An update on Fred

 Well, this update is long overdue! I meant to write it in January, but here we are.  Lol.  

Fred went to live with an acquaintance of mine that was looking for a horse to work with over the winter. She just bought a little farm with a nice indoor, so it seemed like a good fit.  I took him there Dec 1 and he is due to come home on May 1. I'll be happy to have him him home- I miss the big red goofball!

The goal of sending him was to get him going under saddle.  He wouldn't be getting formal training rides 5-6x a week like you might expect, but just 2-3 sessions.  This lady isn't a trainer per se, but has started a few horses in the past.

I sat on Fred a couple of times this fall and he was having a hard time figuring out the whole "forward" part of working under saddle.  This was resolved pretty quickly at the new barn.  I went to see him in early January to see how he was going.  

Side note: We've been in and out of lockdowns pretty much since Christmas, so I've really limited any trips to do anything. Fred's barn is over an hour away, so not a quick trip.

He was even doing a bit of trot under saddle at my first visit!

Trotting Fred!

By all accounts, he has been super quiet and hasn't offered to buck or spook, even when the snow came zippering off the coverall roof!  The only thing that got him a bit upset was being nipped at and followed by the lady's two heelers.  Lol. 

He tends to just meander along at the trot so far - the lady says that she has been working on adjusting the trot speed a bit, but that he is still pretty green.  Here is a video from Jan 2, so only a month under saddle at this place.  We noticed that he is just a bit NQR in the front and it would get better as she worked him and it wasn't as obvious some days vs others.  

My next visit was in March and he was starting to canter a bit under saddle! Woohoo Fred.  He is a bit clumsy with those long legs of his, so the lady was just working the canter when he felt steady.  

At then end of March/early April, Fred blew two abscesses - one in each back foot... D'oh!

He needed antibiotics for the swelling and both blew out the heel bulb, so they were not pleasant for the poor guy!  He has been starting back with doing a bit of walk work now, so hopefully he is ok moving forward.  He did the abscess thing to me this time last year as well.  

Moving forward, the vet and farrier recommended shoes for him or possibly hoof boots. I'll be measuring him for hoof boots to start, as I would prefer that over shoes to try first.  He seems to get bruised soles in the transition seasons when there is lumpy frozen mud out in the paddock.  He could also stay in more during those times...there are a few options to check.  I also had him tested for PSSM (negative thankfully!) just to rule some things out.    

He enjoyed his bodywork session.  Lol at the pally mare getting in the photo...

I found a great bodyworker and she has worked on him for two sessions so far. I think he'll need more maintenance than an average 6yo horse due to his wacky conformation and his size.  He is at least 16.3hh now, maybe even 17hh!  (Note to self: buy a proper stick!).   I'm really looking forward to having him home and having eyeballs on him more regularly.  The lady did a good job with him, but he isn't her horse, so some things just don't get done the same way I would have.  That is ok - part of the risk/considerations when sending a horse out for training.  

I'm a little apprehensive about riding Fred, since he is so huge.  I'm really short, so I've never really looked at or ridden tall horses. Spencer was 15hh on a good day!  I'm sure I'll get used to it though, as he is really the only rideable horse I have.  (Note to self: buy a new helmet)

And now I'm all caught up with Fred.  More updates on the rest of the herd/life to follow!  

My name is Fred, they call me Fred

I've been meaning to write updates for all of the horses, cause this is a horse blog after all... I figured there should be some horse content occasionally.

Before I get into recapping Fred's impromptu training session, I'd like to add that I've made a late Q3 addition to my goals list: get more f*@*ing pictures for the blog.  LOL  But seriously, I could use some current media.  

 Last Sunday the Cowboy was here for Ivy.  He worked with her for about and hour or so and decided she was good and needed a break.  I had told him about Fred, so we decided with the 45 mins left of my time, we'd assess Fred and see what he thought about breaking him out for me.

A pic from last fall with the other trainer

We threw the saddle and bridle on Fred and he was worked on the lunge for a bit.  If you remember, I had someone sit on him a few times last fall, but we never had her off the lead line.  The cowboy quickly ran Fred through some basics to test where he was at: leaning on him, mounting/dismounting stirrups flapping, etc.   I really need to get a video of this for you guys, but this trainer can jump on from the ground - with a western saddle, no less - with just a couple of bounces and Fred is close to 17hh!

Actual footage from that day: Trainer bouncing and chubby me looking perplexed!

Anyway, once he saw that Fred was good with a rider pretty much climbing all over him, he got on and tested out the controls.  This is where Fred got confused - he was fine to back under saddle and even turn on the forehand.   Moving forward was very hard for him, for some reason.  Often if that is a problem, the rider uses an open rein and encourages the horse to take a step to the side to start, then they get some forward momentum.  This sort of worked with Fred, but he didn't really catch on to what was being asked. 

Now, this was his first session under saddle since the fall, so I wasn't expecting any miracles.   Fred was super good in that he never offered to kick or buck or rear when he got a bit confused by the trainer asking him to do stuff.  He has a very quiet temperament and is just maybe a bit less smart than others (lol poor Fred) and a bit stubborn. 

Cute, but confused? 

Without pics to show you, there isn't much more to add.  The trainer kept trying different techniques to get a few steps forward and it would work one time, then not the next. We gave Fred short breaks every few minutes to ensure he wasn't completely overwhelmed, but I think maybe he had had enough.  He is 5, so I was hoping he could work in larger chunks of time, but maybe not.  Anyway, I'm officially considering this ride 1 on Fred and I'm hoping to do more with him over the coming months as the temps have started to cool down.  

I don't have any experience starting a young horse, but since I know Fred is so quiet, I feel it should be safe for me to do some work with him in between pro sessions.  I don't have the budget to send him and Ivy this year (Ivy goes tomorrow for her bootcamp) so I'll have to do a bit of work on my own.  

Right now my plan is to show him a bit next year (if we ever have shows here again???) and get him started under saddle w/t at least, so I can find him a new home or keep him and trail ride him or something.  I have the foal coming (fingers crossed) in Feb, so I'll be busy with that little creature as well.  It seems weird to even attempt to talk about plans for next winter/spring, since we have no idea where the pandemic will take us at this point!  

A chestnut mare - what was I thinking?

Internet update: I've had internet since last Thursday evening. That is 4 days straight. Amazing!

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I've been meaning to post an update on Ivy for a while, but there wasn't much exciting news to report.  The first couple of weeks were a bit stressful, as the little herd shuffled the dynamics and they all had to adapt to the newcomer.  Fred quickly fell in love and the two of them are often quite close.

I was second-guessing myself on her a bit the first month - her heats were atrocious - messy and dramatic with lots of pinned ears and squealing.  Her heat was like that at her previous owners, as we went to see her the first time in the middle of her heat cycle.  

side eye level - expert

I had an acquaintance out to try her under saddle  during that first month to see what we were dealing with.    That didn't go well, as she hadn't yet had her teeth done and was clearly uncomfortable with a bit.  She was also reallllly attached to the herd and didn't want to be too far from the boys.  We decided not to push the mare and have a bad experience under saddle. We determined she was only green broke at best and left it at that. It then got blazing hot for weeks and I was not motivated to do much!  And sorry no photos - I do have a couple of the rider on board, but was too lazy to photoshop out her face!  LOL  (bad blogger!)  

In addition to the other small problems, she was also very difficult to catch in the field.  I could let her into her stall from the paddock no problem, but if you went out with a halter, she was like, "nope BYEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!"

Actual photo of me during the first month with Ivy...lol

After her teeth were done, I noticed her settling in a bit more.  On the advice of my friend, I started her on a herbal supplement for her heat, which I was very skeptical of at first.   By the time her next heat rolled around, it was waaaaayy less messy and she was much sweeter and approachable. I was all of a sudden able to catch her and had less problems handling her overall.  This made me heave a sigh of relief, as I really don't want to deal with a nasty, ill-behaved creature out in the field.  

I'm not sure how much of that is due to the supplement and how much is due to her settling in and relaxing a bit. We'll never know...lol  I'm keeping her on the supplement until the fall when she should stop coming into heat as the days get shorter. 

Heading out to the pasture...

This past week, my friend (who co-owns the mare) found a local trainer, who I'll refer to as the Cowboy from now on.  She knows people who have worked with this guy and had good things to say.  I had him out here on Sunday to assess Ivy AND Fred (yes, Fred had a rider on board again!).  He did a lot of work with her and though she would come along quickly with a few more rides.  She is basically green broke, but willing to try.    My friend and I decided to send her to his place for two weeks, instead of having him come here 1x a week or something. It just seemed to make more sense that he could accomplish more if he worked with her more often.  

And guess what? I was out with the horses and the trainer for almost 3 hours and did not take one. single. picture.  Gosh, this blogging thing would be easier with some media!  lol    I'll do a separate post with an update on Fred...spoiler alert: he is kind and calm, but stubborn AF!

Fred and his under saddle training

Note: I’m still away and wrote this last week! I think I will just stay in Florida since it is cold and snowy back home!!

I just realized the other day that I haven't really posted much on Fred's progress (or lack thereof) to his under saddle work.  I did post a while ago that he had been backed, but not much else.

The lady that is helping me has been out 4 times now, but that has slowed down with the rainy weather and impending doom darkness that is November in Canada.  He is really good to work with and hasn't given us much trouble at all, with one exception - bitting.  I haven't had much of a chance to work with him in between lessons the last couple of weeks, so that has slowed down his progress.

I've had to find him bigger bits and bigger girths - the kid is yuuuuggge (compared to my 15hh former guy).  I have had a heck of a time finding 6" bits for him, since the 51/2" was just too small.   I was able to find a couple of 5 3/4" bits from a Cdn tack shop and a few 6" in the US and UK, but the shipping is brutal, even for a small item.  *sigh*  First world problems...

The catch with ordering more bits (more $$$) is that every bit I've tried so far has gone the same way - he chews and chews and chews and chews so much he can't really focus on much else.   I've lunged him off the halter and done halter/showmanship with the bit in to distract him and still he chews!  I've done everything but leave him wearing the bit while eating a big pile of hay! 

I've tried:  a plain copper snaffle, snaffle with copper rollers, French link, French link with sweet iron, plain metal mullen and a snaffle with a lozenge.  All get the same response: chew-chew-chew!  I've been hesitant to try a happy mouth, since he is such a chewer. I think he would either break it or chew it so it would leave sharp edges (I've seen many used happy mouth bits look like this).

Chomp chomp chomp

I had his teeth done in June but seeing as how he is 4, there could be caps, etc. in there bothering him that have nothing to do with the bit.  It seems to me that his wolf teeth are gone, but it might be helpful to have the vet out again to re-assess.   He also might be a bit nervous and the chomping incessantly is how he shows his anxiety.  He does chew and sort of suck on his tongue sometimes when I'm working with him. 

My next step is to borrow a sidepull from my old coach and see if we can make some progress on the riding part - moving off the leg, moving away from me if I'm on the ground, etc.  I'm not sure how many sessions I'll be able to get in before Christmas, but I'm hoping I can get a couple more in at least. 


I've also been daydreaming about this beauty hackamore from PS of Sweden...but need to restrain my spending for a bit after October's wild spending! lol 

photo credit: PS of Sweden website.  Drooolllll.....

I have been using a western headstall up until now, but with all of the bit switching, I've had a couple of bridles on the go.  My English bridles do not fit him well - the noseband is almost on the last hole and the browband is quite snug!   Time to clean those suckers and put them up for sale! I guess I'll need to try a warmblood sized bridle next?  Anyone have any sizing tips?  He is about 16.3hh (and currently bum high...omg!) and has a fairly big head... I'll have to do some measuring and comparing and see what I can find for the kid.  I can't have him looking totally ghetto!