Horsy News, Views and Attitudes

Vol. 1 Number 10 -- September 23-30, 2007

Pony On The Move What is a horse saying when it runs? Find out in this week's Learn to Speak Horse on page 2. ___________________________________ Lake Appamapog Moose Sighting Still Contested Riders Continue Search Without Result The reputed Labor Day sighting of a 'cow' moose has yet to be confirmed. Two young Wiggins residents, Tommy Rand and Mike Lacey, still maintain that they spotted the animal. "Nobody can tell me I didn't see it. It had to be a moose," Rand exclaimed. "It was way too big to be a deer." Local horseback riders have searched for the animal without success. Wilhelmina Wiggins' property is near where the alleged moose sighting took place. "The boys may not have recognized what they were seeing, but it would be very unusual for a moose to come this far south," Ms. Wiggins commented. "Several of us have combed the whole area on horseback, wondering where she might be." "We spent all last weekend looking, we even had a campout right where the boys said they saw her," young Wiggins resident Lulu Sanders reported. "My dad taught me how to look for tracks and we haven't seen anything that matches a moose." Local horse rancher Reggie Olson has another theory. "Maybe one of those Jersey heifers from that dairy farm west of the lake got out. I called up there and they said that they need to check their fences and let me know." The Appamapog Dairy's owners did not respond to requests for comment by press time. Subscribe today! Wiggins Weekly Is the only source for news from the world of Pony Pals Based on the books by Jeanne Betancourt. To subscribe, go to www.clubponypals.com or email WebMaster@clubponypals.com

LEAF BURNING Still a Hot Issue Saturday morning Bruce Baxter raked up a huge pile of fallen leaves in his front yard. He then went inside to eat lunch but was interrupted by Fire Chief Roger Edwards pounding on his front door. Someone had set fire to Baxter's leaf pile. "Baxter said he'd planned to drop them off at the new Wiggins municipal composting center that afternoon. It looks like someone tossed a lit cigarette butt out of their car and it landed in his leaf pile. I helped him put the fire out with a hose and no harm was done," Chief Edwards said. Since 1976, it has been illegal to burn fall leaves in Wiggins. Residents are encouraged to bring their surplus leaves to Wiggins' Mudge Road Composting Site, provided for free by Nelson's Farm. Look for its signs at the corner of Mudge Road and Lilac Lane.

Fall Festival Saturday, October 27 10am to 4pm Wiggins Town Green Pony Rides Great Local Food Pumpkin Carving Contest Youth Art Contest Silent Art Auction St. Francis Animal Shelter Pet Adoption All to benefit the Wiggins Volunteer Fire Department

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LEARN TO SPEAK HORSE YOUR QUESTIONS ANSWERED Q. Sometimes when my pony is in his paddock he just starts running around like crazy. What is he saying? Is there something wrong with him? Healthy, young horses love to run, just to feel the wind on their face and get the 'kinks' out. In the wild, herds of horses had to be ready to run away from predators at a moment's notice. If they didn't exercise all the time, they wouldn't be ready to run when they had to. We humans keep horses in enclosed spaces, where they often have no room to run around. Just like when you get out of school, ponies love to run around in their pasture just because they can! As long as there are no biting insects that he's trying to get away from, running and playing in pasture is normal, especially for a young horse. Some experts even think that when a horse or pony runs, they are laughing. Q. How does my pony know where home is? Once I went for a ride and I got lost, but my pony knew right where to go and she took me straight back to the stable. Simply put, no one knows. Horses have an excellent sense of smell, as good as a dog's. There are those that say horses can smell home and they just follow their noses to get there. For example, one sick horse was taken to a veterinary hospital almost fifty miles away from his home. While he was there his owners took him out for a walk. The normally well-behaved horse hauled his owners directly towards his home until he got to the far end of the clinic's property. He then stuck his nose out over that fence whinnied loudly for his stable mates. Now, no matter how good a sense of smell that horse had, he was way too far away to sniff his friends. So it's clear that some horses really can figure out how to get back to the barn. No one really knows exactly how they do it. _________________________________________________________ This week's guest artist is 8-year old George B. of Acton, Massachusetts. George writes, "Fred my pony likes to buck. This is him in his pasture."

Riding Clinic Scheduled Wiggins Stable Offers Event Jane Crandal of Crandal's Stables will offer a Beginner's Riding Clinic and Open House on Saturday, September 29th at the Wiggins' Crandal Stables. Offered twice a year, this event gives new riders a chance to practice their equitation skills in an informal, fun environment. "Everyone always has a lot of fun at these clinics. We play games like tag and mother-may-I on horseback. That way we practice riding skills without competing." Mrs. Crandal continued, "My daughter Pam and her Pony Pals Lulu Sanders and Anna Harley will all be helping the riders to learn and have a good time." _____________________________________________ Art Contest Prizes Announced, Youth Entries Sought This year's Fall Festival will feature an art show and sale to benefit the Wiggins Volunteer Fire Department. Winners will receive an autographed print of "Crandal's Barn," a painting by local Artist Wilhelmina Wiggins and a gift certificate sponsored by Klein's Hardware. All entries must be received by October 20th, all entries become property of the Wiggins Weekly and winners' artwork will be published in this e-newspaper. Young artists are encouraged to enter by emailing their drawings as a gif or jpeg to: WebMaster@clubponypals.com, or by US mail to Art Contest, 16645 Soledad Canyon Road, #382, Canyon Country, CA 91387. "Crandal's Barn" watercolor by Wilhelmina Wiggins

Thought for the day -

Never tire a grass fed horse.