Okey Dokey Farm

18/08/2024

Sunday afternoon reset .... need to do this first thing in the day...not last, as it often doesn't happen.

18/08/2024

Always two sides to every equation, circumstance or situation...
1. A friend gave me a sourdough starter... yeah!
I get all excited...bake like crazy for 2 days and eat soughdough nonstop.
2. Wonder why every joint and boney arthritic protuberance is aching like a b!@ #$. Hmm...
See second slide.
BALANCE is the key to all things life, horses, and sourdough. Cheers.

16/08/2024

Golden hour 'tour de pothole'...👱‍♀️🐕🐶🐕.

13/08/2024

Mostly high and dry in this seemingly continuous wet extension to what is meant to be the dry times 🤷‍♀️. Unlimited long dry fibre in the form of Rhodes grass hay and lucerne for those that need, in addition to CEN Horse Nutrition .
The 🐸🐸🐸 are happy and singing away.
#

07/08/2024

Evening feeds under the evening ✨️

04/08/2024

Took a couple of hours out this afternoon and finally got Jack Sparrow to the beach...the float loading needs some refining 🙈...but we made it. If you wait until it's all perfect,...probably never happen.

03/08/2024

Finally the stars have aligned. The sun is out, the ROCK has arrived, the machinery has decided to cooperate and my legend hubby is working magic with the bobcat.
The ability to manage the horses and my sanity in ever challenging climate has become my obsession. Soon to be completed: 2 x flexible enclosed stables with yards to manage the inevitable incidents requiring rehab, hoof repair or nursing care 🤠. We've upgraded the internal roading too to handle whatever may come. A few more loads to go next week and it should be pretty bullet proof.

31/07/2024

Big day spent with quality humans and horses. We are blessed here to have access to some of the best in the business. Dedicated professionals who are so willing to share their knowledge and support our horses. Feeling very grateful 🐎🐎🐎

30/07/2024

ANZAC soaking up the winter sun ☺️. His best mate Benni has been having quite the time of it 🤕 and is in a hospital stall. Anzac is in the paddock adjoining the stall for company. Benni's on the improve and is out for bouts of leg stretching and grazing🙏. Here's to sunny days ahead for all involved🫶.

24/07/2024

Been a bit quiet on the socials...the good news is we adopted a pound puppy on the first day of the school holidays (more than a fortnight ago😂). Welcome Marley !
Honestly....the last few months have been insane. The wet...the bloody wet! Horses really don't thrive in the wet (understatement). I've tripped, slipped and slid, skated, aquaplaned and got bogged. We have very sadly had to farewell a few residents and I've had multiple "hospital" type admissions requiring intensive care. I've been kicked in the face (literally) and my body is letting me know I am no longer 21. My admin for both businesses and our usual life admin is so way behind it's not funny. I've neglected family and friends and for that I apolgise...it's never my intention. Have adopted the "this too shall pass" mantra. Right now, the sun has been out and the ground is firming up and the truck carrying the rocky stuff is booked for friday. These photos make life look rosey...but the ones I really wanted to post would likely get me banned from meta...so lets just say it's all sunshine🌝 rainbows🌈and puppies 🐶 If you want the gritty/gory ones...dm me 😆.

22/07/2024

Locals....where can i get bulk clean sawdust...today.

15/07/2024

Winter and the wind has arrived (no complaints here😃)..feel like up dating your attire? Then check out these beauties from Mountain Horse Trading

Winter is finally here!! Wrap up with a Wyoming Traders Canvas Ranch Jacket and Wild West Silk Rag.

🌵Jackets are lined and super toasty!

🌵 Colours: Tan & Chocolate

🌵Available in Womens and Mens sizes

🌵Generous sizing

*Use the code 'winter' for FREE EXPRESS POST on all Wyoming Traders Jackets and Wool Vests. '

Womens Jackets - https://mountainhorsetrading.com.au/canvas-ranch-jacket/

Mens Jackets - https://mountainhorsetrading.com.au/canvas-ranch-coat/

13/07/2024

Regular farrier appointments aren't a luxury, they are a necessity for your equine companion's lifelong welfare.

❔Did you know❔
Every extra 1cm of toe length results in -
🔹an extra 50KG of force acting on the tendons
🔹a -1° drop in sole angle where the DDFT inserts into the coffin bone can lead to a 4% increase in the pressure exerted by the DDFT on the navicular bone

(Credit Dr Renate Weller)

10/07/2024

A well written perspective on what it means to your horse when their environment changes...

"New Home Syndrome"🤓

I am coining this term to bring recognition, respect, and understanding to what happens to horses when they move homes. This situation involves removing them from an environment and set of routines they have become familiar with, and placing them somewhere completely different with new people and different ways of doing things.

Why call it a syndrome?

Well, really it is! A syndrome is a term used to describe a set of symptoms that consistently occur together and can be tied to certain factors such as infections, genetic predispositions, conditions, or environmental influences. It is also used when the exact cause of the symptoms is not fully understood or when it is not connected with a well-defined disease. In this case, "New Home Syndrome" is connected to a horse being placed in a new home where its entire world changes, leading to psychological and physiological impacts. While it might be transient, the ramifications can be significant for both the horse and anyone handling or riding it.

Let me explain...

Think about how good it feels to get home after a busy day. How comfortable your favourite clothes are, how well you sleep in your own bed compared to a strange bed, and how you can really relax at home. This is because home is safe and familiar. At home, the part of you that keeps an eye out for potential danger turns down to a low setting. It does this because home is your safe place (and if it is not, this blog will also explain why a lack of a safe place is detrimental).

Therefore, the first symptom of horses experiencing "New Home Syndrome" is being unsettled, prone to anxiety, or difficult behaviour. If you have owned them before you moved them, you struggle to recognise your horse, feeling as if your horse has been replaced by a frustrating version. If the horse is new to you, you might wonder if you were conned, if the horse was drugged when you rode it, or if you were lied to about the horse's true nature.

A horse with "New Home Syndrome" will be a stressed version of itself, on high alert, with a drastically reduced ability to cope. Horses don't handle change like humans do. If you appreciate the comfort of your own home and how you can relax there, you should be able to understand what the horse is experiencing.

Respecting that horses interpret and process their environments differently from us helps in understanding why your horse is being frustrating and recognising that there is a good chance you were not lied to or that the horse was not drugged.

Horses have survived through evolution by being highly aware of their environments. Change is a significant challenge for them because they notice the slightest differences, not just visually but also through sound, smell, feel, and other senses. Humans generalise and categorise, making it easy for us to navigate familiar environments like shopping centres. Horses do not generalise in the same way; everything new is different to them, and they need proof of safety before they can habituate and feel secure. When their entire world changes, it is deeply stressful.

They struggle to sleep until they feel safe, leading to sleep deprivation and increased difficulty.

But there is more...

Not only do you find comfort in your home environment and your nervous system downregulates, but you also find comfort in routines. Routines are habits, and habits are easy. When a routine changes or something has to be navigated differently, things get difficult. For example, my local supermarket is undergoing renovations. After four years of shopping there, it is extremely frustrating to have to work out where everything is now. Every day it gets moved due to the store being refitted section by section. This annoyance is shared by other shoppers and even the staff.

So, consider the horse. Not only are they confronted with the challenge of figuring out whether they are safe in all aspects of their new home while being sleep deprived, but every single routine and encounter is different. Then, their owner or new owner starts getting critical and concerned because the horse suddenly seems untrained or difficult. The horse they thought they owned or bought is not meeting their expectations, leading to conflict, resistance, explosiveness, hypersensitivity, and frustration.

The horse acts as if it knows little because it is stressed and because the routines and habits it has learned have disappeared. If you are a new human for the horse, you feel, move, and communicate differently from what it is used to. The way you hold the reins, your body movements in the saddle, the position of your leg – every single routine of communication between horse and person is now different. I explain to people that when you get a new horse, you have to imprint yourself and your way of communicating onto the horse. You have to introduce yourself and take the time to spell out your cues so that they get to know you.

Therefore, when you move a horse to a new home or get a new horse, your horse will go through a phase called "New Home Syndrome," and it will be significant for them. Appreciating this helps them get through it because they are incredible and can succeed. The more you understand and help the horse learn it is safe in its new environment and navigate the new routines and habits you introduce, the faster "New Home Syndrome" will pass.
"New Home Syndrome" will be prevalent in a horse’s life until they have learned to trust the safety of the environment (and all that entails) and the humans they meet and interact with. With strategic and understanding approaches, this may take weeks, and their nervous systems will start downgrading their high alert status. However, for some horses, it can take a couple of years to fully feel at ease in their new home.

So, next time you move your horse or acquire a new horse and it starts behaving erratically or being difficult, it is not being "stupid", you might not have been lied to or the horse "drugged" - your horse is just experiencing an episode of understandable "New Home Syndrome." And you can help this.❤

I would be grateful if you could please share, this reality for horses needs to be better appreciated ❤
‼️When I say SHARE that does not mean plagiarise my work…it is seriously not cool to copy and paste these words and make out you have written it yourself‼️

26/06/2024

When the sky is "almost" worthy 🧡

22/06/2024

Handsome Jack....great ride this eve. Short but soft. He's a good fella.

19/06/2024

Morning 🌄

19/06/2024

Ralph has the prettiest 👁👁.

18/06/2024

Dass is trying to fit in with his new bestie Roy... it's "tongues out Tuesday" 😝. He was a nervy anxious mess when he arrived a week or so back...I've watched him lie down and sleep, mutually groom the other horses, and his whole demeanour has improved. He's gone from spooky to sooky.

16/06/2024

We are approaching the shortest day of the year. Fitting everything in during daylight areas is challenging, but before we know it, they'll be getting longer...bring it on.

15/06/2024

Beauty...no filter.

13/06/2024

My littlest chunky one is overcoming some anxiety issues regarding leaving the herd...building his resilience and tolerance levels every day.

09/06/2024

Scroll to see Roy giving his stamp of approval 😝 to the more organised tack area.

07/06/2024

Short days make for good outdoor cinema viewing...

06/06/2024

Finally our winter sunsets arrived

06/06/2024

Missed filming this guy running between the horses this morning...scampered up the nearest tree. We are blessed so many of these critters call this place home.

05/06/2024

Today we welcomed our newest resident Dass. He's our latest retiree to join the herd. Thanks to and for working together to find him a soft landing.

26/05/2024

25/05/2024

Pretty cool when you look closely....