Sunday Silence

First ear cam

Just this.

Not too exciting.... just the way I like it.

Took miss Delia over to the cows... ho hum..... saddled her up and did a bit of ground work. Josie was ripping around the pen, Beamer was calling, but she took it all in stride- one heads up look when Josie started galloping but after that she was back to plodding along. So I had Ted take the lead line and we went for a walkabout in the yard. Very nice, but you could see that she was unhappy with the bit- she has never had her teeth done-  so I didn't ask a lot of her. Dentist is coming next month. Didn't get over to the indoor yesterday, had other things going on in the afternoon. Next week! Our session got interrupted with company so I didn't get a chance to go solo. Back in the day I would have had a bunch of rides all over the countryside by now, but I'm getting old and cautious. :0) I'm in no hurry either.

Better progress

Yesterday I had tried a couple of different approaches to stop Delia from dropping her shoulder into me as she circled me when she was trying to avoid facing the cows. I asked Shayla for advice, and she suggested using a flag. I wanted something that didn't take a lot of physical effort, but was effective, so this made sense. Also, her previous owner always packed a flag around, so I knew she was used to it. Sure enough, when I sacked her out at the beginning of today's session, she didn't move a muscle. So off we went to visit the cows. This time when she tried to circle me and leave, I brought that flag up in her face and shook it, and she stopped. She tried two more times, and then gave up and just stood there, relaxed on a loose lead line.

Good girl, Delia! After a bit, I took her over to the other side of the cow pen; this is the west side where there are just the two old cows and one little bitty calf; we went over to the north side closer to the cows you can see in the background, which is the pen we started on with our first cow session, there are a couple dozen cows in it. She did try to circle again, but I worked on her standing straight and facing the cows, which only took a little bit: again, good girl Delia! A couple more sessions and she should be over it.
After that I took her for a little walkabout, working on keeping her at a respectful distance, and then back into her pen. I'm pleased enough with her progress that I think I will haul her to the indoor tomorrow. I want to know how well she will take to another new environment.
She seems to be settling in well now. Josie is still dominant at the feed bunk but not out in the pen.

I took Beamer out for a brushing and touch-up on his feet, then let him have a treat- a few minutes of nibbling on the lawn, which is starting to grow again.

Happy Beamer!

Pocket Pony

Today's session with the cows was marginally better, but got cut short because the Landlord came roaring in with his bale truck so I had to get out of the way. Delia was not quite as petrified, but she did drop her shoulder into me in her hurry to get her butt turned to the cows. I did get her to stop, stand and look a few times before I had to leave.
 So the thing I need to work on is keeping her out of my personal space.

This is how close she wants to be.

In fact, every time I walk in her pen, she is right behind me....

She even followed me as I walked all the way around the tree....

She definitely keeps an eye on me.

And on the landlord as he walked into the cow pen too!

The next few days I will be working on getting her to learn where my bubble is, and to keep a respectful distance unless invited in. She does lead well, including stopping and going and turning in unison with me, just have to work on keeping a little further away especially so that when she gets worried she will not run over me but have that space ingrained enough to keep me safe.

Facing fear

Not my fear- miss Delia's fear. Of cattle.
Today I took her out of the pen and did a walkabout with her, started off with an in hand session of moving her feet and body until she was nice and light and paying attention. Then over to the cows.....
I did a bit of the advance and retreat, she was blowing and snorting and dancing, jumping away and trying to leave- but I was ready for all that; I'm a big girl and she couldn't budge me when she hit the end of the slack in the lead rope.

 Every time she tried, I'd bring her back, wait til she stood still, then back her off circle around and come right back. We eventually got within 5 feet of the very curious cows, who are accustomed to my horses over the fence from them.

Once we were that close and she stood quietly for a minute and licked her lips, we left- but she was in a hurry to leave so we had to make that a schooling opportunity too; walk away 10 ft., turn and walk back; away 15 ft. turn and walk back etc.
After that we went to the hitching rail and I tried my Wade saddle on her- it seems to fit well so I'll use it on her at first until I can determine if it is truly a good fit by the sweat marks.
Back in the shelter, I tried to trim her other front foot- it was a bit of a struggle because THE COWS WERE WATCHING!!!!!  She kept trying to turn into me, only there always seemed to be an elbow or a rasp handle in the way... funny how that works....  I did have to move her out and let her know that I could still control her feet by moving them and finally did get a rudimentary trim done- backed the heels and brought the toe back but until I have someone here to hold her that will have to do.

So what this session has determined is that until I have her full attention on the ground, and she trusts me to keep her safe even around those aliens from outer space cows and stops trying to push through me, riding will be put on hold. You ride the horse you lead, and without respect on the ground you darn sure won't have it in the saddle. The Buck Brannaman clinic is going to be really good for me and her. Since she has led such a sheltered life, it will be good to take her to the indoor arena and let her have a look around there, with some work in the round pen.

Small progress

I didn't accomplish everything on my list today that I wanted to do with Delia. I started out this morning with trimming her front feet..... I got one done no problem and then the cows came up for water and it totally got her on high alert again. They are about 40 ft. from her stall area where we were and came into view around the corner of the building unexpectedly. I decided to err on the side of caution and leave the second foot until tomorrow. I think it's going to take a little longer for her to settle in than I thought, but that's understandable, she has hardly been off the farm where she was born and this is her very first big adventure. I did work on her respecting my space when she was so worried, spent some time moving her feet- hip over, shoulder over, both sides; forward and back etc. Then I led her out to the middle of the pen and we hung out together leaning on the fence watching the cows while I told he all about how her Granddaddy Wranglers War Leo was a world champion in Jr. Working Cowhorse and how fun it was for horses to make cows move. I swear she understood what I was talking about, because she licked her lips and gave a big sigh, and after that when I turned her loose she followed me around, stopped when I did, and walked with me when I walked. Until we got to the hay pile.... I think she is so concerned with everything that she forgets to relax and eat.
I did measure her and as I thought she is 14.2 hh.

After that the weather turned nasty so I left her alone. Tomorrow after work I'll get that other foot done and if it isn't too windy will get her out of the pen and over to the hitching rail to check out saddle fit.
I need to get some body work done on her too (Shayla!!) Her neck is out on the right side about the middle of her neck. I have the horse dentist coming next month so she will get her first ever float. Keeping all that in mind I'm not going to be in a hurry to expect big things from her.

She spends a lot of time at the top of the pen- she can see a long ways from there, that's probably new to her too as she was in a narrow valley before.

That's not a bump on her back, that is her fur all scuffed up from rolling. She's shedding- I owned a grey before and that are slow to shed out.

Delia

I had a friend haul my mare home for me today- my truck needs brake work- and sensible mare that she is, only took a few minutes to load her; she had only been loaded once before. She is 11 years old, has raised 2 sons, and was started under saddle last year. Yes, she is green, more so than I was looking for. However, I had come to the conclusion that I wasn't going to get everything I wanted unless I was willing to spend a lot of time -and money- looking. When I heard about this mare, who was only an hour away, I knew I had to go check her out. I had seen her granddaddy Wranglers War Leo in the show ring years ago, and absolutely loved him and always wanted one of his get. Her bloodlines are all reining. As we drove into the yard yesterday where she was I knew as soon as I laid eyes on her that this was my horse. She just had that look that I like, short, stout and pretty. The gentleman who was selling her is the one who started her under saddle- he is 69 years old, had a broken back a while ago and broke a rib in December- but he saddled her up, did a little ground work moving her feet around, and climbed on and rode.

 He has a gentle touch and I could see that the mare was really calm and willing, no silliness in her. I rode her too in the round pen- oh what a smooth trot she has- and then he got on another mare and we rode out on a little trail ride. Mud, ice and snow, bridge crossing, logs, creek crossing- all good. The only time she tensed up was when she heard one of the horses from back in her pasture calling, but it was easy to get her attention back on the job at hand. I felt right at home on her.
He wanted me to come and ride her a few times to be sure that she was right for me, but I knew that this was the mare for me. He also had checked me out beforehand by phoning some mutual friends and asking about me (he admitted this after we rode) and he liked the way I rode and talked so he agreed to sell her to me.

She's checking me out....

Anyway. we got her home and I turned her in with Josie. I usually keep a new horse separate for 2 weeks, but since I only have 2 pens and no extra panels due to having to use my round pen for fencing when the landlords took away my corral fence, I had no choice. It went well, Josie tried a couple of little squealing rushes and was quickly put in her place by this mare who is very experienced in the herd. Pinned her ears, threatened to kick, and Josie got real respectful quickly. I think she is just glad to have a buddy again.

The cows really got her attention! She spent the better part of an hour watching them, probably hasn't been pastured near them before.

She has lovely little ears!

I watched them for a bit, made sure everything was good and safe, then had to head up to Janice's place to pick up Tess. She has been looking after Tess the last few days and taking her to see Moss, the dog who sired her last 2 litters- yes, I bred her again because now it's my turn to keep a pup and I have several people who are asking for pups. May 1st or thereabouts! Puppies! Thanks Janice for helping me out, it's a long drive so it was really nice that you looked after that for me.

When I got home, of course I headed right out to check on the girls. The mare is  still really looky but is settling down a bit. Her barn name has been DeeDee, but since I have a cousin by that name I wanted to change it but keep it similar since she is used to it. So I call her Delia.
She was up at the far end of the pen, I called... Deeeeeeliaaaaaa and her head snapped around....

She turned and trotted briskly towards me.....

until the cows distracted her....

I'll go check on her  again before bedtime :0)
Tomorrow I'll take her around the yard in hand and show her all the sights and sounds including getting closer to the cows, as well as measuring her, I'm guessing 14.2 hh, and trying my tack on her to find the best fit for saddle and pad. I plan on hauling to the indoor arena for the first rides to get  a little more familiar with her and teach her about me and how I ride. I'm hoping I will find someone to ride with there that will go down the road with me after the arena schooling.
This horse gives me a happy!
I plan on riding her for 2 years, and if her 5 panel test is clean, I'll breed her to Beamer once Josie is a little older and broke to ride.

The search is over.....

More info to follow once I bring her home, hopefully tomorrow.
 http://www.allbreedpedigree.com/red+wrangler+lady

Whittling down the numbers

Well the field of contenders is diminishing. The mare I was trying to find, a filly I raised and sold that was a daughter of my mare Sundee, is no longer living, sadly. The mares from High River have all been ruled out, as well as most of the ones in my original post- the only one I am still considering is the daughter of Annie's Cat. I have asked for more video and photos of her, including standing square, and walking and trotting directly towards the camera. I suspect she is toed out, and I know that she is lacking in the gaskin area. Also asked for video of him asking her for all the different parts of her body so that I can see how willing she is, as he already said she doesn't know much of that but tries to please.  Distance is a factor with her as she is about 8 hours away.
I also have 2 mares to look at this weekend, a little closer to home. They are reining bred, with bloodlines going back to Great Red Pine, Reminic and Wranglers War Leo. There is a grey and a sorrel. That will be Saturday morning- stay tuned! I'm really hoping that one of these will suit me!
I have owned some wonderful mares  and I think that's why I am being pretty fussy. Sundee was the dam of Coyote Belle, as well as the filly I just mentioned that I was looking for, and one more mare that I will be leasing this summer (if it works out) to use to teach the nieces to ride and use for ponying Josie. Sundee is the mare in the background photo for this blog.

Expectations

Well, yesterday was a mighty long day. Left here at 4:30 AM and drove to Alberta, got back at 9:30 PM. I stopped to pick up Shayla, and then went to look at the 4 mares. I was told that the mares were well broke and started on the cowboy up obstacles. I think they should have said that they were doing really well on the obstacles but were green broke.
To start with, I eliminated 2 of the mares just looking at them, they weren't appealing to me at all. Nothing really drastic on them, just not the kind of horse I am interested in- I have to like looking at them as well as like riding them!
They had one mare ready to go, and I didn't really care for her but since he was saddling her anyway I checked her out. 8 years old, did a great job on the obstacles, but was not soft in the bridle at all. I did ride her, and was pleased with how she handled the course but that's about it.
The other mare was pretty to look at, and only 5 years old, but they had talked her up so much that I figured she would be just perfect.....
To start with, he wasn't going to lope her until Shayla asked him to. She wasn't bad, a little forward and fresh- she hadn't really been ridden in the last 2 months-  and she did a decent job on the obstacles.

After that Shayla rode her and that's where we found the holes in her. Lots of trouble going left, not a lot of body control. I rode her too, and what I found was that when you asked her to do something she would not quite know what you want and give you a bunch of stuff you didn't ask for- like for example when I asked for a turn on the forehand she wanted to walk forward when I moved my leg back to push her hip over, and then swished her tail when I used a little more leg to make my request clearer. And when I asked for a whoa from a walk- I take a deep seat which puts my legs a bit forward, say whoa and wait for a response before I go to the rein- she didn't have a clue about that and kept walking until I used the reins to stop her.
Here I was asking her to pick up her shoulder and move off my inside leg as we circled- she didn't know what I was asking.

This to me is a really green horse. In all fairness, her mouth was a mess, not much movement and sores inside. A good float would make her a much happier horse.
That being said, these are things I can work on with her-my concern is that most of her riding has been in the arena with a bit of outside riding, I'd rather have it the other way- lots of outside riding and less arena work. My other concern with her is her conformation....

which I will leave to your discernment.

I got to thinking about what my expectations are. To start with, this is the first time I have looked for a broke/started horse since 1990. I have only ever bought 2 horses that had been started by someone else, and I have owned a lot of horses over the years. Mostly what I ride I have either raised, or bought as a weanling or yearling and then done the training myself or had someone put the first 30 days on and then I go from there.

I also think I have been a little spoiled by the quality of the horses I have raised, especially the Beamer babies. I don't want to downgrade! I sold two darn fine geldings to get a mare, so she will have a lot to measure up to.

 We went to visit the boys yesterday, it sure was nice to see them and they are really happy in their new home. They all 3 remembered us, but it was plain that they didn't miss us! Rio had eyes only for Rorie, and Nitro was all over Kevin

Kai was a little wary almost as if he thought I was going to take him away from his new happy home-  not gonna happen Kai, so just relax!

Why can't I find a mare that looks this good!

It was nice to be able to get all 3 boyz in one photo!

Kai and Nitro are deciding if Rio's blanket needs alterations.

More on the contenders

I have video of 3 of the mares I am considering. Two of them I have ruled out, based on the videos and other info I have gleaned from various sources. First up is the dun mare, she is a granddaughter of Hollywood Dunnit.

This is not a current video of her, it was taken last fall. She has 7 months of professional training with Natalie and Wendy Weichel and is 7 years old. Here is a current video:

Next up is the buckskin mare; she has nice breeding with Fritz Command and Doc Bar as her great grandsires. She is 6 years old and has 2 months of professional training by Lindy Barron including working the flag and working buffalo.

The third mare is the Annie's cat daughter, her dam is a granddaughter of Colonel Freckles. I have a video of her loping and a conformation video. She has been ranch ridden.
This is the conformation video:



This video shows her being ridden at a lope.



So lets have your opinions folks! Give your preferences on which two you would eliminate.

I  am heading to Alberta tomorrow, I have 4 mares to look at over by High River at the Heintz Ranch. These mares are registered AQHA mares, between the ages of 6 and 8. Well started on lots of Cowboy Challenge obstacles, ridden outside, and I had a nice conversation with Doris Heintz, who is 80 years old and rides and shows a 5 year old gelding. She said that what most people call well broke they consider green broke. Bodes well for these mares I am going to be visiting! I'll be sure to take photos and videos to peruse before I make any final decisions.

Red headitude

Played with Josie some more today. She is pretty funny- gotta show a little bit of 'tude, but basically she is pretty good and such a smart filly. I started out by taking her for a bit of a walk, and we found a log to walk over, at least I walked over it... Josie had to make a bit of a production out of it first. Once she discovered that it had nice nibbly green grass on the other side of it, it became important to step over it. So we worked on that until she didn't hesitate to step over it. She reminds me of Rio a little bit in that if something startles her she makes a big move and then stands there and figures it out, only she is a whole lot smaller than he was at this age so much easier to hold. Then there was the old glass window still leaning against the house from last summer's renovation- very wide eyes as we approached that and checked out the pretty horse she could see in it.
After that I turned her out for a bit in the turn out pen, still a bit soft in there but she really needed to let loose for a bit.

On the way back to her pen, we have to pass a big hay tarp that the hay farmers next door left lying in a heap. I noticed that on the way past it the first time she gave it the hairy eyeball, so I figured maybe I should load her front feet onto it (insert evil grin).
So I tromped about on it and made a bunch of noise with it until she stopped jumping and stood and looked. Once she thought about it a bit, she loaded one foot....

Yeaaaaaaaahhhhh, I got this......

and then after a bit she loaded both front feet.

Good girl Josie! I gave her a treat for that and called it a day.

Riding and schooling and still searching!

While everyone back east is getting hammered with cold and snow, we are enjoying balmy weather.  The other day I had my first ride without a jacket this year- so beautiful! Beamer was happy to get out and go for a stroll.

There is still water lying on the ground, but the mud is drying up. And yes for you picky types, I don't hold my reins correctly for one-handed; I cross them over the same way as if I was using a snaffle, that way I don't drop a  rein. From here we rode back out to the gravel road that goes by our place, in the video it is just ahead and on the right. If you turn your volume up a bit you can hear Josie whinnying for her daddy right at the end of the video. When I pan to the right, you are looking at Idaho.

Steps out mighty fine for a little horse!

I even took old Reba along for the ride, we kept it short so she wouldn't get too sore and tired. She was so happy to get out just like old times! I really thought last September on her 13th birthday that it would be our last trail ride but that cancer surgery in December made all the difference.

  The next day I worked on trimming Josie's feet and then decided it was high time little miss was put in kindergarten, horse style. I sacked her out a bit with a towel, after the usual wide eyed what-the-heck-do-you-have-there-will-it-eat-me look she was fine with me flipping it all over her, fussed a little a couple of times but not bad for a first try.

Yeah I know the halter is loose....
After that I worked on moving her feet. She is pretty good at moving her hip with just a look at her hind quarters but it was a bit more work to get her to move her shoulder over- and then bang, her attention span had reached its limit  and she wanted to leap around and enjoy the beautiful day and being out of her pen for the first time in a long time. Not bad for a first mini session! One thing I like about her is that she is really good with her feet, lets me crawl around on the ground while I fuss with getting things right. Good girl Josie, it was fun!

Still haven't found the perfect mare, have another couple I'm considering but I think it's going to be a long grind- and I want one now!

Another contender

This is a daughter of Annies Cat , she is 5 and has been used for ranch work since she was 3. I kinda like her!

Contenders

My criteria for the mare I want to buy are pretty simple: Between the age of 5 and 12, with lots of riding; I don't mind doing a little finishing work but don't want green; between 14 and 15 hands, no taller. Colour doesn't matter although I do prefer black based colours. I have a reasonable budget and don't want a high dollar show-ready horse.
Sounds fairly simple huh?
Well, let me tell you they are few and far between.
Everyone has geldings for sale, and most of the mares for sale are either green broke, or brood mares, or are expensive show horses. Guess everyone keeps the good ones!
The other thing I insist on is a registered quarter horse. So many people are advertising grade horses (she's a quarter horse and could be registered but I don't have the papers is  the common excuse). People why would you not register a foal if it is eligible! I know you don't ride the papers but they do give you a history on the horse and give you insight into its genetic make up- many traits are inheritable! It's a crap shoot buying a grade horse no matter what it's current owner says about it. And they want just as much money for them as the registered horses, so why buy grade? And they are losing out on sales by not registering them- I am a prefect example.
Any way, rant over. :0)
I have found a few contenders, one was a non pro cutting horse mare who is in foal with a very sellable baby, but she is 11 hours away and I can't make that work. Then there is a buckskin mare I like but I can't get over to see her until the end of the month, and she may sell by then.

 There is another mare, a dun with reining training that I am super interested in and I do have an appointment to see her at the end of the month.

 Also found a nice black mare who is registered but the owner cannot find the papers......

Also there is a mare raised by my friend Carol but her owner is really slow at getting back to me.

Another horse I'm trying to track down is a buckskin mare that I raised, sold as a weanling and she is 12 now- trying to track down her current owner; this mare is off my old Sundee mare so she is a half sister to Coyote Belle.

Wordless Wednesday

Hat trick

Those of you who know hockey terminology know that a hat trick is 3 goals by the same player.
How about 3 full brothers in the same home?
Yes, that's right.
Remember I said someone was coming to look at Kai?
Kai and Nitro are joining Rio.
I couldn't be happier for th' boyz; this is the perfect home for all 3 of them.
I hadn't done anything with Kai since Christmas, and today he was as good as could be.

His wonderful temperament shone through and he tried hard to please.
Now, about Nitro.....
My husband for quite some time has been unhappy with me starting and riding colts. He worries about me. And I agree- I am past the age where it's a good idea to get on the youngsters no matter how sweet they are. I can still do it, I just don't enjoy it much any more. I want a broke horse that I can just go have fun with- and, I want a mare to ride. So I asked if they would be interested in Nitro too.
They were.
And Nitro is joining his brothers in Alberta.

That is Rio's girl holding Nitro, and her dad with Kai. I think Kai will end up being her mom's horse, Nitro will be her dad's horse- and she has Rio. It's a family affair! How cool is that that they will all be mounted on full brothers.
I'm over the moon!
Josie isn't too happy though. I'll have to find that perfect mare soon.

Finally my own space

It's been a long time coming but I finally have a dedicated space for drawing. Our place is pretty small, there was nowhere I could make room to set up until we cleared out part of the addition this past summer. Yesterday Ted drywalled the ugly wall and today I painted it and set up my gear. I need to buy a lamp to put above the table and get a few supplies and then I can start getting creative!

If this spring is as wet as I think it's going to be, I foresee a lot of time spent in here!

One year ago today

Ahhhhhhh.......

O glorious sunshine how I missed you! 

It had been waaaay too long since your warmth last kissed my cheek!

Beamer has been complaining of boredom lately so we saddled up and headed out into the cow pasture. This is a pen of heiferettes who will be bred for the first time this spring. I think there's a few late calves in with them.

My trusty sidekick wasn't about to be left behind, Tess is happily trucking along. Reminds me of the Christmas Carol "mark my footsteps good my page" from Good King Wenceslaus"

The field was our arena today, we loped circles, worked on sliding stops (fun in the snow!)

We practiced our two track......

And just had an absolutely lovely ride!
When I got back I turned the kidz out for a romp. I took Nitro out first.

He was happy to be able to light it up, their pen is a mix of mud, ice and poo right now.

He's a power house! But he kept looking for his buddies, so I added Kai and Josie in the mix.

 That was good for about 20 minutes of horseplay!

There was some red-headed attitude going on- I heard her give Kai double barrels when he was being too pesky.

Th' boyz were at their head games, rear up and bite each other.

I think Nitro won this round.

Yup, a totally wonderful sunny afternoon, perfect for that overdue horse fix I (and my horses) desperately needed!