It's been a while!

I've moved Pals blog back to here. Today.com sucked :)

Well it's been a while. Not much has really been going on. Just hanging out waiting for the hot weather to go away.

One of the main things that has happened was that Pal went to Kindergarten to teach kids how people and animals can live a normal live while having a disability. :) I'm really wanting to grow on that program and offer something to Boy and Girl Scouts but the red tape that is out there I think will keep me from doing it. Oh well....

Pal enjoying some Pearl Millet at the farm this summer!

Pal's New Saddle

Well it's been a while since I've posted. FINALLY got a saddle that fit Pal. Now just need a shorter girth. AND I finally sat on him. I wanted to build a relationship with him before plopping my big butt up there on his back. He stood like a champ to be tacked up, stood great for me just leaning on him and then I got up on top and he just stood there. I didn't do much walking around since my saddle was a little too loose but he was SUCH a good boy! I'm going to get a shorter girth this weekend and work some more with him.

He's also got his verbal ques going good also. I've gotten a new horse (Baby - see below) since I sold Bob the Belgian and she's gave Pal a run for his money BUT they have settled down in a love/hate relationship. :) Stay Tuned!

Pal has a YouTube Video!

Ok, it's 1am and I can't sleep so I made a video with pictures I have of Pal so far. :) I am going to update it as we go along. ;)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ckDCeuParBg

Saddle Time

Worked Pal with his saddle on yesterday. It's not a good fit but will do for what we are doing. He needs to bulk up a bit first. :) As soon as I can find someone who knows about horses to help me I'm going to get on his back and get led around. :) Please ignore the mess in the riding area, I am redoing the barn and fence so it don't look the best at the moment.

Hoof Trim

Pal FINALLY got his feet trimmed yesterday. He wasn't too crazy about it but my great farrier worked with him. He did better on the front than he did in the back. His back feet were really long but lucky for him and me nothing else was going on with them. I'm going to work on him standing a little better for the farrier. I think some of it may have to do with balance and getting use to it.

:)

As Promised

Well the last two days were great for pictures sooo...I took a lot of them. We had grooming day today and used a lot of Cowboy Magic! I just love that stuff. Pal did great and he's getting a long good with his new little friend Peanut. The donkey was not a great blind horse friend as he saw Pal as more a bother and opted to be with Bob the Anti Social Belgian. :)

This is Pal and his (and Eli's) pony Peanut. Peanut sort of looks like a mini version of Pal.

Pal and Hershey the best farm dog ever!

Messing with the pony saddle. Next week I'm getting on!

T R O U B L E

Give me some kisses!

Follow the leader!

This is Pal's Normal look when he's in front of you.

Pal being his beautiful self!

Cool eye pic

Getting a little more meat on him but still needs more to cover those hook bones.

It's Us Again :O)

Well after all the bad weater I got sick so FINALLY we went out today and played around. Tomorrow is work day. :) I DID get some new pictures today but have to wait to upload them on the other computer since my laptop is too old LOL. I PROMISE PICS will come soon :)

It's Us Again!

Well, I've been a bit under the weather so haven't really got to do as much as I'd like. I'm hoping to do some more hands on with Pal tomorrow plus take some more pictures. It's only been a few weeks and he's starting to gain weight. His ribs are starting to disappear and he's starting to be a little more spunky. :) We're starting to learn more about each other. Plus he is the alpha horse in his little group. When we feed everyone just has to be careful not to walk behind him when he's eating because he will kick out some.

He's being really good about his blanket and all.

Tomorrow I'm HOPING to be able to saddle him up. :) Will have more pictures and info. :)

I Love Pal

I would have never told you in a million years I would have had this much fun with a blind horse! He is so super and sweet. Today we worked on a few commands which he picked up on pretty good. The first was one we had already worked on and he sort of knew which was "whoa". He's got that one down pat pretty good. His new ones we are working on are the words "back" which of course means to back up and also the word "over" which means to step over where ever I'm touching him. We did shoulder and hindend. Then we also just practiced leading, walkng and stopping. Since I don't have someone to take pictures of us you have to settle for self pics from my cell phone :)

Myrtle Beach Ride-A-Thon

Although some people think I'm crazy. After working with Pal for just a few days I can see he has something special. I have a goal to ride him in the American Heart Association Ride-A-Thon end of October this year. I think he (we) can do it. Nothing seems to phase him. I just need to help him get his groove back. :)

I want him to be the horse that raises the most money! If you want to donate, please visit

http://www.horsebackbeachride.kintera.org/myrtlebeachsc/tracyginder77

and you can donate online!

Pals First Snow in NC

Winter weather set in today. I'm so glad Sarah let us borrow her blanket. :) Here are just a few pictures of Pal in the snow. :) I feel like a new mom posting on here everytime.

Pal sporting his toasty blankie in the snow.

Here's Calypso in the snow hanging out. She will be returning to Charleston this weekend. :o(

Pals New Clothes

Thanks to my friend Sarah, Pal has a new warm waterproof blanket to get him through the bad weather coming through. He stood like a champ and let me fittle with everything, he never jumped once. Once I had it on him I had to let him know he could move around and after a few moments of messing with the blanket he figured out it was ok since it was feeding time and he had to walk to his feed bucket. He LOVES to eat. :)

I know I posted twice in one day but I have to say that Pal is SO cool! He is so calm and sweet and has just handled his first day great! I don't think his buddy donkey Warrior likes him too well so his buddy may change.

I can tell I'm going to learn a lot from him already. Once he gets settled in our first word we're going to learn is over so we can practice stepping over poles. He is just SUCH a good boy!

Pal Arrives!!!

Pal Arrives Today!!!!!!

Well much to my dismay, Pal did not come on Saturday. Late Saturday afternoon I got in touch with the hauler and found out he's not coming until Sunday (the next day)

Well that is today and pal is here!!

He rolled in a little after breakfast time. Bill and his granson ware just great and took great care of Pal over their long trip. He said Pal was a great horse with no problems. We unloaded Pal with a little talking and telling him where to go and he started to explore his new surroundings.

We talked a bit to him and gave him a welcome pat and off we walked to his new home with Warrior the Donkey who will be his guide for now anyway. Not too sure he's happy with the job LOL.

Pal is a little on the thin side but one thing I'm good at is getting things fat so with a little TLC and some other goodies I'm sure Pal will be gaining weight in no time.

He's turned out to be REAL easy to handle, knows whoa and a few other things and really seems to take everything in stride.

Not much else more to write about now so I'll just post a few more pics for everyone to enjoy. Please don't pay attention to the crappy looking barns. I'm in the middle of some construction and it always looks worse before it gets better. The opening the girls are sticking their head out of is going to be a door and Pal is acutally living in my riding area for now. :)

Tomorrow is the Day!

Just got word from Rick, Pal's rescue dude, that all is a go for tomorrow. This time tomorrow Pal will join me in Mt Pleasant in wonderful 12 degree weather! Whooo Hooo!!!!. Guess I just have to get up in the morning and fix the gate Bob desided to take down. Guess he didn't like where I put it.

Rick will be taking some pictures as Pal loads up to send for the blog so keep posted!

More Tomorrow!!!!

The Trip Is On

THANK YOU SO MUCH Amber for helping Pal get over to North Carolina. I just got word that Pals ship date will be next Saturday, Jan 17! Which is great becuase thanks to MLK I have a three day weekend so me and Pal can get to know each other. Sorry this is a short entry but I have to beat the rain and prepare Pal's horse kingdom so it's ready for him when he gets here. Hope to have more pictures soon!

In The Beginning

Pal is a beautiful registered buckskin Tennessee Walking horse who was in training to be a big walker when moonblindness took his sight. Thus began his journey to find a new home and to keep him from being put down.

In the beginning I seen a post on a horse chat forum (Chronicles of the Horse) about a blind Tennessee Walking Horse gelding named Pal who was looking for a new home. I thought what the heck do I need a blind horse, Ryan (the husband) will never agree. So I put it off, mentioned it and he said no. Then I saw that his rescuer was about to give up...he was going to be put down. So again, I begged this time about getting Pal. I think the breaking point was Ryan was tired of me asking. So begin the journey of getting Pal from Knoxville, TN to Mt. Pleasant, NC. I knew Ryan would flip if I drove to TN PLUS, I have a fear of hauling in the mountains. Plus I really had no clue when I would be able to go west. I figured if it was suppose to be it would work out. I emailed Pal's current home to let them know I could take him. We then began the begging process of trying to find Pal a ride.

One of our fellow COTH readers saw Pal's problem and through the kindness of her heart helped us find Pal a ride over. Now we're just working out the logistics of it all so I will keep you updated.

And NO I am not crazy! Blind horses can have a very normal life :) You'll just have to stay tuned to the blog to see how it all ends up.