Do I want a new project? I kinda really do. Here's the deal. I have sold Katy (I really miss her! I went to the pasture this morning and started counting horses. I kept looking for horse number four...) and Jazz now has someone who wants to lease her. That leaves me with two horses (SO WEIRD. I've had four horses for the past two years!). Jetta is going with me up to school, while Grady has to stay behind. I want to get him a buddy so he's not all alone. I don't think it would be good for him at his age to separate him from his life-long love (Jazz) and leave him all by his lonesome. So here are my options.
- Buy a western horse! I'm in a western-y mood and would really like to get a little QH or Paint to train for reining and cows. Cons - I have to shell out the money to buy one. Though my criteria are that the horse is less than $1000, I'm going to be pretty picky because I want a horse that's no less than 14.3hh, because I'm tall, and I want something "pretty" - a roan, buckskin, grulla, palomino or something with lots of chrome. I also need something with good conformation and some breeding for reining or cows.
- Find someone who wants to put their horse in training/rescue one. There is a gorgeous grulla mare down the road that I have been eye-balling every time I drive past. The owners bought her to train and then gave up because they couldn't figure it out. (Seriously. They told me this.) She's always been on the chunky side, but ended up foundering a couple weeks ago. I don't know if a vet diagnosed it or just the farrier, but they built a small pen in the pasture and removed all the grass. The horse now spends most of it's time in the dry lot pen with no food, or in it's stall with no food. She's let outside for a few hours every day. Definitely not an ideal situation - she went from plump to scary thin. I can count all of her ribs. I'd like to talk to them and see what they think of letting me train her. She could stay at my house over the winter so she can gain back weight and I'll have my trimmer work on her feet (she specializes in laminitic horses). The downside to this is that she requires lots of management - soaking her hay and only turning her out at night.
- Get Katy's brother, Colton. I plan on getting him next summer anyways, to train and sell, so why not just winter him in our pasture? Pros - No $. Cons - he is immensely fat. He needs some management, not just to be left in our pasture all winter - aka, he needs to come into the stall for a portion of the day to be off the grass.
- Get a pony. I really, really want a pony. Still. I could use it for lessons and it could be a companion for Grady. I couldn't really ride it though, unless it was 13 hh + and only for a little bit. Fancy, trained ponies are expensive! Pros - lesson horse. Jazz is my lesson horse so I no longer have a horse to use for lessons. Cons - I can't ride it. And they can be a little out of my price range.
Hmm... So first I need to decide if I really want a western horse. I think the answer to this is YES! But do I want a western horse more than a pony? I think the deal breaker is that I won't really be able to ride a pony. I can work them on the ground and play with them that way, but I think I'd rather have something I could ride. The next step I think is to see if I could get my neighbors horse. I'd like to take her out of her less-than-ideal situation and she would make a nice western horse. Anyways, we'll see. This is just me trying to think out what I want to do...
Here's my thoughts:
ReplyDelete1. I'm not sure how things are in your area, but I grew up with my parents raising and campaigning reining and cutting horses and $1000 won't get you too far if you're looking for something pretty and well bred with good confirmation, at least up here. I'm not sure how well-bred you want your horse. If you're just happy to have Hollywood Dun It somewhere on the papers, then you might find a young horse in your price range (no guarantee if it will be pretty or have good confirmation), but if you want something out of one of the hot sires, you'll have to shell out more. I hope you don't take this as being snotty or rude, I'm just trying to help because these are the kind of horses my family raises.
2. and 3. Both horses sound like they need some work, but could be fun. Managing the 'easy keepers' that turn into founder cases can be difficult (trust me, we are feeding hay in the middle of summer to try to keep a couple of those kind of horses healthy. But, on the bright side, you don't have to shell out the cash (which, if you're going to school, is a big bonus)! Plus if you are getting one in the summer anyway, it might be nice to get him early.
4. Pony are adorable and some of them are awesome mounts. But like you said, it's hard for most adult riders to train them. I swear if I was 4'11" instead of 5'9", I would be a pony training and I would make a load of money.
I would probably for with 2 or 3 if I were you, but I might also keep looking around to see if anyone else you know has a horse they'd like you to ride. Just my thoughts!
Thanks for the input! I'm not going for a fancy reining horse with popular breeding - they tend to be $3000-5000 for a weanling to 2 year old in my area. I don't really want to put that much money into a resale horse. I just want something that's a little cowy and has some vague breeding for reining/cows as opposed to western pleasure, etc. I've found a couple cute prospects (the ones pictured) that are $700-$800 each. This is all just hypothetical though, since I have no idea what I really want to do!
ReplyDeleteYeah, I totally understand. I grew up riding mostly western, so I've actually know a lot more about reining and western pleasure than I do about the english disciplines. My favourite of the western prospects in the grey.
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