Mares at Cheshire Farms

Artist Notes: OMG This took me so long to do. When I started it orginally, I didn't have so many mares. Now it's all of my mares, including the recent foals of 2010.

The Mares at Cheshire Farms
A few days after the imported mares arrived, we introduced them to the rest of the herd which spent their winter time out in the north pasture. In order to get to the pasture you either had to horse back ride, or take the ATV since it was the very last one on our property. Around this time of the year, we usually bring the mares in to the pasture that boarders the house so we can watch the foals play. But the winter freeze this year destroyed the grass in that pasture, so we are leaving them in the winter pasture while we reseed the other one. Here they have hearty grass, and fresh running water all day long. In the afternoon we take a trailer out there with some pre-natal enriched home made feed that they get as a supplement.

One day as the sun was setting, Jezanna Arlington, one of our grooms who is a Photography major at the community college decided to take out one of the ATVs and try to get a photograph of all the mares. Around this time of day the mares like to graze by the river, and thankfully there was palm tree which grew at an angle that Jezanna could climb up to take a better photo. She was just able to get all the mares in picture, even the large draft mare Penne.

Most of the mares like to graze on the East side of the river, so the other side is rather over run with tall grasses. The imported mares haven't mixed into the other band just yet. But the two mares with foals have been welcomed and can be seen playing in the river. The river is not to deep, Quatrine isn't swimming but soaking in the river after having a nice little roll.

Some horses to look out for are:
Choto's Shadow of Lir, our Grulla brindle laying down with Wynn, the linebacked Cremello, off to the left of the image. Our first two foals of 2010 out of Bianca and Fox crossing the river. Agged mare Azulee the blue roan, and her Grulla daughter Keira grazing by the rivers edge. Jacinth the dunskin overo mare having a good roll. The first picture of Kiko the brown mustang mare who foaled the stallion Kaleo. In the background there is Della Stella racing the two champagne mares Ambra and Ambrina with her twin dunalino foals trying to keep up. And coming out of the bushed is our birdcatcher spotted lead mare, and endurance champion Sparrow Hawk.