What's Your Number?

So I read another person's blog today and she discussed the Henneke Body Scoring System for Horses. As a horse person, I have used this system since I first learned of it. The ideal weight for everyone is different. Some people prefer their horses on the leaner side of moderate, others think moderat is ideal. My ideal is just above moderate. I don't like my horses to be obese, or even overly heavy, but I do like a bit extra weight.

The reason I prefer my horses to be a tad healthy is because I prefer to stay ahead of the game. You never know when your horse may become sick and drop weight, or the quality of hay may be bad for a few loads, with a lower nutritional content. If something like this happens, and my horses are just a tad above where they would be ideally, if they drop weight unexpectedly they will still be at an ideal weight.

Now, that said, TOO heavy is also hard on a horse. Horses that are predisposed to arthritis, or leg issues, or have previously had an injury should never been too heavy. Young horses should be maintained at a 4 or a 5 to keep the pressure off of their growing bones/joints. Also, too heavy can create hoof issues, or cause your horse to become laminitic. Ponies and senior horses are especially prone to these issues.

I prefer to keep Tango at a about a 6. That is described as:

6 - Moderate to Fleshy: May have slight crease down back. Fat over ribs feels spongy. Fat around tailhead feels soft. Fat beginning to be deposited along the sides of the withers, behind the shoulders and along the sides of the neck.

Tango after a workout, grazing. He is a *bit* heavier here than I'd like.

Ellie, being a senior horse and with her history of unsoundness should ideally be kept on the light side of moderate. When I got her she would have been classified as a 2.5 or a 3. She was thin, all of her bones visible, but not a total skeleton. Here is what it says for 2-3:

2 - Very Thin: Emaciated. Slight fat covering over base of spinous processes. Transverse processes of lumbar vertebrae feel rounded. Prominent spinous processes, ribs, tailhead and hooks and pins. Withers, shoulders and neck structures faintly discernible.

3 - Thin: Fat built up about halfway on spinous processes, transverse processes cannot be felt. Slight fat cover over ribs. Spinous processes and ribs easily discernible. Tailhead prominent, but individual vertebrae cannot be visually identified. Hook bones appear rounded, but easily discernible. Pin bones not distinguishable. Withers, shoulders and neck accentuated.

Unfortunately my refeeding program for Ellie has worked TOO well, and she is closer to the 6 that I prefer Tango at or even a 7. I will be attempting to get some of that weight off before Summer, or she will end up having to wear a grazing muzzle this Summer to keep her from getting obese. She has developed shape to her neck, and you can probably faintly see the fat pockets just above her tailbone.

So where do you like to see *your* horse's weight? If you are curious, or would like to learn more about the Henneke system, please visit this website that had a pretty good explanation:

http://www.brightfuturesfarm.org/henneke_scoring_system.htm

Have a Nice Day!

Tara

Tango Goes Riding!

So I know it's been awhile since I last updated, but I have been BUSY!

I have made it a goal to get Tango longed at least once a week, which also forces me to spend quality time, working on ground manners and grooming him as well. I hope that as the weather gets nicer I'll be able to do so more often.

So my friend Coral came out to cheer me on and give me some confidence to get on my boy. I longed him and he was really good, none of his kite-horse antics today! He was also really goofy while he was standing with me waiting for Coral to take some pics.

Coral got on him first because he tends to test for the first few minutes, and gets better toward the end. When she got off she said "OK, your turn!". I was a little caught off guard so I told her fine, but I'm only walking. She held him for me while I got on and I walked him off, anticipating him being a butthead. Amazing, he walked right off. Didn't feel like a ball of energy, and no tail swishing or stomping like he usually does when he is agitated.

It felt so good in fact, that I ponied up and went ahead and asked him to jog. Coral said "I thought you were only going to walk!" I said "Well, I decided to jog too!" :)She told me I should lope him but I decided to end on a good note since my confidence was so high! So I hopped off, gave him some carrots and called it a day:)

I hope to get on again this weekend, with similar results. I'll let you know:)

Spring Cleaning

Poor Tango has been OH so neglected in blogger-world! I figured I had better post a quick update on him!

So he is doing well...fat and sassy. I had a friend come out and help me get him worked, and while he was a nervous wreck at first, by the end of the ride he was relaxed and behaving. We have decided his ideal place is western, and I am going to aim him towards western trail, and dabble of course in the Sport Horse stuff, only we are going to aim for the hunter type because he likes to go a little lower with less pressure.

This week he popped a splint (?) I think, and decided to treat it in a loose fashion by cold hosing daily, and then globbing some liniment on it. So far it seems to be working, and has gotten a ton smaller. Here it is on the day I first noticed it...

So today I went out and it was so beautiful I decided I should do something with Tango, so I took him on a walk and we worked on ground manners (so as not to agitate anything too much). He was a really good boy (compared to what he has been lately) I think it was a mix of the storm last night (he probably stressed a lot of his excess energy right out of himself), a nice sunny warm day, and my mindset when we went out to work. I concentrated on staying calm, and assertive and reacting reasonably to all of his goofiness. I sort of treated him like a horse who is just learning showmanship and that seemed to do the trick.
After we were done with our ground manners session, we cold hosed, smoothed on liniment and I liberally groomed him, re-braided his mane and tail, and fly sprayed him then put his blanket back on and put him out. That's the extent of our fun for the day. I will try to update more often now that my workload has decreased some!

2010: Instant Replay

So I saw this being done on a few other blogs (namely Pia's Parade) and I thought, my, what a great idea! So I decided to do a quick rundown of the last 12 months and kind of see what has and has not changed!:)

January saw not much action, I was riding Rudy and Lindsey was working through some minor stickiness with Tango's forward motion. I had lost my nerve completely, for no reason than because I am a wimp and Tango didn't have the forward button I am used to.

February was about the same. I had a few good lessons on Tango, and enjoyed some really great company with my friends for Saturday Lessons (we would all have lessons on Saturday and stay and encourage eachother) so much fun!

March saw me enjoying the Daffodil Arabian Horse Show as a volunteer. I had SO much fun with my friends Kat, Melissa, and Todd as well as Coral and Heather. Lindsey and Reese also came, but I sadly missed them! All of these people have been so instrumental in developing my relationship with Tango. Melissa has been that friend who has been there as a sounding board, and who has a horse freakishly similar in issues to Tango. Kat has been there most of the journey, she is beautiful, and always willing to help or encourage. Todd is my bobsy twin...we have the two sensitive redheads and we both can't seem to make up our minds what to do with our ponies:) Coral started Tango and did a great job with him--she loves him like me, despite his goofy personality. Heather helped school him for a short time, and has always been there for me to complain, or brag about my boy.

Melissa, Kat and I at the 2010 Daffodil Schooling Show and Clinics--SO FUN!(photo courtesy of Link Photography)

April-May I spent trying to find someone to lease Tango. I realized I wasn't going to be able to show him myself this year, and why pay the bills if someone else who can pay them could enjoy him. A few people inquired, but I endd up finding a great gal, Jessica, to lease him for 6 months. That would mean he was gone from June-November. I cuold enjoy a Summer free of horse bills and being able to enjoy riding Rudy:)

Jun-Nov were pretty much spent enjoying horse time with no money worries:) I effectively leased Rudy by making grain and handwalking horses on the weekends, and got to help groom at shows such as Region V Sporthorse where Lindsey's clients cleaned up, and where Quick Silver Bey++++// had his celebration for earning a Legion of Masters (one of only a handful of stallions to do so!) and also enjoying cheering on the same clients at Sporthorse Nationals where Lindsey handled Isabella Featherdance to a National Championship in SHIH mares, and the resident star Havilahs Cassanova (Cas) to a National Championship in the SHUS Jr Horse. What a show year!

In November Tango returned. I had to find a place for him, and ended up settling on taking him to my friend Jennifer's new private facility. He got his own 12x12 stall, a sand paddock, grass turnout, buddies and a great caretaker for a very reasonable price. The hauling home was an adventure, with the hauler being more than 8 hours late, and Tango ending up being hauled in at midnight. He settled in quickly though, and it seems he is really enjoying the break he has gotten. We would really love an indoor arena though-- I am ITCHING to ride my horse!:)

December was basically the same as November, only Tango gained a sister. He doesn't know though, because she is boarded at The Back Forte in Enumclaw. She is a rescue from the Enumclaw Sales Pavillion kill pen. I am hoping to find her a retirement home. So December has been pretty bittersweet.

Really it was not a super exciting year, but lots of great things happened. I enjoyed learning a new discipline (dressage), meeting new friends (Jessica, Lindsey, Carrie, Jodie and many many others) and learning how much I truly enjoy owning Tango, even if I never show him successfully myself, I don't think I can ever let him go completely:)

Happy(?) New Year

So today was COLD COLD COLD! I froze my butt off doing chores today. Yesterday was even worse! I've spent a lot of time using the shovel (to break the 3" of ice covering the trough which is the only source of water I have right now), my boot (to kick buckets, haha, to try to dislodge the ice stuck to the sides so that I can TRY to give the horses actual water instead of popcicles) and the garden spade (to chip away the ice and frozen dirt that froze the exterior stall doors closed...was worried I wasn't going to be able to get a couple of the horses out!

Tango's beet pulp has frozen in the bucket, so for now he'll have to settle for Strategy and Rice Bran. I'm sure he'll survive:) I also threw an extra blanket on him yesterday, but that doesn't stop him from sticking his nose to the fence and freezing to it, thus tearing skin off. Retard. The entire barn is made of metal, so is the fencing--so he has a lot of metallic surfaces on which to get stuck. Here is hoping he has learned his lesson.

So after doing all of that and being completely exhausted (both from the cold, and the extra work that the ice made for me) I was on my way home when I drove past a farm that I drive by every day. During the wind storm we had a few weeks ago a tree fell on their fence. The fence is down and hasn't been put back up. Anyhow, I drive past and see a nice chestnut horse in a brand new Weatherbeeta running the fence line in the frozen glittering snow...."Oh, pretty!" wait...did I see that right? Was there no fence along that fence line he was running? I drive a tiny bit further, turn around and go back. Sure enough, there is no fence and the horse has finally just realized the same thing. He is JUST getting ready to jump the ditch when I screech to a stop, jump out of my car (running, with a key in it, in the middle of the road mind you) and run across the street and shoo him back toward the pastures WITH fences. I get him sort of trapped and keep shooing him away from the downed fence line. Then I stand there thinking...Now what? I hear a faint voice beyond the treeline (where the arena is) and I yell out "Hey! Anyone down there?" wait a minute, and hear more chatter. "Hey, HELLO! You have a loose horse up here!". Finally someone yells "Hey -____ theres a horse loose up by the road." "Which one?" "Buddy (or whatever his name was), there used to be a fence up there but it's not there anymore." "Oh." (Really? Is right now a time for conversation? WHO CARES what horse--go get a dang halter!) Someone is walking around down by the barn taking their sweet time, goes in, gets a halter, waaaalks up the hill. Undoes both strands of hot tape, walks up to the horse and halters him. (way to take your time, jerk...I have places to be, and how do they know he isn't running around loose still about to get in the road...) So I say, uh, "Good thing he was smart enough not to run in the road" I get "Yeah, thanks." and all I can think is "Yeah...your welcome for saving your horse, and your farm from being sued by a driver who may have hit him". Jeez.

Anyway...so I thought that would be my excitement for the day. Nope no such luck. I begin my NYE celebration (about 9pm) and then get a text from the BO (and friend) to let me know that the horses hadn't been fed yet, because she had to take her baby girl in to urgent care because she was having trouble breathing. I text her and tell her not to worry, they'll be OK till she gets home. About 11:30pm I get another text, that is there any way I can head out to feed and water--the baby is not doing well and they were heading to Childrens because she was in respiratory distress. Turns out she has the Croup but also had a cyst in her throat nearly constricting her entire airway. Poor thing! So my awesome friend Melissa and I head out to Covington to feed and water horses in 15* weather at 12:30am NYE. FUN! Please pray for a fast recovery for little Laken--she had surgery to remove the cyst, but she is only 1 and has a lot of recovering to do, poor thing!

So that was my New Years--how was yours? (and of course, a few customary photos of the Lish for your viewing entertainment)

Tango and icky play through the fence--they love to bite/lick/gnaw/slime and otherwise deface eachother. Literally.

Tango playing kite horse on the longe line.

Me and Tang having some sort of discussion, isn't that always the case with us? LOL.

Go Fly A Kite (Horse)

When I was a little girl, my mom and I always used to refer to horses who ran away or spooked or just acted goofy on the longe line a kite horse. Mostly because the way they take their person dragging accross the arena is reminiscent of flying a kite. No control but sort of fun to watch:)

Anyways, Tango doesn't have real turnout where he is at right now, just a good sized paddock where all he can do is trot. So I try to get him out a couple times a week into the area that has been prepped as an arena (still only fill sand, not arena footing so there are rocks surfacing, some inconsistencies, as well as no arena fence) and since it is not finished, I have to be really careful to keep him down a notch, because if he were to get away there is the possibility he might hurt himself.

So because of weather and Christmas he hadn't been out all week, so I took him out and attempted to longe him sanely. He had other ideas;) He ran and ran and then would slide to a stop and try to come in like he was done, then when I'd send him back out he'd take off running again. Oi. Gotta love a hot horse right?

Anyways, the best part of the day was that there was someone there to take pics of him in all his fluffy, unclipped, mussed up glory. So without further ado...

Wind, Snow and Flooding Oh MY!

I'm writing this post on both of my blogs, so if you read both, so sorry for the duplication!:)

I have been unable to update on both horses due to a myriad of circumstances, the least of which is the busy schedule I've had in this Holiday Season including Christmas Parties (a party each day of the weekend for the last three weekends), Pet Sits (it IS the time of year that people go visit family, or run away from it if thats your thing), and of course caring for my two ponies and my home.

In addition to all the normal goings-on that we endure during this beautiful time of year, is the lovely weather that little Ms La Nina has brought us...with today being the very first day of Winter, we've already experienced (in the last month) an ice/snow storm, a wind storm, record rains (which of course equals flooding) and another large wind storm (following the flooding, of course). All of these things have caused us all some amount of grief, mine being the influx of vehicles in our dealership to be fixed from all of the accidents.

First I'll chat about the snow/ice storm which happened just before Thanksgiving. We had something like 8 inches of snow in our area. It stuck around for about a week, melting, and freezing, and sleeting, then snowing, then melting and freezing again creating a giant mess of our roads, and ultimately our cars. The boyfriend and I made it through with no negative issues. It was cold, and icy, but my 2010 VW Jetta made it's way home safely the first day (amazingly avoiding all the huge issues just half an hour behind me!) and the rest of the time I convinced the boyfriend to run me back and forth between the barns, making sure I had enough feed and bedding for both horses, as well as to work and back. We flew out to Vegas for Thanksgiving, and when we came home it was dry and cloudy:) Photos below of my parent's road, and then a pic of a friend's backyard about 5 miles from my house.

Then we had a nice big wind storm. I woke up in the middle of the night to a HUGE gust of wind blowing sheets of rain, and hail into my window. We woke up in the morning to no power. Crazy night with very little sleep. Horses survived, thankfully!:)

A few weeks later we were subjected to Washington's favorite weather condition--rain! We had record amounts of rain (I can't remember how much, but something like 4" in a few hours in spots). It DUMPED. Every river on the West side was swollen and threatening to spill their banks...the Green and White Rivers (the two the we are sandwiched between) stayed within them, but the Stillaguamish and Snoqualmie overflowed. Like a lot. Photos below of the Green River, and then a couple from news channels about the Snoqualmie and Stillaguamish.

And last but not least we had our most fabulous wind storm. There is damage EVERYWHERE, including a beautiful historic barn that collapsed. The news was saying top wind gusts in Enumclaw (the next town over from us) was 74mph. A family friend, who lives just off the main Hwy in Enumclaw, has a home weather station that clocked one gust at 83mph...and she claims she saw it peak at 115mph during one particularly strong gust. Needless to say, I was worried about the horses. Power was out at both barns, but everyone was snug and calm. Gotta love nicely built barns!

Anyhow, thats what I have now. Tango and I went on a nice walk, and he is enjoying his new suite between the two arabians...I think they are exhausting him because he was SUPER good for his walk on Sunday! I'll update again soon!

Spa Day for Tango:)

So I decided I've been neglecting my "special" big boy and though since the weather was so gross and I had hardly anything to do on Sunday and it was pouring down rain, that I would spend some quality time with the Lishy-Monster. He seemed genuinely glad to see me, and I was really glad to see him after 3 days.

It has become extremely warms overnight, as what is being called a "pineapple express" (an extremely warm, wet front) moves in from Hawaii. We are expected to have over 3" of rain in the next couple of days, along with wind, thunderstorms (yay!) and flooding. All of our rivers are under flood advisory. Luckily for me both Tango and Ellie are in places that are high and dry. Well...to the best extent that you CAN be in Western Washington!

Anyhow, I decided since it was so warm, I'd strip Tango and groom the heck out of him, and since two of his braids had come undone and subsequently become linked together in a knot of epic proportions, that I should probably unbraid, brush, condition and rebraid his ridiculous mane. I closed his outside door because I had just stripped and rebedded his stall and the torrential rains were being blown so far sideways that the rain was actually reaching nearly to the front of the 12x12 stall!

So I had him stripped and his mane down, and since I haven't gotten any pics of him this way since he's been home, I decided to snap a quick picture for all of you...it is not a good picture, or even one that shows much of anything, since I had to take it from the corner of the stall, but as you can see, he is fat, shiny, and thirsty:) Enjoy!

Tango: The Swamp Thing

My life with Tango is not very blogworthy right now. I don't have a place to ride, and since I am concentrating on Ellie right now, I don't get to spend as much time with him as I'd like.

That said, I'd like to discuss why I've kept him despite my doubts about our future together. I know this horse inside and out. I know exactly how he will react in every situation. I know he won't kick me if I bump into him while cleaning his stall, or stick him with the pitchfork on accident. I know that he will stand tied, for hours if necessary. I know he'll pretty much hop ON a trailer, but he gets nervous if you ask him to back out. I know he gets a little snorty at new places, but after a few walks/longes in the arena and he is fine. I know I can touch him anywhere and he won't get pissy. I know when I take him on a walk, it's best to have a stud chain.

He is my pony and I love him, and even if I could never ride him again, I don't think I could bring myself to sell him. Especially when he banishes himself to the pouring rain so that I can clean his stall, and then stares in the stall at me longingly, dripping wet like it was *MY* idea for him to go out and stand there. Doofus:)

Tango Makes a Friend

So until yesterday Tango has had the only matted stall in the barn. Yesterday they were able to finally get a second one matted, and so the mare moved over to the other side of the barn (the stall Tango had been in, because he was leaning on the movable wall and knocking it off the track) and he moved two stalls down, which put him in between two horses as opposed to none previously.

He was, of course, thrilled about this development and he and the horse next to him, Icky, proceeded to become the best of pals...and played all day...prancing, biting, licking, tearing at eachothers blankets, biting, rearing and bucking. Here are two videos of Tango and Icky playing today while I was cleaning Tango's stall. Enjoy!:)

I Missed You Mama!

So I have been gone for a week on vacation, and for the two days prior to my trip we were slammed with a snow/ice storm. I have missed my pony and couldn't wait to go see him this morning. I knew he probably didn't even notice I was gone thanks to the wonderful care of my friend Jennifer who cares for him, but I sort of secretly hoped he would be happy to see me.

Let me tell you how nice it felt when I walked up to the barn and he turned his head to me, perked his ears and nickered. And then I said "Hi Lishy, did you miss me?" and he nickered again. And did that cute whuffling thing horses do when they want to talk but are being too lazy (you know, when you can see they are still talking, but can't hear anything?). I know, he just thought I was coming to feed him, but alas, he'd already been fed and watered that morning, and so he really truly WAS just happy to see me.

A Year of Nothing

So I was updating my other blog here (Ellie's Road to Recovery) and realized how badly I've neglected Tango's blog. So I figured I'd get it up to speed, and start updating it regularly again.

So since the last post, I suddenly became a total wimp about riding. I put Tango in part time training with Lindsey and started taking lessons on her "steady eddie" dressage horse Rudy. After getting to a point where I was broke, and still too much of a wimp to ride my own horse, I decided it best to lease him out to someone who would use him over the Summer. (see pic to left of us dropping him off, and yes, I was crying lol).

I leased him out to a wonderful gal named Jessica who just absolutely adored Tango. She thought he was great, weird faces, licking, destructive behavior and all. And so my friends Kat and Melissa and I took a road trip to Spokane to drop Tango off....thats right. Spokane. Six hours away from me. He traveled well and we had a fun road trip, where we encountered all sorts of weather and I got some wonderful photos!

He stayed with Jessica for six months, where he learned to be a horse, including living in a pasture, taking road/trail rides, and just basically being spoiled. She taught him to jump, and had a neat photo shoot with her friend who was a photographer They did very well together, but eventually Jessica got too attached and wanted to buy him. She and I worked out a tentative deal, but when all was said and done, her finances were just too up in the air to commit to a purchase.

And soo....Tango is home!:) He came home a couple of weeks ago and it has been very nice to have him around again. I haven't ridden since he got home due to terrible weather, and the arena not being finished, but he is happy living at my friend Jen's place and making friends with her horses, and eating:) Here is a pic of him during our recent snow, trying to figure out what the deal is!

Our Day Alone

So today although it was GORGEOUS out for a fall day (especially after the torrential downpours of yesterday that flooded our airport and freeways) there was next to no-one at the barn! It was super quiet but for the light breeze and the upbeat spanish music on the radio (hey, they are the ones who clean up after my spoiled boy--so they can have their music lol!)





I forgot to wash Tango's tacky purple polos that he won for being Top Five in Reg V HA Hunter Pleasure Jr Horse. But hey, they were free! Anyhow, so I wrapped him in his dirty polos and went and hunted through his paddock for his missing bell boot (found it!) and groomed him all up. I also clipped his nose, eyes and bridle path by myself with no extension cord. I opted not to try the legs and ears on my own...I didn't have much range on my clipper cord and Tango was trying to suck on the cord. It was sunny and remarkably warm for a fall day in late October for Washington, so I left the cooler behind. I longed him for maybe 2 minutes each direction (he wasn't feeling very forward today) and then proceeded to lead him around the outdoor arena with the jumps etc. He was very unconcerned with the jumps, and decided the water that was settling on top of the faux stone boxes (wood painted like stone) was a perfect thirst quencher. He also attempted to pull the (not very scary, although I thought it might be) outdoor umbrella over on top of us. We trotted over a few ground poles and cavaletti in hand, just for something different.

Then I took him back up to the barn and got tacked up. This last week I had ridden him for the first time ever (he has always been in a twisted snaffle when I've ridden him) in a smooth snaffle. He was a tad heavier, but really took to it quite well. Anyhow, put that and Lindsey's Grand Gilbert saddle on. I led him to the mounting block (in the freshly drug indoor with nobody in sight) and got Tango to stand nicely next to the mounting block, threw my reins over his head and got on...right away he felt unusually unresponsive. I was pulling his head to the right and he kept resisting and turning it left...got him to finally pull right and I had crossed the reins. DUH! Off I got and back to the mounting block and got them right this time. We had a good ride with no naughtiness (I don't know if hes even capable of being naughty under saddle) and even schooled the first part of the Training Level test #1. As I was cooling him out, we worked on yielding to the leg...steering him strictly off of leg and getting him to move out at the walk. I got off and led him out.

Still nobody in sight. Wow, should I ever get hurt riding, I wonder if anyone would know? I untacked, cleaned and replaced all the tack I had used. I groomed Tango again, and unbraided his mane and tail, which haven't been done since he got home. Brushed, cowboy magic'd them both and rebraided. In the photo next to this you'll see Tango's annoying but beautiful mane in all it's glory. I didn't get any pics of his tail. We'll leave that for when it's clean and pretty:)

So all in all a successful, beautiful Sunday ride. Can't ask for much more! Maybe by next Spring I'll feel confident enough to ride in the outdoor by myself. I think maybe this winter I'll ride out there even! It's such a pretty view, and so quiet!

Tara

Our New Chapter

So as you read below, Tango is home and we are getting to know eachother again. Yesterday I went out for my first dressage lesson with Lindsey. She likes Tango, but like most dressage trainers would, is encouraging me to stick strictly with dressage. She says his best natural gaits are his walk and canter. She thinks his trot is a "6" but she says that is okay because as you move up in levels, you get the most emphasis on the canter which he is naturally cadenced at.

I have a lot to learn. For instance, I don't know what a 20, 10, 5 meter circle is, or what my touch points should be for a circle or serpentine. Pretty basic stuff. I am a western rider...the only thing you need to know is slow and steady. Now I'm doing a "pattern" and trying to teach myself about lengthenings, extensions, speeds, collection, going to the bit, cadence and trying to do it all so that it is pretty and my horse and I look like we have "harmony".

I have to say, Tango was so considerate and did everything I asked of him. I could not be happier with the job Ron and Josie did with him. I also couldn't be happier with Lindsey's teaching methods. I feel like I get praise all the time, and really great visuals. I think our biggest obstacles are going to be getting Tango to get a true extension and using his back. And of course I'm going to need to do some studying of tests and watching some videos to get an idea of what I'm up against! I really welcome the challenge though, as Lindsey thinks we will be very competitive at training and first level. I hope she's right!

After our lesson was over and Lindsey and I were discussing how it had gone, and she felt that he was a very well trained horse who will be very patient with me while I am learning. She thinks that he will do well in the training level this year, and that during my lesson she thought he had an "8" canter, and his walk is pushing that as well that we may perhaps have the ability to score in the mid-seventies this year, which would definately give us a shot at a Top Five at regionals, and if we continued to progress, may even be competitive at Nationals!

The Story As It Stands

Welcome to my new blog! This blog is to tell the happy story of my 5 year old half arabian (half paint) gelding LL Serfer Dude, better known to his friends as Tango (and lovingly by a few as Lishy--short for Tangoliscious). He is currently 16.1hh and a handful and a half but I love him! He has a small following online (a fan club if you will) that I am writing this for. That way I can keep all of his adoring public advised of his progress:)

The first order of business I suppose, is to tell the story of how I came to own this lovemuffin of a horse. It really amounts to a lot of luck, and a small initial investment, that has in essence become my biggest (and best) investment of my short life.

Tango was a bit of a surprise to all of us. We bought his dam at the Enumclaw Auction. She was just a scruffy, skinny, lame horse some horse trader ran through the auction one December. I had finally talked my parents into picking up a broodmare and we had travelled to the auction hoping to find a good deal. Boy did we! Satin didn't look like much, but she sure had a nice head and great disposition--we knew she must have some quality to her despite her overall iffy condition. She was very well bred with her sire being Street Legal (a son of Mister Norfleet) and out of a mare who was a granddaughter of both Sonny Dee Bar and Impressive (N/N of course). So after a bidding war we took our scruffy, skinny, lame but impeccably well bred and well behaved broodmare home with absolutely no fuss or muss!

We got Satin home and promptly clipped, bathed and groomed her. She looked like a new horse! Even if she was still a bit ribby. And we had a photo shoot! Please ignore my pasti-ness...we are from WA after all!!

We decided since we already owned her, and were planning to breed her in the Spring we might be smart to get her vet checked to be sure she was sound for breeding, and to find out why she was lame. When the vet went to do his rectal to be sure she was breedable, he told us he had good news and bad news, she was definately a candidate for a broodmare (soudness wise) but that we weren't going to be breeding her this year. I assumed he had meant that she had some sort of uterine infection that needed to be treated. But, no, he told us she was 5 months in foal, and the foal was healthy and HUGE. Oh goody!

We were SO not ready for a foal yet! We only had two standard 12x12 stalls, and our pastures were fenced with New Zealand hotwire...not very safe for a mare and foal! Time to get busy! We had her vaccinated for everything as it was obvious the trader we bought her from had no clue, which we figured meant nobody else did either! My stepdad and I laid out a 12x24 stall and a 12x36' paddock off of the opposite side of the barn, to be sure we had a safe place to keep Satin and her impending foal. And I did a lot of reading. A LOT. Got a foaling kit put together, and contacted a local gal since I'd never foaled out a mare before, and wanted back up if necessary.


Fast forward 4 months and the wait was on. She was OVERDUE 2 weeks. Two tortorous weeks of listening to a baby monitor, and tip toeing out all hours of the night to check on her. She took to laying down and groaning and pushing at exactly midnight and 4am every night for the last week of her gestation. We WENT CRAZY! Finally at 7:00 PM on March 4th, 2004 my little mule (OK not really....but thats what I thought I had at the time his ears were so big, and his muzzle and eyes were even mealy!) was born. I was His first order of business was to kick my helper in her chin while she was treating the umbelical stump with iodine. He was HUGE! The colt (who had no name yet) was 43" tall and 131lbs. He weighed more than I DID! He was cute, but definately gawky and mule-like.


He grew and grew and grew and I worked with him and decided one (fateful?) day this grade, ugly colt needed to be mine--we got along so well! He was a goofball, and was going to be big. So at least we had that going for us. I made arrangements to buy him from my parents from my parents for the measly price of $500 on payments (well, I was only 19 after all!) I purchased him and set about getting the information I needed to get him registered. Tracked down all of Satin's previous owners and asked if she may have been exposed to a stallion. An owner about 6 people back said yes, she had. Her arabian stallion K A Serabba from OR. The cover dates matched the foaling date, and DNA testing proved he was Tango's sire. The stallion owner gladly signed the transfer paperwork, but the woman who owned Satin at the time of breeding would not sign the papers, as she believed she was entitled to the foal, as she had lost the mare in a trade deal without knowing she was in foal. Tough luck lady! You missed out! Eventually at 3 years old we got him registered.

In the meantime he had grown up into a big strapping gelding and had been started and even ridden by myself in a few lessons. He was started by a local woman who started racehorses, and trained dressage horses. He had turned out to be pretty calm, and level headed. The photo to the right was my first time on him--very green as you can see, but he was very good for me, and gave me the feeling that someday he'd be a great riding horse. After he was done being started I sent him to a trainer who specialized in arabian and half arabian horses who were geared toward western disciplines. He had a gorgeous natural jog, but the lope just wouldn't come along. We showed him some western, but he was just never in the top placings because he was so big, he couldn't get his rump under him. He went to some local shows and did reasonably well but he was just never going to get to a level where he was going to be competitive at the national level. He sure was fun for me to ride though! Big enough for my long 37" inch legs, and just a big doofus:)

We took him to the Scottsdale Arabian show in 2008 and he came home with two Top Tens in sporthorse in hand half arabian geldings (ATH and Open). With a 2nd and a 3rd, he was near the top of the scores! He also did well in the huge HA Western Pl Jr Horse classes. Unfortunately the were so huge, he got missed and although he was well behaved we came home with only the Sporthorse ribbons--but hey WE GOT A TOP TEN JACKET at Scottsdale! He came home and we rode him some more, and I had some lessons on him and we showed him some more and then my trainer got a great job offer in California so she had to leave. I brought him home and a friend and I made a go at keeping him going that winter and were unable to do so successfully. We decided to focus on the Sporthorse stuff for awhile and get him fit for Sport Horse Nationals. We worked on him in hand and got him mannerly and fit and he looked stunning by the time the Nationals swung around. So since we had qualified, we made the drive to Nampa, ID.

We showed in the in hand only, Open and ATH. He placed 11th I believe overall in the Open (just out of the Top Ten) and 12th or 13th in the ATH. There were around 35 horses in both classes so it was an impressive showing for a western pony!

Come November I decided to try and find someone to lease Tango so he could remain in full time training, without me paying. I took him to a well known local trainer for evaluation and he thought he had a client who would be interested, but that he needed some fitting and riding. The client ultimately passed on him, but after a few months he was going much better. One day while riding him, the trainer trotted Tango out some and realized he might make a nicer hunter than a western horse. His assistant saw it and decided she'd like to lease and campaign him as a hunter for the show year. It was an unexpected (but nice) surprise!

Josie (the assistant) and Tango went on to sweep their first show with 3 firsts (in the Junior horse and Novice Horse). They qualified for the Region 4 Champion show in one show! They went on to show at a Region 5 qualifier and placed 3rd and 4th overall in the Junior horse. He qualified for the Region 5 Championship show too. He went Top 5 against VERY nice National level horses in both Region IV and Region V. He was about as steady as a junior horse comes, and none of us could have been happier with him. Josie and he had a fabulous year and it helped her to get her name out there.

And that brings us to today. Tango is now home with me and solid as can be, and we are having a blast taking lessons with dressage trainer Lindsey Anderson. We plan to show him in Main Ring Hunter this year, and to focus on the Sporthorse since this is the last year Nationals will be in Idaho, so we are going to make the best of it. I plan to do sport horse in hand, sport horse under saddle, show hack and training level (and maybe first, depending how we come along). I'm really enjoying having my baby back, and I think he missed me too. Watch for updates on our progress as we try to learn dressage!:)