Welcome Home Draggo!!!

So, for a few weeks now I've known that I was going to be getting a new horse. I was afraid to blog about him because I just didnt want to jinx the situation. Now that hes finally here, I can share my wonderful news with everyone!!

I miss Truman so much. I especially miss seriously riding. Redford is definitely my trail buddy, but I wanted to get into combined training. I really miss jumping. I finally decided to look for another horse. I definitely wanted another Off The Track Thoroughbred. I was referred to a wonderful organization called After the Races. The people that are involved in the program are just unbelievable. I just can't say enough nice things about them. They are located in Pennsylvania. They take retired thoroughbreds and find them new homes. I told Jessica (who is the person in charge) what type of horse I wanted and she mentioned Draggo.

After looking at his pictures and videos on their website, I really knew I was interested in him. After a long, long trip, Draggo is finally here with us at camp!!! The moment Boo and I saw him in person, we knew that he was everything we were hoping for. He is SO sweet and laid back! I just couldnt believe how sweet he was! When he met Redford for the first time, they touched noses and my heart melted.

I know I will always miss Truman. There will always be a place in my heart just for him. But I'm also really happy that I can give Draggo a second chance. Hopefully, he'll be willing to give me a chance too.

"Every horse is good for something. You know, you don't throw a whole life away just 'cause he's banged up a little."-Tom Smith (Seabiscuit's Trainer)

More Tack Room Re-Vamps

Well, the ceiling is totally up!!!! We are getting new lights too! The walls for the saddles are also ready!!

How beautiful are these walls!? The ceiling looks so great too!

I went with Boo to the paint store to pick out colors today. We decided on black for the windows and window sills. For the walls in the tack room, we finally decided on a color called Crescent Cream. I just love that the color has the word Crescent in it since thats one of camp's dogs names! You wouldnt believe how many varieties of cream and khaki there are. For the bathroom we chose a lovely green color. I am so excited to paint this weekend!!!!

Shorty's surgery

Well, today was a bit of an interesting day....

I have recently blogged about our super cute new horse Shorty. Since he first got to the barn, he has had a bit of a 'weepy eye' going on. Runny with lots of gunky ooze coming out of it. Townsend and I both thought it was just an infection. We have been cleaning it every day for a month. It still won't go away. We decided to call the vet. I was very happy to see the vet today, but it was very bittersweet for me. I have not seen Scott (the vet) since Truman colicked. So I was a bit teary eyed at first. But I am glad that it happened. There are other horses out there in the world. Thats why Scott was at the barn. And I know that I did every single thing within my power to help Truman. For some reason, God was just ready for him. I know I'll see him again one day.

Ok, enough sappy sad stuff. On to Shorty.....

Well, Scott took a look at the eye and thought it was infected also. We sedated Shorty so we could flush out his sinuses. Then Scott started messing with the eye and realized that Shorty had a HUGE growth down inside his eye!!! We decided to perform minor surgery right then and there. It was stressful and tough since we had to put such a large horse down on the ground. But after seeing how big the mass was that was removed, it was such a relief! Shorty was so brave and such a good boy. Fingers crossed for a speedy recovery. It was so fascinating watching the vet work. I swear, if I won the lottery, I'd go to vet school.

Tack Room Re-Vamp

I am a lucky girl to spend every day working with horses. Few people enjoy their job as much as I do. At High Rocks, we have not 1 but 2 barns to house all of our sweet horses.

Camp itself was built in the 50's. The first barn was built towards the middle of camp. In the 70's they built 2 new barns in a different part of camp. These are the barns that we use today. They are both wonderful and some of the nicest facilities on camp property. However, with all things used over time (especially in the horse world) stuff tends to develop wear and tear. Case in point- the tack room. The tack room in the upper barn (which is the larger of the 2 barns) is the hub of the equestrian program. Its where all of our equipment is stored. Its also where the staff keeps all of their personal items and tack. It is actually very large compared to most tack rooms. Unfortunately, the tack room needs some love...the floor is ragged, the paint fading and the ceiling is literally falling in. Its a shame that our tack room can't be nicer with such a lovely barn and such a wonderful program.

I'm happy, no, thrilled to announce that our tack room is now getting a full makeover!!!!! The maintenance staff has begun working and it is going to be unbelievable! We're talking new ceiling, new walls, new floor, staff cubbies, new desk, shelves, paint...the works. I am SO daggone excited about this!!!!!

Here are a few BEFORE pictures. I can't wait for the AFTER pictures!

The back part of the tack room (where you can see the 3 saddles) used to have a shelf. On that shelf was where all the staff had to keep the majority of their belongings. With the re-vamp, the staff will all have their own cubbies with room for their helmet, boots, pants...and all the other stuff us crazy horse ladies need.

Here are the walls where the saddle racks go. We are re-doing the saddle racks with new saddle holders. We are also putting up board on this wall instead of this card board looking stuff. These walls will also be painted.

Here is our meds and sink area. We are re-wiring outlets and switches here. I think the shelves are going to be worked on a bit too. I had to clean just about everything out of this area. I won't even tell you all the crazy stuff I found in this area!

Last but not least, here is our lovely bathroom. We are one of the lucky few who have our very own washer and dryer down at the barn. This room will have the ceiling and floor re-done and will be painted as well.

I'm so thankful that we have such a wonderful place to work. This tack room is going to be so amazing and I hope that the barn staff are going to be as excited about this as I am!!!!