# Raggedy Anne updates



## Country Woman

She looks so sweet 
I love her face, good luck with Annie 
she needs love and groceries


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## waresbear

I think she is a super lucky to have you rescue her! She looks sweet. If it were me, I would have a vet come check her ASAP when you get her home to confirm if she's in foal and get her vaccinated up and checked over to ensure a healthy foaling. Thank you so much for rescuing her!


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## Stichy

Thanks, CountryWoman and waresbear! Waresbear, I'll definatly talk to mom about that...And I'm pretty sure were bringing a stethescope with us (to hear babys heart...if she is pregnant). Rain rot is treatable right? Because she has it and I'm not sure if she'd be able to be rode or not... Ugh the poor baby! Just makes me sick wondering what they did to her to make her so freaked out about ropes and halters...And they said she has scars on her mouth from a bit...Poor baby


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## soenjer55

She's lovely! If it's a filly, you could name it Annie Oakley


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## Country Woman

awe poor Annie and she needs a warm bath too 

I am happy you rescued her


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## Stichy

Oooh I like that! Her sire could either be Renwick or Rico if that helps with names! (Both are still available...*hint hint*)


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## Stichy

CountryWoman, she definatly does! Unfortunatly, it never warms up around here :/


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## Country Woman

I am just north of you in BC and it warms here


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## Sharpie

It looks like a vet visit and a good medicated bath, which will both clean her up and be a start on treating the rain rot and mud scald, are in order. Then lots of groceries and you'll have yourself a nice little horse or two! 

Rain rot can be because of an infection or rain, but a poor diet and stress including pregnancy can definitely bring it on as well and make it tough for the horses to fight off. You want to get her clean and dry as quick as possible, and it might take weekly bathing with medicated shampoos (lots of different kinds, the easiest is to just mix iodine/providine into your shampoo of choice) to get started. Sometimes adding extra vitamin A can be helpful, but in her case, it's probably something you need to go over with the vet since I don't know if there are any effects on gestation or foaling.


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## Stichy

Thanks, Sharpie! I hope it warms up soon so we can work on her, I don't think she's had a bath a day in her life!


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## soenjer55

babyfoal said:


> im kind new here guys heheh that was the first thing i saw


.... is it too late to say welcome to the forum?


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## babyfoal

nope  but im off to bed i will be doing some foruming tomorrow!


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## Stichy

Awesome, babyfoal!


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## tinaev

She is so cute! And so very lucky that you are rescuing her, I hope you have many happy years together.


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## Stichy

Thanks, Tinaev! I'm glad her foal won't have to grow up like that


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## existentialpony

You are so wonderful for rescuing her.  I can't wait to see her progress with you in the future, and I hope she has a healthy foal! I'm sure you'll give her the life she deserves!


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## Stichy

Aww, thank you, existentialpony! I'm hoping we can halter/rope break her sometime soon! Although I'll probably feel terrible in the process because of whatever she's remembering


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## LostDragonflyWings

Aw, I am so glad you saved her. I was reading your other thread earlier today and thought it was so sad. Thank you!


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## Stichy

Aww, I'm glad we got to save her too  I can't wait till she comes home! I especially can't wait till she has baby! I wish it could help decide who the baby daddy is, but they both look the same!


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## Stichy

We go to see Annie today!!! I'm so excited! I'll take a bunch of pictures (as long as my camera doesn't die)! Ugh I wish the day could go by faster! And considering I woke up early for whatever reason, thats not helping! Lol


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## Stichy

Oh! And if it's a colt, I was thinking Annies Little Gunslinger...what do you think?


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## nvr2many

And call him??? Maybe Gunner??


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## Stichy

Yep, thats what I was thinking!


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## LadyDreamer

Looking at the rump and shoulders and neck and not the belly, she doesn't look too terrible for an older girl. Poor condition absolutely, but not too bad. I have seen worse. She shouldn't be too hard to get back in order. 

I love her color. I'd imagine sh is a bay leopard? I am glad you got her. That baby will be something.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Stichy

Yep! Man I find it hard to believe she's 20! I'm hoping she's pregnant...If she is I hope she has the baby with us so it doesn't have to live even a second in that place..She's still housed in the same fence with stallions! You would think they would seperate them....


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## LadyDreamer

Why would they? It is a kill pen isn't it? Or is it a rescue facility?
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Stichy

Kill pen I believe...Welp, theres my answer right there! Lol


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## Stichy

Were brining Annie home tomorrow!!! Im so excited! The guy that is housing her confirmed she's pregnan but mom and I will get a vet out once we can halter her. That stallions there didn't act stallion like at all! And I fell In love with possible baby daddy <3 wow honestly, that place traumatized me  the horses there were... Wow. I mean I've seen worse but still, they are all so sweet and forgiving. We couldn't get any pics sadly because the guy was the type that just wanted us to sign papers, pay, an leave. Ahhh so excited!!!


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## Stichy

Oh, also apparently all or most of the appys there are bloodlined, so we'll see I guess.


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## Copperhead

I will be forever stalking this horse's progress :twisted: I like her that much already.


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## Stichy

Haha, I'm glad, Copper!


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## ThePaintGirl

Copperhead said:


> I will be forever stalking this horse's progress :twisted: I like her that much already.


I will be right there with you!


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## mysolarflare

She is pretty, can't wait to see how she comes along!


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## Stichy

Thanks, guys! She was such a sweetie, I don't see how anyone would neglect a poor girl like her


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## LadyDreamer

I might have misse it, but when does she cone home?
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Stichy

Tomorrow! I'm so excited! It was originally going to be thursday, but the guy said "Well, your close and I'll be in the area anyways, so I'll just drop her off tomorrow." After she comes home, we're going to build a seperate stall for her and baby because my mare *might* try to steal it...I'm sooo going to spoil them, haha!


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## Stichy

Only a few hours left and she'll be here!! So excited!


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## Skyseternalangel

Picture document it, please!!


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## Stichy

Definatly! The guy just called and said he's getting close!!! Ahh I think my heart is going to explode!! I've been "anxiety eating" all day haha...The nerves are starting to get to me!


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## Chevaux

subbing


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## Stichy

Yay  The guys is about 30 minutes away now!! He is also going to get hay, so it might take longer since I don't know if he's getting in before or after he drops her off..Those horses went through TEN of those huge round bales in 2 weeks! Baisically, they ate all hehad, and they hardly had any left when we went! Poor babys D:


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## Stichy

ALMOST TO OUR HOUSE! HE'S JUST ALMOST AT THE EXIT! (We live like on the exit lol) Also, sorry for spamming you guys with useless posts, I'm just so excited!


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## Cacowgirl

That's OK-we're horse people here-I'm sure we all get excited when we get a new horse.


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## Chevaux

I see it`s been about an hour now since last post so I assume the unloading has taken place and settling in is now in progress.


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## Northernstar

On stand by and keeping fingers crossed for good luck!


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## Stichy

Yess!!! She's home! She's mine! She's home! She's mine! She took a trot around the whole feild, almost like she was saying "Oh my god! Actual grass!" She is such a sweetie <333 She whinnied and chased after the truck as she saw it go by like "Wait! Thats my ride!" but she's settled in well!


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## Stichy

I'll upload pictures later tonight (or maybe now if I have time) because now we have to head off to the barn to take care of Brandy. Annie was watching us at the fence as we left like "Wait, where are you going?" What a sweetie  Her hooves are horrible, the poor thing.


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## Chevaux

Very good! I`m now waiting for pictures.


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## EliRose

Aw, she sounds so amazing! Congratulations!


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## Northernstar

Stichy said:


> Yess!!! She's home! She's mine! She's home! She's mine! She took a trot around the whole feild, almost like she was saying "Oh my god! Actual grass!" She is such a sweetie <333 She whinnied and chased after the truck as she saw it go by like "Wait! Thats my ride!" but she's settled in well!


I clearly remember how absolutely over-the-top excited I was when I first brought Star home - I share your excitement! Even more so that you've _rescued_ this sweet girl, and now she'll be so well loved!! Can't wait for pictures


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## Copperhead

Glad everything went so well! Pictures!!!
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Stichy

Thanks, everyone! I know I said I'd upload pics tonight, but I can't 
JUST KIDDING! Here they are  Her entire album is here, I'll just post a couple pictures of her on here for now  Raggedy Anne Photos by crstich | Photobucket








Her poor feet ;(
















Her tail  I think we're just going to have to cut it off...








Now enjoy some baby belly! Believe it or not, the pictures make her looks small, she is pretty big!
























Aaand now for her butt heart!








I'll post some more in a seperate post  I'm waiting for pics to load haha


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## DraftyAiresMum

Oh! Poor momma!!
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Stichy

This may be the sexiest picture I have EVER taken of her so far!
















Trotting around the feild...also, those are SPOTS on her butt...she's not pooping haha 








Biiiiig steps!








I LOVE this picture of her! Sadly, you can kinda see her ribs 
























Also, my friend is talking about saving one of Annie's hugely pregnant herdmates!! I'm so excited!


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## Stichy

I know right, Drafty? It was like she had never seen grass before!


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## waresbear

In the one picture of her back hoof, the big chunk missing, is it exposing the flesh?


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## Skyseternalangel

Omg she's so beautiful in a really tragic way. I hope the vet can give you more info on how far along she is. 

Man this makes me want to go and adopt a rescue...


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## Stichy

Thats what I thought too, but I didn't have my glasses on so I couldn't tell. We're going to check up on it and put medicine on it if it is though.


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## Stichy

Thanks, Sky! Theres still a few left if your willing to travel


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## waresbear

She really, really needs a tetanus vaccine for sure, especially since she has exposed flesh on the ground like that. The tetanus bacteria live in the ground, poor thing, she is so lucky to have you!


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## Stichy

Couldn't agree more, waresbear. We're going to work on her halter fears tomorrow so we can get the vet out ASAP...and thank you!


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## Stichy

Oh, also, I think I felt baby move today!! I was so excited!


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## Chevaux

Thanks for the pictures. I look forward to the next ones as your efforts to improve her start taking effect.


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## Stichy

I do too, Chevaux! We're going to halter her tomorrow!


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## Country Woman

That is so exciting to feel the foal move


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## Stichy

I know right?


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## horsecrazygirl

Poor girl! I'm glad you got a hold of her. Hmmm i might need to check this place out.


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## Stichy

Oooh yes! It turns out, it's not a kill pen like Fawn (the lady who told us about her) said it was, but it is a giant mud pit. You should sooo get one ;D The stallions are sooo sweet!


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## Stichy

We haltered her today! It took about ten minutes and thats it, after she was haltered she was good! We brushed her out and walked her around! It turns out, she LOVES molasses cookies and pecan sandies! We got her a bunch of grain and some hay, she LOVES it! She followed me around the feild like a little puppy dog, so cute! Anyways, heres todays pictures! I have some on my ipod but I haven't synced it up yet.
















AHHH! Annie, where's your head?!?
























Ooh, a stick!








What is this and why is it on my head?!?








Moms nose is in the way lol
















Ahh, calling her mine still feels so...un-real! I love it!


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## Northernstar

She looks like a sweet girl! - with lots of good nutrition, grooming, farrier, etc., I'll bet you'll have her doing well in no time, and ready for her wonderful new life


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## Stichy

Thanks, Northern! We just put her on grain, and watching her eat, we think she has teeth problems. Ahh, I'm so paranoid for baby!


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## Northernstar

If you're having a vet out soon, he'll definately need to see her teeth for a possible float - when you make the appt., specify the possible need for a float, so he'll have the equip. with him - sounds like a huge deal, but it only takes about 20 min., and it will mean the world to your horse after it's done! What I do each spring, is simply have the vet come prepared to : do any needed floats, and give what's called a 4-way vaccine - East Nile, West Nile, Tetanus, and Influenza. The whole visit takes less than an hr., and the horses are sooo all set! Your girl then just needs a visit from the farrier after, (I'd do the vet 1st, as she may need meds for her hooves), then you'll be quite underway


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## Copperhead

Her eyes are so sad. She's a pretty girl.


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## Stichy

Awesome, I'll keep that in mind! Also, I know right, Copper? My poor baby  Ok, so mom and I left bout an hour ago...and guess who called? Grandma. She said she had a feeling someone was watching her, so she turned around and was like "Oh, it's just Mouse!" (Mouse is her appy who has almost the exact body shape as her) Then she thought "Wait...Mouse isn't here..." Aaaand yep. It was Annie, watching her over the hill. Good thing she's a puppy dog and will follow people she knows. Grandma caught her, but we were like 20 minutes away, so we have to check fence when mom gets back, and I'm on watch duty...That little turd!


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## Stichy

Annie gave me a horsie hug today  It was so sweet, I just love her! Couldn't take as many pics today because it started to rain, but heres yesterdays pictures I took from my iPod.
Enjoying her preggo mare grain
























Aaaand baby belly of the day!








Today's pictures!
Eating some breakfast 
















































Aaannd baby belly of the day! Yes, the little turd went and rolled after I brushed her! She reeks! She actually smells like clams! Lol. I'm thinking of calling her Clammy Annie XD


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## Northernstar

It's nice to see her eyes lit up - she appears so much more happy! Keep up with giving her all that good care and lots of love


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## Stichy

> It's nice to see her eyes lit up - she appears so much more happy!


 Thats what mom and I were talking about this morning  Oh trust me, I don't think I could stop loving her! The only thing I'm worried about is when Brandy comes back home..Normally I wouldn't have worried, except we just found out she is the jelous type of horse..Well this will be interesting!


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## cowgirl928

subbing!


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## Stichy

Yay! Haha, my riding instructor told us she's already dreaming of Annie's baby! Also someone commented telling me Annie was the prettiest appy she's seen so far! Aww, everyone loves Annie!


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## 3PaintMares

I'm jealous as she's such a beautiful horse. I hope to have an Appaloosa mare in the future. She's such a lucky girl and thanks for saving her. I can't wait to see all the future updates a her.


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## Stichy

Aww, Annie and I say thanks! My riding instructor wants Annie up at her barn so bad XD


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## Stichy

So excited!! My cousin is coming over to see Annie today! I'll take as many pics as I can


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## FlyGap

I am so excited for you!! Can't wait for the baby!
Wanna know a due date!!??
Really Really Really Like her, good save!


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## Stichy

Thanks! I am too! We don't know yet, we still need to get the vet out


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## Sharpie

So uh, you *cough* mentioned pictures yesterday...


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## nvr2many

I am so happy for you and Annie! She is very pretty! When is the vet coming out?? I am dying for health details, lol.


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## Stichy

Sorry for the lack of updated/pictures, I've been busy all weekend and couldn't make it to the computer!  now I'm feeling sick and don't want to get my laptop all germy, so in on my ipod(which won't stop auto correcting me!) and dad brought the camera to work so I can upload any pics... Sorry again! Oh! Annie got out of the fence again... Twice! We have no idea how she does it, the fence is never broken or anything! Also, she has become incredibly clingy lately so it's almost impossible to take pics of her haha


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## nvr2many

Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhh nooooooooooooooooo! Gotta figure that out and quick! That would scare the H3!! outta me.


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## Stichy

I know right? Thank god she's such a puppy dog and just walks right up to you! We think she somehow slips trough the fence... So apparently she's not as scared of Hotwire as my horse! Lol


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## cowgirl928

Any other updates? How's she doin? Maybe try panels instead of the wire? You can find some fairly cost effective yet barrier effective ones for the time being until you find a more permanent solution  Heck if you were closer I'm always down for some fence buildin!


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## Stichy

@Cowgirl928 Were looking at new fencing for when baby comes...and I'm excited because I will hopefully be able to design her new stall ...I think she's spoiled, haha. 
Our updates aren't as exciting anymore since pretty much all I do is sit out in the feild and stare at her haha. Oh, but we did find out, that of ALL the things she could be scared of, it's trees. Shes fine with a few, but if we take her out to graze she freaks out...Thats a problem for us considering the fact WE LIVE IN THE WOODS. Lol, well I hope baby doesn't develop her fear. Went outside and got a BUNCH of pictures...of just me and her, haha. I'll upload a few  Annie "saved" me from a terryfing hose yesterday! What a good girl  lol. Grandma was down cleaning off her new car, and Annie was throwing a fit, wouldn't let me leave the fence until the scary hose was gone! She's my trusty pony 
Someones extra nosey today!








Look at the little turd smiling after she messed up my hair, haha
















Baby belly








Thats all I can get without my camera


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## waresbear

Wow, her belly is getting big! So what did vet and farrier say about her condition and rehab on her hooves?
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Stichy

Mom said she will call him today...I keep harrasing her about it. I noticed that too! Her belly grows fast! And she gains weight fast, she's already gained some weight here! Now everyone at the barn is dreaming about her baby haha


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## cowgirl928

are you taking her on some good short walks to keep her in a little shape? I bet she isn't scared of the trees, maybe what she associates with them. THink about it, the natural predator of the horse is a mountain lion. Mountain lions like to be in trees, therefore she is scared of trees lol Also she could have a problem with teh shadows of the trees. My friend owns a horse that does NOT like the shadow of a few of the trees in the area (odd i know...). Anywho, that is just my input!


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## Stichy

Yea, we try to take her on walks, and if we can't I walk her around her feild and do a little trot for like 2 seconds (she's old and pregnant, she doesn't want to do much! Haha) Hmm...I've never thought of it like that..We are definatly going to try to work on that haha.


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## Wallaby

She's super cute!! 

I just had a thought about another thing you probably want to talk to the vet about/have them check when they're out, that relates to the tree stuff as well. Her eyes. Make sure they take a good look into her eyes.

Since she's an Appaloosa, there's a chance (since Appies are more susceptible) she could have some vision changes due to Equine Recurrent Uvietis/ERU (commonly known as Moon Blindness). 
It's just one of those things that if you catch it early, it's not hard to control but left untreated it can really cause issues.

She probably doesn't have it at all but since she's an older Appaloosa with no history, I would get those eyes checked. 

My girl has it (she's not an Appy - it's not 100% breed specific, just much less common among other breeds) and if you have any questions, I would be more than happy to tell you what I know.


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## cowgirl928

Thats what it's called! I couldn't remember it but I remembered that there was something that they could get with their eyes.


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## Stichy

Thanks for the suggestions, Wallaby! I never thought of her having eye troubles. We're about to email the guy who originally had her, so we'll see about her history, etc then..I hope nothing bad!


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## Wallaby

Anytime, Stichy!
I wouldn't count on the previous owner knowing about it, if she were to have it (Great that you might be able to get some history from him though!!) - like don't not get them checked because he had never noticed anything, you know what I mean? 

I'm just a bit oversensitive about it because with my girl, she's 100% blind in one eye and has less than 50% vision in the other eye AND NO ONE KNEW (myself included+she was boarded for nearly 2 years under the daily care of a woman with over 40 years horse experience!) until she had a really serious flare up last spring, the vet suggested that ERU might be the cause, then I researched and found out what I know now. 
I had had her for nearly 4 years (seeing her daily for most of that time) once she was finally diagnosed and with how bad her vision is now, she has to have had ERU for probably 10 years.
I've never seen her bump into anything, ever, she's not spooky - if anything, she's one of the least spooky horses I've met (once she knows what her surroundings are like - she can be pretty clingy+spooky during the initial "settling-in" phase), I can ride her at all gaits, she happily runs up and down hills+over uneven terrain... It's terrifying for me! :rofl:

Anyway, I'll get off my soapbox but all I'm trying to get at is that a horse with vision issues does not necessarily act like what "we" expect an animal with vision issues to behave like. I had always thought that blind horses always act blind...turns out they don't necessarily have to! Whooooo knew. haha!


I don't mean to worry you or anything, it's just a topic very close to my heart! :lol:


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## Stichy

Oh you aren't worrying me, just filling me in on things.. I hope the vet comes out soon!


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## 3PaintMares

Thanks for the update photo's, There's some cute girls in those pictures. So adorable and she will make a great horse. When you save a horse it's weird, it's like they know you saved their life and mostly turn out to be the sweatest horse you will ever own.


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## Stichy

Thats what I've noticed with Annie, she just loves to be joined at the hip with you, and loves every person she see's! It makes me sick someone could neglect her like that.


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## cowgirl928

well people are sick. Sometimes it sucks to have to say it but it happens to be true, sadly enough. You saved her and that is all that matters now


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## Stichy

True, at least now she can have a happy life


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## wetrain17

She's lucky to have someone who loves her. Can't wait to see the baby.

Any word about a vet or farrier yet?


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## 3PaintMares

Yeah it is sickning when a horse is abused and what breaks my heart even more is when you see how much of a sweatheart the horse really is. In Annie's eyes your her angel and she loves you. Brings a smile to my face to know a horse was saved and in a loving home. I wanna do more to save horses, IMO. I don't do enough. I love horses too much. 
Gypsy is the same way, she's glued to my hip and literally in-love with me. I find it cute, when she nuzzels me, nickers for me, follows me around, if in the pasture, she'll chase away any horse who dares come near me. It goes to show you how big of a heart horses really have and glad she's with me. Where I know she's well protected and cared for, till death dues us part and the pasture in the sky calls her home. I just wish the human race was the same as a horse, we could learn alot from our equine friends.


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## cowgirl928

Is she on some ground that has give to it? I forgot what was said before. And yes, with wetrain, word on the farrier? I am curious to see what a diagnoses would be on her hoof situation.


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## Stichy

Ugh, still waiting for a certain mother of mine to call..Harrasing doesn't work! I wish I could call myself


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## cowgirl928

Why can't you call yourself? Here is what you do...ask her almost every hour until she gets so annoyed she has to because she can't take you anymore. It never failed with my mother. Then again our rule was that if I wanted a horse I had to pay for things on my own. So from a young age I paid for all my costs.


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## Northernstar

I can tell you love her so much, and she's now so lucky! Looking back at the original photos of her hooves, I encourage you to find a farrier while you're waiting for the vet to come -_ please_ try to get one as soon as you can, and best of luck


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## Stichy

Thanks, Northern  We just sent an email to the guy that used to have her hoping to get some information on her...Fingers crossed!


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## Stichy

Yesterdays pics:
Eating her grain 








Baby belleh








Aaand todays pics!
My pretty girl 








Annies pretty eyes!








Today, she had her head on my shoulder like she always does, then for some reason I felt drool dripping down my back.. Sooo, I turned around to this XD
































She's good at putting her eyeliner on 
















Baby belly








More to come in another post!


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## Stichy

Blurry, but I still like it 
























Ugh, she's so dirty!








Annie and her "What the heck keeps moving in there?!?" Face. She kept nudging at her belly like "Hey! Stop it!" haha
























She decided she'd help me with fishing all the hay out of her water, by eating the pieces in the net, lol








She walked in front of the hay as I threw it in..so the result was some pieces got a free horsey ride!








http://i1140.photobucket.com/albums/n573/crstich/Raggedy%20Anne/029_zpsfcebc188.jpg?t=1362722841[/IMG
[IMG]http://i1140.photobucket.com/albums/n573/crstich/Raggedy%20Anne/030_zps6728bfdf.jpg?t=1362722845
Did she even eat her hay?!?


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## Chevaux

I'm seeing improvement - well done.


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## Serenity616

What a sweetie! She is so lucky to have you to take care of her now! Love those senior horses!  Good for you for taking her in!


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## Stichy

Thanks, Chevaux and Serenity616! Annie was VERY interested in me fixing her stall today, she nickered me a tune while I worked, haha! I'll upload pics in a minute


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## BarrelracingArabian

My friends gelding used to put his hay in his water and then eat it. I know some horses prefer it that way lol. May be easier for her to eat? She is adorable


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## Cacowgirl

My mare (20) liked to dunk her hay-so she trained me to pour a gallon or so on her flake in a small feeder, & my friends young (4) gelding also dunked his. Just something some horses like to do I guess.


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## Northernstar

I'm really starting to see happiness in her eyes now! So wonderful. Well done for taking her in! Just wondering if you've been able to get a hold of the vet or farrier yet?


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## KyMoMoF3CuTiEs

She is beautiful! !! Sweet eyes!
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Wild Heart

So, I'm not sure how I missed this thread... 

Anyways, Annie is an adorable appy! 
Do you know how old she is?


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## Stichy

Thanks, kymo!
Wild hearts, we think she is in her 20s... We aren't sure.
We left for the barn and were gone about 3 hours, when we got back, Annie was limping ;( I reeeally hope she ok. We're going to call the farrier tomorrow, which will be hard considering she won't lift her feet.. Then again, this farrier tends to work some magic..


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## Stichy

Thanks. Northern! Didn see your guys comments lol. We're gettin the farrier here as soon as we can, I'm reeeally worried about her leg


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## Stichy

Pics from yesterday and the day before 
My angel Annie <33








Oh! People! I love people!
















Annie loves....This sign!








My pretty baby <3








"What? Someone drew me?!? Awesome!"








































Blurry, but I still like it!








I LOVE this picture of her!


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## horsecrazygirl

When is she due for a bath?


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## Stichy

When it gets warm  Hopefully soon!


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## FlyGap

Lookin great! You may want to douse her with fly spray, might have lice... Check first for lots of flaky white dandruff. And put a black t-shirt on her back in the sun for a couple minuets, the lice will cling to it. I know, ewwwwww!!!! But you don't want a lice ridden colt.

For sure get the vet out first. He will be able to better check her for abbesses and she needs her shots asap before foaling.


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## cowgirl928

haha I love the photo where she is obsessively scratching on the sign


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## Stichy

Arghhh, I forgot that when you move pictures they disappear...I'll re-upload those quick..Thanks Flygap! We checked for lice, she doesn't have any (thank god!) I walked out today and she spilt her hoof really bad  My poor baby! Off to give kisses, love, and get a vet number! I think mom has finally cracked...


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## Stichy

LOOVEEE this picture!


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## Stichy

Haha, me too, Cowgirl! She actually is in love with it, she sits and stares at it, grazes with it...Scratches herself on it...It's her best friend!


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## cowgirl928

She has made much improvement as I can see. Have you given her a good rubber curry groom? Looks like she could use it and with as much as she loves that sign I bet she would love a rubber curry scratching her too


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## Stichy

Yes, but a certain somehorse (not naming any...ANNIE!) rolls the SECOND after we brush her...She even created a mud patch! Grr...Haha.


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## cowgirl928

It's inevitable. Just come to terms with the fact now that she will never be fully clean and you will save yourself much frustration. Also here is a little mane and tail tip: if you don't brush them a whole lot they will grow out to be thicker. If she has a lot of tangles and snarls just try to finger comb them out and her mane and tail will be luxurious  She does have a good mane and tail though compared to most appy's you see nowadays!


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## Stichy

I know...I'm trying very hard to stay clear of the mane/tail area...Haha. I lovvee brushing tails! I could spend all day doing that, haha.


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## cowgirl928

you can come brush my mares tail if you enjoy doing it. It takes around 20 minutes just to brush the outer layer of hair. Then you have to do around her tailbone..aghhhh...


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## Wild Heart

Did you give the farrier a call today?

Just went back to look at the photos of her hooves. Hope the farrier can fix them up a bit, must be pretty painful.

I'd also have the vet take a look at them as well. 
Which leg is she limping on?


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## Stichy

The one she just cracked..I can't remember which one, I think it's the right hind. We just text the farrier since he didn't pick up, so lets hope he can come soon..And work some magic! Fingers crossed!
@Cowgirl When do you want me down there


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## cowgirl928

Oh gosh you can come comb her tail every two-three weeks. However on your first journey here you need to bring me a stud from the Spokane area. Does that work into your travel plans? lol could you also pay his stud fee for me?


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## Damadeer

Both Brandy and Annie need to see a vet, IMO...

Annie I would focus on more, because of that horrible foot and her possible teeth problems. A big, bloated belly could be worms and I'd worry more about that than if she could be pregnant. In my experience with auction horses, more often than not it was worms and not a foal -- even the "movement" in her abdomen could just be just an unhappy digestive track with a severe parasite infestation.
A vet could rule out either one.

Several times you've already claimed that a farrier and/or a vet will be out to see her, but then turn around and say that you couldn't get a hold of them. If they don't pick up, call another guy. The health of your horse is at stake here, plus if she's limping she's clearly in pain. How long are you going to make her walk on that? If you broke your foot... badly... and were forced to walk on it/stand on it without pain medication, or getting your weight off it, or the help of a doctor, I'm sure in a few days you'd be begging to see someone.

Also, the fallen sign should get picked up or moved out of the pen. And the loose-bits of wood and metally-looking things seen in the background around the tarp. Horses are notorious for tripping over things and she could further injure herself on it. Especially at night when they can't see very well or if she has bad vision.

She needs more than love and "magic" right now, your heart is in the right place but without a check up from both a vet and a farrier, and possible medication, Annie's lameness might become permanent and she'll be nothing more than a pretty lawn ornament.

Please, please, please get her checked out.gl


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## Stichy

@Cowgirl Deal! Haha...Stud fee...I'm not sure, Annie broke us, lol
@DamaDeer, I'm trying, honestly, but I have no control of any of this, it's all mom.


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## Damadeer

As harsh as it sounds, someone needs to hear it. Who bought the horse and who is the legal caregiver of her? There's two horses that need attention. Brandy won't get checked out because your mom is focusing more on Annie. Annie arrived in February and this is more than enough time to get a vet out for her, it should've happened that week. She has exposed flesh dragging through feces and mud, a recipe for infection. At the moment this unwillingness to comply is venturing into willing abuse. By that I mean that you can see the problem, you can see the injury, but nothing is being done to fix it. At this point in time, she's basically back at the feedlot with the exception of food and hugs. This is not okay and whoever owns this horse/in charge of its care, needs to know that. This is why it's so important not to just have the funds to buy the animal, but store away extra for medical fees. You're in a situation where you bought a horse that you really can't afford. This is a personal pet peeve, because I've seen SO MANY horses go the byway because they would get bought from the auction because they were cheap, but the owners couldn't/wouldn't get them checked out. Family and friends should never have to pay for your animals. You shouldn't have to rely so heavily on them monetary-wise, my parents would never pay for my pets. Even when I was younger it was all on me to at least provide the fees for healthcare and check-ups. I'm not saying this to be a jerk, but the mare desperately needs attention and your mom desperately need to know that this isn't okay. Show her this if you have to, anything to get the animals checked out. (sorry for spelling mistakes, on my mobile.)


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## DraftyAiresMum

Damadeer said:


> As harsh as it sounds, someone needs to hear it. Who bought the horse and who is the legal caregiver of her? There's two horses that need attention. Brandy won't get checked out because your mom is focusing more on Annie. Annie arrived in February and this is more than enough time to get a vet out for her, it should've happened that week. She has exposed flesh dragging through feces and mud, a recipe for infection. At the moment this unwillingness to comply is venturing into willing abuse. By that I mean that you can see the problem, you can see the injury, but nothing is being done to fix it. At this point in time, she's basically back at the feedlot with the exception of food and hugs. This is not okay and whoever owns this horse/in charge of its care, needs to know that. This is why it's so important not to just have the funds to buy the animal, but store away extra for medical fees. You're in a situation where you bought a horse that you really can't afford. This is a personal pet peeve, because I've seen SO MANY horses go the byway because they would get bought from the auction because they were cheap, but the owners couldn't/wouldn't get them checked out. Family and friends should never have to pay for your animals. You shouldn't have to rely so heavily on them monetary-wise, my parents would never pay for my pets. Even when I was younger it was all on me to at least provide the fees for healthcare and check-ups. I'm not saying this to be a jerk, but the mare desperately needs attention and your mom desperately need to know that this isn't okay. Show her this if you have to, anything to get the animals checked out. (sorry for spelling mistakes, on my mobile.)


I think you need to step back and take a deep breath...and remember that the OP is young (fourteen, I think she said) and not financially responsible for these horses. If I remember correctly, it was her mom's idea to rescue Annie from the kill pen, not the OP's.

Harping on the OP will accomplish nothing more than upsetting her. I highly doubt it will magically induce her mother to get the vet or farrier out sooner.

Also, making assumptions about the OP's (or her mother's) financially ability to maintain their horses is just plain rude. At no point in time did the OP say that getting the vet or farrier out was a money issue. The OP is doing the best she can, while functioning within the constrains of being a minor with no financial responsibility. 
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## BarrelracingArabian

I kinda have to agree. Didn't you say your mom got rid of a previous horsr because she didnt want to deal with the issues? You showed your mom this horse so you are partially responsible for getting her. If I were you I would be bugging about getting the vet out or finding her a home where they can actually afford the vet care. Im glad you guys saved her but she really doesn't seem to be getting what she needs besides food. I wish you luck with her I hope your mother wakes up and puts more of an effort in. The vet should have been there the day you brought her home but again best of luck.


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## cowgirl928

I do also agree to a point. My dear (OP) I know you are young but this needs to be taken care of for the welfare of the horses. You need to either call the vet yourself at this point and just make an appointment for him to come out when your mother is home or you need to ask you mother why she honestly hasn't done anything yet.


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## Stichy

> I kinda have to agree. Didn't you say your mom got rid of a previous horsr because she didnt want to deal with the issues? You showed your mom this horse so you are partially responsible for getting her. If I were you I would be bugging about getting the vet out or finding her a home where they can actually afford the vet care. Im glad you guys saved her but she really doesn't seem to be getting what she needs besides food. I wish you luck with her I hope your mother wakes up and puts more of an effort in. The vet should have been there the day you brought her home but again best of luck.


Me? No, my mom never got rid of a horse she didn't want to deal with, she never owned that horse, we were just working with her. Besides, it wasn't just that, my mom has one lung, and this horse was massive, and if she fell off of her that would be it. I didn't show her the horse, mom found her. We can afford vet care and I am bugging about it, trust me. The day we brought her home we couldn't halter her or anything, and we had been working on that, which is why the vet wasn't there. 
@Cowgirl, I know, I'll ask her today because she was talking about getting a vet out (maybe harrasment does work...)


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## Damadeer

DraftyAiresMum said:


> I think you need to step back and take a deep breath...and remember that the OP is young (fourteen, I think she said) and not financially responsible for these horses. If I remember correctly, it was her mom's idea to rescue Annie from the kill pen, not the OP's.
> 
> Harping on the OP will accomplish nothing more than upsetting her. I highly doubt it will magically induce her mother to get the vet or farrier out sooner.
> 
> Also, making assumptions about the OP's (or her mother's) financially ability to maintain their horses is just plain rude. At no point in time did the OP say that getting the vet or farrier out was a money issue. The OP is doing the best she can, while functioning within the constrains of being a minor with no financial responsibility.


Firstly, I didn't know she was so young. Most forums I've been on have a 16+ age requirement, so my bad on that front. 

Secondly, somewhere she _did_ say that Annie quote "broke the bank" and while I may not have phrased it as nicely as I should've, I took it as there was not enough funds for neither of the horses to be looked at. Wouldn't you at least support that a horse, no matter who's looking after it, should be seen by a vet shortly after purchasing? Especially if there's an obvious injury and/or a possible pregnancy? And really, it is odd that Annie hasn't seen someone at this point.

Realize that I'm not doing any of this out of spite or malice and that I'm as cool as a cucumber when I'm typing this (as I have been this whole thread, though it may not seem like it). I'm not angry, but I do worry about the welfare of the horses. Especially Annie with that broken hoof dragging through muck and mire.

Thank you to those who agreed/semi-agreed with me, I wish I could've said it as eloquently as you guys did and I do wish the OP the best of luck with this horse.gl


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## Stichy

> somewhere she did say that Annie quote "broke the bank


 That was supposed to be as a joke, meaning we spoil her 24/7.


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## cowgirl928

spoiling is always delightful  she looks much better but yes the vet care is needed


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## Stichy

I agree with you, Cowgirl.


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## Stichy

Woohoo! FINALLY got word from the farrier!! He's coming...but unfortunatly it's on the 28'th... I wish it could be sooner, but this is the cheapest and best farrier we know/trust, and he gets booked up easy.


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## Wallaby

I'm glad someone is able to come out! Good job for getting things to happen for Miss Anne. 
Now you have some time to start getting her super comfy with having her hooves handled, if she's not already (I think I remember reading mention of her having hoof-lifting issues?)!  That would be super nice for the farrier, to have to work on some tricky feet but have a well behaved "patient". 


Also, maybe take some before and after shots of her feet?
Back in the day, my mare's hooves were really terrible and as they transformed into good hooves, it was really worth it to go back and look at where we had started. You know, to help keep my spirits up that things were actually getting better. Even now, it's 'nice' to look back and think "we started _there_ and now we have such NICE hooves!"


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## Stichy

Me too! We'll be working on her hoof issue, we got some time. Honestly, maybe it's just that she doesn't like her bare skin touched or something (doubt it, but still). What I mean by bare skin is that she had such bad mud skald that she has no leg hair, but it's grown a lot since we've had her..
Or it could be a trust issue, but she seems to love people a lot, so that confuses me a bit.
Oh yea, before and after pictures are a must!


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## Stichy

Ugh! Just learned that she was exposed to more than just two stallions, there was just two that were fit to be adopted at the time...Wonderful  Geez, are we ever going to find out who baby daddy is?!?


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## Stichy

Oh, I also need help with Annie's colors if anyone wants a go at it.. She has brown, bay, and chestnut spots all over her body, and she has black but only on her belly and her legs. Someone suggested a varnish roan, but she just didn't seem like one to me...Who else wants to try?


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## cowgirl928

Post photos on the color part of the forum. Let NDAppy or Chilaa see it lol there are some other experts but those two pop into my head for now


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## Stichy

Ooh, good idea! Totally forgot we had one of those, and I've posted in it before! Lol


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## Stichy

Wew, haven't updated in forever! Or at least it feels like forever, lol. Lots of stuff been going on, training, feeding, fixing things, buying things..Oh my! Haha. LOTS to update! I have officially taught her NOT to be rude when I'm bringing her food (AKA don't eat until I set it down), which was pretty easy with her..Just say no in a stern voice and she won't try, now she has learned that I just say don't be rude and she will wait...So proud of my girl! Apparently she is VERY sensitive, I tried lifting her hooves and she was doing great, but later on was getting frustrated, so she lifted her hind hoof in a warning, and I smacked her to say no, that is not ok! And then she gave me a look like I had shot her and then she walked away with her head down and just stared at me...I felt so bad! But, she did need to learn that what she did was not ok to do. I'm guessing she was one of the foals that backed up and got their butt scratched, and just never got out of that habit, so we're trying to fix that. She seems to trust me a lot more, and we've worked on walking around the feild every day and now she uses the whole feild! So proud of my baby! Her rainrot is just flying off like crazy, and her leg hair is growing back...very exciting! She had her first expirience with elk a few days ago...We were walking around the feild and all the sudden the pass through the brush next to her feild, Annie didn't notice for a while and when she did, she had to look twice, then had this shocked look on her face, it was hilarious! I'm guessing she thought they were some sort of messed up unicorn? Haha. I'm having a lot of fun with our training and progress, I'm glad she's made it so far! She's starting to fill in more, and now that she is mom says it doesn't exactly look like she's pregnant, and we're guessing (until we get the vet out) that she was covered in september, so that would be about 7 months...I hope she actually is! Vet soon, were asking around to see the best one. Pretty soon Annie gets her hooves done!! Yay! Hmm...I think thats all...Sorry, no pictures! My ipod doesn't have enough space and I'm working on it, camera is lost


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## Saddlebag

You need to stop thinking of and referring to her as baby and poor baby. Your horse isn't capable of human emotions, like glaring at you, so don't interpret her looking at you as such. She is a horse, a large animal that could seriously hurt you and you have to stop making excuses for her behaviour. Your smacking her for lifting her hoof didn't accomplish anything. Perhaps she was holding it up for you to clean. By twenty she knows the routine. LF, LH, RH, RF.


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## Stichy

No saddlebag, I mean I was lifting her front right hoof and she slammed that one down and lifted her hind one in a warning. I know she isn't capable of emotions, and I was saying she gave me that look in a joking way. Honestly I don't know what she does and doesn't know, she was neglected for god knows how long and even then I don't know how far her training goes, since she was used as a brood mare


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## Endiku

Saddlebag, just because the mare is elderly doesn't mean she knows ground manners necessarily. We just brought in a 17 year old QH ex-broodie to retrain for a young man who just bought her, and she'd basically just been covered, tossed in a pasture, until she foaled, and brought back in to be covered after she had it again for years. No one taught her to lead correctly, no one taught her to lift her legs, no one taught her it wasn't ok to nip, push, or kick. It all had to be taught. Kicking, nipping, rearing...its all part of a horse's natural instinct and herd behavior. You must TRAIN them to realize that it is NOT ok with humans, they aren't born knowing it.

I call my foster filly 'a poor baby, little doll, darling baby, pathetic thing' etc all of the time in person and on the forum. That doesn't mean I don't reprimind her for acting like an idiot or that I don't think of her as a large animal that could kill me. If she were to strike out at me, it wouldn't matter that she's half starved and sorry looking as can be, she's going to get chased around a little and ten to one have a very sore butt, face, neck...whatever is in MY 'striking' distance at the time.

As for whether or not a horse can glare...well...tell that to the mares in the Mare Glare thread  they may not have HUMAN emotions but that doesn't mean they don't have emotion at all, or that they may not relate in some form to our own emotions...


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## Stichy

Endiku, is there a way I can like your comment more? Lol


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## Skyseternalangel

Saddlebag said:


> Your smacking her for lifting her hoof didn't accomplish anything. Perhaps she was holding it up for you to clean. By twenty she knows the routine. LF, LH, RH, RF.


It did actually. The horse should not lift her foot when not asked, especially because it's so easy to be hit in the face with a rising knee. That hurts.

Also age does not guarantee training.

And not all use the same order. Hell I do it randomly so my horse has to be ready and watching me. 

She's doing fine. She can call her horse whatever the heck she wants as she knows when to reprimand poor behavior.


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## Kayella

I actually begin picking Henny's feet out on his RF. My farrier begins on the LF. If Henny ever makes any movement to rip his hoof out of anyone's hand, he's darn well going to think he's about to lose that foot. No horse of mine will decide when I'm done picking out a foot and pick up another. That just does not fly with me.

Also, what is the human equivalent of a horse pinning his ears and snaking his head at you? I would certainly call that glaring. They're upset with you and they want you to know it. Horses aren't subtle animals, they are very blunt about how they are feeling. Yes, you should never anthropromorphize a horse, but just because you do doesn't mean you handle them incorrectly.


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## Stichy

I mix them up to for my horse, no problem, well for brandy I mean, Annie is still being worked with haha


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## Stichy

Gonna be gone for quite a while, meeting up with Brandys original owners and stay with them a while, so now Annie updates for a whole  I hope I don't miss her feet trimming!


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## 3PaintMares

She is so cute and looks so happy! What a lucky girl!


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## Tayz

shes soo cute what alooker


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## Stichy

Thanks 3paint and Tayz! We're starting to search for information about her...Wish us luck!


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## Northernstar

Stichy,_ I've got to finally come out and say_....I've been reading this thread since day 1, and you've been continually giving "updates", and saying things such as, _"until we get the vet out (2/24) or "We're still_ _looking for a farrier..._ then you change the subject. Please know I'm definately not trying to pick at you - goodness knows, she was in a terrible situation, but when I see the original photos in this post, and to think_ it's now March 23 with yet no vet nor farrier, I have to ask why??_ If you lived near me, I'd be ready to pay some of the bills out of charity for the horse.... I know it can be expensive, but not always. _When we take in_ _a horse, we musn't do it without having a 'game plan'_ -_ in this case, a vet_ _and farrier_. I think many on the forum would be willing to 'pitch in' a few bucks if they looked back at the original photos from February, and knowing the mare's pregnant to boot, with _nothing done as of yet_. Please don't be embarrassed, but is it the expense? *P.S. I've been rooting for you since the beginning, but please seek financial help if you need it for her care


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## Stichy

Oh no, Farrier is coming out on the twenty eight (which means we need to get to work with feet!) trust me, I'm bugging about the vet too.


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## Northernstar

So awesome to hear, Stichy! I hope it all goes well - she's a lucky horse to have someone to love her like you do


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## Stichy

Aw, thanks! She's going to hate me for lifting her feet though! Lol


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## Stichy

Brought her out to graze today, brushed her all out, and took some pics! One of these days I want to get pictures with Annie, Brandy and I  I want to get them before I gradute HS, because lets be honest...that'll be a while...Anyways, I'll upload some pics in a seperate post. While we had Annie out grazing (we had her on a lead holding on to her), father decided to come speeding up the hill like he always does...in a different car. A bigger one that Annie did NOT like. Yikes! Scary! She yanked the rope out of moms hands and took off, poor baby was so scared...and so was I! She was at a canter (well, a slow one, shes old and pregnant, she don't do much!) and thankfully the rope went up on to her back so she didn't trip on it...Although I feel pretty honored that when Annie spooked, as soon as I yelled her name she kinda stopped, spun around, and came to me..
Psch, I believe she's my horse now, Mom's gotta go horse shopping for her own baby! Lol


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## Stichy

Conjoined twins! Lol
















Baby belly








Love this one!








OM NOM NOM


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## HorseLovinLady

She's beautiful!! Any idea when she's due to foal?


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## Stichy

We've been told she's about 7 months, so that's what we're going with for now, I'm hoping for a colt!


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## cowgirl928

she is looking much better. I see a turn around for sure. Hope to hear soon about what the vet and farrier say/do


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## Stichy

Thanks cowgirl! I hope farrier can get her feet up!


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## Stichy

72 hours and still no word from the appy association... I'm going insane! Wouldn't t be crazy if it turned out she was a champion appy? Lol, probably not though, apparently they had been running wild like that for years.. Maybe we'll never know who baby daddy is  She actually cantered in the field... For two seconds, and by them she was huffing like crazy... Well, what do ya excpect, she's old and pregnant! Lol... Speaking of which, if we showed her would she get docked on her swayback? I was planning on showing her with baby and sometimes seperatley if baby was old enough. I mean, her swayback isn't too bad right now, but still.


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## Stichy

Farrier comes tomorrow! Annie's going to hate us... Until she walks on her beautiful new little feeties


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## Kayella

She doesn't look sway back, IMO. Just high withers and then bum high on top of that, creating the dipped down look. Her back is fairly level, though, so I think it's just her withers and butt making her look sway back.


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## Roadyy

From what I have seen and read so far I have to agree with Kayella. She needs her top line built up and some muscle on her rump to fill in the bump and she will look even better...No sway back from what I see..


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## Stichy

Oh yea, I meant when she did get one. Most people don't believe she's in her twentys! Well, possibly. I was thinking about making Annie a FB page, hoping someone who knew her previous owners would have some info on her or contact info for her last owners. I really wanted to give them updates on her!


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## cowgirl928

If anything you could make a page to get her old owners information so you could get health information on her. I'd say that's more important than updates since they may not even care about how she's doing. However it would do you good to get her medical history and any other past information on her.


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## Stichy

Yea, but I'm not sure if they would know much about her because she was in a wild herd type situation for years, so I dont know what all they did with them... Also, turns out she was exposed to OVER 6 STALLIONS!! Most were euthanized  are we ever going to find a baby daddy?!?


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## WSArabians

Has she been confirmed in foal yet? Exposed doesn't mean caught. 
She looks awful small in the belly for a old broodmare that's 7months along...


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## Bellasmom

Agree that she doesn't look terribly pregnant. Also, did she have a foal last year? Given that the horses have been basically feral, if she is seven months along I would kinda expect that she would have still had a 7-8 mo old foal on her when she was rescued. I would have her preg checked before I started picking out foal names.....


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## cowgirl928

This is true. While many mares can foal into their late teens/twenties sometimes it means that their bodies won't let them depending on the situation. If she was running around with very little food and nasty water with little space I can almost see her body not allowing her to conceive because of lack of nutrition and poor conditions. It's been known to happen. 

She doesn't look sway backed, just older and out of shape. Do some small exercises with her like belly tucks and butt tucks to get her to lift her back. These don't require riding and are easy to do. I'd also say start doing some stretches and keep going on your walks. Try for a 20-30 minute walk a day with brisk walking. Just moseying along is ok once in a while, but if you want to get her into shape you need to pep up the step a bit. Plus it'll be good for you. Any hills around? Go walking up and around hills to also build overall condition and balance. Find some poles for her to walk over and eventually trot over-this also builds balance and increases over all condition. Heck build a little trail bridge for her to work on walking over! Work on desensitizing her with other scary objects like tarps, plastic bags, exercise balls, wiggly giggly toys, an old mattress..the list goes on and on.


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## Stichy

I don't know if she had any foals, but I just realized that she did have a vet check her, because all the horses had to have a vet inspection and the man that we got her from was insisting she was pregnant, maybe he knew. All of the other mares were confirmed pregnant. There was a couple leopard foals that were believed to be hers, but they didn't know for sure


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## Stichy

So far hoof trimming is going terrible, I haven't seen Annie so freaked out in her life and she doesn't know how to lift or anything... Gahh I'm so nervous


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## WSArabians

Stichy said:


> I don't know if she had any foals, but I just realized that she did have a vet check her, because all the horses had to have a vet inspection and the man that we got her from was insisting she was pregnant, maybe he knew. All of the other mares were confirmed pregnant. There was a couple leopard foals that were believed to be hers, but they didn't know for sure


Vet inspections at an auction mart might not always include a pregnancy test - or a very accurate one, at that. 
I guess the man you got her from was insisting she was pregnant, but look at the condition of his horses - hardly a reputable source. You could throw in a zebra to the mix and he'd probably insist it was of her previous foals. 
I would really have your own vet to come out and preg check her, and wouldn't bank on a foal - or at least a non-problamatic foal, due to her health concerns - with a vet check. 

She will freak out when she's getting her feet done - another sign of her previous owners skill with horses and proper management. But they aren't delicate flowers - she'll be okay. 
I still have two that give us a hard time but it's still a valuable life lesson for her to learn in the long run.


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## Wild Heart

What did the farrier have to say about her hooves?


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## Stichy

Wild hEart, He said no major problems other than the spilt hoof, so that's good. But he said he was pretty sure she hasn't had her hooves clipped once in her life until now... Yikes! The hoof trimming took 3 hours! Annie was constantly spooking, trampling, nervous poddying, etc. plus in the beginning if we lifted up her hoof she would fall like she didn't know how to balance herself. WSA, I guess your right about the vet check ups. The man we got we from wasn't the original owner, this man actually raised some horses, he just gets rescues "dumped on him"


----------



## Wild Heart

Glad to hear she has no serious hoof problems.

Just keep working with her feet. By the next time the farrier is scheduled to come out she will hopefully, be much better.


----------



## Stichy

I hopes so, because that was bad!


----------



## Stichy

Ugh, I can't find any of the other horses at the auction site! Well, there was one 4 yearl old mare that looked a lot like Annie, so we were thinking it was her foal. Then there was two leopard foals, one was 9 months and the other was either 7 or 8 months. Annie, Reba (Annies 4 y/o), and the two foals were the only horses with some sort of coloring, all the rest were solid. Also, my "counter" has been off. I've just been going off what mom thinks (7 months), assuming she was covered in the last month or two of breeding season. It turns out, it actually might be 6 or 7...Would have been 5 or 6 last month, so we'll see when we get the vet out. Mom is also thinking about buying a mare pregnancy test from the feed store before vetting, because we're still trying to get her used to whatever the vet might do...As long as theres no foot lifting, she's good! Lol


----------



## Stichy

Here's a picture of her 4 year old foal, can't seem to find the others. Photo credit to Nancy Alcott.








Doesn't she have her momma's body?


----------



## Stichy

Just got an email back from the appy horse club...No horses registered under her previous owners name...
Now I'm disapointed  I didn't care about her bloodlines or anything, I just wanted to know more about her...
Well darn.


----------



## TheAQHAGirl

Goodness is she cute! Glad to hear shes doing great!

Have you tried to contact previous owners? You could possibly post a wanted ad up somewhere and see if you can contact old owners. A friend has done that before and was very successful with it.


----------



## stevenson

she is cute. glad you got her out of the kill pen. sometimes even if you find the old owners they wont tell you much , and at times they will exaggerate the training . She was probably just used as a broodmare , and when the breeders could no longer afford her and whatever others there were, off they went. 
Be happy and enjoy


----------



## Stichy

Thanks guys! AQHA, we've sent them a letter before and we got a return to sender, and we have posted on FB and the auction horses website. I'm thinking of making her a FB page, (I might have already said that haha) to see if that will work.


----------



## WSArabians

Stichy said:


> Just got an email back from the appy horse club...No horses registered under her previous owners name...
> Now I'm disapointed  I didn't care about her bloodlines or anything, I just wanted to know more about her...
> Well darn.


Unforunately, not surprised. People who breed and dump rarely invest in anything like feed, let alone paperwork. So if she's bred, you'll have a grade foal but at least they'll grow up in a home and not a feedlot!


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## KyMoMoF3CuTiEs

Re subbing! Hit the wrong button.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


----------



## Stichy

True, WSArabians! I've decided I want to get some sort of graduation pics with her and Brandy, not sure if I want it before or after the possible baby is born though...


----------



## cowgirl928

goodness that young horse in training is thick! I bet after you get your mare a little more muscled up and healthy she will start to look similar to that.


----------



## Stichy

What young horse? Haha. Thanks! The farrier said that he was thinking once she got her full weight on her she would probably be between 1200 to 1500 pounds... She's a big girl! Haha


----------



## Stichy

Woohoo! Found one of the owner's FB page and sent her a message...Wish us luck!


----------



## Stichy

Can everyone with a FB please go like and share Annie's FB page? Please and thanks! Also...I just applied for a job to pay for stuff for Annie...Wish me luck!


----------



## Stichy

Haven't updated you guys in a bit...Well, since Friday XD
Well, found out an interesting story from my great aunt (who is also my neighbor)...
So, while we were gone a while ago, it turns out, Annie had gotten out! My great aunt (lets call her C) was going to get the mail, and she talked to Annie for a bit before she went down, then as she was coming back up...She saw Annie making her way down our driveway! C was panicking and yelling for someone to come out because she thought we were home, so she finally found a big rope we use to tie our horses out to graze with, and hooked it up on her...(bad idea, Annie doesn't trust anyone but us with ropes) Well, in the two seconds she was turned around, apparently Annie managed to hogtie herself and was on the ground, so C had to cut the rope off of her and lead her into the field with what was left of the rope...Poor Annie and C!
Anyways, got Annie a redmond rock a while ago (since Brandy loved it I figured annie would too..) NOPE! Won't touch it. She licked it once, and looked at me like "Hey! This isn't apple flavored like my last one!" and now won't touch it...*Sigh*
Thats about all I got now, I've been too sick to go out there with her :/


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## Stichy

Oh, also totally forgot, PM me and I'll link you to Annie's FB page if you want to like it


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## Stichy

Guess what we did today? We saddled up Annie! She was amazing! I lunged her up to a trot, and hung over her side to get her used to me...Maybe if tomorrow's a nice day I can actually ride!...Or at least sit on her, lol! Got some beautiful pics of her today! The only weird thing is if I lift up my leg up and she's watching she flinches and seems like she's scared, but if I lift my hand up like I do with my leg she's fine. I guess maybe she was kicked in the belly or something? Either way, I feel bad for whatever she went through. I'm amazed at how much weight she gained! I forgot to update you guys on this, but last week she had gotten up enough strength to start trotting! Now she seems to abuse it, she's trotting all over the place! I'm teaching her how to smile, and she's been doing pretty good! I taught her how to not eat grass until I tie her out, which makes it sooo much easier leading her out of the field! Why am I able to teach her more than my own horse? Lol.
Anyways, I'll post some pics after they upload!


----------



## Stichy

Pic time!
If I give you a kiss, can we not work today?








Personal space? What's that?








Excuse me?!? You're going to put a WHAT on me?!?








Yeeaaa, I got my eye on you..








Eh, guess it isn't that bad..


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## Skyseternalangel

Not to be a pain in the kaboodle, but are you sure that saddle fits?


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## Stichy

Well, as long as we don't do more than this it's fine..








What?!? Work AND a saddle in one day?!? You people are crazy!
























Oh hey, it fufils my need for speed...I think I might like this!
















Get my good side








































Oh! We're still working?


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## Stichy

@Sky, honestly? No. It's for my other horse, I think Annie is going to need a special one for her high withers too. Do they make special saddles for that or is it just a thick blanket?


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## BarrelracingArabian

She looks good but I agree I don't think that saddle looks right , maybe too low and far back for her? I wouldn't ride her with it personally. She looks way healthier now though good job


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## Stichy

Thanks! I'm having a mind blank right now...What do you mean too low?


----------



## Skyseternalangel

Stichy said:


>



She's looking amazing here!

~~

As far as the saddle it's really lifting in the back and seems too wide in the front...

Also I think a longer lungeline would be good for her too so she has more space in which to work


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## BarrelracingArabian

On her withers haha they look like since the saddle doesn't really fit it is sliding back and pushing down.


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## Stichy

Thank you! Yea, this one has QH bars, but I don't think Annie needs those.


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## Stichy

@BArrelRacingArabian
Ooh, ok. That makes sense  I'm due for a new saddle soon, (this is my show saddle), so I'll make sure to get a new one for Annie first before Brandy
Ugh, I can't wait until the lady emails me back about that job! I reaaallly need new tack, lol.


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## BarrelracingArabian

Ya I'd just watch her body language and make sure that she doesn't get sore even though you aren't really riding some horse are super sensitive. My trainers main mare will toss you if her saddle doesn't fit perfect, ultra sensitive maritude for ya haha.


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## Stichy

Mares...Haha.
As for new saddles...Do I have to measure anywhere? This will be my first time actually buying a saddle, these were both gifts, but I want a perfect fit for miss Annie! (oh, and Brandy!)


----------



## BarrelracingArabian

I've personally never done it I'm getting ready to sell my saddle but I know there is I just can't remember what exactly you measure (sick brain isn't working lol).


----------



## Stichy

My brain isn't either tonight, lol.


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## Skyseternalangel

Stichy please don't forget to read my comment!


----------



## Stichy

Oh, I must have missed it! Sorry!


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## Stichy

Sky, she does have a lounge line, but it's up at the barn where my other horse is..I;ll have to bring it home tomorrow


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## KyMoMoF3CuTiEs

I think your doing an awesome job! Just wanted to jump in and say she is still beautiful and looking better every time you post pictures.And are you always in Pjs in every picture?? I do my work in my pjs too!!


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## Stichy

Thank you! Haha, pretty much! I only wear normal clothes when I'm out in public...
Sometimes...


----------



## Stichy

*Sigh*
You know that job I was hoping to get? 
Turns out, the place is run by scammers, and someone who worked there before said they are impossible to work for because they keep changing rules and making ridicoulous ones...
Guess that jobs out :/


----------



## horsecrazygirl

Yup ,I agree saddle doesn't look right. I'm sorry you didn't get the job but its for the best right?


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## Stichy

Yea I guess...All well, off to look for a new job I guess...


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## Glenknock

Subbing


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## amp23

I think she is the cutest little thing!


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## Aggs

This is a great story! You rescued a horse and have given it all the care of a loving owner!


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## rookie

for what its worth I think you two are really coming along as a pair. I had a huge issue finding a saddle pad to fit my horse mutant withers. I can't afford a custom saddle on a student income. So, I search around and found a build up cut back pad. It has a cut back for his wither to pop out but around the cut back its built up so the saddle does not rest on his withers. He seems like like the saddle pad and while I do have to monitor the situation as he may gain muscle and change saddle fit.


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## Skyseternalangel

Stichy I have no doubts that you will be able to find another job!


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## oobiedoo

She's looking great! What a lucky girl to have found you. Did I miss it or did you ever confirm if she is in foal?


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## Stichy

Haven't confirmed it Yet, I don't have a job so I don't have money (well I did but I had to buy hay... I think I got 100 dollars left, but I doubt that would cover for a vet). Thanks!


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## KyMoMoF3CuTiEs

My vet visit and palp cost me 97. You could call and ask.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Stichy

Thanks to everyone for their nice comments  And thank you Sky, I reeeallly hope so! 
The lady finally emailed me back before I could email her, I didn't get this one anyway...she seemed almost mad at me? Eh, all well.
Annie was throwing a tantrum tonight because she didn't get very much grain because she ran out (grain run tomorrow!). It was funny, she was trying to paw like "Uh...Uh...I think this means I'm angry?". Since we were too far away to do anything about it, it was pretty funny to watch, she lifted her hoof up and kinda wiggled it in the air for a bit and stomped it on the ground. THEN she started neighing and wouldn't shut up...The little turd! She cracks me up though! Kymo, wow I didn't know they were that cheap! Someone I was talking to said it costs like 130 bucks...Also, good news! I found 10 bucks in the wallet I lost!


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## Stichy

Man, I wish you guys could all come out and see Annie! She is so adorable! She gets so excited when she see's food, it's so cute! She seems much happier now that she has energy and strength to do things like trotting, and I wouldn't blame her! Her nicker makes it sound like she's growling at you though, haha..It's a love growl! When my cousin first met her she was nickering a lot and my cousin started yelling "Why is she growling at me?!? Is she mad?!?" She does this cute thing where she nickers so quiet you can't hear it, but you can see her nostrils moving really fast, and when my cousin saw her she was like "Uh...Is there something wrong with her nose?" I have honestly not met a mare as sweet as her, most of the ones I meet are vicious beasts (including my other one!) lol. She's so friendly, which is suprising for baisically being wild!


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## Stichy

Haha! Annie started this new thing where, if she wants grain or wants more grain, she will stand at the fence and act like she's eating! Silly girl  I'll see if I can get a video of it someday!


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## Damadeer

Woah there... I thought you said you just bought an expensive camera over here?

This seems like money that should've been spent on the vet. Months ago.

Regardless of who's money it is or where it came from -- birthdays, allowence, parents --- It's not as fun as a new camera, but please hold off on buying more parts for this thing and put it towards Annie.

I know in the other thread you're looking for batteries. Those run anywhere from $30-$200, again depending on the type. Now, doing the math, the cost for this type of camera, the Nikon D3000 (at it's cheapest) runs about $300-ish. $200 for the body and another $100 (_at the cheapest_ for the brand new lens).

We can wait for pictures if it means a clean bill of health.gl


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## Stichy

I didn't know about the camera, I had nothing to do with it. Mom surprised me with it, but yes, I would have rather it went to a vet. If it's not something I can control, why not be excited about it?


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## Stichy

And Dama, it was not expensive. You don't know if it was expensive or not, and I'd rather you didn't jump to conclusions. It seems you think I myself bought a $3,000 camera instead of getting my horse a vet. If I knew about it, I'd rather the money would have gone to a vet. The camera we bought? It was only $100. Sounds like a lot, but it's normally in the $500 range.


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## Stichy

And the lens was actually $30


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## KyMoMoF3CuTiEs

I bought a nice canon rebel with a 35-85 lens and a macro 120 lens and case and extra battery and filters for $200. on ebay. Check ebay for batteries cause I bought one for my sil for 25.00 on there.


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## Stichy

That's where we got my camera and lens  I also saw that you can just use normal battery's if they are the big square kind


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## tinaev

She is so beautiful! I love this thread.


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## Stichy

Thank you, Tinaev!
I've been keeping you waiting, and that probably isn't fair...Cause I got some big news...
I've been RIDING Annie! She's been doing great, even though she doesn't know anything about what we're doing...We're working on it! Unfortunatly, when I brought out my bitless bridle and put it on her, she panicked so bad she broke it in half... :/ All well, she works fine in a halter, anyways. She seemed VERY pleased with herself after that. For some reason I can't get on her on the left side, only the right side, so I think she has problems with her left eye. She panicks big time if I try on the left side. She has the smoothest trot I've ever sat! Although for some reason, whenever I aks her to woah, she starts trotting...I'm guessing if she was ever trained, it was done verrryy badly... Today I was helping her learn to turn with reins, and slight use of my legs. It's hard to remember not to kick her, because she's really sensitive and usually will take off if I even touch her a little. She is really good with me on her though, not once has she tried to buck! The only vice with her in the saddle so far (well, besides her not knowing anything) is that after a while she started to turn around and nip at me today, but we had been working longer than we did yesterday...By 10 minutes at least, haha. It is amazing to watch her figure things out! She had her leadrope tangled in the tire we tie her to (so she can graze), and she would look inside the tire, then kinda kick at it like "Hey! Give it back!" and pull at the rope again, then look back inside, and repeat. But after I go out and help her, she's got it figured out and now she knows how to untangle herself! She is quite the smart girl...So far, haha. She's very...Chatty, lol. We had her tied out across from my bedroom window, so I opened my window to keep an eye on her and she would neighing and nicker at me if she heard me talk...She's so cute! I love seeing her so happy  I'll upload some pics later after I get them uploaded...My camera is in the kitchen and I'm being lazy


----------



## Skyseternalangel

Stichy said:


> Unfortunatly, when I brought out my bitless bridle and put it on her, she *panicked so bad she broke it in half... *:/ All well, she works fine in a halter, anyways. She seemed VERY pleased with herself after that. For some reason I can't get on her on the left side, only the right side, so I think she has problems with her left eye. *She panicks big time if I try on the left side. *She has the smoothest trot I've ever sat! Although for some reason, whenever I aks her to woah, she starts trotting...I'm guessing if she was ever trained, it was done verrryy badly... Today I was helping her learn to turn with reins, and slight use of my legs. It's hard to remember not to kick her, because *she's really sensitive and usually will take off if I even touch her a little*. She is really good with me on her though, not once has she tried to buck! The only vice with her in the saddle so far (well, besides her not knowing anything) is that after a while she started to turn around and nip at me today, but we had been working longer than we did yesterday...By 10 minutes at least, haha.


It sounds like she's still not sure about this new change of being ridden. I would consider backing down and working on her confidence in you. I personally would not ride her until she can pick up her feet and not break anything you have her in...

Also if the saddle doesn't fit right, it's going to hinder her muscle development..


----------



## Stichy

I'd have to agree. 
I also forgot, she has recently discovered cantering, and now everytime we look, she's out there running around!


----------



## Stichy

Aaannnd pictures!
Oh, and just a warning, mom took all the pics and she is not a photographer! Lol
Here's an edited (I edited it, not mom)version of one of her pictures, I really like how it looks!








Real picture
















































Having a pep talk with Annie 








































Wow, she looks really scared here! She isn't really, it's just the typical appy eyes


----------



## Stichy

We both look mad here, haha
































How Annie feels about being rode...Haha
























Hmm, someones an over achiever...Collecting before she's been taught to!
























Please no critique on my posture or anything!


----------



## Skyseternalangel

Stichy said:


> Wow, she looks really scared here! She isn't really, it's just the typical appy eyes


She looks happy to me, almost mischievious in a cute way like she's trying to figure out if what is happening is normal or not haha 

This is the closest "Is this normal?" Sky face I could find back when he was still REALLY unsure.


----------



## Stichy

Oh my gosh Sky is adorable! 
I meant because she has more white than normal because of the appy characteristics...I also put that since someone on photobucket said that she was obviously terrifyed...Yeeaaa sure...


----------



## Skyseternalangel

Stichy said:


> Oh my gosh Sky is adorable!
> I meant because she has more white than normal because of the appy characteristics...I also put that since someone on photobucket said that she was obviously terrifyed...Yeeaaa sure...


Haha yeah he was scrawny back then and still makes the BEST facial expressions 

Haha, yeah so terrified that she's stretching her head nice and low. Some people....


----------



## Stichy

I know right?
I should have stopped riding right then and there! She was so scared she could have died or something!


----------



## Skyseternalangel

Stichy said:


> Hmm, someones an over achiever...Collecting before she's been taught to!


She's trying to use her back to find a comfy spot on this photo! Awesome  I have a feeling she knows what to do, she's just not in shape to do it for long periods of time, and of course she's still rather unsure about some things.


----------



## Stichy

We're thinking she was trained before, but she must have forgotten a lot, or maybe never got too far in her training? We think she had an accident and they just stopped everything, because she has bit scars and mom thinks she has nerve damage in her face. I can't help but feel bad for whatever she went through.


----------



## Skyseternalangel

She seems intelligent, just unsure. If you break everything down for her, she should get it without too much frustration or freak outs I think 

Sorry for posting so much on your thread...


----------



## Stichy

I love how much you post on my thread though! Your tips help a lot  
Speaking of which...She doesn't seem to like me using the reins at all, she starts flinging her head around, and I'm trying to teach her with my legs, but I can't figure out how to do that because she's unbelievably sensitive and jumps at the slightest leg movement, do you think it's from her not being rode in forever or..? I don't know how to get past it :/


----------



## stevenson

she looks much better ! take it safe and slow with her . Have fun


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## Stichy

Thanks, stevenson!


----------



## Stichy

I'm beginning to think I spoil Annie wayyy too much..Annie was wanting a huge patch of grass(she was actually neighing to it..Haha!), but her lead was too short to get to it, and I'm too weak to move her tire, so, being the good "horsey-mama" I am, I went out and took a little shopping bag and started picking it for her...I ended up picking so much grass today (so far...I don't think she's done with my services yet!) that I think it would have been a whole bale! Haha! All well, if it makes her happy...
The things we do for our horses, huh?


----------



## Stichy

Aaaand now she's staring at me through my bedroom window neighing...Think she wants more? Lol


----------



## Chevaux

Stichy said:


> ..She doesn't seem to like me using the reins at all, she starts flinging her head around, and I'm trying to teach her with my legs, but I can't figure out how to do that because she's unbelievably sensitive and jumps at the slightest leg movement, do you think it's from her not being rode in forever or..? I don't know how to get past it :/


If you're finding her sensitive, you might start working with your weight more. For example, if you want to turn left then shift your weight slightly onto your left seat bone then apply slight right leg pressure (start your leg pressure, as much as possible, from knee down so that the heel is the last thing to make contact with her) and if necessary followup with left rein. And, of course, release pressure wants she responds to your request. Do these consistently and you'll be on your way in no time.

I know you said no critique of your riding but I do think you've got a nice looking position in the saddle.


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## Stichy

Thanks, Chevaux! I always think my posture looks horrible for some reason or another, so that meant a lot!
I never thought of trying with my weigth! I will totally have to try tomorrow!


----------



## Skyseternalangel

Stichy said:


> I love how much you post on my thread though! Your tips help a lot
> Speaking of which...She doesn't seem to like me using the reins at all, she starts flinging her head around, and I'm trying to teach her with my legs, but I can't figure out how to do that because she's unbelievably sensitive and jumps at the slightest leg movement, do you think it's from her not being rode in forever or..? I don't know how to get past it :/


Yes the other poster has some great ideas. Sometimes, though the horse doesn't understand so I have to ask you this. How do you lead her? Do you drag her along, does she look at your body language, do you swing your arm out and then she follows?

Think about how this translates to in the saddle. If you drag her along, she's not focused on you and may fight you. If she looks for your body language, weight distribution will make sense to her, and if you swing your arm out, she may need a little more direction.

Have you tried using an open rein in such that you pretend your rein is a "gate" swinging open and then your body gently nudges her in that direction?

That really worked for Sky until my hands started "helping out" less and less and it became more seat and leg.


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## Stichy

> How do you lead her? Do you drag her along, does she look at your body language, do you swing your arm out and then she follows?


I walk right beside her, and I have my free hand on her neck because she kinda wanders as she's walking, and usually ends up on top of me.



> Have you tried using an open rein in such that you pretend your rein is a "gate" swinging open and then your body gently nudges her in that direction?


I have tried that, but she doesn't like having her head pulled or anything, I guess she's still getting used to it. I haven't tried the nudging part yet though, 

I'm kinda kicking myself for drawing a blank when I rode her.


----------



## Skyseternalangel

You don't pull, you just bring the rein out (since you're in a halter) and keep the other rein where it should be so there's a "wall" that she can't get by, and an "open gate"


----------



## Stichy

Oooh, that makes more sense! I'm really hoping tomorrows a nice day so I can try out your guys's tips...Thank you both!


----------



## horsecrazygirl

The weather has been absolutely gorgeous these past days hasn't it?
She is a good looking girl.


----------



## Stichy

Oh yes it has! 
Thank you!


----------



## Stichy

OH MY GOSH GUYS!!! I got a job!!! I'm soo excited, and I can pretty much thank my friend for most of it, since she insisted on putting in a good word for me around the stable she works at...I can't wait!!!


----------



## Skyseternalangel

Congratulations!!! Details?? What is payment like?


----------



## Stichy

The lady wants us to call her or we can come out and start and her and my mom could talk about it, I'm going to be a groom and excersize the horses...This is amazing! Sooo excited! Plus the have a champion stud at their barn too! They are big Gypsy breeders, but they have a couple friesians too!


----------



## Skyseternalangel

As long as they pay you properly, not under the table. And give you set hours in a contract like format. Ask lots of questions


----------



## Stichy

Will do! Ahh can't wait to start!!


----------



## Stichy

Rode Annie again today and she was GREAT! Better than ever before! Although she has been getting quite the little attitude lately, which that will NOT last long, she's still been pretty good! Her smiling is amazing too! She smiled for her grain and smiled for a treat... She learns so fast!


----------



## WSArabians

She sure has learned a lot.
You should put a helmet on that little noggin' of yours though - especially if she's a spooker/bolter.


----------



## Stichy

Ah, thank you for reminding me! I always forget that at the barn!


----------



## nvr2many

KyMoMoF3CuTiEs said:


> I think your doing an awesome job! Just wanted to jump in and say she is still beautiful and looking better every time you post pictures.*And are you always in Pjs in every picture?? *I do my work in my pjs too!!


She is going to Walmart, :lol:


----------



## Stichy

> She is going to Walmart,


Are you crazy?!? I would never go to Walmart!...
Without my sharkie slippers


----------



## Stichy

Oh my lord...I think I'm falling deeper for Miss Annie  Today she was put to the real test...Mom and I were at the barn while dad was babysitting my 2 nieces. One is a baby and the other is I think 4? Anyways, for whatever reason, dad thinks it's a smart idea to let the four year old (FOUR!!!) go outside ALONE with Annie! And guess what? She just stood there at the fence for like an hour just babysitting her while she was throwing things in there and putting flowers all over her and the (electric) fence. I was just amazed at how gentle she was, I mean, I didn't expect Annie to attack her or anything, but you never know. It's almost like she knew she had to be gentle with her or something. Although, as soon as we got back, Annie walked off and the rest of the day didn't want anything to do with her like she was saying "Welp, you're home now, my jobs done!". That was fine with me though, I needed to spend some alone time with Annie  That horse has quite the personality! We worked on our smiling today, and when I went out to get her grain, she saw it and smiled (and what made it funnier was that she had a mouth full of water when she smiled, haha)...She learns pretty quick! I'll upload some pictures in a minute.


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## Stichy

Oh, and we measured her and my other mare today. Annie is 15.3 and Brandy is 14.3. Also, my job interview went GREAT! I got to lead horses in so the BO could show me how it's done there, and I get to work there every friday from 2 to 4! I also might be able to go with them when show season starts to be their groom! The horses there are beautiful! I'm already in love with like half of them, lol. There was a mini horse there too! She was so adorable and fluffy! Now I think we might need a mini...Lol


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## Stichy

Annie is the best lawnmower ever!
























Annnd time for work!
























Aaand canter! She doesn't know the word or it yet, she just randomly does it.
















Ok, I'm done...Back to trotting!


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## Stichy

And pics from the day before (and some from yesterday)








She looks so pretty here


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## Stichy

Oh, thought I'd add something my niece told me that I thought was funny...She made sure to let me know that she wanted Annie to have TWO babies, both boys, because she has two boobs...
I honestly have no idea where she learns this stuff....


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## Roadyy

Try to remember to stay behind her when lunging her. It will help you and her. I noticed in all three pics of you lunging her that you are facing her head. Hope this helps your workouts....


She is beautiful and reminds me a lot of a leopard App/Ara I had several years ago.


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## Stichy

Thank you! Also, could you explain a little more on staying behind her to lunge, Roadyy? 
We went clam digging this weekend, and it was my first real trip without Annie, and her first real time with me being gone...As much fun as I had, I missed Annie soo much, I couldn't wait to get home! I almost cried when I saw her, because she was just so darn sweet! First thing when she saw me was she neighed and cantered down the hill and put her head in my arms...I missed my baby! She seems to like getting rode, she gets excited when she sees a saddle! Buuutt we tried something a little different today...I rode her bareback!! She was a little champ, and let me mount up even though I ended up kicking her twice (I'm not used to taller horses, lol). She's been getting better about being tied out, too! She is quite the little lawnmower! Though she did NOT enjoy getting fed by strangers, apparently she was very reluctant to eat when my grandma fed her. She never has been a huge fan of strangers though, and she tends to avoid them.


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## Skyseternalangel

Stichy said:


> Thank you! Also, could you explain a little more on staying behind her to lunge, Roadyy?


I hope I don't step on toes but I am very passionate about lunging correctly.

You need to think of it as riding on the ground. Your lungeline and your hand acts as your direction, your body language is important. You need to direct all your energy to her hind end because that it the motor. I always angle my body at the horse's hip and never step infront of their hip unless I'm asking for a downward transition such as halt. Why? Because I'm blocking them. If you are at their hip, then you are sending them forward.

Having a slow or still stance with them will not be helpful unless you want them to have no energy or be still. You should move with them, or try to.. because they are reading you constantly.. trying to figure out if you are wanting them to move or if you are asking them to do something. 

I don't think standing all the way behind is a good idea. Because that's usually a blind spot and you may be kicked by a flying hoof if she gets excited.. and she won't be able to read you and it'll just be confusing.

So, in short

Face your body towards her hip, don't get infront of her hip unless you want her to transition downward (or change direction) and keep yoru body open so you are easily read.


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## Stichy

You didn't step on my toes at all! I'll have to try that next time I lunge her! Thank you soo much for all your tips!!


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## stevenson

she is looking better. still ribby , is she getting some hay along with the pasture? or pellets and something with a vitamin since she is preg ?


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## Stichy

Yes, she is, plus a huge bucket of grain. She can't keep any of her grain in though because the nerve damage in her face makes it so her lower lip just kinda hangs there.


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## Stichy

Our second field grew out, so we are going to put Annie in it during the day...She couldn't be happier! She was actually cantering around the field! She's walking around it more than she's actually grazing, though. Lol. Also, we noticed she's started losign weight, so we're going to stop working her for a while...Pics in a minute! I only have a few, camera battery was low and I wanted to practice more photography.


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## Roadyy

Sorry it took me so long to get back over here to respond. 


Sky is right and I made it sound wrong in my description about staying behind the horse. Her is an example of what I mean about facing the hip.

If you look at my position I am facing her hip and walking towards her, pushing her around into the lunge while she keeps just the right distance to have release pressure on the line(slack). 








Here is a side view of the same session. notice how my hand is leading her and I am putting the energy into her direction.










When I am ready to stop her and prepare to change direction then I drop my hand and give the gentle verbal cue of whoa then walk towards the front of her as she stops. I change the line to my other hand and click to her to move and she heads the other way. Then its the same thing in the opposite direction. I used a carrot stick to strengthen my commands for the first try at transition and never needed it again after that.


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## Roadyy

You can see by my body language that I'm not just standing in one spot, rather I am also walking a circle. Think of a car's wheels as it's going in a circle. The front tire is making one set of tracks while the back tires are making a different set of tracks as it follows around or in a rear wheel drive it pushes the car around like we are doing the horse.


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## Roadyy

Just so you don't get discouraged. This is what it looked like the first time I started working with her on the lunge line with my attempt to get her going clockwise...











She wanted no part of being pushed and would get to the end of the line where she would turn to me and back up trying to get free. It took her about 3-4 tries to understand what I was asking for as she had never been on a lunge line before.


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## Stichy

That explains it a bit more, thank you!
Also, are horsetails poisonous to horses?
These thingys








(Photo isn't mine, all credit to rightful photographer)
I read somewhere that they were, but my other horse eats them every chance she gets, I mean, if they were poisonous, wouldn't they know not to eat it, like with tanzy? I was just wondering what your guys's thoughts were.


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## aforred

They can be toxic, yes.


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## Stichy

Ok, thanks for letting me know. I'm going to go try and pull a bunch out of her field soon, we have so much growing here it's unbelievable!


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## aforred

I know how that goes. We're at war with thistle here.


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## Stichy

Are thistles poisonous too? I hate thistles >.<


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## Stichy

If I remember correctly, you guys were promised Annie pictures!
Exploring her new field 
























Love this one  She is quite the stocky lil thang isn't she?
























Edited version of one


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## Roadyy

Looks like you have some rolling hills in your landscape. You should try working her on those to help build her top line. Have her going up and down them in a walk to push with the hind quarters and pull with the front to build and tone her up. Just remember that it doesn't happen in a week so don't expect to see results quickly. I'm having to be patient while toning a couple of mine as well.


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## Stichy

I never thought you could build top line like that! I'll have to start with her. I woke up at 6:30 today, for whatever reason, and it was pretty bright out so I decided to let her out into the big field a bit early today, and she was already standing at the gate when I went out there! Is that all she ever does? Lol. Anyways, I let her in, and as I was turning to walk away, I kept hearing *thud thud thud*, so I turned back around and she's cantering through the field! She's a very noisy canterer lol.


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## Stichy

Since I have nothing to do today until two, I'm going to go work on Annie's field...I've always been too scared to go in there alone (too close to the woods for me...), but since she's in there I feel a lot better about it! I'm going to give her stall a total makeover! There's actually trees starting to grow in there because it hasn't been used in so long!


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## Stichy

Just a heads up, I won't be on very often this month, besides the short time I can sneak on while doing schoolwork...We have to finish our house because we have family coming in a month. We've been converting the downstairs into an apartment/gaming room...Which will soon be mine! Annie has been doing great, we switched her over to Senior grain, and she LOVES it! I got her a jolly ball and she seems to like it, just doesn't know what to do with it yet, lol.


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## EliRose

Sorry if I missed it, but did you ever get a vet to come and check on your lovely lady? She's looking good, by the way!
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Stichy

Not yet, but now that I have a job hopefully that will come soon! I need to earn about 300 dollars because we want to get her teeth done first, since she's missing a couple plus it might be easier for her to eat with that even with her nerve damage. I've also started coin collecting! And I have about two dollars right on me...


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## Stichy

DOes anyone have any tips on how to teach her how to lift up her feet? Also, I can get her to smile on command now!!!


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## Roadyy

You mean to lift them on her own or for the farrier? as in she won't let you pick them up.


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## Stichy

For the farrier, sorry I should have been more clear on that but I'm in a bit of a hurry. Also I've tried the rope around her hoof but that doesn't seem to be working


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## Stichy

This pic is from a while ago
Trying to steal my cookies 








A couple days ago...My dog absolutely LOVES her!...Probably because Annie "feeds" her (she shares her grain with my dog lol)








Not Annie, but it's my dog "helping" Annie find a better place to graze, lol.
















Aaaand today!








Nomming her old lady grain 








O hai!








Annie has a very flexible tongue...Lol








Finally got a picture of her smiling! Except I couldn't get her whole head in the picture...Lol








Now I'm teaching her how to pick up things, starting with her Jolly Ball! She actually smiled while she had the Jolly Ball in her mouth, it was hilarious!


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## Roadyy

How much will she let you do with her feet? 
I have one now that would not let you get your hand within a foot of any hoof. Infact, he would move away just having your hands below the knee. We have been working on him for several weeks to get him where I can finally hold his front feet up for about 2 minutes before he starts trying to pull it away. The back feet are still at the point of lifting them for a couple of seconds and letting go just before he tries to kick out of your hand. 

We started him off with running the lead rope down his leg and cupping the rear hooves and putting pressure on them. Once he picked his feet up to try to get away from the line them we help pressure on it to keep them up as long as possible. It depends on the horse and mine is taking longer due to my lack of experience with it and him having been cut up from some accident before I got him.

To start off you can just spend a lot of time just running your hands up and down her legs to get her used to being touched. Then run your hand down until she shows signs of being uncomfortable. Leave your hand there until she relaxes or stops squirming then move your hand off. Once you get too the point of being able to pick them up then hold them up the first few times as long as you safely can.

Hope this gets you started in the right direction. Be patient since you aren't anymore experienced at it than I was so you do not put yourself in a situation to be hurt.


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## stevenson

those are cute pics. She is looking better. So nice of you take this old girl home. You will have to tell us how old the Vet guesses her to be. 
From her teeth in this pic i would guess 20 youngest to 25 + .. 
So glad you have takenthe time with her and love her so much


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## Stichy

Thank you, Stevenson! Almost forgot, we bought two pregnancy tests to try out on her, and the first one said no...Lets hope for another no! As much as I want a baby, I do NOT want one from an unknown stud with unknown diseases, and what if she had some sort of disease that got passed down to baby? Wouldn't be fun...


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## Stichy

Sorry, Roadyy, missed your comment.
She will let us do whatever we want besides lifting, but she doesn't do anything like biting, just won't lift. We can sometimes lift the back feet, but she's still learning how to stand on 3 feet so I can only lift it a little bit.


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## stevenson

lol... well I could be wrong in my age guess !! if she is pregnant, as 20 is pretty old for a brood mare, but it is still a possibility . 
I would not be worried about diseases being passed to the foal, if she has been vaccinated, and you are feeding her correct for a preggers mare then hopefully she will not have foaling problems. There can be genetic issues, but I would not worry about those until the Vet says she is pregnant, I would concentrate on her weight and general health issues . I would get a Vet out to preg check her, and get her teeth floated.


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## Stichy

Thats the plan, Stevenson! I wanna take in my coin collection to see how much money I have in there so far, buuut I'm 99.9999% sure if I do, it's going to end up getting used on something else (not my choice). I gotta earn 300 bucks (maybe more) for her teeth, and thats what we want to get done first, then we can do other things like shots, preg check, etc.


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## Phly

Constant work on the picking up feet. Well let me reword that. Daily work on picking up feet. Rubbing, lifting, holding, rubbing while lifted... It can take time or if she's willing and you approach her correctly about it could be easy as pie.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Stichy

Yesterday morning, Annie was out sleeping laying down in the field...It was the cutest thing! Then before she got up, she rolled and just layed there sprawled out for a minute..She was so cute!! I also rode her bareback again yesterday...Aaaannnd got thrown by her bareback yesterday...Glad to see she's feeling good and all, but still... Anyways, long story short, mom wanted me to ride her on my own (AKA off the lounge...Bad idea number one, as she doesn't know how to woah under the saddle, but on the ground she's fine), and we were walking down TINY hill (pretty much just a speed bump) and she got to feeling good, so she started trotting, and I tried to woah her, but she kept going and then she broke into a split second canter and did the smallest buck in the world (but that was all it took since by then I was off balance), and then I was on her neck, and then I was on the ground. And of course I had to get up ASAP because apparently she didn't like throwing someone off for the first time and started panicking when I flew off of her and was trotting at me...Yea, fun day!


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## Skyseternalangel

I think walking down the hill unbalanced her and yeah bad idea to be off the lunge when she can't whoa under saddle.


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## Stichy

> yeah bad idea to be off the lunge when she can't whoa under saddle.


Tell be about it :/ Mom ALWAYS makes me ride her on my own though, but I just feel like if she were on the lounge it would be easier to train her.


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## Skyseternalangel

Do you use vocal cues when you ride her and lunge her?

What about circling to a halt?


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## Stichy

> Do you use vocal cues when you ride her and lunge her?
> 
> What about circling to a halt?


I use vocal cues when I'm lunging, and verbal and leg squeezing when I ride.
I try to, but she doesn't like her head being messed with under the saddle, on the ground she's fine though.


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## Skyseternalangel

Stichy said:


> I use vocal cues when I'm lunging, and verbal and leg squeezing when I ride.
> I try to, but she doesn't like her head being messed with under the saddle, on the ground she's fine though.


What do you mean she doesn't like her head being messed with under saddle?


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## Stichy

If I pull her head around on the ground, she's fine, but under the saddle she won't listen, and sometimes she'll freak out and start going faster and faster, even though I'm only using 1 rein.


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## Skyseternalangel

Faster and faster as you are circling her in? Maybe you should look into ground driving her... that apparently is a very useful tool for establishing cues at gaits faster than a walk..


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## Stichy

Yes, as I am circling her in.
Can you explain to me what ground driving is? I've never heard of it before.


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## Skyseternalangel

It's like having two long lungelines attached to each side, with the lines usually running through the stirrups (to stabilize like your leg) and then you kind of... drive them, turn them, back them up, etc. as though you were on them. 

Obviously it'll take a lot of work to get up to trotting or even backing up.. but it's worth it if done right.


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## Stichy

Ohh, ok. I'll have to get another lunge line soon anyways when my mare gets back.


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## Stichy

Rode Annie again today...
I swear she was a reiner, either trained in it or showed or something, it's like today everything just clicked for her! Worked with her for quite a while today, mostly lunging. Got on and rode for maybe 20 minutes.
She is super sensitive to leg pressures, I mean she is a master at serpentines, etc. And she spins like nobody's business! I asked her to turn around for me, and she just randomly started doing reining spins! I couldn't get her to do it again, though :/ I don't know any of the reining cues yet. She does NOT like to be handled very much on her blind side (not totally blind we don't think, but she defiantly has vision problems from that eye). Cinching up is quite the task, since she can't see what's going on. BUT I have good news! I picked up ALL of her feet AND cleaned them out today! Like I said, she didn't like having her feet on her blind side picked up, but she did pretty well. The back feet on her blind side really freaked her out though, but after a while she calmed down. It's like everything clicked for her today, I'm so happy! Mom took lots of pics, so I'll post some when they upload. 
In other news, remember how Annie threw me? Yea, well my back hasn't been all that great since, but today when I went to pick up her saddle was like the final straw...Sooo, yea I'm kinda broken lol. It hurts to do a lot, I can pretty much just lay down but thats the only time I'm not in pain.
All well, learning experience!


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## Stichy

Man, I wish there was a way to see if a horse was ever shown :/ Also, the place we got Annie from gave us the wrong address for her previous owners, so we found the real one and sent out a letter..Wish us luck! Last time it took 2 weeks just to get a return to sender back :/


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## Stichy

Ugh! won't be on much, if at all...My laptop mouse broke in an odd position, making it almost impossible to do anything  Farewell for now...


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## Stichy

Woo! Found a replacement mouse! Buuut now I have nothing to update about XD


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## Stichy

Finally getting those pictures of Annie uploaded! May edit them a bit because they are all so washed out (again)...Maybe her shineyness blinds the camera? Lol. Psch, and BO said it was near impossible to make a grey horse shiney  (We're having a shiney horse contest at the barn...So far Brandy is in the lead, and Annie's close to winning and she isn't even there!) Oh, and Annie keeps trying to make friends with the local deer population...Poor thing can't figure out why they're running away from her! (Probably because she's cantering after them at top speed whinnying and nickering!)


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## Stichy

Just going to upload a few for now...I have 4 pages of things to edit! 
























































Aaaand canter!
















She kept tugging on the lunge like she wanted the whole line...We have two lunge lines tied together, what more do you need?!?


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## Stichy

Trying to use your guys tips on staying behind her while lunging, and thats surprisingly hard! I'm working on it though!


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## Stichy

Annie's been having a lot of trouble on her blind side, especially when we go to cinch up the saddle, so I stopped training for about 10 minutes and just snuggled with her. After we restarted, I decided to run my hand down all over her blind side the rest of training just to get her used to it and to get her to trust me more.








































Remember that old rack of bones? Well look at her now!
















KEEP SNUGGLING ME WOMAN!








Ahh, thats better!


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## Stichy

...Felt like this needed to be posted


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## Stichy

For those of you on deviantART, Annie now has a plz account! It's :iconraggedyanneplz:


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## 3PaintMares

Wow she looks good! I'm still jealous, I would love to have an Appy like her. Love her Spots!!!


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## Phly

Stichy said:


> ...Felt like this needed to be posted


And my smartasd comment has been denied by a cat. God I hate cats.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Stichy

Haha, thank you, 3paint!
Sorry, Phly, grumpy cat beat ya to it!


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## Roadyy

She is staying against the line because she is learning her boundaries of the circle you are giving her. You need to keep the circle to about a 8-10 foot radius til you both get used to the pattern. Don't give her any more lead and she will learn where the end of it is then find her release slack inside the circle. Keep the lunging time short til you both figure it out and I suggest doing what I did and watch a lot of lunging videos to learn technique and reasons for these techniques.

She is looking great, btw.


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## Stichy

Thank you! It's kinda hard to give her boundaries because if I don't give her more she ends up dragging me, lol... All well, we can still learn!
I never thought of looking up vids for lunging! Is there any you would suggest, like by a certain trainer?


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## Roadyy

Try this one then look through the related videos for more lunging lessons to watch.






There are a ton of lunging threads in the training section I saw 6 on the first page. You could read through those for tutorials from some of the experts we have here on HF.


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## aforred

Roadyy said:


> Try this one then look through the related videos for more lunging lessons to watch.
> How to lunge a horse - YouTube
> 
> 
> There are a ton of lunging threads in the training section I saw 6 on the first page. You could read through those for tutorials from some of the experts we have here on HF.


I would read through the lunging threads first. Some of the How to Lunge a Horse videos are better examples of what NOT to do.


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## Stichy

I'll have to look there when I get a chance!


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## Wallaby

In terms of her pulling, another thing that might help would be switching her into a rope halter for lunging.

My girl will pull me into tomorrow if I lunge her in a nylon halter and nothing I do will change her mind about that. But, the second I switch her to a rope halter, she immediately stops pulling.

My "theory" is that [my girl is 85% blind and she pulls worse on her 100% blind side] since she can't see me well, she's using facial pressure to assess where I am. The flat halter doesn't give her as much "information" so she pulls harder, until she's comfortable with the level of info she has. The rope halter has a lot more "feel" and she therefore gets "enough" information a whole lot more quickly.
That's just my theory, of course, but she'll shift back and forth between "attitudes" in a single session, if I change halters mid-way.


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## Stichy

I was thinking about maybe it's her blind side causing the issue, but I wasn't sure...I'll try to get a rope halter for her, my mom doesn't like them so I don't know if I'd be able to.


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## Skyseternalangel

Stichy said:


>


Awww..lovely photo 

She looks so much better!


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## Stichy

Thanks, Sky! Just a heads up..Last night I got no sleep whatsoever (Well, for the past two days actually XD), so my brain is not with me at the moment!
I think it's official...Annie may have replaced Brandy as a psychiatrist...I didn't get to see her at all yesterday because I was at a friends house, and when I went to feed her today she totally ignored her grain and snuggled with me for a little bit...
Have I told you guys how much I love this horse?


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## Stichy

Man! Today she is so excited! I ran out to the field to grab her so I could ride her (ok...Well I sat on her ...Lol), and she actually GALLOPED over to me! And she did a mini buck! Old woman's still got a lot of spunk! Lol. The ride went awesome! I just sat on her and let her graze while mom held her. When I was bringing her grain she trotted past me and beat me to her bucket, lol.


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## Stichy

Haven't updated much since there hasn't been much to update about, lol. But, I did submit a before and after pic of Annie to cowboy magic...Do ya think they'll feature it? I hope so! Maybe someone that has known her previous owners will see it!
Have you guys liked Annie's FB page? *hint hint*


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## Stichy

Oh! I'm such a terrible person! I didn't upload the before and after pic onto here! Keep in mind it isn't the best picture, I had done this in the middle of the night and didn't feel like searching through a bunch of pics lol.


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## Live2Ride15

Holy cow she's grey!!!!  She is looking great!!!
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## LadyDreamer

Wow, I had no idea her spots were black. I thought she was one of the leopards with chestnut/bay spots. Neat! (And I haven't checked this thread in a while, admittedly.) 

She certainly looks happier!
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Stichy

Thanks guys!
Lady, we didn't either! They just turned black when she shed out, she used to be very multicolored lol. She still has some brown though! We think it was just her winter coat that was colorful, or maybe she shed out her unhealthy hairs and this is her actual color.


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## nvr2many

OMG, I said the same thing when I saw the after pic!! Just WOW!!!


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## Stichy

I posted this picture on another website, and someone actually asked me if this was the same horse! Although, I may not have recognized her either...And I own her! I'm sooo happy with her progress!


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## Stichy

Had the farrier out today (finally!)....Total disaster! She remembered him and did NOT like him. She was fine with everything...Then she heard his voice and saw him get out of the truck and all hell broke loose. She was trembling and breaking out in a nervous sweat, she was actually kicking out (which is a shocker, because she's never done that to me or mom.), she was bulldozing over him...She was just a beast! Although I will admit, her first farrier visit WAS pretty traumatizing for her I guess, but still, thats not an excuse!


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## stevenson

hope she had a better day then how it started out !


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## Stichy

Nope, it only got worse. The front feet were good..Back feet were a big nono. Which is weird since we never have trouble with her back feet. All well, good thing we're supposed to have a week of sun so we can work with her.


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## stevenson

lol... well thats all you can do, just keep working with her. be careful and dont get kicked.


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## Stichy

Haha, I'll try not to! I keep forgetting how much bigger she is than my horse! (well, only a hand taller, but she's got bigger bones than my mare)


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## Stichy

Ha! Annie got in BIG trouble today (will explain in another post, have to shower now), and her new thing to do is, if she knows she's in trouble or if she's done something bad, she'll start smiling...Well, lets just say she smiled a lot today...


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## SleipnirCB

Stichy said:


> Oh! I'm such a terrible person! I didn't upload the before and after pic onto here! Keep in mind it isn't the best picture, I had done this in the middle of the night and didn't feel like searching through a bunch of pics lol.


Wow, she is looking great, well done! I love her tail, mine has half of that.


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## Stichy

Thanks, Sleipnir!
Ok, so heres why she was in trouble yesterday. (And, for starters, I'll just say that she has a schedule, and if she isn't back inside her fence by 6 o clock she goes nuts.)
We had tied her out to graze, and she was just outside my window so I could keep an eye on her. Well, I saw her start to go insane and try and break off the lead, so I checked the clock, and, sure enough, it was 6. So I figured I'd better go out and put her back in. She watched me untie her, and I hadn't had time to gather up the rope before she started walking to the fence...Then I decided I wanted to ride since it was nice out. I was just in shorts and a tank top(no jammies?!?) because it had been really hot out earlier, and now it was starting to get cold. So, I tied Annie up to the tree for like maybe two seconds so I could grab my coat. She just stood there and grazed, but she did tug on the rope a little to see if it would give. It didn't, and she went back to grazing. Everything had went sooo much better than I'd expected! But, the second I turned my back on her she bolts at a canter, trying to break the lead again. I'm getting freaked out, because now she's rearing and bucking and pawing at the rope, so as I start walking towards her to calm her down (or try to, at least), she gives one last rear and breaks the clippy part of the lead and prances away with her head held high and her tail up as far as it would go (and she was literally prancing too, like she was proud of herself! The little turd..), and I start to walk up to her to grab her before she takes off (well, I thought she would anyways), she see's me coming, starts to smile like "Uh oh, I'm in trouble!", and takes off cantering into her field, and goes all the way to the end of the other field, smiling the whole time...Time to buy a new lunge line...Well, she was smart about it, now she can't get worked with! Lol. It is part our fault too, since the feedstore ran out of hay and we can only buy her alfalfa, and she eats grain with it (but I'd been cutting her off alfalfa since we started to tie her out), so she was probably all hyper because of that.


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## nvr2many

Oh nooooooooooooooooooo, bad girl!!


----------



## Stichy

I know right?
Can you guys think of anything to work with her on that? 
Or ways to help her respect the farrier? I was just so embarrassed when he came to do her feet, we've been working so hard on them and she's started to lift them good, she never kicked out or anything for us, but for him she kicked out, she tried as hard as possible to get as far away from him as she could, she was just so freaked out by him. I don't want to change farriers because this guy is AMAZING at what he does, and he only charges 80 for both my horses. The last farrier we had, it would have costed 105, and she didn't do anything to correct my horses feet, it made it worse.


----------



## Stichy

Oh, and I think theres something wrong with Annie..I'm not sure if it's pain or a bad experience or what. We thought it was her eyes, but when the farrier came out, we asked him about it and he said he didn't think so because there was no cloudyness and she reacted when he moved his hand around her eyes. 
But, whenever we go see her, we always have to come from the right side, if we come from the left side, she kinda jumps and spooks like "Oh, didn't see you there!", and if we put the saddle on from the left side, she spooks. If we halter her from the left side, she spooks, she doesn't like being cinched up or mounted from the left side, but the right side is perfectly fine. She has nerve damage and bit scars on the left side of her face, so thats why mom thinks it was some sort of bad experience, dad thinks she was just smacked around too much (she had been abused before she was neglected). But I don't know. I mean, I'm trying to save up for a vet to come out, but if she needs a chiro or something right now I guess I could save for that instead.


----------



## WSArabians

I would stick with the vet.
No foal?


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## Stichy

Nope. Mom thinks she lost it early on or something (which really worries me) because the guy at the KP said that the vet told them she was preggo. I really hope it's not something we did if she did lose it and I'm hoping she never really was. But, then again, she did get beat up a lot by the other horses, so maybe that was it?
Oh! And I saw some pictures of her foal! She is 5 and is named Safari, and she's going to get used for polo! It makes me happy that Annie's baby's owner is keeping in touch with us, because we're both trying to get information on our horses. Safari's owner said she is soo much like Annie! She is sooo adorable! And defiantly Annie's baby!


----------



## Sharpie

Many horses are trained almost exclusively on the left side and will act fearful or otherwise stupid if you try to do things from the right- it's a training and experience issue that will take lots of practice doing things from the "wrong" side to overcome. 

Sounds like she knows that she can get loose from being tied when she feels like it. This is a serious and dangerous training issue. If you don't retrain her properly, you risk her getting loose and seriously injured or lost if it happens in the wrong time/place. The retraining itself can cause injury if not done properly though too. There are many threads already on how to re-train a horse to tie properly here on HF.

Your horse sounds more like a smart old gal who knows exactly what she can get away with and takes advantage rather than a 'poor old pony' that needs to be coddled.


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## Stichy

She's had an attitude lately, so no more coddling here. The only coddling we did was on her first day home. 
We're trying to re-train her to tie, but she has been a beast lately. Not quite sure I'm liking her new attitude.
She's also very unhappy with me at the moment...We had a bit of a fight over who was boss a while ago. Then, last night I went to halter her and she bolted and ran around both fields trying to get away from me...so I shut the gate to the big field and now she's stuck in her smaller one (which now all she does when she goes back in is stand at the gate like she's waiting for it to be opened). I finally caught her and she got quite the work out... 
Did I tell you she threw me bareback again? Yup. She did. Mom convinced me to just get on bareback for a quick ride (even though I really don't want to get on her until she A) respects me from the ground and B) learns basic commands...Especially how to woah), so she lead me around on her. Annie was being really frisky that day so I asked mom to hold her tight...Then she let her graze and Annie didn't like me being on her while she was grazing so she exploded! Somehow I landed on my feet...Then two seconds later I was on my butt. My legs have been jello ever since I got thrown, I had hit the ground so hard that I'm surprised the bones didn't come out of my legs!
She needs a lot more work, and I convinced mom to switch the horses board! (Board Annie and bring Brandy back home) That way I can get help with training from the BO! So excited!


----------



## Stichy

I took some pictures of her today, waiting for them to upload onto my computer  I also tried taking some conformation shots, but I wasn't sure if I wanted to do it yet and I didn't know if the pictures would be ok...Once I upload them feel free to take a crack at them if ya want.


----------



## Stichy

Working on her mare glare...








She failed








This is why we think she has nerve damage...Her lower lip just always hangs there. It's like 1000 times worse when she's relaxed.
















And here's my attempt at confo shots








The ground she's standing on is slanted a bit


----------



## Stichy

Once again attempting the mare glare








...Didn't work


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## waresbear

She looks really good, I doubt she is in foal though.


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## Stichy

No, she isn't. We used a preg test on her.
Ugh! We tried to go and buy some hay since we ran out..But our feedstore was out too! We ended up getting alfalfa, but it still makes me mad that they were out of hay..The other feedstore was also out, but I'm fine with that because it's 30 bucks for normal hay there O.O


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## Skyseternalangel

She looks awesome!

I don't think she has nerve damage. My horse, Sky, has the same droopy lip. She's relaxed, not tense.

Also I don't think she is trying to do mare glare. She's just cocking one ear. Probably focusing on something she hears


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## Stichy

Thanks! She still needs to fill in above her flanks and her hooves still have a ways to go, but they're starting to look better! She has really sensitive feet, and they chip and crack at anything, so it's hard to keep them looking nice.
I was thinking that at first but I wasn't sure because whenever she drinks all the water comes right back out, and not the normal dribble either, like all of it.
Didn't think of that...There was a pretty scary kitten in the bushes she probably was keeping an eye on it lol.


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## Stichy

Woohoo! I'm so excited! For one, I got paid today! 40 bucks! I mean, I was expecting 5 XD And I was talking to my boss about Annie, and she said she'd love to see her! She also said that she'd love to help us work with her, and since we don't live too far from her that she'd trailer Annie over to her place so we could work with her in an arena, since it is pretty hard to do in a yard with no round pen.
I also met one of the new horses today! My boss bought her because she was TOLD that it was a 2 year old...Buuut she ended up getting a 15 month old..I guess it's hard to tell when you can't be there. She is such a sweetie! I've never seen a gypsy with her coloring before (then again, I haven't seen a whole lot of gypsy's, and it might end up being a pretty common color lol)
She's colored a lot like this


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## stevenson

Stitchy, she could have some nerve damage. I had a draft with a droopy bottom lip, and he had been hurt as a baby, he stuck his head through the pipe fence and banged the top of his head really really hard, split the skin, and after that he had the droopy lip. 
Her hind pasterns, look slightly dropped in the pic, and it looks like she has arthritis ring bone in them. They also look like she has some severe heel issues, bacteria infection from the scar on the heel , but the photo is not a good one of her hind feet. I would get some hoof discenfectent, if you are short on Moola try cider vinager half and half to water . or 3/4 to water. it should help somewhat. Bleach will help kill it, but then again it affects the healthy tissue. 
She looks so MUCH better and happier ! You are doing a Good job !


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## Stichy

I could take some better pictures if you want? Thanks for the tips! I need to start looking for something for her hoofs. Is there anything that could strengthen hoofs? Or anything for cracked hoofs? She keeps getting cracks in them, and that one that she had when she got here isn't healing very well.
Whats ring bone?


----------



## stevenson

Ringbone is a type of arthritis more or less. Where the hair connects to the hoof is the coronet band, and on the sides just above that will bony lumps. Sometimes the lumps extend into the coronet band , The bony lumps can be higher on the pastern bone and into the fetlock / ankle . ( but the joint is really more like our heels ) She has dropped fetlock, I think in my last post I said dropped Pasterns.. my old.. sr moment..lol... To help with the poor hoof quality use biotin. Farriers hoof supplement Not just Biotin alone, it should have a couple of other minerals in there to help with the aborption of Biotin , which is Basically a form of Vit B. So unitl you can get some Biotin supplement, YOu can get less expensive brands just compare the level % of biotin and make sure it has the other 2 minerals. I will have to go online to find the names.I dont remember them. If you have some vit b at home, crush up a tab, put it on her grain, add something to hide the taste, applesauce, I use Karo syrup as the horses like it, molasses, honey . It takes A Year for a hoof to grow out. So patience is the key. If you can get some clean shots of her lower legs and hooves that would be nice, and maybe if someone could hold up a hoof and someone took a quick shot of the bottom, BUT do not get hurt trying to do so. If she is having fits about her hind legs, it may be due to pain issues. You can cold hose swollen joints, then splash some liniment on them, Do not rub it in.


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## Stichy

I'll try and get her some vitamins for that...Should I not work her if she does have this arthritis? No promises for underneath the hoofs, they'd probably be dirty and I can usually only hold it up long enough to get a little dirt out...She's done better though. I'll try and get some nice pictures of her lower legs and hoofs. I never thought of pain issues for her back hoofs. Do you think that could be due to the arthritis too?


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## stevenson

I dont think light riding will hurt her. Dont try to get a pic of the bottom of her hoof, if you are having problems with her kicking. Dont get hurt. Just work on lifting her feet and rubbing her legs, so that she is not feeling defensive.


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## Stichy

She kicks out with the back ones for the farrier, but she's never done that with us so I'm not sure if she will or not...Though I'm not sure if I'm ready to try lifting again quite yet. She lifts her right side better, so I may be able to get a pic of that one.


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## Stichy

YAY!!! I won a 35 dollar gift card for a photoshoot with Annie!!! I wish we could get some bareback shots or some riding shots, but I'm preeetty sure that wouldn't end well...Not unless mom was holding her, at least. All well, I'm still really happy! I got the hoof pictures, I'll upload them once I find my thingy to upload them with


----------



## Endiku

I still can't believe Annie is black!


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## Stichy

I can't either! Here I thought I had her figured out! Lol.


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## Stichy

Annie is so weird XD
When I went out to get her this morning, (it happened yesterday morning too), she went and hid behind a tree. Whenever I'd call her name, she'd peek out really slow, then hide back behind the tree. Then when I realized she was just being weird and wouldn't come to me, I walked up to her to put the halter on and she started nickering and nodding like "Oh! You found me!"
And then a couple days ago, she was nuzzling my face, then she left for a second, came back, got her muzzle really close to my face (like touching my forehead) and smiled. There was a lot of spit that came out of her mouth so I yanked my face away, and I said "Annie! What was that about?" all she did was nod. She needs to learn to communicate better lol. She almost seems like she's got the prankster type of personality..She's an odd one haha. She finds some way to make me laugh everyday!


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## Stichy

Ok...So you guys might hate me...Buuut, Annie broke her halter and needed a new one, so I had to dip into my vet money a bit. Anyways, my friend and I went to Wilco (which is unfortunately the most expensive tack/feed store on earth :/), and I had to get her the cheapest one they had...It's a rainbow rope halter. On the bright side, mom has her colors and I can have mine! I wanted blue to be Annie's official color, but mom wanted a maroon color. It's also neon enough for when hunting season comes around! Maybe it will help her get over her issue with ropes too!


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## Stichy

Geez I haven't updated you guys in a while, these past few months have been totally crazy, but now I'm on bed rest for the rest of the night (I passed out because I drank a Monster energy drink and I'm really weak now so I can't do anything)
Alrightey, shall we start off on all you've missed?
1: Before I left for vacation, I went out and spent time with Annie. While I was out there, she layed down so I just layed there with her...Then I was stupid and sat on her. Thankfully she didn't care, but I know I shouldn't have done it (you really can't trust me alone with horses)
2: We went on vacation, and when we came back Annie was limping so bad she could hardly walk....I was panicking...A lot. Turns out she had a HUGE abscess. Don't worry, we are treating it though, we have bute and we are wrapping it with this stuff my boss told me to use for it (Annie got hurt on the fourth and we could only get a hold of my boss) and it popped that day...Thankfully! It was HUGE! I had a tiny one and it hurt like crazy, I can only imagine how she felt!...Anyways, guess who gets to start cleaning it out with an old toothbrush soon?...Yup. She'll love that... Annie has already started putting weight on it, and when she saw she could walk the first thing she did was start cantering around her field. She loooveesss to run! 
3: We switched Annie over from Alfalfa to Orchard hay...Turns out I'm highley allergic to orchard hay...Guess I can't feed her anymore till all 3 huge bales are gone :/
Annie has taken bute surprisingly well! She really didn't like the vanilla icing flavor, but she loooved the applesauce! Which is surprising because my boss said it's usually the other way around....All well, every horse is different!....And Annie is definitely special  I'm going to upload some pictures of her soon, but it will probably be in a new forum post with her and Brandy


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## stevenson

who what is Brandy ? As for that abcess, clean the hoof, you can even rinse with water in a squirt bottle and apply any drying agent. 
if she is a pain with her feet, just use the drawing salve and cotton and keep it wrapped for a week.


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## Stichy

Brandy is my other mare 
My mom doesn't want me rinsing it if it still has some of the medicine left over on it.
Thankfully all the pain in her feet are gone! She's much happier being able to run around again


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## Stichy

Ha! Annie is a biker pony now! Dad's motorcycle is sitting out in the yard, and we had Annie tied out to graze, and she loves it! I've caught her "talking" to it! She likes to graze by it...It's kinda cute! I think she's telling us she needs a friend...I hope we can bring my mare home soon, I miss her soo much and Annie and Brandy were both always in herds, so I think having a companion will be good for both of them!


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## Northernstar

That would be a huge positive, provided that there's the right amount of space/shelter/provisions for two horses - they are grazing herd animals (as I'm sure you know!), and find extreme security/comfort in the presence of another of 'their own kind'. I had my QH @ home alone for nearly a year before getting my Morgan, but only due to the fact she was a strong alpha and I had the time to give her very much attention - I watched her from the start for signs of depression, etc. but there was none. When I brought Laney home, however, the scenario was complete. She went from a happy horse to a _very_ happy horse


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## Stichy

Thats why we were so happy about boarding Brandy, she was never really happy, and from the moment we boarded her, her ears were always up (and still are!), and it's great seeing her this happy! The only thing I worry about is the fact that Brandy is a jealous horse, and Annie seems to be very clingy, but I guess we can work on that whenever we bring my baby home.


----------



## Stichy

Hey guys! I'm not dead just really...really...really...really busy. Annie's been doing great, and this last farrier visit she lifted her feet like a pro! I'm kinda frustrated that her flanks won't fill in and her spine sticks out a little, but other than that she's looking pretty good! I also got a new dog!...and she showed him who the boss was around here..But now they get along pretty well! Look at how far she's come! I'm so proud of my girl <3
















She's quite the pro at smiling now, too! We are probably going to board her this winter, but we really need to work on getting her trailered to do that. Anyways, I guess I'll show you guys some pics! There aren't any recent ones because I haven't uploaded them onto my computer yet.
























There might be repeats in here because I can't remember if I posted them or not, lol


----------



## ApolloRider

Glad to hear you're still around. I like reading your adventures with Annie.


----------



## Roux

Wow what a transformation! That is amazing. Good on you


----------



## Stichy

Thanks guys!


----------



## Stichy

I've been using Miss Annie as my photography weasel lately  Too lazy to get the pictures posted now, so I'll show you how her daughter looks! Man, it would have been awesome to get both her and her daughter!








She looks soooo much like Annie! It's crazy!


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## Stichy

Photo credit (C) Nancy Alcott!


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## Stichy

I LOVE this picture!!! I think I might enter it in the horse of the month contest 








Annie is a proud bully breed advocate, just like her mama!
















Ignore the crappy zoomed in-ness of the picture lol


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## Stichy




----------



## Stichy

Sorry for totally ditching everyone here, schools been insane! Anyways, I'm so incredibly proud of my girl. I never thought we'd get this far. I haven't worked with her since last summer, and a couple months ago I was bored and decided to go out and see what she could remember. I knew the saddle didn't fit so I couldn't use that, and she'd broke our last bridle, so I made a bridle out of bailing twine (a pretty amazing bridle if I do say so myself:lol: ) and hopped on her bareback (just thought I'd throw this out there...mounting a 16HH horse from the ground when you're short is a very hard thing to do lol) and she did amazing! I was blown away! No buck, bolt, rear, nothing! I rode her without telling anyone for a while because it just felt so unreal! And after I told my mom about it we've been doing even better! We've been trotting, getting her better with leg yielding, and neck reining. I'll try and upload some videos if I can, because her trot is beyond beautiful, but for now I'll just leave you guys with a spam of pictures 
Annie modeling my bailey twine bridle  








Another ride in her new(ish) halter








Getting tied out to eat








Her with her buddy, Diesel  She loves him so much, it's so cute!
















Cheese!
















Bad picture, but heres us trotting








I taught her how to give kisses 








She was excited to see me


----------



## Stichy




----------



## tinaev

Great pictures! I've been wondering about Annie lately, thanks for the update.


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## dkb811

Your Annie is a beautiful horse!


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## Ale

I must admit, I just sat here for the past hour reading through 42 pages of this thread to see how far Annie has come along! She is such a beautiful horse and it seems that the two of you have an amazing bond together! I adored seeing how she went from a droopy, weak and underweight thing to a very beautiful, well rounded and alert mare. I hope that the two of you have many years together in the future <3 I would love to continue seeing updates from Annie and yourself <3


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## Stichy

Thanks guys! I'm hoping I can be a little more active now that school is almost out


----------



## Stichy

We hit a rather large milestone today...I rode Annie outside the fence for the first time! I guess it isn't very large, just exciting for me because I was brave enough to do something like this on my own. She did great, and I'm getting better about being able to get on her! I can't even begin to express how proud I am of her. She can be a major pain in the butt at times, but I still wouldn't trade her for anything, no matter how many times people say I should.


----------



## Stichy

Kinda been postponing this update because it isn't really one I want to post... We might need to sell Annie 
My mom wants a horse that I can ride whenever, and she doesn't really trust Annie with me because she spooks really easily and she can be a bit tough to handle. I just don't like the sound of it though. I hate getting rid of older horses, I mean I know some people have to because they can't have a pasture pet, but I don't know. I just wanted to give her a really good life, I mean she's up there in age (about 30), so I know she'll start to be getting limited with her abilities, but I just want to have her spend the rest of her days here, with me. She really isn't ready to slow down anytime soon though. She runs and bucks and jumps any chance she gets! She loves to be active, and she's full of energy. I love her to death, and I don't think I'm ready to part with her just yet :/ I'm probably sounding really unreasonable, I know, but she's my baby :/


----------



## Stichy

Sorry for the lack of pictures lately. I've been getting kinda lazy with them, and I mostly just spend time with her instead of getting out my camera xD If anyone wants to see videos of us ride, I can upload to youtube and link them back here  
She's been doing good, pretty fat right now xD
She's decided that being ridden isnt so bad, especially since I usually just hop on and bring her out to graze somewhere since it's easier than tying her out. I've been stretching out both her and Brandy, and they both seem to enjoy it a lot. I'm hoping to go up as soon as the thunder and lightening stops and take some pictures of her, just so everyone can see how she's doing  Her poor tail...It has so many dreadlocks! I've been too scared to touch it though, tails are my weakness xD Love grooming through manes...tails? Not so much. She has a better tail than Brandy now, Brandy got hers eaten off by the other horses she's in the field with :/ We should probably clip Annie's, it's about to drag on the ground, but I can't bring myself to do that xD
I'm homeschooling again, so I can spend more time with her! I'm really excited for that


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## Stichy

I'm so excited!!! We can keep Annie, and she's turned into a wonderful horse! She lets me ride her bareback and bridleless now! And we go out on trails bareback! She's really ready to go faster, and I want to let her but I'm also kind of timid too. I think we'll try a canter tomorrow if the weathers good  I honestly never thought this day would come. The day that an overly spooky horse would turn in to my bareback trail horse. And I really didn't expect it to be her. I'm literally blown away by the progress she's made, and how far she's willing to go. She even seems to enjoy being ridden now. I really love this horse <3
A picture from one of our tackless rides








And one of just her


----------



## Stichy

Long time, no update! Annie has been a WONDERFUL horse, and I'm so proud of her, even though she's quite far from perfect. I guess I owe you guys some pictures, huh?
Ignore how filthy she is...I keep brushing her, but this old lady is a mud magnet!


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## Stichy

Hmmm...I can't see my pictures. Can anyone else?


----------



## Luvs Horses

She is adorable.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


----------



## EliRose

So cute! I could see the pictures from my phone, but not my laptop.


----------



## Stichy

Huh, weird. Must be a glitch.


----------



## dkb811

Double click the little boxes with the X's. The pictures will show up. I love your horse..so cute!


----------



## NorthernMama

The pics don't show up properly because they are somehow tied to FB.


----------



## anndankev

Neither the pic or little X boxes showed up on my older laptop.

I clicked the quote button and could see it in the advanced reply box.


She looks super, happy, alert, loving camping?


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## Stichy

Oh, thats weird. I always link them from my facebook and they worked. All well, I'll figure out a new way to upload. 
Thanks guys!


----------



## Stichy

Is there a way to upload videos without them being linked in to youtube? I've got a video of Annie that I'd LOVE to show you guys <3 
I thought I'd taken more pictures of her lately, but I guess I haven't, lol. Heres one I thought she looked great in


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## Stichy

Gahhh I hate how her legs look...It's not dirt, thats her color! Though mud stains could be on there too, lol.


----------



## Stichy

I seem to neglect you guys when it comes to pictures of the Crazy Old Lady! Well lets fix that  lol
She's the queen of derp faces...








I want this one frame. She looks like such a dork, but it's soooo cute!
















She's the most photogenic horse alive, as you can see...hehe








My friend gave her a sea salt and vinegar chip she was begging for








....wasnt pleased with it, and immediately spit it out


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## Stichy

I got a new camera, and wanted to take some "artsy" photos of her.
She wanted no part of it! lol


----------



## anndankev

Stichy said:


> I seem to neglect you guys when it comes to pictures of the Crazy Old Lady! Well lets fix that  lol
> She's the queen of derp faces...
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> I want this one frame. She looks like such a dork, but it's soooo cute!
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> She's the most photogenic horse alive, as you can see...hehe
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> My friend gave her a sea salt and vinegar chip she was begging for
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> ....wasnt pleased with it, and immediately spit it out


quoting so I can see the pics


----------



## anndankev

Well, that didn't work for me.


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## Stichy

thats weird...they showed up for me yesterday but they arent today...Odd


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## tinaev

I couldn't see them yesterday and I still can't. Bummer, I love seeing pics of Annie. I think she's such a sweetie and so beautiful. 

If you want to mess with it I've always put my pics in Photobucket and then copied the


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## Stichy

I'll try and do that today, Tinaev!


----------



## Stichy

Raggedy Anne, or Annie as most of you know her, crossed the rainbow bridge yesterday. The pain I'm in right now is almost unbearable. I'm not sure what happened, but when I woke up she was down (and had clearly been for a long time) and couldn't get back up. She was scared, exhausted, and her legs were scraped up by her hooves hitting them from trying to get up. She nickered at me and tried to get up when she heard my voice, but she just couldn't. I went out and laid with her, and brought her some food and carrots and hand fed them to her. She gave me one last smile before I had to leave, and I gave her one last kiss on her cheek (had to have someone do it the old fashioned way, vets couldn't come out till 6 and I wasn't going to just let her lay there and suffer longer than she already had). I swear I can still hear the bullet ringing in my ear. I wanted to be able to lay with her and comfort her as she passed, I didn't want to do it like this. I can't even stand to go out in the kitchen, I always instinctively look out the window to see her, and now she's not there and she's not coming back. I'm gonna miss her so much...


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## If Wishes

Dear Stichy, I am so very sorry to read this sad news about your dear Annie. They come into our lives and are gone too soon. You gave her all the love in the world and I´m sure she knew this. Even at the end you never stopped caring for her and paid her the ultimate respect. My heart breaks for you......


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## Stichy

Thank you so much <3 Can't believe it's only been three years. While I had her, it felt like forever. Now that shes gone, I feel like I haven't had any time with her.


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## Stichy

Also, I'd like to point out, there was something definitely wrong with her. I'm not sure what it was, but you know when you get that feeling that something isn't right, you just cant put your finger on it? Thats the feeling I had, and it wasn't just because she went down, it was something else. My mom thinks it was just old age since she was in her 30s, but I think it was something else. Stroke maybe? I'm not sure. It's like her mind was there, but her body wasn't almost.


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## Rainaisabelle

Just read through most of the thread.
I am so sorry for your loss you really loved her


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## Stichy

Thank you so much <3


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