End of January - We're starting up a Pony Club branch here!

Updates:

Dr. Jeff Sleeth of Dundas Veterinary Services confirmed that Cinderella is pregnant and due in July 2009.

We have two new horses (currently in quarantine in the riding ring): Hey You is a Thoroughbred mare with Canadian Sport Horse (CSH) breeding approval - she's here on a breeding lease and will be bred to Classy Bingo Bar (Classy) in June; and Coconut, a 5 year old pony gelding that's been started walk, trot, and canter. Coconut is available for adoption to the right home.

Natasha rode Coconut today and he was very good.

Natasha finished her first week at her new school and is very happy. She really likes the short bus ride to school and back home - she's the last student picked up and the first to be dropped off. I hope she continues to enjoy school and living here - I know we're really happy to have her here!

We're still looking for homes for two roosters, Happy Feet and Phantom (formerly known as Ugly because he was a very odd looking chick). Roo is quite happy living in the house in the old cockatiel cage, but Serge is getting awfully tired of his crowing! Roo is very affectionate and likes to sit on Natasha's shoulder.

Amelia and Scrappy are moving to Petawawa at the end of February. Be sure to give Scrappy a goodbye scratch and hug before they go. Amelia also adopted Whisper, so he'll be leaving at the end of February, too. We'll miss them all!

Serge, Natasha and I have started going to the Embrun Chiropractic Clinic. I find it's making a huge difference in my back and enthusiastically recommend them! Dr. Greg is fantastic!

If you're interested in finding out if a chiropractor can help you, please contact Dr. Greg and tell him that Eleanor recommended him. You'll get a free assessment and explanation of how adjustments can help you.

Mom sees Dr. Rick in Barrhaven at the Village Square Chiropractic and sent us a referral for Christmas. What a wonderful gift!


Farrier:

Yvan Roy, our fantastic farrier, will be here next month to trim hoofs as needed. Please make sure that you bring out an extra $30 per horse to get your horses trimmed.


Vaccinations:
Jeff will be back at the end of February, beginning of March, to do all the horses' annual shots. Dundas Veterinary Clinic will bill each owner individually.


T-Shirts:

If you'd like to support the farm and show you care, you can now order a custom T-shirt with the farm logo and the name(s) of your horse or pony on it for $20. We can get just about any colour (within reason) and will paint the logo and names on it. All the T-shirts and fabric paints are machine washable.


Pony Club:

We are starting up a new branch of the Canadian Pony Club at the farm. We'll be part of the St. Lawrence-Ottawa Valley Region of the Canadian Pony Club.

The proposed name for our branch is Eastwind.

Pony Club is a wonderful way for kid between the ages of 6 and 25 to learn more about horses, have a lot of fun, and meet many other people who love horses, too. You can choose to compete in branch and regional events from Quiz to Tetrathlon to Prince Philip Games (PPGs) to Show Jumping to Rally to a Winter Education weekend.

You do not need to own a horse or a pony to be a member.

Click on the link above or in the sidebar to get more information - I was a member for 12 years and learned a lot, met a lot of interesting people, travelled to Edmonton and to Fergus to compete in PPGs - and had a great time !

We have volunteers for District Commissioner (DC) , treasurer, and secretary already, but can always use more volunteers. Natasha will join for sure, and Sam and Alex want to join, too. If you, or someone you know wants to know more or join, please email me and I'll give you all the information.

All Pony Club members must be Ontario Equestrian Federation (OEF) members as well. The OEF provides insurance for Pony Club events.

The cost to join our branch of the Pony Club will be approximately $100 a year, plus the cost of the OEF membership. We plan to meet on Sunday afternoons (at least to start) at the farm.


Logo Contest:

The first item on our agenda is to create a logo. Since the input of our members (and potential members) is very important, we're holding a contest to see who can design the best one. It starts now and ends on February 15th.

You can create your logo by hand or on the computer.

Everyone will have a chance to vote for their favorite at the Valentine's Party on February 15th.

We'll use the winning logo on T-shirts and on the blog and branch website.


Valentine's Party:

Dreamscape Acres invites you to a Valentine's Party on February 15th from noon to 3 pm or so. Bring a costume for your pony and decorate your helmet in honour of Valentine's Day.

We'll provide hot chocolate and other beverages and plan a Valentine craft.

Depending on the weather, we may hitch up the hay wagon and go for a ride around the track again.


Thank you!

Thank you to all our volunteers, sponsors and donors! You make a huge difference in the lives of our horses, cats, dogs, chickens and cows - and let us rescue even more animals.

Thank you to Grandpa, Granny and Serge for working on the bathroom! It's getting better every day.

Holiday celebration - Sunday, January 11, 2009

Sunday morning dawned bright and beautiful - no snow in the forecast, not too cold to be outside, and best of all, no rain.

The previously postponed holiday gathering began as promised at noon when Katherine and Michael arrived, followed shortly by Alex, Sam and Greg. Laura (our new volunteer) and Natasha had almost finished cleaning the barn, Serge had the hay wagon hitched to the tractor, and I had a fire started in the freshly dug out fire pit.


After a bit of play with kittens and dogs and ponies, we all piled on the hay wagon for a trip around the track. Serge drove the tractor past the barn and the winter paddocks.


Jasper ran alongside the hay wagon in the deep snow, loving every minute. About halfway around the track, we stopped to pick up sticks for the fire (remnants of the last freezing rain storm) and put them on the hay wagon.



Once we'd loaded a bunch of branches, including a large log that Michael found and Serge and I dug up, we headed back the house. Daisy ran alongside the wagon, Jasper ran ahead of the tractor, and Tinkerbelle rode on the hay wagon with Mom and all the kids.













I had everyone pose for a picture at the end of the wagon ride, then after they unloaded the sticks and log, we had hot chocolate, milk, tea, cookies and treats in the house to warm up.

Katherine and Michael had to leave as they had another commitment that afternoon, but the others saddled up the ponies and went for a ride around the track.

Sam and Serge rode Grandma Reba partway around the track, then Serge led Reba the rest of the way.

Natasha rode Dash, Alex rode Sneakers, Laura rode Otis, and Serge led Sam on Grandma Reba. Everyone came back with big smiles!

Alex, Sneakers, and Jasper.

Laura and Otis.

Serge took Reba around the track again after everyone else was back at the barn - she wanted to go faster than was safe with the whole gang.

I know that we enjoyed the company of our boarders, sponsors and volunteers on Sunday - I hope you all had fun, too!

Thank you to all of you for your help in the past year; the horses, ponies, chickens, cows, kittens, and dogs all appreciate your visits!

Thank you!

Belated thank yous to John R. for all his help with the electrical in the barn (and the wonderful lights in the riding ring) in 2008, and to Ray M. for his help early in the summer in the barn and in the garden.

Thank you to Joanne for the shredded paper - and the promise of more! We use it to supplement the shavings in the stalls.

Thank you to Jennifer S. for donating a bridle, reins and a bit to the farm.

Thank you to Andre L. for his help with the shelter in Grandma Reba's field - it was a lot easier to put up with two people!

Thank you to Sam for sponsoring the chickens. They got a bunch of live crickets from the pet store as a holiday treat. The chickens give us an egg or two almost every day now.

Welcome a new volunteer!

Please welcome Laura to the farm. Laura volunteers one day each weekend (work permitting) and helps with barn chores.

Roosters available for adoption

We have four roosters available for adoption as pets. They're not ever going to be big enough to be meat birds. All four are friendly and fairly well handled, but they're starting to peck each other in the close quarters of the coop in winter.

If you know of anyone who has room for a new rooster or who would like one as a pet, please let us know.

School volunteer hours

You can volunteer at Dreamscape Acres for your volunteer hours for high school. We have lots of different chores that can be done, from grooming horses to repairing fencing to building shelters. Call or email to arrange a volunteer position!