August 14, 2013

Summer Cob Humor

One of my favorite things about the Welsh Cob breed is their cheeky sense of humor - which admittedly, isn't right for everyone (though I would argue that it's right for most people!)  “You have to have a sense of humor to train a Welsh Cob, they don’t take life too seriously,” Dr. Marks told me as she was trying to convince me to take Training and Handling II and saddle break her young Welsh Cob, Castleberry’s Protégé.  “You have the right personality.”  That’s the story of how Welsh Cobs chose me.

Though Connor is maturing, the cheeky cobbiness that I love so much is still alive and well, as he’s shown several times this summer:







Click to enlarge. Squiggly line denotes where Connor "escapes" to.
Story 1:
Connor lives in the former stud paddock, a near-drylot with wooden 4 board fence, a gap (large in some areas, small in others), and then an inner 3 strand rope electric fence.  I came out to find him grazing in between the two fences and when I asked, I found out that he had figured out that the electricity was down on one side of the fence and, uh, exploited that to get to the green grass on the other side. Several times they put him back, then found him on the other side of the fence again an hour later, so they finally just left him to “mow the lawn” until the broken part could be replaced.  (He’s in no danger of escaping or hurting himself.)  Bonus: He's super easy to catch while out there.

Story 2:
He bolted from his pasture when the 3 strand electric rope gate was open because his buddy ambled out of instead of into the pasture during turnout.  While his buddy meekly allowed himself to be caught, Connor gleefully ran up and down the lane past all the pastures for twenty minutes before they could catch him.

Story 3:
Connor’s buddy’s fly mask has not stayed on for more than a day at a time all summer.  Nobody knows exactly how it’s coming off, but as I told my trainer, “Doesn’t it seem like something Connor would find fun?”  At least he’s polite about it and takes it off gently and in one piece!

Shae and I on graduation day
Those stories drew up memories for me of Shae, Castleberry's Protege, who once picked up the garden hose Dr. Marks was using to fill her trough and chased her with it, shaking water at her as he went.  He also upended a feed pan with a giant salt block in it, picked it up, carried it about 200ft across his pasture at the College, and dropped it in his stock tank.  Funny how so many funny Cob stories are about water...







"...what?"

16 comments:

  1. Yep, I totally have Quirky Cob stories too. Roscoe is a pro at removing fly masks and if allowed muzzles. This summer he learned that if he goes halfway under his stall guard, while escaping, he can really rub his withers.
    And I still remember being told about Rosemary, 10 months pregnant, very methodically stepping over an 18in bench and going under a rope to escape Peggys barn to get to the cat food.
    Comrade is a master at undoing clips and slide bars.
    It does take a certain type of person to get cob humor.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I completely forgot about clips and bucket hangers. He's destroyed four bucket hangers since he's been here, they had to switch to twine. He just likes playing with buckets. Roscoe is going to grow sometime and get a rude awakening about fitting under the stall guard! I bet you have some great stories.

      Delete
  2. The naughty cob! At least he doesn't get himself into too much trouble!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Too true, I alternate between being mortified and worrying that I'm going to get thrown out of my barn. Haha.

      Delete
  3. These are great!!! I love the chasing with the hose one the best lol!

    ReplyDelete
  4. I cannot wait to have my own fun cob stories. My girl can't get home soon enough.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I think about you all the time, seriously! As soon as my husband is once again employed, there is a baby Cob package/fund contribution heading your way! I am so excited every time I see updates on your blog about Emi.

      Delete
    2. Thanks! She's already so fun, I can only imagine how much fun she will be when she gets older.

      Delete
  5. You should make this a blog series!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I will do that! I just keep them in my head and forget about them until they all add up like these did.

      Delete
  6. i agree with Val this would make an interesting series lol!

    ReplyDelete
  7. That is such an awesome picture :) I love pony humor and its part of why I own one. Connor has so much personality, I love reading your posts because its fun to hear about him and what he's doing/thinking.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks! He does have a huge personality for a little guy. Your girl is gorgeous, by the way!

      Delete
    2. Thank you so much! I'm a little partial to her.

      Delete