Clair Mare arrives! plus unrelated evening mayhem

Clair Mare arrived at the farm yesterday. Her former owners got her trailered over from Dallas nice and early, before it got too hot. She was supremely unstressed by the trip -- not even sweating. She was also unstressed by her new surroundings: interested, but not afraid (not even of the mini donkeys). We popped her in a stall with a run to start and gave her some hay, which she munched in between explorations. She was being extra mareish with her gelding neighbor; I hope that winds down as she settles in. She is so sweet to people but a little bitchy towards geldings.

We only had just so much time to spend before I had to get back to work, so I don't have great pictures yet. It was noon in the bright Lubbock sun, and I had sunglasses on. Basically I pointed my iPhone in her general direction and had no idea what I was shooting. But here are a couple arrival shots.

Towards the end of my work day I had a 911 text from my husband. Two of our dogs had gotten into a fight (over a tennis ball) and in trying to break up the fight he had gotten knocked flat on his back, which is already chronically injured. He was a wreck, and the two dogs were a wreck. I walked into what looked like carnage and a husband on the floor with back spasms so bad he looked like he was having a seizure. He was all, "I'm fine; take the dogs to the vet!" Which would have been funny if I hadn't been so scared he had a fracture. I called friends who came over and took the dogs to the vet while I took Ted to the ER. I got a call from the friends before long that neither dog was really hurt -- just a few bites on each of them, and one of them had a good laceration on her ear that was the source of all the blood. Dogfights often look and sound like they're killing each other, but in the end it's usually all sound and fury but no real injuries.

Ted really was a wreck when we got to the ER, but they gave him injections of pain meds and muscle relaxers, and two hours later he was so much better. He was able to wobble out on his own two feet, and he slept pretty well. More drugs this morning, and he's sleeping again. The horrible spasms are mostly gone. Our health insurance kicks in September 1, and he is SO GOING to a back specialist!