Storm Chaser

Born on Wednesday, May 25th, as I was driving in a storm from Chicago to Bloomington I received a call from my grandson..."Is there supposed to be a little horse out on the lawn? It's raining and the mare and foal are running around."

As I drove down there were news broadcasts of storms in the area being followed by storm chasers...it seemed a natural for this little filly.

AMHA/AMHR eligible

Sire: Lucky Four Rebelchase Rebelheir
Dam: Toad Hill's Pilgrim - Sired by Double B Farm's Wee Macho Man out of Klavohn's Oreo Delight

Special Delivery

PHOTOS ABOVE Taken June 11, 2011

Will post more current soon.

Ever just sit up in the middle of the night thinking there's some wrong and you have to get up and check it out?

Happened this morning at 4:25AM, Thursday, May 26th... I jump up and get out of bed...something is wrong. Immediately dressed, grab the flashlight and went outside...first place I go is the open shelter north of the house and there on the ground is TBD attempting to foal...the foal with one leg and a head out.
I break open the bag to allow air to the foal, try to put the foal back in a little while feeling for that second leg. Tried several times with my hand completely in the mares body...no luck.

Leave the foal, run to call vet...he's coming...I'm back in the barn....as I approach, I see the foals front body completely out...both front legs...WOW, missed a tragedy that time. Back to call the vet, go to the warmer barn, set up a stall, rush back out to grab the foal (by this time the afterbirth is passed), pick up foal, carry to barn with mom following close behind.
This was a Special Delivery...beautiful reddish brown color....star on forehead, some white legs. AMHR eligible colt.

Sometimes the name is obvious. I started this
Blog at 5:22 AM, thought I would jot down the adventure before going out again. Besides you have to let the mare and foal spend sometime together...she will relax a while, lick off the foal and mind-meld with foal.

I have to go back in, change clothes, have some tea and get ready for the day's chores. And of course, take a photo for the blog.

First photos taken a day after foaling followed by several taken June 11.

Sire: Lucky Four Rebelchase Rebelheir

Dam: Toad Hill's TBD Day of Defense

UPDATE: Photos Taken June 11, 2011



The Cereal Collection: PERLINO Paint

May 11, 2011 probably about 5 AM GrapeNuts had her second foal. This one is a palomino colored paint. Photos do not show the pattern well, will have to work on them.
Brother to Honey Nuts I am proud to present (drum roll):

Toad Hill's Fancy Granola.....hmmmmm no?
Perhaps:
          Toad Hill's Fancy Kashi ...still don't know
Might he be?
                    Toad Hill's Fancy Honey Grahams
No matter what he is named, he is a member of the:

Cereal Collection

Yes, his head is a little darker and he has shades of black on his mane and tail.

On a sadder note, Boones Little Buckeroo, grandsire to this little kid, passed away today, May 11th...perhaps I should put a reference to him in this Fancy boy's name.
Sire: Boones Buckeroo Fancy Pants, 29.75 inches
Dam: Toad Hill's Grapenuts, 30 inches

One week old photos

Below: Graham and GrapeNuts Photo Taken June 20, 2011

Derby Day 2011

While at the DuQuion Show Me Little Equine Show on May 7th I received a call about the time of the Kentucky Derby..."There's a new pony and all the mares are looking at it." 
Stormy Weather decided it was time to have her foal. I had some interesting name suggestions: Animal Kingdom....really, can you imagine a horse named Animal Kingdom?

I don't care if he did win the Derby, not for my horse. Big Brown...that was the winner several years ago, and I did consider Little Brown, since the colt is all brown. But hey, Big Brown was a bay, no black on new colt.

Brown Derby...but only a few would remember what that was. 

So Derby Daze or Brown Derby Daze...still thinking.
Look at him, what would you name him?

 

BELOW: Derby June 22, 2011

Toad Hill's Run for the Roses

Rosey is growing up. These photos were taken summer 2010. I wish I could show all my horses, but since I am so busy with three or four black and white pintos, Rosey will not be shown.

Her sire is Toad Hill's Rusty Spot and she is small.

Pirate's First MiniVan Ride

Let me begin by saying that this photo blog is about Foxfire's Picture Perfect's first minivan ride. While driving to Excaliber's Training Stables we decided to call him Pirate, so in the future Picture Perfect will be called by that name. 

Shortly after Pirate's arrival in Illinois we figured out he really does not understand lifting his feet to walk into a trailer. Given this information we assumed that getting him into the van would be a challenge. 

Our work-around was get him into the trailer and then back up the minivan to the trailer and have him walk from the trailer into the minivan. The first obstacle was the blizzard had filled part of the trailer with snow. Luckily Pirate went right through the snow.

It worked just as planned. No pushing or tugging, just wave the feed pan in in he went.

After Pirate got in, he went right to the hay. 

This was the weekend after the blizzard (some of you in the central part of the U. S. should remember this event in February, 2011).

Well Saturday was nice and sunny, so the ride was uneventful. Pirate kept his nose to the feed and missed all the scenery.

Once arriving at Excaliber's in Herscher, Illinois, we opened the door for Pirate to jump out, but he would have no interested in it. Rather than attempt to drag him out, Jason walked around to the other sliding door in the van, and clapped his hands loudly to encourage Pirate to escape.

Once on the ground, Pirate was quite content with himself and I am sure we was thinking "No problem" 

A short walk to the barn and his temporary home until his first show in April. Watch for Pirate in Illinois and perhaps Michigan and/Wisconsin during the 2011 show season.

Nothing like an ole fashion blizzard

Nothing like a little blizzard to make you really appreciate a warm house, electricity, and the Internet.

Horse owners understand that they must feed and check water at least twice a day to insure their animals are well cared for.

The photo above is what I saw as I arrived in the north shelter about 4 pm Tuesday night. The 30-45 mph winds were coming out of the East, too bad the shelter was designed to prevent winds from the West. 

Some of the horses went to the lee side of the shelter. They looked like woolly yaks from Tibet.

Inside (below) the horses were eagerly munching their hay, oblivious to the weather outside.

It took me two and a half hours to completely feed all the horses, a chore that typically takes about 20 minutes. Needless to say, I was glad to get back in the house.

It's Official -2010 All Stars Top Ten

2010 All Stars - AMHR Division A
National Champion (1st Place) 34" and under

• Multi-Color Stallion and Gelding - Toad Hill's Spots and Dots
• Multi-Color Mare - Toad Hill's Little Dove

Owned, Bred and Shown by Exhibitor:

• 2nd place - Toad Hill's Little Dove
• 3rd place - Toad Hill's Spots and Dots

And AMHR Yearling Stallion - 32" and under:

In 9th place: Toad Hill's Spots and Dots (he was not entered in many of these classes so this was a nice bonus)

Above Spots and Dots in front, 

Little Dove behind

Toad Hill's Little Dove

Toad Hill's Little Dove

Little Doves Sire: Toad Hill's Paint Me Picasso, 

Picasso's Sire: Toad Hill's the Great Gatsby

Picasso's Dam:  Toad Hill's Wind in the Willows

• 2002 National All Star Champion Multi-Color Mare Over
• 2007 National All Star Champion Produce of Dam
• 2009 Reserve National All Star Champion Produce of Dam

Little Dove's Dam: Mustardseed Legionaire Apache Gal, AMHA-AMHR - 30.25

Apache Gal's Sire: Flying W Farms Legionaire (30.25" AMHA) by Flying W Farms Sugarfoot (28", AMHA) out of Flying W Farms Lizette (32")

Apache Gal's Dam: San Antonois Foxey Lady (32", AMHA) by Del Whistler (30.5", AMHA) out of Joy of Hopewell (32", AMHA)

Toad Hill's Spots and Dots

Toad Hill's Spots and Dots

Horse Name: Spots and Dots

Tobiano T T

Sire: Boones Buckeroo Fancy Pants - 29.50" , Sired by Boones Little Buckero Megabucks (HOF) out of A A Fancy Girl, blue roan

Dam: Toad Hill's Kiss Me Kate - 30.25"

•  2007 National All Star Champion Multi-Color Mare Under
• Shown to win  2007 National Champion All Star Produce of Dam for Willow-

Kate's Sire: Toad Hill's Oreo (black pinto)

Kate's Dam: Toad Hill's Wind in the Willows

• 2002 National All Star Champion Multi-Color Mare Over
• 2007 National All Star Champion Produce of Dam
• 2009 Reserve National All Star Champion Produce of Dam

Thanks to

Franke Photo Design, LLC
608-436-2530
http://www.yourhorsepics.com/
Who took these photos at the H. A. M. E. this summer. I was extremely happy with the way their photos turned out.

I Didn't Know Fancy Only Spoke Amish!

Fancy Pants was delivered to Wendy's home after Thanksgiving, 2010. Wendy plans on showing him in driving in 2011 and also using him as one of her breeding stallions.
After a week at her house Fancy was taken to training facility where he could be driven in doors. Fancy was used as a "school bus" by five Amish kids several years ago and is "bomb proof." But that was almost four years ago since he was driving. At Toad Hill he was not used for driving.
So everyone at the training facility was very surprised when after hitching him up and saying "Walk On" they got nothing from Fancy but a dirty look. Fancy stood his ground, looked back as if to say "Do you know what your doing?"
After leading him around, and a lot of "clucking" he finally started responding a little. Consensus was that Fancy did not know the correct commands, and one of the trainers suggested that perhaps Fancy only speaks Amish.
Wendy and crew decided that was enough for one day. Wendy got home and as the Microsoft ad says: "To the Cloud."  
She looked up Amish driving commands and came up with: "Step Walk", "Step Trot" etc. Next day, she tried these commands and Fancy went right to work.
Comments below are from: 
http://www.miniaturehorsetalk.com/index.php?showtopic=120907

Toad Hill's Black Jack

On Wednesday, December 28th I finally got the grandson to help hold horses for their photos. He's not too good at standing them, so these are the best I could get at the time.  I had planned to have a friend come over and take better photos Friday, but Thursday we had 50 degree weather and a lot of rain, so by Friday the place was a mess, the horses were all looking soggy, and the weather was down to freezing again. Strange weather this year.

Apple Jack is a really darling black mini with a large star on his face who will stay under 34 inches. He is a bright, blue eyed colt. I often refer to his blue eyes as: "Piercing blue eyes" a phrase I first hear on the PBS Brit Comedy "As Time Goes By."

Apple Jack is true black and has a splash of white on his tail and with three white feet.

I will try to get better photos as time allows. Black Jack and his buddy Apple Jack are both scheduled for gelding January 19, 2011. If you want a stallion, you need to let me know quickly.