I know that PPE’s don’t always go the right way, hence my being all mysterious about the potential creature until it’s over and the verdict is in. I’ve also allowed myself to keep [casually] looking at horses online as well, though nothing is quite tugging at my heart strings in the same way said creature is.

However, I came across a rather sweet mare that caught my eye. Her unusual color, nice front end, and let’s not even mention that tail. Even though she doesn’t quite fit what I’ve been looking for, I couldn’t help thinking that this sweet horse looks like a really cool cat who deserves an amazing home.

Since I have no exciting update that I can actually talk about right now, I figured today’s post may better serve the general horse community by spreading the news about a nice looking pony who needs a new human. For more details, check out her listing with the Equine Welfare Society here.

What is it about a horse that makes them the one for you? Do they just fall into your lap? Do you just know when you see them for the first time? Or does it take spending time with them or in the saddle to know if it’s the right decision?

Like I’ve said before, I think horse shopping is a lot like dating. Sometimes you know when it’s a clear ‘no’ (cue Meghan Trainor), and sometimes it’s a ‘yes’ (but don’t we all make mistakes sometimes?), and sometimes, of course, it’s a ‘maybe’. Just like I would probably swoon if Adam Levine came up and swept me off my feet, but that doesn’t mean he’s the right match for me in the long run. So what is it that makes it clear to us when we really have met our four-legged other half?

I don’t have a good answer, but I’m hoping I’ve found it. I’ve got a pre-purchase exam scheduled for next week, and I’m daydreaming that this is the answer I’ve been looking for. Keep your fingers crossed.

I had a lovely, horse-stuffed weekend of visiting friends and getting to share some amazing moments with them.

Other moments from the weekend, while amazing, were, let’s just say, and little more of the jaw-dropping nature:

That would be a three year old Irish Sport Horse gelding having a rather rambunctious moment, at my poor mother’s expense. If I seem nonchalant, standing there watching, its only because it happened so quickly that I don’t think anyone really had time to react. Sorry, mum! Needless to say, even though in reality this gelding was a sweet and talented horse, we decided it was likely a bad omen that he nearly stomped my mother to death. Pass.

In other equine developments, I will hopefully have some kind of news to share next week, so stay tuned. And if you want to see the whole video of the dramatic moment posted above, check out instagram.

Many of you have seen by now that the Chronicle of the Horse picked up my ISO ad after it started gaining attention in the couple facebook groups I posted it in (Eventing Horses for sale & Dressage Horses for Sale). At last glance it has garnered almost 900 likes and over 70 shares between the various groups- needless to say it’s been the most “viral” content published on this blog.

Since initially posting my ad on facebook, I’ve received dozens of horse suggestions in the comments of the ads and in my inbox. Some were truly amazing offers that were hard to turn down (really really hard to turn down), others were not so difficult to politely veto. Most of them 15h mares. Not that there is anything wrong with 15h mares, but when you’re looking for a 15.3h+ gelding, they don’t exactly meet the requirements. Then of course there were the droolworthy horses that meant every requirement, and their owners just stopped by to dangle the carrot in front of me with a “Oh, well, if your budget was only 4 times as big…”. I’m exaggerating. Sort of. Not really.

Dangling aside, it’s been really something to once again be thrilled by the equestrian community. To have complete strangers share my post and support me in my search is something I never dreamed would happen. To have friends left, right, and center shoot me suggestion horses is damn near delightful, and I have definitely followed through in going to look at a couple of them. To have people reach out and relate to having to retire a loved partner and live through that anguish with you is truly humbling. Horsepeople in general may be a crazy ass bunch, but man, they have heart.

So I suppose I just want to say thank you again, because I am so grateful for all of you going on this crazy, hilarious, sparkle and fairy dusted hunt for the perfect unicorn. Thanks for making this such an adventure, and I hope you’ll stick around for the ride. Happy weekend, y’all.

Yesterday I went to look at a completely different type of horse- an unstarted three year old warmblood gelding.

Looking at babies varies from looking at horses under saddle. It requires channeling your inner tween, in that you have to look past the horsey equivalent of pubescent pimples and gangly legs and envision the future Brad Pitt within, but also be very adult about the process, in this case stuffing the “ermahgerd baby poneh” response temporarily into your back pocket.

Former baby

When looking at youngstock, brain still reigns king. A tractable disposition is everything to me, and so its even more important to see those ground manners and basic abilities- being caught from a field, lead around, cross tied, picking up feet, etc. In addition to this, I also want to see how the baby reacts to new and different stimuli. Yesterday, we used body clippers. I’m watching carefully to see what the horse’s instinct is- is it turn and flee? stomp this dangerous buzzing beastie to death and human be damned? or stand still but do its best dragon impersonation? Especially because I want to compete at new venues, and event, a bit of bravery, or at least sensibility, is key.

Collective marks for Second Level Test 1

Besides all these little but important tests, it’s also helpful to see them move. Sweet and smart and sensible is nice, but there are plenty of other scores in the collective section besides “Submission”. So getting the baby out and trotting, watching them walk, and seeing their canter is all going to indicate whether or not a young horse is a suitable prospect for any sporthorse goals. The trot should have active hocks, the canter should have a reaching hind leg, and the walk should be 4 beat and true. Moving like a junkyard robot is probably not the best attribute for your future dressage horse.

The last thing to consider, and this applies to looking at any horse, is your gut. As silly and sentimental as it sounds, I put a lot of stock in this. When I look at a horse, does my heart go trip-a-trap? Do I feel in my gut that this is a good match? If I’m going to pull out my checkbook, being a bit twitterpated is a must- goodness knows there will be plenty of good and bad days ahead as you learn and grow together, so always best to start from a place of love and gushy good feelings.

Overall, the process of horse shopping is a balance of emotion and logic. Not unlike dating, you’re looking for a longtime partner that you will invest your blood, sweat, and tears (not to mention a hella lot of money) into, so you do your best to choose the right one.

So this past weekend I put my toe in the waters of horse shopping for the first time in 5 years. And boy, did I just in head first- 4 ponies to try on the first day. In respect to the sellers’ interests and privacy, I won’t talk specifics, but I’d like to share what the overall experience is like as I progress through this journey.

First, these were all riding horses. As such, it’s important to me to see them worked by their typical rider before I get on. In a perfect world, with any horse, I want to see them brought in from the field, cross tied, groomed and tacked up in front of me. You never know if a horse is girthy, or hates currying, runs away in the field, or is a beast to pick up his hooves (or all of the above), so I like to see the process from the very start. But in this case, there wasn’t time, and all the horses we looked at were in and cross tied and ready to go.

All the horses were ridden by their person, walk, trot, canter, and over fences, since all of these horses also happened to be started jumping. There was one candidate that I immediately just didn’t feel was for me, but the rest I opted to hop on myself.

The first horse that I got on, I won’t lie to you, I was nervous as hell. I was about to ride a strange horse, in front of strange people (there were about 5-6 people watching besides my friend), for the first time since my last Intercollegiate Dressage test in 2009. I must have been holding my breath or something, because I was out of breath in minutes. I walked, trotted, and cantered around the arena on a sweet little guy that felt really safe, if green, and then opted to take some baby cross rails. First test ride – officially in the books.

Feb 2012

The next two horses went much the same, but for whatever reason I wasn’t out of breath. All three horses were completely different types of rides from each other, one forward, one tense, one well schooled powerhouse. Each one I felt a little more confident riding, that I could attempt to push a little bit more, ask a little bit more and explore what each horse had to offer. Now this may not be unique in itself, since each horse also was more and more schooled, but it was definitely a helpful experience.

On the drive home we spent the hours discussing the pros and cons of each horse, and talking about the process of trying horses. Even though my checkbook stayed intact, it was an important day, and showed me that I could get out and try horses and be semi-competent, if not entirely confident. Later today I go take a look at a different kind of horse, which I’ll share tomorrow!