Hello All,
Today, I woke up to a beautiful Texas morning, with our many species of birds singing and the donkey's braying. The critters at Golden Curls Ranch know we have a new member in our herd but they haven't met her yet. American Honey arrived home yesterday from BLM"s Holding Facility in Paul's Valley, OK. The trip started out interesting as the lights on our new trailer didn't work and we left before dawn. As John and I rolled down the interstate I was praying for the sun to rise listening to the radio DJ's remind me that it was Friday, the 13th{: I cannot described my feelings as there were many, each vying for top place in my brain, excitement, apprehension, self doubt, trepidation and passion for the first moment I would be able to connect with our new girl, American Honey.
John first noted the many, beautiful, mustangs as we turned off I-35 and onto the road leading to our destination. We pulled up behind the earlier birds who were sitting in their trucks with their horse trailers parked in a neat line down the road. We hopped out and I realized that I wasn't in Texas anymore as it was chilly. A few hundred miles north and it was down right cold. Still, bracing the coolness we walked over to the check in and showed our ID and asked for our loading ticket. Chris, was a sweetheart and full of good morning cheer. She noted, that a young man did ask what was wrong with our Curly girl as her coat was quite shaggy. I laughed and she is a Curly and we will be having a Spa day soon.
As we waited our turn we watched the other Mustangs load up into their new friend's trailers. Some were quite spirited. After the loading of Golden Red at the exact same spot a few years ago I never watch. It is extremely scaring for these horses and like Golden Red many try to jump over or beat themselves up in the process. Instead I looked for Honey and she was with a group of Mustangs who was affected by the commotion and they were huddled together for emotional security.
The other trainers and owners were a lively and friendly group of folks. You could tell they had done this quite a few times. They joked with one another and it was well organized. Soon it was soon our turn, and my friend Pat, who runs Paul's Valley, asked joking if I had a curry comb when he discovered I was there to get our Curly Mustang girl. Another lady, joked I would have the best before and after photos as I clicked a few shoots of Honey and her friends {:> The loading went smoothly. From what I could tell we were the only ones who chose not to have them halter our Mustang. We chose that for safety as she could get tangled up and hooked on something and at this point we could not get close enough to free her. This would set our trust back quite a bit. And, I feel putting a halter on a horse is an intimate action, I guess it's like a wedding ring, and there is a lot of trust and respect that goes along with it.
Soon we were safely on the road. The trip was smooth with a little bit of construction in southern OK along I-35 but we hit Dallas around 1 pm and missed all the crazy drivers and traffic. We pulled in the ranch around 2 pm and the horses knew we were home with a new friend. We backed up the trailer and opened the doors to her new living quarters and she was pleased to check them out.Calls were coming with greetings and questions from the others and I noted Chester was especially interested in this new lovely lady as this photo shows.
American Honey settled in and I gave her hay to enjoy while she listening to every moment. A few hours later I pulled my steps into the adjoining stall and opened the latest National Geographic. I read how the Great Barrier Reef is disappearing out loud so she would become accustomed to my voice. She was listening. I bit into an apple and dropped small bites into her feeder for her to gather my smells. Funny girl, she snorts when something new is introduced to her just like O'Sparky. (O'Sparky is our three year old stud that we brought home last August and he was gathered at the same time and location as Honey) I sat for a little time marveling at how close they resemble each other. Here are photos to compare with O'Sparky in the middle.What do you think, am I on to something?
Well, once Honey feels more trusting I will get samples over to Dr. Gus and know for sure{:>
