# The Demon Horse



## Drifting (Oct 26, 2011)

Alright.

Now that I have the introduction out of the way, I can actually write more!


I got Sammy last summer as an Stallion who had been left to his own devices in a field for the better part of his yearling and 2nd year. He's an April 2010 model, so is four years old now. 

He's gotten much better about a lot of things. Before you couldn't handle his hooves. Teaching him to tie was a heart-attack in the making as he'd rear and fling himself at the wall. He finally frightened himself so badly that he stopped rearing, though he still paws and likes to pull back and bounce his *** off the wall. Patience is not his virtue.


He had a few rides on him last year and was doing really well until he sat all winter due to snow, cold, and having no indoor. 

It took a week to get him to stop swinging his *** as a first reaction to something he doesn't like. 

He brings a whole new meaning to _*Stubborn Appaloosa! *

_Last week we were lunging, and he was doing beautifully. I was working on transitions from the trot-canter and changing directions. This is a very _lazy_ horse who will never be a speed animal, so getting him to canter without running after him with a whip (literally) was my goal.

Anyway, it had been about twenty minutes and I knew he was getting tired. He doesn't have much stamina yet. I wanted one or two more laps and then we were going to call it a day.

*He. Just.Stopped.

*Something caused him to turn into me, and when I went to move him on he refused to go. It was like his brain just shut down. It didn't matter if you ran at him. It didn't matter if you used the whip on him. It turned into him backing up in a circle and rearing, he refused to go forward. Even my BO came out to try. We ended up switching his rope halter to a halter with a chain because his rears were getting dangerous. I honestly wouldn't have cared at that point if he flipped himself. 

I really didn't want to give up on getting him to move _forward_, but we needed to switch to something else to take his mind off whatever shut it down in the first place.









He got his leg caught at one point, and just stood like this with his eyes closed for about 3-4 minutes until we finally fixed it for him. He was stretching forward and I was really hoping he'd lay down, because I was ready to go jump on his head. 


Anyway, because I refused to end on a bad note, we did some yielding of hindquarters and forequarters, then I tied him for a little while so we could all catch our breath.

Tried again after untying him. Still would not go forward. Then my BO tells me "His mother gets stubborn like that" (she bred him) to which I yelled "That is not a selling point!" 

Finally we took him in the tiny 30 ft, muddy, slippery round-pen that's also on a hill. He did go forward there and did a few laps at a slipper trot before we called it a day. 

Spent the last few days in the roundpen. I don't like it in there, its too small and slippery, and the hill makes the mud a little more dangerous but he needed to learn he couldn't get out of work by being stubborn.

Took him into a smaller riding ring last night to see how he'd do, and he did much much better.


















Taking pictures while holding a lunge line and a whip is difficult.

Anyway, so we're back to being able to lunge. That was probably the biggest hurdle we've had in his training.

I do have someone coming tomorrow afternoon to evaluate him. I need a more knowledgeable person to ride him for about 4 times a week for the next month. He doesn't like to walk in a straight line and I can't fix it, so I''ve put out an ad for a trainer who can come to the barn I'm at. I don't want to continue to try and re-enforce bad habits.


Hopefully this trainer will work out. 


I call him Demon-Sammy, or Demon, or "Jerk" or a number of other names. But I usually stick with Demon because of his eyes, they're SO BLACK.


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## Lexiie (Nov 14, 2011)

I've actually had a similar problem with a gelding I've been working with. 
When we lunge he will not respect my space so I get after him. I mean really get after him I have to give him wacks so hard that I feel like it's borderline abusive. He'll move away and out but after a while he decides he wants to be done and Wil come and march right in front of me. I'll ask him to back and he'll rear and strike at me. So I have to chase him off of me. 
He's calmed down a little and is more submissive, but it's a work in progress with this guy.

Good job on rehabbing and working with your guy! I'm glad you can get a trainer out to work with the both of you. I'm sure that will be super beneficial.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Drifting (Oct 26, 2011)

We've backed up to shorter sessions. I really don't want to lunge him that long, but I'd rather work on his stubborn/laziness on the ground first before trying it in the saddle. 

I was hoping to send him to training a few months ago but my 2 year old decided he wanted me to spend all my money on him instead ( massive vet bill.) 

So hopefully I'll like this girl tomorrow and Demon-Sammy can get some good under-saddle time. I need to write up my expectations and time-frame, things like that for a contract while I'm thinking about it.


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## Lexiie (Nov 14, 2011)

I like that you're not rushing into anything!
I guess you'll be present while she's working with him?
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Drifting (Oct 26, 2011)

Yes, I'll be present. Or I would be present but I'm not sure if I want to continue down that road. 

I met her, she was nice and seemed to know what she was doing. She worked with him a little on the ground to get a feel for him. Then we had a long discussion on how he needed more ground work, which I do agree with. He's still very 'Studdish' in that he'll challenge you if he doesn't want to do something. Doesn't kick or strike, but will refuse to move or try to bite or toss his head. 

I wasn't really planning on keeping him, and I'm trying to decide if I want to put more money into him. I'm debating offering him to a trainer friend of mine for free, in exchange for maybe some discounted training on my 2 year old when he goes to training next year. We will see.


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## Drifting (Oct 26, 2011)

*Our (mis)Adventures of Tying

AKA

How to Hang your Horse*



Went out and worked Sammy first thing this morning. I wanted to tie him for awhile because he needs to work on his patience (he has none.)

We did a good 30 minute session on the ground, a lot of yielding hind quarters and forequarters, and a little lunging. Did some desensitizing with the whip when we finished. 

We have rings high up in the corner of the stalls that you can tie too, so I tied him (with a quick release knot) to that. 

This is Sammy's MO usually when tied.

First 10 minutes, maybe a little pawing.

After 20 minutes, pawing, striking the wall.

After 30-40 minutes, throwing his *** against the wall, followed by throwing himself against the wall too.

Kept him tied longer today, and I don't untie him until he's quiet the previous times (or at least during his quiet moments)

Today we hit about an hour, and he started rearing at said wall. He hasn't reared while tied since the first time he was hard tied (he scared himself then by almost getting his foot caught.)

Today, he not only started to rear. He Hung himself. Reared up, caught his leg on the line and flipped himself over upside down. _Awesome.

_I'm so mad at myself for not snapping a quick picture, but I really did want to fix him before he broke a leg. or his neck. 

We can reach through a window and pull the quick release, but before I could go around and do it, he flung himself back around and fixed himself. Of course he was shaking by the time he got up to all four feet. I really don't feel bad for him. I probably should, but I don't. He knows pressure and release, what he doesn't have is patience and that's the whole reason I tied him. What I need is a high-line tie that won't break, where he can rear and kick to his hearts content without getting caught on the line (or if he does, not be sandwiched against a wall.)

He scraped up his face, just mostly pulled the hair off so I put SWAT on those spots. He did get his leg, I'm not sure if he got it with his other hoof (Which is shod) or his halter.













At least I didn't tie him with a rope halter this time, that probably would have really bruised up his poll.

He's lucky I just so happen to have loads of bandaging stuff around (*cough*Stryder*cough*)










and speaking of Stryder, this is what he thinks of his field mate.














I'm going to message a few trainers in the area and see if they want him as a project. I can't sell him to someone who doesn't have a lot of training experience, and no ones inquired on him anyway. At least he's better off then when I first got him.


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