The First Training Horse!

So, I've started advertising my services to the the public. I'm charging $450 a month, including full board, for horse training. I have been pleasantly surprised by the response I have been receiving! Even though I do not have a lot of experience, people are interested in my services and are looking to send their horses my way. What gives me an edge? Perhaps its the cheaper price. My price is relatively low, paying me very little at per hour rate. But I'm charging so low because I'm looking to build a a client base and develop good, strong references for future use. Perhaps the videos I have supplied are giving me that extra little something. I notice that most trainers do not include video and the client is left to wonder what really goes on between trainer and horse. I supply my ads with footage of me working with the animal - the best proof there really is! Or perhaps its the absolutely wonderful letter of recommendation renowned trainer and clinician Patrick King has written for me. Again, I haven't seen other trainers providing such references and Patrick's kind words really are meaningful to a client looking for the best for their horse.

Since I've posted my ads I have brought in one outside horse. He is a 5 year old buckskin quarter horse gelding named Ax. When Ax's owner contacted me he was wary of the fact that I am still in high school. He simply didn't believe me when I promised him I would work with the colt 5 days a week for 2 hours each day. I feel my age is a huge disadvantage for me at this point as people are extremely skeptical. But Hey, we all have to start somewhere right? Eventually, I was able to win over the fellow and Ax was hauled to Cherry Blossom within the next few days.

Ax has been a pleasure to work with over spring break. He is a very curious, happy individual. Not to mention, he is absolutely gorgeous. Ax works well on the ground with sharp responses. He works great under saddle as well and picks up on cues remarkably quickly. We've been dealing mainly with arena work but I've taken him out alone on the trail as well and he seems to really excel out there. The eventual goal is for Ax to become a team-penner so I'm planning on a trip to a farm with cattle in the near future. Ax has just one, slight issue. He likes to buck. A lot. But, really, it's only at the canter. He'll buck on a lunge line and he'll buck with you on him when you start to lope. Some days, they're only little crow hops, but other days? He's probably thrown my back out a few times in his bronc-ish tantrums. This is a serious issue, and while I am able to simply ride throw it without being deterred, I simply cannot send a training horse back to it's owner trying to send a rider throw the rafters at a canter. This is something I simply must over come, my entire future seems to lie with the outcome of this colt. If I do well, the owner will spread a good word about my services. But if I were to fail? Word would spread like wildfire of my inability to correct and problem, leaving my entire career on the line.

Buckhorn Ranch Show

So, I hauled Halo and Mack up to Buckhorn last weekend for an IBRA event. This was my first time hauling Halo and I wasn't sure what to expect from her. However, once we got there, she did surprisingly well! I got on her right away and took her to the outdoor pen for warm up. She was a little nervous but after she burned off her energy she settled down considerably and rode nice. I took her into the arena for two exhibition runs, even though she has never seen a barrel. We turned three cans both times at a trot without taking up half the arena or running away. After that, I tied her off to the trailer and she stood patiently the rest of the day without any fuss at all!

Mack on the other hand, was as hot tempered as always, digging ruts by the trailer. Considering his fire, I expected fast runs from him. We ran poles first, about the second time in 8 months. He lost his footing at the first pole but after he regaining grounded he really took off and motored through the weave. He was flying so fast he nearly lost me! We kept them all standing and ran a 22.1 that easily would have been a 21 minus the slip on the first pole. We ended up getting a check for 2nd place 2D. After poles we made our first barrel run in the 2D Warm Up. We had a good solid run and clocked in with a 15.4. Our last event of the day was our Youth run. Mack and I ran in hard, turned three tight cans and ran a 15.353. We ended up first in the 1D, taking home a pretty penny but lots more pride than anything else. Unfortunately, he ripped off his shoe in that run and we had to pack it in early before the Open division.

All in all, it was a very successful day all the way around and I couldn't be more happy with my gang.

Halo is a registered thoroughbred mare I picked up about a week ago. The chestnut 16hh mare had raced on the track for the first 5 years of her life, competeing in the rigorous, demanding races with other thoroughbreds in hopes of making it big. But like many racehorses, Halo's career did not amount to much. She was retired as a broodmare and birthed three healthy colts. She was sold about a year ago to a gentleman and his 15 year old daughter. When the girl lost interest and became more preoccupied with boys, Halo found herself in my hands.

The first day I worked with her, just ground work, was no good. She must have never of been taught any ground manners. This huge thoroughbred was dragging me around the arena, giving me a decent whiplast.  I'm pretty certain she threw my back out as I still feel it throbbing to this day. The follow day, after enduring the same brutal groundwork routine, I started jumping up an down beside her and laying all over her to see how much she really knew. She didn't flinch at all so on the third day, after again having little progress on the ground, I saddled her up and took her for a spin. The mare was hot-blooded and tense. She didn't know how to stop or back up and any time you tried to turn a circle to the inside she'd take off and use up half of the arena to complete the turn. Leg pressure or any kissing was taken a a signal to run full speed and it was a constant struggle between horse and rider for control. It was a mess and at that point I was about ready to ship this girl back to where she had came from and count my losses.

After a day of rest, I set out to make a final attempt at accomplishing something productive with the mare. I skipped the ground work, a little short on time, and saddled her up. I made an ajustment with the bitting (switching her from a full cheek snaffle to a s-hackamore) and hopped on. She was still prancy and tense but she was understanding the "whoa" command and stopping hard when asked. Her backing was also highly improved and she was taking multiple steps in succession. Satisfied with the response I called it quits for that day. The next day also warranted encouraging results. I repeated the previous days actions but this time tested out her turning. She maneuvered wonderfully, turned as sharply or as wide as I asked. Now today, I went back and worked her from the ground once again, not certain what to expect. She worked well though. The pulling and jerking had relented - much to my spine's relief. Finally, she is starting to lighten and understand. I can only see Halo excelling from here.

Waynesburg Auction

Every Thursday people crowd into a room raised high above the auction ring. The air is thick with the warmth from their bodies and the voice of the auctioneer rattling off at a mile a minute is the only distinguishable sound. To get from one end to the other you have to squeeze between the tightly compacted bodies, hoping not to offend or step on any toes. To obtain a seat closer to the ring you must arrive early - my chances for that were shot. My father and I had arrived at about noon just in time to give the livestock a once over and grab a bite to eat before the sale at one.

You can view the animals from a walkway looming high over their heads. The very first ring of animal you see is a pen with four horses in it; a tall sorrel mare with a white stripe, a splashy overo horse with a ghost eye, another sorrel mare, and a dark bay. They stand perfectly in a line looking anxious but in decent shape. Next to them is another pen of horses, this one one with an array of ponies and one oddly built chestnut mare. This pen is not so calmly kept. The chestnut is constantly crying out, pacing back and forth relentlessly and the ponies squeal and kick out at one another if someone ventures too close.

As you continue down the walkway and look to the off to the left you can see the hogs. They appear to large for their own legs to support their legs. They lay on their sides with their faces pressed into the mud and their legs dangling in the air. Beyond the sows are many pens of cattle. There are dairy cattle with their prominent hip bones and young steers. There are also massive black Angus pulls, angrily stomping and blowing snot out of their noses. The calves are most pitiful to see, huddled and bleating together with large sad eyes. Their is an array of goats and alpacas, even a single mule.

But kept far in the back in hopes of staying away from the viewers eyes are the saddest animals of all. These are the horses who have been dealt a bad card. A two year old buckskin is in misery with his head between his knees, every bone in his body visible. His eyes are sad and if he has no response to any attempt to draw his attention. A pinto stud colt beside him is equally as pathetic but his eyes are not so subdued. They flicker about the building in distress, constantly moving with a wild look. The horse that draws the most heartache is an incredibly emaciated mare. Her body score would have certainly marked a 1 or less as her bones jut through her skin. Her muscle has all deteriorated and she is just barely clinging to life. Worst of all, she has a weanling filly still trying to suckle milk from her.

Waynesburg Auction is a livestock auction and it is one of the few places they sell horses by the pound. With the re-opening of slaughter houses in America, the killer-buyers are more aggressive than ever. Most horses run through the sale will end up in their hands. The buckskin colt, the pinto stud, and the horribly abused mare and her baby all sold for $5 dollars each. They will not be brought back to health. They will not know love. They will meet an end at the slaughter house. It is a terribly unfortunate thing because all of these horses had so much potential to become something. Because of neglectful owners they will never have the chance at life.

Oddly enough, I am a support of horse slaughter in America. However, I am not a supporter of abuse on any level. There is absolutely no excuse for the horses to have ever have reached that condition. If you cannot afford to feed a horse, do something with it besides slowly letting the poor creature starve to death in a pasture. Send it to auction before it reaches that critical point! I can't even begin to express the sorrow I feel for those horses.

The Horse That Changed My Life

I can remember sitting on the raised platform above the auction block with my father to my left at just nine years old.. There was a distinct excitement in the air as people raised their number on prospects, the auctioneer's voice going a mile a minute in the background. The horse I had hopes for was nearly black with a striking white blaze and four white stockings. When he entered the pen to be sold, I was tensed. I didn't even know who he had gone to when the auctioneer trumpeted "Sold!" over the loud speaker. I looked to my anxiously, he smiled and told me we had won the bid. I must have cried a bit then, and darted from my seat to meet the horse that would change my life.

Joker, as was the little 14.2hh geldings suitable name, turned out to me a hellish nightmare. The gelding was completely unbearable. He was danger to myself and anyone else who got on his back or happened to be around at the time. At the gate, he would set back on his haunches and whip turn after turn with a refusal to leave the gate. If you managed to get him away from the gate and asked for anything above the speed of a walk, he would immediately take off and and run into anyone else who was in the arena at the time, slinging his neck over their own mounts top line and plowing his chest into the horse. It was terrifying! None of the trainer's had much success in fixing the issue. One friend of mine, who was quite a bit older than myself thought she could solve the issue when Joker refused to enter the indoor arena. She got on and immediately Joker was spinning circles from one side of the barn to the other, never moving an inch closer to the arena gate. After that, my friend called it quits.

One day, a well known clinician visited the barn and I was hopeful that the clinic would be a great starting place in resolving issues with Joker. I was sadly disappointed however my the advice the man had to offer. After watching me try to handle Joker, and not having much luck he told me that I needed to sell the horse as soon as possible. Joker was too much horse for me to ever handle. Perhaps it was that statement that fueled the fire within me that still burns feverishly any time I work with a horse. After that, I took Joker to the round pen. It was the first time I would ever attempt this and had only gotten the idea from a kids series book titled "Heartland." Much like in the book I performed what is referred to as a "join up." It was the first real break through I had had with the troublesome gelding. When he lowered his head and licked his lips I bent down and amazingly, the gelding turned and came to me. Through hard work and lots and lots of research I was able to slowly overcome all of Joker's issues.

The little black gelding became the most amazing mount I have ever had the delight of owning. I took him to fun shows and won every class, earning countless ribbons. I could call him into me and he'd follow no matter the pace or place. I could ride him bareback, jumping heights taller than an upright barrel. I could slip off the bridle and tack and ride completely free, just one it the horse. I could throw a blindfold across his eyes and take away his vision completely and ride at all gaits. He was a remarkable horse and I don't expect to experience such a bond with any horse like that again.

Vixen Finds a Home




Vixen's first "ride" with new owner - 7yr old Gia

 

After I poured hours and hours of dedication and hard work into this little filly, I am happy to announce she has found a new home. Vixen is going to spend her days with a well known horse trainer throughout the area and her two daughters, one being seven years old and the other fifteen. She will be used as a lead line pleasure pony for the seven year old girl.

It was a bit unnerving for me when the family game to visit my pony. Vixen had never encountered two seven year old girls (They brought a tiny friend along too) and I wasn't sure how she would react with the two girls eagerly jumping up and down in their excitement. I was holding my breath the entire time. Bless that little pony's heart, she stood like a lady. When they were content with how she stood in cross-ties we took her to the arena where the mother requested to put her seven year old little girl onto Vixen's back. Being the only person to ever sit on Vixen, I was biting at my nails again, but I relented, putting a lot of faith into the horse and even more into my training skills. I was impressed again as Vixen remained calm and didn't flinch. One scary situation after the other, the mother wanted to put a saddle on Vixen and then have me climb aboard. Now, I had only saddled Vixen once previously and I had certainly never rode on top. But I was eager to show off my little girl and hoped my training was reliable. So I obliged, hopped aboard and the mother led us around at a walk and trot. It couldn't have gone any better. By then, their hearts were won over by this impressive filly and they came the following afternoon to take her home.



Looking good in her new pink halter.



As my first horse purchased for the intent of training to sell, I was incredibly proud of myself. Vixen was an excellent pony for me to start with and I could not be any more pleased with how things went. I set out with a mission and a goal in mind and I accomplished everything I set out to achieve without surpassing my limitations. Hopefully, this experience will open up many more doors for me in the horse training industry and I will be able to continue to further my success.

Meet Vixen

On December 30, which also happens to be my birthday, I was scouring the internet when I stumbled across a group of two year old colts in dire need of rescue. If they were not taken, they were destined for auction which would ultimately lead to their untimely end at the hands of a killer-buyer - someone who sends horses to slaughter. So the following day, I headed out on what would become a life changing experience.

The quarter horse filly was much tinier than I had expected, standing at a measly 13 hands. Her long flax mane was gnarled into dreadlocks and the aroma of cow manure was emanating from her badly matted coat. It was obvious she was nervous by the way the whites of her eyes flashed, her nostrils flared, and her constant shrill cries rang out from her lungs. But looking past this, she was also much prettier than I had expected. She had a very girlish figure with a refined, baby-doll head. Her color was a rich fox red with silver roan hairs coming out over her flanks and withers. So I made the decision to take a risk on this filly, who was badly in need.

Vixen quickly became her name - Vixie for a nickname - due to her fox-like appearance in both color and build. She was tiny and refined, so sleek and lithe. I have been working with her for 30 days now and she has proved to be a remarkable little mare. She has gained a considerable amount of weight and after a much needed bath, she smells much better - and looks it too!  After a lot of time spent learning manners on the ground I've been able to get up on her back and walk around. Not a bit of protest! Just yesterday was the first day she wore a saddle. You would have thought she was a seasoned ranch hand by the way she didn't even flinch. She takes everything in stride, conquers her fears. You can see the willingness in her eyes, that desperate need to please her handler. That is what truly makes her stand out. Perhaps she recognizes the dire situation she was in before and is all the more thankful to have someone in her life that cares.