# Retraining "Poe" - A Training First!



## Tracer (Sep 16, 2012)

I am creating this journal to log the journey I am about to undertake, whilst gaining insight from the knowledgeable people of Horse Forum. I should note here that I am open to all advice and feedback, but please avoid criticism and remember that I am entitled to do my own thing.

Today, the 27th of November 2016, I took a huge step. 

I bought my first horse since the epic failure that was Baby back in 2011.

Some of you would know that I have been free leasing two horses for the last couple of years, one of which is an arthritic Quarter Horse that I ride (Dozer) and the other a frisky Standardbred that my mother rides(MJ). I've tried a few horses over the last couple of years, none of which were ever right. Last week, as Dozer began to fall lame after even the shortest rides, I realised I needed to up the ante from 'casually window shopping' to 'actively browsing the market'.

Well, it seems like Poe just fell into my lap.

A mere day after I mentioned a name to my mother, the name advertised a horse. A beautiful horse, if I do say so myself. He wasn't quite what we were looking for, but I was tempted. I convinced mum to come along to look at him.

And that is how I came to own my first Standardbred.

Poets Voice, aka Poe, is a 6 year old bay Standardbred gelding who finished racing on the 25th of November. On the 26th of November, his trainer hopped on him for what was, as far as we are aware, the first time he has ever been ridden and rode him, bareback, on a main road to the river for a swim. He hardly even flinched. I should note here that he has now been ridden twice by the owner, and had my sister who is light as a feather sit on his back, and that's the grand total of his ridden experience.

My mother was extremely hesitant, and she had good reason to be. He's young, he's fresh off the track, and he's not the seasoned trail horse we were looking for. He's definitely not the answer to my problem of not currently having a horse to ride. But it felt right, and by the end of our meeting we were both in agreement.

He was dropped off two hours later, and I handed over the cash. Introductions went quite well, though there was a little harmless kicking, striking and squealing. After much running around like a maniac, Poe settled down to graze. Suprisingly, he was fairly easy to catch afterward, and when I visited again later in the day he even came when called :O

I guess I should show him off now, shouldn't I?






As can be seen in the video, he's quite the handsome devil. He did give me a bit of a scare on two occasions (I'm sure you can pick them), but no harm done.

The plan for Poe is for me to do much of the groundwork before sending him off for official saddle training. Manners is high on the to-do list; he's such a fidget and has little respect for personal space. This will be my first time training an 'untrained' horse, so I'm scouring the internet like a fiend. Please feel free to share links to articles and videos that you feel may help!

I've got a tentative plan in my head for the next week or so. Amid much fussing, brushing and bonding, I want to get his ground manners in check; in my mind, that is of the utmost importance. He's not overly pushy, but he's a little too comfortable getting in my space. 

I'm also booking my massage therapist in for this week to give him a look and feel over. The dentist is on the list, too - the trainer was unable to tell me when they were last done as they'd only had him for around 3 months. He played with the bit a lot when the trainer rode him for me, and my horses are due soon anyway.

I'm also looking for a farrier to pull his shoes sometime this week; my barefoot trimmer will be out in about 2 weeks to get me on the right track with him. In the meantime I'm contemplating putting him on magnesium, simply because it works wonders with the feet of my other horses.

Other than that, it's rest and recuperation. The poor boy has a lot of scars and scrapes, especially from the hobbles around the top of his legs. He's got a rather nasty mark on his neck from rein burrs. He's got sores just above his coronet on his front legs where it looks like he's been hitting himself. Most of the injuries appear very old, but I'm smothering them in white ointment just in case. Oh, and he's already sustained his first 'injury' - unsure if it happened in the float or at some point in the paddock in the first hour of having him, but he's got a small cut across his nose where the noseband of the halter sits. I think he's going to be a bubblewrap horse...

Sorry for the long speel, I'll try and keep the updates shorter and more readable.​


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## tinyliny (Oct 31, 2009)

i can see why you picked him. he's super athletic and totally gorgeous! and, a bit of a corker, too.

one thing . . if you get in that place where you want to shoo the horses off you before they get dangerously close, and waving your arms is not having a big enough effect, or a fast enough effect, take your hat off and use it to wave at them. works well. If they don't respond to that, I use it to slap my thigh so it makes noise to move them off.


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## Tracer (Sep 16, 2012)

tinyliny said:


> i can see why you picked him. he's super athletic and totally gorgeous! and, a bit of a corker, too.
> 
> one thing . . if you get in that place where you want to shoo the horses off you before they get dangerously close, and waving your arms is not having a big enough effect, or a fast enough effect, take your hat off and use it to wave at them. works well. If they don't respond to that, I use it to slap my thigh so it makes noise to move them off.


I'm glad other people think so 

That was my mother; I'll mention it to her. MJ (other dark horse with the stylish blue fly mask) knew she had treats, and when treats are involved he gets very clingy.


We made a start on groundwork today. It was a fairly relaxed day, for Poe at least - I had endless issues with the youngest of the two horses that are currently helping get the grass down in the other paddock who has realised that our electric fence isn't working very well, so it's easy to get through :x.

But back to Poe, who was a saint. Came when called, calmly took in being taken to a new spot of the property. I led him around a little, letting him sticky beak at everything from the mounting block, tack shed, and bin. We made a start straight away on learning that he does not get to graze whenever he wants to - my other horses do it and I despise it.

Tied him to the hitching post, gave him a quick brush (he's a dust magnet!) and then pulled out the lunge whip. He was veeeeeery nervous about it touching him. We slowly progressed to him being fairly calm about it being rubbed on him and having it flicked over his back and around his legs. Did a little bit of leading work, then just worked on him standing still on the lead.

And then I couldn't help myself but try on saddle pads to see if the colours work. He makes them look so big! He was a little nervous but I rubbed him down with one and slid it onto his back, at which point he was fine. Took it off, put it on more like I normally would. Did it again a bit rougher, and then basically dropped/threw it on his back and he didn't care. He looks okay in the white, but the green didn't look as good as I'd hoped. What a shame, I might have to go shopping....

I took him for a walk out of the paddock today, partly to see how he went on rocks and partly to start exposing him to where we will eventually ride. Walked about 200m down the road with horses neighing at us (head up and listening, but walking calmly), and didn't encounter an issue until we hit the vineyard and the water pump. There was much snorting and side-eye, but he walked past it and settled straight away. I took him back to it so he could give it a sniff, and that was all the excitement we had.

I'm getting more and more excited about having him in my life. There's definitely no regret about buying him. I spoke to my trimmer today and he said that it's fine to leave the shoes on until our next appointment, and the massage therapist is coming tomorrow afternoon to work him over - I'm sure he'll hate that. I wormed them all today, too, which Poe wasn't too happy about. Treats made him forgive me though.










I do have a quick question - opinion on using a nylon halter vs rope halter for groundwork? Pretty certain the rope halter will win, but curious.​


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## Tracer (Sep 16, 2012)

Only a short update today.

The massage therapist came to work with Poe, and she loves him. She said he was one of the best horses she'd ever worked on. Even in his sore spots, he didn't do anything more than step away and look uncomfortable. He didn't much like having his back legs stretched out, but he looooooved having his neck stretched. He quite literally almost fell asleep.

She gave him a full looking over and checked some things I was a little worried about, including the swelling in his front right fetlock. She said to keep an eye on it and hose it, but she couldn't feel anything nasty and it wasn't sore. She checked his mouth too, which is something I hadn't thought to do. He has a good mouth, but she spotted a grass seed embedded in his gum which she removed, another thing to keep an eye on. His wolf teeth are rather sharp too, so a dentist visit is definitely on the cards.

Other than that, she really likes him. He does have a roach back, but she doesn't see it being an issue. She gave me some advice on feeding him and wished us well. I'm very happy with how things are going so far ​


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## StephaniHren (Jan 7, 2016)

Aw man, he's handsome! I'm excited to see how his training progresses. SUBBED.


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## Tracer (Sep 16, 2012)

StephaniHren said:


> Aw man, he's handsome!


I will never tire of hearing this  I really want to use him to get rid of some of the Standardbred stigma in my little country town. His brand is fairly faint as it is so, once I get him out and about, I'm very curious to hear what people have to say 


First thing's first, Poe is officially 'booked in' for saddle training after Christmas. Some people may not like this, but he's not going to a 'professional'. Instead, he's going to the daughter of my other Standardbred's owner, who has been training Standardbreds in and out of harness for years. I like that he'll be going to someone I know, and I know how their horses typical end up. MJ is such a wonderful horse; he was broken in by her father rather than her (MJ is about the same age as his daughter xD), so I'm certain I'll like the result.

I spent an hour out with him today, just me and him, and the results were absolutely incredible.

Did some more whip desensitisation; I can now rub it all over his body without issue, flick it around him, and even put it over his head (which he was very worried about to start with).

Worked on leading/voice commands for the second time. He halted when asked vocally whilst I continued walking, he has mostly stopped leaning on me, and we worked on turning with him on the inside. He is so light on the lead, I love it.

I stepped up onto the mounting block to work on the whole 'person above him' thing. He was nervous at first, he didn't want to come near me whilst I was up there. He eventually stepped up and stood relatively calmly, though only his head was near me. Turned him around and he stood with his wither beside me, so I was able to run my hands over his neck and part of his back. Again, a little nervous, but no real issues.

The most exciting thing is that in the space of 10 minutes, we established the basics of lunging. It took a bit to get the hang of walking away from me, but we got there! We even got some trotting, which I was very impressed with on such a small circle! He didn't rush either, it was a nice little 'jog'. I managed to get a little video of it, so I could show off how clever my boy is  He was a little confused, because holding my phone in the same hand as the rope made things a little awkward.






I'm also attaching a photo of his right fetlock, which seems a little more swollen today, for thoughts. No heat, no lameness, no apparent pain. The other fetlock is pretty much perfect in comparison.








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## Tracer (Sep 16, 2012)

I am so proud of this horse.

Practiced lunging again; he's really getting the hang of it, though needs work on going out away from me.

Kept on working with voice commands, I even hung the rope over his neck and had him follow me. He was perfect, until he realised that the shed we walked past was open, and contained his dinner.

Did a little work on him staying out of my space and not following when I step away without me asking. He struggled a bit with this one; he's very much an in-your-pocket kind of horse.

I upped the ante a little and put a bridle on to feel his mouth. He's incredibly sensitive, and very good at giving. His default move seems to be backwards though, and I'm thinking it could be to do with his teeth. Looking around for a dentist to come to him before the end of the month; the one I usually use only travels out here once or twice a year.










I also remembered to get a photo of what I assume is/was a sore on his lips. He's got it on both sides; they're not raw and don't seem to both him, but they look like they would've hurt at some point. Any ideas? (That's carrot on the bit, btw)









On the topic of sores, I put white ointment on all of his scrapes, rubs, scars and sores today. You can't even see them all in these photos, and he got a big cut on his rump today, presumably from a tree branch or MJ being mean and biting him.

















And to finish, a photo of my three boys enjoying their hay.







​


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## Tracer (Sep 16, 2012)

Guess what we did~










My jaw absolutely hit the ground with how well he did.

He gave the saddle pad some side-eye so we worked on that for a minute, then brought out the saddle (sans girth). Let him have a look and a sniff, walked around him holding it. Hoisted it onto my shoulder, did another lap. Shuffled it around, swung it up and down, then put it on his back. Apart from his ears flicking back, he barely noticed. Did a lap with my mother leading and me holding the saddle, lest he skitter away and leave it in the dirt, without real issue other than a touch of nervousness. Got the girth, did it up loosely and did another lap. made it snug, did another lap then went for a lunge. Let the stirrups down and hand walked him, didn't care. Honestly, he seemed more concerned when I was taking it off than anything else.

So crazy proud of this horse. There is a part of me that worries that he's taking this too well, that something's gotta go wrong at some point. A little pessimistic of me, but it seems just too perfect, and we all know how life likes to get you just when everything seems to be going well...

Oh well, all that matters is that Poe is doing wonderfully, and I like to think that part of that is thanks to me.

Here, have a video of Poe's first lunge under saddle (and 4th of his life). Please, do your best to ignore the whale doing the lunging, aka me xD I'm using Poe as inspiration to lose weight - I'm not going to let myself get on him (once he's broken) until I hit my short term goal, that is only a couple of kilos away. Also, I won't be getting on him until he's bulked up a lot, so no criticism please.


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## CrossCountry (May 18, 2013)

You guys look amazing together, what a team you're going to be! He looks great too, and I'm sure he will just blossom with the TLC you're giving him!

Subbed, can't wait to hear more!


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## StephaniHren (Jan 7, 2016)

Tracer said:


> So crazy proud of this horse. There is a part of me that worries that he's taking this too well, that something's gotta go wrong at some point. A little pessimistic of me, but it seems just too perfect, and we all know how life likes to get you just when everything seems to be going well...


You guys are doing well, don't jinx yourself! 

In all honesty, he seems like a pretty level headed guy. My guess is that he won't give you much trouble as long as you take it semi-slow. Track horses have the benefit of having some sort of training on them already, which makes them more open to further training, imo. Plus you said his trainer's been on him before and he was pretty nonplussed about it, so I won't be surprised if he's ready when you hit your fitness goal!

You'll probably hit problems when you start trying to teach him to canter (Standardbred issues, lol), but until then I'll bet it's going to be pretty smooth sailing—and you said you were going to send him to a trainer, so the good news is you probably won't have to worry _too _much about teaching the canter under saddle, aside from learning how to support him through canter transitions while he's still learning. I would get a proper lunge line (longer than what you have now) so that when you feel confident with his lunging skills you can start introducing the canter in a positive way from the ground (big praise for any and all cantering), since they're typically taught that canter = bad.

What are your goals for him? The other big thing that Standardbred's usually struggle with is the idea of giving to the contact of the bit, since they're taught that contact/pulling means slow down and they aren't educated about collection or frame. But if you're not planning on showing, that doesn't have to be something you pursue very heavily unless you're interested in it!

You probably know all of this already, since you free lease another Standardbred, but there's my $0.02


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## Tracer (Sep 16, 2012)

CrossCountry said:


> You guys look amazing together, what a team you're going to be! He looks great too, and I'm sure he will just blossom with the TLC you're giving him!
> 
> Subbed, can't wait to hear more!


Thanks! It means a lot coming from you, I've loved following your progress with the mustangs 



StephaniHren said:


> You guys are doing well, don't jinx yourself!
> 
> In all honesty, he seems like a pretty level headed guy. My guess is that he won't give you much trouble as long as you take it semi-slow. Track horses have the benefit of having some sort of training on them already, which makes them more open to further training, imo. Plus you said his trainer's been on him before and he was pretty nonplussed about it, so I won't be surprised if he's ready when you hit your fitness goal!
> 
> ...


I'll try not to :X
He has been taking things really well, so I don't really expect him to have a problem, but the pessimist side of me has its doubts.
Cantering is one of the main things I want him taught whilst he's away, that and controlling the speed of his trot/pace/canter. They're things I'm pretty sure I wouldn't be able to do myself. He canters fairly well in the paddock, so I'm hoping it won't be a big issue. 
We'll be graduating to the proper lunge line very soon - I wanted him on a shorter lead for the start until we both got the hang of it. Been a while since I have worked with a horse that can lunge!
Goals are mainly trail riding, so contact isn't high on the to-do list. I wouldn't mind dabbling in endurance, team penning (non-competitively) and led shows at some point if he has the talent for it, but that's a while down the track.


I'm just stopping in to share some videos of Poe and MJ racing around the paddock. Poe is in the checkered fly mask, MJ is in the bug-eye and is extremely chubby, and Dozer is the calm/lame one. FYI, I recommend watching in HD.


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## BlindHorseEnthusiast4582 (Apr 11, 2016)

Very nice looking guy, and you two look like you're doing great. Subbing for updates.


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## Tracer (Sep 16, 2012)

I've said it before and I think I'll be saying it a lot in the future - this horse is amazing. We had a couple of problems today, but they weren't steps backwards - just sideways xD And there were plenty of steps forward to make up for it.

We had to revist whips today because he got a bit worried, but that resolved fairly quickly.

We had our first attempt at proper lunging today, and it was... interesting. I'm going to step back to the short lead for a few more sessions until the voice commands are more cemented because, TBH, it was a bit crazy. I think we got maybe 5 steps of walk. I was planning on a short session, a couple walks and trots each way, but Poe had other plans.

For a solid 5+ minutes, he trotted and cantered to the left, refusing to slow down or stop. I really just let him go - we had forward and we had a circle, so I counted it as a 'win'. Eventually he slowed up and let me stop him. Turned him to the right, got a couple of circles, then he spun and went back to the left for another few minutes because, once again, I couldn't stop him. Got him back to the right and he was hanging on the rope the whole way, trotting and pacing. Pretty sure I found his 'bad side'. Got a couple of canter strides in there, but he was nowhere near as balanced and controlled. I made him go for a fair while this way, to even things out a little. I understand why the left is easier for him, seeing as in Australia they race counter-clockwise. It's something for us to work on.

Even though he wasn't puffed, he was a little stressed, so we went to chill in the shade and work on standing still. He did really well, so I dropped the rope and took a couple of steps back. Then a couple more. I'll let the following photo and video show how our impromptu ground tying lesson went.















Mum was out riding MJ whilst I was working with Poe, so it was also a lesson for MJ in riding solo, and Dozer of being left behind. Dozer was doing okay because Poe and I were only in the next paddock, so I upped the ante by taking Poe out for a walk (Dozer called a few times, but no big issue). We met up with mum and MJ (which is good, because it made Poe and MJ behave in close quarters - Poe is rather intimidated by MJ, who is being quite nasty) and went for a little walk. Poe encountered his first greyhounds (which he'll see quite often once we get riding) which were a non-issue, but we did have to work on him remembering that I have my space and he has his own. An elbow to the neck here and there got him away, and then it was a matter of slowing his walk and keeping his attention on me.

I introduced a new command too, something that I watched a video about last night regarding when a horse can graze (aka a 'head down' and 'head up' cue). He doesn't understand yet, of course, but we'll get there.

We finished on a very good note, with me ground-tying him at the hitching post whilst I went to put the lunge rope and whip away. Preeetty sure he snuck a step backwards whilst I was out of sight, but he was essentially in the same position, just a step back from the mounting block with his head turned around to stare at me.

My trimmer is coming tomorrow, so Poe will finally get his shoes off ​


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## CrossCountry (May 18, 2013)

He is so cute - love the ground tying! How do you think he'll do for the farrier?


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## Tracer (Sep 16, 2012)

CrossCountry said:


> He is so cute - love the ground tying! How do you think he'll do for the farrier?


Isn't he just?! *squees* He was pretty darn good. Needs practice in giving his back legs (he likes to hold them up himself), but besides that, he was a saint. I was also really proud of how patiently he waited his turn - I had a friend holding MJ on one side of him, I was holding Dozer in one hand, and Poe was in the other smack dab in the middle. Dozer got a little narky at him, but Poe was very brave and all three of them got practice in tolerance.

My trimmer (who has his own Standardbreds) loves him, thinks he's got a lot of potential. His feet are decent, albeit very hard and dry. He said his feet have been maintained and shod the best he's seen in the racing industry. He expects a lot of chipping until the nail holes grow out, and gave me an old rasp to keep on top of it. He also recommended a mineral mix to help get them healthy; two 'holes' in the hoof wall have officially been diagnosed as old abscesses that have been cleaned right out, one 6 months old and one 4. You can tell he had less than optimal care for a while there - the freshly trimmed hooves has revealed a number of bruises in the hoof :/

I didn't introduce anything new today, just covered things I've done before. Ground-tying/stand - not so good when he hasn't run himself around for a while beforehand. Standing near the mounting block whilst I'm on it - better, but still hesitant. Getting him close whilst I'm up there is difficult, so I'm going to tackle this with help next time. Dealing with me jumping up and down like a real weirdo - better, not running away from me, but not comfortable.

Lunging on the short lead is getting better - I downgraded to the dressage whip today and after a few turns, I hardly needed it. By the end of our session, I had him lunging without a whip  I figure this is a great way to get him to really listen to the voice commands. body language. I managed to get a video of it - we stuff up a couple of time (all my fault), and I'll be interested to see what any of you have to say about the way he trots to the right. It seems to me like he almost goes to launch into a canter, and it's more of a shuffle than a trot when compared to the other direction. I drop the whip at about 2:30.






I decided to take him for a walk - I'd been pondering taking him to a friends place that I visit sometimes whilst riding to introduce him to dogs; their dogs weren't fans of horses, but had never done anything bad, so I figured they were a good start. The walk there found one of the first things that Poe wasn't sure of - culverts :O He gave it a snort and some side-eye as we went past. He walked over plastic, rocks and concrete without issue.

As for the dogs it was an absolute non-issue, as were the cats, bulldozer and cars. Seriously, one of the dogs ended up (after quite a while of staying at a distance) right beside his leg barking at him, and he just kept on grazing. The little fox terrier was a bit adorable with him - he was trying to be soooo brave, and they ended up sniffing noses and being cute together.

I took a rough dirt track home, to get Poe used to more uneven footing. Not a good idea when my ankle is playing up, but we survived! He sulked for a bit when he walked into a prickly thistle, but we made a game out of avoiding them. He found one other thing that he was a little wary of - _hares_. They turned him into a bit of a giraffe but again, not really an issue.

I'm so happy with how we're progressing. I'm looking into buying a different feed to help get the weight on him; he's maintaining fairly well, but I want him gaining. The only negative so far is that saddle work is out of the question for a bit - someone (I believe MJ) has given him a nasty bite on his spine, right where the saddle sits, and it's understandably very sore. Thanks, MJ.​


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## Tracer (Sep 16, 2012)

Well, we've hit our first snag(s).

Poe's back is very sore from a nasty bite from one of my other horses - I'm assuming MJ. He's also got some new scrapes, and some welts are popping up from either bug bites or rolling in prickles. I was planning to rug him today, in an effort to try and keep him from getting worse than he is. 

Next snag is me. I was carrying in his new bag of feed when I, after falling down stairs yesterday, caused myself another injury. I stepped in a hole with my historically weak ankle and, judging by the strength of the pop out and consecutive pop in, I've done a good job of it. Not only does this hurt physically, it hurts Poe's training and it really, really hurts financially. I work on a casual basis, and will be missing tomorrows shift at the very least. On the upside, I am entitled to government payments which will cover most of my loss from not working. Hopefully I won't be down and out for long; I've got a bad feeling about it and it's extraordinarily painful compared to previous sprains, but fingers crossed I'll be back on both feet by the weekend, at least!


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## Tracer (Sep 16, 2012)

It feels like it's taking forever for us both to heal. I'm walking with a significant limp and pain, and he still flinches away from having the bite touched. He's getting along better with the other two now (there's still some ear pinning here and there), so I'm hoping it'll be the last inflicted injury.

Still, we got a little bit done today. Mostly went back over things - lunging on the short lead at a walk with no whip, ground tying, being touched by the whip, being around the mounting block whilst I'm on it. He's improving with all of them, thought the mounting block is still a big concern for him.

Started a couple of new things, too. I asked for the first hindquarter yields today, and I think he gets the idea. He tends to rush though, so I didn't take it far - don't want him hurting himself! He definitely goes one way better than the other - when stepping left, he steps under himself properly about 50% of the time. Stepping right, it goes to maybe 5%. He's funny with the back left leg though, sometimes he seems to drag it rather than step.

Started introducing a head down cue - he gets a bit giraffe-like when something has his attention, and it works to help bring his focus back to me.

Put MJ's new cotton rug on him to try it for size - it's _almost_ too big, but I think the size down would be too small, especially once he bulks up.

I also introduced something 'scary' - I tied a plastic bag of sponges to the lunge whip. There was a LOT of side eye and flinching, and he kicked out a couple of times, but he settled fairly quickly. Watching the way he dealt with it, I think he's starting to associate me with safety. The closer I was to him, the calmer he was about the 'scary thing'.

He thinks I'm a little weird though. After all, I did this to him xD








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## Tracer (Sep 16, 2012)

The 'something bad' has hit.

Poe has possible stifle lock (more information here http://www.horseforum.com/horse-health/standardbred-possible-stifle-lock-739442/).

This is potentially a small blip on the radar, but also potentially the downfall of my plans for him. It all comes down to the cause. If it's something that will reoccur with some frequency, I'm not comfortable with turning him into my riding horse, for both our sakes. Unfortunately, that would mean saying goodbye to my beautiful boy.

BUT, I won't know for a while yet. He's getting checked out (and hopefully helped) by the end of the week, and we'll go from there. Saddle training is possibly on the backburner though.​


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## Tracer (Sep 16, 2012)

Update from the aforementioned thread re: stifle lock.



> My massage therapist came out today and, whilst she didn't teach me any massages, she gave me some exercises similar to yours and is going to email me some others, along with some information. Lots of walking in straight lines, particularly up hills (the paddock he's in is on the side of a slight hill. The water trough is down the bottom, so I'm under orders to start feeding him at the top of the hill to encourage movement). Walking over things, no matter the size. Using tail pulls to engage the muscles. Pony him whenever possible when riding.
> 
> She's allieved many of my fears and concerns. We're in agreement that it's fairly likely caused by his weight and muscle loss; as of today, he has started noticeably locking in both legs. She's suggested I start feeding him Breeda for the extra protein, and put him on magnesium to help stop him stressing, therefore helping avoid ulcers. Once he's gained weight and muscle. we'll re-evaluate. If it 'solves' the issue, I'll continue with his saddle training. If it doesn't, I'll either consult a vet or look into surrendering him to a rescue for the best possible care.


I forgot to mention there that she also mentioned that taping could be beneficial, and recommended I look into courses that teach taping. I'm also looking into getting a red light therapy system for myself (that ankle just won't heal!), which could also be used to help him.

I'm feeling pretty positive at the moment. I've contacted the girl who was going to be training him for me and advised her of what's happening. All is on hold until I get the weight and muscle on him, and see what happens with the stifles as a result. If all returns to normal, I will proceed with what I had originally planned, and that is what I am fiercely hoping will happen. Fingers crossed, guys.​


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## Tracer (Sep 16, 2012)

It was back to work with Poe today what with my ankle being relatively back to normal, having returned from holidays, and with the rain breaking for the afternoon.

The focus is on his stifle issues which, I'm happy to report, are better than they were before Christmas. He still locks up on the left but almost always on a corner. I was able to lift his leg without resistance today, and his right leg didn't seem to have any issues at all. His back is still sore from the bite, which is starting to really worry me :/

Poe needed a reminder of his manners after having the week off. He was a bit pushy and disrespectful, but he came back quickly. We did some groundwork, mainly with whip desensitisation and the mounting block. I had my mother stand on a step whilst Poe and I did big laps around her, stopping beside her every now and then. He did REALLY well.

We finished with a nice big walk, where we once again practiced manners. We encountered a few puddles and I learned pretty quickly that Poe dislikes them. I didn't push the issue, just asked him to stand with the water just in front of his toes.

We had a little 'mishap' that is truly my fault. I think it's cute when my horses lip at me for treats (I know, bad me!). Poe occasionally goes to follow through with teeth and today he caught me unawares. Apparently Poe thinks I store carrots in my bra, and as such I now have a nice bruise on the top of my left breast. Like I said, it was my fault, but in the spur of the moment I did get after him for it. I'm torn on whether or not I should have punished him for it - we'd just stopped, practicing our 'halt' command, I looked away, and he got me. When we're doing this sort of work he is praised with words and pets only, so I'm not sure why he went for a treat (especially when he knows treats are in my jean pockets), but it definitely wasn't malicious - I did feel his lips first. I'm going to have to crack down on him lipping me, and I'm considering removing treats from our training for a little while to help stop him expecting them.

Apart from that, I had a good time with my boy. Things are looking good; I think he put on a little weight whilst I was away (I finally got around to taping him today and, according to his length and girth, he weighs in at around 400kg/880lbs), I'm cementing a feeding plan (first time I've had to do it!), he's becoming more tolerant of the tail pull exercises, and the stifle lock seems to be getting better in that he no longer locks up every time he stops moving for a few minutes. Heck, he stood tied for a good 10 minutes and then walked away with ease!​


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## Tracer (Sep 16, 2012)

Poe locked up a bit worse today, in both legs. He spooks a little when his leg really locks and gets left behind, but I don't blame him in the slightest.

The weather was nice today, so I decided to pull Dozer out of retirement and get back in the saddle for the first time in almost 2 months. (FYI, my ankle feels like I should have waited another month >.<). The plan was to pony Poe from Dozer, if I could get the two of them to get along well enough.

It was a rough start. Poe didn't want to get too close to Dozer, who was wearing his best cranky face, and kept pulling in behind, which made Dozer even crankier. Thankfully he's not a kicker! I almost gave up, but decided to see how they went in a bigger paddock. They quickly got into a groove of ignoring each other. Every now and then Poe would get too close and upset Dozer, but for the majority of time they both behaved beautifully!






Dozer was feeling good and had a nice big walk going, but his lameness picked up about 3/4 into the ride (it was only a short ride, just in case). He enjoyed himself though, so I'm happy.

Poe had a spook at two loud motorcycles that drove past (there was a fence and approx 20m between us and them) - he was fine until they past us, got behind him, and one of them revved. Head flew up in his best giraffe impression and he pranced forward 3 steps, turning and cutting just in front of Dozer, who was wondering what all the fuss was about. If that's the worst Poe can do, I'm ridiculously happy! Dozer has done worse over a discoloured clump of grass!

I'll be going back to just hand-walking him though - both myself and Dozer will likely be out of action for a few days, ironically both with our right ankles!​


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## Tracer (Sep 16, 2012)

Took Poe for a 'short' walk today to a friends place. Ended up spending 3 hours out and about talking.

It was really enlightening. I learned that Poe gets a real attitude when he gets bored, so extended periods at the hitching post may be required. He also tried to nip me another two times.

The other things were more quirks. One of my friends noticed that, every time he goes to graze, his front right swings out and forward to balance himself, almost always on top of the foot of the handler. They got a kick out of seeing his dinner time behaviour - they were showing me one of the feeds they use that needs soaking, and they soaked it in a yellow bucket. Poe's dinner comes in a yellow bucket. Front left leg came up and stayed up until the bucket came near. I'm still not sure if this is a behaiour I should allow; it's obviously been picked up from his stable days, and it's not hurting anyone. He doesn't actually paw, he just holds it. I'll have to get a video.

He encountered his first semi-trailer truck today without an issue, and kept his head whilst being flooded with stimulus, from horses running fencelines on either side, to a barking dog, to being in a completely new environment. He was a bit of a giraffe, but there was no naughty.

My friends liked him, which makes me super proud. So far, I haven't met anyone who doesn't, even though he's 'just a Standardbred'. I really hope he lives up to my expectations, so that he and I can do the breed proud in our little country town.

On our way home we ran into another horse rider we've met briefly a few times before. He liked him too and gave us advice (by this stage Poe was being VERY pushy from being VERY bored). He suggested reading up on methods used by a certain infamous trainer, which I will consider but I strongly dislike the trainer from what I have seen. We used some of the advice he gave us on the rest of the trip home, and it really helped. Poe was getting in our space as we were leading him, either getting ahead of us, leaning on us, or walking right on our heels. By swinging our arms and letting him 'encounter' them as he tried to lean/overtake/shadow us, he started showing more respect for our space. There was a while where he'd sidle over to the other person, sulking, but when they started swinging their arms too, he realised it was easier to plod quietly along behind us.

I've changed his feed around a little again today, and probably will be again when this bag runs out because nowhere local stocks the food :x I'm really hoping Poe starts putting on weight soon; you can actually see his ribs now, and it makes me feel like an awful owner. I've never, ever owned a skinny animal before! My friend has offered to keep me stocked up with hay they get from their 'secret' supplier for a great price, so I can start packing him full of that, too. ​


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## Tracer (Sep 16, 2012)

Photo update. Poe's dinnertime flamingo stance stance, and his current shiny-skinny condition. The fact that he still looks so healthy makes me feel a bit better about his weight condition.













​


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## StephaniHren (Jan 7, 2016)

Dang, that coat gleam is INTENSE.


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## Tracer (Sep 16, 2012)

StephaniHren said:


> Dang, that coat gleam is INTENSE.


IKR? He puts my other Standy to shame, not to mention my dull, hairy QH!


Poe is going to be getting a BIG lesson tomorrow. Today we had a little 'disagreement' about who was the boss and, whilst I feel I won this round, I want to prevent another round from occuring.

The issue is the bite marks on his back. They're a month old, sometimes you can poke and prod them withot him caring, other times you put your hand anywhere near his back (anywhere on his back, not just near the bite), and he gets narky. Head swinging around, tail swishing, upgrading to stomping his back leg. 

For the last week or so, I've been working with the theory that he's protective of the spot, seeing as he can be fine one second and 'sore' the next with nothing having changed. So, I've been spending time rubbing him everywhere, occasionally skimming lightly over the spot, and resting my hand at different spots, both near and away from the bite, just trying to get across that I'm not going to hurt him.

Did the same today whilst he was having dinner (I regularly fiddle with him whilst he eats; it's easier to do his exercises when he's distracted), he was fine, then he started getting narky. Made a fist and held my hand out so that every time he swung his head around he bumped himself on it. He upgraded to swinging away from me; I stayed with him the best I could, put my hand back where it was, and moved it away or stopped touching him once he stopped.

Then, he started swinging his bum AT me, almost knocking me down. The turning point was when he swung and then kicked out, hard. He missed me by quite a way, but that's not the point.

I got after him and sent him away from his food. He was NOT impressed and took off bucking. I essentially 'free lunged' him around his food bucket, changing directions and keeping him going until he slowed down and came to ME rather than the bucket. Let him go back to eating, try to touch his back one last time, he kicks out again and we repeat the 'lunging'. This time, he accepted my hand on his back afterwards so I called it a day.

This is all on top of him starting to cut me off and pin his ears at me when I'm carrying his dinner into the paddock, so it's more than time to reassert that that behaviour is completely unacceptable.

This should be fun...​


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## StephaniHren (Jan 7, 2016)

Tracer said:


> This is all on top of him starting to cut me off and pin his ears at me when I'm carrying his dinner into the paddock, so it's more than time to reassert that that behaviour is completely unacceptable.


If you're not already, you might consider carrying a crop or a dressage whip in your boot. It will save you from stinging palms and let you have a bit of distance from him while correcting his behavior/pushing him away from his food.


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## Tracer (Sep 16, 2012)

StephaniHren said:


> If you're not already, you might consider carrying a crop or a dressage whip in your boot. It will save you from stinging palms and let you have a bit of distance from him while correcting his behavior/pushing him away from his food.


I'm keeping a dressage whip near the paddock now, just in case.

My 18ft leads arrived yesterday and I took Poe for his first ground drive today. I expected him to be okay with it and, apart from some silliness at the start, he did SO well. He was walking off vocal cues, and was turning and halting REALLY well considering I had him in a rope halter (not using a bridle until I get his teeth done).

It was also only his second time having the saddle on, and he handled it SO well. He was more concerned when I took it off than when I put it on; his side-eye is a bit adorable.

We did a tiny bit of trotting too, and he did a beautiful little jog. I am SO looking forward to getting him under saddle; I have a feeling he's going to be beautiful to ride.






The downside of it all is that his left leg gave him a LOT of trouble today. I've received a reply from RockTape Equine regarding taping the stifle, so I'll be going over all the information they've given me and seeing if it will be beneficial for him.​


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## Tracer (Sep 16, 2012)

Long time no update!

Not a lot to report - Poe's putting on weight nicely now, and we've mainly been doing lunge work with a bit of trot poles thrown in.

Today I put the saddle on him for the 3rd time, and the first time at high speed. He got a little wild for a minute there and threw in some little bucks and some mad dashing on the lunge line, but he soon settled.

I'm buying some poles tomorrow to make better trot poles - the wood I'm using are super short and he ducks around them.

Also took a pretty **** huge step and leaned over his back today, on both sides. He was a little concerned, gave me some side eye, but he coped quite well.

If it weren't for those darn stifles, he'd be just about ready to go away for breaking!​


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## Tracer (Sep 16, 2012)

Quick little update.

I whacked together a photo comparison today, to see whether the change in his weight and muscle was visible.

Is it ever.









The longer I look at it, the prouder I am of how far I've brought him. The best part is, his stifle lock is getting SO much better - he hardly locks up at all now, unless he's on uneven terrain or turns too sharp too fast.

Hopefully, within the next couple of months, we'll be :cowboy:​


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## Tracer (Sep 16, 2012)

Poe will be off to the trainer by the end of the week. I'm gonna miss the little ******!

Since the last update, we've hit some big milestones, including the first rider on board with a saddle (thanks to my sister, who weighs a whopping 100lbs!), and first 'ride' with saddle and bridle (thanks to my mother, who weighs approx 200lbs). The weight thing is pretty important, because I weigh more than my mother. I would have loved to get on myself, but it wouldn't have been fair to Poe. In related news, I am less than 1 pound off hitting my 'allowed to get on Poe' weight!

I guess, in a way, I did 'get on him' - I was on the mounting block leaning over him with the saddle on when he took a step, taking me with him! He had my entire weight hanging on him for a couple of seconds before I got down, and he showed no issue, so I'm hopeful! My goal weight puts me at just under 25% of his weight. Of course, I'll keep working towards 20%, but the current goal is when I will reward myself with riding my boy (provided he is comfortable). For comparison, my mother would be just under 20%.

Like I said, he's going to the trainer veeeeery soon, so I spent today just revisiting the basics, and working on our trick.

Last week, I started teaching Poe to 'touch' - eventually, I want to progress to him pushing a ball. Today was probably our 5th session, each lasting between 5-10 minutes, and this was the first time he touched the target withoutme holding it. Super proud of my clever boy!


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## PoptartShop (Jul 25, 2010)

That is soooo cute!  Awww he's such a good boy! I hope he does well with the trainer!


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## Tracer (Sep 16, 2012)

Poe FINALLY went to the trainer yesterday. I miss him already.

The trainer is going to be giving me regular updates, which I will relay here. Last night she got on him bareback in a halter, just for a sit, and he was a saint (of course).

Today he had his first short lesson of lunging and ground driving which, again, he did extremely well. The trainer has commended the work I have done with him, and really likes him, so I'm stoked!

We're expecting Poe to be with the trainer until approx 15th March. The trainer will be taking one of their Standardbreds to a local show and has expressed interest (which I seconded) in taking Poe along, where one of us could show him in led and she could show him in ridden. It'd be fantastic, because she could show me the ropes. Poe is a lovely, correct type and I would love to get him out to some local shows, because Standardbreds don't get anywhere near the amount of love and respect they deserve in my area.​


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## Tracer (Sep 16, 2012)

Poe's been gone for a bit over a week now, and I miss him terribly. Going out to water the horses is a bit of a chore without him - he would recognise my car as I came down the road and meet me at the gate, whilst the other two couldn't care less that I was there. Sigh.

But good things are happening. The trainer has ridden him bareback a few times now without issue, and with her dog running circles around him.

Today, she sent me a video that made me cry happy tears. Poe was being ridden in a saddle, at the trot. It was a bit discombobulated at times, as Standardbreds notoriously can be, but on the straight stretches you could see him get it together into a beautiful trot. She even briefly ponied one of her horses off of him today - in her words, 'he was a bit of a wimp but when I asked him to be brave, he was brave'.

Feedback from the trainer so far is that he's very bright and willing, though a bit of a wimp. He has a lot more whoa than go, which is fine by me, and his spooks are small, slow and snorty (which is also fine by me!). She thinks he will become a wonderful horse that I will have a lot of fun with, and is happy to take him back for more training when she returns from her working holiday in a few months. She's really impressed by him, and is planning to take him to a local show the weekend after next, after which he'll be coming home as she leaves the country shortly afterwards.

The following two weeks are going to be hell, but it's going to be so worth it. It's hard to believe I've only had him for 3 months; it feels like it's been such a long road already, but I am so, so excited to be going on this journey with him. I've had my concerns, what with people voicing complaints about the seller - I've even had someone tell me I should dog him, because coming from where he did he'd be no good.

In other good news, 3 days ago I hit my 'allowed to ride Poe' weight. Everything is falling perfectly into place. Technically, if all goes well, I'll have my new trail riding horse 'ready to go' in two weeks. :grin::grin::grin::grin::grin:​


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## Tracer (Sep 16, 2012)

Going to visit my boy tomorrow, and have a lesson with him. No words for how excited I am.

The trainer sent me an extensive update this morning and, apart from being very snorty and wary about new things, he is exactly how I hoped he would be. All it takes is some gentle reassurance and confidence, and he will take on anything.​


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## Tracer (Sep 16, 2012)

What a day.

I couldn't possibly put in words everything that I saw and learned today, but it was absolutely incredible.

What I can tell you is that Poe looks and feels wonderful. He's so much more confident in himself around other horses and, even though his stifle still locks sometimes, it's getting better. He has his good and bad days with it, and the trainer had shown me acupressure points to help, and we saw with our own eyes how beneficial massaging rubs were - in the hour+ that he was ridden he locked up twice; in the hour we watched him graze and socialise before hand, he locked frequently.

The trainer hopped on and showed us everything he could do. He's going extremely well - so soft in the mouth, learning to work off the leg, getting better at turning. He had cars go past him, a gate opened and closed off him, she swung around, grabbed his tail, ruffled his ears, dismounted, picked up his feet, mounted, all without him misbehaving in the slightest. He gets a bit fidgety when asked to stand but, after a little while, he settles right down. He's got a good reverse button and even better brakes. His trot is lovely, and HUGE, his canter is getting there, and we didn't see an ounce of pace today. He rode around loose horses, and had no inclination whatsoever to join them when they cantered off.

And then, it was my turn. I was ridiculously nervous, not because of what he might do, but because of what I might do to him. I may have hit my goal weight for riding him, but I'm still very heavy. Not only that, but I'm not exactly used to riding 'properly' - I'm used to pulling with the reins and kicking with the spurs on a 'deadhead' horse. I didn't want to let Poe down.

We tried my saddle on him first - the good news is the trainer thinks it's a very nice fit. Then it was time to get my butt in the saddle. I mounted off something lower than what I'm used to, but with a little boost from mum, I got there. Honestly, he didn't seem to struggle at all. In that moment, when I got my other foot in the stirrup and settled into the saddle, I realised that I was finally on my horse.

He's got a completely different feel, and is so soft! My riding style will undoubtedly have to change from what I've become used to, but we had a nice wander around the paddock with the trainer giving me tips and letting me know what to do when, and pointing out where I was going wrong. I like to think I caught on fairly quickly, as did he. Within 10 minutes, we had felt each other out and were working well. We called it at that; I didn't want to be on him for too long. His first rides with me will all be short and sweet until he builds up muscle and I lose more weight.

I was blown away. I mean, I knew he was a good horse and he knew a decent bit before we sent him to the trainer, but it's only been two weeks and honestly, I could have brought him home today. But, the extra week will do him good, and I can't wait to see him at the show next weekend.

The plan from there is that he'll be worked until June, at which stage we're putting him out to pasture for the winter to finish letting down, and let him bulk out a bit. After that, depending on how he's going, he'll come back into work with me or I'll send him back to the trainer for fine-tuning. The trainer has faith in me (maybe more than I have in myself!) and believes that Poe and I could take it from here, but she's said she definitely wouldn't complain if he came back. She's quite fond of him and I don't blame her - he's so sweet and honest, and tries his hardest to please. His attention is always 100% on the rider and he gives his all.

Now for some pictures of the handsome man.








Still the handsomest Standy in town.








My new favourite view.








Me on the steed. I don't look anywhere near as big on him as I'd expected!








Screenshot of his HUGE trot. He's got a lovely little one too, but this was when they were trying for a canter.








And the canter!​


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## Tracer (Sep 16, 2012)

Tomorrow is show dayyyyy~~ I'm anticipating a sleepless night (again - couldn't stop thinking about him last night either!). The trainer has sent me a photo of Poe all showered and clean, and I can't wait to see him all dolled up tomorrow. Expect plenty of photos!


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## StephaniHren (Jan 7, 2016)

Is everything going alright with you and Poe?


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## Tracer (Sep 16, 2012)

Well, it's been a while - over a year in fact! So much has happened in that time and I'll do my best to keep the update short and sweet, unless anyone wants more detail. All these memories are remembered thanks to my FB photos, so it's entirely possible I'm missing things! Said photos will be uploaded in the next post.



I left off the day before the show (even though I was sure I'd updated about it!). Poe did extremely well - there were only three standardbreds there, but he came home with 3 Reserve Champions, 2 Firsts and 2 Seconds! At the last minute I took him in the Western Showmanship and Led Trail, and the trainer took him in Ridden Trail bareback. Says a lot for my boy that he handled everything well except for the bridge!


When Poe came back we worked on desensitising and I bought him a western tack set, and an english show bridle.


June saw Poe and I take our first outing - I took him in to the local Team Penning event just to have a look around. He handled it like a pro! The only thing he was worried about was the Portaloo.


In August, we went to our first clinic with Anthony Desreaux! We both learned so much including some new groundwork techniques, lateral movements, and started getting him working more forward.


We got kicked out of the property we'd been on for a couple of years, with less than a weeks notice. Thankfully my friend had an acre of land behind her house that I was able to fence off and use for a month or so until I found somewhere else. There was a bit of drama whilst we were there, namely as a result of my electric fence unit dying and Poe deciding it was fun to push through fences. On one occasion, he managed to escape the property completely and cross a main road. Thankfully, my friends boyfriend noticed at around 6am and promptly called me.


We found a new home for the horses around 15 minutes from town, which is a bit of a hassle, but it's 20 acres with two dams. There's not really many interesting places for us to ride, but at least it's a safe place to keep them.


I went 2 weeks without seeing Poe over Christmas. When I came back, he galloped across the paddock to me and frolicked around like a puppy. It melted my heart.


I finally got a tow vehicle at the end of January. 2 weeks later, I hit a kangaroo in it. Sucks to be me.


And most excitingly, this weekend just gone Poe and I participated in a 10km endurance training ride, and completed!


Next month, we're attending a Double Dan Horsemanship clinic, and then hopefully our first Team Penning competition! I'm also hoping to attempt a 20km endurance ride in September.


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## Tracer (Sep 16, 2012)

Our ribbons from the show!








In the Ridden Standardbred class.








And being ridden bareback before the Trail class.








During a ride down to one of the main roads in the area at the end of April 2017.








Bottom pic is January 2017, top is May 2017.








In his pretty show bridle, practicing walking over scary things.








And in his beautiful western set.








Watching horses chasing cows.








Posing, whilst watching horses chase cows.








We took advantage of the flat ground at the showground to do some flatwork.


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## Tracer (Sep 16, 2012)

Playing English Pony.








At the Anthony Desreaux clinic.








At the Anthony Desreaux clinic.








At the Anthony Desreaux clinic.








This was Poe's face after his infamous escape at my friends place. So innocent.








Posing at the new property.








Poe and I leaving camp at the endurance ride on the weekend.








And our vet card! So proud of his results.


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## Tracer (Sep 16, 2012)

We have our Double Dan Horsemanship clinic this weekend and, just my luck, Poe isn't well.

Not entirely sure what's wrong; the vet wasn't able to see him today but we're thinking a viral infection that's causing swelling in his hind legs and has given him a slight temperature. He's on bute for the next 5 days and the vet will be out in the morning if there's no improvement overnight.


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