hmmm… should I do this in three different posts or just write forever and upload a ton of photos into one Saturday January 31st, 2009 blog post.

Well folks hang on to your skirts or shirts to what have you’s because this is going to be one long winded photo heavy post.  Mostly because I’m lazy.  It’s my blog, so there ya have it.

Where to begin…  hmmm?

Well I began by grooming Paisano for taking one last set of measurements for the  tree I am having made  for him. These would be accompanied with photos to help the Nikkels determine how I used the Dennis Lane measuring cards  and came up with my final numbers.  Simrat measured Paisano with the same cards I had loaned to her before Pai came to Arizona. I measured him again a week or so later,  he needed to gain a rather small amount of weight so again about two weeks ago I remeasured him and then again today, having yet to come up with the same measurements.  Even so these last two measurements were closer. Yes I believe I truly understand the card system having gone through this process and that my measurments now with him at the weight I like to keep my horses at are as accurate as they are going to get.

Here are the photos that will be going to Nikkels with the measurements, my descriptions, photos of Paisano and of course the money.  Don’t forget the money!

Rock:

I think you can see that at the back end of the R12 card I am using here at position 7.5 (which sits right at the edge of the shoulder blade), that it could dig into Pai’s loin a bit once weight is applied.  However, Nikkels assures me that they automatically build in relief at the loin or rock end of the trees bars as they have noticed this happening somewhat often with the rock cards of this system.  Also you can see a small gap at B position or the sweet spot that the Nikkels will have to adjust for while shaping the bars.

 

Position A:

 

When I first wrote this post I forgot to add Postion A.  Well here it is and it was the most difficult position to measure on Pai as one card seems to press to much on his shoulders, yet the the next size up seemed to rock a bit. Well I chose the larger of the two because I can shim it if necessary but I cant take anything away if  is to tight. 

 

Position B:

 

Postion B or the sweet spot or lowest point of the horses back.  Keep in mind that I am holding the card and taking the picture one handed without looking through the lense.  So yes I did move the card a bit in the first B card photo. It should be completely vertical. In choosing the measurements to photograph I first tried several of the shapes on his back pressing them down, rocking them back and forth and eventually photographing the card that stayed put with the least amount of gouging or air space when it was moved around.

 

Position C:

C card placed approximately at the 12th rib.  Paisano is so short coupled that the illusion is that the card is too far forward.  The short back is the biggest issue Pai has for saddle fitting. Making his steep R 12 rock assist for a more dramatic bridging of most trees.  The ‘S’ position, or distance ’7.5′  from position B to the 12th rib is the biggest hurdle we have to over come, that and then the rigging placement.

So with the measurements now finalized  R12, A: S7, B: D7, C: D7 S: 7.5  Pai will finally have his tree made.  These numbers may look like greek to many who read this, but they represent the shapes of Pai’s back and assure that he will end up with a tree that is unique to his needs.

 

Next came the Treeless Saddle my friend loaned to me to try on Pai.

Isn’t he HANDSOME!!!  What a star!

Yes the saddle is big on him. It was custom made for a Big QH by Wm L Huston (I could not find a link for him – if you find one please let me know so I can link to it here) .  It also sat a bit up on his shoulders… why you ask?  Because the dang rigging was set way too far back…again and not adjustable!  So if the rigging had been even 1 inch forward of where it is the saddle would have sat perfectly on Pai’s back. Even so I sat it forward a bit to keep the cinch from being around his midsection and this was the resulting fit. Also the inner skirting that holds the rigging was made for a much bigger horse and came down so low on Pai’s sides that one, it made for a very secure fit from side to side, but also made it hard to snug up the cinch that came with it. I didn’t have a shorter cinch and if I had the rings would have been under his belly. You can see the ring just behind the stirrup and that where it was on both sides.

With his long neck he doesnt look too out of porportion to the saddle. Obviously a wee bit shorter saddle would look better on him. But this one fit me like glove. To be honest I like the color on him too!  Giving me something to consider when I get ready to buy leather for the saddle I am going to make for him.

Now for a bit on the ride we had today.  First off we rode down the road we have been taking our walks on.  Where he was familiar with everything. Even so the goats running at him with barking dogs kind of gave him a flutter, yet he stayed poised and waited to see what was really going to happen then off we went to mosey around in the desert for a bit. He never once tried to go home, or eat, or whinnie… no, once he whinnied an answer to Sophie who we could here quite clearly as if she were next to us. hehehe  We rode back the way we came all the way back to the hay stack. Oh yes, the very important hay stack where carrots were hiding in a baggie as well.  I needed to lengthen my stirrups before going out again. I like to start out with them short when I am on an unfamiliar horse then lengthen them as we get more acquainted.  So once that was done off we went again only this time we went a direction he had not gone before and low and behold there were boogie men everywhere and his steps became insy tinsy carefully placed steps.  I was really pushing him to keep him moving, thinking that when we turned around it was going to be a mad dash back to the house and the infamous hay stack.  He spooked once and started to spin but when I caught him up he stopped and stood quietly while I reassured him. I do like his style of spooking and his willingness to stop and listen.  One great horse this one is in the making!  So getting ready for the big “ride” I turned him around.  ARGH… pokey dokey needed prodding all the way home! Oh he’d trot when asked but I was on him the whole way to move his legs out at the walk. He has a lovely walk too and he wasn’t eyeballing anything,  he was just being a Nag. Yep Paisano won the prize title of “Nag” today! Lovingly mind you.  We will have to work on the walk as he gets more comfortable and confident.

 

Umm I forgot the sweat patterns too… argh so here they are now that everyone has already read this post…

Not bad sweat patterns, nothing that a little shimming would not fix.  Except for the length again. If the saddle was shorter or Paisano longer there would be less roughed up hair on his loins. 

And finally because I am a brat!

 

It’s February and my horses are shedding!!!    hehehe  Next year I’ll be eating crow! 

I said this was going to be along post!!

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Check out the  Horses For Sale at the left in the page index on THE PONY EXPRESSION.  http://www.theponyexpression.com/

I have added Celt’s Prophecy. http://www.theponyexpression.com/?page_id=481

I have an opportunity to purchase a dun roan mare I have coveted for many years.  I need to sell my two youngsters or place them appropriately in order to make this dream mare a reality.  She is a 9 year old and broke to ride and would be a perfect compliment to Paisano for my 1800′s Period Exhibitions.

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Time spent with my horses today wasn’t all that long for each of them but it seemed as though each effort was productive. 

Let’s start with Theory.   Earlier this morning while feeding I finally removed her halter.  She has worn it way longer than I had wanted and way longer than any horse I have ever had.  She just was too  shaky and it was too risky putting it on and off.  My fencing is such I didn’t want to be pushing her into going through or over it.  She is very immature about some things and tends run first and deal later.   A learned behavior from her mother, whom I feel probably had good reason for her choices in life.  Theory on the otherhand doesn’t have any reason to be silly other than being a baby that doesn’t know better.  I had to move her corral again because in her silliness she would jump the fence into my roommate’s horse’s pen.  So baby Theory now has a stall sized pen next to Paisano who is becoming quite the babysitter.

Okay I’m drifting here,  This morning I took her halter off.  She came up to me  for her lovins so I took it off and put it on a few times then left it off.  Later when I went out to play with the horses I began by putting Theory’s halter on her then attaching the lunge line to bring her out to try her hand at lunging again.  She was a little more confident but wanted to stop next to Pai as she passed by him.  The lunging area travels directly past the pens where Pai is waiting with his head out to get a few whiffs and nuzzles as she went by.  At one point she made a get away move and I caught her up in such away that she reared up slightly trying her trick of throwing herself to the ground.  Well when she landed she slid between the panels of Pai’s stall.  I didnt let her go through so she was stuck. I mean she was really STUCK.  So we both waited there a bit me keeping tension on the lead not letting her move while we figured out the best way to get her unSTUCK. In the meantime Pai has himself a captive toy to nibble on, as her head, shoulders and front legs were inside his pen. She was just too big to fit through and was on her knees with her legs bent back around the bottom panel.  All I had to do is tell Pai to back off and  he did.  What a good boy he is such a trooper.  It was apparent that the only way to get her out was to push her through to the other side, so I let lose of the tension on the lunge line and she began to struggle.  I chose to stay out of her way and let her figure it out on  her own.  Very carefully she twisted and turned until she had her head outside the pen again and then lurched backward to unstick (is that a word?) her shoulders and out came her legs and feet totally unscathed.  This little episode seemed to have had an affect on her too, as she walked up to me for reassurance and we spent quite a bit of time going over her, hugging and kissing on her. I wanted her to feel I was the safe place to be.  She learned about being scratched between the udder which at first was a bit too personal for her, but after a wee bit of scratching and letting her sniff my hand she relaxed into it.  Then we picked up her front feet going over them very carefully looking for any possible injury, then picked up her hind feet for the first time.  Her demeanor while lunging was much more thoughtful and careful while completing  turns.  Once she started to do her silly move, but caught herself and quickly walked up to me for a hug instead.  I led her around a wee bit then put her away figuring we had a good lesson on behavior today.  I took the halter on and off of her several times before leaving her with a kiss and much wiser.  I will say I was impressed with her thoughtful way of unsticking (there is that word again!) herself,  a mare maybe, but a baby to keep her cool like that was pretty impressive.

Next I take Pai out for his turn at some exercise and to work on balancing his feet some more.  Thing is I also wanted to ride.  So I slipped up after he lunged a bit.  He was so funny he wanted to take right off and go play.  He wanted to go back over to where I rode him last time and play the ‘I take you for a ride to the hay stack’  game.  lol I didn’t let him go.  I made him turn back and rode a few laps on the lung circle.  Then we took off through the desert to the hay stack. This is getting to be a lot of fun!  That’s it that’s all the riding I did, lunge ring to hay stack albeit weaving through the desert because next came leveling off his feet. Then off to his favorite rolling spot for  a few good rolls before going back to his pen while I worked with Pro.

Pro was and is pretty much a repeat each time I take him out. He plays stallion colt games on the lunge line and tries to intimidate me which gets him in trouble.  Pretty much status quo.  Then we  explore the desert over to the hay stack.  but before we went to the haystack this time I let him sniff noses with Pasiano.  This time Paisano is free in his corral and Prophecy is on the lead.  Did I say Paisano is a trooper? He is so on top of what is going on and has all the answers too!  He only squealed once with Pro giving him the appropriate ‘I’m a foal’ mouthing sign which won favor with  Paisano.  Pai started licking on Pro, nibbling on him being all buddy buddy.  I do declare… Pai is going to let Pro live with him.  After a bit of time it was clear they both wanted to play!  This is a huge relief for me!  Enough is enough so I took Pro on his stroll to the haystack then leveled his feet before putting him away.

All in all another enjoyable, educational and successful horse day…

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As promised to all of you feed readers, here is todays notice that January 29, 2009 Thankful Thursday has been posted. 

You may link to it here:  http://www.theponyexpression.com/?page_id=459

Remember if you are feeling grateful for anything in your life,  write it/them down or blog about them and link back to this page. This is a wonderful way to start or end your day and to bring a good feeling to the middle of your week.  It certainly brings me to a wonderful place within that lasts for days beyond.

Another couple Thankful Thursdays may be found here:   http://www.akalranch.com/2009/01/simple-things/ and  http://0093dad.netsolhost.com/site/2009/01/29/simrats-thankful-thursday-3/

If you would like your Thankful Thursday listed here, please link back to me so that I know you are out there.

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I woke up this morning to routine computer surfing when I came across a post on the Spanish Mustang Registry Official Message Board    http://spanishmustang.org/cgi-bin/yabb2_3/YaBB.pl   showing a video of a girl riding a very pretty blue roan pony over jumps. I’ll let the video do the talking for me.

 

Okay so this little bit of humor sent me on a wonderful journey down memory lane to a moment in time I cherish from the depths of my bones. Here is my daughter, Heather on Black Beauty her first pony.

Black Beauty was just like the little blue roan pony in the video. She would buck, kick up and thrust her head down and at last resort lay down, seemingly never to stand again. Black Beauty had been abused before we got her and these were her defense mechanisms. Even so she was a loving pony with a great sense of humor, it’s just that she had found great fun in finding ways to rid herself of work.

As it ended up I added a piece of baling twine to her bridle that went back to the saddle and if you look real close you’ll see it there holding her head up as it disappears into her mane. She did not find this amusing, but it did allow Heather to improve her skills.

Black Beauty was the horse/pony who brought us all the way some eight years later to the Spanish Mustang and to Ka-Maw-I through his daughter (a Black Beauty look a like) La Senorita de Madrid (who oddly enough came with a similar history, lack of work ethic and funny bone).

However, we are extremely proud of her and thankful that she graced us with her own brand of abundant Black Beauty.  She never failed Heather.
The rest is History.

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I have updated the “About the Author” page.  Updates can be found at the bottom of the post.

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Well that is my life… horses. I had to come to the realization that I will always have horses in my life. Today was no exception. My day off. Some folks go to the movies, or get together friends, shop, dine, museum and gallery stroll. Hit the gym. Me, I hit the horses, well not literally, but figuratively. I spend my days off making sure they get their share of my time.

Today was a simple horse day, Trimmed my room mates horses feet. This is a long process as Sophie has been over due and wearing shoes for too long. So I am taking only a wee bit off each time letting her adjust and slowly bringing her feet back into balance. They are looking good after only three minor trims about two days apart. I also took the opportunity today to re-balance Paisano’s front feet. He tends to roll off the outside heel and grow too much toe on the inside thus causing him to rotate a wee bit. So I took some inside toe off and balanced the foot while standing him up slightly just in the front today. My rasp is getting dull so next time I trim I’ll need a new one and will do all four feet.

After trimming I let Pai roll and lunged him some and let him nibble at our short sweet Arizona grass shoots. He did not think it was enough time as he bulked going into his pen. I felt badly for him as he glared at me. He wants some freedom so badly. It will come we just have to get through the next few months.

Paisano has really become quite the gelding. When I put him away Theory was in his pen checking it out. I left the gate open obviously. I thought well I have her trapped. Having let her out all day to run and play and wanting to put her away and having her trapped made things appear pretty easy. But then I had Pai who may try to over power her being all stallion like and all. But no, he just nibbled on her some and acted like a typical ol’ gelding. He’s becoming a lazy ol’ man.

Let me back track, before I had taken Pai out to trim his feet, I had Pro out excersizing and while on the end of a lunge line, followed him around through the bushes as he played with Theory. Pro was a very good boy today and we had fun just weaving in and out of places while he sniffed out tiny morsels of new growth. Of course I lunged Pro a bit and Theory was right there keeping an eye on things.

It is funny about Theory, she walked up to me several times today while I was playing with Sophie, Pro and Pai and followed us around a couple times stopping for pets here and there. So when I went up to her in Pai’s pen she was fine with it. Telling Pai to stand back while I put on her lead, they both were troopers and worked well together and with me. I love working them together this way. They all learn how to put their personal horse differences aside and work as a team. Taking Theory out of Pai’s pen, she followed like she had been leading her whole life. If you have been following along you know that she has only led twice now and has no formal leading training. I thought to myself could she be ready to try to lunge. I thought no Susan, hold on a bit. But something in her gaze told me she wanted to do something like the big boys had done on the lead. So I just kind of positioned my self once we reached the lunging area, and she moved out in a semi circle around me, stopped and we petted and hugged and assured her she was big girl. We did this a few times and low and behold she took off at the trot around me like she had been doing it her whole life. One complete circle on a loose line totally relaxed with me praising her and exclaiming how grown up she was. I hugged and loved on her a bunch then asked her to follow me and off we went leading her to her pen.

Theory is growing up!

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Can I have one mommy, please…   please!!

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Since I have chosen to place my Thankful Thursday on pages rather than bury them in the blog scroll, I will add an update each week to the blog scroll announcing the new Thankful Thursday and add the link to the page. That way you FEED folks can follow along easier and we can spread the Thankful Thursday Meme vast and wide amongst all of you! 

http://www.theponyexpression.com/?page_id=416  enjoy the meme and feel free to play along

 

Please check out these blog posts for more Thankful Thursday’s

• http://www.akalranch.com/category/thankful-thursday/
• http://0093dad.netsolhost.com/site/category/gratitude/ 

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Hope…  what a big word in my life recently.  Funny thing how it trickles down into very unexpected aspects of life.  Like say, my saddle? 

In the quest to find a saddle that not only fits my horse but also allowes me to explore varying ways of enjoying my horse, I ran across the Hope Saddle of the 1800′s. 

First before we explore the saddle, lets first explore what I want to do with my horse.  Paisano is a Spanish Mustang of above average calibre. He is a very upright imposing sort of horse.  He has Flash and Dash, and he is very sweet. 

 

Photo by Simrat Khalsa Fine Art and Photography

This is a pretty accurate picture of what Paisano looks like as a gelding.

You can picture this horse decked out under a Confederate General, or a Mexican Vaquero, or an Indian Chief, even a West Texas Cowboy on a cattle drive.  He’d be the favorite.  Paisano so easily invokes images of the times during the Civil War, the Mexican hay day, cattle drives and Indian wars, basically the 1800′s period.  So it really is a no brainer to set an 1800′s period saddle on his back.  This saddle will allow me to do the following with my horse:

• Ride in period and breed exhibitions
• perform in gaited shows
• trail ride
• show in trail course classes

These are the things that call to me and are things that Paisano has clear talent for.  They make it possible to use one saddle, one horse, and explore several avenues to enjoying that horse.

The saddle style (tree) that I have settled with is the Hope tree. It was used across this country by men of military stature in the Civil War, cowhands all across the country, vaquero’s in Texas, New Mexico and California. It birthed the Santa Fe and Californio style saddles.  It was the tree of choice that in many cases sat on the forefathers of our Spanish Mustang breed. 

Below are two saddle makers who specialize in correct authentic replication of the Hope treed saddle of the 1800′s period.

http://www.ushist.com/saddles-tack/period_saddles_military.htm#item-m3

USHistory.com  produces two military versions of the Hope saddle. One the Confederate General Joseph E. Johnston version shown here…

 

…and the Edward L. Gallatin inspired saddle claimed to have been ridden in by Union General Hugh Kilpatrick  pictured here… 

 

Below Shooting Star History Saddlery has made a dreamy version of a Santa Fe civilian saddle.

http://www.shootingstarhistory.com/saddlery/hopesaddle.htm

 

In the end I am really liking the minimalist paired down version. Less is more on this saddle in my opinion.  So my thoughts of new, are to build my own saddle using these prototypes as guides and simplifying them further.

Yes I did say that!  I am going to build my own saddle on the Nikkels http://www3.telus.net/nikkelsaddletrees/  built Hope tree  I am having made for Paisano. I am still considering whether to put sheepskin on the underside or not.  Because of the way the saddle is made I am not worried about having to back track and add it later.  So all is good and happy saddle making ahead!

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