Broncs of Blue Sky

11/30/2024

11/27/2024

Oops

11/13/2024

Like many animals, horses are smarter than we give em credit for 😍 https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cwy4j4kkxd8o.amp?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR1jRLKL3ZezwvLw_zU55BUH9na9_feR3H23Rvh4rPM8TjCSwkILShmFT_g_aem_WmCjSMok-oKxjxe2HMAToA

It's hoped the findings lead to more humane horse training regimes and improvements to welfare.

11/12/2024

Isn't it cool how horses drink? No sloppy lapping it up like dogs, they siphon the water into their mouth. Water is essential to a horses well being. They can live up to 25 days without food, but only 3-6 days without adequate water 😳

10/31/2024

Happy Horse-o-ween!

🎃🎃🎃 🐴🐴🐴 It's that time of year again... the annual horse spooking graphic! All entries real (presumably) and sent in by you!

Happy Nagoweeeeeen!

10/24/2024

This has been around social media for a while, but always good to keep in mind! ❤️🐴❤️A thought-provoking read.
By Jane Smiley

Most horses pass from one human to another - some horsemen and women are patient and forgiving, others are rigorous and demanding, others are cruel, others are ignorant.

Horses have to learn how to, at the minimum, walk, trot, canter, gallop, go on trails and maybe jump, to be treated by the vet, all with sense and good manners.

Talented Thoroughbreds must learn how to win races, and if they can't do that, they must learn how to negotiate courses and jump over strange obstacles without touching them, or do complicated dance like movements or control cattle or accommodate severely handicapped children and adults in therapy work.

Many horses learn all of these things in the course of a single lifetime. Besides this, they learn to understand and fit into the successive social systems of other horses they meet along the way.

A horse's life is rather like twenty years in foster care, or in and out of prison, while at the same time changing schools over and over and discovering that not only do the other students already have their own social groups, but that what you learned at the old school hasn't much application at the new one.

We do not require as much of any other species, including humans.

That horses frequently excel, that they exceed the expectations of their owners and trainers in such circumstances, is as much a testament to their intelligence and adaptability as to their relationship skills or their natural generosity or their inborn nature. That they sometimes manifest the same symptoms as abandoned orphans - distress, strange behaviors, anger, fear - is less surprising than that they usually don't.

No one expects a child, or even a dog to develop its intellectual capacities living in a box 23 hours a day and then doing controlled exercises the remaining one.

Mammal minds develop through social interaction and stimulation.

A horse that seems "stupid", "slow", "stubborn", etc. might just have not gotten the chance to learn!

Take care of your horses and treasure them.

10/23/2024

How about a spooky 👻 horse 🐴 story? https://www.facebook.com/share/p/EyXBffLdHCn9HVqL/?

**The Incredible Tale of the Jockey Who Won a Race While Dead**

June 4, 1923—a day marked by one of the most bizarre and eerie moments in horse racing history. Jockey Frank Hayes, mounted on his horse Sweet Kiss, crossed the finish line as the unlikely winner of a steeplechase at Belmont Park. But what made this victory extraordinary wasn't the race itself—it was that Hayes had died mid-race, likely due to a heart attack, yet somehow stayed upright in the saddle until the very end.

Hayes had been trying to rapidly shed weight to meet the jockey requirements, a stressful task that may have contributed to his untimely death. Officials only discovered that he had passed away after the race concluded, leaving the crowd stunned.

Frank Hayes remains the *only* jockey to win a race posthumously. The horse, Sweet Kiss, earned the ominous nickname "The Sweet Kiss of Death" and never raced again. Some said no jockey dared to ride the horse after that chilling day.

It’s a tale that captures both the dedication and the risks of this high-stakes sport, and one that continues to fascinate racing enthusiasts and curious minds alike.

10/23/2024

Don't smoke, and don't let your horses smoke either 🚬

10/21/2024

We got a lil rain the last couple of days (that pond is the barn aisle 😂). Now it's back to blue skies n sunshine, and trying to dry out!

10/17/2024

Horned horses? Who knew?

People often joke that their horse’s whorl is the spot the unicorn horn is about to grow in or has fallen off. It’s fun and understandable. We all think our good horses should be unicorns and the whorls can get pretty oddly shaped.

Did you know that horses can grow horns for real though?

Not unicorn horns, unfortunately, but close. There are a few very rare horses who grow a pair of ‘horns’, one on each side of the forehead. Usually just above the eyes.

These bony protrusions from the skull are harmless and sometimes hard to see. But they have been documented in horses for centuries.

~Famous Horned Horses~

Alexander the Great's favorite mount, Bucephalus (which means "ox head") is said to have had horns. This may be legend, or it may be legend based in reality.

Bucephalus did have an ox head brand, but this was a common brand that spoke of good breeding. Not something to name a great horse after. It is very possible that he did have these small horns that we know exist and stories were built upon that over time until he was said to have had great horns and to have used them in battle to attack!

He may be the most famous horned horse, but there are a few breeds who are known for having horns. Either as a breed trait, or a trait common to the breed.

~Horned Horse Breeds~

The extremely rare, maybe no longer existing as anything but a ‘type’? Moyle horse developed in the United States in Utah, was known for their horns. As well as their very docile willing temperament.

The Carthusian strain of Andalusians are said to commonly carry horns.

The Datong a mountain bred pony breed from China were originally graced with horns. “Improved” breeding is going towards a more refined horse and the horns are now looked at as a flaw instead of a breed trait.

~Temperament~

Although separate from whorls horns do seem to give us some idea of temperament. Horses with horns tend to be docile, willing, some say almost d***y in their behavior. It’s easy to see why that would be appreciated in a horse navigating treacherous mountain trails.

The horns still appear in many modern breeds. On everything from Draft to Thoroughbred, they will pop up occasionally giving us a thrill as we pause to marvel at these horned horses. It’s almost like having a real life unicorn!

10/17/2024

Horses 🤦🏻‍♀️

10/16/2024

The third barn kitty is finally sitting still long enough for a quick photo. This is Virgie. She and her sisters are getting MUCH better at having hoomans around. So happy that the three of them decided to stick around. 🥰 And Jason is finishing up with mowing for the final time this year. There was actually some frost on the grass this morning! Still need to get the broken down tractor moved. Things are looking good tho. I'll try to take some "after" pics this weekend to pair up with the "befores" so you can see how far we've come with the property. Lots left to do before we can kick the REAL rescue work into gear, but we are getting closer!

10/09/2024

We got another box of goodies from Chewy today! Just in time for fall working, too! Thank you ❤️❤️❤️

10/09/2024

DEEP SOUTH FLORIDA - As Hurricane Milton bears down on Florida's West Coast, racetracks and boarding barns have evacuated.

The bucking horses of 5 Star, Big Water and Silver Spurs don't live pigeonholed in stalls that turn deathtraps in flood situations, but if you're wondering what's been done for them ahead of tonight's landfall event here it is, thanks to 5 Star's Mackenzie Bowers.

BIG WATER PRO RODEO
Seth & Megan Louthan

"We have been ranching in South Florida for many generations and been through several storms. We move our livestock to the interior pastures of the ranch and give them plenty of room to roam. Their natural instincts take over and they know how to survive. The livestock and fences are priority number one after the storm passes."

SILVER SPURS PRO RODEO
Scott Ramsey and George Kempfer

"We take the safety of our bucking stock very seriously. We have checked all the fences and opened gates so the livestock can get to higher ground during this hurricane. As soon as the storm passes, we'll make sure all of our stock is safe and secure."

5 STAR RODEO
Marty Johns & Paul Bowers Jr.

"As Tribal members of the Seminole Tribe of Florida, we know our Seminole ancestors survived by taking refuge in the deep swampy woods of Florida, building our Chikee Huts in the middle of tree-filled hammocks to block the wind and heavy rain during hurricanes. This provided a wind break and shelter.

Elders always said turn your livestock loose in the woods. Just like us, they willl move to the back side of woods or in the middle of a palmetto hammock to block the wind.

Cows and horses will turn their rears to the wind to hold their ground. They will survive like they have for hundreds of years just like the Marsh Tackys before them. Every measure has been taken for the welfare and care of our animals."

Please join us in praying for the safety of every soul in the path of this killer storm.

PICTURED: The 5 Star horses quietly bunched up waiting for Milton.

5 Star Rodeo

09/29/2024

I'll probably get a little BEHIND the next several days. Traveling to Scotland to see my daughter and her beau, and finally meet my grand dogs AND new grand horse!! 🐴 I'm pretty excited! ❤️