Beautyberry, or Callicarpa Americana, is native to Florida. It is drought-resistant and easy to grow. In the fall and the spring it has gorgeous purple berries clustered around the stem. Everyone should have at least one of these in their yard. The leaves have mosquito repellent properties. You can crush a few leaves and rub them […]
Category Archives: Uncategorized
16
Oct
Oct
Everything is an adventure at the stables if you are just a little person. Especially if you have brought table scraps to feed the goats, and the pigs. Running around burning off all that excess energy is wonderful. I know some kids that will sleep well tonight!
02
Oct
Oct
As we pass into the Fall season, grateful that the Florida summer heat is giving way to cooler evenings and mornings, we want to say a few words of appreciation to those dedicated people that have helped our horses and other animals through the summer. The horses have appreciated their cool baths, being brushed […]
23
Oct
Oct
Lacey Jane Taylor is a therapy dog. She visits people in hospitals and nursing homes. She has a special I.D. tag with her picture on it that tells people what she does. She is composed, well mannered and attractive: a very together dog. For appropriate occasions, she will even wear a hat. Here she is with Clyde […]
Florida outdoor experiences, Uncategorized
Sun Rae, our little Palomino Tennessee Walker, is doing just fine…..
02
Aug
Aug
Before coming to us, Sun Rae was used to living in a stall in a barn, and working in an arena or a round pen. She competed, and did barrels and poles. Then she came to us and was suddenly expected to mingle with other horses and walk down trails in the woods. It scared her. She […]
20
Jul
Jul
July is National Park and Recreation Month. We took another road trip to one of the Bay Area’s many beautiful parks. As we were tacking up the horses, we decided to leave the bridles in the trailer…and go bit-less. We clipped their reins to their halters, and away we went! ‘Pache, our Clydesdale Paint, […]
14
Jul
Jul
‘Pache and Montana have a great relationship. The big Clydesdale Paint has a soft spot for the young teenage girl, and she can do practically anything she wants with him. Monday was ‘Pache‘s first time at the beach. He discovered that salt water is not good to drink….. ….but he enjoyed splashing around […]
10
Jul
Jul
When you’re too busy to do the things you love, you’re too busy…..so…after we finished pressure washing our horse trailer, we decided it was so nice and clean we’d take it for a drive to the beach. The beach is only about 15 minutes away from the stables, and you’d think we’d go there ALL […]
15
Oct
Oct
The rain we’ve been having lately is very, very needed. All the moisture, however, may cause horses to get skin conditions in the hot Florida weather, if you’re not vigilant. Our personal solution is inexpensive and it works as well as any of the other remedies we’ve tried over the decade and a half we’ve had horses here […]
06
Oct
Oct
I love our trails. They are different from week to week…month to month…season to season…..And they never get boring. One of the things that has always surprised me here in Florida is that you almost always see butterflies while riding the trails. Here are some of the ones I seen, whose picture I have taken… […]
05
Oct
Oct
When its time to give the horses their second feeding, Pickles the pig is always right there waiting for her share. All the horses are eating….no horses available….so what do you do when you want to ride? Wait…there’s Pickles…. Pickles has finished her food. Pickles? Yes, Pickles! …not super comfortable….. …..very fussy and noisy…. […]
Our horses roam around free on our property much of the time, but during business hours, when we could have customers coming for trail rides, they stay in tents! We’re pretty proud of our modular housing for horses. It fits the Florida climate perfectly. The horses’ pens are made of horse fencing panels. They are expensive, […]
Occasionally our visitors, and especially our regular riders, will bring treats for the horses and other animals. Usually the treats are apples or carrots, which the horses love. Today Sandra brought sugar cubes! I was fun to see the horses carefully taste them…. …and discover […]
When we first got Valentino, he was still a stallion, and one of the fun things about him was ability to stand on his hind legs in an beautiful controlled fashion. …Perfectly balanced, like a pro…..….Paso Fino horses are just the coolest…! ……..it was a really fun thing to do with him……… But now that […]
Relish, our little pet sow, likes Dairy Queen Malts. If she happens to catch you drinking one… …….She will make sure you share………….ALL of it!…… ……….every last drop………………..all gone…… …………YUM!….. …..How can you resist that face?…… I bet all pigs like Dairy Queen Malts….
I know that they are not true chameleons, but the green anole is the only native lizard in the southeastern United States that changes color. It is only from bright green to brown or gray, but it’s still really cool. The native green anole is slowly being displaced by its more aggressive cousin from Cuba, but […]
Even though our trails are lovely, sometimes we just take a few horses and go check out other parts of Florida. We have a number of horses that think loading up and heading out is…well…. fun! For us and our horses, the grass IS definitely greener on the other side of the fence…we have very little grass, so our […]
We have Nigerian Dwarf goats and Barbados black belly sheep. After trying our numerous varieties for our Petting Zoo, we settled on these two breeds. Barbados Black Belly sheep are perfect for warm climates like ours here in Florida, because they have no wool. We do have to shear some of our animals sometimes, but I […]
24
Aug
Aug
It has not rained all that much this summer, and compared with last year the trails are really dry. Hurricane season is far from being over, though….it lasts through the end of November, and anything could happen here in Florida. That being said, never miss an opportunity….. …. after the rain is over and the […]
14
Aug
Aug
All of our horses like Spanish Moss. Normally when you are trail riding, don’t let your horse stop and eat. It is the horse’s way of gaining control over the ride….and they will want to do lots of stopping and grazing and very little walking…..if you start out letting them do this….rewarding them with a treat […]
This is Montana… using Willow‘s head as a pillow… Awww…….so sweet….. This is Willow getting tired of it….. and tossing Montana…. LOL…We love Willow! She’s the best, sweet Belgian mare! Here she is chowing down at the hay ring with her peeps: (Shelby, her bestie, and Gypsy & ‘Pache)
It’s so much fun to play with a picture that’s already very pretty…. Like this picture of Danielle and Diamond…… Here it is in sepia…. Grainy….. With accented edges….. Watercolor….. And Embossed…. But maybe the original is still the prettiest of all….…….right?
Dillenger, our Missouri Foxtrotter, really took to off-site trail riding. He loaded easily and was relaxed and happy to be in a new environment. He even went saddle free. Bringing him along was a lot of fun. Here he is with Mark, taking a break…. On the way back, Mark just rode him with a halter and a […]
Resurrection Fern, or Pleopeltis polypodioides, is one of the pretty sights you might see on a trail ride now at Sun City Stables. You only get to see it when it has rained and there is moisture in the air. It is an epiphyte, which means it lives on top of other plants (think trees!) […]
Nelson, our palomino paint pony, loves Gatorade. He’s a treat hound anyway…. ….. and will wander around begging for snacks when he’s loose… ….but Gatorade is particularly yummy! Especially when some nice person… ….. like Montana….. ……. pours it into her hand and lets him drink it! And how can you refuse him? He’s SOOOOO cute! Just […]
Winter, who was our tree-climbing goat when she was younger, just had twin bucklings yesterday, on Friday 25th. They are beautiful and healthy….I wonder if the kids will take after their mom! Rita with Winter and her babies…
Friday was farrier day at Sun City Stables. All the horses, including the miniature horses, get their feet trimmed…. …this is Drummer…. …and Casanova…. The hooves are clipped with a nipper…. …and then filed with a file…. ….a rather big file… Our horses generally are good about getting their feet done. They will often just stand quietly by […]
Riding bareback is great. It’s nice not to have to bother with a saddle and just hop on a horse….. What’s better than riding bareback? Riding double bareback…. ….on a goofy Tennessee Walker. Riding with REALLY dirty feet and a soda in your hand…. ….like Montana and Mark…. (and, yes, Delight, our Walker, […]
This is Relish enjoying a cool bath in a nice big puddle with her baby…. This is Jeremy going for a trail ride with Gypsy…….. They spot Relish lounging in her puddle…….. ………and give her a heart attack! They scare her away……….……..and when she goes running off……. ……they take over her puddle!! […]
We’re now easier to spot when we’re on duty…… When you come to Sun City Stables, just look for the person wearing orange! Our guides, workers and volunteers now all wear orange shirts. So…if you’re new in town, or coming to Sun City Stables for the very first time…look for the person in the […]
Horseback riding can be a bouncy business…especially when the horse breaks into a trot and you are so little that your feet can’t reach the stirrups… Hence the invention of buddy stirrups: a set of small, kid-size stirrups that hooks right over the saddle horn….and voila…a small person’s ride on a big horse is suddenly […]
We lie on a picnic table and stare off into the distance…..like Mae… We sit on Willow as she meanders to the hay ring … …like Mark and Montana…. We kick off our boots and practice being stunt riders in socks…. …like Josh and Olivia…. on Casanova and Valentino, our Paso Fino […]
He joined the Sun City Stables Family about a month ago….He was found wandering around a neighborhood, and some people took pity on the little pot belly pig and brought him to our stables. Initially he was terrified and we kept him in a pen for a while until he settled down…. He comes and […]
Carrie Ann is one of the sweetest horses we have. She is a Belgian and a retired Amish carriage horse. Even though she’s been a draft horse pulling carriages all her life, she’s fine with people riding her too….even two or three people at a time! She’s very sane and safe, and trail riding with […]
Many tourists who visit Florida either plan to head to the beaches, go sight seeing, or choose to enjoy the nature and wildlife. A preferred activity for those who choose to enjoy the nature and wildlife is horseback riding. In Florida, there are a variety of trails designed for horseback riding. Stables such as Sun […]
Sun City, Florida gets very warm and humid in the summer at times. Thunderstorms rapidly move through the area during some summers. Keep in mind that the summer is still a great time to ride. The horses don’t mind the rain, and Sun City Stables operate rain or shine. We have a saying ” we’re […]