Category: How To (DIY)

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Removing Ticks from your Barn

With the weather warming up it’s time to start thinking about ticks.  Every ear the tick problem seems to be getting worse and worse in NYS and with that comes complications from Lyme disease.

I’ve had to treat lyme in several of my horses as well as myself so I take a very proactive approach to preventing ticks from causing an issue on my farm.

#1 Barn Cats

Yes we all have them and love them and people just drop them off.  Even though cats don’t seem to have too much of an issue with Ticks they do transport them into your barn.  I know of a local barn who hand a show horse with lyme. This horse was in full work and lived in a stall so it’s not like the horse got a tick from a trail ride.  The carrier? the barn cat.  So protect those cats!  There are many different methods but I prefer the Seresto collars.  They last up to 8 months and I don’t have to try and get a feisty cat to take a pill.


#2 Keep them off your Horse

Next step is to make sure they don’t crawl up you horses legs and venture into areas they shouldn’t.  My vet recommended UltraBoss a few years ago and it just plain works! Some horses may react to a pour-on so test a small area first to be sure they don’t have an allergic reaction.  It’s 3oz/100lbs body weight.  I pour a strip onto their mane, another on their tail and then work the rest into their legs all the way up.  WEAR GLOVES!  You’re using a LOT of this product and if you’re doing multiple horses you’re going to be handling it way too much so use protection.

DO NOT PUT THIS ON CATS!  It will kill your cat.  So if you use this be sure to wash your hands before petting that pestering kitty at your legs.


#3 Prevention at the source

Believe it or not the lyme problem starts with mice.  Cats do a good job but they can’t keep up with mice so here’s how to give these little guys a helping hand.  Soak cotton balls in UltraBoss, let them dry out fully then place them in areas mice are likely to nest.  The treated nesting material will help keep the ticks off the mice! Brilliant!  If you don’t feel like making them yourself you can buy pre-made “tick tubes” to place around your property.


I know a lot of people think fighting with chemicals is bad and they were hoping for a holistic approach.  Let me tell you that none of that stuff works.  Diatomaceous Earth (DE), Garlic, Lemon and whatever  stuff you find on the internets won’t work.  It can help and be part of your war against nasties but don’t rely on it.  Lyme is a terrible illness. its symptoms can be anything from blindness, colic, lameness or just a’int right. Treatment isn’t cheap and can ultimately be the death of your poor pony.

I hope you are enjoying the blogs and vlogs.  If you do be sure to subscribe and share!  It helps keep this information free!

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Training A Miniature Horse To Drive – P1

Horses come and go on any farm and mine is no different. I acquired a 36″ mini a few years ago and what the heck do you do with a mini?  Get it another mini as a friend of course, then lose the original mini due to Lyme disease and now your friend mini is alone so you obviously need another mini to keep that one company, oh heck lets make it 2.   So you started out wanting no minis but through mini-math you end up with 3. Got it?

Ok, you now have 3 mini horses who do nothing but look cute and poop an amazing amount for such little animals.  Time to put one to work!  My day job switched my schedule around slightly, leaving this morning person with a few extra minutes a day to spare. Lets make those extra few minutes productive ones!

When I talk to people, they love to give me excuses. LOTS of excuses as to why they can’t or won’t train their horses and these are the main ones I hear all the most.

I have no time. Pft, sure you do. Follow along on this series and I’ll keep you updated with training my mini in just 10-20 min 3-5 days a week.

I can’t start, I don’t have a harness. It’s ok, we don’t plan on hitching to anything in a while. Heck, your horse might not even be a candidate to drive so don’t go off wasting $ on stuff you might not ever use.  Teaching a horse to drive starts with line driving. You don’t need a harness for that, heck you don’t even need a bridle.  Reins clipped onto a halter is what I start my guys in.  You don’t need fancy reins either, if you’re really going to cry poor braid up some bailing twine and tie it on to the halter or be real fancy like and use snaps.

Teach your mini to drive materials checklist

        1. Miniature horse
        2. Halter
        3. Reins – or bailing twine – or 2 lead ropes
        4. 10-20 minutes of your time. 3-5 days a week.

Are you ready to drive?  Check back for Part 2 and we’ll get you set up for your first lesson with your mini!


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I Hate Flat Wheelbarrow Tires!

Do you hate flat tires? I sure do. For the past 10 years I’ve probably replaced 1 or both of my pneumatic tubes in my wheelbarrow at least once if not twice a year. That’s it No more!

Today I changed out my wheels for Anti-Flat Tires! Solid tires and no more full wheelbarrow with a flat. Here’s a video of the process of changing out your wheels for no flats!

So what kind of wheelbarrow do I like? The dual-ies of course!

PROS:

  • 8-10 cubic foot bucket
  • Harder to tip over
  • 1 Handed operation

CONS:

  • Harder to turn
  • Wider – might not fit in tight places
  • More effort to dump

Links to the stuff I like to use!

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Addi Express Tutorials

I purchased an Addi Express King Size from Paradise Fibers a while back and thought I’d start this page for those looking for more information or tips on how to use their Addi.

What is an Addi Express?  It is a circular knitting machine much like the Innovations knitting machine.  While the Innovations machine was inexpensive and fascinating to watch on QVC the Addi is the lesser known high end model.  The machine is made of very sturdy plastic and doesn’t feel like it will break on you after one project.

I purchased the “King Size” version which has 46 needles and can knit adult hats quickly or panels up to 17″ wide for sweater/blanket projects.   The Addi also makes a smaller model which works well for tube scarfs and infant hats.

Be sure to bookmark this page.  I will be adding more videos along the way.

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Speed Knitting iCord Using Embellish Knit

I’ve had time to get some video of how I make iCord.  I love iCord, you can do SO much with it.  But some projects I like to use it for such as ropes or rugs require a LOT of cord.  As in 100’s of feed of it.  I stink at knitting to begin with let alone attempt to knit that much cord.  So, I’ve come up with the ultimate speed cord method.

Tools

– Spool(s) of sock weigh yarn or lighter
– Embellish Knit iCord maker
– Cordless drill
– Flat head bit

If you’ve never used an Embellish Knit before they can be a bit tough to start out.  In the video I’ll show you how to start your knit as well as how to speed it up to crazy speed!

My W.I.P. projects are at the end of the video.