This just made me ill.

Sometimes love just ain't enough, that's why we have vets!

That whole thing is a very sad state of affairs. Mostly for the poor pony. Here are my two cents on this:

First of all, I do not blame the girl for the pony's death. She's a kid, and she can't pay vet bills. Her parents are ultimately responsible for making sure her animals are looked after, because they are the adults. She obviously keeps her horse at a boarding facility where there are plenty of other people around. No one else's horses were skinny, so you'd think that would give her a clue. You'd also think that SOMEONE would notice Pony's spine sticking out and say something to the girl and/or her parents. Where was the stable owner when this was going on? Where was the instructor? What the bloody hell were her parents thinking??? From start to finish, this lasted less than a year. Pony was healthy and perky when she got him, and in less than a year, he's dead. That's a very rapid decline. You can't tell me that no one saw anything wrong with that picture. I guess nobody at that stable understands that there is NEVER an excuse for a horse to be skinny. Maybe they thought it was normal because he was old. Bagh! I loath that excuse.

On the other hand, I have little to no sympathy for the girl. I get the impression that she's a few bricks short of a cartload. Who the hell films their deceased animal??? Isn't it bad enough that you have to see it once? Why on God's green earth would you want to relive it? And why would you think that anyone else would want to see it? That bit with the dead horse was more than a little mortifying. It's obvious that some thought went into those photos and videos, especially the walking away scene at the end. I wonder if she was already thinking about what song to put in the video? Did she pose for those photos of her cuddling with Pony's corpse? For God's sake, her pony just died. Making an over-dramatic video should be the last thing on her mind!

Call me crazy, but she didn't look like a little girl that had just lost her pony. Most people would be inconsolable if their horse had just dropped dead. She didn't look all that choked up over it.

Now, I do blame her for continuing to ride Pony when he was looking like a rack of bones. As much as she rode him bareback, did she not feel his ribs and spine sticking out? She appears to be in her early teens, and she's damn well old enough to tell the difference between fat and skinny. There are kids half her age who could look at her pony and know that something was wrong. She made the choice to keep riding the poor thing when she should have known a hell of a lot better than that. She needs to be taught that there's more to horse ownership than riding. It also bothers me that she never says anything that would imply that she acknowledged that her horse had lost a ton of weight. She seems to believe that it was a sudden and unexpected tragedy, when any normal person would have seen it coming a mile away.

This girl is obviously bright enough to make videos and put them on Youtube (and disable comments on certain videos. Wink wink). There's no reason she couldn't have gone on a horse forum and asked around as to why her horse was losing weight. And she definitely could have done some research.

I understand that she's now on her third horse. Don't tell me this kid isn't spoiled. And extremely dramatic.

Those dead pony scenes are burned into my mind. I never want to see that video again.

I hate people sometimes. *rant*

Our new neighbors are pretty nice for the most part, or at least I thought so until about three weeks ago. The wife came by and asked us if her cat could come live in our barn, because apparently she's pregnant and they don't want her anymore.

Why is the cat not spayed? WHO KNOWS!

And why were they letting their UNSPAYED cat outside? I haven't the faintest notion.

These people have money. They own several houses and have their own mechanic business. I could understand if they were really pinched for cash, but they're far from it. I guess it's just too much to ask for them to stick a crowbar in their wallet and cough up the money to spay their cat.

And here's the best part: if we don't take her, the wife is going to take her out back and dump her in the shed. So she can just raise feral kittens who will grow up and mutliply into hundreds more feral kittens that will likely either be killed by coyotes or picked up by animal control and put to sleep.

I'm not made of money and the last thing I need is another cat and God knows how many kittens to feed, spay, and vaccinate. I already have a stray tomcat that I need to catch and have neutered (I'd be willing to bet that he's the father of the kittens). But I can't stand the idea of their cat and kittens being thrown out and allowed to reproduce like bunnies.

I haven't heard anything from them for a while so I'm not sure what's going on. I guess I'll find out if I go out to the barn one of these days and find an extra cat in the loft.

It's a shame because these people are really nice, but this cat thing just pushed me the wrong way.

Craigslist Dickweed of the Day!

Link.

And in case it gets deleted:

BROKE PONY nobody wants but needs home - $150

Broke to ride and drive but for some odd reason nobody wants him. He is a 2 yr old gelding...for more details and pictures by phone only call X-XXX-XXX-XXXX thanks serious people only!

No one wants him? Maybe that's because you've included next to no information about the pony. Maybe that's because you have very poor marketing skills. Or maybe it's because said pony is already broke to ride and drive at the ripe old age of TWO!

Who the hell wants a pony that's likely to have soundness issues early in life? I'll bet you anything he'll be lame by the time he's 12. That's just ridiculous. I wonder what the photos look like? I'm picturing a wormy little pony standing in a muddy paddock, possibly with a few helmet-less kids using him as a jungle gym.

I hope some nice person comes and upgrades him.

Are ponies really stronger than horses?

I don't think they are. I think they're just hardier. I can't stand watching full sized adults riding ponies (or worse, minis).

And just because ponies can carry a lot of weight doesn't mean they should. Why do you think so many of them founder? Because they gain weight easily, and carrying around all that extra weight (which pretty much equals the weight of a small rider) damages their feet. So no, I do not believe it is safe for them to carry oversize riders any more than it is for horses.

I don't even like seeing adults riding mini donkeys, and they're supposed to be the hardiest equine you can get. But they're so docile and good-natured that they wouldn't put up a fight even if they were in discomfort.

Strongest horse in the world

Does anyone else feel really bad for that pony?

This one is even worse. Take a gander at those hooves.

Flicka

I hate people.

You gotta be kidding me.

Most people want to know exactly what they're getting when buying a horse. So let's talk about one of my biggest pet peeves: people who sell mares who *might* be in foal.

Okay... what? Why the hell would someone want a mare that might be in foal? I don't know about you, but I want to know up front, for 100% certainty, and with vet records, that the mare is or is not pregnant. I don't want any surprises 11 months from now. If the mare has been exposed to a stallion, you better show me some paperwork proving that she is or isn't in foal.

What if someone pays for a mare in foal and the mare ends up not being pregnant after all? And what if someone buys a mare not knowing she's pregnant, and ends up with a foal that they can't afford or take care of?

I hate it when people do that. It gives me the impression that they're lazy, bottom-feeding hillbillies.

Blegh.