Cierra and Hope really look forward to daily turn out time. We do too, for obvious reasons. Plus, it gives us a chance to clean out their stall without working around 8 constantly moving feet.
I can tell you one thing I won't miss about having a foal, is straw bedding. We will be going back to shavings soon. They really don't need straw anymore, but we thought it might be more comfy this first week.
Speaking of this first week, I have one more half day post to come after this one. Then I will change the programming. Capturing their first few days in greater detail was important to me. I will still take photos of the crazy daisy. She continues to grow like a weed. Just less photos. Not a fan of spending hours sorting & processing.
...........................
Hope runs in speedy short bursts. Often near the entrance, where Cierra stands looking for scratches from us. Cierra has become a mush pot. Often body blocking (my photos too!) but these days it is for attention. It is very obvious Cierra wants us to give her all our love. Specifically in scratches.
I mentioned changing light settings in my last post. Here is a visual of what I was talking about, with Hope stretched out zooming around at the end of the arena.
cooler
warmer
I watched Hope run past Brad and kick one back leg up. Lightening fast. Gasp! He was sitting on the ball. She was fairly close and kicked level to his face. He didn't even flinch. Not me. I like to wait until the filly has run off some of her pent up energy.
Hope wasn't trying to hurt Brad. Just a baby trying out her moves.
Hi Brad! Whatcha doing?
Hope has such long eyelashes! They stick out on either side of her head (see above).
Hope 4/14/23
Cierra says "a little more to the left"
Brad rolled the ball out of the corner. It was game on! After trying to move the ball in various ways, Hope suddenly launched herself on top. She rolled right over the ball. Very funny! Of course, Cierra was blocking my view. She has been doing that a lot. Sigh.
learning to play with the ball (14 sec)
It is funny to watch sassy pants backing up to her mama. Sometimes Hope does a mini double barrel kick at her. Cierra doesn't flinch either and has a "whatever" look on her face.
trouble brewing (Cierra is off to the right)
Look at that sassy face lol! Maybe I should have named her Sassy. Oh, and the back lighting and sand spray! Yaaay!!! I truly love shooting movement enhanced by sand, water, dirt or snow!
Sunspots have always been one of my favorite areas to shoot in an indoor. Along with the moodiness that barn/arena door openings offer.
(not tack sharp, but a keeper in my eyes)
After a whole buncha more running and bustin' moves:
The little girl wore herself out:
Cierra and Hope 4/14/23
6 comments:
With the icky weather change right now, I imagine it will be just a bit before they get outside to stretch their legs.
Backing into momma seems to be a foal thing, then kicking at momma. Funny how the mom's just do an eye roll [or I imagine they do].
You don't have to stop with the baby stuff! I love it. Yep, there are a lot of cool photos to get, but spending time like that ... and then sharing it is awesome. I like it.
I like it.
Did I say I like it?
:)
Haha! Epona kicked out at us so many times! It was kind of scary as she got bigger, so I had to start carrying a crop to smack her. In your last post I noticed she had gotten pretty close to Brad but didn't kick out, and it made me nervous. I thought maybe Epona was just a naughtier foal! I guess she was just normal. They love to show off their big horse moves!
They put everything into their mouths, which is very scary.
But they are also so much fun! She is such a firecracker! Lots of looks and personality. Cierra looks regal and noble. Motherhood agrees with her.
She sure is a speedy gal! Love her playing with the ball!
Love how you process the photos.
Such joie de vivre! It's so fun watching foals when they get the zoomies- but yes those little feet can leave some nasty bruises... as I well know!
The video had me smiling. Might be fun to put a few more toys in the arena for her to explore. You are so blessed to have an arena, by the way, so much better than mud and rain or snow for the babies.
Val, I absolutely plan to continue posting about Hope. Just a bit less, with a different approach. I can't keep up with daily posts-n-processing. Well, it is not that I can't. I don't want to sit at a computer this much. A big reason I retired from Design early and also stopped doing Portraits. It is brutal on my body.
Yes, little Ms. Hope is going to have to wait to enjoy the great outdoors. Their pasture at the back of the arena still has to be planted and fenced. We will be setting up panels for them in the interim elsewhere. The nice thing about panels is they can be moved, although they will have much smaller area to start out. Crappy for photos.
Yea, those babies and their fast feet...Brad says a baby kick will feel like a mosquito bite after being kicked by a horse. I say I like my front teeth where they are, and babies get bigger and stronger!
Linda, I imagine these filly posts bring back so many memories of Cowgirl and Epona.
I am only sharing a smidge of Hope's kicks and bucks. Most of the time I am not behind my camera/phone. They are fast, frequent and getting higher!
Thank you Shirley! We are very grateful for our indoor. I put a cone out in the arena for turnout tonight. Hope can't do much damage with that. Should be interesting!
Thanks ya'll for letting me know you are enjoying our journey with Hope <3 It is so much more fun sharing it with all of you!
I'll never forget the fun I had with Sunshine playing in the pasture until she was bigger and as I was walking away she reared and came down with both front hooves on my shoulders.
I got a lesson and so did she in appropriate human - equine respect. She was only 4 months old, but we started to learn it was not okay to play kick ball with me.
It really has been a wonderful 25 years that we continue to learn from each other.
The bonding is totally there still.
Enjoy and learn.
Post a Comment