buckskin mare slow warm up

A windy day
pushing through a bit of fussing from Grace;
wind is a distraction.

Hubby's videos below:

A video of myself is a great way to critique my cues to my horse.
I'm good with this ride this afternoon!

Ziggy Zag back to the end of the line

There is a pecking order with horses

our Ziggy is always the last to have food shared with

and last to drink the water and yet he has been in this

equine herd for 16 years.

I have learned from Ziggy that we are who we

are and he is the most interesting when it comes

to socializing amongst our other horses.

He is all about fun and frolick and is the horse that

actually has blood lines.  Ziggy is very fluid, fast and

athletic and natural at being a cow horse.  He has no calming

walk on trail rides and wants to just go,  Yet....

he is always the outsider when it comes to receiving

oats, hay and going for drinks at the water trough.

 Here he is waiting for Grace to finish her drink.

I thought he would take seniority every time

a new horse comes in to the pasture.

Nope!  He gets bossed around.  

He is the most friendly horse when it comes

to play and pestering the others.  Moving up the

herd ladder is not happening.  He just probably doesn't care

too much about it.

cool pix (literally) on Victoria Day

Excited to pick up just a few petunias

to toughen up until planting weather. 

 Strength, power, vulnerability, beauty as only nature can start popping out for show.

 We want warmth but

we still have nature in its harshness.
 Instant promises of colour to contrast the green of spring

working hard to come through for us.  

so many shades of green for all of our companions

Rocky is aging at 23 years old.   The sway back is very prominent now.
You can see the shades of green in this landscape,

I'm excited!

I Didn't Know I Did This

Ever since I started to ride horses, back in 2002, I  always looked no further than their head and ears. while in the saddle and cueing the horse.

 I wanted to make sure the horse  willingly was walking and moving forward.  I guess I couldn't believe this ride was accepted by my horse.   I had to make sure i was walking....straight not crooked.  Do horses walked crooked? They walk without direction but not crooked.

Do not ride a horse and focus on the top of their head looking down at their ears.  Why?  They need a leader and they need to know you have a direction and plan to take them on this ride they are allowing you to take.  I came upon this statement from a a a facebook friend who just came back from a riding .clinic in Winnipeg.  Her professional horse trainer told her that   "You'll do great just keep looking ahead!" The horses ears are not going to fall off. (got it).

I rode my horse the other night and I did not  look down, I did not ride with my eyes focused on her head and ears.  I kept looking ahead, to our next step,  the next corner.   It was a very solid paced ride because I was telling her what I wanted to do.  Her ears are always attached to her head they will not come off so I do not need to watch them.  lol!  what a good teaching statement!

This sounds so silly!  It's so important.  I can't walk down the street looking at a sidewalk or the ground all the time.  I can tell if I am in trouble just with my quick glances and peripheral vision. Same with riding.  It's important to read the ear position but not to constantly stare at them like the ears are coming unglued.

• must always look ahead 
•  observe as you ride
•  horse's ears communicate
• pointing forward
• or pointing back
• or straight up
• do not focus on the ears as you ride
• look ahead and the horse will know you are looking out for him 
• you are a leader.

Horses often rely on their ears and eyes to communicate with each other, according to a recent study. The animals' eye direction and their large, mobile ears can be used to tell another horse where to direct its attention, which can be beneficial in locating food and avoiding predators.Aug 5, 2014

watch for these angles

VISION

Horses were believed to have poor vision and be short sighted but they actually have very good binocular vision with a tendency towards long vision. It's logical to think that given a horse's wide vision range, they are able to see a rider on their backs however a rider is in the horse's blind spot.

This is going to make my rides more in control and my horse Gracie will know I am the "director" and she can trust me.  When you understand the horse and what their messages are in the pasture then once you saddle up that horse needs to understand your cues and working as a team is what it is all about.

lazy Wednesday morning

Good Day!

Easter was pleasant for all I hope!

I have a new Nikon Cool Pix camera and i am playing around with photos

I can't wait for blooming and green to show more but for this post

it is all gold and brown with some blue sky.  

The horses are eating from a hay bale these days and kept in the small field until our pastures can grow faster.

Ben is having a lay-down.  I rode him for a bit (just slow walking around the arena yesterday)

my friend had cut up a Jicama with celery and carrots and it looks like a potato when peeled and cut. 

It's my new raw veggie favourite.  If you have not tried a Jicama you should!

If you haven't seen this cartoon, here is a " funny" for today.

photo splash memorable adventures

Photo splash to the past and the present,

just events to cherish, here they are....

A ride at our acreage - Swift Current,

with none other than BEN.  Only, if you ride this

horse, will you know how special he is to be on.

I always needed a stool mind you,  to get up onto his back, and hope

when I am out riding that we don't stop  and have to get off

and then get back on; out where there is no stool. I have looked for  many

  boulders and bumps when this happens so I can leg up  and get back on

(LOL) 

Motherwell Homestead in-between Yorkton

and Regina.

This was an experience and scary to see these men

get this thresher running.  How dangerous it was for

those farmers to operate this.  They did get it running too!

My cowboy boots (Ariats) I bought in Bozeman, MT
in 2007 got an overhaul and I bronzed them with bronze spray paint
  and painted
a bit of the design.  I will keep these forever, and hopefully someone will
throw them in my coffin (morbid but thats what I want)

this Christmas season I realized that
Tom is a genius with puzzles he did this 1000
piece puzzle in 5 days - it is glued together now and we will
frame it!  this was such a gift I had no idea it would
be put together that fast and it is a beautiful picture.
Thanks son!

We live 5 miles from a world renowned Strawberry
farm called Prairie Dome Strawberry Farm (look it up it is worth a trip)  and they take you for a ride on the big
open ended wagons to your area of picking.  Was enjoyable!

My dad gave me this letter that he found in one
of his photo albums as I wrote this to my
Grandma when I was 10 years old while at a summer camp.
(I think I was homesick a bit.  I was only away for 7 days)

My husband (Brian) made a new bed frame for our
master bedroom bed.  It was a new challenge and he
worked at it diligently.  I am staining it here in this picture.
I was impressed!

One of my most dearest moments; Tom and I and Brian went for
a ride through the back hills at our Swift Current acreage during the holidays season in (guessing maybe 2009)
Tom can ride but his interest is not really that developed but he has gone
on a few rides with us.  He rode Rocky and I must of been on Ben and Brian on
the colt at the time maybe Leroy.

Good Spirit Lake in April 2016
beautiful white sands and a lovely
clean lake for swimming and it has barely
changed since we used to go as a family
with my mom and dad.  We always treasure
this spot and attend it several times in the summer!

Oh my this was so thrilling to see a sea turtle while
we were walking around the rocks at the Big Island in Hawaii
Special moment for me.   They are so big!

Riding with the Top Line Trail Riding Club
at Sask. Landing and we were on the very highest ridge
I'm the second in line and Brian is the 2nd last rider.
One of our riders walked quite a ways up the other coulee
hill to get this photo.! (I was a bit nervous but I had Rocky and he
is the best trail riding horse, he is steady and sure)

Parkland Therapeutic Riding Club in Yorkton year end
party;  the clients/kids got to paint this white horse
I have never seen that done before and this horse was amazing!
He was tied on each side of his bridle in the middle of the
horse barn so the kids could paint away.

This was exciting ! Tom was getting his puppets spruced up
and perfected for his first Art Gallery Exhibit at the South West Open
He had 5 life size paper mâché video game characters on display at the local art gallery in the
exhibition grounds..... this was
July 2016.  His puppets are in this exhibit every year now.

 My folks came up to see his exhibit
and that was pretty special for me and Tom having my parents come see his success in the
art genre.!

This was a blast and having our acreage to have a fireworks
celebration was so exciting.  We bought the fireworks at Canadian
Tire and set them up down our lane.  What a Hoot!

Myan Riveiria in Mexico!
This was the most wonderful
ocean I have ever swam in.
Loved this swim, this ocean....I truly
felt I was in heaven for about 30 minutes.....
will never forget!  The universe was aligning up with
me at that time, I know it.  I said an amazing prayer to God.  It was January
last year and it can be a hard month.... (sigh)

Okay this was so cute, I helped Brian do the chores for our

neighbour back in November and she (our neighbour) had at this time 30 goats or so.  We watered and

gave them some feed and I took this video.  They are crazy busy and cute and

a bit noisy when excited.  Our neighbour loves goats and makes homemade soap bars using

goat milk.  This was a unique experience.

Horse back riding in Hawaii on the Big Island!
So loved this it was so beautiful and serene and different
landscape.

That's all for now folks!
Happy New Year!

those moments

These are horse videos and horse experiences from several years ago

bareback on Rocky first time
back at SC acreage

GNP (grasslands national park trail ride)
Brian riding Leroy!

GNP

FORT WORTH, TEXAS 2015

our paint horse Ben came back to our new acreage after being

away for 8 months.  This is my favourite video of all time.

Rocky and Ziggy remember who he is that is for sure.

Schutler is a colt that is co-owned with Brian and his  friend and
it was our turn to train.  But....he developed a couple of sarcoids
that we had to get a vet check on treatment plan for it.

I will add more once I can get them transferred from all the different cell phone

cameras and my digital cameras that I used over the years. 

Herd Leader - look him in the eye

This is the last post on "Look Him In The Eye" 

check out Open Book, Work Horse, Flight Risk 

first instinct with this horse is that he is highly intelligent but not mean, a leader and not a follower,.. “He is totally aware of everything that is going on and doesn’t worry about it."

alot of riders like this “ideal horse,” but you have to work to earn the horse’s respect.

a Quote from the article in Western Horseman...“This gelding had no interest in what I wanted him to do until I established myself as the herd leader. Then, he worked with me but not for me. The shape of his eye—not round, but more shuttered—forebodes that he will challenge any type of forced leadership.”

There is not an overabundance of tissue above the eye, and the few wrinkles are due to age, not worry.
..............

Rocky

Say no more ..... here at Kirkvillle
Rocky is definitely the herd leader and always has been
also a very intelligent and smart horse.  He is very solid
as a horse to ride but definitely you have to let him know
who the boss is and once you establish those grounds
its a lovely horseride!

Mr. Z

our 4 year old colt

is laid back and not concerned too much

{click here for resource article}

Western Horseman - Look Him In The Eye

Work Horse - look him in the eye

Most horses seen will fit into his middle-of-the-road category. The horse is semi-confident but looking for secure leadership. Often, this horse has more wrinkles around the eye and its shape is more oval than the round, open look of the “open book” horse.  This horse is suited for a more experienced rider.

Bruschetta (now named Grace)

This is our mare named Grace here at Kirkville.

She fits into this category as a work horse who is

 a good minded horse but does need leadership

and is not completely confident.  I like the middle-of-the-road horse.

I do have enough experience now to ride her.

from the article in

Western Horseman - Look Him In The Eye

Open Book - look him in the eye

let me take a look at an open friendly horse

and you can tell that by his eye it is soft

and not panicked

The Open Book
From reined cow horse competitors to weekend pleasure riders, most horse owners want a partner that is easy to work with. The perfect horse for an inexperienced rider has an “Elsie the Cow” type of eye: round, open and kind.

Buckley says that the non-complicated horse advertises its willing attitude.

Ben

here is our Ben
He is an open friendly horse

he get's concerned a bit but is really ready to please the
rider; he is a delight to ride and has never bucked in all our years
of riding him.  He is 22 years old now and still an honor to ride.

Schutler

Here is one of the young colts on our acreage who is almost 4 years old.  He is being placed in the

open book category.  He is super friendly, however he is yet to be completely figured out.

 What do you think?

from the article in

Western Horseman - Look Him In The Eye

Flight Risk - look him in the eye

I am fascinated by the way you can assess a horse by looking at his eye and wrinkles around the eye as well as shape.  Here is the first of my posts on this information.

flight risk

In the pasture or in the stall, this gelding has a slightly alarmed look. His outlook on the world is one of concern, even though he is a superior athlete. RIGHT: The angular shape of the horse’s eye and the excessive wrinkles above it indicate this horse is often worried and on the lookout for predators. It takes a skilled rider to overcome this horse’s mental obstacles.

Kirkville Horses (flight risks)

Tuko - sold as a "bucker"....  and new owner is thrilled with this horse

as he uses Tuko for a work horse

to train others; also the new owner is a reining cow horse trainer so Tuko gets to work

every day and owner keeps him for his own horse.  Lucky Tuko!

 He loves him!

Ziggy

Ziggy - is Mantracker's horse we purchased from Qu'Appelle many years
ago.  This horse is athletic and has great breeding lines.  He will take off
on you if you are not skilled to slow him down.  So we consider him
a flight risk but a great horse when work needs to be done.  

{click here for Western Horseman article on this)

Look Him In The Eye

KIRKVILLE horse interactions

celebrating February 1, 2018

3 old boys

just some quick vids of today's outdoor horse

fun!

Rocky is the Dunn horse and Ben is the brown

paint.  They are both geldings and our first

solid experience and training in our equine ventures

Both horses are 22 years old now

and in good health.  

I used to ride Rocky all the time but

I needed a fresh start with a different horse and

am happy to have the buckskin mare Bruschetta, who I have now named Grace!

Rocky was Graham's horse and

when he passed on I learned about

horses, honesty and grief and most of all

I learned about myself in so many ways.

here they are 15 years ago at 4-H day at the

exhibition grounds in Swift Current
(Rocky and my son Graham)

I never know what's coming up in these posts

but this is Graham's month to remember

and these horses were A GOOD THING!

fall switch-ups

I had fun changing my cowgirl boots from all black

to this!

Brian and I bought a horse.  Well we bought out the other

co-owner's share.  We spent all spring and summer attempting

to sell this buckskin called Brushetta; but I knew deep down she needed to be my horse (well 

Brian's horse too.)  So we done did it! and now can take her out and feel

comfortable with a good solid and mild tempered riding horse.

 As a 10 year old she is young enough to enjoy

rides with her for a good many years

T

Horses are not always what you hope for

so we have sold one colt to a trainer outside Melville

This young one, (Tuko),  showed he liked to buck for no reason... really?

He has had lots of rides on him and trained thoroughly

by both my husband and his partner.

He is at a good home now though as this trainer was

looking for a project horse. (perfecto!)

(fare thee well Tuko!)

I bought some clothes in Utah at my Dressing Your Truth

weekend retreat and I am attempting to get an outfit

together.  I bought this long forest green open sweater.

(so comfy)

Here's to stylin' it up and enjoying your pets!