• The hitching post at the entry of the barn should NOT be used for rinsing or washing your horses. That will cause mud puddles that none of us want to have to walk thru. The hose will reach around to the other 3, and there is a nozzle hanging near the hose for your use.
• There are tie rings on each hitching post. Please use them. This will help prevent your horses from pulling down the hitching posts in a moment of sillyness. They are set in concrete, but better safe than sorry! The tie rings should pop off in an emergency situation.
• There is a red light switch on the right side of the Cottage Barn that turns on a flood light. That light will illuminate the entire hitching post area. Use it if you need it! Don't forget to turn it off when you're done.
• PLEASE CLEAN UP AFTER YOURSELF. Pick up your manure and place it in the manure spreader...Put all your tack away...Roll the hose back up when you are done with it...etc.
  

THANK YOU...and ENJOY!

Here are a few practices we ask you to observe in order to help us ensure there is enough water to go around:

1. Rinse horses out of a buckets only. Fill your bucket, and use a sponge to rinse your horse off instead of spraying the water hose. (Rinsing is normally done after you ride, to rinse the sweat from your horses body.)

Sidenote: Empty your bucket outside of the barn after use, as it will help to keep the dry well from filling up. The water from the wash rack drains into the dry well and that means the faster the dry well fills, the faster it will stop draining and the sooner it will have to be pumped.

2. If you need to bathe your horse, ensure you have a nozzle on the hose so that the water flow can be turned off and not left to run when not is use. Washing is normally done prior to an event, or as general maintenance of your horses skin and hair coat, but not necessary after every ride)

3. Use the outdoor arena vs the indoor arena whenever possible. The indoor arena needs to be wetted down before use. The outdoor arena does not.

4. Don't allow water to overflow out of water troughs...I am guilty of this myself from time to time, but do your best to remember to turn the water off before overflow.

That's about it....We appreciate your cooperation! Looking forward to the warmth and sunshine ahead!!!!

Just a friendly reminder to please clean up the common areas (lounge, tack room, bathroom, breezeway) before you leave....there is a broom and dust pan in the lounge, so please do a little sweep up or rake before you go so you are leaving the facilities just as nice for the next person :)

HAY UPDATE...I have acquired about 300 bales of alfalfa/orchard hay from a farm in northern Virginia...yeah! The horses seem to love it....

Now, for the important stuff....

PARKER, KNIGHT & I-JIN....Parker is leaving us this month. His owner will be moving him, of all places, to my former Farm in Spotsylvania! It's a small world! Hope he continues on his road to recovery and gets lots of the TLC he deserves! Knight is good on supplements...I actually did not realize you have refilled them for about a week, so you may have a little left over when your next shipment comes in...I can always double him up if that occurs :) I-Jin is back in good health, but due to age and soundness issues, her competitive jumping days have come to an end. As such. Julie and Celilia have been on the hunt for a replacement (although I-Jin is not going anywhere) and may have found one in a little gray mare names Raven! Raven will be vetted this month and arrive at Westwood if all goes well...she will then depart again for some formal training in preparation for her new life as a show pony. Stay tuned!

PEDRO....is good on supplements and grain, but needs some more hay in the feed room, please!! He was introduced to Fiddle and Banjo the pygmy goats (more info to come about them later). Can you say waaaaaaaaaaaay over excited to meet them??? LOL...I had to put him in his stall because he was spooking the horse in the arena with his antics...That's right, the horse in the arena could care less about the goats, THAT is how much ruccus Pedro was causing over them....LOL....I think he wanted to pick them up and toss them around....very funny!

LEGEND, BUGZ & BUCK ....Supplements look good. Still on the last container....Per our discussion, Buck will be leaving us at the end of March to go back to his old stomping grounds at the Pond's house. Legend and Bugz are separate currently, but Legend will replace Buck in the large pasture and join Potter and Bugz at the end of the month. Reunited, at last! Legend tore his back leg strap on his blanket, FYI.

CASH is still on ulcerguard mon-wed-fri and a scoop of powder every night....you are good on both. He is still getting the boots on his hind legs before turnout, so let me know if that needs to stop at some point.

JAX is still good on beet pulp and supplement...I saw he got a rip in the top of his sheet....just a small one....it's still on him.

ALLIE ...like the picture? We haven't tried THAT one yet! haha

SUMMER & FROSTY ....Summer is off her supplement now. Both are happy and healthy! Kevin Clements is working the electric to their cottage as we speak....it should be complete around the end of the month I suspect!

FEDE .....Fede and Sue are still getting along great! She is happy and healthy, nothing new to report! Meredith and Holly mucked their paddock the second week of March as well....they are working their way around all the paddocks and pastures.

BOBBY.....Supplements look good! I have been leaving his sheet on day and night since he is so slick now....let me know if you want that to change. Bobby's pasture-mate, Parker, is leaving this month, and Knight or Raven will be joining him after that. Raven is a mare, but is used to being turned out with geldings and gets along well. We'll see how it plays out.

CHARLIE, SUNNY, TWINKIE & SUE.....Sue has settled right in, although battling pulled shoes and an abcess has really put a damper on her work schedule! She looks to be on the mend now though. Sunny is getting ready to start his career as a hunter horse. kaitlyn has big plans for him! Your supplements look good. Charlie and Twinkie HAVE SOLD! They are going to live with Melissa Carwain, who just happens to e purchasing our old Farm in Spotsylvania. They are a great family and are going to a wonderful home. This means Sue will be moving up in life to a barn stall at the end of the month. She will be turned out with I-Jin and Allie. Hoping to get a couple more paddocks built this summer to spread them out a little better.

POTTER.....is good on supplements!

GRACIE.....has settled in nicely and seems to get along very well with her new pasture mate Fede. She just has her sheet on as long as it stays above freezing, and that seems to suit her. Do you want to add her to Jeff's Farrier schedule? When is she due for her next visit?

DE-WORMING: Just a reminder that we normally de-worm our horses at every ferrier visit...please ensure your horses are on a good rotation schedule.

FARRIER: Please arrange for the holding of your horse(s) if you are not available. Don't forget about your appts! Dates and times can be found on the online calendar. We have 3 appts now to service everyone!

On my side of the fence, Tacks has sold. She is in Kentucky as we speak, and headed to her retirement home in OH after foaling. We'll miss her, but I could not have hand picked a more suitable home for the old nag. She is charmed!

Woodie is still offered for sale. Abby Boldenow is riding him for me on occasion to help keep him conditioned....hoping to have him tuned up for some local shows this spring..pls pass thw word:

http://www.dreamhorse.com/show_horse.php?form_horse_id=1169370

Thanks for the opportunitiy to care for your horses! For those that find themselves on the show circuit, Best of Luck in 2008!

We have faced our first horsey sickies and have learned a lot! I want to thank Julie and Annette for their quick response to my concerns about their horses health! It enabled us to promptly treat Knight, I-Jin and Allie to help them get back to 100% as soon as possible! It also helped to contain the potential spread of said 'sickies' to the rest of the horses sharing their spaces. All in all, I think you handled everything very well!

For future reference, Westwood defines a 'sicky horsey' to be one that exhibits signs of the common cold, stranlges, respiratory infection, or other communicable ailment. Symptoms including coughing, sneezing, nasal discharge, lethargy, or temperature.

Westwood's policy on 'sicky horsey's' is the following. When any of the above symptoms have been observed and are cause for concern, the owner will be notified and asked to contact a verterinarian for diagnosis and treatment immediately. The horse will be quarantined in their stall or in a private paddock through their full course of medication AND when all symptoms have ceased. This is to help prevent the spread of the sickies to other horses on the farm. If stalled, turnout can be arranged in the outdoor arena per owner request, but it is highly recommended the horse be handled by the owner on a daily basis, if possible, to observe the horses progression. Westwood will continue to observe the sicky horsey thru recovery and make final judgment on the horses suitablility to go back to regular turnout with the other horses. Veterinarian recommendation considered, of course.

Let me know if you have any questions!

Just a friendly reminder to please clean up the common areas (lounge, tack room, bathroom, breezeway) before you leave....there is a broom and dust pan in the lounge, so please do a little sweep up or rake before you go so you are leaving the facilities just as nice for the next person :)

HAY UPDATE...Still no round bales in site. Our alfalfa/orchard hay has run out and we are back to an Orchard Hayfrom PA for the majority. Cash and Pedro are still on Alfalfa, which is obtained localy. Our PA supplier is running low, even on Orchard, so I may be buying locally next month. We'll see how it goes....

Now, for the important stuff....

KNIGHT & I-JIN....Knight is back on supplements, I-Jin is not until her cough clears...both bins are full.

PEDRO....need more supplements for the big guy! Please keep 2 bales of your hay available in the feed room, near the supplements. You grain is running low!

LEGEND, BUGZ & BUCK ....Supplements look good. On the last container now. Thanks again for loaning the boys out for a ride last weekend. They were great and a good time was had by all!

CASH is still on ulcerguard mon-wed-fri and a scoop of powder every night....you are good on the powder. Since we discussed his weight looking good now, i will begin weaning him off the beet pulp.

JAX is running low on beet pulp and supplement...funny thing, he hasn't ripped a single blanket all week! Oh wait, that right, he hasn't had one on! hehe

ALLIE ...no comment. I jinxed myself last month!

SUMMER & FROSTY ....Summer is about half done with her supplement. I promise to do something about the mud for next winter....now that we know where is gets nasty, I will plan on bringing in some sand to backfill and help prevent it!

FEDE .....Fede has a new pasture-mate....see "Sue" below.

BOBBY.....Your supplements need replenished....You can look in the feed room for a grain bag to throw Bobby's hair in after you clip him if yo want.

CHARLIE, SUNNY, TWINKIE & SUE.....Welcome SUE!!! Sue is the newest addition to Westwood. Justin will be riding and showing her in reining! Congratulations and we are happy to have her join the family! Sunny is plumping up quite nicely, what do you think? I am going to keep him on the beet pulp this month and then he will probably be set to wean off in March. Your supplement is just under half full. Charlie and Twinkie are for sale, please contact Julia for more information.

POTTER.....is good on supplements!

DE-WORMING: Just a reminder that we normally de-worm our horses at every ferrier visit...please ensure your horses are on a good rotation schedule.

FARRIER: Please arrange for the holding of your horse(s) if you are not available. Don't forget about your appts! Dates and times can be found on the stable calendar.

After MUCH thought, I have decided not to pursue breeding anymore. The economy is down, which makes it hard to sell the prospects for a profit, and I am struggling ethically about adding more horses to an already saturated market! My broodmares, Tacks and Twiggy are now offered for sale. See more pics on my website under BREEDING:

Woodie was gelded on the 4th, and is on the road to recovery. He should be back under saddle next week. He is also offered for sale:

http://www.dreamhorse.com/show_horse.php?form_horse_id=1169370

Thanks for the opportunitiy to care for your horses! For those that find themselves on the show circuit, Best of Luck in the 2008 Show Season!

WE HAVE LOTS OF NEW INFO TO PASS...

We hope you had a wonderful Christmas and are adjusting well to, what apears to be, the arrival of winter!!! Brrrrrrrrrrrr.....I welcome the cold, but only because it freezes all the mud! LOL.....please be careful on the frozen ground and don't twist an ankle walking over the frozen mud ruts around the barn....Being our first winter with horses in the barn, I was anxious to see how it would play out with the freezing temps....so far so good! I am very happy to say that all the horses body heat in the barn at night has kept their water buckets from freezing over thus far. I can feel the heat on my bare face when I open the sliding door and go in to feed them in the mornings....very nice! I am hoping this continues through the winter, as it means heated water buckets won't be necessary after all :)

Mr. Clements came out and did an estimate on putting lights in the cottage (2 stall barn), feed room and outdoor arena....We have a good number to budget towards now, and we hope to move forward with that project come spring!!! Stay tuned....

Still waiting on some of your pictures!! Got some more GREAT ones of Jax, Potter and Allie....looking forward to framing the rest....come on people, bring me your pics!!!!

Thanks for adding your activity in the indoor to the calendar! I think it is really helping everyone to deconflit their schedules...

Just a friendly reminder to please clean up the common areas (lounge, tack room, bathroom) before you leave....there is a broom and dust pan in the lounge, so please do a little sweep up before you go so you are leaving the facilities just as nice for the next person :)

NOTE TO ALL WITH LICKITS IN THEIR STALL: Please move them further away from the feed opening in the stall fronts...your ponies love to toss them out, but can't figure out how to get them back in!

HAY UPDATE...Our round bale supplier has run short on supply...as a result, I have been feeding our square bales to the horses in their paddocks. In the last 2 weeks, I have increased their hay ration from 1 flake am/pm to 2 flakes am/pm. Due to the cold, loss of free feeding on round bales (at least temporarily until another supply can be found) and continued workouts, a couple are not holding the weight I would like them to be. I am going to give them the rest of January to put on the weight I would like to see on them. If that doesn't occur, I would like to start supplementing with Beet Pulp until we reach their weight goal. The horses I have in mind are Cash & Sunny for now....please let me know your thoughts!

Now, for the important stuff....

KNIGHT & I-JIN....They are good on supplements, look great, and seem to be content as ever...

PEDRO....Supplements are good and grain is a little less than half full. I think everyone can see how 'happy' he is as of late....he aerial acrobatics are phenominal...LOL

LEGEND, BUGZ & BUCK ....Supplements look good. Everyone is getting along well and the haircoats on these guys is amazing. Are you sure they aren't part shetland? LOL....they should be nice and cozy in their natural winter blankets....

CASH is still on ulcerguard mon-wed-fri and a scoop of powder every night....your powder is running low now, less than half full. As I mentioned above, we increased his hay and if he has not gained an acceptable amount of weight by the end of the month, we'll look at supplementing his feed with some beet pulp through the winter...otherewise, he seems happy!

JAX is good on his supplement and beet pulp...he still is not stall guard trained...he's a stubborn one! LOL...

ALLIE ...probably the healthiest horse on the property....not on any supplements, but her weight, coat and feet still look great! Kerri is lending her expertise to Ashley to help bring her along, and I can't wait to see the progress!

SUMMER & FROSTY are starting to settle in to their new digs....I think they may like their new stalls a little TOO much though....they find them very tasty! I rubbed some soap where they seemed to like to nibble most and it seems to be working though...haven't found any NEW chew spots anyways....Summer must have found Knight's favorite grazing spot on the other side of the fence, as she has rubbed a spot in her mane just like he did, and in the same spot! What's that I hear? Hot wire? Hmmmmm.........Summer has plenty of supplement still.

FEDE & FARINA.....Farina is going on trial with her new owners on the 8th or 9th....they seem like a very nice family and I am sure she will be loved! Fede is still available for sale. Please contact Samantha for more info!

BOBBY.....Your supplements look good. He is hard on tail bags, but other than that he seems pretty happy-go-lucky in life....

CHARLIE, SUNNY & TWINKIE.....Welcome! Other than a couple let night escapes conducted by the master magician, Sunny, the boys have settled in great! LOL Charlie has been such a gentleman in his stall. Contrary to your concerns, he has waited patiently for his feed and stood quietly while I clean his stall. Sam puts him in cross ties while she mucks, but I clean right around him while he eats his hay and he doesn't bat an eye. He seems like a real sweet guy. Twinkie is just cute as a button! Easy keeper and welcome sight each day :) Sunny is good on supplements and is also adjusting and behaving well since we put 3 chains on his gate...hehe....Per my statement above, I have increased his hay, and would like to supplement him with some beet pulp if necessary if he doesn't round out a bit more by the end of the month....He eats first, so I am not too concerned abotu Twinkie stealing his feed. If I notice Twinkie is getting too much, I will put a bucket up high for him so the 'vertically challenged' cannot reach it :) Correction to my prior saddle rack email...thre is only ONE rack available in on the wall and the pink saddle is there now...the other saddle is on the bottom of my saddle rack and you are welcome to keep it there...If you would like to be added to our Farrier's schedule (he just cae out on the 31st), just let me know and I'll give him a heads up....

DE-WORMING: Just a reminder that we normally de-worm our horses at every ferrier visit...please ensure your horses are on a good rotation schedule.

FARRIER: Please arrange for the holding of your horse(s) if you are not available. Don't forget about your appts! Dates and times can be found on the stable calendar.

STABLE-HAND: Samantha is transitioning from her prior duties to stalls (mucking) and waters (filling) only starting this month. I will be feeding your horses at night again, so I'll see you at the barn!

Thanks for the opportunitiy to care for your horses! For those that find themselves on the show circuit, Best of Luck in the 2008 Show Season!

If I have to resolve something, it will be the following:

1. Be more fiscally responsible in all areas of my life. It seems the more responsible I am, the less stress I incur, so I am going to capitalize on that in 2008.

2. Be more friendly. Not that I am NOT friendly now, but coming out of 2007, I want to shake the woes of yesteryear, brighten my outlook, and lighten my disposition again.

3. Feeding off of #2, I resolve to strengthen relationships. In all of 2007, I did not send a single Birthday Card or Holiday Card. I also failed to call the people I care about as often as I should have. In 2008, I will get back to that again.....SHOWING the people that I care about, that I care about them!

4. Sell my HUS Prospects by the end of the year in order to purchase a reiner and show with my mom again. I have a LL and a 3 yo HUS prospect I am conditioning for the state futurities....once they are sold, I will be buying myself a reiner. Randi and I will go along with Gma in the meantime and enjoy the Leadline classes!

That's about it for me...I think I can follow through on all that...LOL...only time will tell!

HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL....& BEST OF LUCK IN THE 2008 SHOW SEASON!

Study Suggests Alfalfa Might Buffer Gastric Acid Production, Prevent Ulcers by: Agricultural Communications, Texas A&M University System December 19 2007, Article # 11008

A change in diet can be good for what ails you--even if you are a horse. Research from Texas A&M University showed that feeding alfalfa to horses either prevented or was therapeutic in treating stomach ulcers. "Something in alfalfa hay tends to buffer acid production," said Pete Gibbs, PhD, Extension horse specialist. According to Gibbs, 30% of the one million horses in Texas are used in racing, showing, and competitive performance. Of these, up to 90% of racehorses and more than 50% of arena performance horses have ulcers of varying severity. Feeding grain, confinement, exercise, and overall environmental stress factors are thought to cause ulcers, he said. It's commonly thought that horses turned out on pastures are better off than those that are confined. However, if grass hay is the only hay they are fed, this research suggests that the horses might be more likely to get gastric ulcers, Gibbs said. The recent research project correlating type of hay to likelihood of ulcers was part of a master's degree thesis by Travis Lybbert, PhD, in collaboration with the College of Veterinary Medicine. Gibbs served on Lybbert's academic research committee. In the study, 24 Quarter Horse yearlings were separated into two treatment groups. One group was fed Bermuda grass hay and the other fed alfalfa hay to meet the daily roughage needs. The yearlings received forced exercise during the study. The horses were examined internally with an endoscope at the beginning and end of two 28-day trials. In this study, the horses had more ulcers when alfalfa was removed from their diets and they were turned out on pasture. To apply the results of this study to their own herd management, horse owners--especially those with performance horses--can give their horses a pharmaceutical product that will decrease acid production, or they can manage horses' diets. The second option does not stop acid production but offers buffering capabilities, Gibbs said. Further work is needed to look at horses with varying degrees of ulceration in order to better determine the full extent to which alfalfa or alfalfa-based products might help from a feeding management standpoint. "Based on what we know right now--for horses that are kept in confinement, eating feed, and getting forced exercise--it makes sense to consider some alfalfa as part of their diet," he said. Gibbs' initial recommendation is that horses weighing between 1,000-1,300 pounds should be fed about one pound of alfalfa after a grain meal. According to Gibbs, this study lays the groundwork for further research at Texas A&M. The next phase of the research effort will investigate what it is about alfalfa and alfalfa products that lessens the occurrence and severity of horses' ulcers.

The Roehl's