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Kate, Roman and Star

11K views 117 replies 8 participants last post by  jaydee 
#1 · (Edited by Moderator)
So me, I'm a teenager in Kansas. I got my horse four years ago and pretty much taught myself how to ride - improperly of course. I started riding lessons in March of this year and improved greatly, best decision ever, and I began learning to barrel racing in June (?) and hope to start showing late this year or next spring. Super excited about that!!

My horse is an 18 year old Arabian gelding named Roman. He's bay with a star and coronet. He's a super awesome horse, not the bomb-proof well trained kind of horse and I love that! We're still working through stuff like getting used to baths and different kinds of things. I ride Western and bareback, mainly bareback until we get the saddle fit!

Hopefully I will be introducing a new addition to the family soon! I'm hoping we'll get to look at horses tomorrow night but haven't heard anything yet.

So besides my horse and me, we have two Australian Shepherds named Bella and Dakota, two cats named Storm and Whiskers, 10 Angus cattle (soon like 18!!), and a few barn cats that stay outside. And my family is 8 in all, I have four brothers and one sister.

-----------------------------------

Enough introductions, off to the fun parts. LOL

Tonight I was going to ride Roman but then kind of decided I wouldn't. I got him from the pasture and let him eat some clover in the hay field. My sister wanted to ride so I put her up on him bareback and led her around. Got back and my mom and aunt were going to go on a walk down the road. So plans changed and I decided to ride him down the road with them - bareback since the saddle hasn't been fit yet...

It had rained earlier today but was fair weather when I rode. We got down the road to where the neighbors with horses are (the ones with a foal I might've mentioned a few times?) and these two little dogs come running out to the road. They barked at my mom, aunt, and little brother but they kept walking but me, on a bareback horse that spooked at a barking dog last week I think, was a bit afraid Roman would bolt off. Not wanting to take that chance, I hopped off and led him. The dogs continued to bark and were on OUR side of the road but didn't come up and try to bite or whatever - Thank You so much for not doing that little doggies! Though I shouldn't have worried at all, Roman didn't care a bit and I was able to climb back on and continue on. Coming back the dogs came back but I just continued riding, but still afraid Roman would shoot off. Nope. Calmest boy ever! The dogs' owners came and got them but I was like "Hey, good training experience for him" (didn't say that really lol). He was the best!

We got back and I got off and hand-trotted him back to the barn since a storm was starting and my dad and uncle were yelling at all of us...(geez people, I'm comin', And I wasn't going to ride faster than a walk) It didn't start raining until Roman and I were in the barn. Brought him into the barn lot and he started to freak out because of the rain hitting the roof (pretty loud) but I was able to get the halter off. I didn't have any treats on me and was wanting to get to the house, he wouldn't come over to the gate anyways for the bit of hay I had so he'll have to go with "Good boy" this time!

Still I'm pretty proud of him with the dog incident. The one where he spooked at a dog was we were riding up the road back home and a truck drives by with the dog in the back. A big dog too. It barked, Roman spooked but didn't bolt off, he never does. I don't blame him though, I didn't even see the dog until I heard it bark.

So that's all I have for today. May post tomorrow if we do see some horses or whatever. So, hope ya'll enjoyed this so far!!

~Kate and Roman~
 
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#3 ·
Soo we went to look at horses tonight. I only got to ride two horses before it got too dark to ride.

The first was was 10/11 yrs old and sensitive to leg pressure. That kind of made me :/ about it because I'd have to concentrate about not kicking too hard all the time. The second was 6 and better. I liked him.

We're going to look at more again because we weren't able to see all that had in mind for sale. I sort've got a little nervous because it's a new horse,I'm being watched like a hawk, and stuff.

So I have to think about it. I liked the second horse better but there are still.more horses to look at.
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#4 ·
We went on another ride tonight but I decided to switch things up. We usually go ride down the road but tonight I decided to go around the big hay field, down by the woods. He was pretty good to start with and only a few minutes in he gets prancing and starts walking really fast, drifting to the right which is the direction the neighbor's horses were. Did a couple tight circles before continuing on. I could feel he really wanted to trot but I was bareback and no faster than a walk for me!

We stopped for a minute and just stared into the woods, at the pond back there. I didn't ride through the woods, just along the fence line separating the hay field from the woods. So we continued on our ride and again he starts walking fast. I stop him several times and make him back up. He actually did pretty well with backing up!! I was pleased about that. We got up to the fence by the meadow (on the other side of the fence) and I start circling him around, big circles to the right and left. He trotted once during a turn but that only got him a tighter circle. I guess because we hardly ride down there he was a little antsy, although he has free access to the woods and I've found him down there recently. We did find a giant pile of apples by the fence :shock: I don't know WHO dropped them there, it was a pretty big pile, but Roman didn't get any though. lol.

He was still walking fast and wanting to go faster. I got off and lunged him at a trot for a few circles before climbing back on. It helped some but he was still wanting to go fast a couple times. We're nearing the neighbor's horses and to make sure he's listening, I make him walk right past them. He turned his head to look at them but then kept going. I did reward him by stopping and letting the other two horses greet him and stuff.

We did go up along the rode but just from my aunt and uncle's house to my grandma and grandpa's house (we're in the middle :D). I could tell he was walking slower and didn't try to speed up any. We encountered a motorcycle and chicken me got off before it passed. The last time we encountered one Roman freaked out. But this time he didn't care, I was the scaredy-cat! :lol:

Roman got spoiled tonight. He grabbed an apple off a tree as we were passing it, and then as we were nearing the barn I held the reins loosely with one hand and he was the best boy! Though we need to work on the word WHOA, he kept on walking until I used the reins to stop him. -_- After a groomed him, I walked him over to where there was a patch of clover and let him eat it for a while. He lost interest after a while, maybe because I was leaning on him and petting him, LOL. After that I put him back in the pasture. I think he got shocked because I heard him snort or something and looked to see him trotting around. He trotted over to my grandpa's pasture and broke into a canter, running towards the cows. Up there I saw him toss a couple bucks, silly boy.

Now, I want some opinions on this, it happens sometimes when I pick out his hooves, but usually not the same way.

Picking out his hooves is fine, when I go to straighten up, I get dizzy. I have to stop for a minute to gather myself up. Tonight I was on the third hoof, finished and when I stood up, it was like blackness blocked half of my vision but I was able to see directly in front of me though. I get dizzy when I do his hooves sometimes, not always. And like I get fully straighten up, my back hurts so I'm sort've slouching.

Tonight, along with that ^^ while I was picking the 3rd hoof, back right, the bugs in the trees (locusts?) got louder. They were chirping or whatever sound they make and it suddenly got louder, and I talked and my voice sounded really low.

I've never fainted during one of these and it passes quickly after I straighten up for a minute.
 
#6 ·
Now, I want some opinions on this, it happens sometimes when I pick out his hooves, but usually not the same way.

Picking out his hooves is fine, when I go to straighten up, I get dizzy. I have to stop for a minute to gather myself up. Tonight I was on the third hoof, finished and when I stood up, it was like blackness blocked half of my vision but I was able to see directly in front of me though. I get dizzy when I do his hooves sometimes, not always. And like I get fully straighten up, my back hurts so I'm sort've slouching.

Tonight, along with that ^^ while I was picking the 3rd hoof, back right, the bugs in the trees (locusts?) got louder. They were chirping or whatever sound they make and it suddenly got louder, and I talked and my voice sounded really low.

I've never fainted during one of these and it passes quickly after I straighten up for a minute.
Sounds like a head rush to me... I sometimes get them when I stand up after working on hooves.

Head rush usually occurs when you change position too fast and due to being in a bent over position, then standing straight up, your blood pressure plummeted.

However, please seek medical attention if this occurs frequently as it could be another underlying health issue.

---Flash over to horse topics---

Do you have an idea on what is causing the saddle to not fit properly? Are the bars too wide, too narrow? Gullet issues? Or is it something else entirely?

Saddle fit is a very important issue that many owners will sometimes ignore. However I wanted to give you a huge thank you for looking into this. Roman, as well as yourself, will be much happier with a saddle that fits him perfectly. :D
http://www.pinterest.com/pin/create/extension/
 
#5 ·
What is wrong with getting a saddle fit?!?!

Some of you may know that I am having saddle issues. I believe that the saddle does not fit anymore. We bought it four years ago and it hasn't been fitted. I don't think my horse even got fitted! I think what we did was get the size of saddle his owner used on him and went out and bought a saddle in that size.

We talked to Paige (riding lesson instructor) about it and she recommended a place an hour away from us that does saddle fitting, and gave us some examples of what could happen if you don't get the saddle fit. We would have to trailer Roman out there (shouldn't be a big deal right???) I think, from what she said.

I can't even get my parents to CALL the place to ask about pricing, how they'd do it, and why we should get it fit.

I keep telling them, especially my dad, to call the place. They disagree with me about the saddle not fitting. So here are some of the problems that I've had and what I've been told in return...

Problem: Saddle will slide to his side when I mount. This is after I tighten TIGHT twice, even before I ride.
Answer: You're not strong enough to get it tight. (But I've gotten on with no problem and tightened it myself before?)

Problem: It doesn't feel right to me. It's hard to explain but it doesn't.
Answer: I'll lengthen the stirrups.

Problem: Saddle slides off...again
Answer: We need to go buy a breast collar and back cinch.

None of that is going to keep Roman from bucking me off if the saddle HURTS him!

I asked them if he was going to call the place and my mom and dad just start saying that we should get Paige's mom or Paige to come over and see, and blah blah blah. It's like "They don't know MY horse, and probably wouldn't know how to fit a saddle!"

It makes me SO mad because they don't listen to me. I am the one that RIDES Roman, CARES for him, and would know when something isn't right with him!

So until someone 'who knows what they're talking about' agrees with me, I'll be riding bareback, won't trot except in my lessons on a different horse, and the saddle will just rot in the barn.
 
#7 ·
^ Thank you for replying! I'll try to be a bit slower standing back up and see if that helps or if it still continues. xD

About saddles, my dad and I have come to the agreement to check the saddle and see if it fits. I am still set in my ways to go to a saddle fitter in order to figure out what size he'll need and the right saddle. But we are going to do some checking from info off the web and while it'll be a good learning experience we'll actually see if the saddle is too narrow, too wide, etc. After that, maybe we'll go to a saddle fitter if it doesn't fit.

So today I had another lesson on Zan, going over barrel racing. We didn't canter because the arena was I think a little too wet for it. So before I got on Paige said that since I'm progressing faster than she anticipated (her words not mine! lol) she's going to be more picky about my hands and feet. Last time I guess my legs were moving all over the place xD. This time, after the lesson, she said they were a lot stiller but could be more still, but definitely better than last time!

And I got to meet a cremello horse up close. He was a new boarder and his coloring is actually cremello palomino. Never heard of that one but it was pretty cool. He had blue eyes too. :D

We might go look at horses again. Paige said Scout, the one I like the best so far, could be trained for barrels if I wanted to do some with him but we'd have to train him for it, sending him off to a trainer for a month or two shouldn't be too bad. But I don't want to get my own barrel horse until I'm really into the sport so if we get Scout and decide I want to use him for barrels, I think he can do it with some training. That will be a bonus!

We might go look at horses sometime this week and have a lesson before then, or else look at horses one night and lessons Saturday. Anyways, I'm considering doing a half and half lesson, half on Zan and half on Scout so I can ride him more an actually go past a walk. lol

With barrel racing, I think my biggest challenge will be cantering. I'm okay with cantering on a horse but Zan has a rough canter which I'm having problems sitting. When I accomplish that, I think it'll be smooth sailing...not! :rofl::rofl:
 
#8 ·
Went for another ride tonight and it went great. It is supposed to storm and after we got back the sky was dark but no other signs of a storm.

So I get Roman up to the gate and he thinks it's pretty smart of himself to walk off while I untie the gate. I had the rope looped around him like reins because he followed me up to the gate. So I walk after him, trying to not make him trot away. I bring him back to the gate, proper hold now. I think he got shocked by the fence, now realizes it's there, and is afraid of it. So I tack him up since my dad wanted me to put the saddle on him. I think going to a saddle fitter is just a waste of my breath now. :l

The saddle did feel alright after we adjusted the stirrups but who knows how it felt to Roman. So I rode with my family, they were taking a walk. My two brothers and sister were riding their bikes and Roman doesn't care about them. We got to the road and he stared at it like it was going to eat him.

Part of the road got chip N seal or whatever it's called, Roman crossed it fine until they recently added lines. He walked over the white fine but not yellow and I didn't want to fight him in the middle of the road.

We stopped at one of the neighbor's down the road. They're an elderly couple and she had never seen Roman (I think) before. We talked to them for a while. During that time, a big truck, like a semi with a flatbed passed and Roman was okay with it and like two motorcycles passed. I'm soooo proud of him (and me for not chickening out lol).

So back home, treats, groom, untack, etc.

So for some reason Roman was freaking out because of the saddle. He moved away when my dad was trying to put it on and it made.me think Roman knows it hurts him and he.doesn't want it on. Good theory or.him being stubborn? While he was doing that I was getting yelled at for.not taking control. -_- Obviously the horse is scared people!!!

Overall a good ride even if.we had to ride in the saddle.

Still.on horse hunt and I'm starting to want a barrel horse but also one.for trails. Not expensive. I found two bit not sure what we'll end up with. (Mustang hopefully :rofl:)
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#9 ·
I Hate Cantering

Had a lesson this morning and we were going to do half and half on Zan and Scout, a horse I'm interested in buying. Well, Paige had brought him up but the dogs chased him back to the pasture and Scout wouldn't be caught. LOL. But that was okay, we'll try next week.

So we didn't do the barrel pattern today, pretty much did a LOT of cantering. After doing turn arounds (pivoting), counter arcing, and circles around barrels, we went on to cantering in a circle. I am still having trouble riding her canter.

I got her head tucked in, tried standing in the stirrups a bit, keeping my heels down, leaning forward a bit, and even saying 1 2 Down, or just talking to myself to get me to breath. It feels like I'm on a Thoroughbred, Zan's canter just feels a lot faster. Like she thrusts forward or puts a lot of power in each step. Though Paige said she was being a brat today or maybe something was out of place because Zan kept throwing her head up and stuff, which she'll sometimes do but not this much.

Zan bucked a bit while we were cantering and this is the first time I've really cried in a lesson. :oops: Though I tried to calm myself and not show I was crying. Paige got on Zan and did some trotting and cantering, it looks so EASY from the ground. :lol:

We're going to be focusing more on cantering and less on the pattern, since I pretty much have trotting it down pat. Our goal is to have me cantering the pattern before winter sets in. I don't know what we'll do for winter unless we stop lessons until Spring comes around, or meet at an indoor arena. I don't know.

Kind of a frustrating ride but I'll get there eventually...maybe...hopefully. I hope soon because I'm really excited about showing! :D

And it was COLD this morning too, like 40 degrees with I woke up and like 50 degrees during the lesson but it got warmer as I was riding, xD. I was comfortable just wearing a long sleeved shirt, though started to regret on my way to the arena, after that no problem.

I hope I can ride Zan's canter better. I still lock up my hips sometimes, my hands bounce (which don't after I get told xD), and a flop like a sack of potatoes. :rofl:

All I have for now except

:eek:fftopic:We're making apple stuff!! Like applesauce and apple butter. We, I guess, got a good thing of apples this year, and since we're running low on apple butter and maybe applesauce, it's time to make some! But I'm up here on the computer. :rofl::rofl:

:wave: for now.
 
#10 ·
I just got back from a ride on Roman. We rode on the road again bareback but this time I decided to go North, we usually go South. I am really pleased with how he went, especially since we've never gone this way. But there were a few icks like he didn't want to go across a driveway that had sand or gravel on part of it. So I had to lead him across, I guess I semi-won since we didn't avoid it but we didn't ride over it. But to make up.for it he crossed a CONCRETE driveway with no shy! He's avoided a Concrete driveway before going south, but it was awesome he went over this one.

He crossed the road just fine, this was a part that got chip n sealed and the lines too him were monsters. But he was cool with it. When we got home, we started to cross the road and all of a sudden this certain yellow line wanted to eat him. Since there was a car coming, I led him across but rode him back across and back again, no problem. -_-

He got an apple off a tree, crossed our ditch (a small ditch where a pipe comes out), and didn't spook at a lawn mower really close or following him at a distance.

At the barn, I got off and went to lead him over to tie. Well he decided it was time for a game of Tug O War. Awesome. I won though!! :D We stood there like a minute, his head out (which I bet wasn't too comfortable) and then I jerked on the rope twice and he moved. Yay.

He thought my jacket hanging on a gate was a monster and so before (I think, or after) our ride I did a quick desensitizing lesson with him. The jacket underneath him was the scariest part but he got used to it after a while.

And it's Fall now, I suppose or getting close to Fall, and what does Fall bring?

Leaves...lots and lots of leaves.

LOL Just kidding. Calves! Baby calves. We don't have any yet but soon. Anytime between September and November is the usual time frame, but some could come later. I can't wait to discover a CUTE baby cow and get to say "Number _ had a calf!".

We have 10 cows right now, 8 are expected to have calves. The other two are yearlings, one we'll either breed this year or next, and the other is a steer we'll butcher in a year or two. So when we have calves I'll probably give the name of the momma. Here they are: #1, #3, #11, #12, Old 12 (used to have a #12 tag), #9, #23, and ... we really don't have a.name.for this cow, she's tagless. I'll just call her Friendly's mom. :D (Friendly was a calf born like two years ago that we sold. He let me pet him and would give a kiss, I mean lick on the forehead. xD)

Can't wait for calves!!
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#12 ·
OMG guys! I'm going to the Extreme Mustang Makeover in Fort Worth, Texas this weekend!!! Super excited. I've never been before and I am a mustang lover, so it will be really cool to see mustangs that have been trained by adults and youth, and were wild approx. 100 days ago.

We haven't ordered tickets yet but I think we will today, or at least call about them. But everything else is pretty much planned. We're leaving Thursday at noon (because we HAVE to do school that day :D) and since it's like a 9hr drive (counting bathroom breaks and maybe dinner too) we'll get there at night.

The reasons I have as to why we're going is:

A) I want to see what it's like and especially the freestyle performances.
B) I want my parents to see what the mustangs trained by CHILDREN are like after 100 days of training
C) So hopefully I'll come back here next year WITH a mustang!

Awesome plan, huh? So I'm thinking, if they see the mustangs and maybe talk to some people, with my planning skills, we could get one next year. Of course I'd want a trainer with me, maybe Paige, or someone else. I wouldn't mind paying someone to come to my place and just help us out.

So we'll leave Thursday, go to the freestyles on Friday and Saturday night, maybe go earlier so we can see the Youth classes and stuff, since like two of the adult classes are on Thursday. Then come home Sunday.

Going to Texas over the weekend means I won't have a lesson which means I have to wait until NEXT week to ride Scout. I was hoping to do a lesson tonight but "we need the $30 for Texas". :/ But I guess I'd rather go to Texas for 3 days than a riding lesson for an hour.

I plan to go riding tonight because I haven't ridden since Saturday and probably won't ride again until next Monday or Tuesday. I will try to take some pictures to share :D
 
#15 ·
We probably did the longest trail ride ever tonight. We went north up the road like on our last ride, to the same place, cross the road, and started heading south. So probably gone 2/10 of a mile already. He crossed the concrete driveway no problem and even the one I had to lead him across last time. He spooked because of some noise, might've been a tractor or something, pretty loud though.

Then we past this one place where there's a board against the fence that says a trailer or something is for sale. Well, the sign had fallen over and Roman saw that it was different and was like "OMG it has moved places since last time!!" :shock:

So then we get up to our house and we pass a telephone pole, or whatever you call them, and he had a tiny freakout because of a board that was stuck in the ground and had a ribbon on it. The next pole we passed I was more alert, it had another stick thing, and he didn't have a problem. We went farther away from it but still pretty close and I let him stop to look at it.

And our neighbors have two baby calves, SO CUTE!!!, and Roman just had to stop and stare at them. :D So we don't continue on very far and a jogger comes up the hill. Roman stopped and was like "Who is that walking towards us?". After a few seconds he walked forward. He doesn't have a problem with people, he's literally been exposed to dozens of people (family).

Then we stopped to see the horses down the road. There were two, the foal and a horse, that were by the fence. I saw one of the other horses way in the back, looked like it was in a separate pasture or something. But the other two horses weren't there, I think their owner went barrel racing somewhere tonight.

That's pretty much our ride. When we got back, I let him get an apple off the tree and I was just dying to get off and stretch my legs. Horse riding can be a bit painful! :lol: So I got off and took him down to the barn. I picked out his hoof and was on one of his back hooves. I asked him to pick it up and he moved away and then because he was standing so far from the fence and pretty much pulling the rope, he kind of freaked out a bit. I kept trying to make him come forward, then he'd back up again. -_- Then he wouldn't move AT ALL, we had another game of Tug O War. I got him to move a few times before I got down to business. Untied him and lunged him real week, making him MOVE. Then tied him again with little slack so he couldn't back up too far. :twisted: So mean.

Then I let him out into the pasture. We have no calves yet and while I want them to have them I hope not while I'm gone! I like discovering them. xD It was great trail ride all in all, and a LONG one that'll probably last me until next week. :D
 
#16 ·
OMG GUYS!!! I looked on the Extreme Mustang Makeover and there's going to be one in Missouri next year!!! I still have to get my parents to say yes. Right now it "doesn't make sense" and "the 'youth' have experienced parents behind them to do the training". -_-
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#17 ·
A little update from Texas!

So it took us 9hrs to get here Thursday. We left at 8:15 AM, got into Oklahoma around 12:30 PM. We passed the Pauls Valley Holding Facility along the way! Lots of horses and tall panels by the fence. We stopped at McDonalds and I got a Mocha Frappé, YUM! My sister got an apple pie, fresh and HOT, and so we're driving down the road and she starts hollering. Part of the filling fell onto her wrist. So she was crying for the longest time, but it wasn't a serious burn. She got a blister though.

Drove into Texas at 4:28 PM and arrived at the hotel at 6:17 PM. Yes, I kept track of the time! :D

Then on Friday we went to the Bereau of Engraving and Printing. We actually got to see how they made the money, the machines, etc.

We got to the EMM at 4 PM and watched the Adult Compulsory Maneuvers. Then we walked around and saw the mustangs and they had wild mustangs/untrained for adoption. One let me pet him even on his neck!

There were 21 youth freestyles. And CrossCountry, if you're reading this,
someone stole your freestyle idea! The girl had a Superman shirt, the horse had a cape (it wasn't as big), and played the SAME song! :O

We didn't go back to the hotel until 11PM. So tired!

Today we went to the Stockyards first. We watched them herd Longhorns down the street. Lots of people showed up but they do it twice daily. I even got to sit on one that had a saddle! :D

We went to a New/Previous Adopter seminar back at the Will Rogers Equestrian Center, where people asked questions and a guy from BLM and woman from the MHF answered them. We asked what they recommended for someone who hasn't trained a horse from the ground up, they said to find a TIP trainer. So if I get to do the EMM in Missouri next year, we might ask a TIP trainer to come out and help us.
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#18 ·
I had to go so I had to end my post there! But I'm back with WiFi so here's the continuation.

After the seminar, we drove to the Botanic Gardens which is literally right across from the WRMC. Everyone but my Mom and I (I was tired of walking!) went walking around a small area. Took only a few minutes.

Skip to 6PM we're at the
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#20 ·
Extreme Mustang Makeover Part 2

After the seminar, we drove to the Botanic Gardens which is literally right across from the WRMC. Everyone but my Mom and I (I was tired of walking!) went walking around a small area. Took only a few minutes.

Skip to 6PM we're at the Coliseum waiting for the show to start. So in the "opening acts" they let out a herd of mustangs into the ring. I don't know if they were wild, maybe from the untrained adoption they had during the EMM. Still it was awesome! Then the top 10 did their freestyles.

I liked Sid Zacharias best. He did some trick riding, jumped backwards, I think did a spin facing backwards! He was voted Fan Favorite and won Reserve Champion.

Tom Hagwood was the Champion and it was awesome to see how well his horse performed a sliding stop and spin!


While we were waiting for it to begin, a woman sitting behind us asked if we had a horse. So we got to talking about how I wanted a Mustang and the guy next to her said that the people who say you shouldn't get a mustang haven't owned a mustang. Which I can pretty much agree with that!!

Still I don't think my parents are "convinced" but I'm sure coming to Texas was a great opportunity to see what the mustangs, trained by adults and kids, can do in 100 days.





So I do have "bad" news which we got on Thursday while we're driving to Texas. Some firefighters came over to do some paperwork and stuff for a burn permit. Bella and Dakota, our dogs, were out and when the guys were leaving, Dakota bit one. The guy didn't want to make a big deal about it but he had to report it. So long story short, Dakota is now at a vet which he has to stay there for 10 days. He could get out sooner but for now that's all we know.

We can go see him but can't have contact. WHAT?!? That is going to be pure TORTURE on the dog and US! But when he gets to come back home, we're going to do some training to get him to stop biting. Maybe go to some professional classes. Dakota is not dangerous and mean. He's actually very sweet but DEFENDS his property. He's weird though, he only bites when you're leaving, not when you arrive (with the exception of my aunt, but we all thought it was because she was moving fast and he was trying to sniff her). Anywho, hopefully he gets out sooner than next Sunday.

But glad to be home, wish I could redo the weekend all over again! :lol:
 
#21 ·
I went for a ride yesterday and today. Yesterday I got on him bareback and rode around around "ring" which is currently missing side panels. xD I got my helmet and tried trotting bareback. VERY bouncy! I almost fell off twice!

Then tonight we pretty much went around the pasture. No calves yet :(. But I did work on backing up a couple times. Roman is SO much better at it. Instead of pulling on the reins for minutes and he won't budge, now he effortlessly takes several steps back!
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#22 ·
Dakota's in Jail

To make the long story short, Dakota bit someone and had to go to doggy jail, a.k.a. the vet. He went there Thursday while we happened to be gone and we may be able to get him on Monday. But he's going through training now because we have literally had ENOUGH of him biting people. He only bites when you start to leave which is strange, but hopefully these training classes will help. They're $15 for an hour and the girl lives a mile up the road! :thumbsup:

Still, I don't know what else might happen. If we're going to have to pay a fine anyways since he did break skin, from what we heard. But it wasn't bad. Dakota isn't the aggressive type, he only does it when you're leaving and I don't know if it's because he wants attention, is giving you a boost off the property, or just defending him property. Bella doesn't bite as far as we know.

Really nothing else to report concerning horses. Though we did ask Roman's old owner about teeth floating, vaccines, and worming. Floating isn't really necessary unless they're a lot older or they show signs they need it. We will worm. And she said that she doesn't give her horses vaccines, except for when they get cut and need a tetanus.

But what I'm more worried about and that bugs me is how FAT Roman is. And maybe deworming him may help since we haven't done it in a while :oops:.

But what else should I do? He's out on pasture 24/7 and I've only given him grain (recently) Tuesday night and this morning, because I need to get rid of it! As far as exercise, walking down the road. I'd do trotting and stuff if I'm given the OK to the saddle issue from a PROFESSIONAL!
 
#23 ·
We went on a pretty long ride tonight down the road. We headed north a ways, then south a mile. I'd say we did a mile, maybe over.

But when I was starting, I got him from the pasture and just went. Our neighbor (Mr. M from now on) was sitting on his back porch with a friend and he saw me coming.

Mr. M: Do you have a bit on him?
Me: No
Mr. M: What do you have?
Me: Just a halter
Mr. M: I'll give you $300 for him.


LOL. That's the first offer I've gotten for Roman. But I wouldn't sell him for 300 dollars or 100k! :)

So we went north and there's a concrete driveway. He crosses it with
NO problem. But the concrete driveway down the road south is a problem! We don't cross it all the time but anytime he's like "Nope, nuh uh" but the one north doesn't matter?!? Strange...

Then we were heading south and there's this piece of plastic or something, might be the lid of a plastic trash can. Anyways, last night he didn't care about it and tonight he notices it and is like "O_O What in the world is that???" and we've past it a dozen times! Silly boy.

The neighbor across the street with the cows now as I think 4 calves now. And I think two are twins!!! Like two calves are always near the one cow. Idk, maybe! :D Still no calves for us and I'm getting impatient! lol

After we got home, Roman was a bit sweaty so I decided to wash him a bit. Filled a bucket with water since that's easiest now. I'll keep doing this and next year try the hose.

I wish I had a water temperature adjuster. I know the water was cold but I can't heat it up unless I microwave it. lol. He did fine with it, a little skittish at first. Then I did something new. Washed near his tail since his backend was a bit sweaty too. He kept moving off but I managed to wash it. He was still scared afterwards. I couldn't touch his headquarters without him moving off! And the bucket wasn't even near him! Poor Roman! But I was able to scrape water off and brush it after he realized I had no water. XD

Hopefully tomorrow I will do a lesson on Zan and Scout (potential horse #2). Can't wait to see how he goes. I've only ridden him once and at a walk, so would be interesting to see what his trot and especially canter is like.
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#24 ·
Today's Riding Lesson

I kind of expected me to get on Zan and work on cantering, but instead I rode her bareback today and tried some trotting. Honestly, if I ever learn to ride a trot bareback I will blow myself away! It's bouncy, even on Roman, and I'm trying to sit and relax and then "Uh oh, I'm gonna fall, hold on! Walk!". But it went well, I at least stayed on. :thumbsup: So while I was riding Zan, Paige was getting Scout from the pasture.

I can already tell Scout may be a hard-to-catch horse but often times Roman doesn't want to be caught. But that's something that can be fixed. So I was kicked out of the round pen...no just kidding LOL...but left so Paige's dad could ride Scout first, since Scout is young. So he rode Scout around, then Paige wanted to ride. She could tell he was irritated so lunge him for ten minutes, then rode again. Then it was my turn!

Scout did awesome! No buck, spook, etc. This was my second ride on him, the last time I only walked. This time I trotted and cantered a little bit. His trot, I could probably say, is like Roman's. Kind of bouncy and fast, but that didn't bother me. Scout's canter is a bit rough, not like Zan's though. Once I was given the okay to trot and canter I did a lot! More trotting than anything. It was a bit hard to get him to canter, I cantered only a few times but it was good enough.

I'll ride him during my lessons, riding for a full hour instead of just thirty minutes. Next week I won't have a lesson - wedding - but the week after that I don't know if I'll ride him or Zan. Paige was wanting to saddle Zan up and take the stirrups off so I could start sitting the trot and stuff or "really riding". I don't know if we'll do that or stick with Scout for a little while. I love him so far!

He's six years old so has some of that "toddler" left in him, which I saw before I rode. Paige said he crowhopped so then she lunged him to get the energy out. If I do buy Scout, there could be days when I'll have to lunge him before riding, which I don't mind, it'd help with my experience since I don't lunge Roman a whole lot. So far I really like Scout!!

And a big bonus about him is he has the conformation for a barrel racer, so if I wanted to start barrels with him, I could just send him to a trainer for 30-60 days and then finish him myself. I like that fact about him, I probably will do that maybe after a year of owning him, when I'm more comfortable and what not, if we get him.

Paige did mention she had wanted to start Scout on barrels but she got busy with her own horses. And she also said that I "made him look good"!!! So very pleased with how our second ride went and Zan's ride too.
 
#25 ·
It's About Time!

Finally one of our cows had a calf. Sometime yesterday. We were on our way back from Ensemble practice and my dad texts we have one. I drove down to the woods to see the calf and check the other cows. Mama hid the baby well but pretty much gave the hiding spot away! I have two pictures, they're not the best since the calf was by a big bush that had some thorns so it was a tad hard to get too.

It's a girl too!





The calf would literally NOT move! She was alive, she was blinking, but didn't lift her head when I was petting her. She didn't do anything when I lifted her back leg to see if she was a girl or boy. But at least she seems to be doing okay. Mama is nice too, she was several yards away watching but didn't try to chase me off.

So when my brother and I go down there, we only see Roman and 8 cows. I'm like "Okay, where is the mama and calf, and the other cow?" since the other cow is due for a calf too! So I was thinking about if we found a calf and what I'd say back home: "Actually, we have 12 cows, not 11" xD

So we're circling around the back part of the woods and go to check my grandpa's part. Get onto the path from the meadow (way into the woods) and there's one cow and the mother cow is not far behind. But Roman was standing right behind the one cow closest to us like "I found them!! Here they are! Ima good boy!!! Treat?" LOL. It sure looked like that!

Then I go find the calf and Roman comes up to where I am. So where the "path" is, there's a ditch on the side and then a hill that goes up to the fence, other side is the hayfield. So he comes trotting up there. :D He's cute. :D

Only thing I'm worried about now is finding a tick on me. I should go check. Those little creatures scare me and I avoid the woods throughout the spring and summer. I don't know if they're still around in September but I hope I don't find any. D:
 
#26 ·
I hate my horse and I hate weddings...

So I went for a ride.down the road on Roman, all was perfect until we came home. We get up by the arena and he stops and won't go forward. If I kick he'll kick out and like actually forward, like trying to kick my foot. I nudged him gently, kicked him hard, slapped his shoulder with the end of the rope. Nope. So I lunge him, get on same problem, and lunge again! You'd think he'd get the message. So I hop back on and he acts the same. At one point I led him back and forth around that area but it didn't help. I eventually had to get my dad to come down and lead Roman to the barn. Stupid horse. He did NOT get any treats and I didn't apologize!! He made me mad. Like when my dad first came down he happily walked forward and then balked again. Youre amazing Roman! ( the sarcasm >_< )

Onto the wedding part. My oldest brother and his fiancee were to get married on Saturday. Everything was set but SOMEONE had to complain!

They didn't invite 3 church members, didn't invite all of my parent's siblings. It makes me mad! Even when they decided to do immediate family only because of this everyone was mad and "there's no logic to it". And now as far as I know, the wedding is off.

I know you can't please everybody but it seems like to me everybody wants to run it how THEY want to run it and not how the bride and groom (which happens to be who the wedding is for -_-) want it. And who they want to spend their special day with.

Just wish people would understand they're obviously not invited so shut up and complain to your pillow for all I care. Literally because of this whole ordeal my brother hasn't come over for a while, they usually come over on Sunday and stop by during the week for no reason.
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#27 ·
St. Louis Extreme Mustang Makeover!

Finally information was put up concerning the Extreme Mustang Makeover in Missouri next year. Application deadline is at the end of February so I have about four months to convince my parents about this, fill out an application (if they make me VERY happy XD), and find a trainer to help me. Then mustang pick up is in Ewing Illinois, in March, that's about a six or seven hour drive for us, but we drove 10 hours to go the the EMM in Fort Worth this year! And 12 hours back home.

I've been looking for trainers that have experience with mustangs or have 'Mustang' somewhere. I've found a couple and now all I have to do is write up a plan to show my parents, yes kind of business like, lol.

I'm really excited about this. I've been really thinking it over and having someone with experience with mustangs there to mentor and help me, would be great!


 
#28 · (Edited)
Another Escapee and Dog Training

Okay, so last night another cow had a calf! Like when I saw it it was probably ten minutes old. But my mom looks out the window and is like "Uh, I think we have another calf". So I go down and check, yepp! So I stay to make sure the calf drinks. Well it kept trying to stand but the mama would push it back down, I guess trying to help it up but doing the opposite. The calf ended up down the bank of the pond and almost INTO the pond, but my uncle dragged it back up.

So then I wait around to see if it'll drink. It takes forever to. If it gets the idea that it's supposed to lower his head he's on the front end of mama and not the back end. He finally got milk and I left.

Then today I go down to check on them and I see the calf. So I go to try and pet it and get some pictures. He hops up so I decide to leave him and finish counting. On my way back, he goes through the fence into the hay field which is UNFENCED. Oh great! I tried to get him through the gate but he decided going back through the fence was better. But at least he got back in and didn't make us search all night for it *looks at calf #1*. But the funny thing is, the calf was laying out in the rain (mind you I was trying to get it back in in the rain!) and the mom was in the shed. HA! Good mom.

---

Tonight the dog trainer came over to do an evaluation of Dakota (and Bella). It was a free lesson, being the first. She basically fed Dakota treats, got to know him, tried to see what he did when she walked away, when she walked him, when we walked both dogs. He was a little angel! xD A little jumpy and excited though. We've got another session Tuesday, and next Saturday, and the same the week after. Hopefully his biting problem gets fixed...and cat killing.
 
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