[Carl Russell]

We each see the way we can have the most affective involvement in protecting our interests. I see the world from the perspective of a sovereign individual, and chose to work closely with people who I have direct involvement with. I realize that I live in a time when there is a governing system that places expectations on me, and those around me, but there was a time when that was not true.

When I was 11 years old I was in a ski program. At the end of the season we had a race. I was by no means anywhere near the most capable skiier, but one after the other, the better skiiers missed the last gate. I was the only one who went through the gate in the right direction, and until the instructors agreed, I received a fair amount of ridicule from my friends. I was the only valid finisher, thus getting a blue ribbon.

I am not, nor ever have been a competitor, nor an athlete, but what I learned early was to trust my instincts regardless of the conventions around me, and even more certainly regardless of the opinions of those who may judge me, including the so-called justice system.

I agree that we all need to work together, but we need not limit ourselves to an artificial arena of political and economic power brokers, otherwise we just get led around by our noses from one alarming issue to the next.

Carl

[Carl Russell]

Frank,
Horses do not use their front end for power. All of the horse power comes from their hind end, transferred through the fulcrum at their hip. Although they do use their front feet to assist in forward motion, the 2/3 body weight in the front is actually ballast against the power in the hind end.

If your horse is throwing himself into heavy loads, he is not confident either with his ability to move it, or with your ability to guide him and manage his exertion (both of which are the same thing).

A horse that tries to run with a heavy load has probably gotten used to being asked to go too far, which tires him out, and may also be compounded by the reaction that when he tries to stop he is encouraged to keep going, which will cause anxiety, because he is not getting the release, or rest that he needs, and he has lost trust in the teamster, and is trying extra hard to do the work he knows he is being expected to do.

Try taking a few steps back in your expectation. I remember from another post that you may be under pressure from others in your team to have that horse perform at the highest possible level, and that may be working against you.

Not being there, I may be entirely off-base, but I have experienced this myself, and observed it with others.

Carl

[Carl Russell]

Nothing funny about getting the job done.

Carl

[Carl Russell]

I always turn them in that manner because that way they learn to have direct forward pull on the load as they turn. It is more of a sweep, forward and sideways, with their neck straight toward the vector of the curve that they eventually make.

This is important on a pole because the pole is not a lever. It should hold the neck yoke and evener and guide the wagon, sled,etc., but the horses turn the implement by pulling it, not by pushing the pole to one side or the other.

I watch my animals break at the quarters, not at the neck. In other words they have to step across the opposite foot in order to make a sweeping turn, or to step over, rather than curving their neck and following their head.

That is why I’m unclear how the collar actually affects this horse when turning.

Carl

[Carl Russell]

When you say “flat collar”, what are you referring to, or how do you see “flat”. Do you mean a thinner collar, in other words less bulk between the shoulder and hames, so that less of the neck is encompassed by the collar?
Do you use a sweat pad that could be removed? Have you looked for a leather faced collar? Also there are lighter collars made for lighter work.

However, I’m not inclined to think that a collar should have much effect on a horses ability to move its neck, or to turn. I don’t have my horses turn their heads when I turn them. The tension on the opposite side of the bit should keep their heads pretty much straight forward, with only a slight bend in the neck, which I know is very different that what is expected by riders, but I drive them to step over, not to curve.

Carl

[Carl Russell]

Although it is interesting to see where this discussion went, and to think about the strategy that started the mythical alert, that eventually got sent to Jason, these are the types of things that really don’t excite me.

Although the concept is frightening, just as NAIS, I grew up in a time in Vermont when people made up their own minds about how they followed the law. I have been asked many times about how I feel about government regulation of the way I chose to live, and I say “What regulation”?

I have sold raw milk, and farm slaughtered meat illegally for years, and I refuse to let any law limit my expression of what I know to be my unalienable right to engage in the use of my land in commerce with my neighbors.

Once you think you have to fight to protect your rights, you’ve lost them. The truths that are self evident give you the right to affirm your rights without permission of some government that has tried to take them away from you.

Carl

[Carl Russell]

jenjudkins;6373 wrote:

…..I have gotten my brother interested in doing some logging this summer at my place. I think if I had someone to man the chainsaw, I could manage the skidding. We’ll see…

Hey Jen, if you guys want to bring Peanut up to visit K & B for a weekend this summer, I can give you all the wood you want to skid.

Carl

[Carl Russell]

Bret, I don’t think it is missed, it just directly affects those of us who are making at least some of our living from selling forest products to an industry that is being affected by many things, including those that you have mentioned.

The point truly is that we are watching the destabilization of unintentional growth, and the undetermined affect of naive attempts to regulate that through, albeit ineffective, government policies.

I agree, and I think many others can see this too, that the only way to move forward is to re-energize the small processors, local markets, and true husbandry/stewardship (people working on the land and in the resource that they have personal interest in).

There has been a lot of hand-wringing over the last several decades about the un-sustainability of our modern culture, to which I have always said, “the best thing about our modern culture IS that it is unsustainable”.

Watch it crumble, and pick up the pieces.

Carl

[Carl Russell]

I switch them around just to keep them on their toes. I put the tall ox on the off side so he’s a little easier to reach. If you don’t watch out a horse will get habitual about which side they’re hitched, and then if you try to change, they have to learn all over to accept the different position.

Carl

[Carl Russell]

Thanks Donn, I think your perspective was important and timely, and I appreciate that you were curmudgeonly (honest and concerned) enough to speak up.

Dennis, I think the point is that no matter how much Jean works that horse, she needs to make some gains in how she handles herself around him, which is the crux of Donn’s points. That is the part of your comments that you leave out, because that is what you bring to your relationship with any horse, based on years of experience and guidance.

I have found that if I have a task for the horse to perform, rather than just going in loops around the field, or for a jaunt down the road, then my leadership, confidence, and focus, are all improved.

Carl

[Carl Russell]

Please don’t tease us, let us hear what you have to say.

Carl

[Carl Russell]

If we don’t get more than teaser comments from Sustainability I may have to push the spam button:confused:

Carl

[Carl Russell]

My thoughts generally come from a place where added technology creates added cost and demand. I realize that there are limitations to using the horse for personal transportation in extremely rural areas, at least in the modern context of time, but the animal already is geared to use the solar energy collected in grass and turn it into motive power.

I think the idea of battery stored electricity could work, but for what kind of vehicle? An electric moped, or an electric car? Where is the technology going to come from? How much will that cost? How much are you going to transport? For how far? Can you design and build something yourself?

Possibly a light vehicle with a charger on board so coasting downhill will contribute to recharging the battery.

In any event, I come back to examining how we spend our energy now, and the habits that we get into based on that. I think of using horses as transport of material goods over long distances, supported by several client homesteads, or community. Using horses to create on-farm energy to off-set the expense of purchasing fuel, or other transport technology, could also be useful, because the reality is that those aspects of our energy future are going to be more important, and probably more cost-effective than trying to hold onto our current level of mobility.

I too have planned for years how to design a horse-powered energy system, which can be used to generate electricity, power hydraulics, and pump water. The truth of the matter is that if you can find ways to use electricity to power personal transport, this would work, but I tend to see it as a transitional system.

[Carl Russell]

Me too. Ed is off for the evening, hopefully the funk will get ironed out tonight. Hang in there, Carl

[Carl Russell]

I had a strange feeling the first post by Humble1 referring to another post that suggested that demonstrations like “The flying Frenchman”, should be put to a stop immediately. Then there were several other phrases and terms he used that made me wonder until today when it was just way too obvious.

You tell me!!

Quote:

driving demo Views: 1,060
Posted By Neil Dimmock
oh my oh my what bunk!! I have never use fear or…

oh my oh my what bunk!! I have never use fear or intimidation on any one! NEVER!! I think I get it, your starting a school and need to put yourselves up High!! Saying such to me after helping you is…

Quote:

Originally Posted by humble1
OH MY OH MY are you full of it!!

Oh well it really doesn’t matter, humble1 went too far anyway, nothing against Neil.

Carl

[Author]

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