He is here!

 Leo was delivered this morning! I had the foal pen all prepped for him, and put Tuffy in with him at first. 

They got along ok at first, but Leo was a bit much for Tuffy: he was pacing non stop and calling out. Disturbed Tuffy's peace! So I put Tuffy back with the mares until Leo eventually calmed down. 

Pacing... that square on his shoulder is where the breeders freeze branded him

Calling...

Pacing....

I put hay for the mares close to the foal pen and locked them out of the pasture so they would be close to the boys.  This afternoon, Tuffy went back in with Leo and they got along much better since Leo calmed down. 

Leo is not halter broke yet so that will be where I will start with him. One day at a time, with day one being to see if I can touch him. 

Ah that's the spot! 

Butt scratches are always a good place to start.

He let me move up his back and eventually around his head and poll.

Good boy, Leo!

They got along much better. 

There is quite a size difference! 

Tuffy is 5 weeks older than Leo. They are both growing in their winter fur. They will have access to the barn, foal ration twice a day and and all the hay they can eat. Leo hasn't quite figured out the foal ration but he will. 

Dally is quite attentive to him, she seems to love foals so I hope when she has her own she will be a good mama.

Here is hoping they have a good night!

Well..... I did a thing....

 What's better than 2  old roan mares in the pasture? Well, 3 of course! 

I saw an ad for a mare that has the same sire as Gussie, so I checked her out. The price was right, her ad info was good, so I called and went to see her. She was less than a half hour away. 

She is 20 years old, was born a bay roan and has gone grey (her dam is grey, her sire a red roan) and she is confirmed in foal to an up and coming running bred stallion. She is a big mare like her sister Gussie, good bone, and black feet that need a trim ( imagine that...) She was standing quietly tied, and has a perfect swirl and a kind soft eye. 

So I did the sensible thing and bought her!

She will fit right in my little herd . 

Who dat?

First greeting

Velvet earned a squeal from the new mare

You can clearly see in the above photo just how big this mare is; she is a touch bigger than Gussie. 

One more visit with Gussie, and making sure she knows where the water tank is

Nice big soft eye and a bit of a dished face

Surveying her new abode

It may look sunny and nice but it was -28 C this morning. I waited until it came up to -18C to haul her the relatively short distance home. 

She is a nice calm easy to get along with mare. 

She hauled well, (yay) leads well, and so far, no drama. (Double yay). I will give her a few days separated from the other girls before letting them mingle. Still waiting on a report from AQHA on how many foals she has had; the folks I bought her from only had her for about a year so didn't know much of her history. Apparently she was broke in her younger years and used for roping. 

Also, they said she didn't have a name when they got her so they just called her after the dude they bought her from. So I will be pondering an appropriate name for her. 

The stallion she is bred to

I did a thing.....

 Hello, beautiful.

I have been actively pursuing Facebook ads (thanks to my husband for allowing me to take over his account for pursuing horse for sale ads!) looking for that perfect horse. All I asked for was registered AQHA mare, safe for a senior rider, sound, no maintenance etc. All I got was grade horses or other breeds. Or green broke mares. 

Then I spotted an ad, with video and papers, of a nice looking bay mare and when I asked about her, she seemed to fit the bill. So, Ted and I headed out on a 3 hour drive to look at her. 

Hockey fans may recognize the name on that sign

The drive took us through endless farm country, flat and boring to most , but it's the heart of the nation for grain and feed production. 

It was chilly so I was happy to see that there was an indoor arena to try her out.  The seller asked if I wanted him to ride her first, so of course I said yes. 

He apologized that she had a cinch sore; she had some swelling and scurf, but to her credit, she didn't complain when he saddled her up, although you could see that she wasn't fond of touching that area when I checked it, she didn't get pissy at all. 

Once I could see that she was indeed sane and sensible and no funny business, I rode her. She's very soft in the face and sensitive to leg and body weight, and is what I call feely. Sensitive without being reactive. She does bridle up nicely although it may take more training to get her to stay in frame. 

I also liked that she ground tied without moving as we switched saddles to make sure mine fit her (it does). 

And Ted liked her. Bonus!

So we made the deal then and there and because of her cinch sore, he said he would deliver her for free. The probably saved me 3 or 4 hundred in fuel costs. And the best part is, the sale of Sophie was more than enough to pay for this mare. 

So he loaded her up and here she is!

I will give her time to heal that sore, and get used to her new surroundings. Once I make sure she doesn't have any colds or runny nose I will put her in with Velvet- that will make Velvet very happy, she has been lonesome! Beamer was quite excited too. 

I need a barn name for her, they were calling her Kit Kat, but I have a friend who has a bay mare called Kit Kat so that is out. 

Her registered name doesn't lend itself to a barn name, so I am open to ideas!