Fall/Winter 2004

Wow, time has flown by. Seems to happen as we get older and busier. PENZANCE is busier than ever with horse "stuff". Our EAP Christian Women's Support group is busy every Tuesday morning working our way through "The Artists Way". Saturdays include some private training sessions and soon, in Jan. 2005, will be taken up with the first Natural Hoofcare Certificate Course to be held here in Douglas, MA. That will run for 20 weeks, every other Saturday for a full 80 hrs of introduction to caring for the natural horses and hooves. Wednesday nights have been great get-togethers with PENZANCE people ... relaxed gatherings with a bit of wine, crackers, cheese and commeraderie. We all are looking forward for longer days so there will be daylight to play with horses again in the evenings. Weekdays have been filled with trim clients and training clients. Weekends saw the gathering of Progressive Students working hard through their Level I tasks and exams. Progressive II will start this coming spring. Of course, lately, the Holidays have wreaked a wonderful havoc in the midst of every-day routines. Shopping, cooking, entertaining, welcoming family and old friends ... its been a whirlwind around here but so much fun. After the 1st of the new year I'll be sitting down and organizing the events for 2005. They'll include the Natural Hoofcare course, Progressive Partnership courses, development of 4 different online courses: Intro to the Barefoot Horse, Progressive Partnership Introduction, Horse Care & Mgt. I, and Clicker Training the Horse. These courses will also be offered here on farm in the spring/summer/fall of 2005 as hands-on workshops along with various clinics in Barefoot Trim, Colt Starting, Driving and more. Private horsemanship instruction is always offered, year round as is private trim instruction. Our PMU yearlings will be 2 year olds and will be introduced to undersaddle briefings in the early summer. Continuation of Foxy Moon's training undersaddle will be on the priority list as will getting a couple of the rehabs back into full work under saddle.

My own personal studies continue in Homeopathy I working towards my "Doctor of Homeopathy" in the not-so-distant future, I hope. Of course I continue to study the Barefoot Horse with private, individual concentrations. Each horse-client brings such a unique situation that there's always something new to learn. That applies to training, as well.

Looks like 2005 will be a busy, fun-filled and satisfying year. Hope to meet some of you in person and looking forward to seeing old friends who have been here this year!

Now, I'm off to begin a new day ... will post 2005 schedule in the next few weeks.

--Gwen

Busy Spring & Summer so far!

FINALLY, have a chance to sit and update this journal!  Been busy, busy, busy here at PENZANCE. We've put up 2 new sheds and paddocks (well, actually 3 new paddocks with another shed to be built.) ... have new arrivals (see http://www.thepenzancehorse.com and click on "Our Horses") and now have 17 equine on the farm including the 2 donkeys!  Next month we'll concentrate on running electric and water down back to the boarders' areas and 2 new tack/feed sheds to be built. The main one up by the main barn and the other down back. The rain this year has made it difficult for anything to dry out. A couple of the paddocks are still with mud.

Miss Foxy delivered us a BEAUTIFUL filly - Miss Moon's Portia - as of this writing Portia is now almost 3 months old and QUITE full of herself!  Her 1/2 brother, Chance (the black colt shown on the "Our Horses" page) is now 14 months old and a wonderful, little gentleman!  Rhonda has done a wonderful job with him. He is due to be gelded this fall but until then he refutes all those horror stories one hears about young colts. Tamilyn Rose continues to grow like a weed - now 15 months old and standing almost 15 hh tall! She, too, is wonderfully laid back and well-behaved. Both of them have worn various items of tack and clothing, lead and follow well, disengage the HQ and turn on the FQ very nicely, sidepass, backup, go over obstacles and play the "circle game" well. We are now working on walking them different places both together and while separated from each other.

The rest of the gang here at PENZANCE are all doing well. Petey is coming round very nicely and is not nearly as head and people shy as he was. All of them enjoy their "therapy" time and are great counselors for IN HIS GRACE! We've had some equine visitors come in for various classes and clinics and the guys all love having visitors.

"Call Me Ishmael" is in more formal training, now. Will begin working on Level 1 in hand stuff and I imagine he'll fly right through Level II to Level III without many problems. I believe he's trained under saddle through III but hasn't been in training for a couple of years due to his lameness and back issues which are now healed. So, he's back into work! I'd like to see his hind-end built up as well as his back. What a testimony for the Natural Hoof! (go to http://www.barefoottrim.com under "Services" for "Pegasus") It AMAZES me how efficient nature is if we only give the correct parameters for "her" to heal the body naturally!  

The summer will continue on in full force, I imagine. Booking more off-farm clinics for BAREFOOT TRIMMING and that's always a good thing. Between the clinics, courses, trimming clients and the care of the farm here I barely have time to breathe. But I've got to Thank God for every moment of it cause this is HIS farm; we're merely stewards and shepards for His people and critters. He leads and we follow. How simple is that !?!?  Keeps us entertained and amused, for the most part, that's for sure! *VBG*

Blessings to all ... *S* --Gwen

WELCOME TO PENZANCE HAPPENINGS

This is the posting board where we'll be posting all of PENZANCE'S events and notes. Please bookmark this with your favorites along with www.thepenzancehorse.com for easy access to see what's going on! I hope this will help everyone keep up to date. Thanks for visiting! *S* --caballus (Gwen)