So true, and well said.
What do I need to feed my horse?
- Thread starter ChickyMama229
- Start date
Horses are herd/ pack animals, and if you aren't a leader, it's not good! Being nervous or timid doesn't work at all. In a herd situation, the lead mare has pride of place, and everyone gets out of her way. It's necessary to be like her, only more so, or get run over.
Mary
Mary
That makes sense! Maybe that's why he was picked on, too gentle, slow, and old. And too small of an area.
I know I need to be or act tougher but easier said than done with anxiety and even if I try to mask it, I am sure horses or any animal can sense my real feelings lol
So true! Don't overmatch yourself; look at those sweet older 'beginner' horses because they are the best, and priceless. Leave the youngsters and the fancy ones to other folks.
Mary
Mary
Thanks, that's a good point! Luckily I love the older ones.
Usually experienced and calm, etc.
But I don't think I could get a horse atm anyway, too expensive, but maybe one day. We have plenty of land though and lots of grass.
** 7/8/18 - 405pm Edited to ad - I think that I mixed up two or three different threads when I typed up this reply starting late last nite and continuing this am... ***
OK - I've got a few points to make and then go into a story about part of our background... w/ a lot of pictures and descriptions... I'm not trying to "crow" about our accomplishments (hehe - got in some chickie lingo), just using them to illustrate points and express my thoughts. It is picture heavy - regarding children, beginners, Shetland ponies and Arabians (& other pony/horse crosses). Also covers lessons & upkeep on a shoestring budget - here goes ...
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So that the OP knows, lots of grass with oldsters may not work at all. If they can chew it properly, they may not be able to digest/metabolize it to fulfill their dietary needs. Depending on the horse's metabolism, he may not be able to graze in your pasture early in the spring or late in the fall (after frost)= both times cause grass to be extremely high in sugar content. Severe drought can also cause major sugar stress that will in turn affect a horse/pony on that pasture (OR hay that is cut/baled for use - something many of us don't even think about, LOL. I had that driven home the year we found not 1 but 2 of our horses to be IR).
Older horses may need teeth looked at/worked on more than 1x a year (we had a 10 yr old Arab that needed to be floated regularly here in NC almost every 4 months for several years in a row - a "float" then was about $125. She passed away in 2012 - natural causes & during the night @ 21 yrs of age. A "float" is a basic dentistry job of removing the sharp edges of teeth with an equine dental file. Some states have specialists that can legally do the job, some require a veterinarian due to drugs used to allow horse to be done more easily, some you can learn to do yourself - which I do not recommend for a beginner horseman.). Usually, your vet would inspect/evaluate your horse's mouth 1x/year and it would be determined when the teeth would need to be next taken care of, what type of care would be needed. There are, of course, other issues than just basic floats that may have to be addressed (I've had a pony mare's tooth break off - lodged in the side of her cheek and requiring "field" surgery to remove both the lodged piece and stitch up the mess and remove the jagged partial tooth still left in her upper jaw - neither the vet nor I had ever seen anything like that and we have no idea how it happened or even for sure how long it had been like that; we've had normal wolf teeth pulled w/o a problem and we've had a single wolf tooth pulled on an Arab mare that ended up cracking her jaw when it came loose).
Many horses these days have metabolic issues - again - each one is an individual and grass may not work on it's own for your feeding program. The state your in, your soil/amendments, the type of grass, the weather - all play a part. Also, not just the breed - but the age and temperment/personality and metabolism of each horse has to be considered... And it seems that "regular" ol' pasture isn't enough in many places now - I have a lot of self thought on that that would take pages to write up and none is scientific fact (well some is actually).
Don't forget basic hoof care - from regular cleaning out, to having your farrier visit for trims and/or shoes (I don't use shoes unless absolutely necessary and most of ours, including the Arabs during heavy competition/trail riding, went barefoot).
I've moved for the 4th time since 1995 with Shetland ponies, Shetland/ArabXs and 1 Arabian mare. This property had "beautiful" grass on a single 7 acre pasture.... ah but it was semi-arid sand that hadn't had livestock on it at all recently other than 3 TINY minis (1/2 the size of most of my Shetlands - who range from 40-44" in height & 250 - 500#s) that also got feed 2x a day. Hmm. A closer look at the pics I took myself reveals the poor quality of grass & coverage, actually. Our shetlands didn't take long to decimate it - though I had them on just 3 acres at previous place 20 miles away in the same county, it wasn't as sandy, had good established pasture grass mix of coastal, rye, crabgrass and some weeds we never really identified that supported them thru the summer where i didn't need to feed them supplemental grain - they always have free choice mineral blocks (which aren't made for horses and every so often, you will here they aren't good enough). Here - not only do they get hay 24/7 (along with "free range" pastures), but they also have to be fed and the diets are broken into specific ranges for breeding/youngstock, performance/show and older animals in their 20's.
The 2 IR horses are no longer with us, so I don't have to be concerned about that at this time, but we DO still have the son of the IR mare and this year he's staying fat on air which has me worried while my pocketbook is happy. Why? Because the year we found out that Pretty Girl was IR (and then went on specialized diets which weren't bad cost wise but were a pain in the arse), she was like that! We also lost her to natural causes (according to blood tests and necropsy) but in her mid-teens @ 15 yrs of age (unnatural to me).
Sami is 10 yrs old this year - he is not "working" and is just a 13 hh pasture poodle. His dam started "working" at 2-1/2 yrs of age (started under saddle) and kept working right up until her death (the last few trail rides were under 10 miles and mostly just walk, jog & long trot - no cantering or galloping - however it was carrying my 250#s+ in weight & my western saddle). O - and Sami is not and may never be a beginner type pony - even tho he's medium sized and now considered "older". He's on the "hot" side - and has had minimal training and never really had a job at all. Older age doesn't matter if the training/handling aren't there to begin with.
When you continuously mention how nervous you are and have anxiety attacks, I'd highly recommend that you continue taking lessons and/or work with a trainer who specializes in horse assisted therapy work. I would be very careful with any large animals of hooved or toothed varieties, myself, because yes they do sense the fear and anxiety. That can create problems all by itself except with well handled/desensitized/and trained individuals and/or working with an instructor who is well versed in those human emotions and has animals also known to be reliable with such folk.
Every breed of horse has various lines for specific jobs these days. Even our Shetland ponies do. And then w/i those lines are familial lines that may be great with kids and beginners or truly "bad actors" (& REALLY BAD for beginner handler/owners) that can be dangerous for even experienced handlers... We have had GREAT kid's/beginner mounts that were purebred (hot/dangerous, not) Arabians (but they had years of training BEFORE they had beginner/kid handlers - it DOES make a difference) and more than 1 shetland pony that came out of the womb biting and striking (while weighing between 20-30#s & could easily be picked up off the ground).
All horses and ponies need to be trained - there are many different training programs and philosophies. If you can't handle a horse calmly from the ground, then you are endangering yourself, the horse and anyone else around you while on the ground and doubly so, if you are mounted. A horse is a living, breathing, THINKING animal that can and does still respond to it's prey background automatically. EVEN when well trained, an individual horse can still make mistakes or "slip up" and it only takes 1 time to be seriously injured if the handler/rider is a beginner not familiar with how horses act/react or is distracted at the "wrong time".
As to the other question on the horse being bad or the guy being wrong, the more that was stated the more you find out. I don't think the horse was necessarily bad. I think he may have been unhandled/untrained (but even if he wasn't - he may have been "sleeping") and then you add in someone not identifying themselves (I am a "stickler" about keeping 1 hand on a horse's body at all times when working around them) and then flapping the hat - a kick is to be expected and I would have laughed had I witnessed it, I think. That said - I know that our horses and ponies are going out to beginner owners and kids that know nothing. I do lots of different things with each horse/pony. I used to do all kinds of "crazy stuff" - long before it was accepted in most circles of horsedom (I rode with cowboys that did stuff that is now coined "natural horsemanship" - long before it was named/called that. What's old is new again!) Don't do as much now - never realized how much my "velcro-butted, fearless, bronco riding" daughters actually did with our ponies and later, our horses. My grand daughters can't remember from one day to the next not to walk 2' behind a pony (they can move and they can break ribs at that distance w/ a kick while going after a fly) - drives me crazy!!!
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The bay Tobiano mare behind the 2 girls' is the grand dam of the silver Tobiano colt. Sierra & 'Dira are the 2 girls' aunts (Skye, our oldest daughter, is their mom)... The 3rd pic depicting the size diff in the equine we have owned at one time - Shado would have been around 36/37", PG was about 13.1hh & Anita was right @ 14.2hh. A horse is measured in hands which is 4" increments from the ground to their withers. A mini horse and Shetland pony is measured in inches from ground to the last hair of the mane - I measured to the same spot on the withers that you use for horses & have both the Hands High & Inches noted on their paperwork when I sell them & on our website.
Our daughters started on Shetlands, graduated to ShetlandXs then on to Arab & ArabX horses - (AJ is from a kids' line of Shetlands, he was a kids lesson & trail riding pony, my driving pony and our breeding stallion from 1995 thru 2012 - when he was euthanized at 20 yrs of age w/ health problems stemming from a broken hip earlier in his life). This is Skye (& Sierra in 1st pic). Satin is an OLDER Hackney pony - 12 hh. She had an iron jaw and was darned scary for a beginner driving adult (ME) to drive, but turned into a nice riding pony under Skye, Madira & Sierra - who all started riding her when she was 14 yrs old in 97. Chaunter was started by a professional trainer at 3 yrs of age & ridden for approx 3 months. Then she had a massive leg injury during a pasture accident (falling while running, put her hind leg thru a barn wall and almost cut it off at the hoof, scar still there 2 years later when we purchased her)... With a trainer for 30 days when I met her - I spent 60 days coming home from that trainers' several times a week w/ bruises from my crotch to my ankles & lots of pulled muscles because I was determined not to "come off" a "pretty but silly Arab" in front of folk when she'd spook and drop 6" down (leaving me hanging in mid-air) then leap 10-20' sideways... It was after that, that I started letting Skye ride her but ONLY after a serious lounging workout and Chaunter's mind was about her properly. Chaunter & Skye went on to become highly competitive in local show rings & AJ/Chaunter's 2000 Shet/Arab son also went on to become competitive after he left his humble beginnings on our leased 5 acres.
Skye's 1st time riding Chaunter in April 1999 - YES, I was NERVOUS!! Then a show in Nov 2000 - and then jumping bareback on new ArabXhorse in Oct 2003. But understand from April 1997 thru high school graduation in 2008, Skye rode almost daily... starting with AJ, a 44" Shetland stallion, numerous lesson horses owned by other instructors/farms, horses she trained/worked for a couple of folk, cross bred ponies that we bred/raised/trained/sold and the Arabian & Arab/Xmares we had - Chaunter, Cricket, Rhythem & Jazzy (I don't think she ever rode PG - who belonged to our middle daughter Madira).
Madira's start - before owning helmets and 2yrs later - still on the same pony (she tried to ride Patty's 2y old daughter, that didn't work at all). Madira is not a good pony starter. She is one who needed a mount already started under saddle, at least a little solid & secure in training. She started riding Magic after Skye spent a full year riding her. She had to learn to ride her - because even then, Magic could get uptight... The instructor working w/ her & Magic would ultimately be her therapeutic instructor years later...
PG is the only one she started from scratch as a baby - but PG was hers from the start when we entered an Arabian breeders pasture and that yearling followed us around - sticking to 'Dira like glue. Took me a year & 1/2 to finally break down and get a baby for Madira... & one day when 'Dira forgot to do ground work/lounging exercises and PG threw her (in play) - PG's hoof caught 'Dira in the armpit when she came off in front/underneath. Only the mud kept 'Dira from getting crushed - but I could see thru the gap and count every one of Madira's ribs on the right side... I don't remember how many stitches it took. I took over riding that little, feisty Arab (& oh, man, she was COOL - quickly became lite as a feather in bridle - had her two-tracking at a trot and canter; almost a true Piaffe. PG was the last pony/horse that I rode in 2012 before my hips & back said no-more...) & Madira did the ground therapy on an Arab mare we adopted that was partially paralyzed - getting her to the point she could be ridden again and then 'Dira showed her before going back to riding PG.
Dira handled & rode several other ponies and horses for others. The year that 'Dira turned 15, we were helping a friend clear property. A "widow maker" tree fell on her when the teens attached a tow rope to it... breaking her back. It would be more than 6 months of therapy after her ER surgery. They used lab-grown bone to add to her back & she has 2 titanium rods in her back along with screws - fusing 3 vertebrae. PG kept her sane - even tho she wasn't supposed to ride. I caught her a couple of times on PGs back and asked her to wait... Other horses were her Therapeutic riding mounts in the College program that accepted 'Dira for special lessons to bring her back to full use of her body - at times it seemed that 'Dira's childhood instructor was hard on her during those lessons, but ... Madira came all the way back. Madira was out of state in 2014 when PG passed and it was rough when she got home...
Sierra - well. The "baddest" "velcro-butt" in the pony riding business! She did her first lead line ride on AJ when he had just 7 days of "under saddle work" (only on a leadline for over a year) when she was 22 months old, officially started riding on Patty, then took rite to her 2 yr old daughter, Stuffy, like a duck to water. She had a knack for starting the babies, getting anywhere from 15-30 rides on them and then we'd take them to local shows and she just "got it done"... Usually guiding that pony to a surprising, in the ribbons (1st - 6th), placing (& helping us to sell A LOT of ponies, for us, at the time - which paid for the feed/hay for the rest of the ponies). The pic of Sierra & Rascal was taken in Nov 2000, not 1999. He is a 98 gelding, and he was 2 1/2 yrs old at that show. During the summers of "racing" each other, Vixen became Sierra's mount of choice - however, no surprise, Vixen became a bit hard to stop & handle during that time frame. The Shetland/Hackney pony cross could get every bit as "hot" as an OTTB. Riding bareback, Sierra often slipped past her 2 sisters rite under the noses of their taller mounts 2 summers in a row... Vixen went to a trainer (consignment sale - didn't sell, but did get leased out after the period of her pro training - which in turn paid for her training). When she came back to us at the end of the lease period, Sierra split riding her in her lessons with "her" pony and before she outgrew her she again went to showing her. They became known as the "flying fleas" at our local show - Vixen could clear a jump higher than her chest (a lot of ponies have natural jumping ability - all of AJ's sons & daughters could jump well. Some big horse folk called them the "Mighty Flying Minis")... Sierra loved her own personal mount - a 1/2 sister to AJ out of an Arab mare. She did all of her riding training herself starting Thanksgiving 2002 when she came down to NC from MN. Later, when Xena was sold - it partially covered Sierra's college expenses. It is one of two sales we've VERY much regretted!
Several of those "hot" arabs & arabXs -
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Back to the original question and a few other statements made throughout this thread.
Yes, horses & ponies can be expensive. But no more so than any other hobby or business. There are ways to add them to your life - you need to think ahead, think "out-of-the-box", and be prepared for some expenses up front.
A "free" or "rescued" horse is NEVER free. They usually end up being the most expensive - as they have either emotional or physical issues to deal with.
Look around - find some one who may let you go to their farm to volunteer to clean stalls, feed/water, groom horses (OR ponies). You want to ride but did you ever consider driving? Afraid/nervous/anxiety attacks - find an instructor or farm owner that is willing to allow you to sit on a horse (saddled to begin with, bareback later) while they are tied up and have their head buried in a feed bucket. Learn to mount & dismount from both sides - fluidly - while horse is tied. Learn to get behind the saddle - english OR western - and slide off the horse's rear end. This teaches you balance, proper mounting while in a safe environment AND builds your confidence in your ability to get on/off - even in an emergency. While bareback - learn to lean forward, wrap your arms around the horse's neck and swing leg over and land on your feet. Learning this can save your life in a run-away situation. These are things that I worked on with beginners that had a lot of fear... The girls spent A LOT of HOURS just sitting on the ponies' backs while they ate tied at their feed buckets - both bareback and while saddled. You learn to balance & your body learns to move with each minute shift of the beastie under you - even if it's just stamping at a fly or shifting irritably due to being done eating. Find an instructor willing to work with you on lounging exercises - the horse you use NEEDS TO BE TRAINED to lounge to voice commands. You want your lesson to be about you learning to LET GO, balance and relax. Stretch up to the sky & lasso the sun/moon; big arm swings; dropping stirrups & picking them up again; trunk twisting; reaching back to touch horse's tail; stretching forward to touch horse's poll... First at a walk and then at a trot - practice that emergency dismount - both to the inside and to the outside of the lounging circle - going both directions (& be prepared to land on your butt - it will happen as you learn to come off and deal w/ the forces of landing).
Horse ownership on a shoestring budget - consider leasing a horse to be returned to original owner at a pre-determined date. Kids going to college may have an "old school horse" that needs a home for a while... Consider leasing your pasture to someone who will start out doing all the care of their own horse - while you learn. Later, you take over the care of that horse... Who knows - that could turn into a good riding situation. Just know that you want to interview, interview, interview and make sure that it's a good "fit". Learn to make a lot of your own equipment... Search out consignment shops & Craig's List for gently used equipment. Make sure a saddle fits any horse you eventually get and that fits you. Consider starting out with a basic saddle, used, that fits and if you stay with horses into the future - you update to better quality - still staying with a good fit for the horse as well as for you. Learn to do basic health care of a horse yourself - I have in the past done my own dental floats and trimmed hooves... I prefer not to now. I still do my own de-worming and vaccinations when needed. Keep on hand basic meds for a medical kit - Epsom Salts are one of your best friends!! Volunteer with an equine vet clinic (getting harder to do w/o a license due to legal ramifications)... The 5 acres we leased from April 1997 to January 2004 were behind a mobile Equine Vet clinic. The girls and I often assisted in "field surgeries", colic, open wounds, eye removal, cleaning out mares who had lost aborted or retained the placenta, with several times per day treatments and with watching animals that needed to be monitored over the weekends. Learned a ton, got comfortable with a lot, the girls all decided the vet field was not for them (LOL).
Audit horse back riding lessons (again, a lot of instructors will not let you do this anymore due to insurance liabilities) and go audit horse training clinics. The charges are either free or a fraction of what it will be when you participate with your own horse. Later, when you can - go to actual horse back riding or training clinics. You will learn a ton in a short amount of time for a fraction of the total cost that would take you to learn on a 1x/week/month time frame.
A solid, well trained horse - that's been there/done that - no matter the age - is worth his weight in GOLD! Nope, they aren't usually free... but sometimes they can be. Personally, I have never been a party to the "a horse has to have his forever home with you". If you can only afford one horse - what do you do when you find out that the horse you have is inappropriate for you? What happens if your life changes? I used to love "old, school horses" and broodmares. I often bought some that were older - due to lower price. IF already trained, it was a bonus. If not, i had the knowledge to do a lot of my own training and developed the contacts with trainers/instructors to work with when needed help (even though I couldn't usually afford to leave a horse/pony in training with them). Our own older broodmares have on occasion been sold - I purchased both Satin & Sioux in their mid-teens for pony breeding. Neither were considered riding or rideable - yet we got them there. When they had both hit the end of their baby producing days - they both went to new homes. Satin went to a dressage barn and was a lesson pony for the smaller, intermediate riders. She was a fiery handful into her 30s for her riders. Sioux was sold to me as a broodmare only w/ issues with her own fused vertebra in her neck that prevented proper bending/flexing and could be problematic in bad weather. We did a lot of work with her - massage, equine chiro, magnets, stretching & flexibility exercises and always, always proper warmups before any real work... She had her last colt for me in 2005 and was sold at the age of 26 to a little girl and her family. I lost contact with them when Sioux was 29 yrs old - but that little girl had been using her as her 4H project.
The very first foal that we had born, a Shetland filly in 1996, Stuffy, is still owned by me. However, she is a well trained riding and driving pony that can still go both western and english under saddle and jumps, too. She has gone to numerous families as a "free lease" - they care for her to include vet & farrier, I check up on them. When they "outgrow" (in size or ability) her, she comes home and sometimes goes right back out to another family. I've lost count of how many children she's taught to ride and how many adults she's driven for! She's 22 yrs old now. I often lease her out with equipment that fits her (halter, lead line, bridle/bit, saddle/pad, harness, cart) - it gets checked out every so often and if needed replaced/repaired/updated. I do have a basic lease contract. I used to lease out larger ponies that often took the place of Stuffy, but those have since been sold and I don't have the ability to do that anymore.
And be prepared, check your on insurance to be sure that you are covered in case of an "out door, equine causitive" accident... Some insurance clauses these days have add-ons that do not allow such injuries to be paid for - especially in the ER. Boy was that a shock when we had that pointed out to us years ago (our insurance policies have since been updated). And two of the worst accidents happened to our daughter's when they were playing around and not really riding at all! Sierra dislocated her shoulder while playing with Xena as a teenager in high school. Madira slipped off a pony (not ours, by the way), falling on her butt w/ hands back behind her. The ground was soft (Hurricane something had just passed through) - no butt/back injury - but she double dislocated her elbow... After a fast dismount to check on AJ after he fell while teasing a mare over the fence, Skye was running and slammed into a top board on the breeding stocks. Unfortunately, a nail had worked it's way loose and it caught her in the eye... AJ's vet visit waited until after Skye's ER run - they cleaned up the eye, put a stitch or 2 into her lid. He had a sliver of his hip break off (not able to treat but caused problems yrs later) and his cut pastern required stitches. A run to optometrist after they opened for business the next day - Skye appears to be OK. Just a cut to her eyelid. Me - I save money by putting up fence myself. The girls and I have done A LOT of fencing over the years. It's not too bad when you use a heavy duty fence post driver and metal t-posts w/ wire and other fence panels. UNTIL you get shorter posts, they drive too easily into the softer ground and the metal post driver comes off the post, your tired arms aren't supporting it right anymore and it slams down onto your head - splitting the skin. Head & eye wounds bleed A LOT. I scared not only my family but a neighbor that had been outside when I stumbled, covered in gushing blood up to the house from the paddock where I'd been setting just 4 posts to build a new hay feeder pen... The ER doc made a rather nasty comment about "that's what tractors and young, male employees are for" - yea - well maybe on your salary was my only thought... I saw brite lites and moving stars for a while w/ the mild concussion & in the end, a neighbor's son did finish my feeder project.
BUT it can be done...
OK - I've got a few points to make and then go into a story about part of our background... w/ a lot of pictures and descriptions... I'm not trying to "crow" about our accomplishments (hehe - got in some chickie lingo), just using them to illustrate points and express my thoughts. It is picture heavy - regarding children, beginners, Shetland ponies and Arabians (& other pony/horse crosses). Also covers lessons & upkeep on a shoestring budget - here goes ...
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So that the OP knows, lots of grass with oldsters may not work at all. If they can chew it properly, they may not be able to digest/metabolize it to fulfill their dietary needs. Depending on the horse's metabolism, he may not be able to graze in your pasture early in the spring or late in the fall (after frost)= both times cause grass to be extremely high in sugar content. Severe drought can also cause major sugar stress that will in turn affect a horse/pony on that pasture (OR hay that is cut/baled for use - something many of us don't even think about, LOL. I had that driven home the year we found not 1 but 2 of our horses to be IR).
Older horses may need teeth looked at/worked on more than 1x a year (we had a 10 yr old Arab that needed to be floated regularly here in NC almost every 4 months for several years in a row - a "float" then was about $125. She passed away in 2012 - natural causes & during the night @ 21 yrs of age. A "float" is a basic dentistry job of removing the sharp edges of teeth with an equine dental file. Some states have specialists that can legally do the job, some require a veterinarian due to drugs used to allow horse to be done more easily, some you can learn to do yourself - which I do not recommend for a beginner horseman.). Usually, your vet would inspect/evaluate your horse's mouth 1x/year and it would be determined when the teeth would need to be next taken care of, what type of care would be needed. There are, of course, other issues than just basic floats that may have to be addressed (I've had a pony mare's tooth break off - lodged in the side of her cheek and requiring "field" surgery to remove both the lodged piece and stitch up the mess and remove the jagged partial tooth still left in her upper jaw - neither the vet nor I had ever seen anything like that and we have no idea how it happened or even for sure how long it had been like that; we've had normal wolf teeth pulled w/o a problem and we've had a single wolf tooth pulled on an Arab mare that ended up cracking her jaw when it came loose).
Many horses these days have metabolic issues - again - each one is an individual and grass may not work on it's own for your feeding program. The state your in, your soil/amendments, the type of grass, the weather - all play a part. Also, not just the breed - but the age and temperment/personality and metabolism of each horse has to be considered... And it seems that "regular" ol' pasture isn't enough in many places now - I have a lot of self thought on that that would take pages to write up and none is scientific fact (well some is actually).
Don't forget basic hoof care - from regular cleaning out, to having your farrier visit for trims and/or shoes (I don't use shoes unless absolutely necessary and most of ours, including the Arabs during heavy competition/trail riding, went barefoot).
I've moved for the 4th time since 1995 with Shetland ponies, Shetland/ArabXs and 1 Arabian mare. This property had "beautiful" grass on a single 7 acre pasture.... ah but it was semi-arid sand that hadn't had livestock on it at all recently other than 3 TINY minis (1/2 the size of most of my Shetlands - who range from 40-44" in height & 250 - 500#s) that also got feed 2x a day. Hmm. A closer look at the pics I took myself reveals the poor quality of grass & coverage, actually. Our shetlands didn't take long to decimate it - though I had them on just 3 acres at previous place 20 miles away in the same county, it wasn't as sandy, had good established pasture grass mix of coastal, rye, crabgrass and some weeds we never really identified that supported them thru the summer where i didn't need to feed them supplemental grain - they always have free choice mineral blocks (which aren't made for horses and every so often, you will here they aren't good enough). Here - not only do they get hay 24/7 (along with "free range" pastures), but they also have to be fed and the diets are broken into specific ranges for breeding/youngstock, performance/show and older animals in their 20's.
The 2 IR horses are no longer with us, so I don't have to be concerned about that at this time, but we DO still have the son of the IR mare and this year he's staying fat on air which has me worried while my pocketbook is happy. Why? Because the year we found out that Pretty Girl was IR (and then went on specialized diets which weren't bad cost wise but were a pain in the arse), she was like that! We also lost her to natural causes (according to blood tests and necropsy) but in her mid-teens @ 15 yrs of age (unnatural to me).
Sami is 10 yrs old this year - he is not "working" and is just a 13 hh pasture poodle. His dam started "working" at 2-1/2 yrs of age (started under saddle) and kept working right up until her death (the last few trail rides were under 10 miles and mostly just walk, jog & long trot - no cantering or galloping - however it was carrying my 250#s+ in weight & my western saddle). O - and Sami is not and may never be a beginner type pony - even tho he's medium sized and now considered "older". He's on the "hot" side - and has had minimal training and never really had a job at all. Older age doesn't matter if the training/handling aren't there to begin with.
When you continuously mention how nervous you are and have anxiety attacks, I'd highly recommend that you continue taking lessons and/or work with a trainer who specializes in horse assisted therapy work. I would be very careful with any large animals of hooved or toothed varieties, myself, because yes they do sense the fear and anxiety. That can create problems all by itself except with well handled/desensitized/and trained individuals and/or working with an instructor who is well versed in those human emotions and has animals also known to be reliable with such folk.
Every breed of horse has various lines for specific jobs these days. Even our Shetland ponies do. And then w/i those lines are familial lines that may be great with kids and beginners or truly "bad actors" (& REALLY BAD for beginner handler/owners) that can be dangerous for even experienced handlers... We have had GREAT kid's/beginner mounts that were purebred (hot/dangerous, not) Arabians (but they had years of training BEFORE they had beginner/kid handlers - it DOES make a difference) and more than 1 shetland pony that came out of the womb biting and striking (while weighing between 20-30#s & could easily be picked up off the ground).
All horses and ponies need to be trained - there are many different training programs and philosophies. If you can't handle a horse calmly from the ground, then you are endangering yourself, the horse and anyone else around you while on the ground and doubly so, if you are mounted. A horse is a living, breathing, THINKING animal that can and does still respond to it's prey background automatically. EVEN when well trained, an individual horse can still make mistakes or "slip up" and it only takes 1 time to be seriously injured if the handler/rider is a beginner not familiar with how horses act/react or is distracted at the "wrong time".
As to the other question on the horse being bad or the guy being wrong, the more that was stated the more you find out. I don't think the horse was necessarily bad. I think he may have been unhandled/untrained (but even if he wasn't - he may have been "sleeping") and then you add in someone not identifying themselves (I am a "stickler" about keeping 1 hand on a horse's body at all times when working around them) and then flapping the hat - a kick is to be expected and I would have laughed had I witnessed it, I think. That said - I know that our horses and ponies are going out to beginner owners and kids that know nothing. I do lots of different things with each horse/pony. I used to do all kinds of "crazy stuff" - long before it was accepted in most circles of horsedom (I rode with cowboys that did stuff that is now coined "natural horsemanship" - long before it was named/called that. What's old is new again!) Don't do as much now - never realized how much my "velcro-butted, fearless, bronco riding" daughters actually did with our ponies and later, our horses. My grand daughters can't remember from one day to the next not to walk 2' behind a pony (they can move and they can break ribs at that distance w/ a kick while going after a fly) - drives me crazy!!!
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The bay Tobiano mare behind the 2 girls' is the grand dam of the silver Tobiano colt. Sierra & 'Dira are the 2 girls' aunts (Skye, our oldest daughter, is their mom)... The 3rd pic depicting the size diff in the equine we have owned at one time - Shado would have been around 36/37", PG was about 13.1hh & Anita was right @ 14.2hh. A horse is measured in hands which is 4" increments from the ground to their withers. A mini horse and Shetland pony is measured in inches from ground to the last hair of the mane - I measured to the same spot on the withers that you use for horses & have both the Hands High & Inches noted on their paperwork when I sell them & on our website.
Our daughters started on Shetlands, graduated to ShetlandXs then on to Arab & ArabX horses - (AJ is from a kids' line of Shetlands, he was a kids lesson & trail riding pony, my driving pony and our breeding stallion from 1995 thru 2012 - when he was euthanized at 20 yrs of age w/ health problems stemming from a broken hip earlier in his life). This is Skye (& Sierra in 1st pic). Satin is an OLDER Hackney pony - 12 hh. She had an iron jaw and was darned scary for a beginner driving adult (ME) to drive, but turned into a nice riding pony under Skye, Madira & Sierra - who all started riding her when she was 14 yrs old in 97. Chaunter was started by a professional trainer at 3 yrs of age & ridden for approx 3 months. Then she had a massive leg injury during a pasture accident (falling while running, put her hind leg thru a barn wall and almost cut it off at the hoof, scar still there 2 years later when we purchased her)... With a trainer for 30 days when I met her - I spent 60 days coming home from that trainers' several times a week w/ bruises from my crotch to my ankles & lots of pulled muscles because I was determined not to "come off" a "pretty but silly Arab" in front of folk when she'd spook and drop 6" down (leaving me hanging in mid-air) then leap 10-20' sideways... It was after that, that I started letting Skye ride her but ONLY after a serious lounging workout and Chaunter's mind was about her properly. Chaunter & Skye went on to become highly competitive in local show rings & AJ/Chaunter's 2000 Shet/Arab son also went on to become competitive after he left his humble beginnings on our leased 5 acres.
Skye's 1st time riding Chaunter in April 1999 - YES, I was NERVOUS!! Then a show in Nov 2000 - and then jumping bareback on new ArabXhorse in Oct 2003. But understand from April 1997 thru high school graduation in 2008, Skye rode almost daily... starting with AJ, a 44" Shetland stallion, numerous lesson horses owned by other instructors/farms, horses she trained/worked for a couple of folk, cross bred ponies that we bred/raised/trained/sold and the Arabian & Arab/Xmares we had - Chaunter, Cricket, Rhythem & Jazzy (I don't think she ever rode PG - who belonged to our middle daughter Madira).
Madira's start - before owning helmets and 2yrs later - still on the same pony (she tried to ride Patty's 2y old daughter, that didn't work at all). Madira is not a good pony starter. She is one who needed a mount already started under saddle, at least a little solid & secure in training. She started riding Magic after Skye spent a full year riding her. She had to learn to ride her - because even then, Magic could get uptight... The instructor working w/ her & Magic would ultimately be her therapeutic instructor years later...
PG is the only one she started from scratch as a baby - but PG was hers from the start when we entered an Arabian breeders pasture and that yearling followed us around - sticking to 'Dira like glue. Took me a year & 1/2 to finally break down and get a baby for Madira... & one day when 'Dira forgot to do ground work/lounging exercises and PG threw her (in play) - PG's hoof caught 'Dira in the armpit when she came off in front/underneath. Only the mud kept 'Dira from getting crushed - but I could see thru the gap and count every one of Madira's ribs on the right side... I don't remember how many stitches it took. I took over riding that little, feisty Arab (& oh, man, she was COOL - quickly became lite as a feather in bridle - had her two-tracking at a trot and canter; almost a true Piaffe. PG was the last pony/horse that I rode in 2012 before my hips & back said no-more...) & Madira did the ground therapy on an Arab mare we adopted that was partially paralyzed - getting her to the point she could be ridden again and then 'Dira showed her before going back to riding PG.
Dira handled & rode several other ponies and horses for others. The year that 'Dira turned 15, we were helping a friend clear property. A "widow maker" tree fell on her when the teens attached a tow rope to it... breaking her back. It would be more than 6 months of therapy after her ER surgery. They used lab-grown bone to add to her back & she has 2 titanium rods in her back along with screws - fusing 3 vertebrae. PG kept her sane - even tho she wasn't supposed to ride. I caught her a couple of times on PGs back and asked her to wait... Other horses were her Therapeutic riding mounts in the College program that accepted 'Dira for special lessons to bring her back to full use of her body - at times it seemed that 'Dira's childhood instructor was hard on her during those lessons, but ... Madira came all the way back. Madira was out of state in 2014 when PG passed and it was rough when she got home...
Sierra - well. The "baddest" "velcro-butt" in the pony riding business! She did her first lead line ride on AJ when he had just 7 days of "under saddle work" (only on a leadline for over a year) when she was 22 months old, officially started riding on Patty, then took rite to her 2 yr old daughter, Stuffy, like a duck to water. She had a knack for starting the babies, getting anywhere from 15-30 rides on them and then we'd take them to local shows and she just "got it done"... Usually guiding that pony to a surprising, in the ribbons (1st - 6th), placing (& helping us to sell A LOT of ponies, for us, at the time - which paid for the feed/hay for the rest of the ponies). The pic of Sierra & Rascal was taken in Nov 2000, not 1999. He is a 98 gelding, and he was 2 1/2 yrs old at that show. During the summers of "racing" each other, Vixen became Sierra's mount of choice - however, no surprise, Vixen became a bit hard to stop & handle during that time frame. The Shetland/Hackney pony cross could get every bit as "hot" as an OTTB. Riding bareback, Sierra often slipped past her 2 sisters rite under the noses of their taller mounts 2 summers in a row... Vixen went to a trainer (consignment sale - didn't sell, but did get leased out after the period of her pro training - which in turn paid for her training). When she came back to us at the end of the lease period, Sierra split riding her in her lessons with "her" pony and before she outgrew her she again went to showing her. They became known as the "flying fleas" at our local show - Vixen could clear a jump higher than her chest (a lot of ponies have natural jumping ability - all of AJ's sons & daughters could jump well. Some big horse folk called them the "Mighty Flying Minis")... Sierra loved her own personal mount - a 1/2 sister to AJ out of an Arab mare. She did all of her riding training herself starting Thanksgiving 2002 when she came down to NC from MN. Later, when Xena was sold - it partially covered Sierra's college expenses. It is one of two sales we've VERY much regretted!
Several of those "hot" arabs & arabXs -
**********
Back to the original question and a few other statements made throughout this thread.
Yes, horses & ponies can be expensive. But no more so than any other hobby or business. There are ways to add them to your life - you need to think ahead, think "out-of-the-box", and be prepared for some expenses up front.
A "free" or "rescued" horse is NEVER free. They usually end up being the most expensive - as they have either emotional or physical issues to deal with.
Look around - find some one who may let you go to their farm to volunteer to clean stalls, feed/water, groom horses (OR ponies). You want to ride but did you ever consider driving? Afraid/nervous/anxiety attacks - find an instructor or farm owner that is willing to allow you to sit on a horse (saddled to begin with, bareback later) while they are tied up and have their head buried in a feed bucket. Learn to mount & dismount from both sides - fluidly - while horse is tied. Learn to get behind the saddle - english OR western - and slide off the horse's rear end. This teaches you balance, proper mounting while in a safe environment AND builds your confidence in your ability to get on/off - even in an emergency. While bareback - learn to lean forward, wrap your arms around the horse's neck and swing leg over and land on your feet. Learning this can save your life in a run-away situation. These are things that I worked on with beginners that had a lot of fear... The girls spent A LOT of HOURS just sitting on the ponies' backs while they ate tied at their feed buckets - both bareback and while saddled. You learn to balance & your body learns to move with each minute shift of the beastie under you - even if it's just stamping at a fly or shifting irritably due to being done eating. Find an instructor willing to work with you on lounging exercises - the horse you use NEEDS TO BE TRAINED to lounge to voice commands. You want your lesson to be about you learning to LET GO, balance and relax. Stretch up to the sky & lasso the sun/moon; big arm swings; dropping stirrups & picking them up again; trunk twisting; reaching back to touch horse's tail; stretching forward to touch horse's poll... First at a walk and then at a trot - practice that emergency dismount - both to the inside and to the outside of the lounging circle - going both directions (& be prepared to land on your butt - it will happen as you learn to come off and deal w/ the forces of landing).
Horse ownership on a shoestring budget - consider leasing a horse to be returned to original owner at a pre-determined date. Kids going to college may have an "old school horse" that needs a home for a while... Consider leasing your pasture to someone who will start out doing all the care of their own horse - while you learn. Later, you take over the care of that horse... Who knows - that could turn into a good riding situation. Just know that you want to interview, interview, interview and make sure that it's a good "fit". Learn to make a lot of your own equipment... Search out consignment shops & Craig's List for gently used equipment. Make sure a saddle fits any horse you eventually get and that fits you. Consider starting out with a basic saddle, used, that fits and if you stay with horses into the future - you update to better quality - still staying with a good fit for the horse as well as for you. Learn to do basic health care of a horse yourself - I have in the past done my own dental floats and trimmed hooves... I prefer not to now. I still do my own de-worming and vaccinations when needed. Keep on hand basic meds for a medical kit - Epsom Salts are one of your best friends!! Volunteer with an equine vet clinic (getting harder to do w/o a license due to legal ramifications)... The 5 acres we leased from April 1997 to January 2004 were behind a mobile Equine Vet clinic. The girls and I often assisted in "field surgeries", colic, open wounds, eye removal, cleaning out mares who had lost aborted or retained the placenta, with several times per day treatments and with watching animals that needed to be monitored over the weekends. Learned a ton, got comfortable with a lot, the girls all decided the vet field was not for them (LOL).
Audit horse back riding lessons (again, a lot of instructors will not let you do this anymore due to insurance liabilities) and go audit horse training clinics. The charges are either free or a fraction of what it will be when you participate with your own horse. Later, when you can - go to actual horse back riding or training clinics. You will learn a ton in a short amount of time for a fraction of the total cost that would take you to learn on a 1x/week/month time frame.
A solid, well trained horse - that's been there/done that - no matter the age - is worth his weight in GOLD! Nope, they aren't usually free... but sometimes they can be. Personally, I have never been a party to the "a horse has to have his forever home with you". If you can only afford one horse - what do you do when you find out that the horse you have is inappropriate for you? What happens if your life changes? I used to love "old, school horses" and broodmares. I often bought some that were older - due to lower price. IF already trained, it was a bonus. If not, i had the knowledge to do a lot of my own training and developed the contacts with trainers/instructors to work with when needed help (even though I couldn't usually afford to leave a horse/pony in training with them). Our own older broodmares have on occasion been sold - I purchased both Satin & Sioux in their mid-teens for pony breeding. Neither were considered riding or rideable - yet we got them there. When they had both hit the end of their baby producing days - they both went to new homes. Satin went to a dressage barn and was a lesson pony for the smaller, intermediate riders. She was a fiery handful into her 30s for her riders. Sioux was sold to me as a broodmare only w/ issues with her own fused vertebra in her neck that prevented proper bending/flexing and could be problematic in bad weather. We did a lot of work with her - massage, equine chiro, magnets, stretching & flexibility exercises and always, always proper warmups before any real work... She had her last colt for me in 2005 and was sold at the age of 26 to a little girl and her family. I lost contact with them when Sioux was 29 yrs old - but that little girl had been using her as her 4H project.
The very first foal that we had born, a Shetland filly in 1996, Stuffy, is still owned by me. However, she is a well trained riding and driving pony that can still go both western and english under saddle and jumps, too. She has gone to numerous families as a "free lease" - they care for her to include vet & farrier, I check up on them. When they "outgrow" (in size or ability) her, she comes home and sometimes goes right back out to another family. I've lost count of how many children she's taught to ride and how many adults she's driven for! She's 22 yrs old now. I often lease her out with equipment that fits her (halter, lead line, bridle/bit, saddle/pad, harness, cart) - it gets checked out every so often and if needed replaced/repaired/updated. I do have a basic lease contract. I used to lease out larger ponies that often took the place of Stuffy, but those have since been sold and I don't have the ability to do that anymore.
And be prepared, check your on insurance to be sure that you are covered in case of an "out door, equine causitive" accident... Some insurance clauses these days have add-ons that do not allow such injuries to be paid for - especially in the ER. Boy was that a shock when we had that pointed out to us years ago (our insurance policies have since been updated). And two of the worst accidents happened to our daughter's when they were playing around and not really riding at all! Sierra dislocated her shoulder while playing with Xena as a teenager in high school. Madira slipped off a pony (not ours, by the way), falling on her butt w/ hands back behind her. The ground was soft (Hurricane something had just passed through) - no butt/back injury - but she double dislocated her elbow... After a fast dismount to check on AJ after he fell while teasing a mare over the fence, Skye was running and slammed into a top board on the breeding stocks. Unfortunately, a nail had worked it's way loose and it caught her in the eye... AJ's vet visit waited until after Skye's ER run - they cleaned up the eye, put a stitch or 2 into her lid. He had a sliver of his hip break off (not able to treat but caused problems yrs later) and his cut pastern required stitches. A run to optometrist after they opened for business the next day - Skye appears to be OK. Just a cut to her eyelid. Me - I save money by putting up fence myself. The girls and I have done A LOT of fencing over the years. It's not too bad when you use a heavy duty fence post driver and metal t-posts w/ wire and other fence panels. UNTIL you get shorter posts, they drive too easily into the softer ground and the metal post driver comes off the post, your tired arms aren't supporting it right anymore and it slams down onto your head - splitting the skin. Head & eye wounds bleed A LOT. I scared not only my family but a neighbor that had been outside when I stumbled, covered in gushing blood up to the house from the paddock where I'd been setting just 4 posts to build a new hay feeder pen... The ER doc made a rather nasty comment about "that's what tractors and young, male employees are for" - yea - well maybe on your salary was my only thought... I saw brite lites and moving stars for a while w/ the mild concussion & in the end, a neighbor's son did finish my feeder project.
BUT it can be done...
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Thanks so much for all the info and help! There's so much I'm not really sure where to reply but it is definitely very helpful so thanks! And wow your one daughter has had it pretty rough with all those major accidents/injuries! Hopefully she's doing well now. And thanks for all the info on like exercises to practice and how to get on and off the horse and all that stuff, it's helpful. I'm not sure anyone will let me try that here/on their horses but maybe. I do think it could help. Thanks again
@paintedChix
@paintedChix
Lovely horse!I want to add that if you don't have a lot of experience around horses, and riding lessons, DO NOT go out and buy one! Find a good stable and instructor, and take lessons, for at least six months to a year. If that's not possible financially, or timewise, neither is horse ownership!
I'm also not riding any more, and still have horses at home. The ground gets harder every year! And, my old 'steady eddy' mare is buried out here, and no way am I getting on my 'sweet young things'!
As everyone has said, grass pasture or grass hay is the base diet, with salt and mineral blocks, and then extra calories as needed. Some are fat on pasture, and some need lots more.
Horses are great, but they are not toy poodles!
Mary
Thanks! She was just three years old then, at her inspection for the Trakehner studbook.
Mary
Mary
I bet she scored well. What is her breeding?
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