Life comes at you from all sides... and so it happens to us all.

I have not been writing as I was studying and trying to settle my horses for the winter.  I always get all my hay for the year during the spring.  I try to get first cuttings so there is less trash (weeds) in the bails.  But if the pasture is treated with a broad leaf second cutting can be just as good, rarely is that going to happen around here.

Life in NC has been wet, So wet in fact we never got a second cutting from my normal, local supplier, he treated his fields for broad leaf and wanted to have it rolled for cattle due to chemical issues that could occur.  The cattle / roller lost three cuttings due to all the rain.  When normally we have at least three cuttings a year for horse bailing of which I try to collect at least 400 bails for the rest of the year.  about 125 per cutting is my standard from my local guy... Not this year... got my 125 and then no more came about.

I have two horses and need 365 for the year, IF it is a good easy year.  Last year was and not so sure about this winter! So I like to get my 400 leaving me 35 bails for the worst nights of winter allowing my horses another 1/2 bail each on VERY cold nights.  While we horse people understand why; those whom have run across this page write and ask what it has to do with anything.    Horses create their heat from what they eat.  So they need more hay on nights it is excessively cold.  And it happens up at Three Thousand feet with a negative wind chill so... You have to be prepared.  Also with that extra hay I pour a little extra Corn Oil on their hay at night.  Yes at night only as Corn Oil helps give them heat but it also blocks the absorption for Vitamin D if used over time.... Just as we humans need our Vitamin D so do our horses.  They get Rice Bran Oil during the day... and for as long as I can afford it through out the year.

Oil is required basic with the PPSM Navarre has... he gets 4oz every morning and night but this is a basic and not his winter supplement.  He gets 8oz during the winter morning and night....

This year hay was sparse, but the weather perfectly cool, plenty of water... just too much rain each day so we didn't have three days in a row to cut, dry and bail...  so I have less than 100 bails in the barn and it is September... this is CRITICAL! So I got 200 more bails Friday and will need another 100 by Oct to make sure we are ok for the winter and into the first cuttings of next year.  I am hoping my local supplier will come through with one more cutting.  If not ... I'll have to purchase some really expensive stuff to get my kids through to next years cuttings.  ? And you can't trust when that will be in the Appalachian Range.

More abou the week tomorrow!  Lots to tell...