Venturing Out

I have again altered the way I behave around Scout. She is a strong, independent mare who is happy to please if asked in a no nonsense, polite way. She is not to keen on touch and I finally realised that I am constantly invading this boundary by wanting to pat her. I thought alot about this the other afternoon when my lovely border collie, Storm was pushing my hand and being very insistent in asking me to pat her. I have had Storm in my life for over 10 years now and I adore her however she often invades my personal space begging for constant attention. It does get quite irritating to me as I have a strong need for respect of my personal space. It finally occurred to me that this is how Scout feels and this is why she tends to walk up to me, sniff my hand and quickly walk away before I play out my unconsious response to want to touch her. So I have been tuning in to her much more and feeling her energetic boundary when I enter the paddock. I will sit down at the point that I feel her boundary extends to and she will happily stay near me and have a nap. I had an arabian mare who was much the same in this way. I quickly learnt not to touch her unless invited and she was undoubtedly one of the greatest horses I ever owned. She would look out for me when I was riding her and when I was working other horses. She would always appear to supervise a training session I was doing with Sienna and on one occassion when Sienna took fright and I jumped off her, my arab mare quietly blocked her exit and sent her back to me. I feel that Scout will be one of these types of horses.

Scout and I took our first short stroll off the property the other day. She was alert and very soft and responsive the whole time. I only took her a short way up the road and stood with her so she could eat grass and get more relaxed about it all. The other horses were going absolutely crazy with her not being in the paddock. Scout called to them a few times but willingly walked beside me on a slack lead. A couple of cars passed and she did not flinch. After returning to the paddock, I let her go and after letting Lacey have a drink she left the other mares and followed me up to the house. I took that as a good sign.

I haltered her again the next day and took her out. I let her eat grass in the gateway whilst I took Lacey for a short look around outside. Despite only being haltered and led twice, she is very soft and easy to lead. She comes off the pressure instantly and walks with the rope slack. She didn't know which way she wanted to go first. She was alert and very excited, although somewhat nervous about the new surroundings. After she had been out for 10 minutes, I put her back in the paddock and she banged on the gate and pawed the ground asking to come back out. I didn't want to have to manage the 2 of them walking so I left Lacey there with the other mares and took Scout further away up the road out of sight of the property. The other mares galloped around calling Scout. Scout raised her head a few times however she did not call back as she had the day before. I let her eat some more and then we walked a little further. She was really enjoying the change in scenery.

Watching her over the past few months has taught me a lot about her personality. She is by no means a doting mother and has given up all baby sitting responsibilities to Kiowa my stockhorse mare who very willingly accepted the job. Kiowa seems to adore Lacey and is gentle and calm with her. Scout tends to go off alone a lot or stay with Sienna. She will find Lacey when her udder is getting full and prompt her to drink. Lacey will also seek her out to feed and then go back to Kiowa or take off on her own. They are both incredibly independent and I wonder if this is common with the Spanish Mustangs...

I also have started setting up a paddock paradise in the front paddock. It seems to be working fairly well so far and the girls have certainly been moving more than usual. I spread their morning and afternoon hay right around the track. I intend to setup all the paddocks to adjoin this track once this oppressive heat subsides a little and I can get out and do some more work.

Poor Lacey has really been feeling this heat. She has been a bit grumpy the past couple of days and I suspect it is due to her suffering with that thick coat of hers and the high, humid temperatures we are experiencing at the moment. As you can see she is starting to shed out however not as quick as I suspect she would appreciate. She is a slightly more golden colour than Scout. She has kept the white shading around her muzzle and flanks also. This afternoon I decided to start pulling the hair from her legs (she does actually like this) and I was pleased to find some lovely dun striping on her front legs. She does not have it on her hind and they seem to be shedding out a very light colour. The barring on her front legs is a slate grey. She really is going to be a stunning little filly in her summer coat. Her nose has healed up nicely and the only indication of the accident is she has grown slightly lighter hair in the impact area. The people in the USA were not wrong when they commented on the extraordinary healing ability this breed has!

.... and here's one I prepared earlier!

I just uploaded a video I took awhile ago of Scout and Lacey. Enjoy !!!

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

Playtime

Scout was very attentive yesterday so I decided to have a bit of a play with her. She is not at all interested in doing to much ground work. She gets it right then looks at me like 'Next'! I got on her the first time about a month ago. She did not even flinch.

I had a little ride on her again yesterday. I cannot believe she has not been started yet. She is so incredibly quiet about the whole thing. Not the least bit phased. She seems to be saying to me, lets just get on with it. She is all business and no nonense.

As you can see in the video, I probably should be doing more ground work with her so she understands my cues when I am on her back. I am hoping to start taking her walking on the trails soon. I think she will enjoy the change of scenery.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wPYX6EqadbQ


Lacey also had her first halter session yesterday. After watching the video back, I think I could have been alot softer and more sensitive in some parts. She was so good though and was following me around after we had finished. She is going to be just like her mum when it comes to boldness and no-nonsense attitude.

http://www.youtube.com/user/spanishmustangoz#p/a/u/0/FQc1tXh9fyE

The videos were recorded by my housemates 10 year old daughter so they are a little bumpy but you get the idea :)

The rain finally came!!!

The rain finally decided to visit us. We got 4 inches here a couple of days ago. Lacey was a little unimpressed by it all. We had a wonderful storm that lasted a couple of hours. I absolutely love storms and was happily celebrating by dancing in the rain. It was beautiful to see the lightening striking the surrounding mountains and the rain coming down in sheets. You really learn to appreciate rain when you don't have it often! I managed to fill every bucket and container I could find with the water coming off the gutters of the shed. So today, finally we have grass starting to grow again.

My beautiful arabian boys are now sold to a delightful lady locally. I could not have asked for a better home for them. They are going to be very happy running on 23 acres with 2 other horses.

Now I am back to 4 horses I can get down to some more learning. I have a clinic with Mel Flemming coming up in December and Sienna and I will be attending. It will be huge for her as she has never been away from the property without any of the other horses. I have decided to camp for the 3 days so I can be with her the whole time. It is going to be a fascinating time for both of us. She is such a unique animal with such a depth and grace about her. She often puts me in my place when she feels my behaviour is not sensitive enough. She has taught me so much and I delight in our walks together where she will walk beside me happily. I want to be able to communicate with her on a deeper level and I am hoping through this clinic I will learn to do so. I will also be talking to Mel about starting Scout early next year when Lacey is weaned.

All the horses are doing very well. They spend their days up the mountain which is all bush and the ground is very rocky so their hooves are looking fantastic. I am pleased I have the option to raise Lacey on this sort of ground. I am certain she will be a tough little number when she is older. She already comes down the mountain at a flat out gallop with her mother following close behind her. They are both extremely sure footed and agile. I hope to show Lacey what a halter is all about this afternoon. It should be very interesting!!! Stay tuned ;)

Beautiful Pure Arab Gelding for Sale

This post is all about Reid River R-Goss. He stands at 15hh as a 2 year old and has beautiful, floating movement. He is by The Accolade out of Reid River Phoenesse. His registration number is G24685.

I was told by his previous owner that he got reserve champion at his first show out. He has been professionally trained to stand for halter classes. I however have no experience in this field so could not verify that myself.

His most outstanding quality is his incredible temperament. This horse is as soft as any I have ever owned. He is a truly sweet and gentle soul who will only be sold to the very best of homes. He is wonderful with all animals and people. He lets my 8 week old foal share his feed.

He is very easy to catch (he walks straight up to anyone he sees enter the paddock), floats like a dream and loads with ease, easy to rug and is a lovely sensitive horse to work with in general.

This is a very relucatant sale of a quality gelding with a unique, super sweet temperament. He is not highly reactive as you could expect with an arab. He is a pleasure to watch move around the paddock. He has great hooves and is easy to trim.

He is for sale to the very best of homes for $2000. Please phone 0458 040 878 for further details.

For Video please click the link below

Busy days and Horse Politics

After the highs and lows of the past few months, I seem to have been welcomed into a lovely peaceful space inside myself again. I am so grateful for all the challenges and lessons life brings each day as they offer the greatest opportunity for seeking that eternal peace present inside and outside of us.

It has been many months now since we have had any decent rain here. The ground is hard and the grass is brown and now non existent in many areas of the property. My landlord has asked that I rearrange the horses to include rehoming some of them. I have been asked to only have 4 horses on the property and until the other day there were 8 here.

So the herd got an unwelcome shake up as horses were moved to different paddocks and one so far rehomed. The oldest mare left for her new home today where she will play nursemaid to weanlings on a 190 acre property. Arnie, the gelding that thinks he is a stallion, has returned next door to my landlords property much to the disgust of all the mares :) He really is a very popular fella.

Sienna and Kiowa have been placed up the mountain and as I type I can hear their occassional distant whinny echoing down to my little caravan to tug gently at my heart strings. I recently acquired 2 purebred arabians who will soon be looking for loving homes. Although I have only had them for 6 weeks, already I have grown extremely fond of them both. They are inseperable and despite always placing their feed buckets side by side they still often insist on both eating out of the same bucket. The oldest of the pair is 2 years old and he is a sweet, soft and loving soul. He really has the most outstanding nature and is a delight to behold. He loves people and follows me around begging for some attention. He already stands at 15hh high and captivates me with his grace in movement. His little brother is very similar however perhaps a little cheekier. He came as a colt and was gelded Friday. He got terribly swollen yesterday so he had to go under again today and be reopened and have more surgery. The poor little guy is a mess at the moment and must be in a lot of pain. This has made me very pleased that I mainly have mares as I am not certain I would ever want to put a horse through this process again. Despite all the needles and poking, prodding and spraying, little Bobbie is still as sweet as can be.

These lovely boys are now looking for a long term home, preferably together. I will be taking some pictures tomorrow and will add them to a post here for their imminent sale.

They are currently in a paddock with Scout and Lacey. Scout tells them in no uncertain terms that they are not welcome to near her. Lacey on the other hand decided that it would be a nice idea to eat dinner with them tonight. The boys both welcomed her and the three of them quietly ate with not even a raised lip or pinned ears at any time. As you can see from this picture little Bobbie has to gain some weight and coat condition. I have both boys on 3 feeds a day and they have really improved and Bob has even grown considerably in height in the last 2 weeks.

I am hoping that once all these changes are settled, then I can get back to spending some more time with Scout and Lacey. Lacey is as delightful as ever. Today I was quite exhausted after a big day in the hot sun doing various jobs on the property including fence repair and walking the 40 acre fenceline which is not as easy as it sounds as this whole property is on the side of a small mountain. It was most enjoyable and I can almost feel the excess winter kilos dropping off me! In the late afternoon, as the sun was setting I layed down in the front paddock and Lacey trotted over nickering to me then proceeded to enthusiastically lick my face and arms for a lengthy period. I am unsure if she has been told that she is actually a horse. What a delightful filly she is. She is certainly growing fast.

Can it really be this easy??

On an impulse, I decided to do some more work with Scout today. She did all I asked of the groundwork with ease although little enthusiasm. We started doing some sidepassing which she picked up straight away as well. Then I hopped up on her again. She was a perfect angel. I lifted the rope into the air and tilted my pelvis asking her for backup. She turned her head to look at me. I stayed in this position whilst she thought about what I was asking. I find she prefers me to just wait whilst she works something out. If I up the pressure at this point she will get annoyed and brace. I did up the pressure slightly and she then turned around and bit the air near my foot - I took her point and I continued to ask politely. She took a small backward step and I dropped the rope and relaxed. I sat there for a short while and then asked again. She immediately backed up a couple of steps. Again I relaxed and gave her a rub. I then asked her to walk forward which she did happily. I passed the rope over her head and asked her to walk forward to the right this time. Again she did this perfectly. We then did another 2 steps of backup and she sighed deeply at which point I jumped off and gave her a good scratch (her favourite thing!) and took the halter off.

She is such a different horse to work with. I have no thought or feeling at all that she will react with a buck or rear. She is all business not only in this sort of training but in how she handles herself in everyday life. She will not exert any more energy than is absolutely necessary and it appears this also extends to my training with her. My flatmates daughter was there while I was riding Scout and she was shocked when I told her this was only the second time she has ever had me on her back. What an incredible mare and it seems Lacey is taking after her in her unbelievably laid back temperament. I have still not seen anything that makes Scout or Lacey jump and flee in fright like you expect from most horses. In fact if something seems strange to them it is customary for them to march right up to it and check it out.

Whilst we were training Lacey decided that she needed to have both our attention and started running full pelt around the yard jumping a fallen tree on each circuit around. She was running at a flat gallop and clearing the log with ease. Lets hope she doesn't decide to try that on the fences when she gets taller! She gets herself so excited when she is running that fast and having that much fun that she makes little grunting noises and squeals and whinnies with delight.

What a pure privelege it is to have these two extraordinary horses in my life.