New Tack

For those who don't know, I've been riding horses for 17 years. I competed seriously for 8 of those years in the hunter-jumper arena as well. I hadn't owned a horse in 9 years until recently when I purchased Calvin. However, I still had much of the equipment left-over from my hunter-jumper days to use with Calvin. The only problem is, much of my tack (term used for horse equipment) is specific to hunter-jumpers (english saddle pads, english girth, etc.) and not something I want to even use anymore (like harsher bits, martingales, etc). The tack I do want to use is so old that it's either worn out or non-functioning. That's what happens when you avoid purchasing new equipment! Which leads me to the title of this post...new tack!

Most of you know I already purchased an Endurance saddle, which was the major purchase I was avoiding. Now I've had the major battle between purchasing English tack, Western tack, and Endurance tack! My heart goes to English tack, it's so beautiful and takes me back to what I deemed pretty in my childhood.

This is a typical hunter class, braided mane and tail, polished, clean, minimalistic. The rider's outfit is gorgeous, the horse looks classy all cleaned up, and their tack is understated. While this tack is gorgeous, it's not comfortable on the trail in any way!

That leaves me with endurance tack or western tack. Endurance tack is nice because it isn't leather, meaning you don't have to soap and condition the bridle once it's dirty, just wash and wear! Endurance tack is great for trail, but not for training. I'm sure others will disagree, but since Calvin is so young, I have to train him from ground zero, which means I do need to utilize an arena. Endurance bridles have all these clips for quick changes like switching out the bit and reins. The downside to clips is that they make noise and you can't get a really nice feel on the reins for training because of the constant clacking. Also, I'm not doing very long distances to really need that bridle and be able to justify the price.

This narrowed it down to western tack. I never, in a million years, thought I'd be buying western tack...but here I am! I purchased a "headstall" (aka bridle in english riding terms) and lead-rope reins. 

Headstall, Herm Sprenger bit, halter under bridle. Looks almost like his distant cavalry cousins!

I ride Calvin bitless when we are by ourselves on trail only, but when I want him to do more advanced work the bit is a necessity. Without the bit, I have to pull so hard on his nose and it causes rub marks because he doesn't always want to listen. With a bit, I only need slight rein contact for him to listen nicely. Also, he tends to freak out when we are on trail with other horses, so the bit helps me redirect him in a kinder way than yanking on his face in a halter. 

I didn't like the snaffle bits that western folks use, so I bought an english snaffle. I liked my rubber bit, but it is really too big inside Calvin's mouth and he can't really close it properly, much less drink or eat with it in. The old school of thought was a thick bit=a softer bit, but research has shown this isn't true. In fact, horses have smaller mouths than previously thought, so narrower, properly fitting bits are actually softer. This new bit I purchased has been scientifically proven (source) to be comfy for horses and is a really soft bit, despite it being metal! The metal is a copper, silicon, zinc alloy which promotes salivation in horses, making it a comfy bit. Also, it's called a "french link"meaning there is a bean in the middle which prevents the two sides from jabbing up into his soft pallet. This short video also gives a good description of why they are soft bits. I've tried it twice with Calvin and he responds to it very nicely. He acts the same as he did in the rubber bit, so that means it's not too harsh. This Herm Sprenger bit retails for $140, but I found it on ebay for $60! 

I actually bought a bradoon by accident, but it works the same as a loose ring so no harm done. Bradoons are used in dressage for a double bridle  hence why the rings are smaller. In a typical loose ring, the side rings are larger in diameter, but this is the only difference between the two. This bit came in a smaller 14mm mouthpiece which actually fits in his mouth better than the 16mm that the loose ring comes in.

My final purchase was a new helmet! You're supposed to replace helmets every 5 years, I've had my last one for 15 years (oops!). I'd still be using it too, but it is just too big and hot for trail riding. This one is called a Tipperary Sportage 8500. It's lightweight and has lots of air vents. I got it in the navy blue, I'm over black helmets, they're too hot. Also, this came in at $60, a huge savings over the old hunter-jumper helmets which run for $350+. I don't know how people can afford to replace them every 5 years at that rate.

Tipperary helmet in blue. Germy is also excited!

Boyfriend Riding Lesson

Now that finals are over, I can update everyone with what's been going on. We take our training very slowly at this age. I'll ride maybe two days a week average, once in the arena and once on the trail. On the other days, I might do groundwork (such as learning how to respect my space, hand walking on trails, etc.) or he'll just get the day off. This time though, the boyfriend got to ride!

Due to the boyfriend's work schedule, he can come out more frequently too. I gave him a lesson on Calvin and he actually did really well! We worked on posting at the trot. While posting looks easy, it's actually very difficult to learn and usually takes a few tries to find the rhythm. He actually did really well at his first lesson, especially considering he was riding a 3 year old horse! Of course, I told him that we could ride together if he would spring for another mustang ;) 

Walking Calvin around after our lesson.

I call Calvin my 4x4 horse because he's great off road! He loves climbing hills, or really anything you point him toward. Here they are trying to navigate the terrain.

 Even when we're just hand walking he enjoys paving his own trail. You can clearly see where he's supposed to be walking (same path Heidi is on) when compared to where he was actually walking. This is how he rides on the majority of trails, sometimes he'll just veer off up a hill or onto the side of the trail before I even know what's happening. By the way, horses make great hiking companions because when you get tired, you can always ride back ;) 

The Horse's Hoof

As most of you probably know, I'm now a huge barefoot proponent with horses. This is after years of riding horses in steel horse shoes, but now that I've done my research I have changed my ways.

Mustang horses have notoriously good feet and can go barefoot easier than most horses (typically). Years of evolution have created a hoof that is very versatile. That's not to say that domestic horses can't go barefoot! Many horses have proven that they can go barefoot, even horses with notoriously difficult hooves like Thoroughbreds.

I've caught a lot of flack from other riders and non-riders alike for not using horseshoes, some people even saying it's cruel. "Would you want to run around barefoot?" they say. To which I reply, "No, but I wouldn't want metal shoes on all day either!" I then usually explain how different horse's feet are then humans, but by that point people have stopped listening. They are right in one respect, pulling off a horses shoes and expecting the horse to then go over all types of terrain barefoot is cruel! This is why any decent barefoot trimmer will tell you that you need to transition your horse to barefoot: going from shoes, to hoof boots all the time, to hoof boots only when riding, to hoof boots only over harder terrain, etc.

The problem is going back to barefoot from shoes isn't easy. I never dealt with this transition with Calvin, he was born barefoot and stayed that way, hence he was able to develop healthy tissue early in life. Going from shoes, one has to buy hoof boots and put them on every time they ride.This is difficult as many people are used to just getting on and riding like they would with shoes. It's much more convenient to use shoes, until your horse throws a shoe and you can't ride anymore until the farrier comes.

Calvin's feet weren't sore, but he has feet that flare out due to stress likes these. The hooves in the picture are more extreme than Calvin's, but even a mild flare is more prone to chipping and flares (tiny chips on bottom of hoof). A healthy hoof should just be straight up and down like this picture. As you can see, this hoof is fairly straight on the outsides without flaring. Since he has flares, I've had to take a rasp (basically a huge metal nail file) and file down any chips on a tri-weekly basis. This is more work than most people are willing to put in, but I'm committed to having him have healthy feet.

The key is that barefoot is healthier for horses and as others have said, "horses aren't born with steel on their feet." The hoof is meant to naturally expand and contract. You can see here that in rubber shoes from Easycare, the hoof can flex naturally, this wouldn't happen with steel. The hoof also has blood circulated throughout due to this natural flexion. So when shoes are placed on the hoof, the feet become rigid and lose circulation. Here is a thermograph shown of a horse with 3 barefoot hooves and one with steel, want to guess which one has the horseshoe? That's right, the darker leg. When we shoe horses, we mess with their entire circulatory system. Not to mention that it's been found that walking a shod horse on pavement has more concussion than trotting a barefoot horse on pavement!

All of these have confirmed that barefoot is the way to stay. Others are catching on too, there have been some racehorse breeders who have realized that barefoot leads to a healthier and faster horse. Same with jumping, dressage, western, and of course endurance. Most major competitions require that horses have shoes and until the rules change, a serious competitor cannot compete completely barefoot.

So since you lovely readers made it through that huge rant, I give you some very cool videos to watch! the first video shows the amount of concussion in shod hooves (be sure to look at how much the hoof travels once landed, crazy!). The second video shows barefoot hoof concussion. Decide for yourself which looks more detrimental to the horse.

New Hoof Boots!

My trimmer said that if Calvin started to show tenderness from walking on rocks, then he should wear hoof boots. Hoof boots are rubber boots that you put over the horses hoof. Unlike steel shoes, the rubber gives and allows the horses' foot to flex and expand like going barefoot, yet protects them against stone bruises when going over harsh terrain. It would be like when we walk on rocks and show a bit of tenderness, that is what I was looking for in riding Calvin barefoot on rocks, just being more choosy when he walks. I had not seen any tenderness on many surfaces, I could ride him over pavement, arena, dirt, grass, small rocks, and even gravel without him flinching. It wasn't until my ride on Trail A that I noticed him being more choosey when he walked, mainly because the entire trail looks like this:

This is what the trail looks like for the entire uphill ride

Example of gravel that doesn't make him sore and as you can see, he's barefoot without any complaints.

Once at the top it isn't as rocky and you can ride for a long ways. But we did not go very far as it was so hot today.

Panorama from the top of the hill

Here are his new shoes! They are called Renegade Hoof Boots and the endurance people really enjoy them for their horses. You should see the stuff they climb, Calvin and I don't do them justice. Don't they look shnazzy? I only got them in the front feet as he's more tender with those, but I should get them for the backs too. Otherwise he might overcompensate with his front feet and could potentially injure himself.

Renegade hoof boots in yellow!

Bottom of hoof boot with tread and frog cushion

Calvin didn't really even notice he had boots on and I couldn't tell the difference in how he went. Here are some videos from me testing them out in the arena at the trot and canter (props to my mom for the great camera work!). On another note, he has learned so much in a short amount of time. He's much better in the bridle and is starting to learn that riding by himself isn't the end of the world. He still goes like a baby, not really sure where to put his feet and how to balance himself + a rider. Password is "calvin".

Trotting with boots from Megan M on Vimeo.

Cantering with Boots from Megan M on Vimeo.

New Roommate

As I mentioned in one of my last posts, I was frustrated with Calvin not being able to eat his fill due to being with two fat and bossy mares. I was able to convince the barn manager that Calvin needed to eat more and that I wanted to move him in with another horse named Graf. Graf has been getting extra hay alongside his cubes so I thought that would be perfect for Calvin since he'd get extra hay as well.

So I moved him this Monday into this pasture. While it's a smaller pasture, it's more flat so he actually has more space to really run. Also, he has horses on both sides of him and only has Graf in his pasture due to it being a 2 horse pasture. I talked to Graf's owner and she was fine with free-feeding hay in a hay net too, so now they can eat whenever they want! 

I moved Calvin in and at first, they sniffed noses and then ignored each other. Well, on the left side of the pasture there's a mare and Graf think he's a stallion. So he then started to chase Calvin away from the mare and really the bottom half of the pasture. Hopefully they establish hierarchy soon so that they can become buddies, but in the meantime Calvin is getting put in his place. As one of the boarders put it, "this will teach Calvin to become a man" haha. 

Here's Calvin visiting with the horses on the right of his pasture. These are the two Tennessee Walkers that we rode with. This one is Wicked and behind, who you can barely see, is Snickers. 

I like to think Calvin kind of enjoyed getting chased around, here's a picture of him prancing with his tail up!

I was watching Graf chase Calvin and decided to snap some video! You can watch herd dynamics in action, not to mention watch how beautifully Calvin moves. The good thing about a Mustang is that he grew up around horses, so he really knows how to read their body language. Due to this, he's pretty good at avoiding getting hurt (i.e. bitten and kicked). At the beginning, you'll even hear him snort...he got pretty hyper. The password is "calvin", Enjoy! PS If you're wondering about that thing on Graf's head, it's a fly mask to keep flies out of their ears and eyes.

Group Trail Ride (edited)

EDIT: I published this yesterday but not all my changes were saved. If you previously read this post and wondered why it was written poorly and/or didn't make sense, this is (hopefully) why. Let's hope the changes work this time!

I signed up for a group trail ride this Sat. This ride is popular because they open up the wilderness preserve a few times a year for a guided trail. The trails that are usually blocked with fences are opened briefly for guided tours. Why they offer guided tours a couple times a year, yet won't let us ride on it all the time is beyond me.

 

Anyway there were 15 of us total, a very new experience for Calvin. In the beginning, Calvin was excited and pretty amped up to get going, prancing in place and more alert. Once we headed out, he started to calm down and walk nicely. This was a great experience for him because it got him used to having lots of horses near him. He could hear them way in front and also way behind us and out of sight. I could tell that he was listening all around and would stare off in the distance, trying to understand what was going on. He was very well behaved on trail and preferred to stay in the middle. This surprised me as I figured he'd rather go in the back and walk slower. I told someone this and they mentioned that in the wild, the ones in the back were more likely to get caught by a predator, so the middle was the safest place. This made sense to me.

 Can't you see how the horses are ruining the environment? (sarcasm). Not to mention these are fire roads that the police patrol in cars and on horseback.

Going uphill means that it's harder to keep up!

As I mentioned, he was very well behaved on trail, but once we got back to the barn, different story! Once back at the barn, we stood around trying to figure out what to do next. Should we continue riding? Or should we call it a day? Well Calvin decided his own fate when he saw horses leaving and tried to run after them. Not only did he run, he leapt and bucked trying to keep up. By some miracle I managed to stay on and not get beheaded by tree branches or launched into a tree! As mentioned before, his biggest hangup is that he's herd-sour and worried that he will be left behind. So I managed to stop him and made him trot in circles. Every time he tried to run home, I would make him turn in a circle and work. Eventually, he learned that running doesn't work and ultimately means more work for him. The good thing is that he didn't "win" and learn that running home does work and hey, maybe I'll do this all the time! That's not what we want. So while trotting him in circles takes patience and more work, it will pay off in the long-term.

 "Hmm, this looks like a great time to run toward home!"

Someone mentioned that they enjoyed horses with life and exuberance. Saying that horses that just go along calmly are boring. I replied by saying that I wouldn't mind calm and boring right now! Riding a baby is always exciting!