GETTING TO KNOW US ALL...........

That was really neat Twist...........thanks......I love these stories.......... :cowboyhound.gi

I rarely read whats in the blog section so im just seeing this. anyways..

My names Brianna, im 14 and live in the Annapolis Valley. I have one horse, 4 dogs and a cat. When i was little, probably around 4 or younger my sister started taking lessons. I fell inlove with the horse she rode, a QH mare named Ruby. And after that i started begging my parents for a horse and to start taking lessons.
When i was around 9 my parents finally gave in and put me in lessons. At the same barn my sister used to ride at. After a couple years of lessons we started looking at horses. But i didnt really click with any until i met 'Jewels' a 3 year old Appaloosa mare. At the time Jewels was green broke. Walk, jog and just started loping. My parents bought her for me and a week later she was living in my back yard.
Buying a green rider and green horse wasn't the best idea. Jewels pretty much ruined my confidence. But after taking lessons for a winter on lesson horses and having my coach help me with Jewels i got my confidence back up. Getting Jewels to where we are now deffintly wasnt easy.
I ride at a mainly reining barn, i planned on showing Jewels in western pleasure but after taking lessons this past winter on a reiner i'm hooked!
I've had Jewels for 3 years now. We've been working on going one handed because she's 6. We've also started to work on reining and she's doing really good with it so i'm pretty happy about that. I'm showing her in some pleasure classes in September and then continuing her reining training threw the winter. Hopefully we'll make it to some reining shows next year :D

Jewels as a 3 year old the day we bought her, and a picture from a few months ago.


Pictures from last week.

Way to go Jewels......thanks so much for posting........love your mare......... :cowboyhound.gi

Joan, did you see in Jewels signature pics at the bottom of her post.. third pic over.. TC in the background.. hahahah

so it is............Jewels did you know that??????

Wellll, I guess I'll jump on the band wagon, hearing everyones stories is soo interesting!

My name is Heather, I am a Vet Tech student at the NSAC I have Two wonderful geldings.

To start? I grew up on the south coast of LABRADOR, yup thats right lol. Sometimes I wonder how the heck I came into the horse world, its a pretty isolated horseless place.. I owe it all to my old girl Bess, so first I'll tell you about her.. She was the only horse on the coast and is still there today a 14.3hh stbxnewf, a couple in the community bought her for their daughter, who today has moved away, married and has children. I started riding at 12, went to horse camp for four summers, and besides that I took care of Bess right up until I moved for University. That sturdy, stubborn mare taught me a lot, and got me through a lot. Eventually my Dad built a small barn closer to my house, on green pasture with a running water source so it would be easier and better for the both of us, I wanted to take her with me so bad and it nearly broke my heart to leave, but some things happen.



12 y/o at horsecamp


Knowing that Bess's owners would never sell, Throughout the years I've had my eye on a few horses, but for some reason or another it didn't work out-usually on the parental part. Once I even had a downpayment given to someone for a horse. But anyway there was this appaloosa breeding place on the west coast of Newfoundland, we traveled to the area quite a bit so every time I was in town, I would go see these horses with my friend.. The first time I met Benson he was about 2 months old, and I loved him. When he was almost a yearling I remember telling his breeder to keep him for 2 years and then I will be able to have him

Then I moved, and just what do I do when I get here? Buy a un broke 2 year old. I called my mom, so nervous and said "guess what, Benson is on his way here on a cow trailer right now" I thought for sure she was going to loose it, but surprisingly all she said was that I was responsible for providing for him, and that was all. I couldn't believe I actually ended up with him, he was actually supposed to be sold to someone else. What had happened was that he was supposed to be picked up and paid for on several occasions and never was so Maggie calls me up and asks me if i would like to have him, she knew how much I wanted him and knew he would have great home with me, I took the plung and it was the best decision I've ever made, he is my forever horse.

with mommy, Nel.

when he arrived in Truro

a few rides ago


So now we move on to Reuben my other gelding, not such a big story.. My boyfriend absolutely loves horses as well and is planning to move here after Christmas, so we started looking at horses something we both could ride, because we both knew that I'd be riding it probably more often than him, hes most interested in pampering it. So we went to a jumper barn a few times to visit my friend and this horse was there to be sold, and the first time Jeff saw the horse he said this is the one. After debating, I went to try him out and he was fabulous, quiet and experienced but still with a kick, just what we were looking for.

hehe

Brighteyes......thanks for joining in.......I was reading through your post and was waiting for the rest of the story.......??? so did your boyfriend buy this other horse...or what?? :cowboyhound.gi

well he is my other gelding! lol

sometimes I am not altogether swift...........ok.....got it......thanks. He definately has a great smile........

nope, i didnt know it was her!! haha.

LOL i do see my sista in the back ground sneaking into the picture...

Okay- my turn to play!

My name is Katie and I am 23 years old. I live in Brooklyn, Hants Co. I grew up on a Dairy Farm in Woodville, Hants Co and got my first pony for my 4th birthday. A black Shetland pony named "Dan". I still have Dan today and he is well into his healthy 30's. My mom has had horses her whole life and passed the bug on to me. Good ole Dad is a strong supporter and believes in keeping the women happy so I have been around horses since I could walk. My Mom barrel raced on the MBRA circuit and I was a "Mini dakota" barrel racing on Dan until I was about 9. We went from Exhibition to Exhibition throughout the summers- it was great! I outgrew my beloved shetland but could not part with him.... I then moved up to a 13'1hh hunter/jumper pony "Candyman" Lets just say Hunter ponies make wicked barrel racers. I also was a active 4-H member in the light horse project. I outgrew Candyman and sadly sold him to a lovely family. Then on to "Bud" he was a great large pony and he turned me on to English. All my friends were in Pony Club and I was to old to compete in youth barrel racing so I asked my parents if I could try english- and I was hooked at age 12. I also outgrew Bud and had to part with him.

At 13, my parents bought me my best friend... A chestnut quarter horse form Equine Excellence out of "Twist of Excellence" Colby is and will always be my trusty steed. In 10 years we have learned so much through tears, smiles, hard times and triumphs. Colby carried me through 4-H winning as Champion Eng Pleasure horse, Helping me earn my C1 in Pony Club, Carrying my butt through Childrens hunters, x-cross trials and every local hunter show. He has slowed down in the past year, although still my hunter/jumper.. he is now my 5 year old stepdaughters confidence horse. She loves him to pieces as much as I do.

Colby is an all round horse and no one can take his place but I was ready to move up and in 2008 I bought "Winston" A Hannovarion x Westphalen warmblood colt. This year 2011 was his first year undersaddle and on the show circuit. He is a dream to ride and work with. He has had a successful start to his career and I look forward to our future as a team!

In closing as this is getting quite long! My boyfriend and I built a house last August (within a 5 minute drive) from the farm. We hope to have the horses in our backyard within the next couple of years. We have our beloved English bulldog Beetlejuice and all a girl could ask for!

Now some pics- I only have certain ones on my computer so bear with me!

Winston!







Dan (he is the black one)


Beetle!


Colby

Great to meet you Reggie, thanks so much for joining in........... :cowboyhound.gi

It is nice to actually see there are real people behind all these screen name lol. So, I'm Jayde, and like sooooo many others took lessons as a teen, stopped due to time and life. So fast forward to about four years ago. My youngest had started school, I'd been a stay at home mom since our first daughter was born (tazzette by the way) and had two more in fairly quick order. In fact there are periods after our second daughter was born that I don't remember at all - I am quite certain there was a period there of about a year where I did not sleep for more than three hours at a stretch so much of it is a blur. There is 18 mos between our first daughter and our second and two years between the second and third. Chances are if we hadn't inherited my husbands grandmothers house we probably would have stopped at two. We were pretty cozy in our little trailer :-) but a house is really nice too. It is on the family farm, so we do have room to spread out.

I work a bit from home for a previous employer but found myself struggling to find, not sure what, a purpose maybe now that the children didn't need my total attention. It was about this time a friend and I restarted the 4H club down here (which btw is the best youth organization;-) ) and we got chickens. I was still struggling and then out of the blue one day my husband (the most amazing person, my horse enabler) suggested we get a horse. Stuart Appt had had his sale the pervious weekend and a friend mentioned this little quarter horse that was there but the owner wouldn't let him go for what was offered. Off we went. Fell immediately in love. Stupid. Didn't look past the eyes. He was untrained, six years old, club foot. Cheap lol. The owner sold to us for I think less than what was offered at the sale, but she knew us and wanted a good home for him. It has been a journey. Our/his story is for another post. We are on again off again with riding as that foot gives us trouble. He dumped me last week, but I should have listened better he was still sore, we are rehabbing from a deep thrush infection, at least that was the vets best guess. Now I will be rebuilding confidence in him after being bucked off. Blah, it is a process for sure.

Once we got Tango, the girls took some lessons. One horse is hard for three riders, and he was lonely. We'd had him almost two years before we added Jenny a delightful older App mare, blind in one eye, but just as sweet. Last year we decided to have a light horse club for 4H. My middle daughter was to use Jenny and Tazzette was to use Tango. We even took them to a level one natural horsemanship clinic and when doing join up the mare turned her blind eye in towards my daughter showing such trust in my her I think we all cried. Anyway, that spring tazzette was "graduating" middle school, is just an all round great kid and Tango was on again off again with that foot so we bought Tazz for her graduation/birthday. She has posted tons of pictures of this handsome fellow. He has worked out well and it is so nice to see how she is progressing as not only a rider but a horseperson. Jenny developed arthritis in her knee and we didn't feel it right to try and use her for 4H again so six months after Tazz we found this almost three year old large pony cross - they were stuck with too many horses with winter coming. My middle daughter started him this spring. Luckily he is pretty uncomplicated and she and Zanzibar (zanny) are becoming a great team. I think one of the most beautiful things I've seen were the girls riding off together across the pasture. I watched them ride off and they both sit so straight and the gentle swish and shine of the horses tails, and the indistinct sound of their voices as they chat together it makes all the work and worry that goes with the horses worth it.


Ally and Zanny


Amy and Tazz, snuck on without the helmet just for a photo op lol.


Jenny


Tango and I. I hate having my picture taken!!

PS - our third baby was a boy and he is like his dad and prefers his horses gas powered. They are trying to take a three wheeler motor and put it in a lawn tractor to make a "racing" lawn tractor. Or something. I just know they get very dirty but are having alot of fun. He does have a sneaking like for the horses and they certainly like him, I tell him in a few years when girls find out he has horse access he will be one popular guy lol.

Thank you Thank you Thank you Tango for joining in....was great to read about your family......now, post some pictures and let us see them all....... :cowboyhound.gi pictures added and moved..........great stuff............

HI, my name is Jannet and I'm addicted to horses. Was born on PEI, my next door neighbor had horses and I would sneak over to pet them. My grandfather had cows, so being near big animals was nothing new to me. We moved from there to Riverview, NB when I was 8. My parents sent my brother and me over to camp and that is my first experience of actually riding a horse. We were sent there for a couple years and the horses were always the best part of the week. At 15 I worked at the camp for a couple weeks, and loved the horses more and more. At 19, I was calling the camp to register my little sister for camp, and the director asked what I was doing for the summer. I told him looking for a second job to save up to go to college the next year. Well that was Thursday and by Sunday I was at the camp as their head horse wrangler. This is where I met Flicka, (I roughly remember from when she was little out in the pasture) and she scared the SNOT out of me. But has the head wrangler, and she was the head horse, she's the horse I got to ride. My first ride out on her was leading out a trail ride. Well lets put it this way, it was a canter trail, Flicka and I cantered, everyone behind us on the other hand galloped. OOPPPS. :) But from then she was my girl. She had a lot of problems that we worked through, and it seams some of them have come back over the years. It took about 4 years of begging the owner of Flicka to sell her to me, but I was having dinner over there (they were like my second grandparents) and they offered her to me. So of COURSE I jumped all over that!!! About a year later Dealer came into my ownership.

I kept Flicka at a friends barn, where it was pretty much a co-op barn, and the owners of Dealer didn't always have grain/hay there for him and their other horse. To make a long story short, the SPCA got involved and they were told they have 30 days to get the vet and farrier out or they have to sell them, or they would be taken from them. Well they were on their way to the Sussex auction. So I called the guy that was trailering them. I told him to leave Dealer there and I'll give him the money later. So now I have two horses.

Fast Forward a bit, Dealer went out on free lease to a riding school and Flicka was bred. 380 days later out came Mei.

I ended up moving due to a job change, and ended up having to sell Mei due to the cost of boarding up in Moncton in comparison of SJ.

Fast forward a bit more and I got married. Dealer came home from the free lease and we bought a house out past Hillsborough where I can take the horses home. Last year Dealer had a very bad winter, so this fall Dealer is going to be put down so I had to buy another friend for Flicka. Indi comes home once he is weanned from his mommy.

Flicka and I in our first summer together.





Here she is now MINE!!!!


Dealer




Mei



Indi



Pike and Bunker


Punt (because I said I would never own an animal I could pick up and punt like a football)


Scraps (my friends cat that I got suckered into keeping :P )

YEAH FLICKA........thank you for joining in......love the pic of Mei and you with all 4 feet off the ground........wooo hoo :cowboyhound.gi

Great pics you guys .. and I love reading the stories.. Flicka.. I've loved Dealer since I first saw him.. reminds me of my old guy Dusky,
Once I get some time of my own I will sit down and tell my story .. could be long.. for the golden pony has a lot to say.. lol

Hey there girls. we are now up to 28 out of 489 that have contributed to this blog........WHERE THE HECK ARE THE REST OF YOU??????????? you :Chicken-Dance. :Chicken-Dance. said :hello_graphics

I left you girls alone for a whole 10 days to see if you would just post on your own..........WELL THAT DIDNT WORK EITHER so I have decided to try one more time to CONVINCE the rest of you to let us GET TO KNOW YOU..............COME ON.............quit procrastinating........get your fingers moving,....... it could be as simple as

HI....I'M CLEO
LIVE IN EGYPT
HAVE 4000 ARABIANS
HERE;S MY FAVOURITE


DIDNT TAKE MORE THAN 2 MINUTES ...........

AHAHAHA.. OMG JOAN.. never a dull moment. .. I love that freakin donkey.. he's adorable and I can't wait to see Sam!

Hi...I'm Ainsley. Born and raised in Sooke, Vancouver Island. Three years ago this Sept my hubby Stephen and I, (both retired). threw our fates to the wind, sold everything and moved to Loch Lomond, NS. We went totally blind, neither of us had ever been here before, and all four of our kids had flown so...I did have a friend to help us find our new home as I've known Joan for over 20 years. We now live on 5 acres right on the Loch, in a wee house we love. We have 2 dogs, Libby a chocolate lab, and Oliver a shih tzu. We had horses on the other coast for over 25 years, and are kinda enjoying not having any here. I haven't been able to ride for many years now due to multiple injuries, but always friends to help me out with any equine therapy needs! Odd how no one ever says stop when you grab a brush or a fork! Anyhoo, the coffee is always on...if you can find me!









Ainsleys' East Coast Horse

Sooke, that was like our family. My mom was looking in the paper when we live in Ontario, saw the ad for the house we bought here, showed Dad, we all made a list of what the place had to have before we moved, Dad flew out to look at the place. It had everything on the list there is 7 in my family so you can imagine how long the list was. We bought it, moved out here. No jobs to move too, just the house. Now 20 some yrs later, all us kids are married and living in the area and Mom and dad are still living there.

Sooke, are you Joans friend who moved from out west with horses in tow? If not, Joan, whatever happened to them?