By: Richard

It was a very good time on the property this past weekend. We had a new blessing added to our little family of Miniature Donkeys. Anastasia had a little baby boy. We were hoping for a girl but when we saw how cute he was and how wonderful his personalty is we fell in love with him anyway.

This little guy has no fear of humans what so ever. Have you ever picked up a new born, put them in your lap and had them go to sleep! Even Anastasia was ok with it. Katrina thinks everything should be held and kissed so she wasted no time grabbing the little guy, sitting down and started scratching him. It only took a few minutes and he was sound asleep. She didn’t do this just once but multiple times over the weekend.

I am impressed but I am waiting for the time when he is 6 months old, had a bad day in the pasture and wants Katrina to put him in her lap and rock him to sleep!

Here is the new little baby and his mother.

Katrina has just got the little guy to sleep and his mom is not the least bit concerned.

He is a doll and as friendly as any new baby we have ever seen.

I want to see Katrina try this in six months.

He does have a little playful side that is also starting to come out.

Look at that; his eyes are closed and he is sound asleep and I think Katina is about gone also.

Technorati Tags: Baby, miniature donkey, new born

By: Katrina

You often hear stories about family members reconnecting after many years. It just happened to me!

When my step-daughter and her husband moved to Tennessee, they went to the local shelter to adopt a dog. They were given the name and phone number of a local veterinarian that offered low cost spay and neuter services. It turns out that the veterinarian that vaccinated and spayed their new puppy is my cousin, Jana.

The last time I saw Jana, was in California (just north of San Diego) and I was 10 years old. THAT WAS MANY YEARS AGO!!!!!! As I child, I visited their mini ranch which was filled with dogs, cats and horses, including a Missouri Fox Trotter. That was the last I saw of Jana because her family moved away to Bend, OR .

Being a “blood” relative, of course, Jana would have to love animals. Well she does! Jana and her husband recently moved to Tennessee started up a small animal veterinary practice (Anderson Vet Clinic, Christiana, TN) just north of Shelbyville and raise and show Tennessee Walking Horses.

Dick and I recently watched Jana and her daughter Hannah showing at the International Grand Championship for Pleasure and Colts in Murfreesboro, TN. They walked away with a large assortment of ribbons.

Wow, I look forward to reconnecting with a long, lost relative!!!!

Technorati Tags: Lost relative, tennessee walking horse, veterinarian

Just a month ago, our new Spotted Junior Herdsire, KKR Sroke of Midnight arrived from Texas. This little guy was so woolly!  Over the Memorial Day weekend, we spent countless hours removing his long, beautiful hair. Look at the Before and After photos!!!!

BEFORE:

AFTER:

Technorati Tags: baby donkey, baby miniature donkey, KKR Miniature Donkeys, Miniature Donkeys

By: Katrina

Farm life brings the euphoria and delight of having a precious newborn enter our life, as well as the grief with the unfortunate loss of life. This week, we experienced both. On May 5, we welcomed our beautiful “Buttons” into the world, who is as wonderful as we anticipated. Sadly, we lost Cobra’s Angel and her long-awaited baby. We are truly heart-broken, but cherish the time that we had beautiful Angel in our lives.  We want to thank Dr. Nathanial Wright and his associates at Tennessee Equine Hospital.  Angel is now at home resting with the Lord.

Technorati Tags: angel, birth, cobra's angel, death, farm life, Tennessee Equine Hospital

By: Richard

Did you ever play Marco Polo in the swimming pool as a kid? You know; you close your eyes and yell “Marco” and the other kids yell back “Polo” and you try to find them. Well today I played “Marco Polo” in the barn but it was really “Louise Meow”. I also kept my eyes open even if it was an unfair advantage.

Let me explain. I went out to the barn this morning to feed the little miniature donkeys. The first thing I usually do is encounter Thelma and Louise, the barn cats. Thelma is usually just returning from a night of hunting in the woods behind the barn and Louise is usually just waking up from a night of restful sleep in the hay loft. On this morning Thelma greeted me in the grain room with a meow and then another and another. This was unlike her and there was no Louise. I really didn’t think much about it until I went out into the stall area and heard more meows.

These were obviously coming from Louise and sounded somewhat distant so I figured she was up in the hay loft and would soon be down to say hello and get a little loving. As I fed animals she still did not come around but kept meowing. Now I had to figure out what was wrong.

I would yell out “Louise” and a “Meow” would echo back. I kept yelling “Louise” as I walked through the barn. The “Meow” would get louder and then quieter. As the banter continued I began to hone in on the allusive meow.

Then I found it. The “Meow” was coming from the tack room. I opened the door and out sprang Louise. She meoooooowed and ran for the grain room and some breakfast!

We have had a hectic couple of days around here, which you will read about soon, and Katrina had accidentally locked Louise in the tack room when she was turning off the water to the stalls the night before.

All is well and Louise and I have a new game to play.

Technorati Tags: lost cat, marco polo, thelma and louise

Many of you who know we are located in Murfreesboro, TN have called and emailed about our well being. Our town was hit by a disastrous tornado today that left many homeless and several dead. Our property and animals were spared of any damage but just a short distance away there is major devastation.

I was at my desk; looked out my window and saw the tornado pass by just a short distance away. It is Mother Nature at her worst.

This home was located just around the corner from a property we own. Ours suffered only minor damage.

This is the remains of a company’s office building that I have done consulting work with in the past.

Please say a prayer for those that were not so lucky.

What appears to be a pile of scrap metal in this photo is actually a number of semi trailers blown into a pile. Look carefully at the right side of the photo and you can make out some of the more complete trailers.

The National Weather Service said the tornado tore a 23.5-mile path through Murfreesboro and packed winds as high as 165 mph. The width of the storm was a half-mile, and it was on the ground for 36 minutes.

Technorati Tags: Murfreesboro, Tornado

Very shortly we will begin to offer a new feature on our site. We will be doing reviews of certain products and providing our opinions of how well they work or how useful they may be. We already have a few things lined up and we are very excited about sharing this with you.

If you have any products that you have been wondering about and would like us to take a look at send us an email with the name and description of the item. If it is within our ability to obtain the product we will then post the results right here for you to consider.

Email your suggestions to richard@legendaryfarms.com or katrina@legendaryfarms.com.

Technorati Tags: help, product review, questions

The following is the philosophy of recently deceased Charles Schulz, the creator of the ‘Peanuts’ comic strip.

You don’t have to actually answer the questions.

Just read straight through, and you’ll get the point.

1. Name the five wealthiest people in the world.

2. Name the last five Heisman trophy winners.

3. Name the last five winners of the Miss America pageant.

4. Name ten people who have won the Nobel or Pulitzer Prize.

5. Name the last half dozen Academy Award winners for best actor and actress.

6. Name the last decade’s worth of World Series winners.

How did you do?

The point is , none of us remember the headliners of yesterday.

These are no second-rate achievers.

They are the best in their fields.

But the applause dies..

Awards tarnish.

Achievements are forgotten.

Accolades and certificates are buried with their owners.

Here’s another quiz. See how you do on this one:

1. List a few teachers who aided your journey through school.

2. Name three friends who have helped you through a difficult time.

3. Name five people who have taught you something worthwhile.

4. Think of a few people who have made you feel appreciated and special!!

5. Think of five people you enjoy spending time with.

Easier?

The lesson:

The people who make a difference in your life are not the ones with the most credentials..

the most money…or the most awards.

They simply are the ones who care the most.

Technorati Tags: animals, charles schulz, comic strip, friends, peanuts, snoopy

By: Katrina

When we first moved to Tennessee, on the property we bought, were two horses. We purchased both horses and were excited about trail riding. One of the horses was a magnificent Tennessee Walking Horse.

Well about one year ago, Dick decided to be a lumberjack, cut down a tree on the property and unfortunately, the tree landed on him breaking six ribs and his right arm. His arm has never 100% healed and he absolutely cannot ride horses.

With this incident, I realized it was not fair to have the two horses and not ride them regularly. Therefore, I made the very painful decision to sell Brit. He really needed to be in a home where he was ridden regularly.

Brit is a beautiful horse and sold rather quickly to a gentleman who loves to trail ride back in the woods most weekends. Recently, we received an E-Mail from Brit’s owner and I was so touched to know that Brit was in the perfect home. Below is the E-Mail:

“I have been meaning to drop you a line & tell you about Brit .He has been the best !!! I really appreciate your honesty he is everything you said he was & more. The day after I got him we rode 25-28 miles on some of the roughest trails I have ever been on at Circle E Ranch . He was hot as a pistol in the beginning but he settled down quickly & was great! We bonded that day & he does everything I ask of him . I have ridden him 100’s of miles - every weekend that the sun shines since. He is fed oats & grain daily plus bermuda hay when in the stall & I keep a round bale of hay in the pasture constantly & he has 3 horse companions& 3 donkeys to keep him company! My friend that rode with me at Circle E & other trail rides said that it was a 1& million shot at getting a great horse like Brit the way I did & constantly tries to buy him from me but HE ISN’T FOR SALE !!!!!! Everywhere I go someone offers me more money for him but I don’t think I could find another horse like him - thank you so much if every one was as honest as you buying a horse would be easier than it is & I assure you Brit will have the best care money can buy & a  constant companion that he truly deserves . “

WOW, this sure warms my heart!

Technorati Tags: brit, Circle E Ranch, Sold Horse, tennessee walking horse

By: Katrina

I adore longears! Along with our Miniature Donkeys, we do have one Mule, Dixie. About 1/2 hour from our home, in McMinnville, TN; a special Mule by the name of “Lou” brayed and acted up to get her owner’s attention. Her owner, Jolene Solomon was inside the home eating supper on New Year’s Day.

She went outside to see why Lou was acting up, and discovered her house was on fire. Her home burned to the ground and she credits her beloved mule, Lou for saving her life.

This story is heartwarming and reminds us how special animals are in our life. When I was a child, my horses and ponies were frantically running around all night long causing a commotion. Early that morning, we had the major Sylmar earthquake in Southern California that toppled the Olive View hospital, created wide spread damage and had everyone fearful for weeks due to multiple aftershocks. Our animals seemed to know hours before the quake hit that there was to be a major event. It’s amazing how animals communicate with humans to notify us of danger.

Technorati Tags: Dixie, donkey, earthquake, fire, Lassie, Lou, McMinnville, Miniature Donkeys, mule, Sylmar