Posts Tagged ‘farm
The Painters and their Brushes
Today I decided to take some photos of the boys with their paintbrushes. I was attempting to get some nice photos of them for their new website, but it proved to be harder than I thought with handing them the brushes and trying to run backwards to get the shot before they decided to drop them. It would/will be much easier with two people. Minnow decided to be camera shy – he’s always had an issue with the sound of a camera shutter. I think he associates the sound with the flash going off, and he REALLY believes that the flash is lightning. And Minnow is afraid of lightning. Its one of his lingering fears from when I first met him that I haven’t quite been able to get him over. Although he no longer runs now, he just chooses to look away or calmly keep himself at a safe distance.
If you think about it, its quite amazing that he will still perform with me while onlookers flash cameras at him in all directions. Sometimes his fear gets the best of him and I have to refocus him, that or politely ask people to turn off their flashes until Minnow relaxes. This has/is one of his biggest challenges when we travel to Chincoteague each year, because he performs in an indoor facility, which tends to make the camera flashes go off. I’m not sure Minnow will truly ever overcome his fear, he must have had a traumatic experience with lightning before he came to me – perhaps something happened to him when he was a foal on the island…I will never know.
So for today, I only have photos of Blitz and Boomer, and thats ok. Perhaps Minnow will decide to let us capture him another day.
Blitz was quite the ham with the paintbrush – as always. He’s such a funny pony, I think he knows he’s cute – which in turn makes him think he can get away with anything. He kept trying to paint the fence with the brushes, which eventually led him to frustration when he realized that with each stroke he took, nothing came off of the brush.
Don’t worry Blitz, we will paint again soon.
Jump into Spring Contest
I was recently honored as the second place winner of The Horse Studio, Jump into Spring Writing Contest. The topic to be written about was “When did you fall in love with horses?”. Below is my entry:
2006 Kissing Minnow
My Little Chincoteague Pony
I’ve been involved with horses since the day I was born, but I didn’t really fall in love with them until I was 18 and Chincoteague Minnow came into my life. He was a short, rotund Chincoteague pony that started his life as a wild pony on Assateague Island. I didn’t know much about him except for the fact that an owner in his past had neglected him and his care for several months, and I quickly found that he had deep trust issues as well as a nasty buck.
For two years Minnow and I battled to gain an understanding of each other. He constantly ran away with me and wanted nothing to do with me. He ignored scary situations and refused to confront anything he felt threatened by. But I loved him anyway and I refused to give up on him.
2007 Me and Minnow
It wasn’t until a simple book came into my life that things began to change. Trickonometry by Carole Fletcher was a book that detailed a multitude of tricks to teach your horse. As I taught Minnow his very first trick, to give me a kiss, something began to happen. Minnow began to light up as he discovered what it meant to learn. We flew through the book as he learned to play fetch, shake hands, and even bow. Minnow and I were now communicating and understanding each other.
A year passed and I could barely recognize him as the pony that had appeared in my life 3 years earlier. He was bright eyed and excited for my daily visits to see him. He no longer ran away with me and most importantly we were a team. Minnow had showed me how to teach him and in doing so we opened up a whole door to the world of horse training. And I loved him more every day.
Minnow is now an accomplished trick pony as well as an exceptional riding pony. As he now enters into the retirement phase of his life we enjoy spending time together even more. I have him to thank for my love of horses, although I can be sure that I will never love another horse the way I love him.
Excitingly my prize is an Imagine A Horse DVD, Using Treats as a Training Tool. I can’t wait for it to arrive – as I have actually been dying to see the video. I will be sure to post a full review on it after I watch it.
If you would like to read the rest of the winning entries click here.
Boomerang is a Painting Pony
There are three Trick Ponies of Chincoteague, but up until now there were only two PAINTING PONIES. I am now pleased to announce the addition of our third painting pony, Chesapeake Boomerang aka Boomer.
Boomer came to live with me in August of 2008, and he began his official painting training in September of 2009. Now to elaborate on this, Boomer was introduced to the easel, paints, and various equipment it takes to make a painting pretty much the day he arrived to live with me. With months of watching Chincoteague Minnow paint, and then watching his older brother, Chesapeake Lightning, go through the learning – Boomer had many many months of being acclimated to the painting environment.
Boomer learned to play fetch and pick up objects in his mouth, he learned to target and stand stationary in different spots. I then introduced him to holding a brush in his mouth in September of 2009. Then winter hit, and none of the ponies painted for months.
Fast forward to April 19, 2010, and I finally was able to break out the easel and paints again. Boomer stood overlooking his stall as Minnow and then Blitz created some fabulous works of art. So naturally when it was his turn to come out of his stall, Boomer went to investigate the painting supplies and find out how he could get some treats too. 10 Minutes later and Boomer was making marks happily on the canvas. I think he was proud of himself. Its hard to be the youngest, and most often the last in line to learn something.
Hopefully by next weekend we will have some great new paintings by Boomerang available in the shop.
New Paintings by the Boys
Things have been crazy busy around here, but the boys and I finally found time to create some new paintings. And with that I have exciting news as well, Chesapeake Boomerang has learned to paint! He now joins his brothers as the third painting Chincoteague Pony, but more on that later. For now I give you Chincoteague Minnow’s and Chesapeake Lightning’s newest creations from on April 19, 2010! We started experimenting with new paintbrushes and I think the results are fantastic. These paintings are very different from anything the boys have painted before. So if you see one that catches your fancy be sure to snatch it up, remember these are one-of-a-kind original paintings and no two will ever be the same. To see all of the available paintings visit our online shop HERE.
"Yellow Buttercup" by Chincoteague Minnow
"April Raindrops" by Chincoteague Minnow
"Swoosh" by Chesapeake Lightning
"Spring Mix" by Chincoteague Minnow
"Dancing with the Wind" by Chesapeake Lightning
So what do you think? Have a favorite? Do you like the new effects with our new brushes? We’d love to hear your feedback!
April 11th Mounted Games Clinic
On Sunday we held a mounted games clinic with trainer Michelle Reilly at Iron Horse Farm. Michelle Reilly has been coaching mounted games since 1989. She has sent over 25 teams to the USPC Championships with teams placing as Champion in all levels. She is the former coach of the USPC International Team and she was named the 2009 Best Trainer of the year by Mounted Games Across America.
We had BEAUTIFUL weather, and a nice turnout. I always jump at the chance to have a clinic with Michelle because she always has fantastic tips to share. She’s also really in tune to each specific horse’s needs, giving you pointers on how you can make the ride better for your horse. We’re having another clinic with her on April 25th, so anyone interested should sign up now!
Below are some photos from the day.
