# Best Trail Mare



## Iseul (Mar 8, 2010)

I swear I have the best horse I've ever had the pleasure of seeing/knowing. Im pretty sure she saved our lives today.
So..no one called me and told me we wouldn't start work until 12.30 instead of 11, so I kinda said screw work and left (dont hate me..they have enough people as is and they obviously dont need me there if they cant call) and went to the barn (10mins from work) so it wasnt a wasted trip. ST came up to me in the field when I went to get her and we saddled up (she went back to her normal self, btw) and headed out to the road for a trail ride. She snorted and did her stop and stare spooks for almost the whole mile and calmed down as soon as we got off the road. It didnt occur to me that it'd be as wet as it was (my area didnt get too much rain) and we came to the caution tape (hunters not allowed, we have permission to use the trails though) and we stood, contemplating on if I'd turn around and go back or risk sliding down to the bottom of the valley and go around it. While I dont thinj I wouldve risked our lives like that, ST decided for me and backed a good 50ft back up the trail and refused to go back down. I knew it was a bad idea to continue for the sake of making her do as told and got 3 steps back down the trail and turned to go home. She was an angel on the way back and didnt spook at anything and I even got to relax enough to wave at the cars going by (slowly, no one was careless this time) with a smile. One lady in a dog grooming van just stopped and stared for a bit and finally waved back, haha. 

So..first time on a solo ride (for both of us) and I think she did stunning.

So, I have a couple pictures.  




























I liked those the best, but I may post two more of the road riding as well. 
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## Iseul (Mar 8, 2010)

Also..no comment on her being tied by the bit. I wanted to take a quick few pictures and I know she doesnt pull at all. Otherwise, I would've taken the time to switch to her halter. It didnt hurt anything for 30 seconds and I was right there if something wouldve happened.
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## Catpeedontherug (Oct 23, 2012)

VERY cool!!
I hope you 2 keep it up.
It's so fun to have these adventures with horses.

(your mare sounds like mine~ stop and stare spooks.)


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## clairegillies (Nov 25, 2012)

she's so pretty. awesome that you listened to her 'advice' and not go somewhere dangerous today.

Claire


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## BBBCrone (Jan 28, 2012)

Neat pictures. Beautiful red you have there  And smart on top of it.


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## Iseul (Mar 8, 2010)

Thanks.  Funny thing, I always hated sorrels unless they were flaxen and said id never own on..Im very close to finally actually purchasing this one, haha.
I also always thought she was stupid, irrational, and had no self-preservation..sure as sh!t, she proved me wrong again today, lol.
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## Inga (Sep 11, 2012)

I think she is beautiful. She has very sweet eyes. I know it sounds nuts but I think there is something to the "shape of the eyes tell the personality" thing. Your girl has a gentle look. 

Can't help myself as I am old and have seen a lot in my days... Never trust that nothing can happen in 30 seconds. Okay, I did my mothering... carry on.


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## Iseul (Mar 8, 2010)

Oh, I know things can happen, Ive seen some of it..But I wouldn't have done it if I was going to have her out of my sight or reaction distance. I only did it because she was pooped, she doesnt pull, and I was not even 5ft away.

She does have sweet looking eyes though, now that Im paying attention instead of just drooling over her white ****

And not to leave out, ST stands for Sweet Thing (aka Shake That Sweet Thang), named after the sweet tarts that lured her onto the trailer when BO picked her up on a rescue (big siezure in westmoreland county years ago where they just asked people to come pick em up if they wanted one, with paperwork of course). BO didnt even know she was choosing one to keep, she thought her friend that asked her meant to trailer them to a location, not just take them, lol.
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## jinx1990 (Nov 17, 2012)

I learned early on to listen to that extra sense horses have lol. We were on a trail when my horse refused to cross a narrow stream, so my dad decided to go first. His horse made it two steps before he disappeared under the water. Lucky for my dad, he was a waterhorse water and happily swam to other side . I didn't feel like getting wet so we went around the deep hole.

But I really love your saddle-black tack is my favorite. Where did you get it?
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## gunslinger (Sep 17, 2011)

Yes, I've got to agree about the soft loving eyes.....she's a beauty.

Funny about the nick name....I call Miss Lacy "too sweet"....


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## Iseul (Mar 8, 2010)

I actually got the saddle from a user on here..lol. it's an american saddlery roper and the comfiest saddle ive ever say my **** in. It's had some rough times (horse went down in the trailer with it on..twice, lol. I learned not to tack in a divided trailer).
Also, I might be updating on more road pictures if I can get my *** out the house and to the barn before work, haha. Plus, we'll have on our new blingy show tack..just because I have to use it for a day and get it dirty since it just got here, lol. All black leather tack now  Aside from the pad..that's felt lol.
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## Iseul (Mar 8, 2010)

Trail from today..where we actually made in onto a trail, lol. This would be right after we got on the trail after a small bucking/crowhopping/head tossing fit at a fence that use to have goats in it.









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## Catpeedontherug (Oct 23, 2012)

Cool!
Did you go solo again?
bucking, cropping hopping is always scarier when you're alone. lol.


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## Iseul (Mar 8, 2010)

Lol I did. Ill probably be solo for a good 4-6 months since BO just got surgery on her arm again. It was very wimpy bucks/crowhops because she cant exert enough energy to do them properly, lol. So not too much scary, just annoying, haha. She's already shown me all shes got to give at being naughty and I can sit them all. I just have to worry about cars when we pass the cow pasture, haha. One of the steers followed her along the fence and quite literally scared the crap out of her, lol. Even thouhg she's worked cows before xD
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## Catpeedontherug (Oct 23, 2012)

funny about the cows.
Yesterday the cows were all laying down and that just about sent my mare over the edge. lol.
I could imagine she wondered where their legs went!
She lives with cows, yet she was shaking. dork.


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## Iseul (Mar 8, 2010)

So..I got a rodeo horse, pleasure horse, and trail horse..all in one ride today, haha.

She was worse heading out today than she was the first two times, but I could tell she was in a bad mood before I even got her out of the field, so I wasnt too surprised by that..but I was surprised by the rodeo we had of spinnin, bucking, and leaping in the poor neighbour's hay field. There's a strip that he doesnt plant so that we have somewhere to access the trails from, and she decided that after she spun about 120* that she'd do a leap into the hay that's planted and a buck as soon as she landed..I asked her to go forward again and she did the same exact thing..I spun her around about 10 times and asked for another forward and she finally went while she snaked her head around (not sure what she was trying to get..lol). After that we finally made it into the little trail I've been taking her on (just short ones, mostly to give her experience on the road) and when we came out to another patch of unplanted hay field I cued her into a canter and got the nice, slow canter that I've been trying to get out of her for months, lol. Mind you, this is the same strip we had a crowhopping/bucking fit on our last trail, just from the opposite direction. She was fine all the way home, an angel basically after that. She didnt even bat an eye at Brutis (neighbour's big mastiff that does his job as a guard dog very well lol), on the way up or back.
On our way back I almost managed to bring two dead trees down with my face..lol. I couldn't see a better route (new shortcut we found that runs parallel to the road) and had her go through a little patch of dead branches and I guess my arm wasnt enough to catch them, because my face caught most of them and I brought half the trees with me, lol.

I just cant seem to figure out why it's only on the way out that she's a spazz?
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## Iseul (Mar 8, 2010)

Ooh, almost forgot our pictures of the day 



























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## clairegillies (Nov 25, 2012)

lovely pictures, love the pricked forward ears out on your ride.

I think its that the horse doesn't want to leave home, thats where the behaviour comes from. its called 'napping' or 'barn sour' or 'barn sweet'

I prefer to call it 'the game of a thousand circles', a circle? no problem, let me help you and now we are going this way... another circle, let me help you and now we are going this way.....
we get on our way with less and less of this the more we ride out. 

Claire


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## Iseul (Mar 8, 2010)

It isnt like the other 5 barn sour horses ive ridden though..she's just spooky. I cant help but think it's a confidence thing, but as long as there's another horse anywhere, she'll do anything I ask without an issue. She'll cross a bridge, creek, chest high log first without balking..it's just when we're alone.

I also can't do circles..Until we get to the actual trails, it's all road, and Im not comfortable making her do much on it, especially when I cant see over the hills and turns in the road. Im just glad almost all the people know I ride along the side and make sure to pay attention and slow down while they pass. Lol
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## QOS (Dec 8, 2008)

glad you had a good ride. There is nothing better than a horse that spooks in place or just stops to look. I like NOT being thrown off!!!


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