A RAVE about my mare!!!

[bkreugar]

I have ridden since I was 10 (28 years). For the past 10-12 years I was a dedicated arab person. We bought this property 7 years ago. I came to the property with 3 horses.

My older full arab pony (now 21 and retired), my arab/morgan mare, and at that time my full arab mare my joy.Time marched on and I lost MY mare to cancer.My daughter moved up from the full arab pony to the morab. We had ridden together until she HAD to move up to the morab because the older pony was arthritic. Did you follow that?

SO we were down to 2.The morab my daughter rode and the retired arab pony.So DD and I could not ride together anymore.DD bugged me quite a bit about getting a horse all of last year.But I had recently discovered jogging and was not sure I wanted the extra expense.

DD did not let up and wanted to show WITH me in arab classes etc.
So last fall (Sept) I started looking.I WANTED an arab mare, preferably not chestnut around 14.1 H as I am 5ft.

I looked until late winter (at least 6 months) with NO luck.I sat at least 30 horses with NO luck.All were very hot or spooky.I gave up by early Spring and decided I would maybe breed the retired mare.

A VERY dear friend called me one evening and asked If I was still looking.I said not really.SHe said someone had contacted her (thru her rescue contacts) about a 1/2 arab mare they were DESPERETE to get rid off becuase of lack of funds.She sent me pics.

I was not paticularly impressed.The mare looked like she might be 1/2 app because of the coloring around her eyes.But she did look like she had SENSE.

People that owned her WERE depserete,They only wanted to keep her foal and she they would sell for $400.00.So they called ME and asked if I was interested.I told them I had about given up as I had sat about 30 horses with NO luck.

So I went the following weekend 2 hours away to the BOONIES. I see them leading her INTO the barn and my heart STOPS.She has the PRETTIEST head of ANY horse I had ever seen.Like a welsh arab cross.She had perfect black eyeliner around both eyes and a HUGE blaze and white on her chin too.

They kept her up 23 hours a day and on sweetfeed to boot.Sweetfeed an arabs not a great mix!!!SO I brush and tack and she seems hot.I lunge and she seems clueless.She also will not let me TOUCH her back legs at all.They say don't touch her back legs she will kick.

So they ride and my heart kinda sinks cuz she does seem hot.But I change to my bridle with loose ring snaffle and get on.that was kind of a leap of faith.Suprise she is NOT spooky and NOt very hot.We are riding in a HUGE open field.I ride her all the way to the end as far from the barn as I can.I then turn her to the barn and kinda drop the reins to see what she will do.She WALKS and stops when i ask her too. She trots and comes back when asked.Although a little hot THIS I can handle.

Back at the barn they are pumping me because they are desperete to sell her.SO I ask about shots etc.Nothing of coarse.SO I drive away to talk to Dh. I call him and say I found HER.DD is SHOCKED because I was SOOOO cool.Dh says okay.So I call them back and say I will take her IF they deliver her for that price.They say they are on the way.

So mare settles RIGHT down and since being out mostly and getting OFF sweetfeed she is no longer hot.I send pics to my horsey friends and one who breeds paints says Wait till you bath her I bet she is a pinto.

She was right!!! AND this wonderful mare is a trail riding dream.I have ridden her many miles and hours since April and she never spooks at ANYTHING.Crosses water goes up steep inclines is respectful when you want to come back to a walk.Just AWESOME!

So apperantly she must be an arab/qh cross.this is a cross I NEVER liked before but she is SOOO great.I took her to a show last month and She was GREAT. A little too quick in the beginning but better as the day wore on and a dream in the trail class as she will let you open/close the gait take the mail out of the mailbox, go over the bridge everything.

ANd the reason she was freaky about the back legs being picked? She has a HORRENDOUS scar down the cannon bone down to the bone on her left rear.Vet says it may have nicked the flexor tendon.But she is sound and will/w/t/c and jump.She also tolerates her back feet being picked now. Shoes were a trickier deal.Vet thinks she may have some scar tissue to stretch out.

I ADORE this girl.It is WONDERFUL to get on and not worry about what she will spook at or anything else.We just set off and go.DD and I have spent HOURS trail riding this summer.And I still think she is the most gorgeous horse I have ever had.She turns that head to me and I just melt.It took me 8 months but I found my sweetie, when I had about given up.

Thanks for reading this I have been thinking how much I want to shout from the rooftops that I LOVE my horse.

 

[Chicks_N_Horses]

That is wonderful!!

 

[NGT ANGL]

what a wonderful story! it really touches my heart that you two found each other! now we need PICS of her!!!!

 

[Brindlebtch]

Awesome story. PICTURES PICTURES!

 

[bkreugar]

I really appreciate you reading this. I will post pics but got to wait till DH comes home to do so.She is a grey and white.So she has a big white belly spot 3 white socks and a little bit of white on both sides of her neck and butt.Her grey is the black flea bitten grey and the white is pure white.

When wet the grey is black skin and the white is pink skinned.I did not know she was pinto until I bathed her.Although paint breeder freind said she thought she was based on her face markings.SO that was a pleasant suprise.They didn't know it.I thought she was just a grey mare witha welch crossy looking face.But she DOES hold her tail like an arab and does have a very slight dish.

It has been many many years since I have had a horse I really bonded too and wasn't just "the horse I rode".

 

[texasgal]

We .... need .... pics!!

I have a similar story .. but for another day..

Arabs ROCK.

 

[EweSheep]

I love Arabians too but soured about people who worked with them was not a pleasant experience. That was the reason I went out of the breed but their intellegence can not be denied.

Do send pics of your lovely mare!

 

[bkreugar]

Ewesheep I WANTED a full arab as most people I run into DON"T like them and I do.But it had been about 10 years since I had bought ANY horse and what I found in arabs was hot/spooky/not well broke and I mean 6/7 yr olds that were still very very green.

Most of the ones I tried were owned by people who were AFRAID of them and therefore wanted to sell them. And I will also say putting on my flamesuit here, most were straight Egyptian. My PERSONAL dealings with arabs were Egyptians were HOT and dumb.

So I would go look at an arab , ride it, and take a pic of the papers and come home and research.LOTS of Egyptians out there I guess cuz they are typiest but not so ridable in my expereince.

So I am not sure if it was me being less enthused with snort and blow OR they were hotter and more snorty and blowey.I do know the magority I looked at were owned by people who were afraid of thier arab.

So Iwanted a fullarab and couldn't find one to fit.So I got a arab/qh cross.I DO REALLY wonder if it is the QH in her that makes her so solid and spook proof.But my paint breeder freind says NO the marejust has SENSE and THAT came thru even on the first ugly pictures they sent me.it was why i went to look.

I find I can tell alot by their eyes.

Please remember I LIKE arabs.I just think something has happened to the breed.

 

[texasgal]

Quote:
The other thing that gets me is that most people I know that own Arabs need 20-30 minutes to lunge their horse before they will ride..

I will NOT have a horse that I can't go up to in the pasture, bridle, hop on, and ride....

There will be NO waiting on ME to lunge my horse before we take off to the river ..

LOL..

And, I've never lunged my Arabian .. **grin**

 

[EweSheep]

I had a 3/4 Arab that looks like Raffles and he had spirit but teachable to me LOL! He was a sweet horse I can ever ask for since I was green rider. After five years owning him, he had aged alot and could not keep up with the hard rigour of enderance riding, I sold him to a young teenager that wanted to use him for trail riding. never had to lunge him and he was easy to catch!

The Arabians I had experience in were the Crabbet/Polish. and one Russian. They were all beautiful but it is not just THEM but its the trainer and owner expectation on WHAT they should be like which it was wrong wrong wrong! Make a laid back gelding into a hell fire infereno that attract buyers all of the sake of blowing noses, wide eyed and gingered or nicked tails. No thank you and it was enough of ten years of loving Arabs changed my mind. Then I went into gaited horses which I found the Paso Finos are the greatest, not the high priced Colombians, just the more laid back Puerto Ricans.