# 12 months progress



## blue eyed pony (Jun 20, 2011)

OK so she will be 12 months tomorrow. This is the first time I've really stood her up properly square and I'm so proud of her for staying absolutely still and not moving a muscle while I fiddled around and took photos.

I can see heaps of things I like and heaps of things I don't but nearly all of what I don't like she should grow out of. YES she is young to have a bit in her mouth, she likes to be always learning and I've gotten nearly all her groundwork sorted. I can't do much more until she's mouthed so I decided to start mouthing her.










There are front and rear photos on my phone which I will transfer and upload in due course.

And I'll kick off the critique 

Lovely head with a good eye, nice neck if a little fleshy through the throatlatch. Good shoulder, nice swept back withers. Long cannons and pasterns that should balance out as she matures, and perhaps a tad back at the knee. Smallish hooves which seem a little upright. Downhill but may level out, and a tad long in the back but again may grow out of this. Good angles in the hindquarter and nicely shaped rump with a good tail set. Coupling is acceptable. Hindquarter too small to balance out the rest, especially the large grass gut. Gaskin is thin and needs definition. Hind pasterns seem a little upright.


Agree? Disagree? Anything to add?


Thanks everyone


----------



## blue eyed pony (Jun 20, 2011)

And a couple more photos of her as she's grown 









^ not long after I got her... bout 7 months old I think?









^ not sure of her age when I took this one. 8-9 months?









^ 9 1/2 months


----------



## banman (Dec 14, 2009)

she looks great, no conformation flaws that she wont grow out of( like you said) i love her colour too! what are your plans for her.


----------



## blue eyed pony (Jun 20, 2011)

Thank you  she won't grow up perfect but I think she'll grow up pretty darn nice. I've always had a thing for buckskins but I tell you she is permanently filthy, when she's just washed she's a sort of buttermilk cream colour!

When she's older I'm seriously considering putting her in foal to this guy:








for a registerable warmblood-cross, but that'll only happen if and when I have the funds and facilities (and a horse to ride while she's in foal/has a foal at foot, considering Monty will probably be retired by then). He's a really nice stallion with great jumping lines, and should hopefully compliment her nicely.

My plans for HER specifically, I'm hoping to break her myself (the mouthing is supposedly the hard part and we've nearly got that already) and she's intended to be my showjumper and/or eventer. Her sire has a lovely scopey jump that I'm hoping she's inherited. I'm only after mid-level with her, around 3'4" maximum, but if she goes higher then all the better.

I was told she was only going to mature around 14.2, but it's looking likely that she'll mature between 15hh and 15.2, and she'll be solid. I can't lean over her back any more!


----------



## Horsegears (May 31, 2010)

Lean muscle type. Slightly forward set wither - further 
improvement here very possible. Back is on the longer 
side. Croup/hind is very reasonable. With maturity I
would think your heading towards a longer body type.
Eyeing English disciplines at this stage.
Good luck


----------



## csimkunas6 (Apr 18, 2010)

IMO blue eyed, I think she is looking great! I think you've pretty much named all the issues I can see. Shes looking really good, Im jealous to be honest because at 12 months Rodeo was looking pretty funky! LOL

Looking forward to watching her grow!!!


----------



## blue eyed pony (Jun 20, 2011)

thanks everyone  lucky for me my passion is in jumping so a slightly longish back can be a good thing as it can allow a better bascule and therefore a more powerful jump. her sire is very similar so i won't be surprised if she does up looking a lot like him.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


----------



## Hunter65 (Aug 19, 2009)

no critique but absolutely love her color.


----------



## CecilliaB (Jan 21, 2010)

Can't help but love a beautiful buckskin  Looking forward to watching her mature. How tall is she now?


----------



## blue eyed pony (Jun 20, 2011)

Thanks guys  I am a huge sucker for a buckskin too, one of the reasons I looked twice at her considering I was specifically looking for a gelding that would mature 15hh+ and preferably around 16hh. I figure I can compromise on a couple of minor points if everything else is right.

She's 13.1 1/2 at the wither and 13.2 1/2 at the croup, assuming of course that my measurements are correct (I haven't sticked her, just used a measuring tape, so I might not be measuring perfectly level). So on the average of 13.2, assuming that she's 90% of her mature height at 12 months old, she should make 15hh. I don't think she'll get much bigger than that but I can only hope. Both string tests say 15.2 so I could be lucky. I won't mind terribly if she doesn't get to 15hh if she's chunky, I'm not tall so she should take up my leg well enough... I just couldn't put her to Cougar, because he's 16.3 and I don't want to breed my girl to anything more than a hand taller than her.


----------



## CecilliaB (Jan 21, 2010)

My filly was just about that height when I got her and she was 11 months  I was bowled over that she is at the 15hh mark now just before turning 3 and she string tested @ 15.1. 

We can just never really know with these babies can we? I love that stallion choice as well. Such a pretty boy.


----------



## blue eyed pony (Jun 20, 2011)

My madam was 13.2 at the croup at 11 months so I live in hope yet! I'll be all good as long as she's taller than 14 hands, assuming she matures to be a solid girl. I'd just love her to be big enough that I can breed her to Cougar. I know larger size differences can and do happen but not for her first and only, breeding a maiden is risky enough without adding a much larger stallion to the mix. I only want one foal from her, though I know my mum wouldn't complain if I put her to a taller Welsh cob so I guess that's always an option... or if I bred her to an Arab to get a registerable half-Arabian and sold it as a show prospect? But it'll only happen if she matures quality enough, I'm incredibly picky with stallions and the mare puts as much in genetically so there's really no point in breeding a mare that I don't love everything about.

Yes I absolutely adore NP Cougar, he's jumping bred both sides of his pedigree and what I've seen of his progeny I have liked. If any foal I bred inherited even half his talent I'd be delighted I'm telling you now!


----------

