07/31/07 The herd

The stresses of sharing space often look more dramatic than they really are, I'm Jeff Keane and all be back in a minute to explain. Whether livestock sharing a pen or pasture or people sharing the road, controversy is bound to be present in even the best of situations, here's Becky with a little insight. Like Jeff said turning horses out together, like navigating a freeway can be a necessary evil, and I must admit both of these adventures make me cringe just a bit. I just recently turned my old horse Jack out to pasture with a herd of four others. While Jack has always blended well with any group his growing age and ailments are slowing him down. I resemble that remark a little. Unfortunately Jeff, I think we all do. My concern was my once fleet footed horse would not be able to remove himself from flying hooves or snarling teeth, but as usual, I should have given my old friend more credit. After a night on the opposite side of a safe fence, Jack was released into his new herd. Like the old pro he is, he made his way through the herd, not taking any offence to there inquisitive sneers and prodding noses. He just continued to move about slowly, affectively defusing my fears and any herd aggression that generally builds in a stale environment. I'll have to keep his maneuvers in mind next time I find myself caught in traffic with a little road rage. Well, Becky I think maneuvering in a horse herd is way easier than navigating in traffic, I'm Jeff Keane.