I rode Lily last night. I hadn’t ridden her since May 1st, when she was very lame on a trail ride. It’s been paddock rest and numerous vet visits since then. The last ultrasound on Friday looked very good and my vet does not think that she has DSLD/ESPA. Yay! Since her healing had gone so well these last two months, he gave me the go ahead to take her out on short, flat, walking rides.

One of our fist rides in the Black Forest back in May

Riding in the FreeForm SB last November

So now, with these walking rides, I will have a chance to break in my new Black Forest saddle and decide if it will work out for us. I do think that it puts me in a much better spot than the FreeForm did, so that’s a good start. I do wish that I could find a sheepskin seat for it. I suppose that it will get more comfortable with time, but for now, there are a couple of creases that would not do well on a longer ride.

I flipped the photo from last November for a good comparison of where the saddles sit on Lily. I checked her today and she free lunged sound! I’ve been treating her legs with Sore No More and doing some massage on her back and haunches. This seems to help her comfort level. I hope that this first month of walking rides continues to go as well as the first one.

Luna has gone home to her breeder and original owner, Patty. I have had the intention of getting down to just one horse for a while now. So I knew that this was the right thing to do. She looked happy and relaxed when I left her. Lily did seem to miss her when I got back, but she has adjusted. Lily has her next vet checkup on 7/16 and is still on pasture rest until then. So, I go out and just spend time with her finding new spots to scratch and massage. She may be a bit bored, but I think that she’s enjoying it too. It has been interesting to adjust to just one horse again. It’s been a month and I am starting to get used to it.

I’m took an entire week of vacation to clean out my studio. This was a momentous task, as it has been accumulating STUFF for years. Pretty much ever since I stopped being involved in model horses around 2002. I had boxes of old papers, thing to give away, things to sell and a few things to carefully pack away and label to look at another time. I cleared out enough to allow room to start painting again. And this time, it’s not model horses.

I already have a few paintings in progress and a number of panels waiting for a bit more prep. And then there are the sculptures that are staring at me. It was a real pleasure to unearth art supplies and work in progress that I had forgotten was there. I’m making a point of carving out a few hours every week to do art. It’s been a treat.

There are still a few piles to go through and some untouched areas to organize, but I feel such a weight lifted! I can’t say that I wish I had done it earlier. It just wasn’t the time yet. Now it was. I’m not sure if I’ll continue to post here about my artwork or not. I have simratkhalsa.com where I can do that. Though I may want to keep that as more of portfolio site. Ah well, time will tell.

My new favorite thinking spot, where I can study my easel.

Luna decided that she didn’t quite want to get caught straight off tonight and started tearing around the paddock at a full gallop. Instead of trying to catch her, I got my camera. Lily seems to be feeling quite a bit better too, as she joined in. And Monte, the Paso Fino next door, was enjoying showing off for Luna. He looks like a fairy tale horse. I’m going to have to spend some time taking photos of him alone one of these days.

It’s very interesting watching Lily and Luna together. Lily is very much in charge of things. Luna tries to bluff her sometimes, but very quickly backs down. They seem to be a good match. I couldn’t really choose a small selection of photos, so the slide show is rather long. And if you make it to the end, I now know why the small water trough has dirty water in it…

I didn’t really have an agenda today. I groomed Luna, trimmed her feet and we had our first lunge session. She wasn’t too keen on doing full circles and would turn into face me. There were times when I was happy with a quarter of a circle and asked her to whoa. By the end, we had gotten a few circles each way, with me deciding when to stop. That was good and I called it quits.

Luna is sweet and a bit jumpy yet. With time, I’m sure that she will settle in just fine. I’m really starting to like her. She is pretty sensible, when not scared by something and picks things up very fast. This will be fun…

Luna taunting Monte

Heading out...

I’ve traded Vinnie for Dove Tree’s Marcha de la Luna. Luna is an eight year old Spanish Mustang mare. She is well bred by Azul’s el Milagro el Asad and out of Unpa Kimimila Sanka Tanka, a Chato’s Shadow daughter. She had a foal by Paisano last summer and is now ready to move on to a new career as a riding horse. I’ve told Lily that she needs to help me train her. Lily’s quite good at working on my training projects in my absence.

Vinnie is in a superb home at Tired Dog Ranch as Amy Jo’s riding horse. I know that they will do great things together!

This is just what I need to keep me from being tempted to do anything with Lily right now. She needs the rest and I need a project. Luna and Lily know each other from a couple of summers ago when Luna was down to be bred to Paisano. The mares shared a paddock during that time. They became quite good friends. The also were together for a few months last summer at Tired Dog Ranch with their foals. Today, there was the normal squealing and posturing, mostly bluff though.

I’ll be posting about her progress as the summer goes on. She has had some basic training as a youngster, but not much has been done with her in the past few years, so I’ll be starting from scratch. There is a possibility that she may be for sale in the future, but I’m also open the idea that she might be my next riding horse.

The mares being mares

Lily at 3 years old

I went back and forth about putting shoes on Lily. I used boots for a couple of rides after the last vet visit. She didn’t move much in her paddock and when I ran Vinnie around to take his movement video, I could really see the contrast when she moved. She was in pain. It was subtle, but I could really see it in comparison to him. So I went ahead and ordered Ground Control plastic shoes and had my trimmer put them on her front feet. The do not have the concussion that metal shoes do and they leave room for her heels to flex. She was slightly better with them, but still not 100%. I wanted to see if they made her move any better. It was only very slightly better.

Since then, she turned up very lame in her left hind while out on a trail ride. I had to hand walk her back the last 3 miles or so, stopping to rest frequently and massaging her rump to help the spasms relax. Two massage therapists looked at her and we all thought that the most pain was in the muscles around her hip joint. When I went to load her to go home, she winced every time she tried to lift that left hind. I gave her some Banamine and that made it easier for her to load.

Lily last weekend. See how she is standing differently?

Dr. Camp found that her hind tendons were both sore. DSLD/ESPA usually shows up bilaterally, so that could be a reason that she trots off evenly. Both legs hurt equally. She was still slightly off in the right front as well. We are going back to the clinic on the 17th for ultrasound of her right front foot and hind suspensories. He will also x-ray her hocks. He felt that she should have shown more improvement with shoes than she did. He thought that she may have a soft tissue injury low in her right front, possibly the insertion of the deep digital flexor tendon, or possibly hock problems, and he also admitted that she could be showing early signs of DSLD/ESPA.

So she is on stall/paddock rest, no riding…

She’s currently getting Thyro-L, MSM, Mag Ox, flax, whole psyllium and Equerry Plus supplements in a bit of Triple Crown Low Starch and I’ll be adding the herbs that are being used experimentally with D/E horses as soon as they come in the mail. I’ve been learning about D/E for the last year or so, as I had the suspicion in the back of my mind about it. This yahoogroup is a wealth of information. http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/DSLD-equine/

I certainly hope that it is something other than D/E. Something that is treatable would be really nice. If it is D/E, then I will be on a search to find out the source in her pedigree. I hope that research will soon produce a genetic test to see if a horse is a carrier or not. If our breed does have D/E in it, it should be discussed.

I’ve had three rides in this new saddle so far, two on Lily and one on Vinnie. I think that, with some tweaking, it can work. It needs some breaking in and more trials before I can give a full review.

I like the Grandeur pad that I bought with it. I am looking forward to trying a Skito with laminated shims though, as I would like a bit more twist. And it seems to restrict Lily’s shoulders a little more than the Barefoot I tried. I did ride that other saddle with the Skito, so it’s not a fair comparison, until I try it with that pad. The choice of pad is extremely important with most treeless saddles. I’m seeing that more and more.

Amy Jo came down to ride and brought two Barefoot Cheyenne saddles that she got recently. The brown saddle is a size 1 with VPS. The black saddle is a size 2, older and without VPS. I had heard about the Vertebrae Protection System, but didn’t quite understand what the difference really was. Looking at these two saddles and handling them made it very obvious. The black saddle was quite floppy. I could fold the cantle up the pommel easily, while the brown saddle had much more body to it.

Along with the saddles, Amy Jo also had 3 different Skito pads, hard and soft cantle inserts and 3 sizes of hard pommel inserts and a soft pommel insert. After trying a couple of pommels on Lily bare, I chose the medium width (pictured), as it gave her the best wither clearance. I wanted to try this before going to the soft pommel. The Barefoot London that I had tried previously had the soft pommel and it felt really wide to me. I used a Skito with wool felt bottom, 1/2″ firm foam with another layer laminated on. I also swapped out the fiberglass cantle for a soft foam one.

Amy Jo rode Vinnie in the brown size 1. It looked great on him and he went just fine. He has let me know right away when he didn’t like the feel of a new saddle in the past.

We took off to Pisgah and rode for 3.5 hours, mostly walking, but we also trotted and cantered and did some hills. Being young, Vinnie got tired doing hill work, so we didn’t ride on the mountain that much. He also needs a tiny pair of boots for his feet on gravel. He managed, but it was obvious that he would have done better with some foot protection. Coming out of the wet winter in a pretty gravel free paddock, there is just no way that he feet are tough enough.

I found the Cheyenne suited me better than the London. It didn’t feel too wide at all. Lily moved out well in it. I didn’t feel as far up on her withers as I do in my FreeForm. Though we didn’t get any photos of me sitting in it, I felt balanced and comfortable. I tested wither and shoulder clearance when moving. It was excellent. And the sweat patten showed a clear, dry strip down her spine. It was pretty even everywhere else with no hair roughed up.

I could mount from the ground, using a modified mounting technique. I reach across Lily’s back and hold the offside stirrup leather. Then I get my weight across her back as soon as possible, before I swing my leg over. This would be more difficult on a taller horse. Another reason that she is the Perfect size.

While this might not be my first choice in a saddle, I am on the lookout for a used one to ride in for the time being. I would like to try out a Barefoot Atlanta. I like the look a bit better then the Cheyenne. One step closer to a new saddle for Lily!

Spring!

Lily is feeling much better. I don’t know if it is the MSM, the change to her own paddock and only my hay or her just being happy that I now know what’s going on with her, but she is in great spirits! She’s perky, walks off evenly and is a bit more settled.

I’ve been easing into riding since last Friday’s vet visit. We started off with a short walking ride. The next time out, I let her move into some extended trot. Today, we were out for an hour and a half and she wanted to do more. We did quite a bit of her big trot, on and off and some canter in there too. I am working on sustaining her trot, as it’s faster than her regular canter and pretty smooth to ride. I actually want to get it on video, as I wonder quite what it is. She gets into a speed that’s actually hard to post to, so I wonder if it really is a trot. Lily was feeling very strong and willing to go!

The size 0 Renegades that I traded my size 1s for needed the cables replaced. Now that’s done, they seem to be working well. Today’s ride was a pretty good test, as we went through mud, water, up and down a few small hills at all gaits. Lily was comfortable and moved nicely. I do want to get her booted on all fours eventually. I’m also considering trying some thin pads to stimulate her sole and frog while riding.

For now, I am not going to shoe her. As long as she’s comfortable in the paddock and doing well booted for rides, I don’t feel shoes are needed. I picked up a bottle of Durasole and am treating her feet with that most days. It’s pretty much the same formula that my vet said he uses to toughen feet. I’ll likely use up this small bottle and then reassess.

I should hear about her selenium test by the end of the week. And I am planning to stop by the vet’s office this week to get some Thyro-L and start her on that too. My plan is to treat her as highly prone to laminitis, for as long as I need to. It may be for the rest of her life.

Back in Wyoming, where Lily was born, she would likely be just fine eating dry land prairie grass. Here in lush, western Oregon, most pastures will be too rich for her. So, it’s time for me to start talking with my hay supplier to find out when they will start cutting. I will then get a batch to test for sugar/starch content. The mixed grass I still have from last year was nice and under 11%. More about the intricacies of hay can be found at safergrass.org, an excellent resource. I want to keep her off of any lush pasture and stick with free choice hay though the summer.

So that’s it for today. I have more to say about saddles, but I’ll leave that for another day.

I saw the sun yesterday afternoon from my office window. I finished up, hoping that it would stay long enough for me to get in a ride. Lily looked pretty good when I got to the barn, so I took her out to groom and try the Sensation on.

I’m not used to using Skito pads. The foam was really stiff from being in the tackroom, so I put the saddle on first, then went to do boots, comb her mane and brush her head. By the time I was done, it had warmed up somewhat, so that I could adjust the girth.

For consist testing of saddles, I’m developing a list of things to check. It’s mostly so that I don’t forget something and then wonder about it after I’ve shipped the saddle on.

General

Rider

Horse

Is there anything else that you would add? Please let me know in the comments.

Here’s how the Sensation rated after a short ride. We mostly walked on local roads, no real hills and only a bit of trot and canter that Lily offered. I was just glad that she was feeling good!

General

Rider

Horse

I am going to try the saddle on a longer ride with Vinnie this weekend, so the jury is out at this point.

Here are a few more photos. The rest are on Flickr here.

I love the pear trees in the background. Not planned, at least by me! Rachel took the photo.

I would like to be able to bring my feet back under me more, if I wanted to.

I am on the hunt for a new saddle. I’ve been riding in a FreeForm Classic SB (I bought it when they first came out and this was the only version) and a Wintec AP 2000. The Wintec fits both my horses moderately well, but it’s a tad small for me. I also don’t think that it’s quite comfortable enough for the long rides needed for endurance conditioning.

The FreeForm Classic is way too large for Vinnie. I would have to get a girth that was so short as to be ineffective. I already have two custom Montana Cincha dressage girths, 18″ and 20″. I really don’t think that I want to go any smaller than that. Lily became uncomfortable in it over the last month or so and I think that it’s been putting pressure on her withers. I swapped out to a Barefoot London on our last ride and she did much better. She’s currently laid up with some soundness issues, but more on that in another post… Needless to say, I can’t try any saddles out on her now, which limits my demo horse to Vinnie.

So the search is on…

I am pretty sure I will end up with a treeless saddle, as they are more able to accommodate changing condition and different horses. I realize that no one saddle will fit all horses. And I’m not closed to the idea of a treed saddle, if it fits and isn’t too heavy. Treeless saddles have come far in the last few years with many new models and options out there. I am looking forward to exploring some of them.

E-Z Fit

I tried one last month. I went with a medium and should have ordered a small. It was HUGE on my horses. It didn’t give me the close contact feel that I want, as there was too much leather between my thigh and the horse. A few of us tried it out one weekend. This particular one was not a fit for any of us. It turned out that Eli Beiler had tried out a new material to stiffen the seat. It created a ridge down the middle, not so comfortable for the rider. He was just great about it and refunded my demo fee and shipping. I am sure that the next one will be an improvement on this. This is an interesting saddle design and one to watch. It’s just not a fit for me.

Sensation Western

I received my demo yesterday! It was pouring down rain, so I only got to put it on my horses in their stalls. Lily let me know that it was NOT okay for me to even try to sit in it. This had nothing to do with the saddle, unfortunately. I did get on Vinnie and rode him up and down the barn aisle a couple of times.

I need to get out on the trail to really see how it will work out. My first impression is that I might want more twist. I think that there is a bolster to put under the seat for that. I’m also not entirely sure about how one side of the stirrup leathers hang from the bottom of the saddle flap. I understand that it is to help distribute weight, but I like to be able to move my legs as needed. Trail testing on hills is needed. Other than these two points, it was very comfortable, well made and put me in just the right spot. Vinnie moved out as well as could be expected in these limited circumstances. I really like all the choices in colors and leathers. No photos yet, but check back in a few days.

Barefoot Atlanta

This is next on my list to demo. I am being cautious about buying saddles just to try them out. I’ve done enough of that so far, so I appreciate vendors with generous demo programs. I really like the minimal look of the Atlanta, light weight and it looks like it would work for horses with forward girth grooves like mine.

Startrekk

I would also like to try a Startrekk saddle. The problem I have here is simply choosing a model. They all look nice! What I would really like is a Western in brown with border tooling and an Espaniola, maybe the simple brown model for a classic look.

Trekker

I have tried my friend, Romina’s Endurance Pro Original and really liked it. It has more structure than some treeless saddles, a built in spine channel and is quite adjustable. The only thing that I didn’t care for was the height of the pommel. A few times, I ran into it ducking to go under tree limbs. We ride in some pretty thick woods, so that’s a common occurrence even with my small horses. I rode Paisano ten miles in this saddle. We were both comfortable. I also like that it doesn’t need a special pad like some less structured treeless saddles. So this one is on the list.

I’ll have more to say after the weekend when I try the Sensation out on the trails. It’s supposed to clear up on Sunday. Keep sunny thoughts in mind for us!

I just couldn’t quite stand the goat beard that he was sporting from the winter, so it is now gone. Also notice the mess he made of the cat’s water pan…

Then we went for a quick ride before dusk. I really like that I can just saddle him up and go out alone, no lunging or extra ground work needed. We passed a couple of his buddies on the way out and Vinnie had no issues what so ever in continuing on.

Here we are coming back over the bridge towards home. I love the little tuft of hair he has near the top of his right ear. It’s one of his little oddities.

He trucked along with the reins dropped on the saddle horn, while I took photos. Cars passed us, slowing down nicely most of the time. Vinnie was on autopilot. He’s also starting to pick up on neck reining, so I can steer sometimes with one finger and a bit of leg. What fun…

Time for an update on Vinnie. I’ve been pretty busy with life, so he’s had a ride or two per week. We ride on the road down to Mt. Pisgah or to the Three Cedars arena. This usually involves riding home in the dark on the road. I sometimes have my headlamp on and always flashers hanging off the saddle. We’ve ridden in moonlight, pitch dark and rain. Vinnie does just fine with all of it. The one thing that has startled him so far was someone hand pruning up in a tree across the road. When I had her say hello, he was just fine. He didn’t mind a bit when it was someone with a power pruner.

My friend measured his cannons and he has a circumference of 7″. Not bad for a 13.1 hand boy! He has plenty of carrying capacity for the average adult rider. He will ride off a snaffle or sidepull, though he prefers the sidepull at this point. I can still ask for bending with it and he stops on a very light cue, sometimes even just sitting deeply and exhaling. He’ll be a light, responsive mount.

I am starting to loose count of the number of rides Vinnie has had. It is likely just at about twenty, equivalent to one month’s steady training under saddle. I’ve started him on moving off my leg with turns on the forehand and sidepassing. He’s doing quite well and just needs more miles at this point. Yes, he’s still for sale. Current price is $2,200. and will increase with training.

It’s time to post an update on what’s happening with Paisano. In November, I took my last ride out with him at Mt. Pisgah. I ran into Lisa and Laura and Lisa took some photos.

Then he shipped off to Utah a few days later with Zelda and Mike.

He has settled in very well with Amanda and Cody. He has two fillies to care for and watch over. I am very happy that he has his own little herd now. I wasn’t able to have him in a place where he could be turned out in a group. Now he really has that.

Amanda has her own blog at Earth Dancer Spanish Mustangs, where you can see updates on Paisano, Rosie and Miss. And the recent photos of Rosie and Paisano on her Flickr site make my heart melt. It is wonderful for me to see him find such an excellent home, where he is loved by both his equine and human friends.

Rosie and Paisano

Are you looking for a quality Spanish Mustang foal? I am offering an in-utero sale of a foal by Paisano and out of Choctaw Lily. The breeding would take place in the spring of 2010 for a 2011 foal, and would be performed at the clinic where Paisano’s semen was collected and frozen. This offer is available through April 2010.

Paisano SMR 3313

Paisano has proven to be an excellent riding horse. He was graded First Premium by the American Sport Pony Registry (ASPR) as a two year old, judged against dressage and eventing performance standards. He has an excellent personality to go along with his correct conformation, smooth yet animated gaits and sweet nature. He has been ridden bridleless and at Expos in front of large crowds and fully enjoys the attention. Paisano is homozygous for black, negative for LWO and also exhibits LP (appaloosa) and Sabino-1 pinto patterns. Paisano stands 13.3 hands tall, with the build to carry a full sized rider.

Choctaw Lily SMR 3150, HOA 1318, AIHR O-3887
(Choctaw Three x Irish Lassy)

Lily is a multi-gaited mare and an excellent riding and trail horse. She has been called a “confidence builder” due to her gentle and forgiving temperament. Yet, she is also sensitive to the aids and ready to pick up her pace with a confident rider. Lily shows several lateral gaits besides walk-trot-canter. These will be refined as her training continues. Lily is solid bay dun with one sock and stands an even 14 hands tall.

The foal may be black, bay, dun or grulla and may well be multi-gaited. He or she may be either solid or show LP traits and/or sabino pinto. Your foal would be halter trained, load in a trailer and be well handled prior weaning at no extra cost. The foal will be eligible for a number of registries including, but possibly not limited to SMR, HOA, AIHR. The foal’s SMR registration will be included in the sale. He or she would be a full sibling to the two horses below.

2009 filly, AR Margarita de los Prados SMR 3886

2006 gelding, AR Cirro SMR 3613

Some details about how this in utero foal sale would work

The sale of the foal would be live foal guaranteed. We would agree on a purchase price, and the deposit (50% of the purchase price) would be paid at the time of signing a contract. If the foal were to not survive to the foal’s 7th day of age, the deposit would be refunded in it’s entirety to you. The deposit on your in-utero foal is refundable only if the mare does not produce a healthy foal (in the opinion of a veterinarian) and deliver it safely to stand, nurse, and be insurable at 7 days of age.

When the foal reaches 7 days of age and is insurable, any remaining balance of the original purchase price will be due. Time payments may be arranged prior to the foal’s birth. There will be no charges (no board) for the care of your foal until weaning. Veterinary and farrier expenses, (as well as mortality, major medical, and surgical insurance, which will protect your investment) will be the buyer’s responsibility.

If you are interested in discussing this further or if you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact me.

I thought I would put up a How To today on tying up tails for the winter. I’ve done this most years here in wet, western Oregon. Vinnie’s tail had started to get clods of adobe permanently building up on the end of his tail. They can become heavy, get caught on branches and even pull out large sections of tail. Vinnie’s tail already touches the ground. Add a few inches of mud to sink into and I’ve got a problem… I’ve found this to be an excellent solution.

Start with a relatively clean tail. I washed, combed and conditioned both Lily & Vinnie’s tails, thanks to abundant free samples of Eqyss Premier Cream Rinse Conditioner from my local feed store. I’ve liked all the products from this company that I have used so far. I’ll see how their tails look when I take them down in a few weeks. Vinnie was my model today, since his tail is so nicely multi-colored.


You will need a strip of fabric. I use the end of a turban, handy for me, but likely not for the average horse owner. Any lightweight cotton fabric will do. Mine was about 50″ long and maybe 3″ wide. Locate the end of the tail bone and section the tail into three parts. Take the middle of the fabric strip and run it behind the tail with each side running along two braiding sections.


Braid the tail, holding it down toward the horse’s hocks and the ground, incorporating the fabric into the braid. If you don’t hold the tail downwards, your braid will not hang nicely or will have a bulge on the underside. I leave about 10″-12″ of unbraided tail. This will be left open when the mud knot is finished. Wrap the fabric once around and tie. You should have about 6″ or more fabric left for the next step.

If you don’t want any loose hair, you can braid to the end of the tail. You will either need a longer piece of fabric or braid half way before adding the fabric in. Either way you need some fabric left at the end.


Open a space in the braid at the top, just under the end of the tail bone.


Thread the end of the braid through this space from the underside.


Run one fabric end through the space and wrap them around the tail, so that they can be tied into a square knot. Be sure to stay below the end of the tail bone. We don’t want to damage any of the living part of the tail by putting pressure on it.


Lay the open, brush end of the tail flat against the front of the, now folded, braid. This is a side view of the bundle just before wrapping in vetwrap. I cover the entire braided portion, making a point of not covering the loose end or the tail bone.

If I were going to wrap the entire tail, I would make the bundle longer, just folding the braided end of the tail up. It would then get covered in vetwrap.


The end result – a much shortened tail that will stay clean and protected from the mud!

Unless my work falls apart, I plan to leave their tails up for 3-4 weeks. I’ll take them down, check them and likely put them back up. It will be interesting to see how long they grow over the winter. I may need to do some trimming come springtime.

For more photos of them enjoying the nice grass, visit my Flickr page. It was a really lovely day and they enjoyed some time in a new paddock. Their paddock was getting gravel added around the gate.

I took advantage of the sun this afternoon and put a bit more work on Vinnie’s driving. I dug out the PVC shafts I had made years ago for Paisano and took them to out to the barn. Vinnie got groomed and harnessed up. I put on the cavesson that I’ve been riding and long lining him with. Then I put the full bridle on over that. I don’t have a driving bit for him yet, but I wanted something that wouldn’t pull through his mouth. I had taken the full cheek home, so all I had was a low port Kimberwicke. Since I was mostly going just ask him to carry it, that’s what he wore today. He mouthed it at first, but once we were headed out, there was plenty to take his attention away from playing with the bit.

I got this. What's next?

When we came to the gate, we passed it and went down the other way a bit. All told, we probably walked a bit less than a mile. I practiced halting and standing, as well as asking him to move side to side on the road from whip and rein cues. He did well to the left and a bit stickier to the right. That’s likely because it’s harder for me to reach his left side with my whip. I had my ground whip with a short lash. Next time, I’ll have to remember the one with a longer drop. I really need a proper driving whip.

Doing well.

Since he had taken all this so well, I decided to try driving him off the bit. I took off the shafts first. Then we did a few rounds of the barn yard, turning and halting before calling it a day. He wasn’t too keen on this bit and pushed his shoulder through a few turns. We ended on a nice halt that only took a couple of half halts to get. Now I just have to figure out the best driving bit for him. And do more sessions like today. Vinnie is quite willing to what I ask, once he understands what that is. Repetition and practice are what we need now.

The wheels that I ordered for my cart are in. I have all the supplies to paint it. I’ve decided that it will be black. Then I will need to make the seat and back, measure for foam and upholstery material and purchase those. I am not sure what color the seat will be yet. I do hope that the cart will end up being large enough for him. I wonder if it will all be ready by April for the parade in Oakridge. Stay tuned!

I had planned to ride Lily three to four times per week and work Vinnie twice a week, including some arena work, both under saddle and in long lines for both of them. I was considering doing a trace clip on Lily, so we could continue conditioning towards endurance next year and the possible blanketing changes that might entail.

Well, other plans were in store for me. For those who don’t know me on FaceBook or the SM message boards, my back was tender last week after lifting some hay bales and last Sunday at the OHC trail course, it really did go out. I’ve been down resting and taking painkillers all of last week and missed quite a bit of work. I also missed writing my Thankful Thursday post, as I was in a mental fog.

“Getting old is not for sissies.” ~~ Bette Davis

After resting and a couple of chiropractic adjustments, my back is better today. I am mobile and not taking painkillers any longer. The trick for me now, will be to take it easy and come back to activity slowly. I need to start walking regularly, stretching and doing some non-horse related exercise. I am also considering taking the month off from riding. That is hard for me to think about. I’ve been pushing to spend every daylight opportunity in the saddle.

If I am not going to ride for a month, what to do with the horses? They are getting their stalls cleaned now, so I don’t even have a reason to go see them every day. All I have to do for them is make sure that their daily feed bags are made up and stocked. Other than that, they really would be fine to just hang out. But would they get bored?

Do horses get bored? Lily and Vinnie have a small paddock of about 1/3 acre to themselves. They have water, a tiny bit of grass and three trees, along with their breakfast hay out there. I can tell that they use the two smaller trees to scratch on. I found black hairs from Lily the other day, coated in ice. I wish that I had had my camera. It was quite interesting.

Anyway, I usually feel that I need to do something with them. To keep moving their training forward somehow; Lily getting back into shape and Vinnie with his basic ridden work. Then I remembered a day when my children came out and played with Vinnie. Neither of them are knowledgeable in traditional horsemanship. And they had fun and taught him things anyway. He learned quite quickly to push a barrel with his head. And they had fun playing with him and the hula hoop. It is good to remember that sometimes, it is worthwhile just exploring with the horse and not fitting him or her into a ‘program’ or a plan. They don’t make plans. Why do I?

I know that I could teach them some tricks. But then again, what about just being with them? I haven’t taken much time with that recently. And I do miss it. I think that Lily, at least, does too. I guess I will just take this month one day at a time and try having no goals. How about that? I think that I will take some toys and props out there though… and see what happens.

This weekend, the skies were positively celestial.

Fabulous blue skies in late November ... what a treat!

This video is the switchback portion of #3 through the woods, where there is the most elevation gain and also where the footing was the most slick. In the open, the sun had dried it out pretty well, aside from the portions that are little streams. Those, the midday winter sun turned into gleaming silver threads, inviting me on.

This is one of my favorite shots. That's Sky (Trakhener/Arab X), Diamond (Kiger) and my Lily.

Lily was wonderful and got past several of her issues, from ditches to water with weird, man-made footing. We can now walk, trot and canter through any of the ditches, as well as back down and up. The only thing still to work on there, is backing in without walking through forward first. We played follow the leader with Lily in front over the whole course. I practiced backing and sidepassing in all different sorts of places.

Lily helped Sky and another horse past their water issues when I ponied them. And she got several inquiries from bystanders. And, of course, a few people asked what kind of horse she was. A couple of old timer types watched her very carefully. One commented as we were leaving on what a tough horse she was. That made me smile.

Our favorite part was trying the course at speed! We did a fast run of one side of the course, cantering through ditches and jumping logs. If I can save the $$ for entry fees, I could see taking her in the speed competition next year, along with entering a division or two.

All the photos of the OHC practice are here.

I have to say that I find riding out on the trail truly sublime. Being out alone with just my mare, I can be taken to a timeless place, where human and horse are one, like so many times throughout history. Then to switch gears and try our hands and hooves at the technical challenges of a championship course … what an interesting balance.

And here are the rest of my Pisgah shots… with some more sky images, among other things.