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Heres one of those good ol’ Bridgewater whips. This one is as old as the hills.

[img]http://www.draftanimalpower.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=342&stc=1&d=1241300864[/img]

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I think there’s Ford people, Dodge people, and Chev people.

Actually I think some people just aren’t animal people. A lot of people who are fast moving and excitable are just not good around animals. My counsin would always make my doberman pee on the floor when she came over just because she would get her all wound up (herself too). But theres people I know who are very quite and calm and the animals literally flock to them.

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Sounds like a good read. I might have to pick it up.

Not to steal the thread but I also have a suggestion for a good read.

Its a book by Michael Pollan “In Defense of Food” I enjoyed it even though it was mostly about American eating. It discusses the “western diet” and its effects on heath. Along with that book goes Michael Pollan’s “Omnivores Dilemma” which I am currently reading.

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here in Atlantic Canada on PEI it is illegal to deadstock compost. The reason is because the water table is so close to the surface is most spots it could contaminate the water.

I am all for deadstock composting, however I have never even thought about trying to compost a fully grown horse. At a farm I worked we always composted the calves which died, nothing bigger.

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I have to agree with everyone else, those are a beautiful pair of horses, real nice colour.

I have a belgian right now and he also weighs 1500 lbs, he is quite light in the back end though.

If your have more pictures I would love to see them and Im sure everyone else would too.

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At first the link took me to a Cane Corso Breed website. I might suggest looking “the flying frenchman” up on youtube.

Secondly, the Jerry Seinfeld comment REALLY threw me off, haha, untill the last 30 seconds of the video when I realized…….this guy looks exactly like Jerry Seinfeld.

Thirdly Carl, imagine how many cuts and scrapes your face would have after a long day of logging like this. It would look like you just got into a fight with a giant mole.

Forthly…..aren’t the horses kidneys located where he is standing ?

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I just gotta say I’ve been reading the thread all along and appreciate that it has switched directions from criticizing to explaining.

As I read I have made some notes in my mind, here they go.

Manesntails: I kinda sorta have to agree with you, but not totally. When I think of “old school” I too most often think of people just down right being rough with the horses, however I think that by hitching the horse with an experienced horse it allows it to learn so much more. Just like 4-H “learn to do by doing” and I see it as an apprenticeship.

I have never trained a horse, I have however re-taught, or became more strict with certain commands with my horse after he “forgot”. I have experience training show cattle, this is quite a bit more simple than training a horse for work, but this is where I know what I am doing. I have always taught my cattle slowly and step by step, just like you (manesntails) and I have seen cattle that have been taken from the feed yard and had their spirit “broke” in a day and a half and been shown. I believe just like you and your standardbreds that my cattle are well rounded in their experience, they have been in these situations before and know how to deal. When I see one of these broken cattle pulling the 4-H’er across the arena I understand why. That animal became frightened from something new, a shadow, an applause, camera flash, and it didn’t know what to do. Part of the reason my steer didn’t take-off at that point in time was because I was calm and didn’t overreact, I expressed this through tension of the lead and by a calming “whoaaaa” for reassurance and because of that I kept my animal calm and controlled.

At the same time I think a (draft) horse is capable of taking these new experiences and reacting to them calmly and in a manner that the horse thinks the teamster would want. (if the horse is familiar with the teamster at that point)

I am constantly learning from my horse. That is actually how I learned to drive. When my uncle bought him I ground drove him home, and honestly I learned so much from that walk. I learned about tension and control and respect. I have learned so much from him that I am starting to have nerve and take him into new situations. When I start something new I already have an idea of what I want to happen and so I am confident, and through the reins my horse can feel that confidence and he charges on, learning as he goes. I think this links back with Carl’s Tiger in the grass comment.

I also have many mentors that I talk to and have them explain things to me. Even if the person is a knucklehead (some are) I still talk to them and ask them questions, I just realize who they are and that I do certain things like them. I also take that same question and ask two or three other guys and gauge their responses.

I had a few other things I wanted to mention but I forget them now, I’ll remember at some point and I’ll have to post again.

Thanks for all the helpful advice, everyone. Someday I hope to put it to good use.

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Last week the temperature was between -25 and -30 C plus windchill and horses still went out……cattle still went out……sheep were still out……dogs were still out.

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My horse while I was away to school would get extremely lazy (and fat). On weekends that I would come home I would like taking him out, however he was so lazy that he would run away from me in the pasture.

Luckily he was fat enough that he was clumsy and couldn’t really run that fast so I would chase him until he gave in.

However when I came home in the summer and had him working a bit he would begin to enjoy getting out and would run to me to take him out.

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I agree with Jen about PETA using the “shock and awe” method to gain followers. However I think that the whole extremist method they use, as well as the people against them use is the wrong way to go about it.

heres to Educating the public about draft animals, and livestock in general !

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The filly looks like it will be a nice drafty type horse. I really like the coloring on it.

Jen, the morgan percheron is a very nice looking horse.

Gulo, I am very impressed with Raven. She really does look like a shire. I also agree with breeding for type. By breeding for type and breed at the same time this would allow up to maintain the current draft breeds and essentially create new breeds for our purposes. Breeding for type is exactly what was done way-back, this worked because the breeds were then suited for the areas in which they were developed. Now that were exporting and importing all these breeds and making all this newly designed equipment, and motorized horse equipment we need to start developing breeds suited for that purpose.

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very nice. She certainly has the Belgian head.

I took a trip to Saskatchewan with 4-H on exchange and while there we rounded up some cattle. I rode a horse who was also a QH X Belgian. His name was Pie-Plate and could he ever move.

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Those horses sure are working hard.

It was neat to see that they left the pole between the white team rather than just leaving the pole on the wagon and using just the evener to yard those logs.

I also wondered about the hammer and I believe it is an owners/buyers mark also. Or it could be a grading mark for the larger sticks for the value of the load. Probably like marking the board feet onto the logs.

I was also impressed with them jump-starting the tractor.

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I was actually helping a kid a home train a pair of my uncle’s charolais steers. These have great temperaments, some do not. As for the feet I am not sure.

There are a couple of pictures in Drew Conroy’s book on oxen.

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This may sound a little repetitive but I too am a fan of the Brabant and Ardennais. I just love their colour and how stocky and thick they are. I currently have a Belgian but some day I would love to have a team of Brabant or Ardennais horses.

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