Now I've seen everything!

[Rusty Hills Farm]

Alabama, being Deep South, rarely gets snow, but Monday morning we woke up to 4.5" of the stuff and more coming down, so I kept my horses stalled for the day. This morning we've still got plenty of the white stuff on the ground, but it is trying to melt. It's got a crust and is crunchy underfoot, unlike previous snowfalls, which were more of a dusting than an actual accumulation.

Everybody was really ansy from being up yesterday and they were all but climbing over the doors to get out. I put out hay for everybody and started with my stallion, hand-walking him to his paddock the way I always do. He was glad to go, right up to the instant that he stepped into the snow...and it crunched under his foot. More steps. More crunching. He started rolling his eyes and bouncing around, which sent snow flying into the air. That's when full-fledged panic set in. He set back, broke my hold on his halter, and began alternately pawing, rearing, blowing, biting the stuff, and finally freezing in place as though afraid to take another step.

He was rolling his eyes and blowing hard, actually starting to sweat, he was that upset. So I offered him my hand, he lowered his head and practically laid his halter on it, and I walked him quietly back to his stall. He jumped right back in and now refuses to come out!

I have NEVER seen the like!

Hopefully most of the stuff will melt today and we'll have better luck tomorrow. But now, for sure, I have seen it all!

Rusty

 

[Tanichca]

 

[MandyH]

We've got snow so deep that my little MinPin can't squat to pee and she is freaked out too.

 

[FireTigeris]

When it snowed here (check my location) my friends horse spooked and ran him trough a barbwire fence before throwing him.

Glad everyone is ok.

 

[patandchickens]

I had a similar experience once when I boarded at a place with an indoor that had a sprinkler system. They would run it in the evening at lights-out to dampen things. Normally they wouldn't do it if it was going to be cold overnight (this was in coastal NJ) but occasionally they'd guess wrong and you'd get the upper half inch or so of footing frozen into a firm crust atop the underlying layers. This wasn't everywhere, just where the sprinklers reached, and *not* near the entrance.

Rode my very large very goofy TB into the indoor one morning, got about twenty feet in, hit the stiff collapsy "crinkly" frozen layer. Brief pause while horse's eyes bugged out, very "The Mask" if you remember that movie. We then crossed the remaining 100' of arena in, I think, about three strides. Well not really of course but is amazing how *seldom* a horse's feet can touch the ground when the ground is weird

He then refused to move at all, and had to be coaxed thru the people-door at the opposite end or we'd probably been there til things thawed.

Enjoy your snow

,

Pat

 

[welsummerchicks]

Well my little angels are out there delicately pawing the snow and getting at the alfalfa and orchard grass underneath, and having frozen parfaits. My old guy likes it so much that when he sees snow he just has to lie down and roll in it, he can barely get out the door. Sometimes if it gets very deep they get very, very quiet and and move around very little, I think due to instincts to conserve energy.

 

[~*Sweet Cheeks*~]

Quote:
If it was me, I'd take that boy back out so he can get over fear and know that snow can be quite fun. Any movement is better then standing in a stall 24/7. I think you'd be surprised to find your horses would like it.

We don't get that much snow in the Pacific NW - Olympia WA area either.

My goats were running and jumping, butting heads, and eating the snow. My horses used to run and buck and roll in it. And the dogs run circles in it.

 

[gritsar]

 

[Inkheart]

That is great - the big manly stallion taken down by the snow! Poor guy - what a chip away at his male ego!

 

[lorieMN]

~*Sweet Cheeks*~ :

Quote:
If it was me, I'd take that boy back out so he can get over fear and know that snow can be quite fun. Any movement is better then standing in a stall 24/7. I think you'd be surprised to find your horses would like it.

We don't get that much snow in the Pacific NW - Olympia WA area either.

My goats were running and jumping, butting heads, and eating the snow. My horses used to run and buck and roll in it. And the dogs run circles in it.

agree..get his butt back out there and make him learn to deal with it,,he will figure it out..as long as you have fencing that he wont get hurt in,I assume you do being he is a stud..​