So Saturday morning came and DD was ready to ride! Oh and we finally figured out her name it is "Tigger" (the "horse broker" did not know it).. So she took her out to the practice arena for a little while to get her warmed up for her first event of the morning which was poles, which didn't go so well. They broke pattern but after the break Tigger picked the pattern back up and continued on fine. Barrels they knocked over a barrel! Goats she got her foot stuck in her stirrup LOL!! And for breakaway she again rode another family's retired breakaway horse and no catch :( She actually had a good run but she was about a second late throwing the rope! But by the end of the day she was cruising around on Tigger just lovin every minute of it! She really liked this mare.
Sunday morning was quite a bit colder than Saturday so all of the horses were a bit fresh but DD warmed Tigger up and they came in for poles and ran a clean pattern! Shaved 2 seconds off of her previous times on Pete! I wanted to share the video but a man sitting by me stood up in front of my camera as I was recording! Then as soon as he moved his wife stood up in front if me....UGHH I was ticked!! But oh well... So barrels they ran a 16.086 (I think it was, I couldn't hear that well LOL) but they also knocked over a barrel AGAIN so add 5! She finished her day out on Tigger and didn't have any problems with her and really by the end of the weekend Tigger was responding really great to her.
When the Hubby originally talked to this horse trader about Tigger he told the Hubby that the horse was 15. When we seen the horse we both questioned that as she looks way older than 15 but the guy said he had an equine dentist look at her teeth and that's also what he said. Well on Saturday the Hubby found out the horse actually belongs to a family in a town near us and so he talked to the wife and she said in conversation that in "Tiggers 24 years..." and so the Hubby comes over and is like "she's 24"!! AHHH just as we suspected LOL!! Which it actually ended up being a mistake of the "husband owner" of the horse and the horse trader was told her age through another friend who set up the take and sell agreement. SO anyhow even though she is older and has literally spent the last 6 months on a wheat pasture she seems to be getting right back on track! But for now the other family took her back home and the Hubby talked to them about maybe trying her out again as we obviously DO NOT want to rush!!
SO all in all it was a great weekend and all was calm again!
Video of Sunday's Barrel run, she lost her stirrups so there was no kicking towards the end...
Sometimes you're the windshield, sometimes you're the bug. Sounds like DD had a couple bug days. Do you think you still might buy Tigger?
ReplyDeleteSeems like any little variation out of ones normal "groove" tends to put a kink in things! I'm glad the little mare worked out for her, amazing how info gets lost in translation, eh? ;)
ReplyDeleteThe right horse will come along. In the meantime Tigger is a ride. At 24, there should be a BIG discount available.
ReplyDeleteAge is just a number, even with horses! I've seen some aged horses refuse to be retired and continue to run top-notch times. She sounds like a great little mare for your girl, maybe a transition horse? Also, do they run a short course barrels? I ran gymkhana when I was a kid, and an 18.0 was a killer time. But, a down barrel was only 2 seconds ;)
ReplyDeleteThe main question - did DD have fun???? The right horse will happen in time.
ReplyDeleteLeah~ I am not sure... I think we will continue to look, but we are not ruling her out. Because like Mama H said age can just be a number with horses and Tigger does seem to have the ability to do what D needs. But the other side to that is we may still want one more step up... So I think she will ride her again just to continue to see how the bond there is.
ReplyDeleteMama H~ Well the pattern is not a full course as in a regular rodeo. The average runs for the really "good" runners are in the 15's and quite a few in the 14's. But yes a 5 second for a down barrel...
Jeni~ Yes she did have fun! She really liked riding this mare around, it took a bit to get her back in rhythm but once she did she was really good for D!!
She sounds like a nice mare and DD had a good time riding her. It would be interesting to see how her legs hold up with the events. I am really worried about my horse right now (age 16.) All that reining he did, on upright hocks, as a youngster....I think his arthritis is getting worse. I'm having the vet out Friday to check him out and make some recommendations.
ReplyDeleteKeep us posted on the search!
They looked great out there and the mare seemed willing and ready to go....even without kicking. She probably just need some refreshing from sitting around for 6 months and then she'll not knock over the barrels or forget the pole pattern either. Age isn't everything and your DD might really benefit from having this mare to help rebuild her confidance and just have fun.
ReplyDeleteI'd surely ask for a lower price if you decide to buy her due to her age and length of time just sitting in a pasture not working.
Just take your time. That's what I'm doing. I'm glad when owners or willing to let you try out a horse for a while before making the purchase. They're not cars and issues don't always show up in that first test drive....
~Lisa