Wesco Farms

Mare's Secret Code of Honor

2012-01-13T12:06:00.000-08:00

Received this email this a.m. and as we're gearing up for foaling season...

Mare's Secret Code of Honor

The mare's secret code of honor is as old as horses themselves and is ultimately the species

best kept secret. No mare shall ever produce a foal before it's time. (It's time being determined

by the following factors):

1. No foal shall be born until total chaos has been reached by all involved. Your house must be

a wreck, your family hungry and desperate for clean clothes, and your social life nonexistent.

2. Midwives must reach the babbling fool status before you foal out. Bloodshot eyes, tangled

hair and the inability to form a sentence mean you're getting close.

3. For every bell, beeper, camera or whistle they attach to you, foaling must be delayed by at

least one day for each item.

4. Vet check, add a day, internal add three. If you hear the words, "She's nowhere near ready.

You'll be fine while I'm away for the weekend," Wait 12 to 16 hours and pop that baby out!

5. Owner stress must be at an all time high! If you are in the care of someone else, ten to fifteen

phone calls a day is a sign you're getting close. When you hear the words "I can't take it anymore!

" wait three days and produce a foal.

6. You must keep this waiting game interesting. False alarms are necessary! Little teasers such

as looking at your stomach, pushing your food around in the bucket and then walking away from

it are always good for a rise. Be creative and find new things to do to keep the adrenaline pumping

in those who wait.

7. The honor of all horses is now in your hands. Use this time to avenge all of your stable mates.

Think about your friend who had to wear that silly costume in front of those people. Hang onto that

baby for another day. OH, they made him do tricks too! Three more days seems fair. Late feedings,

the dreaded diet, bad haircuts, those awful wormings can also be avenged at this time.

        8. If you have fulfilled all of the above and are still not sure when to have this foal, listen to the
      weather forecast on the radio that has been so generously provided by those who wait.   Severe storm
      warning is what you're waiting for. In the heart of the storm jump into action! The power could go out

and you could have the last laugh. You have a good chance of those who wait missing the whole thing

while searching for a flashlight that works!

9. Make the most of your interrupted nights. Beg for food each time Someone comes into the stable to

check you. Your stable mates will love you as the extra goodies fall their way too.

10. Remember, this code of honor was designed to remind man of how Truly special horses are. Do

your best to reward those who wait with a Beautiful filly to carry on the mares code of honor for the

next generation of those who wait!

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

*This has been around for several years, but is still a good reminder of the 'Mareturnity Ward' rules. :o) Paint Brush Ranch

J&J Schehen, Bend, OR 541-388-4530

stallions standing: Midas & Lasting Approval

January 9th update

2012-01-09T16:19:00.000-08:00

So what's up with the weather? Granted it it's gloriously warm, but it's the first time I've ever seen sprinklers and irrigation going in January or actually had to water plants. I do hope the rain will eventually come! Not missing the mud, but definitely missing the green!

The horses are all doing fantastic, and we're getting ready for the 2012 sell down. It's time to get serious with meeting my goals of under 30 Minis, so this year is it! We've reduced prices on many of the sale horses, are posting ads and are ready to make some deals. There are a few more horses that will be added to the website, but we have 25 for sale right now.

Cricket aka Wesco Farms TC Defiantly Different, (WCR Top Cop x Wesco Farms LM Rowdys Anticipation), just left for her new home on Saturday. Going to miss her, but she went to a great place.

Cricket - Wesco Farms TC Defiantly Different

This came across Facebook today:

To all of my horse friends you will understand........To everybody else you will now understand why us horse people are crazy. I love this......

Ten Ways To Get In Shape To Own A Horse

1. Drop a heavy steel object on your foot. Don't pick it up right away. Shout "Get off, stupid! Get off!"

2. Leap out of a moving vehicle and practice "Relaxing into the fall". Roll lithely into a ball, and spring to your feet!

3. Learn to grab your checkbook out of your purse/pocket and write out a $200 check without even looking down.

4. Jog long distances carrying a halter and holding out a carrot. Go ahead and tell the neighbors what you're doing. They might as well know now.

5. Affix a pair of reins to a moving freight train and practice pulling it to a halt. And smile as if you are really having fun.

6. Hone your fibbing skills. "See hon, moving hay bales is fun!" and "I'm glad your lucky performance and multi-million dollar horse won you first place - I'm just thankful that my hard work and actual ability won me second place".

7. Practice dialing your chiropractors number with both arms paralyzed to the shoulder, and one foot anchoring the lead rope of a frisky horse.

8. Borrow the US Army slogan; "Be all that you can be'. . . (add) bitten, thrown, kicked, slimed, trampled."

9. Lie face down in the mud in your most expensive riding clothes and repeat to yourself: "This is a learning experience, this is a learning experience . . ."

10. Marry Money!

Quick update

2011-12-05T16:44:00.001-08:00

It's definitely feeling like winter here - the wind has died down to be replaced by near freezing temperatures. For us whimpy Northern California types that's darn cold!

We're happy to announce, Leelee (Las Doradas Blazing Beauty), one of Little Kings Bay Ablaze daughters, will be off to her new home in the next week.

Honeybun, (Las Doradas Buckeroos Honeybun) will be leaving this week as well to her new home as well.

Both mares are bred for 2012, Leelee to Buckeye WCF Dance All Night and Honeybun to Little Kings Dream Demon. I'll be looking forward to seeing what they produce for their new families!

Off to Oz!

2011-12-01T14:42:00.001-08:00

What's with this wind? OMG!

It tore the tarp off one shelter into shreds - one of those can withstand mega wind type tarps! Apparently it never was meant for the winds of Winters! LOL!

It also destroyed a rubbermaid storage building - lost the roof and a door - what a waste, then a stand of decorative pots went flying and shattered across the deck. Bleah!

Hopefully this will pass by tonight, I think I wore more hay then the horses got to eat sadly this morning too.

On a brighter note:

The grass is growing, horses are healthy and it's sunny if not warm!

Our newest puppy, Pup-Pup (yea we're so creative with names at times), is doing great. She's already wanting to be a watcher with Auntie Noomi. Pup-pup is a 3/4 Pyrenees 1/4 Maremma sweetie. Here she is with my daughter Anya. She's 12+ weeks old and loves to be outside. A bit skeptical about the horses though as she's been chased by a couple and bit by one. But she has a nice bark on her already.

Mini News:

I hope everyone read the news on AMHR half-price for hard-shipping from AMHA in 2012! I know I have a couple that will finally get done!

We did reprice some of the horses on our sales list, and will be working on updating our website this month and adding more. I finally came to the conclusion if I only want 25-30, ALL the rest need to go on the sales list then!

Happy Holidays

2011-11-28T15:01:00.001-08:00

Hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving, it's been a rough 2011 for many, but I remind myself - we that live in the USA are still better off than a high percentage of the rest of the world.

I'm thankful for all I have, even though I may whine a blue streak and have some random pity parties, I'm sincerely thankful for what I have in my life.

Heading towards the New Year, we're still working on reducing the herd, but in this economy I'm not pushing the sales very hard. Too many people are in financial predicaments, and I hate to see someone take on payments that can easily get away from them. That and its hard to compete with the number of low quality horses for sale on Craigs List for $200, makes selling registered good quality horses hard.

But considering my life circumstances and the changes coming in the next year. I don't have options but to keep working to find good homes for the ones that need to move along. My goal is to get under 30, which means half the herd has to leave in the next two years.

It's going to be hard, but that's the goal! So, I need to get all the horses that are for sale on the sales list - bleah! Not a fun project, but its time.

I've also decided as I want to get to a certain number, I'm not breeding in 2012 and may not in 2013 depending on how life works out.

Fortunately it's been raining so our hills are green - got to love Northern California winters - and the horses are loving the extra pasture.

A couple of the sale colts:

Wesco Farms Bamboozler

Wesco Farms Best Guesstimate

Wesco Farms Twist of Fate

Finally weaning the babies

2011-11-20T12:05:00.000-08:00

We're finally weaning the 2011 foals - Baily (Wesco Farms TC Ascended Allure), Cricket (Wesco Farms TC Defiantly Different) and Jitters (Wesco Farms TC Up All Night) - much to their annoyance.

Cricket is pretty much self-weaned, as her dam. Chiclet (Cricket's grand-dam) has always had very independent babies, and apparently Annie is following suit.

Bailey is still very much a momma's girl, so I think she'll take it the hardest. But considering she's the oldest at seven months I think it's time.

Jitters falls somewhere in the middle. He's not dependent on his dam, Val, but does like to go to her when he feels the need.

Callita, and Rose are in their as support - they've been with the foals since birth and Sarah and April are there as well - until I'm sure April is not going to relapse with her colic.

Colic time

2011-11-18T11:38:00.001-08:00

It's heading into winter and with the weather change, I always anticipate some mild colic as the horses get upset stomachs. We have something on our property (we've yet to locate it in 11 years), but something that the horses get into in the Fall that guaranteed a few will come down with a belly ache.

This year it was April, one of our two year olds that I do have to watch at this time of year - she's an acorn 'ho, so we keep her locked up in the Fall. Being one of our smallest Minis at 26.50" we do keep a careful eye on her.
.

Wesco Farms April Sunshine BB

I saw her up on the hill above the house laying down (wrong time of day - late afternoon/early evening - for my horses to be napping). As her and her dam are good buddies and never far from each other, I dragged her and Sarah down the hill and into the backyard.

Sarah - Wesco Farms Tricked Me Tina

Checked April and I could tell she wasn't feeling great so started treating her. She was insistent she was going to 'die' so we kept an eye on her and treated her throughout the day. She was still not a happy camper when I gave her, her last treatment at midnight, but calm and hanging with her dam.

The next morning at 5:30 a.m. in the dark, I go out to check her. She's of course missing. I began the search - all the gates are closed, no holes in the fences for her to squeeze through, I even looked in the swimming pool, thought maybe she'd jumped in! No April, so I'm wondering where in the @%@% did you she go?

Finally I look under our deck and see her. She had rolled/crawled or I don't know what but got herself about 6' under the deck. Mind you this is not that high of deck, she couldn't stand up straight without bumping her head and I'm not a small person (besides having just the day before been given the okay from hernia surgery to resume life), so my the thought is this should be fun!

So, I crawl under the deck to check her and she's acting miserable. I can't get her up to walk out, and she to far away to roll like a barrel (yes this occurred to me!), so I grab her by her back legs and start backing out dragging her on her back. She's really not thrilled, but the options were few. Move, drag, get kicked in the shins, move, drag, kick... rinse and repeat.

As soon as she was out, she called for her dam and runs off. I'm thinking how sore I'm going to be the following day (and I was!), but I still need to deal with her as she's not 100% yet.

Apparently it did the trick though, as I gave her another colic treatment and she began farting and pooping and was grazing with her dam within 20 minutes. She's been fine since then for the past two days - the little stinker.

Minis they don't make life boring and OMG can they find the most interesting things to get into.

Week in review

2011-11-12T09:15:00.001-08:00

Fairly slow week. The horses are hairy and settling in for winter. Tomas (farrier) surprised me this week - yes I write down our appointments - but look at the calendar ... NO!

So, we got the boys all trimmed and de-wormed. Stallions are so much easier to trim than the mares. I was hoping to geld a couple more of the boys, but I don't think the funds are there at the moment sadly.

A recent addition to our family - Noomi's niece (out of her sister Jaz) joined us. So we're going through puppy-hood again! We're still trying names on her and haven't settled on one. She's 3/4 Pyreness and 1/4 Maremma. She's already bigger than our Mini Aussies.

The other exciting news - Anya passed her DMV test, so I'm officially off taxi duty! Now I don't have to worry about her driving me, just her driving solo! She's having a great time and is off on daily runs. Nice to have someone that can run to the store for milk now - lol!

Testing the new Blogger features

2011-11-07T21:38:00.000-08:00

Winter is coming, or should say arrived this weekend. Okay so it's suppose to be Fall, but it's in the 30's at night so feels very wintery here!

The horses are doing great and don't seem to mind the chilly weather. Wouldn't it be great to be able to grow a lovely thick coat of insulating hair - lol.

We've been doing maintenance around here (the never-ending job) on fences and gates, as well as looking at setting up a new foaling paddock.

I'm hoping to get back to maintaining this blog a bit more - life's been overly busy the past couple of months, but will hopefully get back on track!

Testing out the new blog features on Blogger and incorporating Google+ - fun stuff!

September and finally back

2011-09-08T14:14:00.000-07:00

Well I've been AWOL for a bit, but it's been a fast and busy few weeks.

I had to deal with the death of my dog. You know the dog that is your gaga, super-buddy, can't think what you'd do with out pet - yea that one. Sweetie was accidentally ran over in front of our house, and I felt horrible for the worker, as I know it was not intentional. But still knocked me out of commission for a few days. I did find out one useful thing, I can't self induce a heart-attack, as I tried - yes I was that upset while burying her. On top of that we've had my car in/out of the shop, my PC died, house repairs and I finally had surgery to repair an umbilical hernia. So fun times!

The horses though apparently are thriving on neglect, as other than feeding/watering and checking them they've had zero entertainment or interaction, well other than some scratches. As I'm still out of commission a few more weeks, hooves are getting long - not too creepy but definitely due for Tomas time!

Other than the personal fun though, the horses are doing well, still chunky, although it looks pretty sparse on the hills they're still waddling down. Silhouette injured her eye (fully recovered now), so has been in the backyard for a month. She loves to hang there and has enjoyed her daily browsing on peaches, roses and all the green growing grass. She know looks oh eight months pregnant and isn't.

The foals are all old enough to be weaned, but I think I'm going to wait another month or so. Jitters and Cricket are pretty independent now, but Bailey's still a mommas girl. I'd rather wait until it's a little bit cooler weather. Their dams, Val, Annie and Swan are all resembling 'normal' horses as they've trimmed down quite a bit. I'm not looking forward to weaning, maybe look at the Farmer's Almanac and find the good times for the next couple of months!

AMHR Nationals start today (September 8) and run through the 18th. Show info available at Horse Show Online's site. Best of luck to all everyone that is competing. Just going is a big deal, IMHO, so hope everyone has a wonderful time! According to the pie chart on Horse Show Online - 12% of the exhibitors are from Texas. 4% from California - go California - lol!

Google+ I still have invites if anyone would like to try it, send me an email wescofarms@gmail.com!

Upcoming Events

2011-07-19T12:02:00.000-07:00

There are a few upcoming horse related events that I'm sharing, between life and life, I'm not attending too many live events, but will be watching the online ones!

AMHA Western Championship Show

The Western Champions Show is streaming live on iEquine.com. Show Schedule and streaming video available on the IEquine page. July 21-24th starting at 8 a.m. PST.

Online auction

MiniHorseStreet.com is hosting a one hour dutch auction Wednesday July 20th 9 p.m. EST. It is one hour only and will have 40 horses for sale in that time frame. Should be interesting. MiniHorseStreet does recommend using Mozilla Foxfire to watch the auction, so if you don't use Mozilla (I prefer Chrome but keep both on my PC), get it! I love Thunderbird too - awesome way to get all your email in one easy to use place.

Preview Auction lots here.

MSU online classes

Michigan State University has quite a collection of online classes (some free) that are for non-credit education. One that I'm attending tomorrow is The Advances in Equine Genetics webcast. It is live Wednesday, July 20 from 1pm–2pm EDT. You do have to registered with MSU to take the classes, but it's easy and what a great way to add a bit more to the equine care toolbox!

AREA VII California Classic Show

The Area VII AMHR/ASPC California Classic Show is scheduled for July 30-31, Wilton, CA. Pre-entry closed on the 18th, but there is still time to enter! There are even a few non-rated (i.e. no registration required) classes on July 30th. The show is at the Pacific Equestrian Center, Wilton. CA. Class sponsorships are available too!!

Real Life Horse Whisperer

2011-07-07T07:01:00.000-07:00

Just an FYI Passing this along - local showing in Davis California

================

Coming Friday, July 15th ~ Playing For One Week Only

Buck
Buck, a richly textured and visually stunning film, follows Brannaman from his abusive childhood to his phenomenally successful approach to horses. A real-life “horse-whisperer”, he eschews the violence of his upbringing and teaches people to communicate with their horses through leadership and sensitivity, not punishment.

Buck possesses near magical abilities as he dramatically transforms horses – and people – with his understanding, compassion and respect. In this film, the animal-human relationship becomes a metaphor for facing the daily challenges of life.

A truly American story about an unsung hero, BUCK is about an ordinary man who has made an extraordinary life despite tremendous odds.

"In some sense it was beauty that saved Mr. Brannaman, that of his conscience and that of horses, which, having been tied to humans long ago, became companions, workers and for some, as this lovely movie shows, saviors." ~Manohla Dargis, New York Times

Click here for the official website.

Click here for Varsity Theatre ticket prices. (Davis, CA) ** Great theater, I go there often for movies.

foal update

2011-07-05T12:29:00.000-07:00

We grabbed the foals the other day and took a few photos. I didn't clip them as with our weather I refuse to remove the foals protection from the sun and bugs. So, we barely knocked the dirt off just enough to get updated photos.

It was hot, they weren't happy and very resentful for the implements of torture placed on their heads, i.e. halters.

So of the bazillion photo's taken we have a few 'okay' head shots. We have a number of wonky, had bad can I stand, ears back, scrunched up necks, butt high I hate life photos! My hat is off to photographers that take good animal photos, I do NOT have that talent.

Topper (WCR Top Cop) did good though with these three. They all have pretty heads, great conformation, his long neck and wonderful movement. I wish I had used him this year. Oh well more Topper foals in 2013 hopefully!

Now to get video of these three moving. I'm very tempted to keep Jitters, as he's going to make an awesome driving/all around horse (likely gelding in my current mode!). He's naturally curious and not afraid of anything, uses his neck and is willing to give his ears, unlike his sisters. Bailey and Cricket in some of their photos look earless - lol! But they both have that same gorgeous movement.

Yeah Topper. Although credit must be given to Swan (Wesco Farms Rogers Lady Swan Song), Annie (Wesco Farms LM Rowdys Anticipation) and Val (Wesco Farms AToy4Me Brazen Beauty) for their input. It's thrilling to see what the 'homebred' mares are producing the past few years.

Wesco Farms TC Ascended Allure "Bailey"

Wesco Farms TC Defiantly Different "Cricket"

Wesco Farms TC Up All Night "Jitters"

Wesco Farms Unique Toy4Me

2011-07-02T11:55:00.000-07:00

One of our homebred mares came back last month, Wesco Farms Unique Toy4Me. She's now seven and has been living with a good friend, Jen Davis of Imperial Acres. Unique isn't really fitting with where Jen's breeding program is going, but Gemini (Wesco Farms Rowdys Gemini) is, so we traded the two.

Sired by Las Doradas AToy4Me2 out of Les Petites Avril, two horses I've always liked, Unique is a nice addition to our breeding program. Toy is one of those stallions I kind of wish I still had and Avril went to a retirement home last year at the age of 22, leaving me with a couple daughters, grand-daughters and a few great-grands.

Unique is a silver bay pintaloosa, one of the two Toy sired here.

Her two half sisters sired by Toy areWesco Farms Twila Toy4Me (bay roan) and Wesco Farms AToy4Me Brazen Beauty (bay pinto).

Her sisters' by her dam ET (Las Doradas Etiole de Mar) is one of our original mares, and Dresden (Wesco Farms Avrils Dresden Doll) is a Samis Roger Rabbit daughter. They're both black, although Dresden does carry one dilute gene from Roger.

Wesco Farms Avrils Dresden Doll

Unique was a bit of a handful when she was younger, and when she was born she looked like a pretzel. She had some serious bad leg issues which we attributed to the way she was laying inside her dam, having seen what both parents produced, we were fairly certain this wasn't a congenital issue.

Corrective trimming and lots of exercise she's almost dead straight in back now.

Unique was pasture bred to Bells Hollywood Heartbreaker, so maybe loud color come Spring 2012!

Farrier day

2011-06-29T11:55:00.000-07:00

Today was farrier fun day.

Half the horses scheduled to be trimmed, vetoed by standing on top of the hill watching us, refusing to come down. My teen age broodmares are hard to trick once they've seen the farrier and with 63 acres to outrun us, we don't play the chase game!

We of course had the volunteer group that love pedicures and for some reason think de-wormer tastes good. They'll literally follow you around trying to get more - go figure.

Good news, Woody (one of the original three and the W in Wesco) is improving! Big yeah and made my day!!! He's been foundering on/off for the past year and in early May it looked like he might start rotating, so we thought it might be bye bye Woody time. He's dropped alot of weight and we're trying to keep him off any new grass (the sugars), but his white line is improving and the new hoof growth is coming in at a better angle. So, we're hoping to keep him around. I'm already formulating the 'winter/spring' Woody management, as being so temprate here we don't really stop growing grass even in the winter. So, I think he'll be in a smaller grass free pen with Silhouette as company. That's the plan for now at least.

As for hoof issues. Tomas showed me exactly what we're dealing with so, I thought I'd share the pics. I know personally I can say he's 'foundering' but exactly what it looked like I wasn't quite sure. I'm more familiar with colic (when someone says colic, I'm well what kind? Gas, blockage, upset stomach???) Founder though, I know is metabolic (as Tomas says like a person with diabetes), but I've never had to deal with a horse with these issues.

This is what Tomas removed today off Woody's hoof.

Woody grows very thick hoof very fast but horrible angles (no heel), so Tomas is rasping the front and taking off quite a bit to try to get his angles to improve too.

You can see the reddish part, it has cracks which would have eventually separated the coffin bone from the hoof wall.

The white line on the bottom is dry, crack free and small, what the farrier wants to see.

Equine Dentistry victory Texas

2011-06-28T10:56:00.000-07:00

Passing this along....

>>>>

Horse owners in the state of Texas won the battle over our horse tooth care!!! Yea for us and for Carl and his practitioners for doing this for us and our horses. Job well DONE!!!!!!!

First and foremost i want to thank everyone for there support in this long fight.
Second i have been appointed to the advisory committee.
I very much thank you.
Carl

Equine Dentistry Bill Signed into Law

Last Friday, the long running battle over who may legally perform equine dental work on the state’s horses was resolved when Governor Rick Perry signed HB 414 into law. Throughout the legislative session, TVMA worked with other stakeholders and members of the legislature to promote and pass legislation to protect the horse and consumer by establishing training and educational requirements for non-veterinarians to perform certain dental procedures under the supervision of a veterinarian. Passage of this important piece of legislation would not have been possible had it not been for the tireless efforts of our equine practitioners who worked to educate members of the legislature that equine dentistry is indeed a complex medical procedure that should only be performed by Doctors of Veterinary Medicine or non-veterinarians working under their supervision.

Quick Summary of HB 414

HB 414 provides the necessary authority for the Texas State Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners (TSBVME), to adopt rules to ensure that equine dentistry is performed only by a veterinarian OR by a “licensed equine dental provider” (EDP) who works under the general supervision of a veterinarian who has an established veterinary client patient relationship with the owner or caretaker of the animal.

A person may not perform equine dentistry or offer or attempt to act as an EDP unless the person is either a veterinarian or an EDP working under the supervision of a licensed veterinarian. Individuals are also prohibited from representing to the public that they are authorized to perform equine dentistry unless they are licensed and may not use the title “dentist.” Those licensed as Certified Equine Dental Providers may use the title “CEDP” upon licensure or “EDP” if they are licensed under the Grandfather clause before September 2012.

Requirements for Licensure

A person is qualified to be licensed as an EDP if the person:

Submits an application and information to allow the board to conduct a background check, passes a jurisprudence examination,
is not disqualified under this chapter or board rule,
is certified by the International Association of Equine Dentistry OR another board-approved certification entity or organization, and
competes 6 hours of annual continuing education.
Scope of Practice and Supervision of Equine Dental Providers

EDP’s will now be held to a standard of care and must leave a copy of the equine dental chart with the person who authorizes the procedure and make it available to the supervising veterinarian upon request.

HB 414 creates an inclusive definition of equine dentistry and breaks out certain procedures that licensed EDPs may perform under the general supervision of a veterinarian. A licensed equine dental provider may perform only the following equine dental procedures:

removing sharp enamel points;
removing small dental overgrowths;
rostral profiling of the first cheek teeth;
reducing incisors;
extracting loose, deciduous teeth;
removing supragingival calculus;
extracting loose, mobile or diseased teeth or dental fragments with minimal periodontal attachments by hand and without the use of an elevator; and
removing erupted, non-displaced wolf teeth.
Unlicensed employees of veterinarians may perform the procedures listed above under the direct supervision of a veterinarian.

Equine Dental Provider Advisory Committee

HB 414 sets up a three-member informal equine dental provider advisory committee to advise the TSBVME on rules made in connection with or disciplinary action taken against EDPs. This advisory committee does not have any independent rulemaking authority and the members are appointed by the current President of TSBVME. Two of the advisory committee members must be licensed equine dental providers who have resided in and engaged in the practice of smoothing or filing teeth by floating in this state for the last five years and are of good repute. The other member must be a veterinarian who supervises a licensed EDP. Members of the advisory committee are not entitled to compensation or reimbursement but may hold meetings by conference call.

Grandfather Clause (expires September 1, 2012)

|Before September 1, 2012, the State Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners shall issue an EDP license to a person who is not certified by the International Association of Equine Dentistry or another board-approved entity or organization if the person:

presents proof of graduation from AND completion of 280 hours of course work at a board-approved equine dental school or another board-approved entity or organization; AND
submits, with the application and with two notarized affidavits in which veterinarians who are licensed to practice in this state and are in good standing with TSBVME that they know the person and that the person is competent in the practice of smoothing or filing teeth by floating.
The TSBVME may waive the education requirement in (1) above if an applicant demonstrates proficiency by submitting:

financial records that show the applicant has earned the majority of the applicant’s income for the two years preceding the effective date of this Act by performing equine dental services; or
sworn affidavits from at least two clients who certify that the applicant has performed satisfactorily in addressing the dental needs of the client's animal.
HB 414 Does Not …

Change any of the current laws relating to the use of prescription drugs.
Require that Equine Dental Providers work for veterinarians. They may work as either employees or as independent contractors.
The bill has no impact on any other procedures that may be performed on animals including chiropractic care, farrier work, acupuncture or reproduction.
You may click here to view TVMA’s press release announcing the passage of this bill. If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact Elizabeth Choate, JD, director of government relations/general counsel, at echoate@tvme.org or 512/452-4224.

Donate to VPAC Today!

Copyright © 2011, Texas Veterinary Medical Association

2011-06-27T17:51:00.000-07:00

What's with this weather?

It's been so all over the board, you really don't know what to expect. We did hit 102 last week, and now possibly rain tomorrow? Then hot again?

I seriously believe this is what is 'screwing up' breeding this year and the oddly late foals so many of us have had this year. Nature seems out of sorts.

Something I noticed which had me wondering is our frogs. We have an abundance of very loud tiny frogs and this year they've been stuck in the tadpole stage for over a month. It has to be the odd weather. That's what I think at least.

Breeding season ended - yeah. All the horses are back where they normally live and calm prevails again. We did separate the stallions into two groups, so Ringo, Demon and Miramax are in one, while Jelly (Dance), Topper and the four yearlings are in another. Everyone is much happier, especially the ones not in with Demon and Miramax.

Hollywood is still visiting for awhile. The poor guy though is in solitary confinement as he's so thin. We have him on free choice alfalfa and grain, but it's going to take a bit of time for him to put back on the weight he dropped. He's not a happy camper, so we're hoping he'll be bored and eat!

We did 'lose' a few horses last week, as Dazzle, Gemini, Baroness and Bre went off to their new homes. I'm very happy with the places they've gone to, and hope they'll be 'lifers'! Here's a photo fo Gemini, Baroness and Bre meeting their new herd mates.

I am in the process of moving this Blog to WordPress. It will be associated directly with our website, and allow more flexibility in the design and maintenance. I will be copying all the old archived posts, but will leave this one up as well. Just an FYI! If you're new to blogging though, I would highly recommend blogger (from Google) as it is very easy to use and set up.

As a warning - the next blog post will be a rant! The past couple month's I've had to deal with a 'friend' as a buyer. The 'deal' with this person went south really quickly, of course, of no fault of her own. I won't mention names, but what a pain this has been. This woman lost two friends over this (she didn't just screw with me), so I will be posting what I did learn from it and why I won't make the mistake again - I hope!

Stay cool and dry? Rain in July - wow!!!

Schooling Show July 10

2011-06-23T09:07:00.000-07:00

Area VII Shetland & Mini Club (Northern CA) is having a Schooling Show on July 10th.

Judge: Darlene Bingham
Place: Heather Farm Park, Walnut Creek
Time: 9:00am
Ribbons to 5th place
Pre-Entry by July 1st
Cost: $4.95 a class /$25.00 all day (same horse/handler)

See the flyer here.

Horse Expo and stuff

2011-06-13T17:42:00.000-07:00

So this past weekend was the Western States Horse Expo in Sacramento. It seemed a tad subdued this year, but this could be from the economy or the worry over EHV-1 or both.

The weather was great fortunately, and it was nice to go check out all the new horse stuff, but I was thoroughly disappointed in the lack of Mini anything!

Sierra Ranch was there with a few of the NorCal members representing Miniature Horses, but other than that, NO MINI STUFF!!!

None of the vendors had Mini anything, other than a Mini poop rake. It bugs me that none of the vendors even carry a single Mini halter or harness. Anything? I've been telling people that attend these events we really need to let the Expo know - we may have Minis, but we are darn serious about them as a breed! We'd like them to share this with their vendors too!

So, I'm encouraging everyone that attended the Expo (or may in the future!) to write them and ask they pass the message along to their Vendors - Minis are horses and we do buy stuff!!!!

On a good note, I've sold a couple more horses (yeah), and met some great people that may or may not buy, but are good to know. I've met some really great people lately, some new to Minis, others that have had them for a number of years. It's always fantastic to get to know positive, upbeat people!

Knock on wood all the horses are staying healthy! Woody is holding his own, after being released from solitaire, by Hollywood. I don't know why Hollywood (stallion) wanted in with Woody, but he broke the fence to get in there, maybe he doesn't like his mares (IDK!)

We finished up what passes for breeding season in 2011 today, and turned all our mares out. They ran the hills, happy to get away from the boys - at least that's the impression they gave! We'll see tomorrow when there's a fence between them and they start flirting again!

The foals are doing well, Bailey's new mom came by and visited her. So, I whipped out the camera and tried to take photos - photos of foals on the side of a hill - not a good idea! But I did get a few not totally crappy pics -

Wesco Farms TC Ascended Allure "Bailey"

(I've been warned she is going to be renamed, but she's Bailey for now!)

Wesco Farms TC Defiantly Different "Cricket"

(She may be on the keep list, although she's listed for sale)

Wesco Farms TC Up All Night "Jitters"

Mini Buckboards

2011-06-08T12:27:00.000-07:00

I've been playing email tag with this gentleman, but thought these were so awesome they needed to be shared with all the driving enthusiasts out there.

2011-06-06T11:08:00.000-07:00

It's June and normally in Northern California we're experiencing mid 80's to well over 100 degree weather. This 'continuation' of winter is unusual at best. Considering I'm an anti-sun type (run around with gloves and hat most of the time), I should be in a more jubulient mood, but I was ready for clip and photo time with the horses, which is now postponed. Now I'm glad it's not 105, but this is so abnormal I'm wondering what the long term effects will be for all of us. I'm imagining farmers are having a fit as this can't be good for their growing season.

I know when I was at the feed store, I was told they were behind on cutting (he said three cuttings?), but this is going to affect hay prices for sure. Alfalfa right now is $15-18 a bale, and I was told the dairies are buying up all they can now, as many farmers put in wheat this year. I love alfalfa and have fed it from day one, but if it climbs up much higher, we will be switching to one of the grass hays.

Fortunately this extended winter has extended the growing season here too, so our hills are still pretty grassy and the horses out on the hills are still well past the pleasingly plump stage! I still have a 20 acre section closed off, that I was going to open up for them in a few weeks. Right now they all could go on a 'trim down' feeding program! That is except for the stallions in with mares. OMG! I can't keep weight on Hollywood or Dance - they look awful. Ringo has started filling out slightly, but those two are thin and won't stop and eat for long.

As breeding season is winding down for me (Twila, Dresden, Remy and Leelee are still in with Dance), I'm wondering about cover rate this year. All the stallions seemed fairly uninterested in the mares, so is the weather and lack of sun causing this? ACK! I did pull a bunch of mares a week or so ago, as it just seemed like a good idea to limit breeding. So, if all are open next year though, I'll be fine with that. I'm excited to see foals from Dance and Hollywood, but I can wait to 2012 too!

Good note, Honeybun, Baroness, Bre, Gemini and Libbe should all be off to their new homes in the next few weeks. I'm always pleased when horses are going somewhere they're truly wanted and will be cared for. I'll miss Libbe the most of that group, and it will be hard to see her leave, but the retirement herd is growing, and I can't retire everyone here. Well maybe if I'd play and win the lotto!

Buyers have been calling this weekend, another yeah and have a few appointments this week. A couple sound like ideal homes, retired/older people that want to have Minis. So, I'm crossing my fingers that will work. I get worried about some calls that just want a Mini, and then proceed to tell you they can't afford much. Well that purchase price is the cheapest part! The long term daily, weekly and monthly expenses will exceed the price of a Mini in a few years. Well maybe not if you're buying uber-Champion, but the average buyer, if you can't afford to purchase, how can you afford to support it?

The EHV-1 scare seems to have tapered off a bit, although I'd still have concerns taking horses to public venues. Western States Horse Expo (the 10th-12th Sacramento Cal Expo) is apparently going on as planned. (see statement here). A friend and I are going by on Saturday, but just to be cautious I'll be viewing horses from a distance and removing all clothing/showering before going near mine!

2011-05-26T09:13:00.000-07:00

Happy Memorial Weekend.

So what about this weather? The middle states are getting hit by wild tornadoes and before that flooding. Out west we're still getting rain and snow and it's almost June!!! Did the earth tip and no one mentioned it? My big concern in NorCal is that we're going to hit a couple of triple digit days, the snow melts, the valley floods. I hope it doesn't happen, but all those developers that built on the flood plain around Sacramento, what can I say - brilliant...not.

Which BTW if you'd like to donate to some of the Mini breeders in Oklahoma that got hit - Davie Kilman is helping to organize it. Read more at LB.

Just read this on another blog about UC Davis Extension Courses. termed Feducation for Fun + Education. Check it out.

We dragged Dazzle out of the pasture the other day and gave her a quick groom up. She has her sire's long long mane and tail, and what a sweetie as far as personality. I wish she had better conformation (my taste), but she's not horrible, just not 'it'. (No she's not pregnant, just very fat, which I've discussed below).

Breeding here this year has been, what's the word, odd? I've never had stallions have such a lack of interest in mares. Is it the weather or what? I don't know but I'm about ready to end it. Across the board the stallion attitude seems to be 'meh' maybe I will, soon, someday, maybe. So, I may have a very brief breeding season, which I'm totally fine with. Yes I want to see Dance foals next year, but if I get one or two, I'm fine with that.

Did anyone else follow the online auction at Olympian Ranch that ended yesterday. I was appalled, shocked and surprised at the truly low prices that showed online for those horses. Olympian breeds nice quality Minis and I was dumbfounded in this market that more buyers weren't jumping at the opportunity to own horses of that calibre for a fraction of what I've seen them sell for. Wish I had less to support a few mares and a couple of stallions I would have been bidding on!

Otherwise life is good, the horses are still too fat, and I'm trying to 'thin' them down without them getting sick from their perception that I'm starving them. But ALL the mares except maybe three could drop 15-50 pounds (a few more than that!). If I was raising cattle I'd be ecstatic!! But butcher-fat Minis need to be a bit trimmer. I'm not going for show ring ready, but OMG not are they all 8 months pregnant look either!

Wishing everyone a safe and happy Memorial again.

EHV-1 Virus f

2011-05-17T08:06:00.000-07:00

Received this from Loomis Basin Equine Medical Center

Dear LBEMC clients,

Please see the following update from the California state veterinarian. Please contact us with your questions or to booster your horse’s vaccine status. We will post daily updates on our Facebook page.

A recent disease outbreak of Equine Herpes Virus has been traced to horses who attended the National Cutting Horse Associations’ Western National Championships in Odgen, Utah on April 30 – May 8, 2011. California horses who participated in this event may have been exposed to this EHV-1 virus.

The California Department of Food and Agriculture encourages owners of horses who participated in the Odgen, Utah event to isolate and monitor their horses for clinical signs of disease. A rectal temperature in excess of 102F commonly precedes other clinical signs. Therefore, we are urging owners to take temperatures on each individual horse(s) twice a day. If a temperature above 102F is detected contact your private practitioner immediately. Laboratory submission of nasal swabs and blood samples collected from the exposed horse can be utilized for virus detection and isolation.

The EHV-1 organism spreads quickly from horse to horse and the neurologic form of the virus can reach high morbidity and mortality rates. The incubation period of EHV-1 is typically 2-10 days. In horses infected with the neurologic strain of EHV-1, clinical signs may include: nasal discharge, incoordination, hind end weakness, recumbency, lethargy, urine dribbling and diminished tail tone. Prognosis depends on severity of signs and the period of recumbency. There is no specific treatment for EHV-1. Treatment may include intravenous fluids, anti-inflammatory drugs and other appropriate supportive treatment.

Horse-to-horse contact, aerosol transmission, and contaminated hands, equipment, tack, and feed all play a role in disease spread. However, horses with severe clinical signs of neurological EHV-1 illness are thought to have large viral loads in their blood and nasal secretions and therefore, present the greatest danger for spreading the disease. Immediate separation and isolation of identified suspect cases and implementation of appropriate biosecurity measures are key elements for disease control.

So what about this weather?

2011-05-16T15:35:00.000-07:00

Here in Northern California its raining with highs of 50-60 during the day and expected tonight into the 40's. Sorry that is WINTER weather here, not May!!! Again, glad it's not 105, but What the ???

Fortunately it's not that cold nor raining that consistently, so the horses seem to be bearing it well. I'm just very surprised at this unseasonable winter-like weather we're having.

On a bright note, some of the extra horse paraphernalia we've had around is selling - yea! There's still alot left and I haven't even gone through blankets, magazines and a few other boxes in the garage of stuff. The trickle of $$ is great as the transmission went out on the Mercedes over the weekend. That's a chunk of change, but cheaper than new! So, highly motivated right now to get things moving along.

We did start breeding last week, or should say put mares with stallions. I'm not sure if it's the weather, inexperienced stallions (one his first time the other first time pasture breeding) bitchy mares or a combination, but not much happening out there! Dance and Hollywood seem to 'prefer' the older cooperative mares, so we've seen them get covered but the younger mares seem to intimidate them a tad. But we also have Demon in with two experienced broodmares (Dipper and Honeybun) and they're totally not interested in him. Most of my mares are more of the 'bar fly' easy in general so I'm not sure what is up with all this attitude. Then again, only a few foals next year is fine with me too!

I went to the feed store today to buy hay, and we're at $17.95 for a bale of alfalfa...bleah on that. I of course was in such sticker shock forgot to pick up the 50lb salt blocks I meant to buy as well. Oh well another trip this week. I can see many trips in the next few weeks until the transmission is completed.

Today was also clean-out-the-old-meds day. I haven't done that in awhile and found a couple of bottles from 2009! Yikes! Everything is gone that was expired or close to it. So the meds cabinet is down to a handful of items and I'll need to restock some things. I like having certain meds on hand (banamine, terramycin for eyes, etc.), but tend not to give antibiotics or other drugs without vet approval or guidance. I don't ever want to make something worse or make an error. It always concerns me how many people 'assume' what someone else had happen what is wrong with their horse too. Simple things I'm covered on but any major stuff, I'd like a vets opinion.

Facebook, Lil Beginnings and a few other places have been very active with the recent outbreak of EVH1, equine herpes outbreak. It's a big concern as it is the neurological kind. It apparently came up at a Cutting Horse Show, but everyone should be cautious and take precautions if they're showing or having horses transported. When the horse has a fever is when it's transmittable. See the National Cutting Horse Association for the latest news.

Otherwise all is quiet here. Baily, Cricket and Jitters (yes the colt has a name) are doing great and evidently enjoy playing in the rain and rolling in the damp, not quite mud dirt, so they're a lovely brownish color. Woody is still doing okay and was actually moving around quite well the past couple days. I'm wondering if the damp softer ground is helping with his feet.

Week in Review

2011-05-14T09:42:00.000-07:00

Busy week of a busy month!

We're done foaling - yeah. Valentina finally popped day 349 from her last possible, I'll-cover-you-as-you-exit-the-pasture-date. So we're not sure how long she actually carried him, but it's a first for me in eleven years of foaling. I think 342 was the longest in the past!

Fortunately she had a beautiful bay colt. I keep looking and kinda hope he'll grey out, as I've never had a grey foal before, but if he doesn't that will be good to, as we don't know yet how strong Topper's greying gene is, as the two fillies don't appear to have it.

He's very leggy, pretty Topper head and short back.

Definitely all boy from the screaming at one hour old, while running circles around his dam. I've yet to figure out why colts (in general) are so much more active at birth than the fillies. But I've had some that are just 'all that'!

So the third and final foal for 2011 foaling - Wesco Farms TC Up All Night OTG. I'm thoroughly enjoying getting to sleep again too!

His two sisters, Wesco Farms TC Ascended Allure (Bailey) and Wesco Farms TC Defiantly Different (Cricket) are both doing well. Bailey is already pending for sale, which is good. The intent is to sell ALL foals this year and likely next too.

Bailey is shyer than Cricket, but they've finally reached the age where they're starting to play together. Very cute to watch as they're so closely marked.

My big question for Topper though - two pintos out of solids and a solid out of the pinto - why? If Val had a bay filly marked like these two I would have laughed and really wondered WTF??

Don't ask me where the ranch names came from either, they just pop into my head. The colt I've been calling Goober so I hope something else 'strikes' me soon! I have enough oddly named colts as it is, a Goober we don't need. Now to get photos and DNA to get the trio registered!

Rose (2010 filly, Wesco Farms Chance Encounter), has been in with the pregnant mares and now foals, as I had nowhere to store a yearling filly. If Chiclet was a more concerned dam, I might have left her out with the mare herd, but Chiclet tends to let them grow up and away without a backward glance. So Rose has been in with the pregnant gang. She's a good babysitter, and not aggressive.

Rose with 'he won't be called Goober'

Tomas was out and we got all the stallions and colts trimmed/dewormed. Then sorted them for breeding. It was quite an orchestration getting them moved around while considering where to house each one. As Dance (Buckeye WCF Dance All Night) was the primary one I wanted to use this year, I have him where I can see him all the time. Ringo (Wesco Farms Buckerowdyroo) I've had request for his daughter by Una, so we're repeating that breeding. Demon (Little Kings Dream Demon) is for sale, so we bred Dipper to him (double bred Buckeroo mare) as we've always loved the Supreme/Buckeroo cross. Then there's Hollywood (Bells Hollywood Heartbreaker, that is visiting here from Imperial Acres.

(He's already dropped weight running the fence in this pic)

Hollywood is a Half Measures GM Mega Bucks son (who's get have been doing so well out here) and a Grandpa's Gambling Man grandson, out of one of the Bell's gorgeous mares. He has some movement on him, so we bred him to the ones we're hoping we'll get movement and the highest chance of color.

Although as both Hollywood and Dance are new to pasture breeding, and my mares are only in with stallions thirty days max, I'm expecting a fairly low cover rate - watch them surprise us though! Either way will be fine. I did breed a few more mares than intended, but when we had the whole group of mares locked up, there were so many that we did NOT breed again, it's kinds of a shame, knowing that so many of the mares won't have foals until 2013 or 2014 at the earliest. Wish I was breeding hamsters at times!

It has been a good week on the sales front. Libbe, Honeybun, Baroness, Bre and Gemini will be off to new homes post breeding season and Unique (Wesco Farms Unique Toy4Me) came back as a trade for Gemini.

Unique is a daughter of Avril (we have two daughters of hers - ET and Dresden) as well as of Toy (we have two daughters of his too) so, Unique has plenty of relations here. One day, I'm going to get a photo of Unique, Valentina and Twila together - they have similarities but are quite different in color.

The downer of the week, Tomas trimmed Woody and he's not improving in any way. No matter how we're trying to manage his founder he's getting progressively worse, so he's likely taking his trip over the rainbow bridge in the next few weeks. I'm really sad about that as Woody was one of our first Minis (he's the W in our ranch name), but I can't see making him suffer. He's foundered six times in the past year and a half regardless how we feed, keep him and trim him. As he's only 12 this has developed into a chronic problem even having dropped weight, careful feeding, etc. UC Davis said it's not Cushings when I had him checked, but he's just not improving in any way.

So, a good and bad week, but as to be expected. Right now it looks like it may actually rain, so need to go feed the gang!