I Object!

I came home, anxious to climb back onto Tika and continue her training. When I walked out to the barn, however, Lefty was rip roaring in such a manner and doing acrobatics in an effort to defy gravity, that Tika, too, thought a little hip hop about the round pen was in order. That was before I saddled her up, of course, but even while lunging her feet were floating a little freely. I bounced up and down in the stirrup a bit, and if I could have guaranteed no reaction from Lefty on the other side of the panels, I'd have gone ahead and climbed all the way up. But the last time Lefty saw someone on horseback, he snorted and dashed off, kicking and bucking as he went.

No need to tempt fate, I decided. I didn't think Tika would react while I was on top, but self preservation being what it is, I opted to haul her instead to the riding club where there were no Lefty horses to distract us.

I pulled my saddle out of the trailer and went back for Tika. Three riders were there, chit chatting quietly. Perfect. They were done with their ride and would be good back up if something stupid happened on our first ride in a week. I smiled, said hello, turned and looked toward the round pen, and...

Where was the round pen?

"Took it down. Clinic next weekend, getting set up. Was brought up at the last meeting, remember?" Um...oh, yeah... So Tika again wasn't ridden. Instead I lunged her a bit, and she was a good girl, impressing those that'd not seen her for a couple months. And then I loaded her up and headed south. South...because I needed to ride! Though by this time it was getting too late to do much on this particular afternoon, but at least if Tika were with Curt, I could get a few rides in this week before moving her home after the clinic. Probably best, anyway, after a week off to take my first few rides in familiar territory anyway, right?

So I left my red head in her stall, which I'd cleaned and bedded with fresh shavings the day I moved her out.

And when I woke up this morning? Snow... (that sound you just heard was my head banging on a wall, just so you know.)

Despite the objectionable white stuff, I did manage to make it down and work my girl, which went off without a hitch. But the forcast for the next few days appears a bit iffy, so I'm not sure that moving her south will get me any further ahead. But what else do we expect with Tika's training? A few days here, a few weeks there...just one more delay in getting our girl going solid, eh?

Summit Update

View from our room at the South Point

First, let me just say I'm glad to be home. Glad to be away from Las Vegas and it's bright lights and gambling. Glad not to be breathing 'enriched' air forced into our lungs at the hotel. Glad to be cleaning stalls, and breathing in the scent of wild horses rather than cigarette smoke. The only thing I'll miss is the maid. I want a maid...someone who comes in and cleans up after me and makes my bed and delivers clean towels to my bathroom every day. Indeed, I do.

The Summit of the Horse proved to be quite interesting. I wasn't too sure what to expect; on one hand, there was talk about finding solutions, and slaughter being only one of the topics. What caught my eye on the front page of their website, however was this:

Control Excess Wild & Feral Horses: Deal with Unwanted, Abandoned, and Neglected Horses on all Lands

If you refuse to stand idly by while extreme environmentalists and wild horse non-experts create West-wide ecological destruction by allowing horses to overrun the resource base…this is your chance. Those of us who live on the land, and understand implicitly the danger presented by a one-species myopia that will destroy native wildlife, and cause damage that will take hundreds of years and billions of dollars to restore…we need to speak up. If you want to send a powerful message to Washington, D.C. and the citizens of the United States as to what true range scientists, conservationists, and horse experts know are long-term, sustainable solutions based on science, experience, and a deep compassion for horses…then this is one event that you cannot afford to miss.

Now, I don't know about you, but to me the fact that this was their lead off topic gave me the feeling that someone was pushing to do away with excess wild horses, and in a big way. If you've been here at the Mustang Diaries for any amount of time, you'll know I'm in favor of gathers and supportive of the BLM's management. However, I simply do not approve of one giant sweet that sends my beloved mustangs to Alpo. I understand the need for a solution, absolutely. But something here felt very menacing.

Nevada has more wild horses than all other states combined.

I'm a fan of education and realistic expectations where both mustangs and domestic horses are concerned. That is to say...there are too many, and our economy simply cannot support the numbers we're currently dealing with. Opening slaughter plants will not stop abuse...we know that. But will they reduce abuse? We know that it will provide jobs and help the economy, but at what expense?

There were three speakers that made an impression on me; the first one being Tom Collins of Clark County, Nevada. Mr Collins was obviously not a wild horse fan. There was no mistaking that he wanted wild horses sent to slaughter, end of discussion. I wanted to throw up. Later in the day, Bob Abbey, BLM Director, stated in no uncertain terms that healthy wild horses would not be euthanized. End of discussion. Well...not really, he had more to say, but that one sentence put an end to any further discussion all weekend on sending excess wild horses to slaughter. Sue Wallis stated later that this was never about wild horses, that they make up only 3% of the horses in the US; this was about what was best for the horse economy. Um...Sue? If that was the case, why the lead off paragraph on the Summit website?

Sherrie, Temple Grandin, and myself

But Sue wasn't the third speaker to make an impression. Indeed...it was Dr. Temple Grandin. Oh! I feel as though I've met a Hollywood celebrity! She was absolutely worth the trip. A brilliant speaker, she captured our attention from the beginning and had people sitting on the edge of their seats, straining to hear each and every word. Temple made it clear that she wasn't part of the decision on whether or not slaughter was reinstated for horses, just that if it was, she wanted it to be the safest, most humane method available. She stated often being shipped to Mexico was a horse's worst nightmare, and that needed to stop.

So here's the thing. Temple's goal is to make this the safest, easiest end a horse has to face. Shouldn't that be our goal as well? When I used to consider slaughter, it made me shudder. Not so much that someone would eat a horse (well...not since I was a kid anyway) but the transportation and the cruel way it was carried out. Because we've raised our own food here, we know it needn't be a stressful situation. Small facilities, local and easily accessible, make it easy on those who raise pigs, cows or sheep. Why can't we have something local for horses?

I know I'm going to be slammed if any of the A crowd sees this. They have no desire to learn. But while I sat at the summit, a woman stood up and introduced herself as having a rescue, and told us she was opposed to slaughter. Then she took a deep breath and said that if it were carried out like Dr Grandin suggested it could be, then...and only then...she could see it as something that would be preferable to the abuse and neglect that many horses are facing today. And I've got to tell you, I was overwhelmed with emotion when I listened to her speak. I wanted to run over and hug her. She got it. And she was willing to say that it was about the horse, not her emotions. Would that all horse lovers could figure that out.

Up in the Air, Jr. Birdman!

Come this time tomorrow it'll be bright lights and sunshine as Darling, McDebbie and I meet up with our friends Karen and Andi in Las Vegas. We're heading down to Summit of the Horse...called by some 'Slaughter of the Horse'. I'm honestly not too sure what to expect, though I'm hoping we'll meet up with some like minded folks who have a heart for what we're doing with the mustangs up this way.

But I can't think about that right now, because I just finished measuring my bag to see if it qualified as a carry on (it does!) and am trying to figure out a way to pack a laptop and camera into the second bag. It's a puzzle, to be sure.

I'm having a difficult time concentrating even on that, because my head is still in the clouds after today's ride on Tika. I worked her for about fifteen minutes before Curt showed up at the round pen. Today was ride six; we'd been on the lunge line each day, though the last time I rode (Friday), Curt had taken it off for the last few minutes. Today, once I was up, he unsnapped us, and off we went. Walk, trot, lope. And stop. Oh...what a glorious stop my girl has! She knows how to use her hiney, that's for sure. Even Curt let out a whoop as she stopped from the lope and set her hind end down. He calls her Cinderella...doesn't that just put a smile on your face? "How you doing today, Cinderella?"

Cinderella came home today and will have a week off. It was all I could do not to pull into the riding club parking lot on my way back to the house and sneak a second ride, but I didn't. Duty called...packing must be done...feet must meet earth. I'm going to miss my girl this week!

For those interested in learning more about Summit of the Horse, simply click the link. They're having live feed, as I understand, so you may be able to watch parts of it from your computer.

Please say a prayer for us that we have a safe and productive journey, and I'll see y'all when we get home!