It's That Time of Year!!!

Out in West Texas, we celebrate a very special event every year...the rodeo!!! Here in Pecos, we proudly claim the title of being "The Home of the World's First Rodeo". All you have to do is wander through the "West of The Pecos" museum, and the Texas Rodeo Hall of Fame to see that this area is rich in western culture.

Click Here to Visit BLOG VILLAGE


MnC's Disclaimer: At no time is excessive force, cruelty or brutality used when training the horses pictured in this blog. Reinforcing pats and firm gentleness, along with calmness from the trainers, encourage the horses to do as they are asked.

Finally Settled...somewhat!

Now I can call Pecos, the Home of the World's First RODEO, home!!!

After my sons, Travis and Tony, a.k.a. TnT moved here in September of 2007, I no longer had a captive audience to film. Daily training of our Mustang horses and Quarter horse mare were 1100 miles away. The puppies were growing up fast!

Now, seven months later, I made the move from California to Texas in a 26' UHaul. As I traveled along I40 in the company of two dogs and two cats, I recalled the events that transpired so quickly to make this move possible.

In February we had a family reunion in Arizona. My brother and I traveled from California to attend and TnT came in from Texas. After the reunion I traveled back to Texas with the guys for a two week visit. Within the first week of vacation I was building a website for the Feed Store and they had offered me a full time job! Before vacation was over I had talked with several people that wanted websites built or rebuilt and maintained.

Now, I had to make the decision if I wanted the job...let's see...move back to Texas...near TnT and the critters...you bet!!! Pecos is a small west Texas town of about 9,500 people. In the picture posted on Wikipedia, in the link above, a boot company that is making a pair of boots for TnT is situated in the fifth storefront from the right of the picture. To the left of the photographer is the West of the Pecos Museum and behind is the old depot, the future home of the Texas Rodeo Hall of Fame!

Talking about the Hall of Fame, stop back by in the near future for a link to the new website. As the newest member of the Hall of Fame committee, I will be building a website to commemorate the Grand Opening scheduled during the 126th Annual "West of the Pecos RODEO". I am on that committee too, and will be maintaining the Rodeo website as well!

Now that I am almost settle in my place, I will be able to post regularly to this blog! My computer is set up at TnT's new duplex and I should be able to move in to my remodeled duplex next week. I will keep my computer set up at the guys place until I know for sure that I have phone and internet service!

If you ever find yourself "West of the Pecos"...drop in!!!

Janey Loree

Click Here to Visit BLOG VILLAGE


MnC's Disclaimer: At no time is excessive force, cruelty or brutality used when training the horses pictured in this blog. Reinforcing pats and firm gentleness, along with calmness from the trainers, encourage the horses to do as they are asked.

Gutheries Leo Bars...

That's right Oakley's registered name is "Gutheries Leo Bars". She was named after some of the sires in her lineage and her owner at the time of registration. That is why TnT nicknamed her "Oakley"!

Travis was spinning Oakley in a circle in this photo. When they got finished spinning, Travis stated that he felt her little outburst coming from the time he was saddling her!

Before the spinning episode, Travis was working Oakley on the fence, and I could tell that she was getting better with her right turns. She likes turning left more that turning right. But when she shot past the edge of the fence into the opening...it was time for a few circles for my little girl.

I guess I shouldn't say "little" she has really got some muscle on her and will really "hulk" out when the guys get to work her more that two times a week. There is a rumor that they will be going back to 8 hour work days soon! It would be great if that happened while I am here in Pecos.

After the spinning episode, Oakley responded to Travis with alacrity.

To Be Continued...

Click Here to Visit BLOG VILLAGE

MnC's Disclaimer: At no time is excessive force, cruelty or brutality used when training the horses pictured in this blog. Reinforcing pats and firm gentleness, along with calmness from the trainers, encourage the horses to do as they are asked.

Riding Coal...

Here is Tony on Coal. He rode out in the desert with Travis on Oakley for a little bit while I soaked in the Texas sun. There I sat on the back of the Dodge, while my cowboys worked with their horses! Their dogs following as they checked out everything along the trail.

When they got back, Tony asked if I wanted to ride Coal? Did I want to ride Coal! Yes, I wanted to ride! I felt the tensions and worries that this life places on your shoulders just melt away...

...I rode around with Travis and Oakley for a little bit and realized that I would definitely have to get back to Texas so that I could ride whenever I wanted. The guys talked about getting a horse of about 15 hands for me to ride! Yipee!!!

I look forward to the time that we can go on trail rides together again...

To Be Continued...

Click Here to Visit BLOG VILLAGE

MnC's Disclaimer: At no time is excessive force, cruelty or brutality used when training the horses pictured in this blog. Reinforcing pats and firm gentleness, along with calmness from the trainers, encourage the horses to do as they are asked.

Pecos Rainbow...

Photograph by Anthony Fisher

Catching Up...Some...

It's been awhile since the last post and I have been remiss for no other reason than that I have not had enough time to stop and post. Well, that is not entirely true. I did put my back out a week and a half ago and that has slowed me down quite a bit. There have been many things come up that I would think to myself "that needs to be posted on the blog"! So, before I get too much farther behind I will attempt to post a little while I can’t sleep.

The horses are doing very well in their new home. The guys get up early to run out and feed before they head to work and then they spend a couple of hours with them each night.

Tony mentioned the other day that my horse, Oakley, was calmer. Nothing huge in retrospect, just little things like when Travis was sacking her out with a grain sack, she just stood there and let him shake it all around her head and ears. She was not as jumpy when Tony pretended to climb on her bareback, and she comes up to them when they crawl through the fence with her hay instead of running in the other direction. She was doing this for me in California, but not the guys. I was thinking that maybe she got used to the air that was blowing in around her head and body during the trip to Texas in the horse trailer. Just a thought!

Cahlibur is still a little bit foot sore from the trip back to Texas. Travis lets him out a little to soothe his nervous energy, but not enough to re-injure his feet. Coal is a little sore footed too, but Tony thinks that a couple of more days and he will be as good as new. I was assured that Coal's soreness was not visible to the naked eye, just felt when he was ridden. Belle was all prancey like a Tennessee Walker as she waited to be turned loose in the old arena. She flew past Oakley and Clancey like they were standing still. She is going to make a wonderful brood mare. Tony will be looking for a stocky Quarter Horse of about 16 hands to breed to Belle.

Mr. Clancey, as I call him, has grown up in just these few weeks. He is not acting as much like a young colt as he used to. I asked Travis if he was still lightening up and T was not sure. Hard to tell when he sees Clancey everyday. We will have to compare photos. The photos in this post are some cell phone pictures that the guys text messaged to me of the beautiful Pecos skies…the sunsets are from Travis and the cloudy skies are from Tony.

Kate, Rusty, Cody and Jessie are staying in the dog run that TnT made for them. However, one day last week Tony had to run home and find the escapees. He didn't have to look far. Rusty was lying in front of the hole under the house. When Tony called him, Rusty jumped up and Kate and the puppies came out from under the house right behind him. Again Rusty was protecting his family! A shed next to the dog run has been cleared out. TnT will be putting in a dogie door so that the dogs can get out of the weather better.

The last time Rusty was out ‘n out protecting his family was right after they all moved in. TnT had to return the Rental Truck and the Deputy Warden and his wife were watching the dogs. The have a dog and Rusty stayed between him and Kate and the puppies the whole time. Each time the dog would try to get closer to Kate or the puppies Rusty would growl real low!

Saturday the guys are supposed to go out to the Warden's to check out his mare. If I remember correctly the warden lives about 35 miles out of town. I can't wait to hear about her...

Settling In in Pecos...

TnT left Taft, CA Friday morning and pulled into Pecos, TX late Saturday night. They had called ahead to make sure that there would be someone at the arena so that they would be able to unload the horses into their new temporary homes.

Sunday morning dawned with TnT unloading their belongings into the duplex on Oleander St. As they worked, a Dodge pickup pulled up in front and a man got out to welcome them to Texas and the neighborhood. He ended up being the Deputy Warden of Security at the facility were they will be working.

Mr. DW told the guys that he and his wife had heard that the guys had dogs and he and his wife were dog people! Kate, Rusty, Cody and Jessie ended up staying with them while TnT drove the rental truck up to Carlsbad, NM. However, when the guys got home, all four dogs had escaped. Kate and Rusty had gone back to the duplex and were waiting for TnT on the porch. The puppies were missing! A search party consisting of TnT, Mr. and Mrs. DW and a neighbor started searching the neighborhood.

There is a vacant lot across the street from the guys place and then a vacant church. As Travis walked by the church leading Kate and Rusty, he heard the puppies barking from a hedge on the church property. It looked like they had been sleeping under the hedge. What a relief!!! All four dogs ended up spending the night in the horse trailer. The guys would make a dog run in the back yard in the morning. After sitting in the driveway and talking with Mr. and Mrs. DW for a couple of hours, it was time to go feed the horses and call it a night.

The guys had no electricity, water, or gas so they got a motel room for the night. What would tomorrow bring...

In the cell phone picture above, taken from the porch of the guys' duplex, you can see the vacant lot and then the vacant church past the Dodge. The tan house behind the church is Mr. & Mrs. DW's! Isn't that sky beautiful!!!

Click Here to Visit BLOG VILLAGE


MnC's Disclaimer: At no time is excessive force, cruelty or brutality used when training the horses pictured in this blog. Reinforcing pats and firm gentleness, along with calmness from the trainers, encourage the horses to do as they are asked.

MnC's One Year Anniversary Coming Up...

While TnT were on their Sierra Nevada Pack Trip, I started this blog in anticipation of the pictures, journal entries and stories that they would capture my sons' first pack trip! It happened to be the very same day they were having to make a very hard decision to leave Maggie, Travis' Mustang mare in the back country... read the rest of the story...

That day was September 10, 2006, and 10 days shy of a year later places TnT, 5 horses and 4 dogs living in Pecos, Texas. Home of the First Rodeo!

I am including a video of Travis and I being pulled by Cahlibur! Travis modified the cart by adding the seat and a hand brake. In the video we started in front of our house continuing across the street through the driveway to the old arena, now converted into a dirt bike race track, and followed the old horse race track, detouring to cut across the field to the horse pens. It was a great ride! The quality of the video is not bad considering I took it back when I still had my old digital camera.


Click Here to Visit BLOG VILLAGE

MnC's Disclaimer: At no time is excessive force, cruelty or brutality used when training the horses pictured in this blog. Reinforcing pats and firm gentleness, along with calmness from the trainers, encourage the horses to do as they are asked.

TnT Bound for Australia, then Texas...

Well, this weekend I take my cowboys to LAX. They are going to Australia for two weeks! They will visit the Great Barrier Reef, Cairns, Uluru (Ayers Rock), and Sydney. There is a possibility that they will visit an Australian Ranch, too! They bought digital cameras just for their trip, so I will have lots of pictures to share with you when they get back!

This month is going to be a busy one...we will be packing for the trip and move, feeding horses, cleaning pens and tack rooms out, feeding puppies, finding homes for puppies, when TnT get back from Australia, they will be packing up their belongings, all five horses, four dogs (...and Mom's heart...) and moving to Pecos, TX. We are in the process of securing a place for TnT and the dogs to live and stables for the horses.

The setting for Mustang 'n' Cowboys will be moving to Texas!!! As native Texans, TnT are excited about their move! They have talked about going back for years. Pecos, Texas is steeped in western history and is the "Home of the World's First Rodeo"! This does not mean that the blogging will stop. This blog will be my link to Travis and Tony, the horses and the dogs!!! Remember too, that one of the horses is mine!

Click Here to Visit BLOG VILLAGE


MnC's Disclaimer: At no time is excessive force, cruelty or brutality used when training the horses pictured in this blog. Reinforcing pats and firm gentleness, along with calmness from the trainers, encourage the horses to do as they are asked.