Getting To Know You...

Although these guys arrived late Sunday afternoon, I haven't had much time with them yet as yesterday was spent delivering another 4 x horses around Northland.

All these boys have had so far is me popping in & out of the yard delivering hay & water so it was time to get in there this morning & get a bit of housework done! I got both yards mucked out around them & they soon stopped worrying too much about the wheelbarrow & me with shovel & rake. They even coped when a friend popped in to visit & stood just outside the yards with me still inside with them. This upset them greatly yesterday (when husband was outside taking photos & I was inside putting down fresh hay) so we have already made progress.

Normally, when handling Kaimanawas for other people, I'm working to a bit of a deadline & often need to progress a little quicker than I would usually like. There is no huge hurry for these boys though & the grey fella really does need some chill time so all I'm asking of them right now, is to 'cope' with me around.

I'm doing short stints of wandering down to the yards & mucking around, all the while chatting away to them. Whorl would probably be quite interested in saying hello but the older boy (I'm thinking of nicknaming him 'Mojo' while he's here) keeps telling him it's a REALLY bad idea to show any interest in those two legged creatures that make lots of unnecessary noise. Each session is only 10 minutes or so but they're both finding it easier & easier & getting braver & braver each time I step into the yard.

Hopefully, it won't be long before they can begin to venture out of the yard but for now, that's the safest place for them. To help keep them a little bit happier, I'm handpicking grass for them each time I wander down to them too which little Whorl thinks is a FABULOUS idea! Hard feed will be the next introduction...

Judging by the size of Mojo, I suspect he'll be VERY food motivated & should begin to show some interest once he realises there's a meal in it for him. Just getting him off the truck was a challenge! He got to the bottom of the ramp & found grass in the loading race & there he stopped! Poor wee Whorl was left halfway up the ramp & I had to use the flag (plastic bag on a stick) to get Mojo to lift his head & move into the yard.

Plantain might well be good for horses but it seems, just like us, they don't always 'like' what's good for them. They have eaten all the grass out of the yards but have very obviously left all the plantain. I must have look next time I'm out in the Ranges & see if it grows there. Most of the other common pasture species do but maybe they just haven't come across plantain before?

Another point of interest...

I've not encountered this before but one of our reps is on town water & the horses weren't keen on the chlorine. All was fixed by adding a bit of a dirt & a few rocks to the water bins to disguise the taste. This did the trick & they all drank up large after that! It's VERY important to take notice of the little things when you first get wild horses. Take notice of the little things & you'll hopefully avoid any big problems.