Chat
Your mare is beautiful! She looks like a Rocky Mountain Horse because of her color (but I guess they're very closely related to Saddlebreds, so that's not too surprising).
I trimmed 28 little soft pairs of young goat toes today and four big horny pairs of old goat toes as well. Actually, the old goat toes didn't need much trimming. Even at 14 years old and with all the lounging around he does, Cuzco still somehow manages to keep his hooves in very good order most of the time. Good thing too! His hoof walls are so thick that it's hard to trim them even when he's been standing in wet for several days.
I worked on trimming everyone's hooves without tying them up. This is something that Cuzco does very well and I want my other goats (especially the boys) to do it too. You never know when you might have to stop on the trail to dislodge a rock from between the toes, or remove a thorn, or even do some first aid on an injured foot, and it helps when the goat is used to having to stand still while you handle his feet. Today was the first time I've trimmed anyone but Cuzco without tying them up and it went surprisingly well for most of them. Sputnik was the best. He never moved once except when I would lean down to grab a hind foot. He didn't like that and would spook away from my hand, but once I had it he stood like a statue. Everyone else needs a bit of work and to learn that the word "Whoa" really does mean "Whoa" (It does NOT mean to keep just the one foot in place while every other foot and the head contort in impossible positions so as to explore remote regions of the patio for microscopic bits of fallen grain left over from breakfast--FINN!)
I trimmed 28 little soft pairs of young goat toes today and four big horny pairs of old goat toes as well. Actually, the old goat toes didn't need much trimming. Even at 14 years old and with all the lounging around he does, Cuzco still somehow manages to keep his hooves in very good order most of the time. Good thing too! His hoof walls are so thick that it's hard to trim them even when he's been standing in wet for several days.
I worked on trimming everyone's hooves without tying them up. This is something that Cuzco does very well and I want my other goats (especially the boys) to do it too. You never know when you might have to stop on the trail to dislodge a rock from between the toes, or remove a thorn, or even do some first aid on an injured foot, and it helps when the goat is used to having to stand still while you handle his feet. Today was the first time I've trimmed anyone but Cuzco without tying them up and it went surprisingly well for most of them. Sputnik was the best. He never moved once except when I would lean down to grab a hind foot. He didn't like that and would spook away from my hand, but once I had it he stood like a statue. Everyone else needs a bit of work and to learn that the word "Whoa" really does mean "Whoa" (It does NOT mean to keep just the one foot in place while every other foot and the head contort in impossible positions so as to explore remote regions of the patio for microscopic bits of fallen grain left over from breakfast--FINN!)