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.

Napping

Carrots are something to wake up for

Since he was up, I had a short ride in the arena. I used my dressage saddle, which I’ve not put on him for some time. I don’t think that it’s fitting too well. He was reluctant to round up much and his downward transitions were quite hollow. I was also riding him in a jaquima. Next time we do arena work, I’ll go back to the FreeForm, which seems to fit him the best and his snaffle bridle and work on those downward transitions.

That bit of forelock sticking up is from his ear massage...

Father & Son

I think that Vinnie has turned out to be an improvement over his sire and dam. He has nice traits from both of them. He has Lily’s beautifully shaped Spanish head, four beat amble, and dun coloring. From Paisano he has a nice uphill build, suspended gaits and flashy sabino roaning. I’ll really enjoy watching him mature over the next two to three years.

I think that we are getting a nice group of horses up here in Oregon to do parades and Expos with. We plan to take part in a spring parade in Oakride next April as our debut. Then I’ll be looking for more opportunities in the area. I think that Vinnie could stand in as either an Indian pony or a classic cow pony.

Here are a couple more photos from last weekend…

Vin in his period looking gear. I wish that the saddle had a bit larger seat for me though...

Walking out nicely in his second ride ever and the first time ridden in a saddle.

I'll leave you with this photo of him sleeping in my lap on his first day of life.

Vinnie had his second and third rides this weekend. I had brought Paisano up to Tired Dog Ranch for Amanda to ride. I put Vinnie in a nearby paddock to keep Paisano company for the weekend and because I knew I wanted to work with him. He called some to his friends and relatives down below, but was nicely settled down after a night near Paisano.

Saturday was his first ride in a saddle. I used my old Simco western that I’ve been trying to sell for the last year. It seemed to fit him fairly well. I got on in the 12×24 pen. He was okay, but a bit antsy. I had Amy Jo open the gate and rode him around the orchard area for maybe 20 minutes or so. At first, Amanda helped him move forward leading him with the mecate, then we went solo. He did really well. The only sticky part was him not really knowing that leg means forward. He turned and stopped just perfectly. And he looked very smart in the brown tones of the saddle, my wool pad and bosalito with mohair mecate. All the photos are on Amanda’s camera, so I’ll have to wait to get them from her.

Sunday morning, we tacked up again. This time, he took a couple of bucks in the pen when the saddle was cinched up. His pal, Cornelius was on his way up the hill to join us. I’m not sure if that’s what set him off or that maybe I cinched it too tight at first. Either way, I took him out and lunged him for a few minutes before getting on.

We went out on the loop trail through the wood around the property. If you were at the SMR meeting, you might remember that trail. It’s narrow, windy with roots and downed trees to step over. He was a CHAMP! He followed Cornelius, slowing when I asked. The bosal had rubbed a little while lunging, so I had switched to his web halter with reins attached. Paisano and Amanda followed us.

Vinnie with saddle sweat marks after our trail ride!

Amanda did really well with Paisano too. I think that they will make a great pair. He will likely go stay with her for a while on lease.

I was thinking of selling Vinnie, but now I am not so sure about that. I’ll do everything I can to keep this boy. He’s a really nice ride. We will need to work on standing still and not fussing and getting into everything. He’s a real busy body.

I also took Lily out for a short ride this afternoon. I haven’t ridden her in months. She was just fine leaving Rita, who is three months old now and quite independent. Rita looked concerned and called a little, but had aunts and uncles to take care of her.

Lily was SO ready to go and gaited so very nicely. Amanda and I went about 2/3 of the way I had ridden with Vinnie. It was really wonderful to feel Lily’s energy again. She is such a game mare. If all goes well, we should be able to do a couple of LD rides next year and have a blast!

It was very special to have all three of my horses out on the trail riding this weekend. It’s been a long time coming.

I was reading Mugwump’s latest post and I realized that Paisano needed a bit of a tune up on this front. So last night we worked on it. After a short bit of chatting with other boarders, I took him straight to the round pen, still dusty from rolling.

Paisano tried to snatch bites at his favorite weeds on the way over, then when I let him loose, he meandered over to a spot where he could reach more weeds. Instead, I sent him out at a trot. All he gave me was a little jog. I had my lunge whip that gives a nice pop and he got it laid over his rump. “NO, I want you to MOVE!” was the message. At first, I had to step into his space half way across the round pen. At one point, he kicked out twords me and that got him a response that really woke him up! I reversed him repeatedly for a few minutes.

By the end, he was responsive to all voice commands and would canter energetically until I asked him to do something else. He’s gotten into a pattern of just quitting and even slowing to a stop recently. I had slipped into the habit of always asking him to keep going, rather than expecting him to stay at any gait/speed until asked for something else. I am not going to do that anymore. My expectations are changing. I just don’t want to work that hard! Today was the beginning of that.

At a good whoa with him parallel to the fence, I asked him to come into the center. Then I gave him a good once over with my hands and some stretching and a little massage. That was his reward for the good work he gave me at the end.

On whoa in the round pen … I do not want a seasoned horse to turn to face me. This is just my preference. I know that many people always want their horse to ‘face up’ to them. Since my basis is in dressage, lunging, long lining, etc., I want a horse to stop where I ask them and not move their feet any more. If that means facing perpendicular to me, that’s what I want them to do. If I am driving, it means facing away from me. Whoa means “Whoa right where your feet are now,” not “stop and face me.” It’s hard to retrain them not to face you, when they are on the lunge line. In long lines, there is more control. Still, it can be frustrating during the transition time, where they think that is what you want. So I likely differ there from most of the NH world. So be it.

The jaquima on Lily. I've since put it on a Zilco trail headstall.

I worked in hand some on stepping under with the near hind foot. He has a harder time with this on the right. That flowed well into some lateral work. He tends to offer more sideways and less forward that I want. Or maybe that is me not getting my cues correct. Either way, we had some improvement there.

It’s supposed to rain all weekend, so I am not sure that I will be able to get any of the long rides at Pisgah done that I wanted to. I had laid out a training plan for the next six weeks until the Foothills ride. This three day weekend was going to be a great opportunity for some long slow miles. I guess I will have to get used to the rain… Today I am wimping out and working in the studio instead. Well, after I’m done with this blog post anyway!

I'll leave you with this photo of Lily being a good mom. She's telling Vinie to keep away from her baby.

Gratitude creates it’s own attitude. It can give you a new perspective, a new focus. I am going to use this day as my opportunity to see those things.

When we got down to the road (we have to ride 7/10ths of a mile from the trailhead to the barn), dusk was falling even in the open. The nearly full moon rose above Mt. Pisgah. I had a vignette between two hills that could not have been more perfect a view.

There was little traffic, most drivers were very considerate. Note to myself … I need to remember to bring my safety vest for all future rides. I have to give credit to Paisano for his level headedness. We were passed on the bridge by a car with headlights and he still trotted calmed over. The one vehicle that passed us faster than I liked was, of all things, a truck and horse trailer.

I went down the road a bit and came back to the barn through the farm fields. This gave Paisano a few minutes of rest and a good bit of thistle eating, his favorite. And it gave me the opportunity soak in the broad vista of cumulus clouds lit by the moon and enjoy the perfect temperature of the air.

I can’t think of a better way to end a long day at work… and that I am thankful for. Rides under the moonlight are a wonderful thing, when you have a perfect pony to share them with.

On the level of training for our LD ride, we did about 3.5 miles with about half or a bit less at a trot in just under an hour. Most of the trotting was uphill too. Yes, he was at his jog trot. I hope to get in some rides with other horses to encourage him to move out more. If you are in Eugene and want to meet at Pisgah on weekend, please email me.

How:

I need goals. Without them I sink into a malaise of boredom combined with a slightly depressive apathy. Then I start searching for some goal to create for myself. So far my recent horse goals have all been related to getting Paisano and Vinnie prepped to find new homes. That’s pretty open ended and a bit too vague for my taste. Besides, I don’t really want to find them new homes. That’s a sort of “must” goal, not a “want to” goal. Though it does still hang out there, I don’t think that I’ll be pursuing trying to make Paisano into a dressage pony, for instance.

Still very perky after 10 miles and 1,000 gain in elevation each way.

Checking out his saddle that Sky wore.

I really liked the Trekker. It is a very well made saddle of high quality, durable leather and fully adjustable. Unlike most other treeless saddles that I have tried, it has full spinal clearance for the horse and a firm, solid seat for the rider. It’s definitely jumped to the top of my want list. Romina liked my FreeForm too, so it was a good test ride for both of us.

Nice, even sweat pattern from Romina's Trekker Endurance. That's Romina and Sky in the background.

Paisano got sweaty, but not out of breath, except for the gallops and long, big trots. He is very game and will barge through brush, go off ahead of the the other horses, in the middle of the pack, at the end, whatever. It was great getting him around other horses and used to riding in close quarters.

The 25 mile ride at Foothills of the Cascades on October 17 will be my choice. I have 46 days to condition Paisano. I’ve been getting to the barn 3-4 times/week. I am going to try to make at least two of those on the trail, hopefully three. He’s doing well with EasyBoot Bares on the front, over trails that are a mix of pavement, gravel and dirt.

We are riding bitless in my FreeForm saddle. Now to start figuring out camping gear to keep me warm in October Oregon weather!

I’m pretty stiff and sore today, but doing more consistent trail riding should help me there too. And maybe, just maybe, I might loose a few pounds to bring us out of the heavyweight division. I’ll have to weigh my tack and gear tonight and get an idea on that.

So here I am … once again making plans for something that I really don’t have the time for, but will enjoy doing none the less.

Gurunam with Cora & Lily at the summit of Mt. Pisgah in 2007. This was one of the few times we trailered over. I didn't take a camera today, so this will have to do.

When I moved to Eugene, during my long period of no horse activities, we used to go out to Pisgah and hike to the top. Every time, I would wistfully think about how much nicer it would be to ride, rather than walk. I had no plan to get horses. It actually seemed like rather an impossible idea at the time.

Then when I did get horses, I didn’t board close to Pisgah and didn’t have a trailer for a few years. Then I did have a trailer, but not a horse to ride. They were either too green or bred. Now, incredibly, I have the trained horses, the trailer and I board as close to Pisgah as you can get. You would think that I would be ecstatic. I have to remind myself how lucky I am, as it already feels so familiar as to be ordinary. And that itself feels wonderful! It’s interesting how something that I wanted for so long, has taken a very short time to get entirely used to.

Back to the pragmatic side, today was our first long ride trying out my FreeForm saddle on Paisano. It left a very nice even sweat pattern and he seemed comfortable and moved out pretty well. It stayed in place both up and down hills. I had a breastcollor on and checked regularly to see if it was really needed. It never got snug, so the saddle really did stay where it was supposed to. We went down some pretty steep hills, so it was a good test. To the point that I would have appreciated some larger thigh blocks!

It is not my first choice though to ride Paisano in, as I feel like I am sitting on a table. On him, It is very flat side to side, without much twist. The result is that it is harder to get my leg on him. I’ll continue to use it on trails, as long as he stays comfortable. It rides better for me on Lily. With her it is my favorite saddle so far.

Tomorrow Paisano will get something short and easy since he worked hard today. The two days after that involve other riders trying him out. Sunday, Amy Jo comes down to ride him and Monday, a trainer at my barn will try him out.

Last weekend, Pam came out and taped Paisano and I. It was meant to be a basaeline sort of video to record where he is at in his development and training. I rode him with a bridle first, then tried this. I don’t think that I ever rode him bridleless when he was a stallion. That makes this maybe our third or forth try. The previous times were in the round pen at Tired Dog Ranch, so a much smaller and more contained space. I was very happy with how he did. There were a few times where I had to put the rope up near his throatlatch to turn him and he really wanted to go hang out in the sunny far corner. Needless to say, those were outtakes.

He was good on basic walk, trot, canter, turn and stop cues. We have to work more on things like turn on the forehand and haunches and leg yield. Those are a bit harder to do without rein cues. I didn’t get more than a couple of steps before he moved forward. That can come with time. It’s a bit harder when there are no reins to restrict forward movement. In retrospect, I should have started this against the wall. Another step will be riding with another horse in the arena.

Watching the video, I realized that some of his apparent resistances may have been due to the fact that he had fly bites right where the rope crosses his chest. Pressure probably felt good! No wonder he leaned into it a few times, instead of backing off. I might post another clip of scratching him afterwards. It’s pretty cute. Pam pointed out that he was so relaxed that his lower lip was flapping the entire time.

Two of my favorite stills from the video…

The music is Corazon by Mirabai Ceiba, available from Spirit Voyage

I took my harness out to the barn today and put is on Paisano. It’s been nearly three years since he wore it. He took it all well, even the crupper. I took him in the indoor first and tried his rump bells. They are really loud. (Here’s a video from soon after I got them.) The horses in stalls next to the arena were a little spooked, so I took them off. Paisano could have cared less. He was great! He responded well to voice commands and willingly kept to his trot, doing circles and serpentines. Next we went outside to get some better photos.

The harness needs fine tuning for fit. I would also like to get a new bridle. This one is a bit crudely made. I saw a beautiful Zilco driving bridle at the Driving Essentials booth at the Inavale CDE. I’ll also be shopping for a driving bit for him. And what I really need is a session with a driving trainer and a cart to hitch him. I think that he is very ready!

Gratitude creates it’s own attitude. It can give you a new perspective, a new focus. I am going to use this day as my opportunity to see those things.

How:

AR Cirro (Vinnie) SMR 3613
(Paisano SMR 3313 x Choctaw Lily SMR 3150)

Born August 22, 2006

Vinnie on day one

Three months old.

Vinnie 2 years, 9 months old.

More photos of Vinnie from my old site.

She was likely born sometime in the early hours last Friday morning, June 26th. This is Paisano’s forth foal and Lily’s second. Lily will now have a long, probably permanent break from carrying any more foals. This filly is nearly a carbon copy of her dam, with the addition of a cute blaze and a front sock. She has a similar hind right sock to Lily’s. Here are a few photos from her first day. More may be found here and here.

Choctaw Lily and AR Margarita de los Prados

It's tiring being only a few hours old!

Very sweet face...

Baby whiskers

She will also be known as Margarita de los Prados (Daisy of the Grasslands)

Margarita is owned by Amy Jo Maurer & Sally Harmon of Tired Dog Ranch. Be sure to visit their blog often for updates. I will very much enjoy watching this little girl grow up.

And if you are in western Oregon looking for a great getaway, stop in, visit and stay in their lovely rentals.

Well, the SMR meeting is over, Paisano is delivered to his new barn and I am finally home!

Paisano spent a bit of time in his stall meeting the neighbors over the walls. They are just low enough that they can touch noses and see eachother’s eyes. I was a bit concerned about that, but he settled just fine. There were a few squeals with the gelding, but none with the mare. Go figure…

In the arena testing the idea of turnout with True, a gelding.

Before this, he was tearing around faster than I think I've ever seen him go.

Wow, grass!

True keeping Paisano away from the mare.

I liked this one so much, I wanted to get a close up.

He was on his way up and ended in a capriole-like kick!

Pirouetting away...

They settled down and Paisano returned to the grassy side.

Gratitude creates it’s own attitude. It can give you a new perspective, a new focus. I am going to use this day as my opportunity to see those things.

A poor photo from tonight.

Paisano seems a tad taller than I remember. I think that he may have matured mentally as well. He has a different air about him. Ah… there will be more to come. Now I am tired … and extremely grateful to have the boy home. I have to pinch myself – to think that I have the privilege to own such a horse.

Take a few minutes today to create your own Thankful Thursday.

How:

Gratitude creates it’s own attitude. It can give you a new perspective, a new focus. I am going to use this day as my opportunity to see those things.

I think that he may end up black, but won't know for a while.

It looks like has has 4 stockings and might have appy traits too.

Take a few minutes today to create your own Thankful Thursday.

How:

I know that I wasn’t going to post this weekend from the NW Expo, but when Vin was napping in his stall, it reminded me of when Paisano did the same thing.

Paisano in 2005

Vinnie today

What a silly boy! I was laughing. That's why I've got my eyes closed and look a little silly myself!

2003 Spanish Mustang gelding
Black sabino appaloosa

SMR 3313 +++ HOA 1418

American Sport Pony Registry (ASPR) Approved First Premium
IRC Sportpony Book I

(War Dancer x Wyoming Dusk)
Click for Pedigree

I have taken down my old website, so here is a direct link to Paisano’s page:
http://akalranch.com/Paisano/paisano.html. It includes many more photos and links to much of his life with me.

Paisano is now a gelding. I do have frozen semen stored. When a pregnancy is confirmed with a successful test breeding, I will consider when and if I want to sell any doses.

Progeny:

AR Cirro SMR 3613

AR Theory SMR

AR Luz de la Luna (Luis) SMR 3899

AR Margarita de los Prados SMR 3886

I drove to the Seattle area to pick up Vinnie this weekend. He had been hauled from the Cayuse Ranch earlier this week. He was out there spending some time growing up. I was curious to see what he remembered. Well, the little squirt has grown some, but not a lot. I had to remember how big Paisano was when I got him. Vinnie is about the same age as Paisano was then and he’s about the same size.

He whinnied when he saw me! And he still catches and leads and loads perfectly. First impressions: His mane in incredibly long for a two year old; Feet need triming; And he’s still a sweet as ever. You might not see many photos of him for a while, as he’s definitely in the ‘ugly duckling’ stage.

I was lucky that there was minimal rain for the entire drive, even though it was predicted. I was also quite curious to see how Lily and Paisano would react on meeting him again. Paisano never did spend much time with him before, so I didn’t expect him to think much of him.

I have two paddocks now, with two strands of hot tape separating them. Each side has a 14×12 shelter, well, actually the 14×24 split in two… So I tie up Paisano and Lily to bring Vinnie in and show him around.

Lily watching Vinnie

Lily was pretty interested. Paisano was a bit agitated. And Vinnie was calm as seems to be usual with him so far. The odd part to me was how Lily acted when I had turned Vinnie loose and went back to turn her loose. She stayed as far from Vinnie as possible. Vinnie was visiting with the geldings on the other side of the fence and checking out the grass available to eat. When Lily did go up to him, it was to chase him! She was alternately fascinated (from a distance) and apparently repulsed by him. She won’t let him up to the shelter or to the water near it.

Lily checking Vinnie out

After an initial greeting, Paisano wanted a piece of him! He tore up and down the fenceline and lunged at him, teeth at the ready, whenever he got close enough.

Father and son meeting again.

Paisano showing Vinnie who is Lord.

You can see that Vinnie is not terribly impressed...