Preparing for the Storm: When Ice and Snow Are on Their Way

Just checking the forecast is enough to make one shiver. After a mild beginning to winter, we are now facing a full-blown winter storm. It’s expected to hit sometime tonight - bringing with it, over a foot of snow and sub-zero temperatures. There has been a lot of work and preparations done around here for the last few days as we rushed to have everything ready for the barnyard. Here's a glimpse at what we've been busy doing!

Getting the Equipment Ready

It never fails that when you really need something, it’s not working. And that was certainly true for us! My brothers’ skid steer has been down and they poured hours of work into it this week to get it running - to use in adding bedding to the barn and clearing the driveway of snow. While they were repairing that, their UTV also went down, which required a last-minute run to town to find the parts needed. After lots of effort, they managed to get them both running in time for the coming weather!

Winterizing the Barn

We’ve been working on this all week! Every stall had to be deeply cleaned, scrapped down to dirt, and new thick bedding added. All the places where wind can get in (which is ventilation in the summer) have to be blocked and extra insulation added. Heated buckets are plugged in (I love these so much - saves me so much time!) and the drop-in heater is put in the water trough. We double-check all outlets and power sources to make sure they are safe from any chance of fire. With the horses about to spend a lot of time inside, I looked over their stalls to be certain they didn’t have anything that could cause injury. Now the barn is ready!

Cleaning Coats: Fur and Fabric 

The horses, too, need to be clean as these colder days approach. To be able to trap their own body heat the fur needs to be free of mud, dirt, and debris. So a deep grooming is required for Dolly, Cutter, and Reina! And with the wet weather we’ve had, they all had dried mud caked around their hooves. I have to slowly and carefully pull this off by hand. After they're all clean, I also run a hand over Cutter’s horse blanket; we want all straps to be secure, the fabric clean, and no tears. The horses are ready, too: check!

With everything done, we finally came back inside the warmth, tired and pretty cold. We’ll rest well tonight, knowing our barn is safe, snug, and secure. A big “Thank you!!!” to my amazing brothers for all the time they spent doing this work with me! I don’t know what I’d do without them!

And although I’m a little sore tonight, there is great satisfaction in having it all done. Now we can sit, sip hot chocolate, and enjoy watching the snowflakes float silently on the wind. 

The weather outside may be frightful, but knowing we’re ready is delightful!

Let it snow!