Anyone else here have a horse or work with horses and want to yack? Or this could be a place to ask horse related questions.
11/17/2011 . Edited 11/17/2011 #1 ReportDon't have any of my own but I ride my aunts as often as I can, wich hasn't been a lot lately :( Whish I could afford to keep my own.
11/18/2011 #2 ReportNeighhhhhhhh! I've never owned a horse, but I have ridden one back in my youth. I have even galloped on one. That was fun! Though my Mum has a horse that I see sometimes when I visit her. Wish I could remember his name actually. She also has quite a collection of blood-curdling horsey accident tales.
11/18/2011 #3 ReportGalloping is the best :) where I live there are lots of lovely beaches accessible by bridleways, galloping allong in the surf is one of my favourite experiences. I think blood-curdling accidents are a given when it comes to horses, it probably doesn't help when you have cousins encouraging you to do stupid things.
11/20/2011 #4 ReportGalloping???????? *gulp* I'm having enough trouble staying on my horse at a canter! I get really nervous when he picks up the speed. I feel like I'm going to fall off! Eeep! I'll get there one day tho. :)
11/27/2011 #5 ReportAhh its great when you get there. My mum used to pressure me into galloping when i felt like that, I used to hate going riding with her, my aunts much more laid back.
What sort of saddle do you use? I used to feel really uncomfortable on my aunts Arab untill we changed the saddle for a jumping one :)
11/28/2011 #6 ReportGuess it had to be horses that drew me back in here ;)
I have two horses now, one old gelding - 21 - and one young mare - 2, turns 3 in spring. I don't get to train with them as often as I would like, they are stabled quite a long way away, but horses are a passion never the less. The place they are stabled is very good for them, and they are happy there so I don't have the heart to move them closer. They spend all their time outdoors with a herd; it is hard to find a place like that near a city.
I ride dressage, and some mounted combat related exercises. Well, dressage is martial arts for horses, so... Its a good test of my dressage, actually. If I can't catch that ring with the lance, then its because (most of the time) the horse is not where he should be. A good canter, for instance, is rather important since weapon-training (targets) are done in canter. Steering as well; have to be close enough to the target to actually reach it ;)
12/3/2011 #7 ReportRagnelle, I am very envious of your riding ability! :) I'd love to be able to do all that, however, I am grateful just to have a horse to pal around with. :)
1/31/2012 #8 ReportI don't own a horse, and I haven't ridden one in years, but I love them! Love them! They are amazing! I wanna own one or two when I get older.
2/4/2012 #9 ReportI have the feeling that I sound like I am better than I am, NiRi, though I am not a beginner any more. I have been ill for a long time, though, so it is far too long since I even saw my horses. The young one is getting old enough that I should work more with her and prepare her for riding. The old one is getting fattened up as he lost a dangerous amount of weight, so no riding him until he has gained more weight. He is getting better, though, and that is good. I feared I would have to put him down, and I was not ready for that yet (and will never really be). Now it seems he will at least have another summer.
2/27/2012 #10 ReportYes, I was relieved when I found that I could postpone at least a few months. He's my first horse, and a very lovable character. He fitted me perfectly, and was the horse of my dreams even before I bought him. I would really like for him to have a good old age, because he deserves it, but this is the second winter I have had problems with his weight, and he was not in a good shape before we managed to break the bad development. I don't want him to suffer. But I would really like, when the day comes when I have to put him down, for it to have been at the end of a nice summer where he has enjoyed himself.
3/1/2012 #12 ReportPoor horse. I want my own horse, but my family's yard is not big enough...so I can't...
3/2/2012 #13 ReportI have them stabled elsewhere. I live in a small apartment in the city - no room for a horse. So I have them stabled in a professional yard. Small, family driven, but still professional. They've taken very good care of the old horse the last month; their daughter has taken responsibility for him, and she learned to ride on him, so he is well-loved there. That really helps. And he is doing much better now, thankfully. It will be a while before he can be trained, but he is doing so much better :)
3/3/2012 #14 ReportIt has been a bit touch-and-go with my old horse for a while now, but finally he is really starting to fill out again. New grass has helped a lot, and complementing with some super-nutriitious forage that is easy to chew. Plus a condition-mix made for old horses. He still spits out most of the hay half-chewed, so I do not have my hopes out for a long-term solution, but at the moment he is enjoying life. And that is good to see.
My young horse is three, so I am preparing her for riding. She is very smart, so I think what will take most time, is getting her strong enough to carry a rider. Getting her used to it will probably take much less time. And she is fun to work with.
5/26/2012 #16 ReportGlad to hear your older horse is doing better! And good luck training your 3 year old. Horses are so much fun to work with!
We've got a 5 year old that is proving to be VERY difficult. He is doing fabulous on ground work but carrying a rider is just NOT something he wants to do. My nephew has spent quite a bit of time flying through the air. LOL Hoping that the yearling we have coming up will be easier as his training started from day one! My borrowed horse, Rocky, is doing FABULOUS! We've been practicing cantering for longer periods of time. I've had some issues getting my balance with my back outta whack and my bad knees. And he doesn't like to canter, which hasn't helped, but his ground work is nearly perfect and he's come such a long way from the sulky, "I don't wanna" horse he was. He's turning into a fabulous partner. :)
5/29/2012 #17 ReportI hope Ronja will not be like that. Have you had him checked? It just sounds so strange that a horse does so well on ground work but keep throwing his riders. Though, he might just have leaned to avoid work that way ;) Still, I do know horses where there actually was something wrong, and once they were treated, no more problem.
Good to hear that Rocky is doing so well! Its that partnership that is the most important part, at least to me.
5/30/2012 #18 ReportSounds stubborn. Strange, as well, though of course he can have learned that he can trow his rider and get to decide that way. Not fun when the horse learns that, it is very difficult to make them unlearn.
6/26/2012 #20 ReportNeed to brag a bit here too, but I've started the serious training of Ronja, my young horse, now. She's been introduced to the saddle, which she did not react to at all. Then the bit, which she thought tasted strange, but that was about it. And yesterday I sat on her for the first time! And she was completely calm the whole time, and behaved very well. Today I sat on her again, and held the reins a bit as well, and she reacted like she was supposed to, but seeking a light contact on the reins and carried me with a swinging back. Very cool, and a very good horse. Calm the whole time (all five minutes worth. Or was it three?). She's going to be a super horse.
7/26/2012 #21 ReportThat is awesome! Congrats!! Mack's still something of a wild boy. Still cant ride him. Rocky's doing great tho. We started jumping some low jumps. (1-2 feet) and yielding his hindquarters under saddle and some side passing. He'll never be a show horse but he's a great pal around horse. :)
7/26/2012 #22 ReportThanks!
Great to hear about Rocky doing well. I hope you (or, rather, your brother) will be able to figure Mack out -- it don't sound normal that he should be that wild.
7/29/2012 #23 Reportoh Mack isn't wild. He just doesn't like anyone on his back. He's very gentle for everything else! I think it's mostly because he's older (5 yrs) being started in training and hasn't been gelded that long. His yearling colt, Lucky, on the other hand, is doing fabulous and will be a great horse, provided he doesn't inherit his sire's dislike of things on his back. ;p
7/29/2012 #24 ReportDoes that include rugs/saddle etc, or just weight? Sorry for being nosy, but I just find it so strange that an otherwise gentle horse that have nothing wrong in its back, reacts so violently to a rider. Of course the late start and that he is only recently gelded probably plays into it, but stallions accept riders as well as geldings, so I still find it strange. And that makes me curious, and makes me want to figure it out. I know I can't figure it out over the internet, and probably would be as stumped as you even in RL, but... Curious.
7/30/2012 #25 Report Reply 
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