by Jan Fielden

 

This story is going to be about Sundance but first I want to share something! Today, we had a Painted Bunting (bird) land on our porch and stay for a few minutes. Absolutely beautiful. It was red, green, blue, yellow, and maybe a little orange. What a treat it was to see it. Hopefully he/she will come back.

I usually let Sundance run during the summer unless it is going to storm. I put her up last night, just because. I gave her oats and fresh water. There was plenty of green grass in the paddock for her but she wanted to be with her herd…the Yearling Herd. So, she runs and runs in the same pattern and ends up at the gate waiting to go into the Horse Pasture. She did finally settle down but she wasn’t real happy. I groomed her and she liked that and kept turning for me to do this side then that side, etc. I finally told her I had to go because I had supper in the oven.

I went down to let her out today to rejoin her herd and she didn’t want to go. At least not right away. She kept coming over to me for me to rub her and pet her. I had the gate wide open and she would look out into the pasture but she wouldn’t go. She walked over and got a drink out of her tub and came back to me. I talked to her, petted her, opened the gate some more, and opened it in instead of out, nothing. She just stood looking at me and coming up so I could pet her some more. I loved it and evidently she did too. The Colonel said she looked as if she was more interested in being petted and loved than going out. He was right! She did eventually go. The animals at the Red Oak Ranch feel loved!