Old MacDonald Had a Farm

 

bay horse in pasture with sun setting behind him
Meet "Dubya" - the newest addition to our farm. We now own six sheep and one horse. 

Dubya is an ex-racehorse and was struggling to find the right place after his racing career petered out. He has great racing bloodlines. Officially known as "Streets of Dubai",  his sire was the famous stallion Street Cry, winner of the  $6 million Dubai World Cup. His dam was Hela Dubai. His great grandfathers include Mr. Prospector and Northern Dancer.  Street Cry also produced Zenyatta, Street Sense and Winx. Apparently they got the running genes and didn't leave much for him. Dubya raced 15 times and won once. He was retired from racing; apparently he just doesn't have the drive. Eventually he found his way to Rylstone where Scott's aunt and cousin live. Aunt Berenice remembered we eventually wanted to get horses so she did some matchmaking. James trains polo ponies so has a lot of horses on the land; however, Dubya needed more feeding than they did and James was worried about keeping weight on him. Next thing we know, we are clearing paddocks and buying a horse trailer. 

We didn't quite get the fencing done in the front paddock so we cleared out the old sheep paddock and headed off the Canberra. Libby (another cousin) had checked out a float (trailer) for sale and said it was in great condition. We saw Libby, grabbed a few pieces of gear that she generously set aside for us, and headed to another suburb to hook up Betty to the trailer. This meant we towed an empty trailer (good for practice) for several hours but also meant we didn't have to return a borrowed trailer. 

The following day James helped us try out Dubya. 

horse being saddled

Scott took the horse for a short ride down by the lake. 

man riding horse next to walker

Dubya  got a bit of an exam and practice trailer loading. He recently left a paddock the hard way and does have a sore back but otherwise seemed healthy enough. We all took Weds off to visit and relax and then headed back to Cobargo on Thursday. In Rylstone, Dubya was low on the totem pole so he seemed happy being on his own at least for a bit.
bay horse nose deep in grass
Dubya and I did a loop of the paddock so he could see the water trough, the wombat hole and the dam while it was still daylight. He was on a lead line for part and then followed me for the rest. 
woman leading horse in large paddock

There was no bucking, kicking or other airs above the ground. He seems to be sweet and maybe not so bright. 
As for the name - these were popular buttons and bumper stickers during the George W Bush presidency: 
button saying Somewhere in Texas there's a village missing its idiot
We do live in the village of Cobargo! But maybe Dubya is the smart one.  Lawrence (original sheep owner) came by, saw Dubya and asked Scott if he (Scott) was sick. Scott thought maybe he looked exhausted but Lawrence pointed out Dubya and said "you got a horse". 

We plan to put the ram (now officially ours) in with him for now and let the ewes have the front paddock.Once the fence is up.
I was taking pictures of Dubya when the dachshunds up the road decided to alert the neighborhood. The sheep decided to leave the vicinity and save their hearing. 
sheep in a paddock, walking in a line

We have neighbors coming over again tomorrow. That means today is cooking and cleaning. Plus maybe napping. I got severe muscle spasms in my sacrum and invited my sciatic nerve to play on the left side. This has been really painful and exhausting. I have had to sleep in chairs to avoid more pain. Made it to the doctor yesterday and am now taking muscle relaxers. They are at least relaxing my eyelids. 

When not traveling, I have been working on how to take better pics and quilting. The camera work seems to be helping. The superb fairy wrens are often subjects since on the patio. 
bright blue little bird sitting on bush

The quilt is almost done - you have to wait to see it. One of the shops in Bermagui offers sewing lessons of various types. I signed up!

More on the house - this is the second guest bedroom
bedroom with bed, blankets, small table

A painting I got in Thailand has center stage. TW is the elephant who painted the elephant painting (very meta). 
framed picture of elephant by a tree

It also houses the Malone shield - a gift before we left the state

Malone shield

Will leave you with this picture of a spinebill, enjoying the garden

gold and black bird with long beak



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