Author Archives: JPolack

A Girl’s Bond With A Horse


Posted by JPolack

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Our little Katie is just over two years old now and she has already developed a love for horses.  There used to be a time when we would just sit her down in her Rainforest Jumperoo (which by the way we believe is the best jumperoo out there on the market today) and let her jump her woes and cares away.  Those days are long gone now.  She has branched out into other areas of interest and exercise.  Horses just happen to be one of them, and this is the story I would like to relay in this particular post.

I’m not totally sure of the bond between women and horses but it sure seems to be there.  There seems to be some sort of an affinity between the two.  My sister is big into horses and has been since she was a child.  It started off with a young pony that my father bought her when she was young.  She loved that animal.  She would forever brush it and clean it and ride it and show it.  Whenever she had the chance she would read horse books like “Black Beauty” and watch whatever television show that featured a horse.  Well, she is considerably older now and still has a horse that brushes, cleans, rides, and shows…

I think this legacy is being passed on to Katie.  We took Katie to a farm a while back to pick some fresh strawberries.  They happened to own a horse and Katie was immediately attracted to it.  She wanted to go up and see it and pat it and wouldn’t let us leave it.  She cried and cried as we drove out of the driveway…strawberries in hand but alas for Katie…no horse.

Since she is only two it will be interesting to see how this relationship with horses develops over the next few years.  I can see horse riding lessons and perhaps even a 4H Club membership in the future.  As with many girls, Katie’s bond with horses is very strong.


Tips For Helping Your Horse Control Heaves


Posted by JPolack

One of my favorite horses, Honey, has come down with heaves according to the vet.  She is an Arabian mix and as you probably know these are famously had to care for.  Like highly bred dogs, by crossing blood lines over the years in order to get the desired physical attributes the Arabian has developed several common problems.  Heaves is one of them.

If you are wondering about the symptoms of this respiratory problem, coughing is the main one.  Usually it is a very deep hacking that just shakes the entire horse.  They are trying to cough up the phlegm that develops in the chest.  A classic symptom is the heave muscle.  These are the two abdominal muscles that run up from the belly to the back bone of the horse on both sides.  They can be found right at the bottom of the rib cage.  If this muscles protrude then that indicates the horse has been coughing a lot which is exactly what heaves is.  The horse tries to heave the irritation out of its lungs.

Dealing with this problem involves getting control of all dust in the horses environment.  This includes wetting down the hay before they eat it.  By wetting the hay you will control any dust that may have been picked up in the field and you will also keep any mold spores down.

Another important thing to consider is the floor of your stall.  A dirt floor is not a good idea because of the dust.  You are much better off to add a concrete floor but then you need to coat it of course to protect the lower bones in the horses legs.  An epoxy paint is best because it is long lasting and offers some cushion.  If you don’t know which product to use for your situation then read several garage floor epoxy reviews to help you make a decision.

The thing is you need to implement these changes soon.  The longer you let the heaves continue, the harder it is to control.  Honey will probably be on anti-hystamines for the rest of her life which need give her twice a day.  It seems that the irritation in the lungs never goes away totally.


Laos Tubing: An Asian Phenomenon


Posted by JPolack

I first heard of tubing waaaay back at the start of the last decade.  An American friend of mine kept inviting me to come tubing on a river somewhere in Texas – a few tubes, a few beers and a few friends.  Sounded perfect.

Unfortunately I was stuck on the other side of the world at the time and I couldn’t make it as far as the US.  When I moved to Thailand and heard about Laos tubing, though, I couldn’t wait to go.  Laos is just next door to Thailand, so Laos tubing was definitely an achievable goal.  

In the summer of 2011 I started planning my trip to Laos.  Tubing venues can be found all across Asia, but Laos tubing was by far the most popular with the tourists. 

The capital of Laos tubing is the tiny tourist town of Vang Vieng, Laos.  Tubing has really taken off there, and today Vang Vieng exists, it seems, solely for tubing.  Thousands of tourists flock to Vang Vieng every year for the bars, cafes and – most of all – the tubing.  Today, in fact, most tourists come to Laos specifically to go tubing in Vang Vieng. 

I spent four days in Vang Vieng, and – apart from my time on the river – I hated every moment.  The tubing is unbelievable fun, but Vang Vieng itself is awful.  The town is packed full of drunk, stoned western kids covered in writing from the day-glo markers they use to scrawl childish swear words on each other’s backs.  The town of Vang Vieng has been completely trashed by the tourists, but if you want to go Laos tubing you have to take the rough with the smooth. 

As time goes on Vang Vieng is just getting worse.  More cheap hostels are opened every year, and more and more tourists pile in to take the opportunity to go tubing on the Nam Song river.  If you’re interested in tubing in Laos I’d advise you to go now before it’s too late.  In just a couple off years, at the current rate of growth, Vang Vieng will be a hellhole and Laos tubing will fade away, replaced by another, smaller and less commercial tubing venue. 

 


Horse Training


Posted by JPolack

You don’t have to be a professional to be successful with horse training. What you do need to be is patient, firm, consistent, and capable of using some good ole common sense. Horses are pretty smart animals, and they take well to training when it’s done correctly. Equines react positively to kindness, and when your horse trusts you, the horse training will go much better.

You can probably train your horse to do a number of things all by yourself, and you might also be able to “untrain” some negative behaviors without a professional trainer. I’ve owned quite a number of horses, and I’ve trained many of them to neck rein, to back, and to be calm around traffic and other noises. After I got some experience, I trained several horses from start to finish. This included halter breaking, saddle breaking, bridle breaking, and on to trail riding, reining, and barrel racing.

Unfortunately, with a few of my horses, I had to do some untraining or re-training to break them from bad or even dangerous behaviors. I think the worst example of this was a Tennessee Walking Horse that I was re-training for someone else. This horse was the most barn-sour critter I’ve ever seen. It took me awhile to teach her not to run headlong for the barn, but with patience and positive reinforcement, I was successful with my horse training efforts.


BBQ Ideas: Vegetables


Posted by JPolack

You can easily come up with some great BBQ ideas for veggies. After all, no one can live on baby back ribs alone. Well, actually, I do sometimes think I could eat a steady diet of BBQ baby back ribs! Of course, I’d probably die of a heart attack within a couple of years. Believe it or not, your barbecue grill is perfectly capable of cooking delicious vegetables. Try it sometimes!

Not all vegetables are meant for the grill, however. For example, I’d think that trying to grill peas would be pretty challenging. But there are plenty of other veggies that are perfect on the grill: onions, yellow squash, pattypan squash, acorn squash, butternut squash, asparagus, tomatoes, eggplant, and peppers, just to name a few. Potatoes, sweet potatoes, and corn-on-the-cob are wonderful on the grill, too. Yes, I know that not technically vegetables, and neither are tomatoes, but they’re all super tasty when cooked on a grill.

Veggies can be cooked right on the grates or wrapped in foil and cooked. Squashes, zucchini, potatoes, and asparagus all do well with direct grilling. Just slice larger veggies into planks. When using direct grilling, you’ll need to coat the veggies with oil or butter first. Don’t be stingy with the seasonings, either. Use garlic salt, black pepper, onion powder, cayenne, chipotle, lime juice, lemon juice, paprika, lemon pepper, seasoned salt, fresh herbs, or parmesan cheese.