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Horses are pretty simple animals. Keep the flies off them, make sure they have a companion (it doesn’t even necessarily have to be another horse!). And perhaps most importantly, provide them with a veritable buffet. You’d think feeding animals that are willing to eat almost any kind of vegetation wouldn’t be that hard to keep full. You’d be wrong. You see, horses aren’t nearly as efficient diegesters as ruminant animals like cows or sheep, so they are constantly on the prowl for a meal.
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That is a long line of newly cut brome grass along the side of our quiet road. Along comes the mower and after a few days baking in the sun, it’s a ready meal. (The important thing for horses is that it is dry. I don’t want to break my record of never having one of my horses colic).
Situations like these often dictate the need for a truck . . .
. . . but we’ve survived almost four years in the countryside without one. Our poor Ford Explorer often gets substituted for a truck. Thank goodness for Shop Vacs.
Give them a full tummy and they’ll be your friend. Or at least tolerate you until they’re hungry again. This time, I won them over without having to open my purse.