Okay, so I’m not a Doritos fan and cool ranch doesn’t appeal. But I did enjoy the ad. Hope you do, too!
Dancing Cowboys and Horses – What’s not to like?
EQUINE Ink
My Soapbox for Equestrian Writings
My Soapbox for Equestrian Writings
Okay, so I’m not a Doritos fan and cool ranch doesn’t appeal. But I did enjoy the ad. Hope you do, too!
That was great. anytime you get Sam Elliott doing anything, especially clowning, it’s worth watching.
Yup. Definitely fun.
Toooo fun! I assume this ad was with the Super Bowl? Am I the only one who didn’t watch it? Wellll, I was HORSE SHOPPING at the time. Anyway, Sam Elliot is the quintessential cowboy. I have no idea whatsoever who the black guy was, but oh, my his Friesien! I like how Elliotts’ horse said, Uh, uh, no way.
I never watch the Super Bowl so I’m not sure if it was one of the ads! Horse shopping sounds far more fun. Did you see anything nice? Freedom and Zelda were both picked out for me by a friend. I’ve joked with her that whenever I need another horse, I’m just going to ask Ellen to drop one off. She knows exactly what I like.
I’m the ‘sidekick’…Sue has the wallet, I pay for things like farrier and supplements. Between our two wallets, she can afford to keep a horse.
We’ve seen several nice horses. However, it’s some cases, it’s the seller who’s the pain in the ass. One woman…her OTTB horse is still on Dream Horse (name is “He’s Cagey” in WA state) made some outrageous demands ($500 down payment, NOT included in the sale price and non-refundable), said she had X-rays on his legs but wouldn’t let Sue see them, and even worse, pressured Sue. we hadn’t been off her property half an hour when she started texting, well, well? You better make a decision now, I have three other people looking. Sue and I were both on the same page…if someone else comes up with the money, sell him. It was all sales noise. She’s like me…I have to ‘sleep on it’ before I make a decision like that.
The other issue I had with “Cagey” was he was 17 hands and wears a size 0 shoe. Tiny feet!!
She’s frustrated….her first horse was Raven, who was…well, let’s face, I loved that horse, from the moment I met him, he and I were…well, you know. He was beautifully trained to first level dressag at 7 when she bought him. He was the first horse she’d looked at, and they clicked like eggs and bacon. Raven was…well, I admit it, HE chose ME as one of his mare band. that was the kind of horse he was, and Sue eventually realized that he was happiest when it was just the three of us. Menage de trois? She lucked out and I told her so, that NO one ever gets a horse like Raven on the first try…but she did. I warned her it wouldn’t be like this time, and I was right.
sad to say, we’ve seen some VERY nice OTTBs but all of them, save the one above…have disabling leg and foot injuries, and as I said, “Cagey” had too small a foot for comfort. It’s something painful to see, someone is selling a very nice horse that due to injuries, can be nothing but pasture jewelry or breeding (if she’s a mare). We all know that, if you don’t have the property, a horse with injuries that keep him from being ridden becomes a very expensive money pit. Even if you do, as I do..(have property), having a horse that is unrideable still needs everything a perfectly sound horse does. It’s why I don’t have minis (I still call ’em ponies…they’re a Pony, (“miniature horse’ is just too pretentious). I can’t ride one, but they still need all the things a real horse does. Besides, I’d have to lower my fences….
A VERY NICE grey mare took her fancy, but…the mare is very green, even at 7, barely knows WTC. Sue wants something that is trained right now. The seller was very upfront with Sue, said, she’s too green for you.
On Super Bowl Sunday, we looked at an Appendix TB/QH…Sue wants another warmblood but their prices here in WA all seem to START at 15K for a yearling, and only go higher. That’s nuts.
Anyway, we looked at the App. QH…who is VERY nice, the only problem is he paddles like a Paso. But as Mark, our farrier (who’s retired now, oh my god what are we going to do…) said, as long as his feet land flat, it’s okay.
If this horse passes a vet check, she’ll buy him. He IS nice, a very solid, easy going kind of guy. The seller bought him to barrel race, so he’s trained pretty much western, and he said No Way Am I Going To Run Around a Barrel. It’s why she’s selling him. She strikes me as honest and up front.
Sue rode him for quite some time, and despite cueing him in English rather than western, he tried his best. I’ve seen some horses come unglued when they’re confused or they get pissy…he just tossed his head and said WHAT language are you speaking?
Sometimes, it’s the personality that wins. I think this one has that.
It is so hard to make a decision based on one test ride. I would hate to get that kind of pressure from a seller. When I bought my Trakehner, many years ago, he was at a friend’s barn so I had the chance to ride him three times before making a decision. Even then he came to me with some real gaps in his training and a few unexpected issues (he would rear when he got confused or felt trapped). Freedom and Zelda I had for several months before I decided to buy them, so I knew exactly what I was getting. I also had access to Freedom’s medical records (I adopted him through CANTER). He had tweaked a suspensory and had an apical sesamoid fracture, which is why he retired from racing. However his owners had rehabbed him before retiring and by the time I got him, there were no residual issues. OTTBs can be tricky because there are many trainers/owners who don’t take the time to let the horses heal from injuries, especially when they are lower level claimers. However, I did buy a mare once who had absolutely clean legs and perfect films. I didn’t find out until later that she had 50+ starts and ran her last race at 7. Those horses typically are well balanced with good conformation and they know how to use their bodies.
I hope the QH works out. The brain is the most important thing about a horse. I realized that Zelda was quite special when one day she got tangled up in something in the pasture and instead of panicking, waited for me to come and get her out of it. I don’t blame the horse for not wanting to run barrels. I guess some of them love it but to me, it looks nuts.
I feel the same way (about barrel racing)…I cringe when I see the strain put on the legs at such high speed and such tight turns. I know, polo ponies do the same sort of physical stresses, but…oh, I don’t know. I guess I’m just not a rodeo/games type of person.
Sue went and rode him again with just herself. The first time we went looking at him it was me, Sue on his back, the owner, and Barnlord brought two friends. Barnlord can NOT keep her opinions to herself, the entire time Sue was riding the App. QH barnlord was shouting orders. She even told the OWNER where to stand in the arena….Barnlord Knows EVERYTHING and isn’t hesitant to tell you you know nothing.
It grinds the hell out of me, sometimes…Barnlord insists horses don’t mind getting wet because “they’re related to hippos.” Welllllllllllllll, no. This biologist has proof that, taxonomically speaking, we humans are more closely related to horses than hippos,…but you can tell Barnlord but you can’t tell her much.
Arrgh……but I will admit that she runs a VERY good stable, I cannot complain about that at all. So……..one must put up with the bad when the good is overwhelming.
I meant, horses are more closely to related to us humans than they are to hippos. In fact, the only creatures even remotely related to hippos are….cetaceans..whales!