Fun in the fall!

Here are some pictures from a fun riding session we had in the fall before the snow started falling and human and horse start bundling up in blankets and winter jackets to keep warm.

Cassie and Tucsan

Rai and the beautiful Cleo!

Crystal and my very own son, Tridun - isn't he handsome?

Leah and Atlas bonding after a good ride!

Here’s hoping spring comes soon and we can get back to riding without having to wear 15 layers!

Summer 2010 Season at Wilson H2 Ranch

The highlight of Wilson H2 Ranch’s 2010 summer season was undoubtedly hosting the first ever Amber Marshall Horse Camps!

Campers aged 8 – 16 attended day and overnight Amber Marshall Horse Camps, spending their days surrounded by horses, cattle, and new friends. Campers participated in fun and exciting activities to improve their riding and horsemanship skills; they also had the unique opportunity to act in a short film featuring Amber Marshall herself!

Stay tuned to this page to see one group of campers acting in the short film “In a Cinch”. In this fictional story, campers are getting ready for a horse show when one of the horses starts acting strangely and Amber saves the day!

Bruce Sargent, owner of Farm Boy Productions was contracted to film and produce the videos and generously donated some of his time to Horse Wish. Bruce as well as the Ranch were featured on CHEX Television. Watch the video here.

Campers also learned to rope, bull ride (on a human-operated “bull” machine), herd and cut cattle on horseback. They swam, played ranch games, sang songs and roasted marshmallows around our evening campfires.

Funds from Amber Marshall Horse Camps went to Horse Wish, a non-profit organization dedicated to providing a horse life experience to socially and economically disadvantaged youth and adults. This summer five deserving young people were sponsored to attend Camp. They were identified by the Victoria County Women’s Resource Services and Big Brothers Big Sisters of Kawartha Lakes-Haliburton. This is what Horse Wish is all about.

When the summer was coming to an end, campers attended the Amber Marshall 2010 Horse Wish Gala, where they were photographed with Amber Marshall herself and received her autograph. See our Shows and Events page for more details on the Gala.

Olivia Leong, one of our campers, sums up why 2010 Amber Marshall Horse Camps were so special:

“Amber Marshall Horse Camps are AMAZING! This camp is the best camp I have ever been to. Lots of activities like horseback riding, acting, arts and crafts and a lot more. Everyone is very friendly and the food was great! Also you make lots of new friends. I think that was one of the best parts about the camp. This was an experience of a life time! ”

* Horse Wish is a non-profit organization dedicated to providing a horse life experience to socially and economically disadvantaged youth and adults. Amber Marshall Horse Camps raised funds to support Horse Wish activities in the summer of 2010.

I guess I’ll be the “Paint” horse this summer

There has been a lot of activity lately at Wilson H2! Susan’s daughter, Leah has arrived back at the farm and she has been out playing with us in the fields, and then taking some of us to the arena for some “tuning up” as she calls it.

One of my fieldmates, however, has not been so excited, because Leah puts her to work when she is used to her fill of leisure time. Her name is Casino and she is a very pretty black mare with a white star (but not as pretty as me).  It’s been funny watching Leah trying to catch her. The first time it took a full 30 minutes, and ended in a bribe of grain, but lately it seems like they are becoming friends too.

What I don’t understand is why no one is paying more attention to me. Here I am, a beautiful dun mare with a lovely sweet face and Leah doesn’t come as often to get me from the field to work. I am a working girl at heart: I like to run fast, do sliding stops and spin til Susan gets dizzy, but life for me has slowed down a bit while I am recovering from an old injury.

I really shouldn’t complain too much, Casino comes back to the field looking pretty tired, while I get all of the attention and love from Leah and the rest of the ranch hands for free! In fact, there are rumors that when the kids come this summer for the Amber Marshall Horse Camps, I’ll be the special horse that they get to learn how to groom, pick my feet, wash, and even more exciting, paint on! Hopefully they choose some nice colours to show off my beautiful brown eyes.

If they do a good job, I’ll be sure to post pictures of my new look.

Shameless self promotion

Susan putting me to work at a show

Lots of fun at the All About Horses Show

Hi!

Mom took me to the All About Horses show this weekend in Lindsay and had me help tell people about the ranch at our booth. I got to see miniature horseys, play with other puppies, sniff a lot of strange people’s feet and see the infamous Mantracker!

Here are some cool pictures from the show for you to enjoy. I can’t wait ’til next year!

The Wilson H2 Ranch booth

Ben the Boss Buckaroo on "Snowflake" the roping horse

Rachel and the Mantracker!

A horse that is the same size as me!

Amber Marshall Apparel - they should make doggie wear

Baby Joe acquires a luxury shade spot

As a middle-aged mare, it has always been my experience that trailers mean travel, usually to shows where I get to demonstrate my awesome reining skills. So I was surprised when Ben the Boss Buckaroo drove his trailer into the neighbouring Joes’ paddock and just…. left it there?

Soon I began to see the logic behind such a decision; Ben could hitch his horses there to get them ready if he wanted to go for a trail ride, and more importantly, Baby Joe came up with the great idea of going inside to get out of the hot sun!

Now even though we have shelters we can walk in and out of to get some shade, Baby Joe realized that he could make the trailer his own personal shady sleep spot – very luxurious lifestyle for a yearling! What horse doesn’t want a place to call their own, something they can decorate to their tastes and relax in? Baby Joe is the envy of the rest of the H2 horses.

While most times people have a hard time getting their horses into a trailer, Ben had a hard time getting Baby Joe out!

Ben trying to coax Baby Joe out of his luxury shade spot

H2 hearts CBC star of Heartland, Amber Marshall

At first glance, I may not look like anything more than a silly black poodle , but at heart, I am a RANCH DOG. Need some horses or cows to be chased?  How about a friend to make you feel better when you’ve had a long day of grueling ranch work? That’s what I’m here for as the resident ranch dog.

I think what really sets me apart as a genuine, rough and tumble rancher is my love for cuddling up with my mom and my stuffed dragon to watch the latest episode of CBC’s hit series, Heartland. Who doesn’t love to watch the drama of ranch life out West? No one was more excited than me when Amy (Amber Marshall) and Ty got together this season! I am still waiting and hoping to meet a girl poodle just like Amy to spend my days on the ranch with …

But I digress… we have exciting news! Amber Marshall is collaborating with us to create the greatest of all summer horse camps EVER ON THE PLANET. EVER: Amber Marshall Horse Camps

Amber Marshall Horse Camps brings together all of the things we know Amber and Heartland fans love: ranch life, riding horses, acting, the arts, and of course, me, Clarky the Poodle. I won’t lie, I was a little hurt when they decided to go against my camp name suggestion “Clarky Poodle & Amber Marshall Horse Camps” considering how important I am on the ranch and how I know all of the youth are going to love me… but hey, Amber Marshall Horse Camps does have a pretty cool ring to it all by itself.

If you want to learn more about the camp and how you can get involved, you can visit our website: http://www.wilsonh2ranch.ca or call 705-432-3166 or email info@wilsonh2ranch.ca for more info!

Hope to see you there this summer

– Clark the Poodle (#1 Ranch Dog)

In memory of Sunlight – May 5, 2010

Early this morning Sonny gave birth to a beautiful dun filly with a white blaze and beautiful black lashes, who we have named Sunlight. Sadly Sunlight passed away shortly after her birth due to complications during the delivery. Sonny is doing well thanks to the skilled hands and warm heart of Dr. Mike from the Sunderland Brelmar Veterinary Clinic, who did everything he could for both foal and mom.

Sunlight’s life was miraculous and precious, however short. It is a reminder to us all of the brevity and beauty of life — to be grateful for every day that we have alive and with our loved ones.

Sonny is accepting carrots and gentle pats from those who wish to share their condolences.

- The Wilson H2 Family

Meet the Joes

One Joe, two Joe, three Joe, go! There has been a sudden explosion of Joes on the ranch, big, little, and baby size. All are owned by our resident real-live cowboy,  Ben the Boss Buckaroo, with his nifty scarves, Old West chaps and handlebar mustache. Ben claims that they all came with the name Joe, but will say with a wink and a smile “It’s also very easy to remember their names this way”.

Big Joe and Little Joe came as a team around the same time I saw Ben wandering the ranch. They are pastured together two paddocks away from me and the girls so I have only been able to get to know them from afar or when Ben rides or walks them by!

Big Joe is Ben’s oldest and wisest Joe, the one he uses to boss around those strange looking animals that look kind of like horses but are not horses I’ve heard my riding partner Susan refer to as cows once or twice. Big Joe and I talk through the fences sometimes. He’s been around quite a bit over the years, living in some place he calls “Alberta” with Ben that he describes as being very pretty with lots of grass to eat on big rolling hills.

Little Joe is the quiet one that Ben is slowly but surely training away to be just as seasoned a horse as Big Joe. He is kind of mysterious and doesn’t talk a lot, but I have noticed that he has a penchant for carrots and likes to hang out in the shade and munch hay all day if he can As you can see he is also pretty camera shy! This is the best pic I have of him and Big Joe is hogging the spotlight.

Big Joe, left. Little Joe, right.

Baby Joe, is an Arabian 8 month old  colt registered as “Flirty’s Little Joe” who  appeared more recently on the ranch. and lots of energy – running around all the time, kickin’ up his heels and generally causing a ruckus with the other two Joes. It makes me wonder what my baby will be like when he/she is a year old. While Baby Joe is, clearly, just a baby, Ben has had a bareback saddle on him already and spends lots of time with him to get him ready for real ol’ ranch life! Ben says that Baby Joe is almost “too smart for his own good” and likes to get into mischief of all kinds.

So there are the Joes, Big, Little, and Baby. If Ben gets a fourth Joe – we might need to send him to “Ben’s with too many horses named Joe Anonymous”

Meeting new friends on H2

Me fast asleep after chasing the cows

There are some strange new animals on the ranch. Big. Scary. Horsey, but not horsey, animals! They came in a big big truck yesterday. I could smell them and hear the truck coming long before I knew they were going to come HERE to my ranch! Then the truck pulled up the driveway making a deep rumbling noise and pulled up to one of the paddocks. Mom and some of her friends went inside the trailer where the strange things were and spent a very long time trying to push them out.

I tried to go in to help them (I am an excellent herder) but they shooed me away again and again. So I decided to go lie down in the grass for awhile and just watch. And wait. And watch… A brown nose poked out of the trailer, then two big black eyes and a strange brown rectangle with legs comes running out into the field, shortly followed by three others!

“What are these things in my field?  They are strange and big!” I jumped up and wagged my tail at them, bowing and then stretching… then tried a little more tail wagging for good measure. They ignored me. “Hmmmph! What kind of animals are these who won’t even say hello?” I wondered.

So I barked and hopped up and down, ran back and forth along the fence line until I got their attention. And then, just like the horses, they started running with me. “Woof woof yip yip eee!” I barked. “Let’s play!”

Just when I thought we would be friends, though. They ignored me again and began munching on grass. .

It’s been a couple of months that these creatures I’ve heard mom call “cows” have arrived on the ranch and we are starting to become friends now. Sometimes when Mom and John are feeding the horses and cows one of them will come up to the fence and touch their big wet nose against mine. They are kind of smelly and dumb but it sure is fun to have new friends at H2!

Lots of tail wagging, bowing and stretching, hopping up and down like a
gazelle, barking, running back and forth – why don’t they pay attention to
me? I just want to play!

Ben bossing around the cows

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