These poor kids don't have a chance with two animal loving parents...they ask and sooner or later they shall receive! Except for the baby black pig Haylen has been asking for the past couple of years. Of course I vote YES because what can be cuter than a tiny oinking pig?!?! Her Daddy on the other hand who deals with hundreds of large hogs on a weekly basis says NO! Maybe one day she will get that tiny pig to her Daddy's surprise...
Jonathan and I both love animals and being outside, thankfully we have been blessed with two kids that do as well. Haylen has asked for a horse for a while now. I think they are beautiful, but I have a fear of horses. Crazy I know! I can be around any size livestock all day, but put me near a horse and my heart starts pounding. Add in the tiny fact I have been told my entire life horses know if you fear them or not (which I believe is true with any animal) and I picture myself being kicked straight in the teeth!! (Sorry, I do not mean to offend any horse lovers just what I picture). So Jonathan reassured me he would find the kids an older gentle horse. And of course I trusted him on this adventure of bringing a horse to the farm.
Thanks to the help of a farrier friend Jonathan was told of a woman near by that was looking for a new home for her ex-therapy horse. Dude a registered paint horse has spent many years working with children. I think it is so sweet to know over the years what joy he has brought to so many kids and parents with a simple walk or trot around. Not only is Dude a gentle horse but his owner proudly showed Jonathan all of his trophies, ribbons, etc. he has won over the years competing in Western events.
Dude is 16 years old so I do believe his Western competition days are behind him. But what I do know his future holds is our family loving and adoring him everyday. He has already taught me to forget my fear and just respect him like any other animal. He has also taught me how in less than a week he can love my kids like an overgrown dog. We can come walking up to the gate and he will just look up at us, but let him catch a glimpse of the kids and he will come running like a dog!! I act surprised, but honestly we have a Black Angus bull named Moonshine we bottle fed as a calf that will run the fence line chasing after us! (Just a little FYI if your child goes to school talking about "Moonshine" at the barn make sure they explain he is a bull! Thankfully we live in a small town and people know our family has a livestock barn.)
Speaking of Moonshine the bull. He has been the king of the hill at the barn for a while now and he is JEALOUS of Dude. I find it very funny how Dude and the three bulls stand at the gates staring each other down. Their pastures are right across from each other. Moonshine moos in jealous anger while the two broncing bulls look confused. They have these looks on their faces like "hey, I thought people rode us...what is going on here?" And don't let me forget the shocking aroma Dude experienced for the first time getting off the trailer near the hog barn. If you have not experienced it lets just say is smells nothing like sausage and bacon frying in the morning!
Just look at those smiles! Can you tell Dude will be loved? I would not trade this farm life for anything in the world! I pray we have many more years to come with Dude as well as many more years of the kids loving being at the barn and around livestock....well and around us! HAHAHA!
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