Horses!!!!!

[barb dwyer]

OK!!!

Finally we get to find out how many horsemen/women/people are on here!

We finally get a thread, guys!!!
I'll try to get back and keep up with this -

who's got horses?
Horse stories?
how do or even do ... horses play a part in your recovery?

[grateful2b]

Barb...thank you for this thread!
Horses were my first love, and I love them still....I miss the smell, oh if you could bottle that fragrance of leather and a sweaty horse, that velvety soft muzzle, and hot breath. the soft greetings at 7 in the morning....
I worked professionally for many years when I was younger....stable manager, teaching riding, buying selling, breaking horses, oh what a love affair...owned my share (hunters/jumpers)
it is the one thing in my life that I truly miss....
oh, the memories...
if I can figure out how , I will post some pictures of the horses I have owned....hugs, Grateful

[Horselover]

For all us horselovers -

MEETING OF THE HORSE-AHOLICS

Hello, I AM a horse-aholic. I would like to welcome all of
you to this months online meeting of Horse-Aholicas Anonymous. You may
be sitting there needing help. It is not easy to realize that you are a
horse-aholic, and even harder to bring yourself to an HAA meeting for help. HAA is here to assist you. I have some questions to ask to try to determine if you can be helped.

1. Can you say 'sheath' in public without blushing?

2. Do you know exactly what 'snaffle' means? (No, it is not a drink!)

3. Do you drive a truck with some type of towing package and/or dual
rear wheels when everyone else you know drives a real car?

4. Do you have more than one type of trailer because you own horses?

5. Do you spend your holidays going to shows, sales, clinics, and
seminars when everyone else goes on cruises?

6. Do you discuss things at the dinner table that would make a doctor
leave in disgust?

7. Do you consider formal wear clean jeans and freshly scraped boots?

8. Does the inside of your home look like your interior decorator is
'State Line Tack'?

9. Do you often have barn boots on your front porch?

10. Is your mail made up primarily of breed magazines and horse
catalogs?

11. Do your shirt pockets often contain bits of feed, hay and empty
syringe covers?

12. Do you worry about paying your monthly feed bill before you think
of paying your electric bill?

13. When you meet a person, do you ask how many horses they have, and
pity them if the answer is none?

14. Do you remember the name of a great-great-great grandsire when you
can't remember your own Great grandfather's name?

15. Is your primary dream in life to breed the perfect foal?

16. Do you find non-horse people boring?

17. Is 99% of your e-mail about horses?

18. Do you have a collection of bits even larger than your collection
of horses?

19. Does you halter collection include more than four foal halters, all
the same size?

20. Do you know more than five people this list fits exactly? If you
answered YES to three of these questions, you are in pretty good shape.
You will lead a long, dull life, and never call your mother and tell
her "I'm in the hospital, but everything is fine! The horse is ok."

If you answered YES to 10, you are in serious trouble. Give in gracefully,
and become a member of Horse-Aholics Anonymous now... You will qualify
eventually anyway.

If you answered YES to 15 or more, you are incurable. My advice
to those who, like me, are incurable is as follows..... Sit back,
smile, read your email, and know that your life will always be filled with
good friends and better horses, and it will never be boring.

[grateful2b]

Horselover , I am lonely and homesick after reading this list....although I no longer own horses. I would have answered yes to all but 2 of them at one time........the list took me back in a heartbeat to smells and textures and summer kitchens full of boots, coats and chaps....and life revolving around the equine loves of my life....I can still smell the sweet feed and hear the welcoming nicker of hungry animals shifting about in their stalls and the scraping of boots on the tack room floor. the excitement and nervousness of showday at our barn which took weeks of planning.....did we cover everything...will all of the judges make it? did I remember to get more mane elastics,...will the portapotties arrive ? ........long winter coats, and burrs in tails and the sweet smell of alfalfa.... visiting other barns in the summer for a hunt and the cool breeze that blows through our barns in the summer...and the flies, oh the flies....thank you HL, this trip down memory lane is lovely!

[SlvrMag]

I am a horse lover. I started riding at the age of 6 and rode almost daily until at 12 I had to move and could not bring my horse. I was devastated and started drinking and smoking at 13.

I get to ride every now and then but nothing regular. I someday hope to have a horse again because there is nothing in the world like the bond between a man/woman and a horse.


Thank You for this thread.

[Horselover]

I totally understand Grateful. When I wasn't around horses at a point of my life and I went on one of those trail rides with a very broken horse, I came home and wouldn't wash me clothes I had worn for weeks after. Loved the horse smell.

Slvmag - I can identify with you on having a horse in my youth and then my parents decided to divorce and I lost the love of my life. The one thing that knew all my secrets and all my dreams. Whenever my parents fought and tension was high I would saddle my Lacy and ride up back. We would be gone hours. She just seemed to know. I cry to think of her even now.

I don't have horses yet, but pray I will someday. I am around them all the time and that's all I can ask for right now.

Love ya all!

[Horselover]

Well, my bestfriend just landed on the ground after her ex-racehorse decided to gallop and she wasn't ready for it. The horse zigged and my friend zagged. She was taken away by ambulance. Luckily, no head injuries (wore a helmet), no broken bones and no internal injuries. Very blessed it wasn't more serious. Horses are great, but sometimes a bit dangerous.

[least]

I love horses tho I've rarely ridden much and have never owned any horses. I do, however, absolutely love the smell of a horse barn. It's a warm secure comforting smell.

A friend of mine once told me that 'nothing is so good for the inside of a man as the outside of a horse'. I believe that.

[grateful2b]

HL I am so glad your friend is going to be okay....
boy I think of all the times when I was young and fell off a hore and bounced...all the times I fell, was kicked, stepped on, and bitten once on the face..until I learned .....hahaha
if I fell off a horse today I swear I would not bounce and probably come away in pretty rough shape...
oh , youth...

[Horselover]

OMG Grateful - I totally agree with you on this one! All she could think of was what if she hadn't gotten that foot out of the stirrup? Would have been dragged. What if she had landed on her back? Could have broken it. The things that "could" have happened, but didn't.

I got stepped on so many times by my horse that myr feet aren't right. You know those little bones in the top of your feet? Broken many, many times. I got thrown too. Had a friend that was around 7 years of age that was thrown and broke her arm. Parents made her ride the rest of the morning not knowing her arm was broken. The fear of won't get up on the horse again is real for some folks. She did eventually go to the hospital poor kid!

My friend's husband rides mules and he said he would never ride a horse. He said mules don't ever give you a problem and his mules don't. They are very calm and obedient creatures. I love horses and mules!

[Freedom1990]

Youngest AD, Amber is an avid horsewoman, started training in dressage at age 8. Here are some pictures of Sonny, who will turn 6 in April. He is a registered quarterhorse gelding. He was bought as a green broke 4 year old and she has trained him all by herself. He's really blossomed and bulked up nicely.

Pedro is his pasture mate. I'll have to post more than once here since it's limited to 3 images per post.

Pedro giving his pitiful face because Amber got Sonny out to saddle up and Pedro got left behind.

Treats might make it better!

[Freedom1990]

Sonny....

[Freedom1990]

[Freedom1990]

[grateful2b]

Sonny's a handsome boy.....he has a sweet mouth.. and a great neck..Pedro is adorably goofy..thanks for posting these, Devon...now I really have to figure how to load pics so I can share too..

[helpwanted101]

horse girl right here

[Horselover]

Well don't mean to be a traitor, but I'm getting a mule hopefully this May if everything pans out. Been reading up on them. I am very excited about it!!!

[Freedom1990]

...with cameo appearances by Pedro the donkey!