"Baths" are done...um sort of.

Well what a day. We started off by worming the girls, and then to give them baths. Kandi wormed them and it was, no exaggeration, a breeze. No fuss, no muss. I would liked to have let them settle in longer before the stress of a bath, but the days are getting shorter and colder and I work and comute....AND...it's hard to see in the before photo's, but they are FILTHY. Miyagi's tail probably had 5lbs of pooh stuck to it. Hard long poo balls that probably could have been sliced and had rings counted for age like a tree. Let me just say that a 150 lb mini IS strong. And a 400lb mini...oh my. I felt like my sons favorite wrestler in WWE. Joni came to help, thank god. She was initiated into the world of rescue by letter of demand. My birthday...I get to choose. We skipped our planned trail ride to care for the mini's. I figured it would not go smoothly, but it did go according to planned. That little Ochi, not halter trained, and no desire what so ever to be wet, in the end stood still enough for me to lather up and rinse her face and top side. I used the EZ-all sprayer and it helped. After dragging me all around the back yard, with approach and retreat, she started to play in the water with her lips. After all the hullabaloo, everything else was a breeze. As I suspected, she felt nothing was as bad as that BATH. Miyagi was a different story and with 400lbs to back up her flight method, I had my hands full for sure. She learned more quickly that if she stopped and faced the water, it would go away. Again, all I could get was the face and top line, but that was fine for a first bath. Her tail however, was a whole other story. With the thickness of the pooh, her short stature, my bad back and wanting nothing to do with me behind her with the hose, I had to bring in the re-enforcements. The non horsey husband. He stood close to her and reassured her, while I soaked her tail in a bucket of shampoo. I massaged and rubbed and picked apart that pooh for nearly an hour and still couldn't get it all. But I knew I had enough gone that once dry I could brush out the rest. I slathered it with a finishing detangler and brushed when dry. Voila! Still dirty, but next time it will be a breeze. I banged their tails because they were dragging the ground and Miyagi was stepping on hers. During Miyagi's primping and fussing, Joni took Ochi for a walk around the house a few times, and unlike the drag fest from the night before, she was leading like she had been halter broke since the day she was born. They both are leading so well, that I took off the halters for good. They both stood for nearly 5 minutes to have me and Joni scratch away all evidence of ever having worn one 24/7. They both were easy to catch and halter again for our little post bath photo session that Joni made me do. I must admit, I looked better too after changing my clothes. Rose 16hh and Miyagi 34" have decided that they are of equal stature and skill and both defend the same section of fencing. I think they will get along just fine in the end. I have to take my shower now, I smell and have work in the morning.
Savvy On
Michelle