ClickMini said:
Leia did forget one part of the story...when he locked up I didn't give him to her on the spot; in fact I said I couldn't sell him to her in light of all of the trouble and angst she'd suffered with Kody. I wanted her to get a really good horse so that she could drive and do what she is good at. We talked about it at length, and I finally said I would give him to her, but wouldn't sell.
That is very true. It was funny how quickly you and I changed roles...first you wanted me to take him and I wasn't that interested, then he locked up and suddenly you refused to consider selling him to me and I'm sitting there going "Hey, if ANYONE around here knows what she's getting into with a horse who locks it's me! Don't tell me I can't have him if I decide I want him!" *LOL* I figured if he was going to go to someone it might as well be me as I'm already used to dealing with UFP and I've got bigger paddocks and more time to work with him.
ClickMini said:
When he locked up leaving his stall that day, I about had a heart attack.
Yes, yes you did.
I seem to recall a four-letter word being uttered rather emphatically as well.
I remember eying that back leg with increasing suspicion as he hesitated to move and thinking "You have got to be kidding me." Out loud: "Amy?" Silence. "Amy?" Silence. "Amy, your horse is locking up." "WHAT?!?!"
BannerBrat said:
What a sweetie Leia,What's his personality like?
Are you planning to bring him up and compete him as you have Kody?
Please update us on both of the little beggers!
And of course your big guy too.
I will! Now that I'm free to talk about him and show pix I'll be updating LB much more regularly as they're always up to something amusing.
As far as his personality, I have to admit that I don't know him as well as I feel I should after six months. Kody takes a lot of my time for rehab and that means Turbo and I haven't gotten much quality time but that will hopefully change with the longer days of spring. Testosterone is beginning to take over but from what I saw before that his basic personality is very sweet and trusting. He's certainly laid back! Very few things spook him at all and if he does spook he whirls and then turns around to face you again almost immediately. At Amy's he was very submissive to other horses and rarely moved on his own. I don't know if it's puberty, the high-energy grain I supplemented his feed with to make him a bit more active or what but here he has gotten increasingly energetic and can now be found at most hours of the day running laps and playing with one thing or another in his paddock. He's gained a lot of confidence through our daily free-play exercises and seems to have taken my extremely Alpha Boys as role models, learning to play with things and other horses with much more initiative. He's very smart and learns quickly but has a thing about defensive kicking that we"re working on. I get the feeling he has a lot of heart and will probably be pretty forward but it's hard to tell more than that at this stage.
I have to admit it's a relief having one horse on the property who isn't a born leader!
We've tried having another alpha mini here and it was like the clash of the Titans. Neither one was ever going to admit defeat and Kody would have kept fighting for leadership until it killed him. Turbo challenges him and gets uppity but at the end of the night it's Kody who dictates who moves.
I'm looking forward to getting T-Bo out to some AMHA/R shows this year for a little one-on-one time to see how he responds to different situations.
As for his future, yes, he'll be trained to drive for both CDE and registry shows. He already frames himself up like a winning Country Pleasure horse so I'm a little torn about teaching him to reach down but this is a horse who does not naturally use his rear end and I think he's going to need that training to be as powerful as he could be for CDE and roadster. It means his success in the breed ring will be a bit delayed but hopefully it will be worth it in the end. He'll be introduced to long lining this year whenever he shows me he's ready and will do some AMHR shows and light schooling events at Happ's as a three year old, then at four he can hit the CDE's officially. A lot of things are in flux until I see what he's mentally ready for but those are the plans right now. He is also going to be my tandem wheeler behind Mr. Kody, and if I'm very lucky and Kody gets back to pulling weight I plan to make a pair of them. Their natural movement doesn't match in any way but the personalities and bodies work and when they go together all I hear is one horse. We'll have to see if that's enough.
Turbo will definitely do more in the breed ring than Kody as he's got the movement and the type to succeed there while Kody's niche was always combined driving.
Leia
