Pooka Farms & Rabbitry

11/30/2024

Lessons for Nov 30

Temps are still miserable at the barn, I will not be doing any lessons before 12. If you have a lesson before then consider it canceled and we will try again next weekend. Hopefully it warms up just a bit.

12 and on lessons: shoot me a text before you head over, I’ll let ya know what the temp is. No riders under age 12 (below that are “fine” as we watch them turn blue and chatter) at 12 I can reason with them a bit.

Please bring coolers and blankets for horses if you haul in. If they need to dry before you leave and you don’t mind dogs and cats we can do hot coco in the house.

See ya (maybe) tomorrow!

11/28/2024

Happy Thanksgiving!

11/28/2024

A must watch:

Full length feature film “Horses and the Science of Harmony” examines the nature of harmony between horse and rider through the eyes of 3-day event rider Bub...

11/25/2024

My animals are odd… but teamwork is a thing, that round bale won’t get away on his watch 🤦‍♀️

11/21/2024

Reminder I am in DC this weekend no lessons!

I’m in town all next week and can do lessons in the afternoon.

Photo of me working super hard in DC 🤣

11/20/2024

PSA: reminder for everyone that they still p**p when it’s below zero and you still have to clean it up. Remember that when horse shopping in the spring and when paying your board bill and complaining.

11/19/2024

https://www.facebook.com/share/Y2rTdXv44HAZEZTE/?mibextid=WC7FNe

Yellowstone fans that are real horse people got a little confusing information on the Sunday, November 17, 2024 episode. This popular show appears to take pride in its western production on being very authentic - yet some how they had a BIG mistake with treating a horse with intramuscular Banamine.

What is the BIG deal? In this Yellowstone episode a horse was administered Banamine (Flunixin Meglumine) intramuscularly. Yet the nonsteroidal, anti-inflammatory is only administered orally (in the mouth) or intravenously (in the vein). Remember Banamine is never recommend to be administered to horses any other way.

Why not? Banamine causes muscle damage when injected intramuscularly! There are spores of bacteria known as clostridium that can rest in healthy muscle; however, the bacteria may awaken if the muscle becomes damaged from an IM injection particularly when Banamine is administered this way. This may cause clostridial myositis - which is a serious and sometimes fatal disease. Post injection signs of a problem would be swelling and a painful injection site with gas underneath the skin. The bacterial toxins may migrate into the bloodstream causing depression, colic, fever and a lose of appetite. Treatment by a licensed DVM is necessary if you make this mistake. Supportive care, antibiotics, and possibly a surgical excision of the infected injected site may be necessary.

This episode of Yellowstone was a good reminder - what is entertaining may not always be real and correct. Check with your equine veterinarian if you are unsure how to administer Banamine.

11/18/2024

Way to go Rebecca!!

https://www.alaskasnewssource.com/2024/11/16/mat-su-college-veterinary-tech-program-first-its-kind-alaska/?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR1t9Z2rsG6ZhDSrDi_Vn_H5C7d_GRcSOCH68lfGonTpyMeOOJTsiQw9lRQ_aem_Eu78JIAUpH7sm8IpYMheHQ

On Friday, Mat-Su College students and faculty celebrated the opening of the veterinary technology program’s new home on campus.

11/09/2024

Lessons are on for today! Next week normal lessons as well (weather pending)

Weekend before Thanksgiving I will be on the other side of the country so no lessons. :)

11/03/2024

Winter rides are wonderful ❤️

11/01/2024

First Charlie is amazing!!!

Second I think she is pretty snowblower proof!

10/22/2024

Winter is here....

With this, lessons may be canceled due to weather. Right now everything is a sheet of ice at the farm. With the rain and the drop in temp I am not expecting the arena to be ridable this weekend, but I will keep everyone posted.

Once the snow flies the footing will be useable once again. (stupid rain)

Stay tuned

10/20/2024

All sizes welcome in lessons with us, can’t wait to see this girl and her matching sister in harness and cart.

My timing on this pic could not have been better!

10/16/2024

Tonight was fun sharing the fun of driving with some of my long time students ❤️

10/10/2024

How fun!

10/05/2024

❤️

https://www.southernliving.com/nurses-deliver-aid-on-horseback-hurricane-helene-8723500?

With roads destroyed or still impassable due to storm damage from Hurricane Helene, nurses on horseback deliver aid to a community in hard-hit Avery County.

10/03/2024

Yep, I have not been a good FB posting person... sorry

For those that have messaged:
1. Yes, I am alive and not broken
2. Yes, I am still teaching. Limited schedule availability
3. Homer peeps! Rejoice I will be down weekly going forward. My other company Phoenix Consulting has signed a contact and I have a position in Homer that brings me down weekly. (reach out for more details)
4. I do not have training spots available.

I promise to be a bit better posting information and fun updates. Baby Bunny pics should be coming soon, lots of hair being pulled by momma's and nest are being made.

10/01/2024

This is what true horsemanship is ❤️

Well, I certainly did not want to post this. But since so many are following along with his story, I figured I should.

Cinco came to me from a hellacious auction. He bucked off the rider on the way in to the auction ring. A fact that I didn’t know until the gavel had already fallen. That was my first clue why he was there.

After some internet research, we found that he has been run through many auctions in the last year. His life was holy hell. He understandably hated people and everything they reprisented.

In the last two weeks he transformed from an aggressive fearful horse, to a sweet, much less fearful horse.

Today was the day I felt like he was gentled enough to get back X-rays of.

The vet came out and did the radiographs, and my suspicions and fears were validated. He has kissing spine in 6 vertebra. 4 are overriding. It is bad. He is in a tremendous amount of pain. He is not a surgical candidate.

So the decision was made to let Cinco finally be free of his pain and fear. He will spend the next few weeks eating all of the yummy treats and food, be turned out in 20 acres with a gentle herd of geldings, and see that not all humans are bad.

Then when the time comes, we will kick him out in to the universe and let him come back and try again.

I am so sad at the outcome, but can feel relief knowing that he will not live in the cycle of abuse he has been in. Easier said than done of course.

Poor Cinco. Hope he at least has now been able to feel love.

It’s amazing how quickly and easily it is to fall in love with a horse.