave me a bit of confidence...and willingness to carry on...i appreciate that :)  

by the way...ive been on a few of those trail rides myself...LOL
 
teri morgan
pioneer
Posts: 112
34
hugelkultur medical herbs homestead
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
hey...my conscious is working on me and upon reflection, i feel like i might need to add a bit of caution here, less anyone FEEL compelled to go out and rescue a broken horse...

UNLESS YOU ARE FULLY TRAINED AND/OR QUALIFIED TO DO SO...PLEASE DON'T!!! there will be no favors done in the end...that is how many go from bad to worse...and that is exactly WHY i chose to write about our adventures with tony...so, there would be an awareness to that fact above all else.

i would NEVER have gotten tony...NEVER...i might have referred him to a friend or two who had more arrows in their quivers to deal with his 'ghosts', but me alone could never have helped him...he has been very VERY dangerous at best...and it has taken cowboy's due diligence and extensive ability to work with tony's behavioral problems...tony has attempted to stomp him in the ground, run over him, kick him, bite him...etc...at this point all of that has not been disclosed...but, will in time as the story goes on...as well as how my marine cowboy dealt with those issues.

i would NEVER want to discourage anyone...but, ya have to have enough common sense to know when you don't know...and sometimes our 'good intentions' can cloud our good judgement...especially, if we have a heart for the target...

any questions anyone might have, i will be sharing with cowboy...and we will do our best to help answer...based upon our own training and experiences...
gift
 
The Humble Soapnut - A Guide to the Laundry Detergent that Grows on Trees ebook by Kathryn Ossing
will be released to subscribers in: soon!
reply
    Bookmark Topic Watch Topic
  • New Topic