Horses! and pets/animals other than cats and dogs

[RVInit]

I think you and Fajr (and Azastan, and Nejed) did a fantastic job. Sometimes I don't post because I'm too bizzy being jealous.

LOL

I just now read the post about Fajr! Congratulations! But I'm disappointed that no funny photos were posted like for Comet and Az. I got a real kick out of those posts, I laughed out loud.

[Azastan]

I just now read the post about Fajr! Congratulations! But I'm disappointed that no funny photos were posted like for Comet and Az. I got a real kick out of those posts, I laughed out loud.

Fajr has serious trust issues, so we didn't actually have a lot of funny interactions. I did get a nice one of him with my neighbour's inflatable menorah, though.

Fajr and the menorah Dec 1 2021.jpg (178.91 KiB) Viewed 1542 times

[Azastan]

Ah, there's this one. Fajr being bribed with a horse cookie as we practice water crossings.

Fajr water crossing and horse cookie Nov 3 2021.jpg (184.14 KiB) Viewed 1540 times

[northland10]

I needed your brining on a raining day in Glacier National Park when I had a horse who would not step in puddles. Maybe if he was bribed it would have helped.

I found his dislike for puddles ironic given the number of times he created his own puddles (he was like a constant stream).

[Azastan]

I needed your brining on a raining day in Glacier National Park when I had a horse who would not step in puddles. Maybe if he was bribed it would have helped.

I found his dislike for puddles ironic given the number of times he created his own puddles (he was like a constant stream).

Horses see puddles differently--they can't see the bottom most of the time, and so they don't know if it's safe to step into one. They will often be more comfortable stepping into a river than a puddle. Fajr's trust issues meant he needed to see me as a leader to be trusted. It has taken almost two years for me to get him to this level of trust, so although it may not seem very exciting to most people, the horse people who watched my journey with Fajr on the Tevis Cup Virtual Ride FB page knew how difficult this was.

In case anyone is interested, here is a link to one of the videos showing Fajr trusting me to keep him safe:

[RVInit]

That is interesting about the way horses see water. It makes sense after you hear it, but I wouldn't have thought of that. Fajr is an impressive looking horse, what a beauty! There is something about his face, it's like you can see him really thinking about something in that video. What a handsome guy he is.

I love that you devoted the time to get him to trust you, that really says something about your love of these wonderful animals and that you find them worthy of the time and effort. The best kind of people grace these pages.

[Azastan]

That is interesting about the way horses see water. It makes sense after you hear it, but I wouldn't have thought of that. Fajr is an impressive looking horse, what a beauty! There is something about his face, it's like you can see him really thinking about something in that video. What a handsome guy he is.

I love that you devoted the time to get him to trust you, that really says something about your love of these wonderful animals and that you find them worthy of the time and effort. The best kind of people grace these pages.

You can see the school bus approach. It's noisy and scary. Fajr thinks about ducking out, but sees that I am holding steady. Notice that the lead rope is slack for the entire video! He turns and faces the bus (which is letting off the neighbour's middle school daughter). He watches it intently. It lets off the air brakes and he remains calm. You can't hear it, but he then turns because the daughter is scraping open their front gate, which frightens him. Again he thinks about ducking out, but amazingly, he turns and looks at me and relaxes. This was a huge leap forward for him and I am glad I got it on video.

[RVInit]

Yes, I see that rope is slack. That is very cool. You have done amazing work with him.

[FiveAcres]

I am with Fajr on the inflatable. I am not a fan of inflatables, and roll my eyes at the insistance of my neighbors in putting them in front yards despite the frequent occurrence of wind events in Colorado.

[RTH10260]

[Phoenix520]

That was fun, Eurobot. Thanks!

[Tiredretiredlawyer]

Camelot!

[Kriselda Gray]

You can see the school bus approach. It's noisy and scary. Fajr thinks about ducking out, but sees that I am holding steady. Notice that the lead rope is slack for the entire video! He turns and faces the bus (which is letting off the neighbour's middle school daughter). He watches it intently. It lets off the air brakes and he remains calm. You can't hear it, but he then turns because the daughter is scraping open their front gate, which frightens him. Again he thinks about ducking out, but amazingly, he turns and looks at me and relaxes. This was a huge leap forward for him and I am glad I got it on video.

That's really cool, Azastan! I'm glad you've been able to get him to trust you. I used to ride horses at a nearby stable and remember how hard it could be to get a horse to be willing to work with you - and these were horses who were being handled by different people all the time, so they obviously don't have serious trust issues like Fajr does. Great work!

[RTH10260]

The panda youngster i have been following since birth, now 19 months old

[RTH10260]

Winter in panda land...

[AndyinPA]

[RTH10260]

panda in the snow having fun

[AndyinPA]

That was fun!

[Tiredretiredlawyer]

[Lani]

The passing of a hero. I posted about him on Fogbow v.1.

Landmine-sniffing hero rat dies aged eight
https://thenewdaily.com.au/news/world/a ... 2020220112

Cambodia’s mine-sweeping rat who was awarded a gold medal for his heroism has died aged eight.

Magawa, an African giant pouched rat, sniffed out 71 landmines and 38 unexploded artillery in a five-year career as a “hero rat”.

Magawa was trained as part of a Belgian charity Anti-Personnel Landmines Detection Product Development (APOPO), which teaches animals, including dogs and rats, to alert human handlers of mines in the area, so that they can be removed safely.

“Magawa was in good health and spent most of last week playing with his usual enthusiasm, but towards the weekend he started to slow down, napping more and showing less interest in food in his last days,” APOPO said in a statement.

Magawa was born and trained in Tanzania before moving to Cambodia for his bomb-sniffing career, where he was awarded a gold medal – described by the BBC as the “George Cross for animals” – by British veterinary charity PDSA in 2020.

Magawa could search a tennis court sized field in 20 minutes. A person with a metal detector can do it in 1 to 4 four days.

He retired in June 2021.

1641943203-Magawa-landmine-rat.jpg (39.37 KiB) Viewed 1186 times

Magawa.jpg (88.4 KiB) Viewed 1186 times

[RVInit]

He is a cutie pie. RIP Magawa, and thanks for your service to mankind. I love animals so much.

I had to take this afternoon off from work because if I don't , I am going to use foul language at a coworker and get fired. Days like today name me like animals far more than I like humans. But in truth, there are a whole bunch of wonderful people in this world that I like just as much as I like animals. I'm trying to remind myself of that today. I don't think I have ever questioned my love of animals, though.

[Dave from down under]

a sad day indeed..

[Foggy]

Tweet from @ReutersAgency: Like a fish out of water? Israeli team trains goldfish to drive http://ow.ly/RImb50HtuSV https://t.co/NydTajkMCE

[RTH10260]

pestilence on four paws

[pjhimself]