The Middle Horse Finger from Fancy

December 22, 2017Posted inFancy, Missouri Fox Trotter
Cisco and Fancy played at liberty with me in the round pen today. They ran around while I looked at Cisco’s back feet. He is still dragging both back toes. It occurred to me that maybe he needs to self-collect. I got the barrels in place with a space to run in between. Cisco scoffed at that and jumped. Fancy went to the outside through a space I thought too small for a horse. I gave the non verbal body signal to stop running which Cisco obeyed. However, Fancy’s nose…

Farrier Day for Cisco and Fancy

December 20, 2017Posted inCISCO, EPM, Fancy
Farrier Day! We did not have a Fancy training session before the trim! She did argue just a bit when he was holding her front leg. When she argued, she was off balance and fell on her front knees. That was a huge learning lesson for her. She did not argue at all during the back leg trim. Fancy was in the round pen for a long time during Cisco’s trim, Tony rode Cisco and after, he reshod one back hoof. I let Fancy out of the round pen and…

A Toy and Red Dress For Christmas

December 19, 2017Posted inMiscellaneous
It was the 50’s. Life was good in a small Iowa town for the cute little red-haired girl. Enough Christmas years had passed and the little girl realized that she should get her mother a present. The concept of giving to others had come to the little girl. “Mommy, what do you want for Christmas?” Mommy thought about it for a couple of seconds and replied, “I’d like a toy and a red dress.” Mommy grew up during the depression when getting a toy for Christmas was very special. Having…

Velvet – How to Win at Musical Sacks!

December 5, 2017Posted inVelvet
3/4/98     One of the Kansas City Regional Fox Trotter club’s favorite game for a FUN horse show EVENT is musical sacks. There are some horses in our club that stomp on the sack when they get close. They’ve probably been trained to do that. I thought I would offer the readers of this Corner Page, a natural horsemanship training strategy to prepare for musical sacks. Musical sacks is played just like musical chairs, except the horses must step on the feed sack. We generally double the feed sacks.…

The Big Fear

December 5, 2017Posted inSage
November 29, 1997 I’m always on missions. The mission for this column is FEAR! I’m talking to new: Women Adult Riders Inspired by the Option of Retirement or WARRIOR! This is for the WARRIORS who have discovered the unforgiving hardness of the ground and developed fear. The WARRIOR buys a horse and it bolts, bucks or shys and the WARRIOR hits the ground. The ground whispers to you...death, broken bones, pain. Your continuing mortality becomes a great concern. Your self confidence goes underground!You are not alone. You are in the…

Riding Velvet is ah sigh so Good

December 5, 2017Posted inMiscellaneous, Velvet
I decided to ride Velvet for a while at Pine Dell Farm every evening that it was in the high 20's to 30's.  Ah, life is good with an highly trained finished horse. I just might be over my mad desire to have a young horse to finish every 5-8 years or so.  It's fun to get Velvet and I back into coordination.