I was putting away some things from our garage into the big barn. I opened the door upstairs and there was Bird Bob the kestrel flying around inside the barn from end to end. I will try to get a video of if. I am sure he just loves being in there as he has a nice selection of pudgy pigeons to choose from. Casper the stray cat was also in there so between the two of them we shouldn’t have much pidgeon dooty around this summer.

Java is home! Boy, does he look great - very sleek and solid, with a graceful lope when he moves. The two most noticeable and interesting things are that he looks like he grew not only taller, but longer as well. Part of that may be due to losing his hairy coat, so you can see his frame much better. Also, Java’s coat is roaning out! He is going from the solid bay to a much lighter, almost leopard pattern. It’s very handsome. They sort of blend in now, but you can still see his white hip spots (and his one cute white sock!)

Frosty had a really big follicle on Saturday so we collected Zippy and bred her over the weekend. The chances we caught her ovulation are very good. The vet also ultra-sounded Penny who is not in heat at this time. We’ll check her and Roxy again in a couple of weeks. Penny’s hind leg has been giving her some problems, but her x-rays were clear; they showed no particular problem, which leads the vet to believe she has arthritis. That’s good because it’s treatable.

This weekend we have a photographer coming to take pictures of our horses for a new book that Frank Holmes (“Spotted Pride” author) is working on. We are getting the place and the horses cleaned up so everyone looks good. Pray for good weather, maybe a little snow which is always good for pictures. But only a little!