All The Kings' Horses

Winter has officially arrived here in NC. Typically, we don’t receive much snow or ice and when we do, we are able to work around it. However, last weekend, we got a decent amount of ice. Temperatures remained cold enough to leave much of the property as an icy mess. On Monday and Tuesday, I (Danielle) was working on catching up on the regular chores around the barn and did not work horses. This (blog) week will start on Wednesday. Wednesday Jan 28, 2026 - This one will be a little bit of a multiple part as I ended up doing a bit of work with Gia a couple times in the day. In the morning, I decided to jump right in with a “new person.” Ashley is our groom on Wednesday mornings, and it has been a bit since she has groomed Gia. I opted to explain from a distance the processes of having Gia put her foot down and when to pause (not stop) grooming, etc. I chose to stay a little bit further back while Ashley was doing Gia. Lately, when the grooms have been working with Gia, I have been stayi...

This has been an eventful week here in Knightdale! We are currently in the middle of an ugly winter storm that has brought little snow and lots of ice. This week the farm was a buzz with storm preparations. Some of those even involved Gia… Monday January 19th - On Monday, I worked with Gia at a “new” location. Primarily, Gia has been working in our main crosstie area. However, I would love for her to be able to be groomed in multiple locations. Due to her very large size, we are limited to only a few grooming spots, though. We have a tree with a tie that can be used for large horses to be groomed. I have groomed Gia here many times in the past, but of late, it does seem to be a bit triggering. I opted to try and work with her at the tree and take it very slowly. As it turned out, this was a good plan. For whatever reason, Gia was very anxious standing at the tree. As an added challenge, I cannot easily use the carrot ball at the tree. As soon as I started working with Gia, she was obvi...

 This blog is a long one as it spans two weeks. Gia has been working hard at her 2026 resolutions (with a little help from me: Danielle)! Monday 1/5/2026- I worked with Gia on her grooming in the cross ties. Gia had, unfortunately, started the year with a bit of a virus [veterinarian tested, and NEGATIVE for EHV]. It was nothing major, most likely just a cold, but Gia is a bit of a baby when she isn’t feeling well. She tends to be a bit short-tempered, so I really took it easy on her when she wasn’t quite 100 percent. Just like many of us, when we don’t feel well, we are not able to process new information. Because Gia is quick to take steps backwards, I opted to keep it simple and slowly reintegrate the work I’ve been doing. I was pleased that Gia was accepting grooming and ready to move forward. Tuesday 1/6/2026-While Gia is currently on a hiatus from regular grooming/work, there are some employees that still must work with her daily: our feeders. This will probably not come as a...

Monday Dec 29, Tuesday Dec 30, Friday Jan 2: Happy New Year! With the holiday this week, Gia and I had a slightly shorter week. I continued to do more of the same work. We worked on blanketing and grooming with mixed success. The past two weeks have been a bit crazy around the farm between holidays, field movements, schedules being off (farrier, hay, feed, in addition to ours!), etc. All of that can lead to some tension in both the horses and the people. Gia had mixed reactions this week and we definitely have some 2026 resolutions! I just need to get Gia onboard….stay tuned for those adventures.  - Danielle

Merry Christmas! With the holiday this week, Heather and I actually took 2 days off to relax! With cool nights and warm days, the horses have also been enjoying a little break. We’ve seen just about every horse sleeping in the fields! However, Gia and I did get some exciting work done this week! Monday, December 22nd - I basically reviewed the grooming with Gia and the carrot ball. For some reason, Gia came in a bit agitated on Monday. She was impatient with her carrot ball and was tossing it around. Interestingly, she was quite patient with me. One thing I have been focused on with Gia lately is picking her hind feet. She has been very good at picking them up and letting me clean them. But, when I put them back down, she sometimes picks them up like she is going to kick. It is not directed at me, but it does seem somewhat like a threat. Basically, she’s acting like a teenager slamming a door. I have been speaking to Heather about it. In and of itself, this is not unusual behavior for ...

 Monday 12/15/25 – On Monday this week, I (Danielle) had planned to work with Gia on the grooming and the saddle pad. However, during grooming, I actually found a small lump on her belly near her umbilicus which we will be monitoring and following up with the vet at our next appointment if it is still present. It is highly unlikely that the lump is anything other than a small reaction to a bug bite or allergen, but, with Gia, nothing is small! This is also a great example of the reasons why we thoroughly groom our horses regularly. Many times, while teaching, students are rushing through the grooming to get to riding. We try to instill in them that the grooming is just as, if not more, important than the riding portion. Additionally, I found Gia getting quite anxious towards her back legs. I know from experience that this can be a sign that Gia’s teats need to be cleaned. This isn’t a glamorous job, by any means. Gia has rather large (shocking, I know) teats. As a result, they tend...