This is what summer is all about!

Im not sure this day could have been any better besides me going to sleep before 1 in the morning right now. The day started off great! Got to sleep in on a horse show day, never had that happen before! Get to barn and Mystic is still white and bright. Loads great and we are on the road. We get almost to the show (so we think) and get totally lost. Our mapquest direction majorly failed us. Luckily we knew where Nancy McNights was because we stopped there and asked for directions. So about 30 after we should have arrived we got there. I ran to check in as Alanna and my mom tacked Mystic up. They were un able to move my ride time so I had a whooping 15 minutes to warm up! Good thing my horse is a star! It wasnt his best work during the test but is was not terrible either, and considering the circumstances it was great! It being his first show was respectable (especially compared to some other rides done by older horses). However I was going to do my best to help him have a better second test. Who would have thought that if you just ride your horse how you want them to go they will just do it! Our second test felt way better and over all I was so happy with how he did. So we threw his halter on and let him graze as we sat and talked in the shade for a little before I go see if scores were out from the first test. Im looking through the tests and lookie there... Mystic man just won his first blue ribbon and bag of treats (cant forget those!)! We got a 68 percent! So I go back and tell him how good he is and we look over the test, watch a few more rides, look at pictures, etc before I go looking for the scores for my second test. And guess what I found this time? My little stud won himself two blue ribbons at his first dressage show! This time his score was even better, 71%!! Needless to say I am so happy with how today went. We can only getting better, especially starting our lessons this week :) Now I need to be patient and wait till next months show!

If it seems to perfect to last then it is...

Well surprise, surprise life throws me another curve ball... After thinking that the shoes did the trick my mare seems lame again. She worked really well and is actually doing super well on the lunge line and is picking it up really quickly but towards the end she seemed a little off. It was hard to tell and I really need to take her to a bigger place to get a better idea. I will see how she looks in the morning. She also literally tried to kick my head off today while I was picking up her hind feet again. I thought we had solved that issue also with the shoes but I guess not. Im not talking threatening to kick im talking full out cow kicking to try and get me and kicked HARD. When I put the lead rope around her leg to pick it up so I wouldn't get kicked she was ripping it out of my hands she was kicking so hard. I honestly dont even know where to start if she is still lame tomorrow. Do I go the chiro route or take her back to the vet because its hard to tell really where it was. Will the chiro just make it worse if thats not the issue? Will she try to kick his head off also? Im not sure. Just kind of left disappointed now and not knowing what to do next. I guess time will tell...

On a good note (who woulda thought I had one of those?) my black and white pony is the best in the world :) He had a great lesson with Alanna last night and im so happy with his progress. I know that I cant get him as far as he can get alone and am SO thankful that im starting lessons with Mary. I also told Alanna she can take her lessons on him the weekends I dont if she wants because its good for him and she doesnt have a horse to ride all the time (right now, we will find her one!). I cant wait to see how he does at the show! He is my little perfect man :)

Not to shabby

Today was Skys second day of lunging and it was better then yesterday which is a good sign! I felt kind of bad just slapping the side reins on, and on pretty good to, but otherwise she just throws her head straight up in the air and really just doesnt listen. I feel like she is going to be a horse you really have to be on top of to keep her going well and focused. She tends to get mad sometimes so it is nice to have the side reins there so she can throw her fit but have a steady contact like the reins would be to tell her "nope I actually want you here". Her fits today were much shorter and less dramatic then yesterday also. That is the hard part about having a 7 year old race horse, their only expectation was to run fast and that is all that has been expected of her for the past 5 years or so. Now I need to change the way she works. When she is going well she actually seems to be consistent and doesnt fight the side reins and just goes at a nice forward round trot. She really has potential to be a super nice horse under saddle. I am thinking about having her tag along to Mystics dressage show this weekend just to get her out. It would be nice if I could lunge her there a little but I dont think that will happen. At least she can tag along and learn that she can stand still while waiting and see her new scene of work while she is with me at least! Here are some not so great pictures from today as I was by myself.

Im sure I will update more tonight after watching Mystic and Alannas lesson :)

Sky gets the surprise of her life

Well now that Sky got her shoes on she seems sound, YAY! So I decided to lunge her a little today. Well lets just say she doesnt have good coping methods when she gets mad haha! She threw a couple fits during her lesson but over all did pretty good. She walked, trotted and halted. Took her a little bit to figure them out and she doesnt have it nailed down yet but it has only been one day. She has quite a floaty trot! I even put side reins on her. Hopefully she is sound tomorrow, she she is sore I will have the chiropractor out. Im thinking about getting her going better and maybe even taking her to the dressage show in August to do intro before I list her for sale, which I have decided I am going to do. She is such a GORGEOUS mare and honestly I dont feel like I can do right by both of them (Mystic and her) if I keep them both and get them both where they could be. The more time I spend with her the more I like her which will make it hard to sell her but Mystic is not going anywhere.Ever. I could see this mare in anything. The dressage ring, the eventing circuit or even in the jumpers ring! I cant wait to get her up to weight and build up some muscle to see how she looks then because I really think she is going to be even more gorgeous then she is now. Time will tell I guess :)

I also heard from Tolos new mom today, she is taking him to a show in Eugene and doing intro test a on Sunday so I am heading down to watch him in the morning. It will be good to see him again :)
Mystic is perfect as usual. He was a good boy tonight and gets to be a fill in lesson pony tomorrow with his Auntie Alanna because she doesnt have anyone to ride. Then we start out lesson on the 3rd I think, so excited :)

A day of firsts

Mystic man went on his first xc adventure yesterday and was a total star! He did all the questions we asked him from the water (took the most convincing!), to logs, ditches, and down banks. This was his first time ever jumping (has only done a trot pole once in his life), going through the water there, going over a ditch, down a down bank, being out alone, and he even cantered some logs! I could not be any happier with this guy. He walked right down the down bank with no hesitation, trotted over his very first log after a quick look and went over the ditch like it wasnt even there. By the end he was cantering two logs, cantering the water, and even put 3 obstacles together and trotted them. We didnt stay out long or jump much at all as he is still young but we wanted to expose him to it early to see how he reacted and to get the water training down early. Lets just say he passed with flying colors and you can bet you will be seeing him at some recognized 3 days next year! He heads to his first dressage show next Saturday then in August he has atleast one dressage show, possibly a combined test, and the state fair. Im SO proud of him!

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eLfUTrjg6a8 

On another note Sky got all four shoes on today! She needed some sedative to help he stay still and not kick but overall it went really good besides her peeing on him LOL! While she was sedated I took advantage and pulled her mane more, it is almost done! Hopefully shoes does the job, im still thinking I might have the chiropractor out  if I can get him out soon. I will get pictures of her today!

Pictures DO NOT do this horse justice! Especially since she never seems to have her ears up lol

I took advantage of her being sedated today and pulled her mane a lot :)

She really is happy most of the time!

This horse is going to be drop dead gorgeous with more weight and muscle!

My pony and my puppy!

Monday is the day

Monday the farrier is coming out to put some shoes on Sky to see if it helps her. I had to go pick up some gel sedative from my vet because she has her kicking issues. I dont want to push the issue too much right now because I think some of it could be pain but you can bet once she gets those shoes on she will be back into boot camp for kicking! She continues to eat all her grain/beet pulp for breakfast, lunch, and dinner along with her orchard grass hay. Let me tell you... if she is out of hay and has no grain you can bet she will be talking up a storm to you telling you all about how starving she is the minute she sees you! She is so cute! I made more progress with her mane yesterday, she was better about me pulling it yesterday then the other day but I dont blame her too much. It cant be the most pleasant feeling having your hair ripped out lol

Tomorrow Mystic gets to make his first xc schooling adventure! I cannot wait, it will be so much fun and there will be lots of pictures im sure. Hopefully I can get out to the barn early enough tomorrow to give him a bath so he looks presentable for his pictures :)

Alanna and I are headed up to Devonwood today to hang out with our NDF crew and watch Pants baby daddy compete!

Kicking is a big no-no

Well Princess Sky has made it perfectly clear she doesn't like her hind legs picked up and lets you know as she shoots her legs out at you trying to drill you a good one... Im not a fan haha so we have really been working on that the last few days and I think we are making progress. Hopefully she can get her shoes on soon now!

Getting her mane pulled

Beet pulp face!

Almost all gone!

Not as bad as we thought!

Im very excited to say that all the pretty mare needs are some dancing shoes to keep her heels off the ground and allow more heel growth! Although it will require a full set of shoes. Therefore meaning I will most likely have to have her sedated for this time atleast because she isnt the best with her back legs and I like my farrier and would like him to continue doing my horses so having her take his head off isnt an option :) I also started her to grain for breakfast, lunch, and dinner! Hopefully we can get some fat on her body soon. My mom saw her ripping around the pasture yesterday too which is a GREAT sign as we really havent seen her run too much. She also noted that she has a pretty big buck, now that one could be a problem! Fingers crossed that we get her new fancy shoes on and we can start working!

waiting at the vet

Horses, horses, horses...

My camera died after these two and I cant find cable :(

You get 1 step forward then take about 30 steps back! Ok maybe not that bad but it sure feels like it! Sky got her hooves trimmed the other day and dewormed today and I was planning to get the chiropractors number when my friend got back from a horse clinic and start there to figure out what her possible issue is but today when I went out to put her rain sheet on (yes rain sheet needed in the middle of July..) she was super swollen up past her fetlocks on both hinds. Yesterday when we were out getting Tolo ready for his new family she had one hoof rested and seemed to almost fall over at one point. So we are back to square one and I just dont feel right leaving her like this and having chiropractor work on her without solving her issues with the swelling first. So hopefully I can get an appointment tomorrow for a lameness exam and possible xrays or ultrasounds if needed. We will see. I will get some pictures today of her and post them!

4 years in the making

Tolos test ride with potential new people went really well last night and he has a vet check scheduled for Saturday. If he passes everything then the lady is going to buy him. They are all super excited and we have been talking all day to arrange plans. Although I know its is the right thing for both of us in the end it is still super hard to let him go. He was my first horse (had a pony for a year before she coliced), first rescue, and first horse I ever started. I know this family will love and spoil him and we may even see each other at shows some day. Its hard to let him go but it is his time now to teach someone else. Not to mention he will only be 45 minutes away from me so I can still go visit.
Tomorrow both Tolo and Sky have a date with the farrier. Hopefully he can make Skys hooves look halfway decent. They look terrible right now. She has lost 3 of her 4 shoes and they were already growing over her shoes anyways. Hopefully she behaves for him!

When I first got him 4 years ago

More pictures

Here are some pictures of Sky today! She is doing really well, farrier is coming out this week to get her hooves done and she seems to be gaining weight fairly easily which is super nice. Her and Tolo are good friends now and where one is you can sure find the other right there with them! They are so cute :)

Any ideas on what this looks like? If you see her leg in person it is visibly messed up

Eventing pony in training :)

Mystic never ceases to amaze me! And entertain me for that matter! He is the cutest, smartest, most adorable Gypsy ever! So today Alanna and I rode together in the field and got some pictures of the handsome man in action. He is coming along really nicely and is always a blast to ride. As long as he takes to jumping well he will be so much fun to show at 3 day events, I cannot wait :) We also got a short video of him showcasing his XC pace, I will be the person laughing throughout the whole course smiling from ear to ear because you really just cant help it lol! Here is his video and pictures:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hFzkscr3eOs

One week down, a life time to go

Its been a week! This is her right before she came home

It has been exactly a week since I brought Miss Princess Sky home! She is doing really well and thoroughly enjoys her pasture time! She is super sweet and is great with Tolo, the dogs, and the goats. The downfall is that she still seems not 'right' and her mystery owies on her back legs seem to be growing back after they fall off. I just might be calling my vet on Monday to see if I can get her in when we take Max in. Also I am supposed to call the farrier after we figure out if Tolo is going with this girl or not to schedule an appointment for either her or both of them to get done. She pulled another shoe, they were just so poorly put on to begin with. I got an offical 1 week picture with my phone but when my mom gets back tomorrow from her dog show I will take better pictures (hopefully with me!).

Our neighbors that live in front of us have a little 2 year old boy who just loves all our animals but especially Tolo. He loves it when Tolo goes over to their fence so he can pet him and Tolo loves it too! So tonight I saw him out there calling for the horses and so I went out and took miss Sky over to say hi. He has been telling his parents that he wants to ride one but they thought he would be scared so tonight we tried with Tolo and let me tell you the smile on his face so priceless! If horses could smile I know Tolo would have been also, he just LOVES little kids. Im sure there will be many more pony rides in both Brayden and Tolos future together :)

And this is her today!

What a good boy!

Tolo had a young girl come out today to try him out to see if he would work for them to lease. Let me tell you he was a star! He has been ridden 3 times since state in May before today and he just packed her around like he was all that and a bag of chips! I was so proud of him! They are taking the weekend to think about it and will let me know by the end of the weekend. Mean while I got another email tonight and have someone else coming tomorrow to see him. We will see what happens.

Alanna and I rode together tonight and since the hay is all picked up we got the ride in the field! It was so much fun and Mystic loved it! We went galloping around it happily, until he got tired that is haha, and did a little work but mostly just hung out and had a fun ride! I also found out he does lead changes super well and on que already without me ever working on them! WOW! I cant put into words how much I love this horse!
Here are some old pictures since I didnt get any today, however, Alanna said she would take some pictures of Mystic and I riding outside this weekend. So he will but all braided up and clean like he is going to a show so we can get some cute pictures :)

Tolo and Mystic at OHSET practice. Mystic was barely under saddle here!

The day he came home!

Fingers Crossed

Tomorrow Tolo has two people coming to look at him most likely. One for sure is a 14 year old girl looking for an OHSET and trail horse. Im really hoping he works out for one of them. He is getting pretty fat just sitting in the field :) I rode him today and two days ago and he was pretty good both times considering he hasnt really been ridden since state! So fingers crossed something works out!

On a sad note by dog is headed to the vet next Thursday for xrays to get down to the bottom of his lameness issues. My mom thinks its his knee... Im really hoping its not. He already had a whole hip replacement on that same leg when he was a puppy and I read the likelyhood of the other knee going out after the surgery on the first knee is extremely common. NOT what I need. I dont have $4,000 laying around to fix 2 knees. We already dropped $3,000 on his hip when he was 9 months old :/ its a good thing is the cutest puppy dog out there!

Tolo!

My poor Max. Hopefully he will be fixed soon :)