Introductions

TJ

TJ is a registered Arabian gelding with his line going back to Bask.  Who is a pretty famous Arabian sire.                         
                                 

                                                                           Bask
He's also an orphan. Anyone who has dealt with orphans can tell you that they are different. They can sometimes be difficult if they don't spend time with other horses and bond too much with people when young. Pushy, spoiled. TJ is none of these things. I guess he could be considered pushy with someone not too familiar with horses. Wants to be the center of attention. And he can get a little "studdish" when working in hand. When I first met him he was what I would call "confused". He was a 5 or 6 yo and at a place where I was boarding Rocky. Cute, little guy with no muscle development to speak of and a bit thin for my liking. He was bought directly from the breeders in Michigan by a family here for their young, legally, blind son. They lived behind the boarding place. Nice people, but pretty clueless in regard to horse training. He got walked around the block with the kid in the saddle maybe 2 or 3 times a year and the BO and her friends rode him occasionally.

The first time I saw one of the friends ride him I had to look away. Here she was, yankin' on a twisted wire snaffle as she tried to get him to put his nose down. He was a confirmed stargazer by then and no one seemed to either have the time or the know how of how to help him. The BO (barn owner) commented on what a good rider her friend was. I cringed. Just because someone can stay in the saddle doesn't make them a good rider. She certainly wasn't a "kind" rider.

The owners were moving and starting looking for a home for him and my friend, who was also boarding a horse there (the one who gave me the stall mats) wanted a companion for her old guy because she was moving, decided to take him. I was glad he had found a soft landing.

I think my friend always felt a bit too tall for him. She's an Anky clone (Anky van Grunsven-olympic dressage gold medalist).

Anky

Tall, long legged, blond who I've been telling for years that she's built like a dressage rider.  She prefers western. Just the opposite of me (short, bowed legs and arms so short that they don't go all the way to my hands. lol) Anyways.......I think she realized that he was pretty remedial and needed to go back to square one in his training. To make a long story short, she offered him and I said OK. I needed another horse like a hole in the head but since were buying some land and he and Rocky got along fine I decided to take him. 

As I said above, he's actually pretty nicely bred. His dam (mother) had an Arabian name I can't pronounce. He has a lot of champion Arabs in his family and his uncle is a popular breeding stallion. He is smart, friendly and very vocal. He greets me with loud nickers whenever I go out to the barn. He's a bit sickle hocked (knock-kneed behind) which tends to happen in Arabs. 

sickle hocked (note handlers bowed legs-also a conformation problem)

 He also has a bit of a "pasture foot" (also shows up Arabs). It's a bit of a club foot that develops when the horse always grazes with the same foot forward (which TJ does). I've been working on it all the time I've had him and the foot is more concave and not as sharply vertical than before but I doubt it will ever be completely normal. But never mind. When we trim we give the foot what it needs, not what looks pretty. Neither conformation problem has ever been a problem. 

We  play at "liberty" (no tack) and I've been working him "in hand" (as shown above). He picks things up very quickly. Arabs are known for their intelligence (all that time sharing a tent with their people). TJ thinks if he does something once or twice correctly, it's time to move on so I have to work on keeping him interested. He's coming along but can still have his spooky moments (Arabs sometimes tend to think they know better than the rider where to go and what's a threat). 

We've been working with obstacles and I would love to try "working equitation" which is a combination of obstacles, dressage and even cows, so we are playing with that (Anyone know how to build a bridge?) http://www.usawea.com/  He seems to like to jump a little. Not great at crossing water yet and we are working on loading in the trailer with the divider in place (he's fine in an open stock trailer). 

                                     

People tell me I should show him but I'm too lazy, I guess. I spent a lot of time at shows with the Saddlebreds. It's expensive to show. I wouldn't mind finding a teenager who wanted to show though. He is pretty and might do well in the show ring.

A horse like TJ is why new-to-be horse owners should bring an experienced horse person with them when shopping. You fall in love with their looks but soon find out you are "over-horsed" and the fun disappears. TJ has come a long way but he is definitely not for a beginner. 

Stay tuned to meet Blossom.