Reviving an old friend

This is Sprinkles. 

My dad won her for me at the BB gun game at the fair when I was maybe 4 years old. Sprinkles was my favorite possession most of my childhood and she slept on my bed until I got married. She used to be able to stand but I couldn't resist riding her so her legs gave out. Her neck was folded in half from snuggling and she is no longer white from the years of drool and many camping trips. 

After I got married and moved in with my husband, Sprinkles lived in a black garbage bag in my closet. A sad sad life for a beloved toy. I could never bring myself to get rid of her. I've seen Toy Story 3. I decided I need to make a choice. Throw her in the garbage or bring her back to life. Of course I chose life. 

Step 1: Destuffing

I cut some of the seams on her belly and pulled all her stuffing out. She was full of styrofoam balls and some fluffy stuff. It was a very messy job. 

Here is the stuffing. 

Step 2: Refreshing

I soaked her skin in a bucket of oxy clean over night. The smell was AWFUL. I rinsed her out and soaked her in oxy clean again and she really whitened up. 

Gross. 

Step 3: Revived

I restuffed her with good stuffing and hand stitched up the seams. She only had one nostril and it was not looking good so I made her new ones with ultra suede. She looks glorious! A proud unicorn once again. 

All healed up again

I'm beginning to feel like a stitch removing pro. Justin is all healed again. Now hopefully the forelock can start growing again. 

Justin and I will be competing next Saturday at the Country Corner Open show. Thanks to Lisa he's been on an ulcer guard treatment all month. Glenda has noticed a great change in his behavior and has noticed he's been cribbing less. Hopefully he'll be more mellow at the show. I also got him a set of Poms earplugs. They have great reviews online and I have high hopes that I'll also be posting a great review soon. 

Again!?! Seriously?

Exactly 4 months to the day Justin was playing with his pasture buddy and found the edge of his outside shed with his head. 24 more stitches and more rounds of penicillin. I swear he is determined to remove his forelock permanently. Dr. Grubb did a beautiful job sewing it back down. Huge THANKS to Glenda. She has been a great nurse to my accident prone appy.

My dad and mom came out to help brainstorm good solutions for preventing another head injury. Dr. Grubb suggested a heavy pvc pipe which would have worked but we were concerned about plastic shards should he hit it again. We decided to go with a padding route. Dad suggested carpet padding but what I found at Lowes looked far too absorbent. I checked the plumbing section and found a pipe cover that a neoprene like material that has almost memory foam qualities. It wasn't all that cheap but neither are my vet bills so I gave it a shot and it worked GREAT. I can punch the edge and it absorbs the shock. I put it up on his shed and in the back of the arena where he hit the first time. There are no more ledges left for him to hit. Fingers crossed I don't have to get him stitched up again any time soon.

All healed up!

It's been 3 months since Justin's head injury and you can't even tell! His forelock is a fuller poof now. Hopefully it gets some length to it eventually.

We've been having fun with obstacle showmanship at the local schooling shows so we're dedicating this year to trail. I never thought it would be a possibility with his spookiness but he's so much happier when he has something to think about. This weeks homework from Lisa is to do lots of pole work at all gates and always keep him thinking. I also must insist he picks up his feet and not get dull.

My First Custom Stick Horse - Hawk

Meet Hawk. He's a paint horse that belongs to my boss' wife.

Stick Horse Hawk

Real Hawk

Registered Name: Raider's Nighthawk

Barn Name:
Hawk

Foal Date:
1-26-13

Registration #0001
Yes I've started a stick horse registry. :)

Stick Horses!

Years ago I started making reindeer with stick legs and antlers for Christmas decorations. I made a couple horses in the past but mostly stuck with the deer. This last Christmas I discovered that I could use needle felting techniques to add spots and face markings to my creatures. My friend Lisa came over and we created a tiny herd of horses for the J & J Benefit Horse Show's silent auction. They all had tiny pink showmanship halters, complete with stud chain, in honor of our friend Julie, a showmanship queen, who was recently diagnosed with breast cancer.

They all sold really well and raised lots of money at the show. They are super fun to make and I already have a list of friends horses I want to make!

Healing good

Went to check on Justin tonight and his head is looking great. Now to focus on growing the forelock back.