I've been looking for a while now, although I haven't sold Charlie yet. I really didn't like the idea of Mattie being left alone, even though my YO offered to let him in with her old boys, and YO also said it would be fine for me to have 3 for a little while. So, as I say, I've been looking. Shopping list was:
14.2 - 15.1 up to weight (I'm not that heavy but I have friends who are!)
Established riding horse for pleasure hacking and me to have lessons on. Not under 7 or over 15.
Pleasant on the ground, easy to do
Generally no stress.
I tell you, finding a horse like that is like finding a needle in a haystack. I've booked to see 3 and have them sold before my turn came, called about horses advertised POA to find they were beyond my(really quite respectable) budget, and today was the first horse I've actually got to meet. My message enquiring about horses went to the yard on Monday and he had just arrived. The dealer called me and I arranged to see him today.
Here's the horse in question. His name is Mike. For God's sake!
Not me on him. I have a picture of me on him, but I haven't ridden for 2.5 years and I am ashamed of my position (and my girth) so I'm not publishing those!
He is 12 years old. He came from Ireland as a youngster, worked in a riding school for a couple of years, and since then has been with a family - their hacking, local show all round horse. The dad lost his job recently and they had to sell him and a local dealer snapped him up.
The good: he has a good physique
and a good step, a nice long walk. The dealer's rider, shown on him, got a perfectly workmanlike walk, trot and canter out of him in the school, though she admitted that getting him to maintain a spanking trot took a lot of leg!
He is not wide to ride although his chest and backside are immense. In fact he is less wide than Ziggy!
He is as steady as a rock and feels as safe as houses. I took him out for a 15 minute hack on our own and he tested me by trying to eat (once) and trying to turn back to the yard (once) but I told him no and he didn't try again. He walked and trotted nicely. I couldn't get canter: but I am very, very out of practice and he rides so differently from Ziggy I was honestly unsure of how to ask, and his big easy walk and trot instilled me with tremendous confidence. He's like riding a sofa. Before I got off him I did a Round The World and he didn't move a muscle.
He's nice to handle, polite and easy, though he puts his ears back when you first come into his stable. He's no oil painting, but he has a kind eye (and a moustache):
The not so good: I think he's a bit lazy, or at least dead to the leg, but my RI listened to me babble for half an hour this evening and reassured me that being dead to the leg is common in ex-RS horses and he can be retrained. Also he has scabby bits in the feathers of his right front leg. Also, when you ask him to change pace, he puts his head up and/or down as if he's not happy. I think he may need the dentist, and my RI said she thought he might have learned the behaviour from people pulling hard to stop him (totally unnecessary - he stops on a whisker and a Whoa).
I struggled to say Yes because my image of myself as horsewoman is a sort of centaur sitting on a beautiful curvetting beast. But I am 60 now and overweight and I don't bounce, and talking to my RI made me realise that what I really want is a safe horse to wander around and look at the scenery from, and I think Mike can do that job very well.
He's being vetted next week. Cross fingers. I am going to go the vetting and volunteer to ride him for the vet.
Mike? Mike?! Surely we can do better than that for a name. Captain? Trojan? Really, anything but Mike...
14.2 - 15.1 up to weight (I'm not that heavy but I have friends who are!)
Established riding horse for pleasure hacking and me to have lessons on. Not under 7 or over 15.
Pleasant on the ground, easy to do
Generally no stress.
I tell you, finding a horse like that is like finding a needle in a haystack. I've booked to see 3 and have them sold before my turn came, called about horses advertised POA to find they were beyond my(really quite respectable) budget, and today was the first horse I've actually got to meet. My message enquiring about horses went to the yard on Monday and he had just arrived. The dealer called me and I arranged to see him today.
Here's the horse in question. His name is Mike. For God's sake!
Not me on him. I have a picture of me on him, but I haven't ridden for 2.5 years and I am ashamed of my position (and my girth) so I'm not publishing those!
He is 12 years old. He came from Ireland as a youngster, worked in a riding school for a couple of years, and since then has been with a family - their hacking, local show all round horse. The dad lost his job recently and they had to sell him and a local dealer snapped him up.
The good: he has a good physique
and a good step, a nice long walk. The dealer's rider, shown on him, got a perfectly workmanlike walk, trot and canter out of him in the school, though she admitted that getting him to maintain a spanking trot took a lot of leg!
He is not wide to ride although his chest and backside are immense. In fact he is less wide than Ziggy!
He is as steady as a rock and feels as safe as houses. I took him out for a 15 minute hack on our own and he tested me by trying to eat (once) and trying to turn back to the yard (once) but I told him no and he didn't try again. He walked and trotted nicely. I couldn't get canter: but I am very, very out of practice and he rides so differently from Ziggy I was honestly unsure of how to ask, and his big easy walk and trot instilled me with tremendous confidence. He's like riding a sofa. Before I got off him I did a Round The World and he didn't move a muscle.
He's nice to handle, polite and easy, though he puts his ears back when you first come into his stable. He's no oil painting, but he has a kind eye (and a moustache):
The not so good: I think he's a bit lazy, or at least dead to the leg, but my RI listened to me babble for half an hour this evening and reassured me that being dead to the leg is common in ex-RS horses and he can be retrained. Also he has scabby bits in the feathers of his right front leg. Also, when you ask him to change pace, he puts his head up and/or down as if he's not happy. I think he may need the dentist, and my RI said she thought he might have learned the behaviour from people pulling hard to stop him (totally unnecessary - he stops on a whisker and a Whoa).
I struggled to say Yes because my image of myself as horsewoman is a sort of centaur sitting on a beautiful curvetting beast. But I am 60 now and overweight and I don't bounce, and talking to my RI made me realise that what I really want is a safe horse to wander around and look at the scenery from, and I think Mike can do that job very well.
He's being vetted next week. Cross fingers. I am going to go the vetting and volunteer to ride him for the vet.
Mike? Mike?! Surely we can do better than that for a name. Captain? Trojan? Really, anything but Mike...
for a successful vetting 
. I completely agree with your RI about it being possible to retrain, and often teaching them to maintain pace and be more responsive isn't even that hard as long as you mean it and are consistent. You're unlikely to turn him into a "let's go mum!" pony who's always looking to go up a gear, but then if that was what you wanted you'd have looked at hot cobs to begin with. He sounds like you could have a lot of fun with him, and start having it straight away rather than having a lot of work to do with Charlie x
)