William E. Huber Jr.: Farm Life

Ruly's Great Adventure

Fri, 13 Aug 2004 13:19:58 GMT

Last night we had a horse get loose. My niece and her friend came running up the stairs at 9 pm to tell us a lady had driven up and said a horse was loose on the road. I thanked the lady and then proceeded to walk across the paddocks to the far field. I counted the horses as I went. The geldings were surprised to see me and snorted at me until they could figure out who I was. The mares recognized me almost immediately. I counted the horses and I was missing one horse, Ruly. Since all of the gates were still locked I scanned the fence line and soon found a break. Somehow she had knocked down three boards in a four board fence. I did not find any blood. That’s good!Boy, these horses are strong! I looked around on the street but could not find her. I came back with the car a little later. I found manure on the street and hoof marks near our neighbor. Since I did not see Ruly I was now pretty sure she was in the woods. It was going to be darn near impossible to find her and get her out of the woods so I went home. Trying to lead 1200 pounds of excited horse out of thick brush would be difficult and very dangerous for me. I went home and went to bed. She would find her way out. Andi made one more trip in the car to try and find her before going to bed. The next morning Andi woke me up early. She has seen Ruly. Ruly had made it out of the woods but was now blocked by a fence. For all the damage to the fence Ruly had suffered only minor abrasions. She was still excited but probably grateful to see me. Her great adventure was over.

Mice are cat toys

Tue, 03 Aug 2004 17:18:07 GMT

I was working on a new video yesterday and things were not going smoothly. To top it off Sassy had chased a mouse upstairs and was now chasing it around the room. She would catch it, let it go, bat it once or twice until it ran off, and then chase it. When you live on a farm and you need to concentrate this chase scene can be very annoying. The little field mouse was exhausted. So I scooped up the mouse into a plastic container and released it into the woods.

Handling Stallions

Thu, 27 May 2004 15:44:25 GMT

Our young colt, Apollo, was feeling the urge to be a breeding stallion today. He was hanging out at the gate where he could see the mares and was calling to them. They did not call back so I don't know what triggered this. He was a challenge to bring in this morning but I got him in by keeping my cool and convincing him everything was okay. Patience and calmness are a necessity when handling excited horses. He hasn't done this before so we will have to watch him carefully.

Catching up on farm work

Wed, 26 May 2004 13:48:05 GMT

Yesterday I spread the last of the 75 tons of gravel on the road and at the gate for the horses. Then I noticed that the wheel on the bush hog was broken and the front tire on the tractor was flat. I recently replaced that tire so it must be a puncture. What a pain in the butt!

Toads and wolf spiders signal that Spring has arrived!

Sun, 28 Mar 2004 16:32:13 GMT

I couldn't help but notice a toad and a wolf spider had taken up residence in the barn aisle. I haven't seen any insects but these fair weather creatures are a pretty good indication that warm weather is here to stay.

You're the man!

Wed, 24 Mar 2004 02:07:38 GMT

I made an emergency analysis and fix to our plumbing and my wife is saying, "You're the man!" She really likes her shower. I won't tell you what she is like when she cannot get her shower.

Living in a barn

Wed, 14 Jan 2004 22:08:52 GMT

Our house is actually a combination house and barn. This can be really convenient if taking care of horses is a high priority in your life. It does have its drawbacks though. Around the evening feeding time my wife came upstairs to take a shower and watch Oprah and the news before dinner. Then she started screaming, "There is no hot water!" I was sent off to investigate. The water heater sounded like it was heating and the washing machine was not running. Then I found the culprit. The girls had used the hot water to fill the water buckets for the horses.

Donating another broodmare to Va. Tech

Mon, 29 Dec 2003 00:33:35 GMT

We donated another broodmare to Virginia Tech yesterday. We bought her in foal and kept the colt. We need to wean our two young colts and do not have enough stalls. We decided it will be a long time before we breed again. There are just too many young horses on the market and not enough buyers. The drive was beautiful and we made it in record time, a little over 6 hours. We had a nice meal last night and then returned today.

Sat, 22 Nov 2003 17:05:46 GMT

The last time I saw this guy was last winter when our pond was the only water not frozen over. I am not sure why he has returned. If he likes me he has a strange way of showing affection!

Air compressors

Sat, 11 Oct 2003 12:50:27 GMT

A couple of years ago I thought I needed an air compressor but wasn't quite sure why. I bought a paint sprayer that I didn't use. I bought an air nailer and an impact wrench I occasionally use. The most common use of the air compressor is to fill up tires. It seems like all of the tires have a slow leak. In a way I am glad to see all that I have more use for the compressor than I originally thought. The bad news is that by thinking about the air compressor reminds me how much I underestimated the work involved in keeping a farm running.

Black and Yellow Spider

Wed, 10 Sep 2003 01:50:58 GMT

Isn't she pretty!

Horses in France

Sat, 07 Jun 2003 20:59:31 GMT

My wife goes to France to ride horses and all I get is the pictures!

Geese Convoy!

Tue, 03 Jun 2003 02:01:45 GMT

Thu, 29 May 2003 13:55:33 GMT

We live at a moment when our relationships to each other, and to all other beings with whom we share this planet, are up for grabs.

Carl Sagan

Mon, 17 Feb 2003 00:13:33 GMT

It has been a cold, dreary two days. The freezing rain and sleet has made travel hazadous. Our workers cannot come in because of the weather. That means Andi and I have been spending quality time cleaning stalls. Both of us having been suffering from the same quasi-flu that has affected most of the tri-state area. The difference is that we cannot take the day off. The good news is that we are not getting the 12 to 24 inches of snow that my parents in Virginia are looking at. It is hard to believe that the same storm that has pelted us with freezing rain and sleet is dropping so much snow in Virginia. I am grateful.

Wed, 29 Jan 2003 20:03:06 GMT

We got a new and unusual visitor to our lake this year, a black swan. I was surprised to find a bird that is typically wild and native to Austrailia hanging around Goshen in the winter. After talking to a couple of neighbors I found the owner and figured out the story. The neighbor has several swans he has domesticated. The swan was seen at another neighbor's lake until it froze over. It came to our lake because our lake has an aerator. The aerator is primarily used to add oxygen to the lake. When the air bubbles up from the bottom of the lake it brings warmer water with it to the top and keeps the lake from freezing. The swan needs the safety of open water to avoid a fatal encounter with a coyote.

Obituary for Poke Man

Tue, 21 Jan 2003 12:24:19 GMT

We put our pony, Poke Man, down yesterday. He was quite old and arthritic in his hocks. We knew it was going to happen this year and were hopeful it would be quick without too much pain. He was popular with the kids and a favorite companion to several of our horses. Ursula shared a stall with him until recently and was very attached to him. Yesterday he just did not want to get up. It was obvious that he was in pain and it was noon before we forced him up to his feet. His time had come.