My Horses

(Photo taken by Tashia)

~An up-close on the horses from all the pictures I take. (The ones that we still have.)
If you've read any of my blog so far, you've probably figured out that my horses are pretty important to me. So I decided to put a picture on of each one and write a little about them. I thought "Well I like to know about other people's horses so they might like knowing more about mine!" I hope to update these every once in a while to show what I'm doing with them.




Hank || Buckskin paint mustang (and he's a gelding)



Hank has been my trainer for at least 5 years now. When we got him he was very skittish and extremely head shy. Let me tell ya there were times when I just wanted to give up on him, but by the encouragement from my dad and a few others I kept working with him. (I didn't know a whole lot at the time. Hank was just the beginning.) Now Hank is my favorite mount especially for when friends come over. I don't have to worry much when they're on Hank. Sadly he's starting to show his age (Which I think is somewhere in his early 20s. He might be older though. We don't know.)
   I take back what I said about him feeling his age! We've been doing more and he's back into his old self again! The other day I really got him goin' and we did three rollbacks in a row!!! I feel like I have my Hankie back!







Ecco || Sorrel paint mare

Have been riding her and she is doing great. As long as I'm in an arena I feel completely comfortable with her and for other people to ride her too, but outside, that's a different story. I'll ride her out but not anyone else!
Ecco is my dad's mare. We raised her from a baby and is now 6 years old. Boy was (is!) she a  trial! She is progressing very well though. Her personality is a very fun, happy-go-lucky one. She LOVES when people come in to see her. She thinks she is the main attraction or something! All in all she is a pleaser. She wants to work for you and doesn't mind getting down to business. Not much scares her except the occasional neighboring miniature pony that has wandered into her pen. Fences prove very futile in those situations! (She couldn't figure out what is was and took out a fence in the process of  getting away from it.) I am starting to work with her better than I used to and am liking her more. (Maybe that was the problem?!) But I think she has settled down a lot more. To me she seems sweater than she used to be. I get a kick out of people who think mares are more difficult. Yeah Ecco was a trial sometimes but in all the mares I worked with I wouldn't say there is a whole lot of difference with how they work and how geldings work. I'd say it all depends on the training. Just my opinion!










Dunny || Sorrel Quarter horse gelding


He's doing very good. Lately I've been doing a bunch of Clinton Anderson's groundwork with him and it is definitely paying off!
My main goal with Dunny is for him to become confident with me so he will be a good solid trail leader. (and pretty much all around horse. Which I guess for the most part he is. Doesn't have a problem with gates or flags, ok with cows, pulls sleds, can be ridden double, goes over bridges, but he's not for beginners! Hes a lot of horse. You got to ride him quietly and under control. But then again, what horse don't you do that with?) He's not the most confident and his eyes get big ALL THE TIME! All in all I'm very happy with him. Just have to watch sometimes because he's got a big motor under there! Although I don't think I've ever had him run all out.

Dandy || buckskin gelding

Dandy is in his early 20s now so he's starting to get up there.  He is by far the most photogenic horse we have so he stars in a lot of my pictures. I call him my 'good ole boy' because that pretty much describes him. Right now he is kinda my little sister Jess's babysitter! Haha don't tell her I said that! She loves him to death and any time I'm riding she wants to know if she can get him out too!
I really haven't found much that Dandy won't try. He's confident but the funny thing is he doesn't like certain objects the most. For instance when I ride down to the neighbors place he always shys around this one grate in the blacktop even though he's seen it a good bit. Also this one silo we ride by scares him almost every time! I have to wonder what he would do if something jumped out from behind it! But I'm not too worried because I've ridden him enough to know that he pulls up pretty easily even when he's unsure. I also found out he's fun to ride English on. Its very comfortable and smooth so I don't have a problem staying with him. By English I mean simply the saddle. Because I still use my split reins, and western boots. People must get a kick out of seeing me out riding like that!



Kat || bay quarter horse mare

Kat's my little girl. She's a quiet, loving, 8 year old mare. When she was 2 she had 30 days of training, but then for some reason was never ridden after that. You are probably thinking "You have a mare that hasn't been ridden for six years! That's crazy! She's probably wild!" Well, actually she is one of the calmest horses I have ever ridden. She is doing great! So much easier to rein and steer. I've figured out I just didn't use my body enough before. I am so proud of my little girl! Her stops are as amazing as ever and I've been getting my younger sisters up on her to get some more experience under their belts. I still haven't done much with sidepassing so hopefully will get to that soon. Anyway hope you enjoyed finding out a little bit about my horses!
  She's been doing great! Her trot is like floating on air, and the bucks haven't been seen in a while. Hopefully they're gone! Anyway she is progressing very well. I've been doing Clinton Andersons' roundpenning for respect with her and it is paying off!


Skeika|| cremello quarter horse mare

Sheika is my new "little girl." She is doing awesome through groundwork and the first couple rides. I never knew it could be so easy. Literally. But then it probably takes a horse with a good mindset already and definitely correct training. I have had her for 4 months now and am using Clinton Anderson's method. Love the results! Sheika has been so good with being ridden and really hasn't had any problem at all. No bucking no fussing. Nothing. People who say mares are annoying, fussy, and aggravating to work with, need to come see my girl. I wholeheartedly believe a horse will behave how you allow it to. So yes this is Sheika.

My horsie videos

                  
Dunny:

Sheika:

Kat: