I'm absolutely sick to death of winter

Casey76

Casey76

Well-Known Member
Joined
16 July 2011
Messages
3,651
Location
North East, UK
Visit site
Ok, this winter has been pretty exceptional. We've barely come up above 0C for the past 6 weeks, and have spent many, many days and nights at -10C or even lower (that's 10-20F in old money). We've only had a little snow, so everything is just frozen solid. The ground, the school, the water buckets.

My field has been frozen into ruts of untold proportions, live a lunar landscape. Blitz has really bruised his feet (combination of being trimmed poorly/too short and having to walk on said lunar landscape), and is now in boots to even come out of his stable.

Tartine has also gone on strike, is refusing to eat hay in the field, and is just standing at the gate looking hopeful. Her muscles are rock solid, despite being over rugged and being fed a low carb, high fat diet with recommended supplements.

I am permanently cold, as my heating/house can't cope with the prolonged cold. I've had no running water at home for a week due to frozen pipes.

I'm sick to death of hauling water around.

I just want to hibernate for the rest of winter

</rant over >
 
Oh god what a giant pita. I could cope with the horsey stuff if you had a nice place to snuggle up afterwards but no running water must be the pits, just makes a difficult situation even harder! Is there any sign of warmer weather?
 
You have been having a bad time lots of unsettling stuff going on.
The no running water at home would be the final straw for that sounds awful .
 
That sounds awful, is it like that every year? I'd be seriously contemplating moving if I had to cope with that each year. I'd just imagine it getting harder and harder when i get to a more elderly age. There's a lot to be said for living somewhere where the climate suits you.
 
Such bad luck OP, my horses water tap also freezes pretty easily so I have to lug bucket loads twice a day (enough for 4 horses) across my garden to them which drives me nuts. We've been extremely lucky so far and its only properly frozen for short times as we really haven't hard a winter, IMO its been the mildest winter Ive seen in a long time for us in NE Scotland. We've only had about 3 days of snow. Good luck with seeing it through, it will end soon!
 
I feel for you. We are in 'summer' here. So naturally, this means that my horse has been in a 300gm rug for the last week at night, and then the last two days during the day too. I have a lake in my paddock and I'm feeding hay even though she's on thigh high grass. Bit worried about how high hay prices are going to go, better get mine ordered and paid for...
 
I feel for you! I've got a stinking cold and a black eye a boxer would be proud of so the last thing I wanted to do yesterday was haul buckets of water across 2 fields to my trough. But the pipes are solid & it's empty.

At least I can go home to my beautifully insulated house and have a hot bath afterwards. I think I'd have been on the first flight to Oz if home wasn't warm :-(
 
The best thing I ever did was buy an over-blanket for the bed, it stays on all night in cold weather, and you will be warm as toast.
You might need mohair bedsocks... I love my Bridgedales, they are actually outdoor socks, and last for years in spite of regular abuse. They are warm as toast in boots.
Only keep one room warm if things are desperate, I find this works best, just keep the other doors closed, and curtains are as good as double glazing, so keep them closed as much as possible.
Its a lovely sunny morning here in Bonnie Scotland, , light crisp frost and I am still in my fleecy polkadot bottoms , Christmas slipper-boots, and warm ski underwear, I find I layer up, and get through the day that way, eccentric style helps too :p
 
Yes, yes please ... I want a moan as well! Im fed up, fed up of the cold, fed up of having no running water .. off grid stables .. what was i thinking! weve had no blasted rain so I've no water in winter let alone what it will be like in Summer so Im having to fork out money to get mains water in .. OUCH!!! I'm not even bothering to ride at the weekends now, its cold, ive tons of maintenance to do around the place and any spare time i do get will need to be spent poo picking because its just NEVER ending!!! Today im sat in a hot office with my coat on because i feel cold, ive itchy eyes and throat and feel rubbish .. I must not get manflu!!!!!! Im literally paddling up stream with the water situation, as quick as i fill it they are drinking it. I dread to think what my water bill will be at home! I AM FED UP!!!!
 
Exactly . . I've been moaning about being cold, fed up, tired, trying to cope with horse, dogs, work and OH . . and even putting up with YO that has personality mood swings (I pick up on the vibes). So, I promised myself I'm not going through all this hell again . . So im moving to livery (no more 4.45 starts!).

Only thing I'm stressing about now is not bring in full control of my horse! . .but something had to give. Fed up poo picking, breaking ice, freezing myself to death . .amd arriving at the office shattered . .
 
I think you're being very selfish Casey. Don't you know this cold snap in Europe is affecting us deeply too. WE HAVE A COURGETTE SHORTAGE, FOR GOD'S SAKE. Don't you have any sympathy for us?

Seriously though, that sounds absolutely pants. As milliepops says, I could cope with the horsey stuff if I had a nice warm house with warm water to go back to. Hope it warms up for you soon. In the mean time, have you got a fan heater so you have at least one warm room? Not the cheapest option but well worth it!

One of the best ways I've seen of storing water in really cold weather is to fill a plastic dustbin and bury about 90% of it in the muck heap, then put the lid on to stop the muck falling into it - is that an option to save you lugging it around too much? Only works if your muck heap is closer than your water source I suppose.
 
annagain said:
I think you're being very selfish Casey. Don't you know this cold snap in Europe is affecting us deeply too. WE HAVE A COURGETTE SHORTAGE, FOR GOD'S SAKE. Don't you have any sympathy for us?
Click to expand...

No, I have absolutely no sympathy for your courgette shortage, because they are the food of the devil. Disgusting, slimey things, with a very pervasive smell (just like aubergines). ;)

I have two warm-ish rooms, the bathroom and my bedroom. My bedroom is now completely minging, as the cats (all 8 of them) have taken up residence (being the only warm room they can get into), so there is cat hair and foot prints everywhere (they do come in handy as hot water bottles though, if you don't mind 3am shenanigans!).

Fortunately the temps are meant to be coming up this week, and by Wednesday we should have positive daytime temps, though there is no sign of the negative night time temps abating just yet.
 
Casey76 said:
No, I have absolutely no sympathy for your courgette shortage, because they are the food of the devil. Disgusting, slimey things, with a very pervasive smell (just like aubergines). ;)

I have two warm-ish rooms, the bathroom and my bedroom. My bedroom is now completely minging, as the cats (all 8 of them) have taken up residence (being the only warm room they can get into), so there is cat hair and foot prints everywhere (they do come in handy as hot water bottles though, if you don't mind 3am shenanigans!).

Fortunately the temps are meant to be coming up this week, and by Wednesday we should have positive daytime temps, though there is no sign of the negative night time temps abating just yet.
Click to expand...

Mixed with wild rocket, which I have, it is frost hardy, Courgettes make fab soup, just what you need.

We have French plumbing too and have improved it but we have no water in the yard, just one tap near the house, it means, 50 buckets a day to be lugged. Our sand arena is like concrete so it is road work or only walking. First SJ outing is 6 weeks away, not sure we will make it. Be positive perhaps the flat flies will be killed off in large numbers.

We are kindred spirits, we have 8 house cats too, they won't venture forth either when the weather is like this, unlike their owners.
 
Fragglerock said:
I am loving this winter, still no mud so my normally clay fields are still flat with lots of grass :)
Click to expand...

We had mud then freeze, so my field currently looks like:

16143033_10154446056303337_5092113203535828874_n.jpg


16195044_10154446056348337_1239888319202236341_n.jpg


It's rock hard, and ankle breaking to walk across :/
 
Sounds like you're having a nightmare. Mine seems to be doing okay, in at night and out in the day but I'm interested to know what you are feeding? Struggling to maintain or put weight on at the moment and she looks so flimsy! No sugar though, she's energetic enough as it is, I hate winter. Why can't it always be summer?
 
urgh and I bet you never thought you'd ever look forward to mud Casey! It'll be a bit of light relief (for a brief spell!) when that lot defrosts.
 
Gosh OP that sounds dreadful.

And I was about to write that it hasn't been such a bad winter here! We haven't had that much rain or much frost or snow - yet.

But I have turned into a fair weather rider, I fear. I just don't want to ride in nasty cold/wet weather now. Just hoping things improve for us all soon.
 
I am fed up too :(

So the one time I have been asked to work a weekend (I love my job, I don't begrudge it!) meaning I did 3rd Jan - 13th Jan with no days off, my horse came in on the 9th with a cut on her leg.

6 callouts later (3 out of hours, 2 routine check ups and 1 to sedate and stitch whereby she broke the pregnant vets toe with 2 doses of sedative, a twitch and a leg held up), one set of stitches, an infection, popped stitches, horse trying to climb out of her stable and then refusing to let me touch the wound to change the dressing (I BROKE A NAIL FOR GODS SAKE!) we are finally on the mend, just watching out for proud flesh now.

Ontop of the 11 day stint at work, AND another livery with issues meaning they aren't capable of looking after themselves let alone a horse, I'VE HAD ENOUGH!!! I haven't even had the final bill yet. We are up to £198 with just 2 of the callouts that were just checking her and giving her noradine and bute. I haven't even had the sedation bill or the one for injectable pen & strep, or the bandaging equipment....

Roll on 2018 I say! :D
 
Our fields are also churned up frozen mud. The gateways are the worst because its actually pretty wet (top of wellies type mud) but now there is ice on top. This morning I skated over the top, my mare gently skated over too - then the gelding thundered through crashing ice and mud over both of us.
 
Ellietotz said:
Sounds like you're having a nightmare. Mine seems to be doing okay, in at night and out in the day but I'm interested to know what you are feeding? Struggling to maintain or put weight on at the moment and she looks so flimsy! No sugar though, she's energetic enough as it is, I hate winter. Why can't it always be summer?
Click to expand...

Well mine are on basically ad lib hay (and currently eating about 15kgs a day - each).

They both get 1/2 scoop of Agrobs Muesli for breakfast, and then 1 full scoop of Agrobs Weisencobs soaked in hot water in the evening. On top of this Tartine gets 500g micronized linseed, 200ml mixed oil, 75g unrefined sea salt, 1 measure of ProLaminae+, 1g selenium, 25ml MagOx, and 25ml of FlexiMover and a big handful of BOSS. She is only just maintaining weight on this. (last May she was on a very strict diet to lose weight, now I can hardly keep it on her :/ Atm, she has a big hay belly, but all her ribs are easily feelable, and I've never been able to do that in almost 4 years of ownership)
 
Feel for you Casey.
I hate the frozen ruts.
Not too bad here in North Devon, but my gateways are stoned.
Hope the weather warms up for you soon.
 
I have an idea of how you feel as I went to stay with a friend a couple of winters ago and it was -20 at night and warmed up to -10 in the day. I do remember that the water to the house had frozen awinter or 2 before I went there and it was then very well insulated and boxed round so that it stayed running. and I am fairly sure its now got heat cable on it all now so if the winters get as cold as this again that could be something wort thinking about for you. the horses always seem to manage to cross the ruts a lot better than I do and mine are able to make tracks where they go over them to the flat unrutted part of the field. I hope that when it defrosts the winery temps stay away for you so things are a lot easier and more comfortable for you
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top