Scissor Reform Act of 2008

In with the new! Well, officially, no one is out but, we have a new stall cleaner today at Fields Quarter Horses. Having a new employee join our ranks is anxious and exciting all in the same breath. Maybe because we spend so much time together, maybe because the barn and horses become our lives, whatever the reason, it is imperative that we enjoy the personalities of the people we surround ourselves with at the barn.

The stall cleaners have the inglorious charge of making sure that every horse has clean, dry shavings in their stalls everyday. They also are in charge of spider patrol and removing cobwebs from the nooks and crannies. (We lost a stall cleaner once to a spider incident- by the way) And, if that weren't enough, they also have to ensure that the horses water buckets are clean.

Water buckets can quickly grow organisms which could rival alien life forms. I believe that someday NASA will assign a division to study them. Some horses like to dunk their hay into them, some like to drop and soften their grain pellets. And, of course, the occassional piglet horse will use his water bucket as a bathroom. Needless to say, stall cleaners jobs directly affect the health and happiness of the horses who live in our barn.

I have heard nightmarish stories from other barn owners which included workers sleeping on the job, wasting resources, and worst of all abusing horses. Thankfully, the most dubious stall cleaning incident which has ever occurred on our property was when Kenny decided to "trim" Kay's forelock because he thought she would be more comfortable if she could see better. That single act prompted the sweeping Scissor Reform Act of 2008 which regulated the handling of scissors by unauthorized users. Yet another example of big government in our lives.

As the day progresses, we will evaluate how the new person is blending into the existing personalities at hand. Will there be a turf war when Nick (tenured stall cleaner) arrives after school today? Will the new stall cleaner return tomorrow? These and other questions remain open to destiny. We'll keep you posted!