# Spotted Saddle horse (?) Mare, Age 15. Opinions?



## demonwolfmoon (Oct 31, 2011)

Please provide any info that you can regarding this horse, and I"ll be eternally grateful!

This mare was picked up at the Camelot Auction in New Jersey this past week after going through New Holland. They said she was "aged", and the vet agrees, 15-16 years old. They have her down as a paint horse, but the vet said she looks Saddlebred, which I am told would probably make her a "Spotted Saddle Horse".

So, any conformation help? I see her front legs are wonky, I'm just not sure yet how much of it is farrier work.

I want her for beginner horse stuff, trail work...nothing too athletic, though my husband at some point would like to try mounted shooting. Will she likely be sound for that?

PS, if anyone wants to clarify her color (is she B&w, or what? Looks brown in spots /confused), I won't complain! 



























*could NOT* get her to stand still today*


































***
Trying to flirt with the stud:


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## demonwolfmoon (Oct 31, 2011)

And sorry about the pictures. She was not remotely interested in standing still today, and does not like having someone crouched behind taking pics. We will be working on this.


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## deserthorsewoman (Sep 13, 2011)

I like her! Im not one who can explain in detail what's right or wrong, I rather go by overall impression, and everything seems to fit together nicely. Her tail is set rather high, so saddlebred is possible. Her front end will improve after proper pedicure, that's for sure. I really like her expression, she looks like a been-there-done-that kinda horse. 
I'm slowly slowly turning green....;-)
Have you ridden her, or seen her under saddle?


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## demonwolfmoon (Oct 31, 2011)

Desert, firstly, thank you for your response!!!! 

I have seen her under saddle at the auction. She did everything she was asked as they rode her through, as far as I can tell. They rode her in a snaffle bit, though she had a mouth abscess at the time. The vet advised us not to put a bit in her mouth for a few days to a week, so though I got led around on her in a halter, no one has tried riding her since we brought her home.

She definitely seems a bit quirky, personality wise! She isn't spooky at all, the BO said a gate closed on her butt earlier, didn't phase her, walks through small spaces, etc...but she seems higher energy, flat out INTO stuff, kind of nosy...has to see what the people/horses/dogs/cats are doing etc. It's taking some getting used to!!


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## deserthorsewoman (Sep 13, 2011)

Oh, I like this kind
Intelligence is written all over her face. I guess she could be smarter than a rider at times;-)
My avatar grey is like that. Somebody let him get away with murder at one time, and I seriously hurt his feelings( for about two minutes), when I told him his limits. Now he's fine. 
She seems to be one who needs to be kept busy. Endless repetitions in an arena might make her come up with ideas to entertain herself. 
Like I said, I'm turning green...;-)


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## PurpleMonkeyWrench (Jun 12, 2012)

poor babies feet look like shes got slippers on the fronts =(


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## demonwolfmoon (Oct 31, 2011)

PurpleMonkeyWrench said:


> poor babies feet look like shes got slippers on the fronts =(


They're pretty unattractive, but I'm not sure they qualify as slippers yet! The soonest the farrier (farrier/dentist? farrier-dentist? hmmm) could come out is tomorrow afternoon, and I anticipate her feet will look much improved! =)


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## PurpleMonkeyWrench (Jun 12, 2012)

demonwolfmoon said:


> They're pretty unattractive, but I'm not sure they qualify as slippers yet! The soonest the farrier (farrier/dentist? farrier-dentist? hmmm) could come out is tomorrow afternoon, and I anticipate her feet will look much improved! =)


That's good lol it might be the photo and all the mud on her hooves that is making the fronts look like they are curling up in that first pic. she is gorgeous though! I'll take her if you don't want her :lol:


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## demonwolfmoon (Oct 31, 2011)

PurpleMonkeyWrench said:


> That's good lol it might be the photo and all the mud on her hooves that is making the fronts look like they are curling up in that first pic. she is gorgeous though! I'll take her if you don't want her :lol:


Lol, thanks!

Let's see if she lives up to her nickname--Witch! xD


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## PurpleMonkeyWrench (Jun 12, 2012)

demonwolfmoon said:


> Lol, thanks!
> 
> Let's see if she lives up to her nickname--Witch! xD


wacha talkin about she looks like an angel :lol:


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## demonwolfmoon (Oct 31, 2011)

PurpleMonkeyWrench said:


> wacha talkin about she looks like an angel :lol:


LOL of course she is. It's us pesky humans who keep upsetting her delicate sensibilities










Witch did not give permission for her picture to be taken by such amateurs.


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## PurpleMonkeyWrench (Jun 12, 2012)

demonwolfmoon said:


> LOL of course she is. It's us pesky humans who keep upsetting her delicate sensibilities
> 
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> 
> ...


bahaha how cute! I still see wings tho :lol:


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## DraftyAiresMum (Jun 1, 2011)

I really like her! She's got plenty of bone. Agree that her front legs will look better/less wonky after a good trim. She's a bit over at the knee, but not horrible. I love her silly expressions.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Kayella (Feb 11, 2012)

She's nice! She will look a whole lot better with some weight and her feet done. She definitely looks like a gaited breed. And she seems like a sweetheart! I have had worse death glares from my yearling colt!










Isn't he just terrifying? :lol:


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## deserthorsewoman (Sep 13, 2011)

Kayella said:


> She's nice! She will look a whole lot better with some weight and her feet done. She definitely looks like a gaited breed. And she seems like a sweetheart! I have had worse death glares from my yearling colt!
> 
> 
> 
> ...


 Ooooohhhhhhh....what did you do to him...O_O
is it the lime green?....;-)


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## Cat (Jul 26, 2008)

We have a lot of gaited and saddlebreds around here and she does look like your typical spotted saddle horse to me. 

Front legs will look a lot better with a good trim. Not perfect, but nothing there that should break down with what you are looking at doing with her. Nice amount of bone to her. I like her overall look for a saddle horse and you should have fun with her.


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## OliviaMyee (Jul 31, 2012)

Conformational Judging: 
Head:
. Well sized ears 
. Good sized big eyes
. decent sized nostrils
. Head is very straight but doesn't look roman nosed 
. Clean flat forehead
. Good Head to neck connection 
. Head is a bit to big for the body but aids in character

Neck:
. Near perfect size
. Lacks muscle so it lacks an arch to it
. Developed more muscle on the underside of the neck
. Neck is not to thick
. Decent Neck to Shoulder atachment

Back:
. Near perfect size not to long or not extremely short 
. Lacks topline
. Spine doesn't appear to pop out so thats a good thing !

Body: 
. Lacks muscle every where 
. Cant see a shine to the horses coat 
. Could do with some more weight so when horse gets in work it can develop muscle (im used to seeing more to the chubbier side of horses though)
. Body isn't that proportional and it might be all based on the lack of muscle
. Shoulder, breast and chest is not well muscled 
. Wither is slightly higher than the croup thats good because she shouldn't naturally go on the forehand
. Wither is a bit to prominent but not impossible so you will be able to ride horse bareback

Behind: 
. Lacks muscle
. There appears to be a dip on her croup the croup starts of high up 
. Croup is more on the steeper side
. Croup lacks muscle
. Short from point of hip to stifle

Shoulder:
. Shoulder Angle is a good one not to steep and not to upright although you can judge the shoulder angle more acurately by feel im relying on the shadow of the shoulder (the scapula bone that sticks out). 
. Shoulder Angle is around 45-50 degrees (half of 90 degrees)
. Shoulder angle doesn't match the front leg pasterns like it should because of the terrible farrier work 
. Shoulder angle matches the back pasterns well
. Its hard to figure out the angle of the front pasterns because the terrible angle of the hoof

Legs:
. Front cannons are very short especially compared to the back leg cannons
. Back cannons are obviously longer than the front cannons and they look a good size
. (Side View) The Knees on the front legs bend inwards its called calf knees im pretty sure or it can be also called camped under corrective farrier stuff might change that
. Front View of the front legs: 
. The knees bend inwards 
. A very very very apparent case of Toe out 
. A case of Base Wide so the base is wider than compared to where the shoulders come out
. The whole front legs are turned out at the Knee (Rotation) since the knees bend inwards
. Knock knees

Front Legs movement: 
. Since the feet are toe out and the legs are base wide and we have a case of Knock knees im pretty sure its going to be a strange movement to sit to and Toa out causes a movement called "Winging out" so the legs dont move forwards straight. 

Back Legs:
. There is a slight toe out in the back legs its really hard to tell because of the photos, hopefully the degree that the pastern is turned out matches the degree that the hock is turned out


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## OliviaMyee (Jul 31, 2012)

Forgot to say horse has well sprung ribs.


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## OliviaMyee (Jul 31, 2012)

You should have her checked by a Vet before doing any work on her off course after a good farrier visit because, her front feet have not been looked after very well and it creates more strain on the legs plus with her conformation of the legs you dont know if shes completely sound. She will need more maintenance of her legs and because of her age she might have problems allready. Get her checked who knows how many years of riding she might have left if she has had bad feet for years and years.


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## demonwolfmoon (Oct 31, 2011)

Thank you, Olivia! That was right up there above and beyond what I was asking for, which is GREAT! =)

I will look over everything more closely and research.

As for the vet, he actually came out and saw her the day before yesterday. Didn't say anything about conformation issues. I will talk to the farrier in a couple hours when he comes out, and get his input, then ask the vet some more pointed questions when he comes out in May/June for health certificates.

As for coat/joints etc, I have all my horses on MSM supplements, Mare Plus (even the colt...got tired of putting the detailed info on the lid and just told the BO to chuck them all a scoop daily!), and I'm waiting for the Rice Bran oil that I ordered to show up. Do you think that it would be worth it to buy another container of Animed Muscle up, or do you think between the others, the rice bran oil and quality grain, she will shape back up (coat wise, and opportunity for muscles)?


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## deserthorsewoman (Sep 13, 2011)

Will she go on pasture? If yes, that should take care of her coat( and general well-being for that matter). If not, adding flax will help with skin, coat, hooves and a bunch of other things.
For building muscle quality protein and work.


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## demonwolfmoon (Oct 31, 2011)

Yup! My BO is pasturing her alone for now, in plain view of the rest of the herd...though her area is currently MUD =O

Not sure how redeemable her coat will be this year...she's clipped. You can't really tell in the pictures, but they um clipped her brown/black spots, and some of the random circles on her back. xD Forum seems be a consensus that clipping so late messes up the summer coat =/

I'm at peace with a funky looking horse, I just want her to be a truly HEALTHY funky looking horse! =D


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## Shropshirerosie (Jan 24, 2012)

I don't normally comment on conformation threads, and I don't normally go for mixed colour/spotted/paint horses, but I just wanted to say that I glanced at your photos and fell in love with her! 

I love her amount of bone, I love love love her face, I'm going to steal her and make her mine :twisted:


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## deserthorsewoman (Sep 13, 2011)

*shakeshead*.... I guess they clipped the bleached coat to make her more presentable. If she just started shedding she should shed out okay if she gets all the goodies...especially flax( I currently grind my flaxseed, but used Omega Horseshine before and absolutely loved it).


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## demonwolfmoon (Oct 31, 2011)

Shrop--thank you =) I know my husband would probably be aiding and abetting you haha.

I was wondering why they did something weird like clip a spot in the middle of the horse's shoulder! /facepalm. Gotta give em credit, maybe they wanted to give her a better chance at finding a good home!


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## PreciousPony (Feb 15, 2013)

Very long horse- long neck, long back, long pasterns. The good thing is that at least she's proportionate, bad thing is that those long pasterns could cause some issues. Her front feet also splay out really badly. Her legs also look kind of short for her body. However, her hind end looks powerful and her shoulder angle is very nice. 

She's cute, but I think "nothing too athletic" will be a good career for this mare  And good job for getting a rescue!


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## Charley horse (Nov 12, 2012)

I like this mare! I cant wait to see more pictures when you start muscling her up and get her in shape


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## demonwolfmoon (Oct 31, 2011)

So, to update, here are her feet:










They will be taking them some more in a few weeks, he didn't want to go too far because she had some bruising, and on one of the feet, he said something about hitting "pink" when he was taking off the bottom...I'm guessing it means live tissue that would hurt if he kept going. Anyway, work in progress!


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## deserthorsewoman (Sep 13, 2011)

Much better!
The pasterns are not too long;-)


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## ladygodiva1228 (Sep 5, 2012)

She's a pretty girl. 
One question is she being quarantined from the other horses for at least 30 days?


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