What a day!

I picked up the saddle today, and I am 99% sure it fits! I found it at Statelinetack.com on a scratch and dent sale for $629.99, and the tack shop wanted $895.99. So now that I am almost positive that it fits, I am going to return the saddle I have to the tack shop. I just ordered the one from Stateline. I hope it's not in too bad of shape.. I don't mind a few little scratches, but if there are any huge gouges I will return it.

In other news, I cantered Bourbon bareback today twice!! I have been so nervous lately because he has been bucking when I ask for the canter (most likely due to saddle fit) but today I was feeling brave. I asked for the canter and he didn't buck! I was so excited and so proud of him and myself that I asked for it one more time. He was SO good! I am so pleased with our progress!

Saddle

I got the call tonight that the saddle arrived at the tack shop! I am going to go pick it up tomorrow. I am almost jumping out of my skin with anticipation. I hope it fits!!

Mats!

Today Danny suggested we go get the rest of rubber mats for Bourbon's stall. I was pretty shocked that he was willing to spend the money, so I said yes before he could change his mind. We also got Bourbon a new water tub. I spent all day today leveling his stall and laying the mats. I am irrationally excited about them. I need one more mat, so I am going to go pick one up tomorrow.

My mom ended up ordering me the correct SMB boots and told me to just return the ones I have and get whatever I wanted since the SMB Elites are on their way. :D I am going to get him a peppermint scented Jolly Ball, I'm going to get me a saddle stand, and that still leaves me with about $50 to spend... hmmmm... what should I choose?

Presents!

I got so many amazing things for Christmas and Hanukkah. I got brushes, 2 hoof picks, a grooming tote, bell boots, a fly ear net, socks for my tall boots, winter riding gloves, a figure eight nose band, a saddle cover, a stall plate with name, emergency contact, and feeding info, 2 lessons with my trainer, and SMB's. I got the SMB III's instead of the elite ventech, so I am going to exchange them.

I also got a gift card for Statelinetack.com, so I ordered 4 months worth of a joint supplement that is in treat form and a paint on hoof conditioner.

I went to Tractor Supply today. I got Bourbon a feed bucket that hangs on the wall of his stall, a 50lb salt block and a 50lb mineral block with trays and a rubber stall mat.

The barn manager suggested a rubber stall mat for under his hay so he doesn't eat the dirt. I'd like to put rubber mats in his whole stall, but since his stall is 15 x 20 feet and the mats are 4 x 6 and $40 each, it isn't going to happen for a while. I still need to get major medical insurance for Bourbon, pay off the truck and buy a horse trailer and saddle. If the saddle I ordered fits then at least that much will be checked off the list.

Lesson

I had such a great lesson today! Tracy, my trainer is AWESOME! Today we worked on walk-trot and trot-walk transitions and bending. She told me to think of Bourbon like a tube of toothpaste. When I want him to do a downward transition, I should tighten my back and ab muscles and squeeze the toothpaste towards his hind end. It made so much sense the way she explained it and Bourbon picked up on what I was asking very quickly.

She also told me that I should not keep my leg on him at all times because it will make him dull to my leg aides.

All in all it was a great lesson and I am really happy with her as my trainer. :)

Lazy

Bourbon was SO lazy this morning. He didn't want to move at all. I have never seen him so lazy. I could barely get him to trot. I turned him out in the little arena and Mellisa asked me if I wanted to ride her horse, George. He is a little 15hh Quarter Horse and he moved a lot like my old mare Allie minus the speed. He was really fun to ride.

Later I pulled Bourbon out again and he had a lot more energy than he did earlier this morning. I walked and trotted him around the barn a bunch, then brought him in the barn and started pulling his mane. I still have a little bit to finish tomorrow, but I'm almost done.

I have a lesson tomorrow morning. I am so excited! I am going to get my ass kicked though!

Saddle and Parelli

Yesterday Danny and I spent the morning going to different tack shops with my tracing since the website I linked in an earlier post said they couldn't do anything with my tracing through email and that I needed to snail mail it in. I was going to snail mail it if I didn't find a saddle yesterday, but I think I might have found one! It's an HDR Pro Buffalo Dressage saddle. I know it's not top of the line or anything, and I really wanted to spend that money on a better quality used saddle, but I'm sick of the searching and waiting. This saddle was really comfortable and had a nice grippy seat and big fat knee blocks. Unfortunately they didn't have my size, so they had to order it. And because of the holidays, it probably won't get here for about a week and a half to two weeks. Boo! I am so anxious, but I don't want to get my hopes up in case it doesn't fit.

My new friend at the barn, Melissa, was there yesterday when I was playing with Bourbon. I was riding him (bareback of course) in the little arena and Melissa was saying how nice of a mover he is. Melissa is a great rider, so I asked her if she wanted to ride him. She was excited and hopped right on him. It was so great to actually be able to see him move with a good rider on his back. Melissa was right, he is a nice mover! :D

Once I got off, Melissa could tell I was having a little trouble with him not respecting my space and being nippy. She asked me if I'd ever tried Parelli. I told her I was really interested in it but couldn't bring myself to spend that amount of money on a distance learning program. I am very hands on and I need someone to show me exactly what to do.

She told me she has some of the literature for the first level and some of the equipment and that she would let me borrow it. She grabbed her carrot stick and showed me how to play a few of the games, and by the end of the hour Bourbon was really listening and responding to me. I love it and can't wait to continue!

Tarp

What a silly boy. I was trying to desensitize him to a tarp, but he pretty much showed the tarp who's boss. :D

I love my Zebra. :D

Tracing

I finally was able to take a tracing today of Bourbons back, withers, and topline. I sent it into this tack shop/saddle fitter. I am hoping they have a saddle or two that will fit both me and Bourbon.

I trotted Bourbon around the farm today on the buckle! There was a huge loop in the reins and he stayed at the same pace and was such a good boy!

I love him more and more every day. :D

Bareback and Bridleless

Today was really really great. :D I still have no saddle, so I've been riding bareback pretty much every day. My seat has gotten so much better than it was when I first got him. I really want to canter him bareback but since he's bucked pretty much every time I've asked for the canter in the past, I'm worried that he's going to do it again. I believe the bucking was due to poor saddle fit, but I don't want to take the chance because I really don't think I could sit a buck bareback right now.

I did however pop him over a little cross rail today! He was so great. I was hoping he'd pick up the canter on his own without a buck after the cross rail, but I didn't ask for the canter at all. He never ended up cantering with me on his back, but he did drop down to roll, LOL! I was standing in a sandy spot in the small ring talking to my husband when he decided that right there was the perfect spot for a roll. I let him drop down to the ground and hopped off right before he had a  good roll. What a silly boy.

After that I took off his bridle and just let him walk around with me on his back. Eventually I'd love to be able to really ride him bareback and bridleless, (as in walking, trotting, cantering, and a few crossrails) but we are a long way from that.

Yay for photos!

Isn't he handsome? I absolutely love him to pieces. He is a total goof ball and makes me laugh every day.

*Sigh*

I was able to borrow a saddle yesterday and cantered Bourbon for the first time since I adopted him. I even popped him over a little crossrail a few times. He loved it! I couldn't get him to pick up his right lead, but we'll work on it.

I rode him again today and he bucked a bunch. I'm pretty sure it was because the saddle doesn't fit, so I won't be riding him in it again. *Sigh* Not being able to ride sucks.

Still no saddle

I never thought finding a saddle would be so hard. I'm still searching. I love riding bareback, but I need a saddle if I really want to get anywhere with Bourbon. On the plus side, it's forcing me to take it nice and slow with him and really build not only his muscles, but our trust.

We bought a truck! It's a 2003 Ford F150 5.4 Liter V8. I love it! It will pull a 2 horse trailer perfectly. I can't wait until I get to use it to pull Bourbon to our first show!

I got Danny to take a video of Bourbon and I trotting in the round pen.

Boo.

Well the saddle fit Bourbon, but it was too small for me. I returned it, so now I have no tack. My bridle still hasn't come in yet, but I really wanted to ride. So the past two days, I've been riding him bareback in a rope halter. He is so perfect and I can almost steer him with just my seat and legs! I love that boy more and more every day!

I am so excited that Danny and I decided it's time for another vehicle. Up until now we've been sharing a car. I work from home so it's usually not an issue, but now that I'm going to the barn every day, it's a pain in the butt. Thursday we are going to take the day to look at trucks! Yippee!

New saddle

I found a Collegiate dressage saddle on consignment today for $200! I didn't think it was going to fit him, but it did! I hope that it continues to fit him when he starts building muscle, but quite honestly, for $200 I don't care. If it doesn't fit him after he gets in shape, I should be able to easily sell it for what I paid and get a new one. I lunged him in the saddle today and he did really well. I am still waiting on the bridle that I ordered to get here, but I really want to ride him so I'm just going to do a little walking and trotting in the round pen with a rope halter tomorrow.

He's home!

Bourbon got home last night a little after 10 pm. He walked off the trailer, looked around a bit, and settled right in. This morning, he was acting like he's lived there his whole life!

I spent about an hour brushing him this morning, and then took him in the round pen and did some ground work.

I absolutely love him. Oh, and I checked out his pedigree. He is actually 6 years old, not 4. Secretariat and Northern Dancer are 4 generations back! How cool is that?

Introducing...

Golden Concerto!

We are going to call him Bourbon. We went to Pure Thoughts Horse Rescue in Loxahatchee, Florida yesterday. The place was amazing. They had so many amazing horses and I just think what they are doing is wonderful. They rescued Bourbon off the track a little over a year ago and rehabbed him and started his training.

Bourbon is 4 years old, 16.2hh and absolutely amazing. I am SO excited to get him home and start spending every day with him! Right now I am waiting for someone to be able to ship him for me. We are shooting for this weekend.

What a waste.

We had an appointment to go look at a 7 year old Appy gelding this morning. We drove two hours one way to get there at 10 am. As we were pulling in, the owner told us she was showing some people another horse and that she would be with us in a moment.

As I am getting out of the car, there are 3 dogs walking around. This huge malnourished Mastiff walked up behind me and bit me on the leg. He then went over to my husband and bit his leg as well. He didn't break the skin, but we both have bruises. This was completely unprovoked. We were not even looking at or touching the dog when he bit us.

We saw the horse we went to see in the pasture and stood at the fence looking at him. He had a club foot and his feet looked like they hadn't been trimmed in 12 weeks. He had a halter on and walked up to us at the fence, so I was able to look at his teeth. He was at LEAST 9 or 10 years old.

40 minutes later she walks over to us and asks if we're ready to meet him. My husband told her we actually needed to leave because he had to get to work. She says, "Well why didn't you tell me you had a time limit?" He says, "We did. That's why we made an appointment for 40 minutes ago. And by the way, your dog bit both of us." She replies, "Did he break the skin? He probably just wanted treats." Not even an apology for being late or her dog biting us.

What a waste of my day.

:'(

I went to look at another gelding today. I liked him, but not enough to buy him.

I had decided that I really wanted Ice, and told the owner I wanted to purchase him as long as he passed a vet check. I couldn't get the vet out there any sooner than next week.

She emails me today telling me that she has been emailing back and forth with some girl about him, and that unless I could pick him up before Sunday afternoon, she was coming with a trailer to pick him up.

:'(

Ice

When my husband and I moved to Florida from Massachusetts almost three years ago, I left my mare Allie behind to live with my mom.

I miss her terribly, but my mom loves her to pieces and I know she is well taken care of.

Two days ago, out of the blue, my husband Dan said "You should get a horse." I looked at him absolutely stunned. We can certainly afford a horse, but I was not expecting my husband to be willing to spend that much on something he really had no interest in. He told me he knew how much I missed Allie and that he knew getting a horse would make me happy. God I love that man.

That day we went and visited two barns. One was about 30 minutes from our house and decent, but not great. The other was a little over 5 miles from our house and I loved it. They have a huge lighted riding ring with barrels and jumps, and really knowledgeable owners. It was a huge plus that it only took us 5 minutes to get there!

Once we decided we were definitely going to board at the closer barn, we started our search for a horse. I searched literally hundreds and hundreds of listings and contacted quite a few people.

Many of them contacted me back, and we have several appointments over the next week.

Yesterday we met Ice.

He is 15hh and roughly 8 years old. I originally wanted something younger than 7, but I absolutely fell in love with him. He was so sweet and mellow, and a little lazy. I rode him bareback and he has the most comfortable trot I've ever ridden. I wanted to pay for him and take him home right then and there, but I know I should at least look at other horses before making a decision.

Today we met a Thoroughbred with awful legs. His pasterns we really long and he looked like he'd be lame after one hard ride. No thanks.