Now it is officially Winter and it feels like it. It is "cocoon" time, introspection and preparation for the re-birth of Spring and the energizing of our dreams and objectives. Our horses are fuzzy, the days are short (but start slowly getting longer now) and hoses freeze. One thing I really became aware of the past few years is that, if you set your horses up in as natural a life as possible, they are, of course, much healthier, but they are so much easier to care for. You can concentrate on your relationship with them and the doing of the really fun stuff. If you have them in a very large pasture with trees/windbreaks, shelter and running water that doesn't freeze (I had that in West Virginia with spring fed water tanks) or water tubs large enough or with a heater, mineral supplements free choice, supplemental hay and delicious herb filled mashes, you can enjoy being with them so much. Even when your horse is in a small pen, the water buckets freeze every night, the poop is frozen solid and the tarp on your hay is covered in ice - just imagine how boring life would be without horses! - or dogs, or goats, or chickens or all of the above - There is profound satisfaction in having such an important purpose.
