smellshorsey

Am I the Only One Who's Never Heard of a "Numnah"?

We don't normally watch the National Spelling Bee, but we caught a few minutes of it last night and I'm glad to say we caught this very, very funny moment when one boy was asked to spell "numnah," which is a pad used between the saddle and the horse. I have never heard of a numnah, but after watching this, I won't forget it. (We use a variety of pads, but no numnahs.)

Watch this video -- precious!

How We Proved that a Hay Net in the Trailer is Dangerous

Have you ever noticed that if you don't know something is dangerous, you can get away with doing it. Once you know, God holds you accountable.

I have used hay nets for years. About a year ago I heard that you should switch to hay bags because horses sometimes got tangled up in hay nets and the results could be B-A-D. So, I only used my hay nets for when the horse was tied to the outside of the trailer. Inside the trailer I used a hay bag.

Except that Lucy didn't like the hay bag. The opening didn't open exactly where her dainty nose sits. So she'd toss it like a punching bag before giving up and then it was just in her way.

Today when we were going to a show, and running late, of course, Lily put in a hay net instead of the hay bag into the trailer. With my knowledge and permission.

We loaded Lucy, who was upset to be going to the show without her boyfriends, but she was the one who needed schooling and never goes anywhere. She pawed and banged around in the trailer, so without wasting any time, I pulled out. She kept pawing. Then she quit. The weight in the trailer felt odd, and sometimes I felt like it was pulling funny. But I kept going.

Nearly an hour later we got to the show grounds and went to unload -- only to find Lucy standing on three legs in the trailer with one leg very seriously snarled up in the hay net! This was a heavy duty hay net, too. She was trembling from the exhaustion of standing on three legs while being trailered. A friend turned up with a knife and painstakingly cut Lucy loose rope by rope.

To my infinite gratitude, Lucy stood quietly until cut free. Then, after she quit trembling and her veins weren't standing out under her thin TB skin, Lily warmed her up and the horse seemed fine. They had a good day at the show, with Lucy making some mistakes but being a willing and even interested competitor. She enjoyed going somewhere.

Until it was time to go home. I don't blame her one bit -- she decided that the trailer is an evil, scary place and she wasn't getting on it. Ever.

We did what we had to do, which ranged from getting dragged all over to tempting her with the Bucket of Earthly Delights to getting out the lunge whip and holding it in a very visible place but not striking her (though I am not against force, we just didn't get to that). She suddenly and with no warning hopped it. I gave her lots of time with the Bucket of Earthly Delights.

The hay net is in the trash can. And I thank the Lord that my horse had enough strength and balance to stand on three legs on that journey, and also had enough sense to not panic. The what ifs are playing vividly in my mind. What if she had fallen? What if she had broken something?

So very many ways to make mistakes. Just when I thought I'd made them all.

Thank God it turned out all right.

Have You Got a Stranger Piece of Horse Equipment than This?

Now here's something I don't know what to do with. It's a riding crop except it's not flexible. (Click on photo to enlarge.) It's leather with wire wrapped tightly around it. This riding crop means business. I got to thinking about it after reading about Sue's Amazing and Magical Stick of Wonder at her Flying Changes blog.

Well now. I'm not sure whether this is an Amazing and Magical Stick of Wonder, or something else. I haven't come up with a name for it yet, but it would be something along the lines of Amazing and Terrifying Stick of Death, because if you give a pull on the handle, look what comes out.

Yes indeed, ladies and gentlemen, it's a dagger, a pike, a sword, a stabber-thingy with a very sharp pointy tip. This is a stabber-thingy of substance. Horse won't trot? Now he will! Won't jump the jump? How high, he'll say. Of course when you fall and impale yourself, you'll be quite dramatically dead and may make the national news.

Here's a not-so-good photo of the tip. The riding crop dagger is square but comes to this ferocious point:

(You'll be glad to know that's rust, not blood.) And where did I get such a thing? My father said that since I was the one who rode horses, I'm the one who should have it. When he moved to assisted living and had to downsize, he parceled this out to me. Because of my love for horses and the fact that I still keep them. Heaven knows I need all the weapons I can get when I'm riding....

He brought it back from his service in WWII, whether in Panama or the Philippines I need to ask. I suspect it's not from either place originally. And I'm pretty certain it's not for riding, or at least not for use on your horse. I haven't been able to find out much about it's likely origin or history. Here's one link that has better photos of other ones, as well as speculation on their origins.  And another photo of the same concept, though the shaft is round instead of square, from Iran.

What oddities do you have in your tack box?