| In August of 2011 I have picked up my old passion again and bought my own horses. We have moved location, because we found a home with pastures. The horses are Rocky Mountain Horses, and I have been able to buy a mare with a male foal from Toril Strooper, one of the first breeders to introduce this breed in Europe. They are very good horses, cool in the head and pretty! They have an extra gait called tölt which is very comfortable. |  |
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When we rub Ben's shoulder he stretches his neck and screws his upper lip together, a very funny sight. |
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Our neighbours: donkeys and geese |
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Rocky Mountain Horse art: this is what I find on the pile of manure in the mornings. Later in the day they shrivel in the sunlight. In the background you can see horse manure and sheep droppings. I still think it is beautiful ;) |
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Aline and Laura on a trip in the neighbourhood. Dock without a saddle because that is still on order. But she is wearing her brand new Acorn bitless (of course) bridle. Dock is pregnant from the same stallion that studded her last time. We are hoping to get a foal that is just as nice and big, somewhere at the end of March 2012. Her belly is expanding already. |
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Is this heaven or what? It is what I see when I sit down for lunch: Ben and Uppy racing through the fields. |
| January 2012: it snowed and it is freezing cold. Uppy was not used to being outside in these conditions, so she was shivering and got a blanket. The other two are so strong! Big Ben enjoys the Winter sun lying down in the snow, it is minus 10° C... |  |
February 2012: after a very cold period we got lots of rain, and now the fields have been walked down to mud. Luckily we still have a large piece of meadow in the back that hasn't been walked on and still has grass. The horses don't seem to mind, they love to roll in the mud, especially after we've cleaned them. We are counting down to Dock's foal now, she is due somewhere between half March and half April. Exciting! |
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O March 29 of 2012 our first Rocky Mountain Horse foal was born, a beautiful Silverdapple Black filly. Her full name is T's Katootje van de Zilverappel Vallei. We call her Kato (not pronounced as kay-toh but rather as kah-toh. It is a Flemish/Dutch girl's name) Kato was born around 8 am, alas I missed the birth itself but she was still lying down and steaming in the stable. Pretty soon she was on her legs and exploring her surroundings. Clip of the first steps |
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Maybe I'd better called her Houdini, because she immediately made her escape. A bit later she walked into the field with her mom.
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Dock guards Kato while she is resting. We profit from her lying down and practise the first imprinting. We touch ears, eyes, nose and mouth and also the backhand , feet etc. As long as she tries to get away we hold her firmly. As soon as she relaxes, we release our grip. She is a good girl! I was actually ready to go jogging with Jinjer (hence the outfit). I've never had such a good reason to skip the daily run ;)
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After a couple of hourse Kato is more steady on her legs. Lying down and getting up again is still quite a challenge with those long stelts.
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The other horses, and the sheep as well, were gaping at Kato this morning. Especially brother Big Ben is very interested. Dock keeps them at a distance. See clip
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Day 2: we can see Kato's beautiful Silver grey colour better now that she is completely dry.
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Day 3: She is a lot firmer on her legs now and even tries out a galop further away from mom. She wants to come closer to me, too, out of curiousity, and in the end she lets me pet her and enjoys me scratching her neck.
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Pictures below made by Inez Kort, and she also made a beautiful cake in Kato's honour!
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