Settling in

The horses seem to love their new home! And so do we!! We rode Jess and Pixie for a little bit, but both of them were a little up so it wasn't a long ride as we wanted to end on a good note. Over all they did well considering we had just up rooted them 24 hrs prior. Then I wanted to work Navi in the round pen. She acted like we had been at this barn her entire life! This little mare is so confident, I love working with her. After a bit of ground work, I hopped on. This is the first time in two weeks that I have been on her and it is our 4 ride ( I think,lol) She did really well. Not too much work just walking around the round pen and yielding, but it was a calm ride and she listened for the most part :)

The view from a top Navi :)

Yes, I am using my cell phone to take pictures while riding. Probably not recommended, but I couldn't pass up the chance.

Moved

Yesterday was moving day! We had the horses fed and ready to go by 8:15 am which was a good thing because our ride was early! Which makes me like the staff at the new barn even more. I am a very punctual if not early person, so I always appreciate when someone else is early :) We loaded Jess first because I knew he would walk right on. I wasn't sure about Pixie or Navi. So Navi went second. She jumped right on again! I love that baby! Then Willow, Pixie, and Char went last. Other than Char not wanting to be caught because of all the excitement it went off without a hitch. Everyone walked right on to the trailer. Good ponies!! So we were off. We followed behind the trailer and everyone rode quietly. Char didn't like the wind on her ears, lol, but otherwise they just watched everything go by. When we arrived at the ranch they pulled right up to our pasture gate so we could unload. We got everyone unloaded (which they all did great!) and turned out. Of course they found the green grass that is starting to pop up. Then they all went exploring, but went right back to eating the grass. It made my heart happy to see them so happy! For the first time since we have owned them they will be able to graze on grass whenever they want! Of course they have their round bale still until the grass is actually growing consistently. But yesterday they spent most of the day eating the grass instead of their hay :) This Barn has made our move so easy! They have been very welcoming. They made sure to ask which cutting of hay I wanted the horses to have and were great about the fact that I wanted them to stay on 24 hr free feed instead of twice day feeding. The barn manager came up to our pasture to check on us after we had the horses unloaded and settling in. He was very kind in answering all of my questions! This barn really cares about its boarders. Everything they do out there is for the horses and boarders. Every barn that boards should have that mentality, but that sad reality is some do not. I am so very picky when it comes to my horses care and that is why self care had worked so well for us. But now that that was no longer an option I had to find a place where I could 100% trust that my horses would be cared for and watched when I couldn't be there. Unfortunately for me that meant moving my horses to another town, but in the end it is what is best for them :) I was so happy yesterday watching my horses get to graze and run around their huge pasture! After lunch we went back to the barn to take the horses out to explore the barn. We started with Jess and Pixie. Both of them were a little on edge, lol, the geese scared Jess. I guess he hasn't ever seen a white goose? It was raining while we had them out so we played in the indoor arena. Pixie was her normal anxious self in a new building. She did well once we went to playing with the big green ball :) Jess calmed down pretty fast as he usually does. Then it was Navi and Willows turn. It had stopped raining so we played with them in the outdoor arena and then went for a walk to the river. Willow took everything in stride :) I had expected Navi to be nervous being in a new place and for the simple fact that she isn't even 3 yet. But she proved me wrong! She wasn't bothered by anything! She was as confident as ever. Walking right along even over the three bridges. She keeps showing me she will become a great trail horse. I can't wait to start riding her out and about. First things first though and now that we have a round pen again we will be riding in there for a bit. We let Char just hang out in the pasture yesterday. I am going to get her out for a walk today though.

Today we are going to haul our trailer with all of our tack out and get unpacked. Then we are hoping to sneak in a short ride! I hope to get pictures on here as soon as I am done house sitting in the middle of April.

Changing Barns

Once again we find ourselves switching barns. I hope this move is the last move for a long long time! Every time we move we find that we have one more horse. And with that it makes moving more difficult to say the least. This move, while sad in a lot of ways, is going to be good for all of us. Due to a lack of paychecks received we had to stop managing the barn where we are at. While there is more to the story than that I do not feel right discussing it in the open, so that will be all I say. Moving on though, we are moving our ponies out to a huge ranch about 30 minutes away from my house. This is the farthest they have ever been from me and that will take some time to adjust to, but they will be back on full service board. I trust this place as I have never heard one bad thing about their care for the horses. And I think they currently have close to 100 horses boarded there! Huge place!! My horses will have their own pasture with a round bale in the winter and grass in the spring and summer :) Their pasture has hills, trees, and did I mention lots of grass! They will love it!! There are two round pens, outdoor arena, and indoor arena also. The biggest plus for us though is the 20,000 acres that we have to ride on. Yep, 20,000 acres!! There is every terrain a person could want on the land :) My horses will be back in shape in no time! We went out two days ago to do paper work, all that is taken care of now, and we received our maps of the ranch and hats :) Plus I picked up a bumper sticker for my truck, lol. They are going to pick up my horses on Wednesday the 26th at 9am. They are bring a big stock trailer so all five can ride together instead of us having to make 3 trips out!  As soon as they get moved next week I will post pictures!

Due to the move I had to get lifetime brand inspections on Navi and Char. In the state they are required as proof of ownership and while I had an annual on Navi, when I got her from the auction, it expired last Nov. Char I only had my bill of sale and the old one from her old owner. So legally they couldn't cross county lines :( So we set out yesterday to haul them down to the brand inspectors office to make them legal :) I wasn't sure how it was going to go. I didn't know if Char had ever been in a two horse trailer and Navi while she had a few times but it had been over a year and well she is 3. So we loaded Navi first...she hopped on no issues! Then Char was next...she walked on like she had done it a thousand times!! Good girls! We made it down town, unloaded for the inspector. Both looked around and danced some, but did great over all. Besides its a livestock auction yard so semis where coming and going. Lots going on for two mares that haven't seen a lot of town craziness. When we were done they both hopped back into the trailer no issues and we were on our way back to the barn. It couldn't have gone any better. I was so very proud of my girls!! They are my two green horses and yet they behaved like old pros. I am beyond excited to get them going this summer on the trails!

And We Ride....

In November of 2012 I started this blog to document my journey with my horses, but it was getting my baby, Navi, at the auction that inspired me to blog. I wanted to document my journey with her throughout our training. She is my first yearling, and start to finish project. I have always said I was in no hurry to ride her and would get her going under saddle when the time felt right. Well that time is now. She is finally big enough and is becoming mature enough to handle the stress of learning. So two days ago I sat on her for the first time and then yesterday we rode around for a little bit. I was more of a passenger than anything, but we did try a tiny bit of steering and moving off my leg. She took everything in stride. I decided to ride bareback so I could bail if things went bad and work her on the ground. But it never even came close to that, she got the concept of getting treats and that was her focus. She could care less what I was doing as long as in the end I gave her a pat on the neck followed by a treat :) I had hoped the first few rides would go this well as we have spend the last year preparing for it, but you just never know. We will see what future rides bring, but besides some testing from her cause she likes to test every boundary I feel that she will do fine. She has a great mind and her confidence is strong. So here is to moving on to the next stage of our training!

Crappy picture taken with my phone, but at least we have one picture of our 2nd ride :)

Way too Busy!

I hope to have more time to blog in the very near future. Working both jobs has kept me running like crazy, not to mention trying to make sure I still find the time to work with my ponies. I have been making sure I find the time though and with that I leave you with pictures!

Pixie during our latest winter storm that saw us into March!

A few of the boarders at my barn having breakfast on a beautiful sunny morning in Feb.

Navi finally has grown into my saddle!!! Riding isn't far off :)