maggies_lens

This is an entry for people who are wanting information about the horses I am working to re-home. Put it here because it's easier than typing it out each time :D My regular LJ friends may find this interesting too :)

I DO NOT KNOW IF ANY OF THESE HORSES ARE BACKED IN OR EVEN MOUTHED. I AM TRYING TO FIND WHATEVER HISTORY I CAN ON THEM BUT IT'S VERY HARD - I DO NOT KNOW THEIR MEDICAL HISTORY. I WILL ADD OBSERVATIONS FOR EACH HORSE TO TRY AND TELL YOU ALL I CAN. YOU ARE WELCOME TO COME SEE THE HORSES IN NARRE WARREN NORTH, THERE IS A ROUND YARD AND PRIVATE PADDOCKS TO WORK THEM IN. I TAKE NO RESPONSIBILITY FOR YOU GETTING HURT IF YOU WANT TO TRY GEAR ON THEM. I DO NOT ADVISE TRYING TO RIDE THEM. ALL THESE HORSES NEED WORMING, THEIR TEETH DONE AND THE ATTENTION OF A QUALIFIED FARRIER. THEY ARE IN GOOD CONDITION OTHERWISE. ALL HORSES SEIZED FOR NON-PAYMENT OF AGISTMENT. THEY CAN NOT BE TAKEN OFF THE PROPERTY UNTIL CLOSE OF BUSINESS HOURS 7TH OF FEB 2013. THE AGISTMENT OWNER IS HAPPY FOR THEM TO GO ON TRIALS BUT A DEPOSIT MUST BE PAID AND IDENTIFICATION PROVIDED SUCH A DRIVER LICENSE ETC. KNACKERY HAS OFFERED $200 PER HEAD, AGISTMENT OWNER WILL TAKE THAT OR ABOVE. CLYDIE X MAY BE MORE AS THIS IS A QUALITY HORSE AND SHE NEEDS TO TRY AND RECOUP SOME OF THE VERY HEAVY DEBT THESE HORSES HAVE PUT HER INTO.

The Geldings:
1. Bay STB Gelding, 13years old, Freezebrand S399234 DOB 1/9/1999 ROCKLEA NOMORE aka Rocky. Aprox 15.2hh. Never had any issue with him in the paddock. Others have seen him boss other horses around. Never seen lame. Rocky is happy to get as much attention as he is given. ROCKY IS NO LONGER AVAILABLE FOR ADOPTION AS NOW HAS A LOVING NEW HOME.



2. Aprox 17hh Bay STB gelding, 8 years old, Freezebrand S2040433, WESGATE BARNEY. Barney was raced twice as a two year old and twice as a three year old as a trotter, didn't do so good! Barney is one of the most personality filled horses I have ever met. He loves people, especially kids and will follow you around like an over grown puppy, insisting on being involved in anything that is going on. Very bold, very funny! Is dominant to other horses in the paddock but not overly nasty. I wouldn't put him in with elderly, very young or very small or timid ponies/horses. Never seen lames. DOES HAVE A LARGE SCAR on his off side hind leg. No idea how he got it. Is perfectly sound on it. Barney needs someone who won't be intimidated by his size. Having seen him hoon around the paddock, I think he's be quite the jumper!!! If it were not for the prejudice against STB's in this country, he'd be snapped up damn fast by someone wanting a tall, athletic and very doofus friendly horse.




3. Aprox 15.2hh black STB gelding with three stars in a weird pattern on his head! Older horse. Freezebranded. Never raced. Named Spyder. Spy is the one who started me in on this - I couldn't bear to see this incredible sweet horse go to Laverton. He is a shy, polite, friendly, lovely little guy. A finely built STB, he's always from the day they arrived been a great favourite of mine for his lovely personality. Suffered badly from malnutrition last winter until provided with much better pasture. Also suffered horrifically from a terrible rug rub on his withers which I treated every day I could with salt water and medication, with never a halter or rope on him - this would have hurt him pretty badly but he never ever tried to get away; he knew I was helping him. Spy is a very special boy who needs someone to seriously love him! SPY IS NO LONGER AVAILABLE FOR ADOPTION, HAS FOUND A NEW HOME WITH THE R.D.A!



4. Aprox 5yr old Clydie X gelding named Comet. I'd say he's at 15hh. No idea what he is crossed with but he's certainly taken on the build of the Clydesdale side!!! One very chunky little monkey :) Nicely put together. Comet is 100% def NOT BROKEN IN. He's SO ready to take on the world. R.D.A assessed him and wanted him pretty badly (he passed all the on-the-ground-tests with flying colors) but they couldn't place a heavy horse at the moment in any center. This guy will be snapped up pretty fast - totally unspoiled, lovely temperment, and just a sweet horse.



The Mares:

1. Dark bay/brown 7yr old STB 15hh, freezebranded S3051633. I just call her Shy Girl as I don't know her name. She is a very shy little mare who suffered horrendously from malnutrition last winter (and yes this bleeding heart used to throw her hay from her own supplies because yes I am a sucker) but is in good condition now. While she is shy with new people, once she knows you she is a very sweet girl. Very quiet in the paddock, no issue with any other horse. Will really blossom with someone to give her some love and attention.



2. Bright bay 7yr old STB mare, freezebranded S3051921, named Sienna. Si is a very friendly, active, fun loving mare! She's extremely athletic and a bit of a looker. She's the first one to greet you when you enter the paddocks and insists on some attention! Si has what appears to be a scar from a burst abscess on her off hind which has left a ripple grown down in her hoof. Considering these horses haven't see a farrier for months and months and months and her hooves are extremely long, it hasn't appeared to effect her at all. She enjoys quite the good playful hoon around the field and judging by the moves she pulls, I'd say she is quite 100% sound!!!! You want a pocket-pony mare? This is your girl.



ALL THESE PHOTOS ARE TRUE AND ACCURATE REPRESENTATIONS OF THESE HORSES WITHIN THE PAST WEEK OF THIS POST BEING WRITTEN. I WILL UPDATE IF ANY CHANGES. EXTRA PHOTOS ARE AVAILABLE ON REQUEST.

I couldn't help but burst out laughing at hilarious juxtaposition at the library today :D

First tho: DON'T read the 65redroses blog which is currently in Spotlight UNLESS you want to cry like your heart is shattering into a million pieces!

Now: I may have mentioned, probably with much evil giggling, the birds that have been nesting in the rock garden of the carpark next door to work. They provide me and the rest of the coms room with endless amusement because the little bastards SWOOP like the devil itself. They are Masked Lapwings, commonly called Plovers (Vanellus miles). And they are VICIOUS! Well, not vicious, just very, very good parents. Can't hold that against an animal, can you? So of course Maggie views this as a challenge. :) It's taken me weeks of extremely careful approach but I did it. I have gained the trust of the demon birds. Check it out :) And in case you are wondering, yep these were taken from about six or so steps away and in the car. That's the parent birds comfort zone and I don't intend to break it. Last thing I need is to be hand raising 3 baby birds :P


The proud parents and one of the hatchlings. He's about 2 or 3 days old. Yep, they are hatched ready to run :)

( PREPARE FOR CUTE OVERLOAD!!!! )

I kinda proud of those shots. Birds are notoriously difficult to photograph, esp the active baby variety!

I can't believe my holiday is coming to an end. It seems like the last couple days have just flown by. I wish I could stay longer! Not so much in BKK, but go North again. I think everyone is getting a bit down now. It was Marion yesterday, today it was Craig who wanted to be alone. We first went to the Embassy and voted. Was sort of interesting. Never been in one of those before. It was all very calm and relaxed. I enjoyed not having the gauntlet to run, just one Greens bloke, and he was very easy on the eye so that was okay ;D
After that Craig took off to be by himself while Marion and I headed off to the centre of MADNESS: Chatuchak Market. Aprox 34 acres of INSANITY. The market is massive, and claustrophobic, and smelly, and just INSANE! Marion and I split up and went our sep ways as we have different interests. We'd org'ed to meet back at 2:30pm at the entry closest to Mo Chit Station. Oh guys, it was just NUTS. I haven't sweated like that since clambering around the ruins the other day. Primarily it was clothes they sell there. With enough other tinkery stuff to make it interesting. There is also a pet section which I did NOT take any photos in because it would upset some people on here. NO ABUSE, just not our standards for pet selling. I didn't like the way they sold baby squirrels and hedgehogs (but that's prob because I see these animals as purely wild, not pets), nor how the puppies were out in the open, and the bunnies in small individual cages. BUT! They were all VERY healthy looking, happy, had plentiful water and food, fans were blowing on them and most were playing or otherwise just napping. I hated the stupid clothes on the puppies and bunnies tho. Farkin' stupid practice. There was also a BKK Cat Rescue stand with about 30 kittens of various ages available for adoption, and about 5 adult cats. The ladies there saw me going gah-gah at the kittens so after letting me wash my hands with antiseptic gel, I was allowed to cuddle a couple. Beautiful :) I donated. I guess they don't often get what I donated because I got a wide eyed look, a huge smile and a very low Wai. :) I dunno about you guys, but it makes me feel good to do something good for someone else :)
I FOUND A BANANA ROTI GUY!!!!! We've all become addicts to this simple and most glorious of deserts. It's a roti, with a banana cooked into the middle with condensed milk, then with chocolate poured over the top. Holy HELL it's so damn good. So bad for you, but so so good.:)
Right near Roti-Guy was a band of Kim players so I got to eat while listening to some truly awesome traditional Thai music. I sat back and listened/watched, ate my Thai lunch, watching the insanity of the market. Was a truly omg-i'm-not-home moment :D It took me 45mins to find the correct entry. I sat for a while as knee and ankle were ON FIRE. Watching the crowd again. Marion came along, we ate Logan's that the kind fruit ladies gave us when we got some Pomelo, then we rode home.
I have made friends with a sub-Soi kitten I've named Soi Boy. He saw me coming and meowed his rusty little Siamese type meow, I gave him a cuddle (he could do with a wash!!!!) before coming upstairs and almost collapsing in the shower: it felt just THAT good to have cool clean water on me :D Have been pretty much just slacking off the past couple hours. Loving it :)
I do love Thailand and I will miss the North especially, but I am keen to get home to all I hold near and dear. I have missed Alex fiercely, and I ache for my animals. Work... not so much :D
Pics and vids under the cut.Nothing distressing :)


The Kim players

( more under here )

I was very sorry to say good bye to the city, I have to say. I enjoyed myself so greatly there. :) It's a beautiful place and the people are marvelous. There was this Yank on the train who was telling is that CM is a TERRIBLE place, full of shysters etc. That we'd HATE it. Um, no :)
We spent our last night at the Vegetarian place down the rd called Food fro Heaven, they are sister to the Elephant Nature Park. The food was AWESOME. In the morning we packed, then took the scooters back to their shop. Which sucked. Got back to the Soi, and checked out. There is this crazy little dog that lives across the Soi that we all made friends with. She's the dog of our laundry woman. Doggy came to say goodbye.
All 3 of us then went for a 2 hour traditional Thai massage. Holy SHIT the PAIN! But GOOD pain :D I felt loose as a goose afterwards. And anything I needed to distract myself from the pain I could hark back to seeing Craig in the bright pink loose pants they had given him to change into; you change into very loose light clothing for the massage.
Then off to the airport and back to BKK.
We're in a different hotel than the last one, but only one Soi over. I have my whole own room on a floor above C&M, which is actually very lonely after we have been living in each others pockets :P We had dinner and then went to Soi Cowboy, a famous Adults Only Soi here in BKK. Everything goes! And it did! We had drinks at a bar on the cnr and gave each other conniptions by being extremely risk-ay :D Our faces were HURTING from all the laughing :D I didn't bring my cam so I will go again tonight and try and get some shots :)


way, way, way too much fun :D Craig and I on our little scooter.

( a couple more under here )

We spent the night in a funky little hut, just Marion and I as Craig was back in Chiang Mai; he had awoken the morning we left with a terrible migraine so hadn't come. We both missed him. The hut was just a small thing, no air con, two beds with mosquito netting and a sep room with a toilet and COLD WATER ONLY shower. Which was just fine - you don't actually need the hot water there :D It was right on the banks of the river, so I fell asleep to the sounds of insects, bats and the river tripping along on the shallows. No traffic sounds at all. Sheer freakin' heaven. God I loved it there...
Anyway, next morning we had a glorious breakfast. They feed you like royalty there. At breakfast, lunch and dinner we gathered at the complex and could serve ourselves from a huge selection of yummies. Apart from one dish with chook and one with fish, everything was veggie and BEAUTIFUL! I have discovered Dragon Fruit and I LOVE it. Ate sooooooo much!
We got to have a walk around with our guide Por, out in the actual grounds. Had to wear gumboots. It was awesome walking around amoung the elephants. Most are very happy to come up and have a cuddle with you :) I got to cuddle Mae Do. Unfort I slipped and fell onto my knees twice from getting my foot caught in the ropey grass. The first scared me because it's actually the first time I have fallen onto the bad knee since I killed it. Yeah it hurt, but not so bad. 2nd one was alright. But it did bruise up and jarred itself so I was happy to just hang out once we got back to the main complex.
Best thing was when I ran into Lek! Lek is the founder of the Park. She is a very small woman, a grand-daughter of a shaman of a local Northern Hill Tribe. Her family was given an elephant when she was 5 as payment for saving a mans life, and Lek's heart was stolen forever. She took her passion for elephant welfare forward and started Elephant Heaven. She rescued her first 4 elephants. Things grew, one day an American come on a tour, a week or so after he left they received a MASSIVE cheque. Turns out he's a multi millionaire and was so impressed with the work that he wanted to buy them land. With that money they purchased ENP. Things have just kept growing since then. They still have Heaven, they walk the ellies there to let them roam free and learn to be wild again. The dream is to one day stop the capture of wild elephants so they can release them. Logging was banned in Thailand a few years ago but not in the surrounding countries. And illegal logging continues. Plus the begging trade and tracking. Begging is BAD. It's extremely stressful for the elephants. NEVER feed a begger elephants. You are just contributing to the problem. Tracking is not bad as long as the elephants are kept in humane conditions. There are also NO laws protecting elephants. Lek is working to change all that. She employs local people from the hill tribes as guides, staff, cooks, kwan's, she buys the locally grown and produced veggies and fruit, plus meat, eggs, milk etc. She hires local labor for building etc. It all comes back to paying it forward. As a result, the local community loves and supports her work. She was ultra busy but she made the effort to track me down when she heard I wanted to meet her, so that we could have a chat and a photo. She called the baby herd over and took me in among them (not normally allowed) so that I could get a shot to remember.
She is quite frankly my hero. It's people like this who are true heroes, not stupid sports stars or actors or whatever. I didn't want to leave. I so didn't want to leave. I will be back.
They also had a little brown colt pony who they rescued from slaughter. I couldn't get any photos of the little devil as he was in grass/reeds higher than his head when we near him.


BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAABIIIIIIEEEEEEEES!!!!

( photos under here )

I will be back as soon as I can. Honestly, if you are strapped for cash but want a holiday, I can not recommend this place enough. No, you won't be lounging on a beach somewhere; you will be working HARD. You won't have air con, you'll have the heat and humidity of the jungle and you will sweat so much that after two days your skin will look like you've had a VERY exxy treatment and radiate health and a killer bitchin' tan. You won't get polite, distant staff who keep their eyes down and wear impeccable uniforms, you will get hill tribe men and women in gumboots and jeans with a lighting fast smile that reaches their eyes, they will teach you Thai, joke around with you, feed you like you have NEVER been fed before in your life (not fine dining but OMG SO SO SO GOOD!!!!!! And plentiful), chat with you for hours, and make you feel welcome like no tourist resort EVER would. You'll wear gumboots, slosh around in warm mud, touch and hug and kiss and scratch the largest land animals who will rumble like big kittens if you connect with them. You'll learn to tell an elephants age through their scat! You'll find these awesome fern like plants that curl up when you gently run your finger over them. And if you are anything like me, you'll wish you could throw it all in to live there forever, no matter how hard and dirty it gets because, well, it's simply the most wonderful place ever created by human hands.

I woke up needing to MOVE!!! C&M were being lazy so I gave them a little time to see if they'd perk up. Went outside on the balcony (as opposed to, you know, inside on the balcony) and saw a SWEEEEEET little grey and white squirrel! He was going ballistic, playing on the rooftops, wires and stealing food off the little Shrines. I tried TRIED to get vid but nooooo, the G9 fogged up, DIDN'T IT!!! ARRRGH! :D C&M were still being lazy tarts and I couldn't stand it any more so I took off alone. That's right, ALONE! OMG alone in a strange city in a foreign land! What ever will happen to our hero now! You'll just have to click the cut and find out, in the next exciting installment of... THE NATURE NERD IN THAILAND!!!!



This just doesn't sound right to me from a Buddhist perspective, somehow, ya know? :P

( NATURE NERD TACKLES THAILAND! )
Tomorrow morning we take off the Elephant Nature Park! That is a rescue and rehab for the elephants of Thailand. We won't be back til the next afternoon. I can not wait. This is what I have been hanging out for the most, even more than the tigers :)
Must find banana man shortly...:)


( vids from today, 2 short ones )

TIGER TEMPLE!!!!
We woke up late and had 20 mins to get the 3 of us showered, fed and dressed. Try THAT with one bathroom! We made it tho. Our driver and guide came and met us in the foyer and so we drove out of BKK and to the Kanchanaburi province. Took about 2-3hrs to get there, with a couple stops (including one at a beautiful but very sad graveyard, and also the River Kwai which made me sad and angry all at once) and also a lunch break. Tiger temple is AWESOME. I have NO idea where the hell ppl get the idea that the tigers are mistreated there. All I saw were sleepy, very well fed, healthy, happy, playful tiggers. The guides were very careful about where you were allowed to walk and what you were allowed to do. We got to pat the tigers, but only from the back and to the right. Then we got to have a few steps with each one down to the canyon. There you got to have photos taken with the sleeeeeeepy spoiled fat happy tigers who rolled over a few times for tummy rubs from their handlers. The cubs were playful as heck! Also saw the enclosures they are developing, they look great! There were also piggies, deer, cattle and PONIES! The big daddy bull Brahman liked me and brushed up against me as he walked past to get the scratch :) There were 2 mules (I think) and a little brown pony. All 3 were colts. It took about 3-4hours to get home as the traffic in BKK was awful, and they made us go to this gem place. Was very pretty but VERY exxy. Blergh. Had dinner at the usual place. Now waiting for our laundry to be delivered, then off to Chiang Mai tomorrow morning. :)

http://www.flickr.com/photos/39873599@N07/sets/72157623106437297/
Photos there for now; I'm too stuffed to do the posting thing. I'll try and do them tomorrow, i swear.

So I come home from work, all exhausted. Al goes to get dinner, I go to feed and clean Remi and Rosie. Went to the feed bin to get Rosie's feed, reach in without really looking and started scooping feed into her bowl with my hand. Feel something very soft, warm and fuzzy in my hand. Look down. MOUSE!!!!
Side note: maggie loves animals. All animals. She considers mice sweet, if inconvient in feed bins.
Only a wee lil one. Poor little thing looked pretty worn out, and wasn't jumping high so who knows how long the fuzzy had been in there. Went inside, grabbed a jar, coaxed said mousey into jar using advanced Mouse Whispering techniques perfected as a child. It takes years, folks. ;-) Took him inside and took some happy snaps and a little vid.
Yes I know, I know... mice are vermin. Kill, main, destroy.
But that's not me. Waited till Al got home, we walked him to the little park and let him go. Dunno if he'll survive, and he headed right back in the same direction on my house. -_-* Ah well, good luck, little buddy.