Special Guest visitors this week at McGinnis Meadows Ranch!

September 1, 2018 – Volume 13 – Issue 34

Hey everyone,

Very early this spring, I did an Instagram post where Shayne was posed next to two of Seattle’s finest mounted police—Amy and Matt, with their respective ponies.  I mentioned how Shayne and the ranch stood behind the mounted police and that we had already been working with a couple of officers, and planned on working with the program much more extensively in the future.  The process of “paperwork” can be a tedious one, but we finally got to spend our very first week at the ranch with the entire Seattle Mounted Police Unit!

Sargent Peter, was joined by Stephan, Amy, Matt, Chad and Brandon.  Stephan and Amy brought up Monty and Blue.  Both horses made MONUMENTAL changes in their week here, and every single rider made enormous strides in their horsemanship as well!

This was certainly a fun group to teach—on just day one we were doing cavalry exercises through the meadows in the afternoon!  Everyone spent lots of time refining their seat at the trot and at the canter.  They learned how to do proper short-serpentines (a must in getting horses gentle!) ride with their legs, get a good soft feel and a crisp stop.  Shayne also spent time with them on the cutting ball and in groundwork that they could take back to their horses on payroll.

Everyone is looking forward to their next visit to the ranch.  Shayne and I are excited to continue the relationship with the Mounted Patrol program, and we have lots more good stuff planned for them in the future!

In addition to the Mounted Police we had 6 guests joining us this week. Carlos came to the ranch to learn about horsemanship. He had not ridden much at all before, just a couple of trail rides. He started in horsemanship Monday and never looked back. We had to convince him to go out of the arena on Friday so he could see the beautiful country and work some cattle! (He did and he loved it!). Carlos was a great example of how focus and a good attitude can do so much to help you improve. He was posting the trot and cantering by weeks end! He is in love with this lifestyle and wants to come back as an intern next!

Wendy and Jan go on vacation together each year and this year they chose McGinnis Meadows for their adventure. They both have such enthusiasm and a sense of humor and had us laughing through the entire week. They had fun with the horsemanship out on the trail and going on the cattle drives.

Karen, wife of Police Sargent, Peter, joined us as a guest this week too. With a background in dressage she worked on her seat position for this discipline and learning how to ride on a loose rein. Getting her horses to work off of her seat without reins, was different than what she is used to, and she did great. By the end of the week in horsemanship and working in the round pen with Des, she was cantering on a loose rein and really starting to feel her position come together. The horses respond so well to this!

Dave and Kris also visited all the way from Kentucky! Dave loved watching TV westerns as a kid and really wanted to experience ranch life at its fullest.  Although he rode as a kid, he hasn’t been on a horse in many years. Trail riding and cattle were his favorite things to do and he took advantage of it, scaling some terrain out at graze and seeing the country around the ranch. His wife Kris, who had very little horse experience, was also was game to try everything– they both say they will be back again!

It is hard to believe it is September already! I’m not sure where this summer went, but you can feel the beginnings of the change in season starting. The air is a little crisper in the mornings and some of the horses came in feeling a little fuzzier this week. You’d never know fall is on the way by looking at the meadows though. Everything still looks so green- very different than last year.

On a sad note, Abbey, our intern of two months, is heading home today. Her mom came out to meet her and got to ride with Abbey a few days. It was fun to see them getting to go out together and Abbey had fun teaching Liane some things that she has learned at the ranch. We’ll miss her but hope to see her again next summer!

Projects to get things ready for the fall cattle gather and for the impending winter are moving to the front of the list now. Fencing work and clean up have been full scale in our winter pasture for when the herd gets turned out several weeks from now. Dave, Adrienne, Will and Willy continue to work on this.

Dave has also been busy out at graze making sure the mineral and water are all available for the cattle. 195 steers are happily grazing out on Davis Mountain and will be there until we start gathering in a couple of weeks. 21 head are on the ranch for doctoring various feet and eyes and are doing great.

Sue, Jenna, Brenda, Roby and Scott have been taking guests on the mountain to check on cattle and explore new territory. With 7000 acres to ride through Sue and her guests have been cleaning out some trails as they check on cattle. Jenna is learning the territory and Roby is taking advantage of all of it, taking the colts he is starting out for their first adventures at graze. He says he is loving it, and by the looks of it so are the horses! Nigel, one of these colts, got to drive home a few steers on his first trip out, so that they could be doctored on the ranch. He did great 🙂

Nathan has been teaching Anna and Scott how to shoe and last week they got first hand experience shoeing a few horses. They are quick learners and we know that the horse’s feet will be in good hands with both of them J

For me, this was my lucky week as I rode in horsemanship each day! It is inspiring to see Shayne, Roby and Des work with all of the horses they ride, whether it is a young colt, a guest horse, or one of their more advanced horses. I learned so much this week and am looking forward to applying it to my own colt.

If you would like to be a part of the ranch activities, give Janice  a call and I will get you set up. We’d love to have you spend time with our family!

Here’s to a great week ahead,

Des & Janice