As you may have noticed, I’ve taken a couple of weeks off from blogging.  It was an unintentional hiatus, but during my break I took some time to consider the evolution of this site.  When FromTheHorsesBack started, I envisioned a resource chock full of show tips, health information, product reviews, and other useful tidbits.  Over the past 7 months it has evolved to include Thankful Thursdays, virtual trail rides, and the newly added Sunday Stills challenges.  I am looking forward to continuing these regular features, while also ramping up the articles and tips sections as well. 

I am excited about the next few months, which will bring profiles on top trainers, health topics, contests, and extensive coverage of the upcoming Equine Affaire event in Columbus, Ohio that I will be attending.  In addition, I will be unveiling a secret that all pet bloggers will be able to enjoy!  I can’t wait to share, but for now I’ll just say that you’ll definitely want to jump on board if you have a website!  

As always,  thanks for visiting and happy riding!

Photo courtesy of Petronella02, Photobucket

Have you ever taken one of those quizzes that ask, “What animal most closely represents you?”  I was driving home from the barn last night pondering this very topic, and surprised myself with my revelation.  I have answered this question, or some variation of it, many times over the years.  Maybe I never thought about it that closely, or maybe my perspective has changed.  Either way, last night I realized that if I were asked that question right now, my answer would be the horse.  I am transparent and cannot be dishonest – one look into my eyes and you can see right through me.  If you communicate clearly and fairly with me, only then will I “get” what you truly want from me, as I don’t understand games or agendas.  Put me in a wide open space and I will run and play, but when it’s time to bridle up and work I’m focused and ready.  I am strong and powerful and can carry a friend for miles if I need or want to.   Yet I am delicate – a wrong step and I might break, anxiety will find my belly churning.  I might kick out if you approach too fast and if you restrain me too firmly, I’ll surely pull back, break the ties, and be gone before you know what went wrong.  But my heart is pure and my spirit is strong and I would trek through the desert with no water for the partner that appreciates that about me.

 I wonder, do I identify these traits in horses because the qualities represent me or do I connect so strongly with horses because they mirror my soul?  When you think of the essence of the horse, do you think of the same images as I do?  Would you say that the horse represents you better than any other animal?    If so, do you think that you are drawn to horses because you have those similar traits or does your relationship with your horse develop them?  If you’re not a horse person, do you feel that your traits mirror those of your favorite pet?

I had so much fun doing a virtual trail ride last month that I set out to get some more great trail shots again!  This time, Tiny and I (accompanied by a friend that served as assistant photographer) ventured through the woods down to visit Lake Harney and do some gator spotting.  Unfortunately no gators this time, but we did see a gopher tortoise hanging out next to the trail.  She was kind enough to pose for a few photos before we set out on our way.   Gopher tortoises are fairly common in wooded areas of Central Florida, but I haven’t seen many of them right along the trail like this.  It was a great start to our adventure!  

We continued on through a series of woodland trails and sand roads, heading toward our ultimate destination of Lake Harney.  Along the way we spotted many birds and lots of pretty foliage.  We had great fun snapping shots of our tracks in the sand!  

Photo courtesy of Hazem Behiry

Hoofprints in the sand

Lake Harney is a huge lake – about 6,000 acres –  that is very near Tiny’s barn.  I used to take Grady and Bella to the beach there to romp and play and we would walk the trails that pepper the woods along the shoreline.  Once, we saw an owl swoop down and grab a snake right in front of us!  The lake is always a good place for wildlife sightings and the water is teeming with alligators and fish.  It’s hard to believe that in the heavy rains we had last year, this whole area was flooded under several feet of water for almost a month.  

Tiny isn’t a fan of the water, but she does like to look around and see what is going on out here.  There is always something fun – airboats, birds, fisherman.  Not too much going on this day, just a man and his metal detector, scouring the beach. 

Although we didn’t see much wildlife on our trail ride this time, it was the perfect day to spend some time with my girl.  I hope you enjoyed the ride as much as we did! 

Photo courtesy of Hazem Behiry

Photo courtesy of Mike Tungate

Happy Holidays everyone!  I hope that for those of you that celebrate Christmas, today finds you fat and happy.  For everyone else, I hope that you are enjoying a long weekend to relax and spend time with your loved ones!

As you can see, I received a very special surprise for Christmas this year!  My cousin-in-law, Roberto, has been helping me with updating my site design and we took it live on Christmas Eve!  I am so excited to finally have a design that reflects a horsey theme!  Give me some feedback – do you like the new layout?  Is it user friendly?  Any quirks? 

Roberto and I have also been cooking up a new surprise for all of you bloggers, too!  Stay tuned in the next few weeks and we’ll hopefully be able to share it with you soon…. I think you’ll like!

Whatever your beliefs and practices may be, I hope that you enjoy the last days of 2009 and are ready to hop into the next decade and make it a great one!  Best to all!

Image courtesy of Dave Walker

For a long time now, I’ve been wanting to do a virtual trail ride post.  Until now, it’s never happened….mostly because I could never get it together enough to remember my camera, remember to charge my camera, or remember to actually take the photos.  Well, the planets aligned for me today and here are some photos of my Sunday fun and trail ride….sans Emma, but still amazing!  Enjoy…

Tiny and her girls

Keeping an eye on the cows

Me and my shadow

Ciao, Tiny! Until next time....

Jane, over at The Literary Horse, has asked this age old question of her readers and wants some feedback.  I think that many of us involved with our equine friends get this question, oh, a few hundred times or so in our lives.  And Jane has nailed it:  you don’t love horses in the same way that you love football or chocolate.  Putting into words the nature of the feeling and involvement is next to impossible.  It comes from a place that transcends words.  If you are truly a horse person, no description is necessary to explain why the best Saturday mornings entail rising at dawn so you can experience the waking of the world from a horse’s back.  But for those of you that are NOT horse people and have either been afraid to ask or have gotten an unsatisfactory answer, here you go.  With the benefit of an extended amount of time to contemplate and create some poetic verbage:  Why horses?

Because they don’t talk back, yet you’ll often find an ear cocked in your direction as you speak 

Because they accept what is and never look back

Because you can view your soul through a horse’s eyes

Because there is no high like the one you feel when you have just perfected an intricate maneuver on horseback

Because of the strength and flexibility the body has as a result of riding

Because it feels powerful to charge through the woods at a gallop, ducking branches and feeling the wind whip around you

Because of the partnership and trust that is shared between a horse and rider

Because nothing soothes the edges of a rough day like a warm, hay scented breath blown on your cheek

Because they are so powerful and yet so fragile

Because equestrian friendships transcend age, religion, and sexuality.  The language of the horse is enough to sustain a lasting bond

Because horses are the best teachers and if you listen there is always something new to learn

But mostly, because horses are in my soul.  They have been from the day I was born, long before I ever laid a hand upon one.  If you have ever been lucky enough to experience that feeling with anything, then you might understand.  There are just some things you can’t explain, and trying to rein them into words diminishes the greatness. 

So I’m with Jane.  Why horses?  Because I like them.

I’ve had many requests for more photos and news on the zoo.  I aim to please, so here they are….

Many of you have met Grady before and know what a charming little goober-flinger he is.  Bet you didn’t also know he’s a personal friend of the Easter Bunny (thanks to the Tampa Humane Society for the photo!) and a certified therapy dog!  The photo on the top right is Grady and I at Give Kids the World Village not long after his certification was completed.  Grady LOVES children and this venue gave him a great opportunity to mingle with tons of kids and their families.  It’s a lot of fun and for a great cause.  Every weekend the Village (which is a resort style complex that is a fantasyland for terminally ill children) hosts a street party in the square with dancing, music, and food.  Children sing and dance and forget their troubles for a short while and it’s great fun for everyone involved.  The bottom photo is Grady getting his butt whooped by his sister, Bella Dog.  She doesn’t live with us anymore, but she may turn up now and again around these parts! 

Milo is definitely the more photogenic of my two cats.  I have tons of photos of him in goofy positions or doing strange things.  You never know quite what you’ll find with him.  In fact the photos of him wrapped up in the sheet were just taken this morning as I watched him flopping around in there trying to free himself.  As you can see, Grady was not particularly amused.  The bottom left photo is Milo as a kitten rubbing noses with my old Neo, Otis.  When I got the kittens, Otis was elderly and infirm.  He didn’t get around well and he served as an excellent jungle gym for baby Milo and Bella.  This photo is one of my favorites of the two of them together. 

I had a lot more trouble finding good photos of Bella.  She’s so independent and low-key that she tends to fly under the radar a bit more than the others.  I’m hoping that changes now that we’ve moved.  I have been so pleasantly surprised with how she’s dealt with it – nothing at all how I expected her to!  She’s willingly given up her freedom (they were indoor/outdoor cats prior) and now languishes in her various spots around our tiny little apartment.  Her favorite place is curled up on the cable box or my lap.  I’ll be sure to get more photos of Bella for future Zoo editions. 

And now…just in case you’re not yet convinced of my insanity, check out the former zoo in its entirety.  Before the four of us moved in July, we lived with a total of 6 cats, 2 dogs, 1 horse, and an occasional visitor of some variety (whatever creature came to visit via the cat door, or needed rehab for some ailment).  I know it seems crazy to have so many animals in one house (and yes, it felt crazy sometimes!) but I love each and every one of those guys and I miss them dearly.  Check out a somewhat common kitchen view:

From left: Bubba, Frankie, Milo, Minge, Bella Cat, Bella Dog, and Grady. Tiglet is AWOL.

How bad is it to laugh at my horse?  I mean really laugh at her, like a belly laugh kinda thing?  I’m not sure how I didn’t notice this before, as Emma even called me to point it out (OK, it’s true – she laughed at Tiny too!).  I guess it was the light or something, I don’t know.  But this week I noticed for sure that my horse has a farmer tan.  Like a serious, hard core tan line.  I’m actually kind of impressed…I wouldn’t mind having such a nice tan line to wrap up the summer with.  But as is typical in the world of horses, my butt is stuck indoors all day trying to make enough money so she can continue sunning herself.  Such is the life…. 

Anyway, enjoy and hope you get a giggle out of her too!  I can’t recall ever having a horse with a tan line before…oh, and I wish my full body photos had turned out better.   She actually has strap lines from her fly sheet on her rib cage! 

Alright, so August started off great in the horse world with the whole Oleander poisoning event in California.  Now, I came across this post on another horse blog, Enlightened Horsemanship Through Touch (which, incidentally, is a fantastic source of well written horse information).  My view on humanity just keeps taking the hits. 

Has anyone in Florida here heard about this?  I know I tend to be a bit behind the news and all, but really.  This has been going on for some time and I’ve heard nothing about it.  Apparently horses are being stolen from private properties and slaughtered for horsemeat.  Check out the link for the full story.  Right now, I’m just speechless.  I can’t even count the ways that I find this disturbing.

What on earth are people thinking?  I mean, seriously.  When I heard about the 23 American Saddlebred horses that were poisoned with oleander in California, it made me crazy.  In our current environment of war and financial troubles, why do people feel the need to further contribute to the negativity by attempting such a cruel and pointless act?  Thankfully, it looks as though the horses will survive.  Check out the link and let me know your thoughts.