I Love My Farrier

But Sometimes Coomunications Don't Work

After I was all done feeding this morning, I sat down to drink my nice cup of tea and eat my oatmeal before getting ready for work.

The phone rang. It was my shoer. He noted that it had been a while since my horses were shod and he wanted to come by this morning and do them.

Now, yes, the Boys are due, but I had not yet called, mostly because in the winter their feet do not grow as much as in the warmer weather, so they were fine--just a little long in Tucker's case. I really do appreciate that Scott was on top of it and set me up for an appointment.

Turns out he had called me last night just before I got home from choir practice to try to let me know he was coming. For some reason I did not get that message, so the early morning call was a follow-up. Three cheers. I had thought it was just a last minute thing.

Still, I had to rush back out to the barn to lock the Boys in their stalls before they headed out to the hinterlands of the pasture to nibble the little sprouts of grass trying to grow in the sunshine. Then, I had to fill their water buckets since, locked in, they had no way to get to the outside trough. And, since I'd already put piles of hay out in the paddock for them, I also had to put some hay in their stalls. And I had to sweep the barn aisle so Scott had a clean floor to shoe on. (This probably should have been already done, but sometimes I leave it for a few days.)

Then, I had to run back into the house to finish breakfast, take my shower, and get dressed for school so I could leave on time--or close to on time. I was, to my surprise, only about 3 minutes late in the end, mostly because nearly every traffic light on the way turned green for me on the way in.

A note about that. The road I travel to school used to be a quiet country, two lane road. Now, with all the warehouses and development in my area, it is a busy two lane road where it needs four lanes and then it becomes a busy four lane road. In the six miles I drive to school each day, there are no less than nine traffic signals. I go about three miles extra on the way in because I cannot make a left turn at the end of my road to get on the main road because there is no traffic light (yet) and pulling out is either nearly impossible or really hazardous during rush hour. So I take a detour to the next road over from mine that does have a light.

The signals are totally erratic as to when they switch from green to red, and normally I will be stopped by at least half of them on the way to work and on the way home. This morning was an ususual pleasure. Does that mean the rest of the day will go well?

Back to the Boys. Fortunately, my Boys are just fine for the shoer and there is no need for me to be there. Tucker can get a little annoying sometimes--my shoer calls him a "knucklehead" when he does, but maturity has finally settled in on him.

I did get home one time to find a broken halter, but when I asked what happened the next time the shoeing crew showed up, no one quite remembered so I guess it wasn't anything too serious. Chance has sometimes been startled on the cross ties and pulled back, so he may have been the culprit. I has, however, always been a matter of small pride for me to have horses that are good for the farrier, so I am concerned whenever there is a hint of trouble.

From the sound of it, I think Scott might be coming by himself this time to shoe. As you may recall, he had been laid up after shoulder surgery for months. The last time he was here he was the one who shod Tucker and, I am delighted to say, the shoes stayed on just fine even through all the wet weather we have had.

And to you mudlovers out there, I have been extraordinarily lucky so far this almost Spring. The mud has been minimal so far. But, I'd better not brag too much. There are still many days of "skywater" yet to come.