tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5037107797013641705.post8046872558930309053..comments2024-03-26T05:15:39.663-07:00Comments on Equestrian Ink: SoldJami Davenporthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05259390150273030284noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5037107797013641705.post-82838922834943599572012-11-13T14:48:02.883-08:002012-11-13T14:48:02.883-08:00kel--That backing up thing is a nasty/dangerous ev...kel--That backing up thing is a nasty/dangerous evasion. I'm so glad you are getting the horse past it. The mare I had who developed this habit (all my fault) became pretty scary. My uncle actually had to back her until she fell down (in a nice soft arena) before she began to turn the corner. Needless to say, I was careful not to make that particular mistake again. Laura Crumhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15200878892304748308noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5037107797013641705.post-9175961119528376162012-11-13T11:49:03.246-08:002012-11-13T11:49:03.246-08:00Laura...you are dead on with the backing thing. W...Laura...you are dead on with the backing thing. When you get after him and he didn't want to comply, he will start flying backwards. We have pretty much gotten him past it now. He tries it (very unsuccessfully) once in awhile but the episodes are coming further and further apart. It was a shocker because he is LAZY and that type of behavior was just so out of character for him. I think he figured out that little burst of energy could get him out of any work at all. It probably scared the guy and he got off. horsegeneshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08614136458074519322noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5037107797013641705.post-68503025838040118352012-11-13T11:31:13.926-08:002012-11-13T11:31:13.926-08:00FD... We have been wondering if this horse could b...FD... We have been wondering if this horse could be a little stiff in his back and hip just because of some of his other antics. The head shaking going down hill, etc. That might indeed answer the lead changing thing. On Sunday we were at a horse show, Cul was loping a nice small slow circle, about half way through, Laura reached up to adjust her hat and he changes leads but keeps right on going quietly - I don't know if he is just being ultra sensitive or being a brat, or hurting. <br /><br />We have scheduled an appointment with our equine massage lady - she does wonderful work and she will be able to give us a definite answer.<br /><br />Thanks for putting that out there. horsegeneshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08614136458074519322noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5037107797013641705.post-10584277401384107852012-11-13T07:22:00.380-08:002012-11-13T07:22:00.380-08:00FD--That's a great story about the pony!
Inte...FD--That's a great story about the pony!<br /><br />Interesting what you say about the lead switching. The horse I have seen is an ex-reiner who "burnt out". Essentially he was asked to do reining patterns, including flying changes, so much that he began using the flying change as an evasion. I have seen this sort of thing in horses that were backed a lot...they will begin using the backing as an evasion...as kel describes her former horse as doing. I had one like that in my younger days. I broke her..and I backed her too much. It took me a LONG time to get her over using backing as a way of resisting what she did not want to do.Laura Crumhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15200878892304748308noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5037107797013641705.post-77760115880476181882012-11-13T03:45:40.070-08:002012-11-13T03:45:40.070-08:00Well, I won't pretend I haven't seen exact...Well, I won't pretend I haven't seen exactly the scenario you describe (because that used to be a significant chunk of my income!) but I have seen a pony sold to a family and become a complete ratbag caricature of a rotten kid's pony, except with the eighty year old greatgrandma who was a lifelong rider, but very tottery and frail. For her, and for her only, he was angelicly quiet and careful and never put a foot wrong, not even to mug her for carrots. I was watching them together one day, along with the father of the grandkids and he said musingly, "I hate to anthromorphise but it's just like he knows that she's the only thing standing between him and my shotgun."<br /><br />re the lead switching -that's a classic uncomfortable in the back sign in my experience. The other times I've seen it it stemmed from having been asked to go forward while being held back. And horses who've been ridden like that tend to be very tight in the back anyway so I'm not sure now that I think about it that there really are two clear cut categories there. FDhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01485030894416936129noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5037107797013641705.post-40421238383536507102012-11-12T10:44:15.395-08:002012-11-12T10:44:15.395-08:00kel--That is exactly the scenario that I worry abo...kel--That is exactly the scenario that I worry about--and to a lesser degree, that is what happened to Sunny before I bought him. Side note--my friend Mark has another horse in for "re-training" right now that does the same constant switching leads thing when he doesn't want to lope circles--I had never seen that before. An ex-reiner.<br /><br />I guess, as Martine says, better spoiled than abused, but its a tough problem. As I said in the post, its so much easier not to allow those negative behaviors than to fix a horse that has gotten confirmed in being a bully. I am hoping that Coal and his new owner do well together--he is a really nice horse. And I hope your Cul goes back to his former self...Sunny did, but it took a couple of years.Laura Crumhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15200878892304748308noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5037107797013641705.post-4706471417441047062012-11-12T09:48:52.241-08:002012-11-12T09:48:52.241-08:00I had this very thing happen to a horse I sold to ...I had this very thing happen to a horse I sold to a wonderful (I thought) home. I sold a 5 year old gelding that I had purchased as a weanling, raised and had trained to be a reiner. He was is a lazy kind of horse and loping circles with no purpose did not light up his world. He liked to be trail ridden and work cattle but asking him for a large fast circle could work YOU to death! His turnarounds were labored - not that he couldn't go at lightening speed if he wanted to, he just didn't see the need and unless you were willing to kick his butt...he was going to flop around like a fish. He is a drop dead gorgeous sorrel with a blazed face, grand son of Peppy San Badger - all around nice horse. No bad habits except for the lazy thing. So I sold him to a gentleman (retired lawyer = money) that was a good friend of my best and oldest friend in the world. They live in an upscale area, the barn that he boarded at is a small private barn right off some manicured riding trails. The barn owner only feeds the best quality feed. - ridiculously good quality hay - She has someone clean daily, horses feed the same time every day, turn out etc. The gentleman had taken care of my friends horse and had ridden her when my friend didn't have time. He grew up riding and was an experienced horseman. Because he was retiring he would have more time to spend riding and looking for a horse that he could trail ride and do some team sorting on. Sounds perfect right? I delivered the horse to him (8 hours away) and everything appeared good - the only thing that I would have fixed was that his saddle was crap and old and really didn't fit the horse well. I told him that I thought he should invest in a newer saddle that fit the horse better. He seemed a little reluctant but agreed to check into it. I checked in on him via my friend from time to time and things were going o.k. The gentleman had injured his back playing golf and had not been able to follow through on this sorting plans but was riding the horse on the trails 3 or 4 days a week. The same trail 3 or 4 days a week - that sent up a red flag and I was hearing little things here and there that were sending up signals... like the horse was trying to bite at you when you cinched him. He was shaking his head going down hill and offering to get a little bucky. He didn't want to leave the barn sometimes. I again asked if the saddle had been replaced and was told that he was borrowing a different saddle. Fast forward 3 years later and I get the call... Cul is for sale. Fortunately another friend needed a horse, knew Cul and made a deal. We went and picked him up and oh my gosh what a BRAT he is. We picked him up in June and he is just now getting his manners back. And it has been VERY much a tough love situation. He is a powerful horse. He had gotten to be a lazy horse with a huge pushy attitude. He bucked, bolted, sullied up, whatever he could come up with to get out of work. This horse had amazing flying lead changes when I sold him. Right now you can not move in the saddle without him changing leads. Getting him to NOT change is more of a challange than getting him to change. He can back up with more purpose than any horse I have ever ridden - problem is that he does it to get you off. He shakes his head and offers to buck when HE decides he is done working. My friend that bought him is working through the issues but it is taking longer than either of us expected. And part of the problem is that when you get a new horse you don't want to spend all your time getting after them. She knows what a nice, safe horse he can be but right now she must be so viligent about his discipline that it has taken all the fun out of having a new horse. It is all very, very frustrating. <br /><br />I hope Coal ends up in a better situation and for the life of me I don't know what you can do. <br /><br />I guess it is better that they go to a good home and become brats than a bad home and become dead. ???horsegeneshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08614136458074519322noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5037107797013641705.post-52262059681285527202012-11-12T09:23:04.060-08:002012-11-12T09:23:04.060-08:00Mona--That is a great comment, and is exactly righ...Mona--That is a great comment, and is exactly right on, in my opinion. In Coal's case, he really is a very easy, well-behaved horse. Lots of beginners have been put on him in the last couple of years, and he packed them like a real baby sitter. He's eleven, and pretty darn solid. So I don't think his new owner faces as many challenges as you did. But the overall truth is still the same. If she feels intimidated in any way by the horse, hopefully she will get help. Coal is a really lovely riding horse in an arena--I rode him maybe a dozen times, and he was a pleasure. It would be hard to find a better horse for that purpose. Crossing my fingers it all works well.Laura Crumhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15200878892304748308noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5037107797013641705.post-85924762403154163532012-11-12T08:51:57.551-08:002012-11-12T08:51:57.551-08:00I have first hand experience with this and with my...I have first hand experience with this and with my current horse. I wasn't completely inexperienced, but after 15 years off (and I had only been riding for 10 before that as an adult!) and a bad fall, I came back with less confidence. I made doozies of mistakes with the horse I bought. Young, green broke, Arab, mare, not worked in a year....I think I covered most of the list of what not to buy. The first year of owning this horse she was sketchy about her back feet, wouldn't go in the wash rack, bucked when you asked her to canter and sucked back and threatened the rest of the time. I would go to cinch her up and she'd throw her head, roll her eye at me and try to bite. Hopefully, Coal's new owner will do what I did. Find a good trainer and have them assess the horse and help you out. I would have sold my mare as some sort of crazed alpha mare if I hadn't found my current trainer. She reassured me that I had the skills and that my horse wasn't crazy and that we both needed time and training. I had to learn how to lay down my limits and enforce them. We made it through our rough patch and though my girl is still a bit grouchy with the cinch, she now just gives a head toss or two. I think things could work out Coal's new owner if she's willing to get help if she can't do it herself. If she fell in love with him, hopefully she'll also think he's worth working it out for.<br /><br />Sorry this is so long and rambly....I just know what it's like to buy a decent minded horse and turn them into a mess. Luckily, I also know what it's like to turn the mess back into a good horse (with a trainer's help).Mona Sterlinghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12077277801514781079noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5037107797013641705.post-21720886320012260182012-11-11T11:15:45.651-08:002012-11-11T11:15:45.651-08:00Martine--Yes, I honestly feel that Coal went to a ...Martine--Yes, I honestly feel that Coal went to a genuinely good home--I'm crossing my fingers it works well for both horse and owner.<br /><br />Cesca--Its true. Perhaps Coal will help his new owner to be a more confident horse person. I hope so. We did try to make the best choice that we could, given the overall situation.Laura Crumhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15200878892304748308noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5037107797013641705.post-18482585829267399242012-11-11T10:24:08.790-08:002012-11-11T10:24:08.790-08:00I agree with Martine; sometimes you just have to l...I agree with Martine; sometimes you just have to let go and hope for the best. You're not the "red cross" (as my husband always says!). <br /><br />And maybe the lady will learn to be firm with him if he tries to pull some wise guy tricks with her; I also believe that horses can teach us to be more firm, more confidence, more assertive. I know Qrac has (even if he's becoming even more of a coochy-coo horse every day...which I like). <br /><br />Coal is definitely a pretty horse, and I know what you mean about black horses being hard to photograph!Francesca Prescotthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16312915602595615476noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5037107797013641705.post-88946219612635502522012-11-11T10:01:26.895-08:002012-11-11T10:01:26.895-08:00Hmmm it's difficult Laura, but sometimes you j...Hmmm it's difficult Laura, but sometimes you just have to let go... especially when you have a "buy-back" option. <br />I know exactly what you mean, when the sweet natured horse goes to new people and quickly works out that he's got the upper hand and walks all over them, but hey it's still better than going to someone who's going to beat or abuse himMartinehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14496995504975297110noreply@blogger.com