Posts Tagged ‘iron horse farm
June Events & Sitting Ponies
Well June is officially here – and thus begins our countdown to pony penning! The pressure is on for me to think up a new skit for Minnow to perform while we are down there. I have a few random ideas floating around my head – but suggestions are definitely welcome!
I do need to come up with a plan though, so I have an idea of what new tricks I need to teach Minnow this year. In the hopes that working on some new tricks might spark an idea for me I started training both Minnow and Boomerang to sit.
We’re at the beginning stages right now, (although Boomer has had some previous lessons on it last year with me – I just got a bit distracted before finishing it) but I’m sure they will both get it soon. I’ve been training them together – something I only sometimes do – but working them at the same time is really helping them to learn faster. Boomerang I think might catch on a bit quicker than Minnow, as he’s less concerned about touching his butt to a rustling bean bag chair. Minnow would much rather prefer to pick them up and throw them. haha.
I’ve also been having Minnow watch me cue Boomerang to lay down – and I’m just waiting for the opportunity when Minnow offers this trick to me so I can reward him. Any day now….I can just tell!
Amongst the pony training, Ammo has also been getting ready for his big performance at the Keystone Dachshund Races next weekend.
I swear he’s really excited! 🙂
Ammo will be performing around lunchtime with his pal Super Trooper (my mom’s Australian Shepherd/Labrador). This will be Trooper’s debut performance and he’s been working really hard! Let’s just say I’m off in search of a doggie sized tutu today – it’s going to be epic.
So if you are in the Lewisberry PA area next Sunday June 12th around from 12pm – 6pm – be sure to shop by to watch Ammo race for charity & perform with Trooper. We’ll also have a booth set up where ammo will be selling some of his artwork- with perhaps a few pieces from the ponies as well. It’s definitely a fun day with the profits benefiting the Coast to Coast Dachshund Rescue. We hope to see you there!
P.S. Ammo says that anyone who sports a “Go Ammo” t-shirt on Race day to support him will get an extra slobbery kiss!
Blitz and Minnow grazing at home at Iron Horse Farm
2011 Wild Pony Foals
If you are like us, you are counting down the days until the annual pony penning in Chincoteague. So at least now you can get a little preview of some of the 2011 foals that have been born already this year on Assateague.
Wild Island Ponies, is a website run by an Assateague Pony enthusiast – who mostly uses the site to document the ponies for her own pleasure.
Kelly now has up a list (and pictures) of some of the 2011 foals she’s spotted on the island – some during the Spring Roundup. You can check them out here.
It’s a really cool resource if plan to attend a swim (or even just visit Assateague) anytime soon. I personally can’t even remember some of the mares and stallions on the island – and talk about helpful if you had plans to buy a foal this year!
There are definitely some cute babies in the bunch this year – I can’t wait to see all of them at the end of July! For a complete list of the pony penning schedule you can visit our website. Hope to see you there! And don’t forget to come visit me and Minnow at the Chincoteague Pony Centre.
Sponsor – Travel n Corrals
We’re very excited to introduce our new sponsor, Travel n Corrals! I had spent months researching portable corral systems so that the boys would have a safe and secure place to perform inside of when we travel to venues without an arena. When I finally stumbled upon Travel n Corrals I knew I had found the perfect solution.
Each individual panel weighs only 15 pounds – I constructed the corral for the first time all by myself, and I was even able to carry two panels at once (I’m a beast huh?). It only took me about 5 minutes to set up! Each panel is connected every 7’ with a full length 4’ steel pipe rod that a horse cannot pull out vs. short pins or Velcro that the horse can work at removing. It has a special cap at the end that makes it nearly impossible for a horse to grip it with their teeth.
Minnow tests out the new corral system
Our corral is the 18′ x 18′ size, but you can easily add more panels in the future, or connect two corrals together for an even larger area for your horse.
One of the great aspects to these corrals is that they come with a life time guarantee, so IF you ever have an issue, or have something break – you can get it replaced.
Minnow giving the new corral the once-over.
Another great thing about these corrals for us is that it is highly visible through the panels – meaning no one’s view will be obstructed when Minnow is painting his masterpiece. The corral will also open up many more venues for us to perform at. Setting up in a parking lot or a grassy field will be no issue now that we have a safe and secure place for Minnow to be.
While we will mostly be using our corral for performances, it is also fantastic for traveling to horse shows and events. Set it up next to your trailer on show day and your horse isn’t stuck standing on the trailer between classes/events. We also plan to use ours at mounted games competitions – where keeping your horse overnight often requires a stall rental. Now we’ll be able to forgo the stall fees & the horses will have more room to move about. Would also be great for overnight trail rides!
The other really cool thing about these panels is that you can mount them to your trailer for transportation.
With options for mounting on the outside of a trailer, in the tackroom or even in one of the stall bays – it makes traveling with them even easier. We don’t have any of the mounting hardware yet – as we are hoping to upgrade to a newer trailer soon.
Travel n Corrals’ 13’x13′ corrals sells for $525 + $99 S&H – which is the best price out there for portable corrals at this size (believe me I looked!) And the more you buy, the better the price gets.
Visit Travel n Corrals ( www.travelncorrals.com ) where you can watch a great video explaining more about these corrals.
And now I leave you with some utterly adorable shots of Minnow – have I mentioned I love this pony?
Photos by Kyley DiLuigi. All rights reserved. www.paintingpony.com
Our pedestal in the above picture is from our sponsors, Toys for Horses.
Iron Horse Farm – video tour
Some of you might know that in 2009 we moved the ponies into our farm, Iron Horse Farm. My parents waited 20+ years until they were able to build the farm of their dreams. And while the farm never seems to be quite complete (we always have projects going on) – it is definitely a place our whole family cherishes.
My talented brother Taylor recently made an updated farm tour for our website while he was home visiting from North Carolina. (and he’s also working on a new video for the painting ponies!)
Check it out:
Isn’t it fantastic! You can see my mom working Blitz in the video with her dog Trooper – as well as Boomerang and Minnow (and our other horses Jet – black mare & Nitro – the grey). Sadly I wasn’t out at the farm the day he shot – or perhaps I would have made him capture a few pony tricks for the reel. But regardless, my brother is an super talented filmmaker – he shot this in one day! Amazing right?
So if you are in need of some video work – be sure to check out his website Depthink. (he will travel!)
Trick Pony Update (part 2)
Hopefully you got to read part 1 of our big Trick Pony Update. Well, part 2 was supposed to come way sooner than now! Sorry! But better late than never. So here’s a little bit of what we’ve been up to lately….
Right before our big school visit I decided to teach Minnow a new trick. He now has a bright beaming smile, just like his brother, Boomerang.
I’m not really sure why it took me so long to get around to teaching him this trick – but whatever the case, in a matter of a few minutes he was a smiling fool!
Meanwhile, Minnow has picked up a new training buddy, Trooper! Trooper has graciously agreed to perform alongside Ammo the Dachshund at the Keystone Dachshund Races this year.
Ammo has been helping Trooper to learn his tricks, and before we know it “Super Trooper” will be ready for the big show!
Minnow had a break-through in his laydown training a few weeks ago. Those of you that have been reading the blog for a long time might know that Minnow has not been trained to laydown yet. Mostly because he’s extremely sensitive and up until now, putting himself into a vulnerable position like laying down was not something he was comfortable with. Typically he will wait until no one is around before he will even roll in the pasture, and he’s never let me even get close to him while he’s on the ground. I’m a strong believer in letting my horse tell me when they are ready and comfortable. I was in no hurry to teach Minnow to laydown, and I’ve been patiently waiting for the past 8 years until he’s ready.
And now I think the time has finally come. It all started with a bath a few weeks ago. Miraculously he decided to roll right after I turned him out in the pasture – about a foot away from me. I took it as a cue and crept up next to him to feet him grass. He stayed down for about 30 seconds before he got up. I then began to give my cue for laydown that I use for Boomer (which I have been making Minnow watch for the past several weeks) – and by some miracle Minnow went down again. I could kick myself for not having a handful of treats in my pockets – but I did my best to verbally praise him & feed him any bits of grass I could find.
I’m so excited that he finally seems ready to master this (difficult for him) trick. When the day finally comes we will have reached a huge milestone in our relationship. From the scared & untrusting pony I met 8 years ago – to a pony that will trust me to be around him in his most vulnerable moment. I’m honored that he’s chosen me to go on this journey with him. 🙂
Usually our travels involve performances and competitions, but this month our travels led us in a different direction. Boomer, Blitz, and Ammo recently took a trip with us to Delaware – not for a performance – but for saddle fitting!
Blitz is going to be a Western Pony! Doesn’t he look cute in his new western saddle? Meanwhile Boomerang & I are trying out treeless saddles! I’ve had the same multipurpose saddle since I was about 12 -so it’s high time I upgrade (specifically to something that isn’t too small for me!) So, to make room for our new saddle, we’re also selling off some of the ones we don’t use anymore.
So if anyone is interested in a 16 1/2″ Dressage Saddle in excellent condition let me know! You can find out more details here. Once our new saddle is here, we will also have a great multi-purpose saddle for sale.
Blitz is really liking his new western pony role, and Boomer can hardly contain his excitement for his new saddle to arrive. We’ll be sure to post details once we’ve made sure it fits him & given it a good test ride. You can find out more details about treeless saddles here.
Well I hope you enjoyed our little update on life with the trick ponies’. As we approach Summer more exciting things will be happening – as we gear up for more performances and our yearly trip with Minnow to Pony Penning!
