sFqGFxCtpV38HpFzBDowvumCSVHd7MgG: 2012

Tuesday, November 27, 2012

Picking Up A Horse's Hoof

The idea of picking up a horse's hooves can intimidate some owners since a well-placed horse kick would really hurt! Such caution is good, but in reality if you pick up a horse's hoof properly you provide him with no leverage or ability to kick you. This is a situation where a person's worst fears can cause him to imagine an incident that is highly unlikely to occur with careful handling. Here's how to safely pick up a horse's hoof: Starting with the front hoof, approach your horse diagonally from his front so that he clearly knows you are there - you don't want to surprise him. Place yourself even with his shoulder and make sure to face his rear; you will both be facing opposite directions during the hoof picking process. Making sure that your feet aren't too close to the horse's hoof, start running the hand parallel to him down his shoulder and along the length of his leg, finally stopping just above his ankle. Gently grasp the ankle portion and click (or otherwise verbally cue him) to ask him to raise his leg. If he's well trained, that small cue will be more than enough and he'll do just what you requested. You're now free to begin picking his hoof. If your horse is being a bit stubborn or hasn't learned how to pick up his legs yet try leaning into his shoulder as you run your hand down the back of his cannon bone. You can also gently squeeze/pinch the tendons to further cue him to what you would like. As you perform these physical cues make sure you provide a verbal one also (I make a clicking sound) so the horse later associates your sound with the requested response. Increase the weight you push against his shoulder until he finally lifts his leg as requested. When picking a horse's hoof you want to remove all debris from the hoof clefts as well as the rim and frog. Be careful around the frog because it can sometimes be a bit sensitive, particularly if the horse has thrush. Once you have finished cleaning the front hoof carefully guide it back to the floor; you don't want to allow the horse to slam it, potentially hitting your foot in the process. Praise your horse and pat him on the front shoulder a bit so he understands that you are pleased with his cooperation, then run your hand along his back to his rear leg. Place yourself in the same position as you did with his front leg and do the process over again. There is a slight difference between lifting a rear foot and front foot, even though your basic positioning and actions are nearly identical. When you lift your horse's rear foot he will probably give a little jerk that you might misinterpret as a kick. This is a common reflex reaction among horses and nothing for you to worry about. Secondly, when you raise your horse's rear leg you'll want to step into him a bit so that your hip is underneath his leg. Rest his leg on your thigh, grab his hoof and gently flex it upwards. By doing this you lend him some support and more importantly the position of his leg and his flexed hoof will prevent him from being able to kick you. Clean the hoof, lower it cautiously as you did the first and praise him. Congratulations - you're halfway done! The opposite side will be done exactly the same way, but try to return to his front and start the opposite side rather than move around his rear. It's bad practice to approach or circle all but the most trusted horses via the rear in such close quarters since a horse would be within range to strike. When lifting any hoof try to make sure your horse is properly squared (balanced evenly on all four legs) so that when you lift one hoof he can easily balance on his remaining three. At no time should the horse actually lean his weight on you! Even when you rest his rear leg on your thigh you're not allowing him to use you as a crutch. Once you have picked your horse's hooves a few times it will probably become very simple and take less than 5 minutes to clear all hooves. Most trained horses will raise their hoof for you the moment they feel your leg run down their leg. It is a very good idea to control your horse's head while you are picking his hooves. This can be done by attaching his halter to crossties or asking a partner hold your horse's head. By controlling his head you ensure your horse can't move away from you while you're trying to pick his hooves, or worse... turn around and take a bite at your rear!

Picking Up A Horse's Hoof

You Can't Fool A Horse

In the dating world many men and women put their potential partners to a "dog test," whereby they introduce their date to their dog and see how the dog reacts to the stranger. If the dog reacts badly towards their date then a red flag is waved, whereas if the dog accepts the stranger instantly the opposite holds true. While many people look upon this test in a tongue-in-cheek manner, many dog owners actually do take it seriously. As they probably should!

Many animals, including horses, possess an uncanny ability to detect emotion as well as the inner nature of an individual. Whereas you may be able to slap a forced smile on your face and hide powerful negative emotions such as stress or anger from fellow humans, you won't find it as easy to fool a horse! In fact I consider horses to be natural truth detectors due to their ability to read a person's emotional state as well as their sincerity when it comes to a love for equines.

If one of my naturally friendly horses takes an instant dislike to someone out of the blue, 9 times out of 10 I'm going to respect my equine partner's instincts. Horses generally do not possess vendettas or have reason to target anyone for no real reason - they tend to call them as they see them. If a horse usually takes a liking to visitors but holds a sudden aversion to one in particular, clearly the horse sees or detects something that I may not have initially caught.

When a horse enjoys your company, you'll know it. When a horse trusts you, you'll know it. And when a horse actually dislikes you, he will make sure you know it. I often state that the world would be a much better place if people were as brutally honest as horses. But I digress...

A proficient horseman at work should be cool, calm and collected, three essential qualities to maximize the productivity of a training session as well as create an all-around positive aura over human-horse interactions. Keep in mind that you are the horse's leader, and as such the horse will take his cues from you. If you are agitated the horse will recognize something is wrong and either feel you are angry with him or you are annoyed with something else he cannot detect but probably should be also be concerned about. The horse will not be able to focus on the lesson or your requests well at all, nor will he be able to draw strength from you when he becomes concerned about a foreign object or behavioral request.

It is essential that you try not to visit or work with your horse when you are in a negative frame of mind since these undesirable emotions will disturb your equine partner. Try to take a few minutes, or even hours if necessary, to collect your emotions and clear your mind of life's daily irritants.

When we see a loved one is feeling down, it often puts a damper on our day too since negativity tends to breed negativity. The same will happen with your horse, so do not underestimate your horse's ability to detect your feelings.

Visit http://www.alphahorse.com/horse-training.html to view more articles about horse training.

Picking Up A Horse's Hoof

You Can't Fool A Horse

Visit http://www.alphahorse.com/horse-training.html to view more articles about horse training.

Picking Up A Horse's Hoof

A Cookie Assembly Line: Efficient Cookie Baking for Busy Cooks

As a busy working mother, I'm short on time, especially during the holidays, but baking Christmas cookies is a family tradition I'm unwilling to give up. Over the years, I've come up with many ways to make the process of baking a large variety of cookies go much smoother and take less time out of my busy life. You may want to start by checking out my 6-day program for hassle-free Christmas cookie baking ( http://www.christmascookiesareforgiving.com/hassle-free.php ). In addition to the 6-step method, I've found an efficient way to prepare a large variety of cookie dough with minimum fuss by setting up a cookie assembly line. The best part about this process is that you can make 12 different batches of cookies and only have to wash the dishes once!

This process assumes that you have already chosen your recipes and gone grocery shopping. You will want to use your longest available expanse of countertop for this. My assembly line turns two corners as it winds around my small kitchen, but that is fine.

You may need to make some adjustments depending on your individual recipes, but for most recipes, you can set up your assembly line like so:

Flour Line:

-Large mixing bowl -Measuring cups and spoons -Fork for stirring -Flour -Baking powder and baking soda -Salt -Cocoa powder -Spices -Any other dry ingredients that are added to the flour in your recipes

Butter Line

-Another large mixing bowl (or the bowl from your stand mixer) -A second set of measuring cups and spoons -Electric mixer -Wooden spoon -Rubber spatula -Butter, shortening, margarine and/or cream cheese -Sugar (white and brown) -Eggs -Vanilla and other extracts -Chunks such as raisins, nuts, chocolate chips -Rolled oats -Any other ingredients that are added to the butter and eggs in your recipes -Plastic wrap -Felt-tip marker

To avoid transferring flavors from one recipe to another, you will start with basic recipes that have no spices, chocolate, or other strongly flavored ingredients. Starting with your first recipe, go down the line measuring out the amount of flour, baking powder/soda and salt into one bowl. Then, combine the butter, sugar, eggs, vanilla in your larger bowl as directed. Gradually stir the flour mixture into the butter mixture. After that, stir in any chunks.

Next, scrape down the edges of the mixing bowl so that it's fairly clean, shape the dough into a ball, and wrap it in plastic wrap. Identify the recipe by writing its name on the plastic wrap with a felt-tip marker, and refrigerate it. If it is a slice-and-bake refrigerator cookie, form it into a log instead of a ball, according to the directions in your recipe. If you plan to bake much later, you can even freeze the dough. Most cookie doughs freeze very well. Defrost at room temperature while still wrapped in plastic wrap, and unwrap only when dough is thoroughly defrosted. Otherwise condensation could add too much moisture to your dough.

When your first batch of dough is prepared, wrapped, and stored in the refrigerator or freezer, return to the beginning of your assembly line, without washing your dishes, and begin preparing the next batch of dough. When you have prepared all the recipes that contain no spices or cocoa, move on to the recipes that contain cocoa, and finally those that contain spices. This way, you will only have to do dishes once at the end of the process, and you will have several different kinds of dough waiting to be baked.

When all your dough is prepared, then you can finally put away all your ingredients, clean up the kitchen, and do your dishes. Now if you plan to finish your baking today, you'll have lots of space for rolling out your dough or setting out your cooling racks. If you plan to bake another day, you're done!

Little-known Tips for Easy Holiday Baking

A Cookie Assembly Line: Efficient Cookie Baking for Busy Cooks

You may need to make some adjustments depending on your individual recipes, but for most recipes, you can set up your assembly line like so:

Flour Line:

Butter Line

Little-known Tips for Easy Holiday Baking

Are you wondering if you have the time to bake homemade Christmas cookies this year? Every year at about this time we all start to get a little panicked that the holidays are coming up fast and we're not really ready yet. Here are a few little-known tips and tricks, for almost every type of cookie, to help you get the most out of the time you spend baking.

Cutout Cookies

Don't struggle with dough sticking to your rolling pin. Instead, roll out your dough between two sheets of waxed paper. This will eliminate the sticking problem.

Do your cutout cookies always seem to turn out dry, tough, and tasteless? The trick with the waxed paper will help with this. Assuming that you started with a good recipe, the problem is that you are overworking your dough and working too much flour into it. Using the waxed paper will help you to manipulate the dough less, and the dough won't pick up any extra flour.

Refrigerator (Icebox) Cookies and Pinwheels Ever notice how your roll of icebox or pinwheel cookies gets flat on one side from sitting on the refrigerator shelf? Keep them nice and round by standing them upright in a tall drinking glass while they're chilling.

Do your cookies flatten further when you try to slice them? Try rotating the log 1/4 turn after each slice.

Having trouble with the cookies crumbling as you try to slice them? Start with a log that has been frozen for several hours. Then use a very a very sharp to slice through.

Cookie Press Cookies (Spritz)

Having trouble getting your cookies to form properly? When your dough doesn't seem to stick properly, put your baking sheet in the freezer for an hour or two, while keeping the dough at room temperature. Then when you press out your cookies onto the frozen sheet, the dough will stick to it just like your tongue sticks to a frozen metal pole when you lick it (assuming you've ever been silly enough to try this).

Don't forget you can pick up your mistakes and put them back into the press.

Bar Cookies

When making bar cookies, create a liner for your baking pan by turning the pan upside-down and covering it with aluminum foil, making sure to form the corners and leaving an overhang of an inch or two. Then, remove the foil, turn the pan right side up, turn the foil over and place it inside the pan. It will make a perfect liner for your pan. If required by your recipe, grease the liner. Then continue baking your bar cookies as directed. Once baked, you can lift out the entire batch of bars and place it on a cooling rack to cool completely. You can then immediately re-use your baking pan for another batch without having to wait for the previous batch to cool, and you won't have to wash the pan.

All Cookies

Eliminate the need to grease your baking sheets and wash them later by lining them with parchment paper. Parchment paper can be re-used several times and gives excellent results.

Do your cookies seem to brown too much, or cook too fast? Buy a dependable oven thermometer and check your oven temperature. Your oven's internal thermometer may not be accurate. Or, perhaps you are using a non-stick baking sheet or pan. The dark color of the non-stick coating can make your baked goods brown too fast. Try a shiny metal pan instead or lower your oven temperature by 25 degrees.

Are your cookies not browned enough, or take too long to cook? Again, verify the oven temperature. Or, perhaps you're using an insulated baking sheet or pan. Insulated bakeware can prevent your cookies from reaching the desired temperature in the right amount of time. Try using a non-insulated pan, or raise your oven temperature by 25 degrees.

For more information on minimizing the work involved in holiday baking, consult these articles: Hassle-Free Holiday Baking: 6 Easy Days to Perfect Christmas Cookies ( http://www.christmascookiesareforgiving.com/hassle-free.php ) A Cookie Assembly Line: Efficient Cookie Baking for Busy Cooks ( http://www.christmascookiesareforgiving.com/assembly.php )

A pinch of know-how combined with a dash of preparation can make for successful, easy, and stress-free cookie baking every Christmas!

Little-known Tips for Easy Holiday Baking

Pigeon Coops: Should You Build Your Own or Buy One?

So you decided to get in the exciting world of pigeons. The only question that remains is should you build your own pigeon coop or purchase one? There are pro and cons to both options. If you are anything like me you want to make the right decision. In this article we will discuss both options to narrow down your choices to just one.

Pro's for building your own:

1) By far this option allows your personal style to shine through. You are able to start small and build as you expand your pigeon basis. 2) Your initial cost of building is not fixed at one price point. You can begin building your pigeon coop on a shoe string budget which may be beneficial if you are just starting out. 3) The satisfaction of knowing you did the job yourself. 4) Add on features are easily made and interchangeable as you upgrade to increasing your pigeon loft. 5) Your design for your pigeon coop can reflect many features including many separate rooms and different holding features as you expand into the exciting sport of pigeon racing.

Cons for building your own:

1) Time intensive as you have to meet state guidelines in designing your pigeon coop. 2) Building process may be cumbersome and problematic especially if you live in a community with a home owners association. 3) Can be expensive if you decide to move from hobby of pigeon care to breeding for racing pigeons.

Pros for purchasing:

1) No long start up process you can to begin to enjoy taking care and nurturing your pigeons almost immediately. 2) Most pigeon coops are designed with state guidelines already built into the building structure. 3) One set price for an attractive looking home for your pigeons. 4) Easy to transition to moving into the position of racing and breeding as you can purchase a pigeon dwelling with this in mind initially.

Cons for purchasing:

1) The lost of satisfaction that comes with not building it with your own two hands. 2) Limited to the pre made designs which may not be as stylish as you may have envisioned. 3) Set costs can be a bit out of your price range. 4) Prices may not be suitable or even worth it if you are unsure that this is going to be a long time venture. 5) Add on features may not be possible since design is made one dimensional and set to conceived design restraints.

Minimizing Your Cockatoo's Dust - 5 Things You Can Do To Reduce It The Cardinal

Bird Room Air Purifier - 5 Things It Must Be Able To Do

Having an air purifier to keep the air clean in your bird's room is as important as providing clean water and fresh food. But not just any cleaner can do the job. Here are 5 things a unit must be able to do to make life healthier for you and your bird.

Can Remove Big Particles---All birds have dander, but if you have a powder down parrot like an African Grey, Cockatoo, or Cockatiel you are also subject to the white wing dust. Having a cleaner with filters that can remove big particles is important. Being able to remove them while they are airborne means there will be less particles in the air to be inhaled and less to fall on surfaces and be continually sent airborne. Keeping the air clean goes a long way toward keeping birds' air passages clear. And clean air can keep bird-related pollutants from exacerbating chronic respiratory conditions such as allergies and asthma.

Is Able To Eliminate Micron-Sized Particles---What you can't see in the air can hurt you. Dander as well as airborne bacteria and viruses may be invisible, but they can cause disease and infection in both birds and humans. A HEPA or high efficiency particle arresting filter is an excellent choice for removing microscopic particles. By definition it must be able to eliminate 99,997 out of every 10,000 airborne particulates that are.3 microns or greater in size, with a micron being defined as one millionth of a meter.

Can Provide Continuous Cleaning---Stable air quality means being able to constantly remove pollutants. The best way to do this is to choose a unit that can run safely and effectively all the time without the motor needing to take a break. A split capacitor motor is designed to run continuously with high revolutions per minute. This type of motor is a must if the air in your bird room is to be of a consistently high quality.

Should Contain A Long Life Filter---Other than the motor, the filter is probably the most important part of the unit. One filter cannot possibly do an adequate job. That is why your cleaner needs to contain a canister of filters that can last for a long time. It should have several filters that can trap big particles. That means the more expensive filter that can eliminate micron-size particles is used only for the invisible particles. This system of filters is a money saving feature that will help your filter last for years rather than months.

Must Produce Only Fresh Air---Many cleaners on the market today use ionization and ozone as part of the filtration process. Both of these technologies remain controversial not only in their effect on living things but in their effectiveness. The best by-product is fresh clean air. No one argues with that. So choosing a cleaner that only produces clean air gets the job done with the least amount of risk to you and your pet.

Minimizing Your Cockatoo's Dust - 5 Things You Can Do To Reduce It The Cardinal

Should I Choose a Cockatiel?

Are you looking to buy a new pet bird and not sure how to make the right decision? This article will try to educate you about everything you need to know before you buy a cockatiel.

When choosing a pet bird, as in choosing any pet, it's important to know if this is the right bird for you. If you are thinking of buying a cockatiel, there are many questions you must ask yourself.

First and foremost, do you have enough time in your life to devote to a pet cockatiel? Cockatiels are socialized birds. They like to see and interact with their human companions. This may include daily flights around the house ultimately landing on your shoulder to watch television. They love attention. Will you be able to spend time talking and whistling to and with your bird?

Are you ready for a long term commitment? If well kept, a cockatiel can live up to fifteen years or more. These birds become very attached to their humans so it may not be the best gift for a young child who may lose interest in their bird. A cockatiel who is ignored can become loud and obnoxious, demanding some contact.

Are you or anyone in your household allergic to bird feathers and feather dust? Birds may not be for you then but especially cockatiels who create more feather dust than most other birds. As new feathers grow, the tips of the feathers turn into a fine dust that stays on the bird, cage and area cage is kept in. It's a good idea to keep a vacuum handy. They will also try to spit their pellets at you if they think you're not paying attention to them.

Do you have any other animals in your house? Since your bird will be kept in a cage approximately at eye level, you probably don't have to worry about a dog terrorizing your bird, but a cat will not be deterred from this height and may see your new family member as dinner. Remember, never let your bird out of the cage if any other pet is in the room. Even the best trained dog can pose a threat to your bird, intentionally or not. They are animals and you cannot read their minds or change their instincts.

Is there a permanent place in your house, preferably in your living room or den, to keep a large cage? It should not be near a heating device, air conditioner, air vent, etc? The area must be draft free, as even the slightest draft can make your cockatiel sick. Your bird might like to look out the window but most windows let in too much cold air in the winter and hot air in the summer. A child's room is not the best place either because if the child isn't home all day, your cockatiel will be lonely. Never put the cage too near the kitchen as the vapors of some non-stick pans, cleansers, etc., is deadly to your bird.

If you are considering buying two birds at once, do you have room for two separate cages in case your cockatiels don't get along. I had to separate my first two cockatiels when the male became aggressive to the female in the first few weeks I bought them. As they grew older, side by side in separate cages, they established a can't live with you, can't live without you relationship. If I had to move either cage for cleaning, they both screamed and made a fuss until the cages were both side by side again. I guess absence does make the heart grow fonder!

Considering all the above, if you are ready for this full time commitment and all that comes with it, you will have years of fun and fulfillment caring for your cockatiels.

Minimizing Your Cockatoo's Dust - 5 Things You Can Do To Reduce It The Cardinal

Why Do Gouldian Finches Make for Great Pets?

These Finches really are beautiful birds. Known for their rainbow color combinations, more than anything else, these birds really make for fantastic pets. If you're thinking of getting a finch for a pet, may we suggest getting some Finches?

There are so many benefits in choosing these Finches versus other kinds of birds, or other kinds of pets in general. If you've been thinking about this decision for a time, allow us to help sway you. These Finches really make for wonderful pets, and here are just a few reasons as to why!

1. Gouldian Finches are amazing to look at, and can even become conversation pieces for your home- If you want a pet that instantly captivates with it's beautiful looks, then Finches would make a fantastic addition to your home. As previously mentioned, this bird really does turn heads because of its ultra colorful appearance. In the wild, there are only three varieties or color combinations of Finches, these are the red headed ones, the black headed ones and the yellow headed ones. However, since these Finches have been artificially bred for many years, there are now more varieties and color combinations to choose from. In fact, it is even possible to find blue or yellowed-bodied mutations of the finch!

2. Gouldian Finches are "quiet" types of birds- If you're sick and tired of the neighbors complaining because of noisy tweeting and squawking from your birds, then you can do no wrong with the Finch. These birds are for the most part quiet, but every so often, they emit a soft, high pitched sound. In the right happy environment, these birds have also been known to belt out melodic songs. If you live in a highly residential area, trust that the finch will not disturb or disrupt others with it's song.

3. Gouldian Finches are relatively easy to feed- When left in the wild, these birds are used to feeding off what is available. This is why these types of finches are not too picky about the food that they eat. This allows, you, their owner to explore different varieties and kinds of food. Look into feeding your Finch different kinds of nuts, seeds, even berries and grubs. They enjoy all these things and more!

You won't go wrong with going with a Finch in your home! Look into getting a pair, or even more, to make as your next pets and companions!

Minimizing Your Cockatoo's Dust - 5 Things You Can Do To Reduce It The Cardinal