Massie Lodge

has formally been pronounced "Resolved" from the DPI and we can now throw the doors open again. Its been amazing this past week trying to get Permits from the DPI to move horses around - actually amazing isnt the right word .... *@#$% ! Difficult was the first thing that came to mind.

In the meantime, all the broodmares and their babies ( 2 boys and 2 girls - how convenient!) are doing well with newest baby, Harry (pictured above with his mum, Epiphany) coming along in leaps and bounds every day. Talk about a sweetie and mum is very protective of her little boy, which is great to see. There has been great improvement in his back legs already so we are envisioning letting them out of their stable yard into the bigger yard for an hour or so tomorrow.

How nice was it being able to go to bed at a reasonable hour and not moving for 8 hours? Hmmm. It was very nice.

Bessie Merle continues to waddle around with her bundle and is becoming very uncomfortable with her stomach. Not much longer to go there so we will get all the sleep we can before the Curly Coat puppies arrive

We have been very blessed with 4 healthy foals - even after Equine Influenza. A big thank you to Monika for her guidance through the outbreak and the level of care she gave to all the broodies.

Well, its nearly 8.30pm and I really want to sit down and watch House. LOL

Be good!

Helen.

Miss Daisy

Maybe if I bend right down I can pick up the hay?

We're Just Wild About Harry!

And Harry (named because he is Kewl) makes the last of the Massie Lodge foals to be safely delivered. Well done Miss Pip, you did good girl.

AAAAAAAAAAAh...

Sunday... there is nothing like waking up and knowing that you dont have to rush anywhere or do anything too stressful. That is, however, if all the mares have had their babies and are safe with their mothers, trying to share their feeds (like Local News and her Conatus colt, Jack - pictured left).

Unfortunately for both Evan and I, Miss Pip (Epiphany) still has not had her Conatus baby and we are on Foal Watch duty and we are both fairly tired by this stage - however, we will continue to sit up and do shifts until she decides its the right time to have her baby!

We have been pretty much blessed with over 2 inches of rain over the period Thursday - Saturday and of course the property is a quagmire but there are no complaints in this household. Finally, all 4 dams are looking healthy and full of water and the paddocks are now sprouting nice summer grass (instead of weeds!). So, today being the first dry day for a little bit, it was spent loading the washing machine!

Friday saw a visit from our favourite owners and good friends, the Koch's and a good time was had by all chewing the fat (and drinking the wine!). A trip on Saturday morning to see Dirtiere at Paul Moody's and then out to dinner in Warwick on Saturday night.

Bits and Pieces

Maz - the poor wee boy has really had a bad time of it since being vaccinated for EI with a bad reaction to the serum and Maz hitting his eye after a severe storm made it's way through Ballina. It's time for Maz to have some time out of the stable and we are currently speaking with the DPI to find out what our options are (or aren't as the case may be) for getting him home or finding a reliable and trustworthy soul to look after him for a month down Ballina way.

Shorts - Has been put out into the spelling paddock for a month as she became shinsore after her first Barrier Trial.

Centenn - will be back on track next week at the Gold Coast. Go Bob!!

Hopefully Kenny Kinjite and Wee Jim will be on their way to Paul Moody's - travel permits notwithstanding.

Bessie Merle - the countdown is now on for darling Merle. We are expecting her to give birth around December 3. Watch this space!

Well, time for me to go and put my feet up and relax a little before work starts again tomorrow.

Life is good - isn't it!

Helen.

Miss Pip ... still waiting

The very cute, Miss Trixie with her mum, Joie.

Dirty Girl On The Road To Recovery

Its a long way there... Its a long way to where Im going.

(LRB)

Just Chilling.

It has never been the intention of this Blog to make comment on what's happening in the weird and wonderful industry that is the Thoroughbred Industry, rather it's a vehicle to communicate with our clients and friends on the day to day happenings with our equine residents.

However, the news coming out of the Enquiry into the Eastern Creek "Disaster" does warrent mention and the news on www.breedingandracing.com.au today is just CHILLING.

EI Inquiry 1: Grooms Signed Docs Without Reading

Retired High Court judge Ian Callinan's Inquiry into how Equine Influenza entered Australia heard yesterday how jet-lagged grooms signed documents without reading them on arrival at Sydney's Eastern Creek Quarantine Station. James Carey, a senior groom who accompanied a group of stallions from Coolmore in Ireland on August 8, said flight delays meant the trip took 40 hours & all he wanted to do was settle the horses & go to bed, noting: "I recall meeting (station manager) Greg Hankins & signing papers before being given a swipe card & gate key. After a 40 or 50-hour trip from Ireland, we had problems with the flight & I was very badly jet-lagged; at that point, the best thing you want to do at that time of night is get settled as quickly as possible." Gabriel Walsh, another Coolmore groom on the same flight, said he was too tired to read what he was signing & merely flicked through the papers. One of the stallions in that shipment was Encosta De Lago, subsequently the 1st horse diagnosed with EI on August 17.

EI Inquiry 2: Eastern Creek Log Book Often Not Signed

Coolmore groom James Carey also said a log book grooms were supposed to sign every time they left & re-entered the Eastern Creek station (administered by the Australian Quarantine & Inspection Service) was not always used because it could not be located. Carey explained: "The book that was supposed to be used for the grooms to sign in & out was kept in the common area of the grooms' quarter. There were 15 guys sharing the common room & the book might sometimes be near a cooking pot, then might be under 6 magazines & you might not see it for days."


EI Inquiry 3: Virus Spread From Encosta To Others

Coolmore groom James Carey also told the Callinan Inquiry that although he did not read the quarantine instructions at Eastern Creek carefully, he had spent 4 years in pre-export & post-arrival quarantine situations & knew what he should do, particularly hygiene requirements, specifically: "I always took showers before I left Eastern Creek. Our work is not the cleanest work & as a matter of general hygiene I don't wear dirty clothes when I go out." Carey told how at 7am on the morning the Coolmoore stallions had arrived at Eastern Creek, Encosta De Lago had "an elevated temperature of 38.6 degrees, a slight cough & a nasal discharge". However Carey explained he had no experience of EI in Ireland (where horses are vaccinated against the virus) & did not contemplate that was the cause of Encosta De Lago's illness. He told how, over the next few days, the horses in the immediate vicinity of Encosta De Lago also showed similar symptoms. Carey said temperatures of all horses at Eastern Creek were routinely taken twice a day & recorded in a diary, as well as in chalk on the outside of each stallion's stable door, but until the EI outbreak occurred, he saw no evidence of AQIS staff "taking interest in the temperatures recorded on the stable doors".

Just Chilling.

Once Upon A Time...

there were a plane load of horses that went unchecked:-

(An Article by Caryl Williamson)

A plane carrying five stallions from Japan to Australia did not get checked by quarantine officers in Sydney because it had come via Melbourne even though customs officers were still required to clear the passengers.

The August 8 flight also arrived in Sydney without one of the horses expected at the livestock transfer area after it was offloaded in Melbourne, the inquiry into Australia's equine influenza outbreak was told on Tuesday.

Customs officer Gianna Bucciarelli said when she went to process the passengers she asked an officer from the Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service (AQIS) if they were heading to the same plane.

"I explained to them that there were five grooms on board that had not been cleared for customs and immigration, and the AQIS officer responded that they weren't required to board that flight because it was a domestic flight from Melbourne," Bucciarelli said.

The veterinary officer in charge of the AQIS livestock transfer facility, Dr Yan Hee Song, said there were health certificates for five horses at the airport but only four arrived.
"I was told the plane had landed in Melbourne and told head office there were only four horses," Dr Yan said.

The four horses which did arrive in Sydney were Coolmore stallion Rock Of Gibraltar, Snitzel (Arrowfield Stud), Grandera (Darley Australia) and Stravinsky who is owned by Coolmore but normally stands the southern hemisphere season at New Zealand's Cambridge Stud.

Black Hawk, who stands at Eliza Park in Victoria, was the horse which remained in Melbourne.
Earlier Dr Yan said there was little control over how many people could access the international stallions when they arrived at Sydney airport.

He said his primary concern was with the offloading of the horses from the air stalls and subsequent loading onto trucks for transportation to the Eastern Creek quarantine centre and he carried out those duties in a corral area.

He said he had no knowledge what happened outside the corral and whether or not people such as the horses' owners had boarded the aircraft before coming to his area.

He said the shipping agents were aware of regulations regarding biosecurity such as wearing overalls or showering before they came in contact with other horses and he relied on them to carry out the protocols.

However, he said he did not know whether the other people in the area had touched the horses when they boarded the planes.

Tony Meagher, counsel assisting the inquiry which is being conducted by retired High Court judge Ian Callinan, showed Dr Yan documents relating to the shipment of the horses from Japan which noted discrepancies in the place of pre-export quarantine for one and the date of vaccination for another.

Dr Yan said the discrepancy regarding vaccination had been noted at the NSW office when the documentation was sent there for checking and referred to AQIS head office in Canberra.
He said that corral was hosed down after the horses left for Eastern Creek and he himself had several sets of overalls which were laundered and gumboots which were disinfected.

The first case of EI in Australia was confirmed in a stallion at Eastern Creek on August 17, the same day racing was halted in Japan due to an outbreak of the virus.

Racehorses in Japan are vaccinated against EI, minimising the damage to the racing industry which was shut down for a week while it has been three months since any metropolitan meetings have been conducted in Sydney or Brisbane.


... and the rest is HISTORY.


Helen.

Waiting..

waiting, waiting... Miss Pip (Epiphany) continues to lug her huge tummy around waiting for the arrival of her Conatus baby. Her udder has certainly started to bag up and its just a matter of days now until her life is not her own anymore for the next 6 months or so (then we have a bit of a reprieve until Bessie Merle has her pups in December).

I have to say that I will be glad when foal watch is over for the season and that sleep patterns can get back to normal.

Its been a very strange type of day here at Massie Lodge today with a few rain showers and a gloomy overcast type of day - not a summer day by any stretch of the imagination, the type of day that you just want to sit on the lounge and vege out with your favourite DVDs and comfort food.

All the mums and babes are doing well and its just a joy to be able to spend some time with them, watching the foals learning and starting to eat (without teeth!).

Tonight sees leftover Zucchini and Pea Risotto for dinner (yes, I made it, are you shocked?), a glass of wine and some time watching a movie or two on the lounge with Evan and the canines. (We are going to have to buy another lounge for Bessie if she has 9 pups .... lol Hahahaha, there is no way that we will be keeping 9 pups! She has been told 2 only - 1 liver and 1 black thanks).


Enjoy! (I know we will be!)

Helen.

Happiness Is ....

Being Wif My Mum - Of Course!

Naturally,

everything is about the babies at the moment ... and even though I have been pretty sick with this cold, it hasnt stopped me spending some time with them and watching them develop.

Miss Pip is now a few days overdue and not quite ready even at this point in time - I guess when she is ready, she will deliver her Conatus baby (um, Miss Pip, can we have another one like Jacko please?).

Joie is doing very nicely, with babyTrixie very energetic and most confident within herself. She isnt shy at all about coming up to you and is most interested in what mum is eating (although mum is NOT interested in her eating her dinner!). She really is a sweet filly and Joie's owner is very happy with their latest addition to the family.

Maddy and Daisy have been put into the hospital paddock as we are not quite happy with Daisy's front legs - still, its a better arrangement for them than being stuck in the stable.

We have moved Gossips and Jacko out of the paddock with Mads and back in with mother-to-be Pip and they are spending their days picking around the house and front paddock.

Hopefully all being well I will be back at work on Monday.

Helen

The very sweet Miss Trixie with Joie and Evan. She is just a sweetie.

The very handsome Master Jack (by Conatus) who is a cracker of a colt and one we are very proud of.

AAAAAAAAAAAh...

Is there anything worse than having a head cold? The fact that your nose is red raw from blowing, your top lip is swollen from wiping. Your eyes are runny and red - and 2 senses have up and left you and gone on holiday.

To continue, your head feels all fuzzy and you just struggle to move one leg in front of the other. Its a real glamour time for the incumbent and Evan has signed a Document of Decree that no photos of the said cold infected face will get posted onto the internet!

I am not a happy bunny about getting a cold ... and no, it's not Equine Influenza!

All the babies are doing well, with Joie becoming the most competent mother in such a short space of time. We have been letting Joie and Trixie out into the little yard for a couple of hours each day - she is going to be a grey beauty!

Meanwhile Miss Pip continues to wait for the arrival of her babe with not long to go now.

Did I mention that we will be welcoming the pitter patter of tiny canine paws late December?

Helen.

Choooooooooooooo !

Am I or Arn't I? (Part II)

IAM!

Last night at around midnight, maiden mare, Joie (Joie de Victoire) had her Portland Player filly, Trixie. As you can see, she is a lovely little filly with lots of leg to grow into.

Joie handled the birth like a pro and after a bit of a shakey start to motherhood ( "omg, what is this thing that wants to hang on to my belly?"), has settled in to be a beautiful mum.

One more left and hopefully its not tonight - Miss Pip, we would like to get a full nights sleep!
Seeing a foal born never ceases to amaze me.

The very cute Miss Trixie - only 6 hours old.

Lots of Green in the Red Zone

You dont have to be Einstein to work out where the Massie Lodge canines are headed to! And let me tell you that they all had a ball (and of course came back saturated and with lots of mud attached). Still, Iam not one to complain that we have had an additional 11mls of rain during the past day or so.

Time for the Humans to go into town this morning and recirculate into the population! First off was morning tea at the nice coffee shop in Palmerin Street with the tables on the sidewalk and the coffee that was mostly coffee and not milk! Then it was off to our most often visited haunt, AgFreighters to get Horse food. Followed by a few stops on the way home to get various bits and pieces. Not to forget that we went home via Lyndhurst Lane to check out their babies.

Warwick has just turned green. Its just amazing to think that this once brown, dusty town is now a lush green area. It just never ceases to amaze me.

As I look out the window over my computer monitor I can see Pippy and Joie grazing beautifully through the longish grass outside the study window and if I turn around I can see Maddie and Daisy out amongst their own green heaven.

The two boys, Jimmy and Kenny are picking down near the contour that is full of water still...

I think I can forgive the mud for the moment..... just!

Yesterday

I took the day off from blogging, from working on the websites (that seems to take up such a great amount of time), from taking photos and spending time with our new babies and donned my favourite Martha Stewart Apron and gave the house a go-through. You can see how rich and full my life is.... LOL ... no, sometimes you just have to stop doing the things that give you joy and just take a leap into the revolting things that have no appeal to you whatsoever - like folding and/or ironing the washing, washing the floors, doing the vacuuming, cleaning the bathroom and the toilet.

I will tell you a secret - I have to fold the washing in front of the TV, otherwise I will lose interest and just let it sit there. Hands up one person who looks forward to folding the washing? (I bet there are not many hands up in the air!!). I have to be desperate to wear something before it gets ironed!

lol

Tomorrow sees the running of the Melbourne Cup and Iam avidly waiting for my PASS email to arrive to give me the low down on the runners. (I have to say that I did ask Evan about his thoughts and he said to me to wait and read the email). I guess I have followed Master O Reilly this far ... lol.

Good luck to everyone having a punt on the Melbourne Cup - I might give my Sports Bet Account a bit of a work out tomorrow!

Helen.

Daddy's boy

One of the great things about living with the horses, is actually just watching them and seeing them interact - be it a herd of dry mares, wet mares and their foals or just a group of spellers who come here to remember that they are indeed horses and not just racing machines.

I spent sometime this morning out with the mum's and their darling foals and even though they are just about a week old, they are now really testing out their mum's mothering abilities to keep the lively youngsters in line.

Take young Jack. As you will see above, he is really testing Gossy to her mothering limits already and if he is anything like his darling dad, she will be in for a fulltime job to keep this young man in line.


*sigh* would you be anywhere but the redzone? (lol)

Helen

p.s. The ballet last night was fantastic! It was really funny and those guys certainly can show up the girls - and no, I didnt fall asleep!

Men in What?

Men in Tutu's of course!

Les Ballets Grandiva's - Men In Tutus

Grandiva has been hailed by critics as “The greatest exponents of all male comedy ballet in the world today”. With $3 million in costumes, smash hit “Men In Tutus” is a show designed for male, female, young and old.

It’s the largest company of its kind in the world, with twenty (20) of the best international male ballet dancers from thirteen (13) countries. These handsome and beautiful soloists have performed with renowned ballet companys including Bolshoi and Kirov Ballets, New York Ballet, Paris Opera Ballet, American Ballet Theatre, the Royal Ballet, National Ballet of Canada, Royal Swedish Ballet, English National Ballet, Royal Danish Ballet, to name a few.

Grandiva’s “Men In Tutus” is the ultimate send up of both classical and contemporary ballet. The combination of brilliant dancing technique, tongue in cheek and blatant humour with intentional foibles, dancing mishaps and of course hissy fits by men playing both male and female roles.


I am off to see this tonight at The Empire Theatre in Toowoomba (someone just piked out and flatly said "no") ... Im not normally one to sit through the Ballet, although I have to admit that I haven't been to the Ballet for fear that I might fall asleep during it (just ask Evan about what happens when we sit down to watch a movie at 8.30pm!).

I am hoping that I will enjoy this and since we're going to the early session, Im hoping that I wont embarrass myself! LOL

Helen.

Daisy and Jack

Madely Miss (Maddy) and her Portland Player filly, Daisy

Local News (Gossips) and her Conatus colt, Jack

Hmm... Can i have some while you're not looking?

Happiness Is...

having a 30 acre paddock full of the green stuff to pick and a dam full of water to drink and swim in. The dry ladies have settled well into their new paddock together, although Sweetie is feeling the crunch and missing her mate Joie as she has no muscle to back her up in the power play that took place the time the 4 ladies were put together.

Although Sweetie likes Lucy, its not the same as having Joie as her backup and she has been relegated to no. 3 in the pecking order so far with Notty (Why for Not) the leader of the group.

This is just what the doc ordered for little Lucy - a huge paddock to do some growing up in and some sensible role models in Notty and Southern (not her mother Sweetie though!).



Why for Not and Another Southern

If you lead a dog to water...

then dont expect anything else but wet and muddy canines. After another 20 mls of rain last night, it seemed only the fair thing to take the Massie Lodge canines down to inspect the dams again. Naturally, when they got sight of where I was headed - they were off!

Last one in is a rotten egg! lol