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Me too -
although horseless now and have been for a while and don't see one in my life any time soon (but I have a new fascination with the Norwegian Fjords super cute love the punk rocker mane).
I grew up loving and ridding horses ended up taking lesson at the Golden Gate Park Ridding Academy (in San Francisco, CA) and focused on dressage and trail rode for fun.
I often compare ridding skills to Schutzhund handling skills. For one thing posture & body positioning can either really help or really hurt the general appearance and over all performance. For another my nerves - I choke - some times before the horses were even loaded in the trailer, so I use my past negative mental state to calm and focus me on what I now am prepared to do.
I got a divorce in '03 and immediately found someone I could lease a horse from, it was great until the owner sold the mare and gave me her "filly" as replacement. I quickly learned that my body was slower and did not recover quite as quickly as it did in the past (plus weather in MN sucks and there are no beaches to go galloping down).
I have family friend in NoCal who owned a cattle ranch, and I convinced my teachers and family to let me go stay there for 3 weeks to learn "stable management & animal husbandry" it was one of the most memorable experiences of my life. Not to get off of horses but rather a tie in to dogs, that was the first time I had seen dogs work cattle it was amazing.
Previous horse owner, trainer & breeder. Started with hunter/jumpers as a kid, then on to western pleasure Quarter Horses as a young adult and then on to Paso Finos in my 30's because my husband has a bad back and they are gaited horses- VERY smooth. I wasn't cut out for the breeding part, so that didn't last long at all- wanted to keep them all and no home was good enough. No longer own or train horses because life got too complicated and priorites changed- caring for elderly parents and two sisters with disabilities. I sold my horses to good homes about 7 years ago and haven't had a chance to look back. THat's about the time I gave up Schutzhund as well. Now I just own 2 rescue dogs who are nothing more than pets, one GSD (soon to be a therapy dog) and one Shiloh. One day, I sure hope to get back into dog sports if my life ever slows down. I really do miss it.
Char
I have always loved Arabs, here I am on my Arab stud, (Russian Arab, grandson of Abdullah).
Now I work with standardbreds. This is the very first Standardbred I owned and trained myself. He is still racing in Nova Scotia. He was also a stud. I like them the best. Big Decision was his name. I couldn't be without a horse or GSD.
I've had horses as well, since I was 9 yrs old. Started out with high-strung Am. Saddlebreds, went through about all the riding breeds, but have now settled on the calm, smooth-gaited Tenn. Walkers. They are such a pleasure to ride, especially since I'm a bit older!! Did a little breeding with them as well, but I too wanted to keep them all, so now only do occasional trail-riding.
Was into horses for over twenty years. Roped calves for about 15 yrs including PRCA, trained horses for the public for many years, trained and showed reining horses for several years in AQHA and NRHA, worked for a cutting horse trainer for a short while, started horses for a couple large cattle ranches for a few years and showed once in working cowhorse. Limited experience with Paso Finos (took care of several for a few years) and started a few western pleasure Arabs for a bigtime trainer.
As well as keeping Dogs and being under 10 stones in weight 137 lb riding weight in my younger days i learned to ride horses at a young age then i was asked by several Top Trainers to go in as an apprentice Steeple chase Jockey in there stables too heavy for flat racing
I turned them all down , probably a big mistake But i rode out training the Steeple chasers for the them for about 10 years on a Sunday, Jumped many of the top Steeplechase Courses in the UK, also did a bit of Show jumping did okay, and a bit of fancy Dressage, In between except for a time away from home, i trained in Martial Arts for 10 years with one old guy until injury stopped me, and raced Pigeons all my life 60 years except as for the break mentioned above, run in 4 marathons so a good life in sports, and have owned Dogs for 64 years
Steve1
Been into horses for almost 50 years (geez where has the time gone???!!) Did pretty much all of it english style - hunters, equitation, jumpers, eventing, fox hunting (now there's a crazy bunch of people!!!...), dressage. Worked for one of the Olympic dressage riders for a while. Been around mainly throughbreds (track and show horses), and warmbloods of every description (I really think they just make up some of those breeds...). Grew up with the dogs, so they've all gone hand in hand. Right now, I have a 2 coming 3 year old TB who's got Storm Cat and Forty Niner in his lines - very bright, smartass, realllll nice little horse-won't race (has a slightly crooked leg) but will make a super show horse - he's a rose roan with white-very pretty. My "heart" horse is my big ole paint. He's a rescue (he was left in a pasture to die). Was a pony horse, put in his years of hard work (Shelly, you know the kind of beating those horses take)then dumped. I've nursed him back to health- he's the coolest animal - he's mostly white with chesnut patches and ice blue eyes. The best is that he's a medicine hat!!! I call him my old lady horse... . I've been doing the dogs and the horses for so long that I'm looking for new things to try. I've started doing herding (my neighbor has sheep and does Border Collies and is an expert at it) with my pup - what a riot. She thinks this is the best thing since sliced bread! And she is a wiz at it. It's cool to see the deep genetics kick in. I'm also going to try my boy-he seems interested... With the horses, what I would love to do next is driving but I need to get back working to afford the equipment and the horses(well, the large ponies). Right now that's on a back burner...
Fly
I have been ridding my horses and dogs together for over 20 years. I live in Wyoming so to take a trail ride out my back door is very easy for me. I ride my Paso's and have a pack up to 5 dogs with me. The key is not to have a rodeo, have your dogs chase deer, elk, or antelope while you are ridding. So this brings me to training dogs and horses together as a team. I think both dog and horse training have changed dramatically in the last 30 years and the techniques are very similar in very many ways. Also, I will take it one step further. I ride in the summer 4 times a week so the dogs have to be in good shape but also have the right conformation to keep up. I just love when I am in a corto(trot) and the dogs are right beside me and we are traveling down the two track together and you can see the right conformation doing it's work!!That is when the training comes together that they are not going for the horses flank, you can control the dogs with voice command and the horses do not freak out when sometimes you have the shepherds right on the horses heels. Everything comes full cirlcle!!
Jill Straley
I have noticed that many of the best women trainers/handlers in schutzhund have a background in horses. I truly believe that equestrian background gives them a leg up.
I have never owned a horse. I loved them "in theory" as an inner city kid who read all aboit them, learned to identify breeds (in books) and begged for an Arabian stallion. I even had a name picked out for my dapple-grey Arabian: Smoke Rings. I learned about the Lippizans and my principle was so impressed that I was allowed out of school a month early to go to Detroit to see them perform. Then.. when I was ten, I finally saw a real, live horse up close. Those things are HUGE!!! Scared me to death!! I do not understand why a herbivore needs to have such BIG TEETH. I am still afraid of them. Never rode one. Scared to even feed one an apple. :-) But, I still love to watch them and will always watch the competition from Spruce Meadows on tv, as well as the Olympic equestrian events. Love to watch them --won't get near them.
LOL Mystere - horses are the most gentle, people-friendly and interactive creatures there are - maybe right along with dolphins. Their size commands respect, yes - but with proper respect from both horse and human, it is rare to have more of an accident when "meeting one" than an occasional toe stepped on (and that would be the humans fault). A horse that bites with a vicious intent is extremely rare - and a horse that kicks a human from meanness is also extremely unlikely. Keeping in mind they are a large prey animal, and can kick/bite when frightened - as a reaction to fear or pain or confusion or all of these put together, you should go meet your first horse, give it an apple (or one small bit of grass) you will be amazed at the gentle intelligent creature you are interacting with, and be a better person for the experience. Horses are so special, I hope you take the opportunity to allow one into your life, even if it's just meeting one over the fence.
molly
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