Manito Barn Horses: Number one: Tom

Tom is a quarter horse gelding and an old fart.  He is only in his early twenties, but by the way he acts, you'd think he was sixty.  But I must say, he is probably the most reliable lesson horse we have.  He has a great disposition, and he always seems to know who is riding him.  I've seen him take adult men for quite a ride, and then two hours later give a four year old a birthday party.  He is one of those sacred push button horses that you can use for just about anything.  He's definately the favorite of alot of the lesson students who have ridden him, and will hold a special place in one man's heart.  Tom can really read what you are thinking and truely can respond.  He may feel a bit lazy at times, but he's convinced that he's an old fart, so we leave him be.  Overall Tom definately gets an A+ on the lesson horse scale.  He might be out of his hayday, but he's still a fantastic guy.

Work Ethic

Work ethic.  It's important to have good work ethic.  In my opinion, good work ethic involves doing what needs to be done as well as possible and everything should be completely finished.  Nothing should be left undone for someone else to do, because chances are, they won't do it.  Before staff leaves the barn and call it a day, ALL stalls should be completely done, waters should be topped off, horses should be brought in and fed, and the aisles should be swept.  That's a good day's work.  Having the barns nice like that is something to be proud of.  It's so satisfying to be able to look at everything and know that you made it like that.  Some people don't seem to get that sense of satisifaction.  They would rather let other people do all the work.  But then again, I guess there are alot of people like that in life.  It's just something you have to get used to.

Barn Work

Working around the barn is hard work. Stalls need to be cleaned, hay needs to be stacked, wheelbarrows need to be dumped and grain needs to be refilled. It all takes time and a heck of a lot of effort. But it can be fun. The satisfaction of knowing you are getting something done can be so rewarding.  

Grandma Espa out in the pasture.

It's great to know that everyday we're making these horses happy and comfortable. I think it shows in their performance. We have an arabian mare who's almost thirty and thinks she twelve.  She's one of the happiest horses i've every seen, and we at the barn respect that. She's a little slower than she used to be, and her grain is as soggy as old cereal, but we love her. Hopefully she'll be with us many a year to come.  But she's just one of the reasons why we put so much effort into these guys.  At our farm we're all a family, and we do everything we can to keep our "kids" happy.  That's how it is, the barn family has 19 kids right now.  It may seem like too much to handle, but it's definately worth it.  We love these guys with all our hearts and I know that almost every one of us would be more than happy to do whatever it takes to keep them strong and healthy.  Family comes first here, and it always will.