Just how Safe is Safe?

Today while I was browsing the internet, I stumbled across this article.

Quote:

"A horse lover was left with a wheel emergency on her hands - after her pony Smila got trapped inside a huge tractor tyre.

Marlene Schmidt, 30, from Limmer, Germany, believes the horse had been trying to graze on fresh grass under the tyre when she slipped and fell head first into it.

The unfortunate animal was left trapped inside the tyre with one of her hind legs poking out and her head pushed into the ground."

Okay, I admit. I laughed. The things ponies will get themselves into. Obviously this is a pony kept in a dry lot to prevent the reoccupation of founder. So of course, the pony must find some way to get into trouble.

So what do you have in YOUR pasture that is not safe? I've heard time and time again that these tractor tires make safe hay feeders, if turned inside out. I personally have never had the chance to look at one in person and decide. Just about anything can be turned into a danger though, if a pony or other critter tries hard enough.

So what can you do to maximize the safety of your livestock? Use your brains! If there is a way an animal can get hurt on it, most likely, eventually they will have a go at it. And usually your only really nice, expensive, stock will do that. Just seems to be the way things go.

Be sensible. Don't leave junk in your pastures. Pick up any loose metal or any foreign objects you find. Take the time once in a while to walk around in your pastures and look for anything that has been unearthed. I once found an entire window pane in my pasture that the goats has discovered while grazing.

Don't leave bailing twine loose for your animals to inject or get tangled in. Make sure fencing does not have any sharp ends poking out to scratch delicate eyeballs. Same with feeders and water sources. Look for deep holes that have opened up, or thin ditches. Fill them in if you find them.

Make sure your fencing is in good repair and pulled straight. If you use electric fencing, be sure it's hot and correctly tensioned. We use electric here, and I can't begin to explain how often I have to go outside and adjust it, straighten posts, or check for bad spots.

If you have t-posts, invest in t-post caps. It can save your horse from a dangerous impalement. Although some ponies delight in pulling them off.

You cannot wrap your livestock or pets in bubble wrap, but you sure can do everything in your power to minimize their chances of getting hurt.

Computers

I often wonder why I go through so many computers. Is it because I am hard on them? I am no computer "noob"; I know how to get the best out of my machines and keep them running smooth.

So why am I constantly replacing them? So I just run the poor things into the ground? This may be so, but alas, we may never really know.

I've decided to get another laptop. My last one was a stubborn piece of equipment, despite having root beer spilled on its keyboard, breaking that. And having its screen smashed. And the disk drive stopped working.

Despite that, it was still kicking when I sold it for parts. So laptops can't be all that bad, can they?

I decided to buy from Aaron's. Kill two birds with one stone, right? Get a nice new laptop and improve my credit at once. Sure, I know I'm overpaying for this thing, and could get better for the ultimate cost, but our credit is practically non-existent, so it serves its purpose.

It literally took me hours to clean the hard drive of all the crap that they pre-load these poor things with. Hours! And then I had to move and set up my personal programs that are "must haves." I left all of my information, i.e. pictures, documents, designs, and music, on my desktop so to keep the laptop as clean as possible.

Then come to find out, my wireless router is a piece of junk and I was getting very poor signal. Which meant I had to steal the Ethernet cable from my poor desktop until I can either improve my router, or buy one of my own.

Anyways, so I'm writing this blog from my new laptop. It's got a nice big keyboard thankfully, so I'm not having too much trouble adjusting. I had to hook my mouse up though, without it I am just too slow at work.

Let's talk other things.

Did I tell you that we woke up yesterday to three flat tires? Yes, three! How ridiculous is that. Thankfully, a neighbor had an air tank and hubby and my brother were able to get the car to the tire shop. We had to replace two of the tires, which was a real punch in the gut, since I had to write the check for our mortgage on the same day. The next few weeks are going to be rough, I think.

But we'll manage. We always have, despite the "Saucedo Curse." I won't get into that right now, but you're sure to notice the trend of bad luck that follows us Saucedos eventually.

All things will pass in time.