Forensic Parazoology, Part Deux

[amberdulen]

ONE DEAD, ONE MISSING ON FISHING TRIP

Comments

Re: Sunday, Noon - more shots in the dark

[kalquessa]

I make my way across the driveway and greet the woman working in front of the farmer's market. Wave and smile. Hi, I know it's Sunday, but does she know if there's anyone at the farm today that I could talk to about leasing a horse for a few hours?

Re: Sunday, Noon - more shots in the dark

[amberdulen]

(Oh drat. Again, I know absolutely nothing about horses. So just bear with me if I treat this a little...vaguely.)

She greets you cheerfully. She's not very involved with that part of the business, but she can certainly check for you! She whips out a cell phone and makes a quick call: there's a young lady here wanting to take a horse for the afternoon, can we set her up? She puts her hand over the speaker and asks you what kind of horse-riding experience you have.

Re: Sunday, Noon - more shots in the dark

[kalquessa]

(It's all good. *grin* Sorry to make you scramble for probably-pointless horse info.)

I used to own a Kiger Mustang, and I can find my way around a Western saddle. I'll do all my own clean-up--curry, blanket, pick hooves--when I bring the horse back, if needed. I know they probably have mostly Thoroughbreds since it's a racehorse farm, but I was hoping someone might have a quarter horse or something that they wouldn't mind leasing me for a few hours' trail ride. I'd need to rent the horse's tack, as well, though English tack defeats me, so if nobody about the place rides Western, I guess I'm sunk.

Re: Sunday, Noon - more shots in the dark

[amberdulen]

She looks satisfied--just so long as you're not a new rider, dear. She relays this and after she hangs up, tells you that she thinks someone at the barn can set you up with a ride for a few hours. She mentions the general cost, what you'll have to rent, what you'll be responsible for, and that you'll have to sign a load of release forms and leave your driver's license. (She chuckles at that and says they don't want you riding off into the sunset!) You can follow the driveway to the second turn on the right and go right up to the brown barn, find the young guy named Chuck, he'll get you going all right. And are you in the market for some groceries today?

Re: Sunday, Noon - more shots in the dark

[kalquessa]

I say thank you so much for her trouble and reply that I would definitely be in the market for apples, especially if they have any unusual local breeds on offer.

Re: Sunday, Noon - more shots in the dark

[amberdulen]

They do actually have a proprietary apple variety--one of their suppliers has a variety called "Yellow Sweet" that seems to have grown from a mutation on a Yellow Delicious. They had it registered and have grafted it onto several trees, so now it's their specialty. It's several months out of season, but they've been in storage and should keep well in a cool, dark place. She gives you one to try.

Other than that, they have just the usual late-season leftovers: Staymen, Winesap, Yellow Delicious, Red Delicious. The Reds aren't in very good shape.

Re: Sunday, Noon - more shots in the dark

[kalquessa]

I take three Yellow Sweets and three Reds, pay for them, and thank her again.

Back in the car, I follow her directions, get out and head toward the barn in search of Chuck the Young Guy.

Re: Sunday, Noon - more shots in the dark

[amberdulen]

She looks kind of pleasantly bemused at your order, and ultimately puts them in a half-peck bag (which they fill about halfway) and charges you half of the price of a half-peck. She throws in a Staymen just for you to try, and a yellow delicious so you can compare it with the Yellow Sweet.

Up the road, you find the barn with no problem, and there are two young guys there talking: one's the ropy lean type and one's got kind of a paunch on him. They're both in flannel shirts and jeans, but the paunchy one looks cleaner.

Re: Sunday, Noon - more shots in the dark

[kalquessa]

I smile and start strolling over to them, hands in pockets. Either of you gentleman answer to the name of "Chuck"?

Re: Sunday, Noon - more shots in the dark

[amberdulen]

The paunchy one says that's him, and comes forward to shake your hand. He introduces his stablehand Kyle Wyndham. He hears you were looking to rent a horse for the afternoon, would you like to step into the barn and take a look?

Chuck, on closer inspection, has bags under his eyes and a slightly strained look. Kyle doesn't.

Re: Sunday, Noon - more shots in the dark

[kalquessa]

I say it's nice to meet them both and say sure, I'll follow him into the barn. As we're walking I ask what type of horses they keep at the farm besides the racing Thoroughbreds.

Re: Sunday, Noon - more shots in the dark

[amberdulen]

(If you tell me where you're going with this, it'll help me through my non-horsey filter.)

They have a few quarter horses, which they're going to show you right now.

Re: Sunday, Noon - more shots in the dark

[kalquessa]

(Ha, sorry, maybe I should take the fact that the person running the game doesn't do horses as a sign that I'm barking up the wrong tree. *grin* I'm ostensibly asking because I'm not interested in taking a race horse trail-riding, and I want something smaller and less likely to go insane if a twig snaps. What I'm really trying to ferret out is whether any of their horses are kept "barefoot." Race horses can't go without shoes for any length of time, but if they have quarters or other, less intensively bred animals, they could conceivably be kept without shoes and therefor might be responsible for the unshod hoof print by the lake. I want to check out the hooves of their trail horses while I'm selecting my ride to see if any of them are unshod.)

I say great, I'll take a look and see if any of them look like a good fit for me. I'd like to scan around the barn while I'm following Chuck, and see if I notice anything out of place. Any smells floating around besides hay, feed, and horse crap?

Re: Sunday, Noon - more shots in the dark

[amberdulen]

(Gotcha. :))

They have four trail horses, one of which is currently unshod.

Everything looks basically like you'd expect in a barn.

The only unusual smell might be the fishy smell of the lake, which you can still pick out over the more typical horsy smells.

Re: Sunday, Noon - more shots in the dark

[kalquessa]

I note the size of the unshod horse's hooves. Can I just mentally compare it to the print by the lake to know if it's roughly the same size or not?

I ask Chuck which of these critters is the closest thing he has to a walking couch, since I'm not in the mood to fight with my ride today. A mellow horse that I can take for a nice stroll is what I'm looking for.

Re: Sunday, Noon - more shots in the dark

[amberdulen]

It looks about comparable. The print you saw was pretty blurred.

Chuck laughs and steers you to a white one, one of the shod ones; it looks friendly. If that'll do, he'll pull out some forms and get you ready.