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Post by pdevlieg on Jul 1, 2007 21:50:59 GMT -5
I visited with Heidi a bit on Saturday and what a transformation! I saw her the first weekend she got to training, she was shy, hanging back in her stall, not really sure what to do with people.
This weekend, she came up to say hi - sniffed and snuffed me - met my mare who's also in training and was happy. What a change!
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Post by winterlakesfarm on Jul 1, 2007 22:18:28 GMT -5
What a great post Peri! She was always shy and nervous......I guess once a year trims whether you need them or not and no vet care or people care will do that to you! So I am sooooooooo ecstatic she has blossomed with Monica! This is the BEST outcome- so much more than I had ever hoped for this little girl!
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Post by nhsavvy on Jul 5, 2007 23:32:13 GMT -5
My chiropractor came out yesterday and all of the horses were done. Miss Heidi was OUT! about half way through the adjustments she was handing Sam legs and fell in love with her! Today she had the day off, and was VERY spunky in the pasture you can tell she is feeling good! I can't wait to see how she feels under saddle Other than looking almost prego she is doing really good and we all love her! I will try and get more pictures up soon. (oh btw didn't bat an eyelash at the fireworks...even though the horse next door was circling)
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Post by Sara on Jul 7, 2007 0:11:39 GMT -5
I just love this thread- what a turn around and seeing those pictures of her under saddle, hearing that she's learning to seek out interactin with humans- wow, just wow! I can't wait to see pictures of this girl in the show ring (or on the trail, or whatever) with her very own little girl or boy!
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Post by nhsavvy on Jul 9, 2007 23:54:47 GMT -5
Heidi is loved and adored by all here Kyra will be riding her in our fun show this weekend so I will be posting new pictures soon! She has so much potential, and is such a fun horse to ride I know if one of my students don't end up keeping her she will find a great home.
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Post by schwung on Aug 1, 2007 0:27:11 GMT -5
Heidi is here to stay with me, having finished 90 days of training with Monica and proven herself to be green-broke and an excellent kids horse prospect by being such a great girl at the show! Allison and I will continue to work with her at my farm. Here she is Sunday night: And if you missed the video of Cat riding her at the show, here it is!
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Post by averyacres on Aug 1, 2007 0:54:45 GMT -5
Oh, yay!! You will have another gray to keep clean and green free!
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Post by schwung on Aug 5, 2007 22:41:12 GMT -5
Allison and I worked with Ms. Heidi Ho yesterday. What a wonderful little mare she is! So, the first thing we had to do was make a trip to the local tack store to pick up a bridle and bit that fit her, as not even the bridle I used on Trey was going to work for that teeny tiny head of hers (she is wearing Tessa's yearling fly mask - that Tessa grew out when she was 6 months old - and it is too big for Heidi). I bought her an inexpensive hunter bridle and a nice mild rubber snaffle that has a mint flavor to it, as I thought I remember Monica saying she wasn't really good in a bit. Well, she was wonderful! She was a little hard to get the bit in her mouth but once it was on she was totally fine with it, and actually didn't seem to have any issues with contact at all, so that was good! I put a western saddle on her as I don't have a girth to fit her, and that worked well for her. We lunged her first and like Trey she understands the basics of moving forward from being round-penned so we just had to work on teaching her the same concept on the line and understanding the boundaries of the lunge line. As Cat can attest, she is pretty green, but has a FABULOUS mind! She was not looky or spooky or nervous like a lot of arabs are. She was listening and obedient and always trying, even when she didn't understand what I asked. She needs work on steering - and one thing that is going to go a long way to getting her there is working on moving away from the leg. When you try to turn her with the rein she will tend to turn her head and neck and fall onto her outside shoulder, and right now, she doesn't really understand that if you apply an outside leg to guide her over how to move away from that leg, instead she leans into it. So we worked a lot on starting turns on the forehand and baby leg yields to get that concept in her mind, and she was very responsive to it, more so moving away from the left leg than the right as going to the right is definately her stiffer direction. I had only a couple of the balking incidents that she displayed at the show, but I just increased the intensity and frequency of my leg aids until she moved and then lavished praise on her when she finally moved forward and after the second time, she did not try that again. Both Allison and I rode her and both of us were impressed by her attitude, calmness and willingness. Did I mention that the Blue Angels were flying overhead while we were riding her and my horses were running around like the idiots that they are? She was totally unfazed, what a good girl! My camera battery died just before we started riding her, so no riding shots. But, whether you like arabs or not, you have to admit they are very photogenic! I am pleased to say that Heidi did sweat quite normally under the saddle and girth. She does have the strange patches that she seems to kind of continuously sweat from, even just standing out in the pasture, and I am wondering if the issue isn't that she has overactive sweat glands in those areas rather than anhydrosis. She didn't sweat a lot in her chest area but she did get a light sheen, it wasn't like it was dry there. After we worked her, we hosed her down, which she wasn't thrilled with and was dancing around a bit. Finally Allison yelled at her and she planted her feet and stood like a statue after that, which was so cute. This little girl really does try hard to be good!
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Post by cat67 on Aug 6, 2007 4:36:28 GMT -5
Yes, that exactly describes my experience with her. She is very green, she is happier going to the left, she is totally bomb proof and she wants very much to do the right things - she just is not sure what all of them are yet!
After riding her, I totally thought her niche would be the low levels of Pony Club. I can see her going x-country over the little stuff and doing basic dressage. She is so good minded that a youth rider could finish her by themselves if they were with a good trainer.
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shekaberry
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Post by shekaberry on Aug 6, 2007 10:03:19 GMT -5
She really is a nice mare - very un-Arab in her behavior. She is such a pretty mover I could totally see her doing lower levels dressage and she would be so cute in pony club. Once she gets better under saddle, we should take her up to Elk Haven and school her over some little x-country stuff. If only she was a bit taller.........
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Post by winterlakesfarm on Aug 6, 2007 10:03:53 GMT -5
The sweating anywhere except on those 2 spots is an improvement! When I round penned her and "chased" her in my pasture she only sweated in those 2 spots so I think that is very encouraging that she is sweating under the saddle now!!!! What a sweatheart and i am crossing my fingers that she finds just the right petite rider to make her a little pony club horse. She does have a cute trot......thanks for the pics and you are right she is a little photogenic thing isn't she!
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Post by cat67 on Aug 6, 2007 11:26:21 GMT -5
I actually think it's good that she's tiny - at least she stayed legal pony size! The hard ones to place are the 14.3 hh hunt seat horses.
If you could get some video of her schooling over little fences, she would have a home in about 3 seconds. You should send some video of her to those folks who have Schwung's mare on lease - it looks like they host Pony Club stuff at their facility.
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squirrels
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Post by squirrels on Aug 6, 2007 11:35:26 GMT -5
My other boy, Jack, sweats irregularly on a patch on his shoulder, and the vet told me that it's most likely a result of an injury that caused nerve damage.
The only time I can see it is when he's sweating, and he'll sweat there first before anywhere else. I guess with Heidi's condition when you guys got her, it wouldn't be surprising to me if there were also some old injuries like that.
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shekaberry
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Post by shekaberry on Aug 8, 2007 12:40:35 GMT -5
Jaime's gelding, Slam, is quite enamored with Heidi. I was in the pasture with them yesterday and it was so cute - 17hh Slam and 13.2hh Heidi were grooming each other. She is so petite next to him and Vanna was very jealous that Slam is cheating on her with Heidi. I wish I got pictures of Slam and Heidi being lovey-dovey, it just showed how much horses have real emotions!
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Post by averyacres on Aug 8, 2007 12:49:03 GMT -5
They do! That is so cute! Raina was really happy to see JR when Jaime dropped him off on Sunday. She gave him a sweet "hi, boy, where've you been" nicker when he came home. They have been stuck to each others hip, giving each other scritches, love pats, and JR will even share his grain and hay pile with her. They are two peas in a pod, and it is so sweet to see JR be so lovey and Raina, who I have never seen be so lovey with any horse...too sweet!
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