Tuesday, August 23, 2011

Fence Fixer and an Update


This is how my Ranch Boy fixes corral fences, Jimmy Buffet style.

By the way, he is using a rock to pound in the nail.

So here is the latest. My horse is getting a week's vacation. On Sunday morning I fed him his hay, then started filling a wheelbarrow of poop from his pasture. As I was about finished I approached him as he was eating. I went to brush a pile of bird poo off his back and something about the feeling of my work gloves (or who knows what it was) spooked him and as he jumped away from me he caught my foot.

I think he stepped off my foot and pushed away. Immediately I felt burning sharp pain, dumped the wheelbarrow, went inside and took off my boot and sock to find a purple bruise on the top of my foot. Luckily no toes involved. Since then, I have been icing and taking Ibuprofen. Unfortunately I can only wear Uggs, flip-flops, or ballet flats. Nothing that presses on the top of my swollen and bruised foot! I am missing some fun rides this week.

Do you ever do something with horses and immediately regret it? I didn't need to approach my horse in the pasture as he was eating. I was wearing rubber boots, which I sometimes do when "mucking" as they are closer to the door than my cowboy boots. The cowboy boots probably would have provided better protection! Ah well, live and learn. Hopefully nothing is broken and I'll be on the mend and back in the saddle next week.

Thank you for sharing your thoughts on me acquiring a new horse! I thought for sure some of you would be little mama's and discourage me from getting in over my head. I do have an interview on Friday so I am keep my fingers crossed that I on my way to employment (luckily I am still getting one more paycheck from my former school.) I would like to purchase the mare soon so I have a few months of good weather to do some work with her before winter kicks in.


Ranch Girl

8 comments:

Crystal said...

That funny with the outfit and using a rock as a hammer!

I lots of times do stupid things with horses, so much so that my horses im sure are wondering what the crazy people are up to next, lol.

cowgirljlynn said...

Ouch, so far I have been lucky and never been stepped on..

Sherry Sikstrom said...

Ouch!!!! I was wearing little canvas sneakers and my mare jumped out of the trailer on to my foot ! The kicker? she didn't break it , 2 days later I was out two stepping and a tiny little girl stepped back and ...SNAP! Guessing it was cracked before and the girl on the dance floor finished the job!
I have been known to grab a rock to pound in a nail or two! works well

BB said...

These toes have copped quite a hiding too, over the years... toenails DO grow back!!!
:-)
BB

Anonymous said...

Dear Jimmy Buffet wannabe: you might want to rethink the "flipflops in the corral" thing. And i'm not even talking about getting "stepped on"; it's more like "stepped in"...

Paint Girl said...

Before you know it you will be back in the saddle again!
Good luck with the interview. I am sure I will be one of the first one's to know the outcome!!!

baystatebrumby said...

Ranch Girrrl, you are so hard on yourself about those boots and sneaking up on your Boy. I wear flip flops around the farm all the time! I know it's not really safe, but if I feel like I am in a flip flop moment (which I always am, come to think of it), I wear my flip flops. BUT, I am sorry that you got hurt. At least you know it wasn't a malicious act--that it was an innocent startle. Have you seen the movie Buck yet? YOU MUST. Anyhoo, in that movie there is a horse who does things malicious on puirpose! And it is very shocking and sad too (to any horse lover, it is sad because you know the horse wasn't ever taught how to be a nice, normal horse.) I also love your Jimmy Buffet in residence.

Laughing Orca Ranch said...

"Do you ever do something with horses and immediately regret it?"

Oh yeah. Many times. As you know I've been seriously hurt quite a few times riding or handling my horses. And afterwards I always second guess what I did and how I could have done something differently.
But I do find that Nowadays, I tend to do more questioning BEFORE I intend to do anything around a horse. I also tend to imagine the worst case scenario in everything I do when working around horses. Kind of makes me a little paranoid, but hopefully safer.

Sure hope your foot heals quickly so you can get out and ride again.
And good luck with the new mare, too.

~Lisa