My picture Book, the Mutt & the Mustang springing to life

I've been really busy working on my children's picture book, The Mutt & the Mustang which is going to press overseas next week (April 10).  The book should be stores in June. So far several bookstores and horse rescues have signed up to carry it. I was so impressed with a wild horse sanctuary in northern California which has 200 plus wild horses on 2,000 acres that after they ordered a few books for their gift shop I not only donated a book  for their raffle but also donated a limited edition miniature bronze horse sculpture valued at $350.  This is why I will never get rich -- I always give away more than I take in.

But one of the main reasons I wrote the Mutt & the Mustang is to help raise money for dog and horse rescues. So far none of the dog and cat rescues or humane societies have responded to my post card mailing to carry the book in their gift shops or on their webpages - tho I am offering them the same discount as book stores so they can use The  Mutt & the Mustang to raise funds. Maybe they are waiting until the book comes out to carry it.

I know I need to have The Mutt & the Mustang on Amazon but as they charge 15%  more than bookstores to sell it   --that cuts into my profits so much that I'm wondering if it would be worth it  - and there wouldn't be enough profit to donate to animal rescues.   

I thought spring was in the air but then we had sustained 40 mph winds with gusts at 90 mph which took out 20 feet of my arena fencing. Not to worry, my neighbor Dan is going to help me put it back up today.

When the sun came out and the wind died down I got spring fever and planted pansies in my deck planters - unfortunately, thanks to an inch of icy snow the pansies didn't last a week. Every year I plant them too early but I can't help it - After months of winter I need to see their velvet smily faces.

The buck that has had the injured front foot since last January seems to be doing ok. All the bucks except one shed their antlers during February and March - wonder why a yearling still has his?

Elk antlers are starting to grow. Just watched three bull elk visiting my paint horse Rio over the fence. Rio sniffed the neck of one of them.  One of the bucks jumped into the pasture with the horses and is cleaning up scraps of hay from morning feeding. My horses are so spoiled that they only eat the greenest leaves and stems so I don't mind the elk cleaning up their mess. The barn is closed so the elk can't get to the good stuff.

The annual Colorado Governor's Art show opens with a gala reception at the Loveland Museum within two weeks - As director/curator of this show I still have a lot to do before it opens from taking in art to PR to local newspapers - all the while keeping my fingers crossed that even though the economy is weak art sales will be strong.  By the time the show ends on June 5 The Mutt & the Mustang should be here so I can spend a lot of the summer reading it to children at libraries and bookstores - which will be a fun way to spend the summer.

Two 1,000 pound bull elk want my horse's hay

I spent the morning in Ft. Collins running errands and working with my graphic designer on The Mutt & the Mustang children's picture book - Pat's illustrations are beautiful - I'm so excited because the book is coming together so great!  

Weather is in the forties but my driveway is still drifted closed so had to carry groceries, cartons of posters and raffle tickets for the governor's art show farther than I like - opened the kitchen door to discover water leaking from the ceiling probably all afternoon.  

I called my neighbor, Dan, who came over to help access the damage - ceiling doesn't look so good but the roof is fine - the leak coming in around an air vent in the roof which Dan will be caulked tomorrow after it warms up. When Dan was on the roof cleaning the rest of the snow off, a dozen deer friends ran off like they were being chased by a cougar.

Took Cheyenne and Kody up to the arena so Kody could get in his daily ride on Raven and was pleasantly surprised to see two bull elk with enormous antlers sleeping just above the arena. Kody rode Raven but I couldn't let Cheyenne run around the arena excercising Kody because of the elk.

A few minutes later, I looked out the window to see one elk about to enter the barn - the other elk was already inside the barn scarfing up left over hay from the horses.  I ran up to the barn and hit it with my walking stick - both elk came out but would not leave. I knew they were just waiting for me to leave so they could get back inside - both horses were galloping around the arena spooked.

I closed the barn up except there is a door missing which I knew they would immediately enter - so I nailed a quilt across it but realized that wasn't going to stop a 1000 pound animal from breaking into my barn.
Called my neighbor, Dan again --Blowing a whistle and shaking plastic bags at the elk, Dan chased them off my property --then he carried the heavy door that used to be on the barn from the garage up to the barn and set in place (to be hinged tomorrow) - so the barn should be safe overnight.

A couple of years ago when snow was 3 feet deep and the elk were starving, a bull elk attacked a horse in a corral trying to steal its hay. I don't want that to happen to Rio or Raven -- So fed them in the loafing shed right after Dan chased the bulls away.

An hour after Dan chased the elk away, they are back!!!  - laying down above the arena with their eyes glued to the barn.  The horses are finished eating so they should be safe overnight -
In the morning I may have to fight off elk with my bull whip so my horses can eat. Had to do that a few years ago in deep snow - NOT FUN!

Because of high winds the snow has drifted I am no longer feeling pleasant about having bull elk visitors.

I hope I don't have to start baby sitting my horses while they eat morning, noon and night - I have enough to do without adding another chore.

Time to forget about elk and relax.

Snowed in

Woke up to a foot of snow which is expected to continue falling through the weekend -
Pine branches coated with a white frosting is beautiful but sure makes carrying water to the horses more difficult.

Three deer family groups in the pasture trying to steal hay from the horses. Can't blame them for trying but Rio and Mustang can hold their own. I'm relieved to see that the buck limping on a front leg which had a wound on it seems to be stronger. Still limping but putting more weight on it. He's been limping since mid January. And I'm thrilled that the doe who has a bad eye can see again.

I hate being snowed in. I wasn't planning on going anywhere except the post office and library but I hate the idea of not being able to get out when I want to. I'm having the neighbors over for crock pot stew tonight to keep me company.

Patricia Greenberg, who is illustrating my children's picture book, The Mutt and the Mustang is working hard on it.  Her illustrations are beautiful - I'm loving this book which, after reading it to second and third graders at the library, I know kids will love too. The children all wished for a dog as brave as Kody, who rides a horse every day. As the Mutt book is getting printed overseas, not exactly sure when it will be released but trying for mid June.

Working hard on the Colorado Governor's Art Show which opens at the Loveland Museum April 23 - today I made both inventory and volunteer sheets. Yesterday, drove to Ft. Collins to proof the poster, which features art work from several artists in the show - it looks great. This is the show's 20th anniversary and my tenth year as director/curator. It's always an exciting time. I never get tired of being surrounded by paintings and sculpture and the talented artists who create the works.

Time to feed Rio and Mustang their mid day meal -- Yes, my horses get hay three times a day - they are spoiled but the way humans have treated them in the past, they deserve it.

Its been a mild winter for which I am grateful as it makes it so much easier to haul water to my horses. It's also easier on the wildlife - especially the birds, which I no longer feed.
                  I used to go through dozens of sunflower sacks every winter feeding chickadees, sparrows, nuthatches and other birds, even chipmunks and squirrels.  But then a couple of things happened which changed my mind about feeding wild birds --- hearing a bird scream I ran to see what was happening - discovered a magpie trying to stab a purple finch to death with its beak.  I scooped up the finch which appeared to be blind and put the little bird in a cage with seeds, orange slices and water and stuck it next to the bird feeder outside so it could have visitors -
                A few days later I took the finch to a wildlife rehabilitator and was told that when birds congregate at feeders they sometimes catch an infection that can spread to other birds. I think thats what happened to the finch - couldn't blame the magpie who seeing an injured bird was trying to get his own dinner.
              Here I thought I was doing a wonderful thing by helping birds survive winter when instead my feeder had had become toxic.
             The bird feeder also attracted pack rats who decided to move into the garage where I keep horse feed in trash cans. I started noticing poop everywhere in the garage plus elaborate nests made of hay, leaves and branches decorated with silver spoons, Christmas bows, scissors, anything shiny the pack rats could find in the garage. I have to give them credit for being so resourceful and industrious but I didn't want them living in my garage where they were chewing holes into the trash cans full of horse feed.
            My acreage is a sanctuary for all animals - so I wasn't about to kill the packrats - instead I live trapped one, which was fairly easy to do using peanut butter as bait. I relocated the packrat several miles away and thought the problem was solved-- but no, a new nest appeared -- I ended up live trapping and relocating 4 pack rats and finally making it impossible for them to get back into the garage.
           Since I stopped feeding wild birds, there are fewer squirrels and chipmunks - and no packrats. Yea -
I do have lots of ground squirrels but I don't mind as long as they don't dig their holes in the horse arena.  Quite by accident, I discovered a non toxic way to make ground squirrels move - dump used cat litter into their holes - they will move away and never return.   Every few weeks, a badger comes through my place and nearly wipes the ground squirrel population out -- but a week goes by and a new batch moves in.
          That's mother nature's way - seems like kind of a nasty bitch if you ask me. 

A Scarred deer doesn't know its ugly

A beautiful coyote sat on a rise above the arena and watched me feed the horses this morning. At the same time, ten deer below the arena were watching the coyote. I was watching both deer and coyote.

At least two distinct deer families pass through my place almost daily. They are easy to recognize because at one time in their lives the local game department put tags in their ears. One doe wears red, another green and still another black. The red and green does with their fawns are always together, watch each others fawns and peacefully graze together but they don't get along with the black tagged doe and her family, which includes does, fawns and a couple of bucks. Sometimes the does strike at each other with their front legs and chase non family fawns away.

Another family group is led by a doe easy to recognize because of the scars on her face.  It occured to me that she doesn't even know that she's ugly - bucks mate with her, she raises fawns every year and enjoys as good a quality of life as any of the beautiful does -  I wonder if it would be a better world if humans couldn't tell if they were ugly or beautiful. At least life would be more equal.

Of course with their antlers, bucks rule - but usually benevolently.  The largest buck with 9-point antlers shares grazing space with fawns and tenderly licks them - which reminds me of Bambi, an orphaned fawn I took care of when I operated a wildlife rehabilitation sanctuary in Oregon many years ago.  After he was turned free on 150 acres Bambi, who grew into a beautiful 6-point buck continued to visit and when we had other orphaned fawns, it was Bambi who took them under his wing - teaching them to be wild deer.

Once after being gone for two weeks, when Bambi came to visit he had a broken hind leg. A veternarian put a cast on the leg and we kept Bambi confined for a few weeks - - by the time the cast was removed from Bambi's leg, he had bonded with orphaned fawns, Prince and Baron.

The wild deer who regularly visit my yard bring back memories of Bambi, Prince, Baron and all the other wildlife, including foxes, raccoons, hawks, owls, and even a bear cub I helped care for.  At this point in my life I'm relieved to only have two cats, two dogs and two horses to take care of but my former wildlife patients live on in my heart.

Hello Deer!

The wind has been howling 3 days and nights in a row - 72 hours straight. It comes through cracks in the walls and around windows of my 60-year old house - like a banshee, it howls down my chimney piercing the peace and quiet of my living room and my mind.

Fourteen deer are in my yard - ten of them laying down, chewing their cuds as if the wind isn't blowing the snow to New Mexico. Three distinct groups of does with fawns plus three bucks. For the last month one of the bucks has been limping on a front foot -but he looks healthy so hopefully he will make it through the winter.

Nearly 100 elk passed by on the hill behind my house this morning when the sun was still pink in the sky.  One good thing about the wind is that it blows the snow off the ground keeping areas open for elk and deer to browse so I'll try not to hate it so much.  (Ok, that's a lie - I HATE continual wind)

It's time to carry water up to the horses so I have to bundle up and do my chores. Wish I could be as enthusiastic as my German shepherd, Cheyenne who is dancing with glee about going out in the snow and cold to visit the horses. But then, she isn't carrying six gallons of water up an icy slope.

My Blues have flown away with the old year

A new year brings new expectations and dreams - to self publish my children's picture book about my poodle mix Kody's friendship with "his" horse who he rides every day. I'm working with an illustrator and as soon as she completes the illustrations, I plan to go forward.

I've started meeting with a group of women writers in Boulder - though several are young enough to be my daughter, I'm enjoying the cross generational friendships and it is pushing me to write more.

Mustang, my 27-year old horse has good and bad days - Ever since last May when he suffered a stroke there are days he stands in the middle of the arena unable to remember the way to the hay tub in the barn.
Even after I halter and lead him to it he doesn't start eating until I put his nose in the tub.  I hope he has at least one more summer.

We got four inches of snow last night which isn't so bad but now the wind is whipping it into drifts so that I may not be able to get out my driveway - makes it tough hauling water to the horses and keeping a 60-year old house warm with all the cracks around doors and windows. Oh, did I mention, the temperature is minus ten degrees??  Last week when it got that cold the electricity went out for 4 hours -- so I got a fire roaring in the fireplace, put candles everywhere, listened to a battery radio and was able to keep warm enough. ..keeping my fingers crossed that the electricity doesn't go out tonight when it is supposed to be the coldest night of the winter - so far.

Lots of deer hanging around drinking out of the horse's heated water buckets - one buck has been limping on one of his front legs - hope he makes it.  I watched 3 does chase a coyote - the deer are afraid of coyotes when snow freezes into hard drifts but when weather isn't worrying them, they chase the coyotes. What a spectacle.  Sixty elk came through my place yesterday -  I like the elk but favor the deer.