Updates

Here are a few updates with pictures!!!

I have pictures of his new halter!! It was hard to get him to stand still long enough to take the couple of pictures because he wanted a wither scratch. Now. But I finally got him to stand still for a couple of seconds just to take a snap!! There is a poll so you can vote if you like it or not.

I also put the bareback pad on his back today!! With no stirrups though.. I don't really use them anyway. He handled it well and only moved just a tad bit when I tightend it to the last hole (which would be normal for a girth and such maybe even a bit looser). Here is a picture of that!!

While I had him in the bareback pad I walked him over some small logs. (which he did very well with and didn't even hit his feet, he hit his feet all the time whenever I did it with him before.. he must have been practicing...) And then I trotted him over them, which he did a little jump. Then, a canter over them and he jumped them! After that I gave him lots of pats and told him he was a good boy and then took off the halter and bareback pad.

After all of this I gave him his scratches. And boy did he love them. Here is the new looks of satisfaction...

But there comes a time when you have to stop... here is the "look" I get when I stop.

I love how his tail is on his back.. its like he is saying, "How dare you not be there for me to hit you. Just.. how dare you."

Week Three.

Sorry I missed last week on an update, I was at horse camp. But I am back, still alive, and ready to post what has happened!
While I was gone he discovered how big of an area he was in. He got away from his corner and in the middle of the corral and started to run and buck everywhere. Looks to me that he is a very happy boy! He has an odd relationship with one of the dogs as well. He also isn’t that fond of the rain either, and that we got A LOT of in the past week.
The day after I got back from my camp we went to the city and I got him a brand new halter. It is a navy colour with leather sides on it. There will be a poll and you can see the picture of it and tell me if you like it or not.
He loves his halter and doesn’t try to take it off now. This is a good thing.
He loves to run and will race up and down the fence. Maybe when the ground isn’t as wet I will set up my small jumps (which is two tree branches on top of each other, not that big of a deal) just to see what he does.

During the course of the week my mom let out my mare, Coco, just to let Salty and her get used to each other right now, and to see how his testosterone levels are. She is very gentle despite her large size. It was going well and he didn’t do a lot of the stud stuff that he did the very first day he came and we let them sniff each other. Last night though they called to each other the whole night.
Today was the big test; we let Coco in with him in the corral. They sniffed each other at first and he squealed a few times but didn’t really kick out, she didn’t either.
He jumped on her a few times but the got frustrated because he couldn’t reach her (she is a 16.3 Percheron cross mare and he is a 14.1-.3 Arabian) and then gave for a little while. He went over to the other end of the corral while she took over his hay. But once he would walk/trot around she would follow him. Which kind of freaked him out a little bit so he went faster and then only to find that she would keep the same pace as him.
Right now though they seem to be used to each other and he is allowing himself to stay with her. Even though this was probably all to confusing for him, he seems to be ok with it.A lot can happen in three weeks!

One Week.

It has been a week sense we have had Salty! Well a week sense yesterday. But he has come along so far in these eight days. He nickers to us when ever we are near or when he thinks we are upset or in trouble. He is just one cute boy! He is also starting to ignore the other horses and doesn’t call to them any more. He will just look at them and then go back on to his business of eating some hay or grass. He is just one special boy.

We started to braid his forelock back off of his face, just to give it some air. He enjoys it because now he can see what is going on! He still loves to flick his head around and toss his mane around when ever we come near him as if to say “Look at me, I am beautiful” or “I’m so pretty, oh so pretty!”. I love him to bits!!

He surprises me all the time though! He does well with the haltering and leading and standing tied (as Susan said), but he also does extremely well when being sprayed down with the bug spray. I can’t even get my mare, Coco, to stand and let me spray it on her and I have had her for 4 years now! I am just wondering if he will accept a saddle or anything like that. He already blows me away but if he accepts that stuff?? Well then, I am going to be way past blown away!

Salty likes to be let of the corral every once and a while (more like everyday in his schedule) and when I do let him out he likes to go around the property and check things out before he eats. That doesn’t take him very long with his brisk walk. But once he is all settled in, he goes and begins to graze peacefully and doesn’t even look up to Coco as she nickers to him.

He is having such a peaceful life here, and I can’t wait for the day when he can go and be with the others and have a normal herd life. Thank you again, Rescue 100 for making this happen.

It started here.

This all started with a news story. I became so emotionally involved. It is all I thought about. I religiously checking out pictures and updates. I was so excited with those first pictures that came out, checking each one over and over again. Falling in love with individuals. The first one that I fell in love with was a little gray one laying down (in its picture) with a symbolic (to me) tangle in its hair. We waited anxiously for news about availibitly and when they can be adopted. Then it happend. Applications were made available. I could have peed my pants. Then a picture came out of a certain boy with the longest and most beautiful forelock I have ever seen. And that was it. Love at first site.

We called down and asked specifically if he was going to be gelded could we be considered for his adoption. We waited anxiously. And low and behold out of the blue the call came. We thought we were approved for a different one. And we were happy just to take one.

I got up at 5:11 in the morning Monday morning. I was to excited too sleep as I was going to go down and pick up my boy. I had slept five hours that night and didn't see the need to stay a sleep any longer. The trip was uneventful (it seemed to take forever). But we finally arrived.

We backed the trailor up to the barn and I met Susan and Donna. They told me that he was in the first stall. I walk over there, expecting this different boy and to my amazment it was Salty! I was so surprised and excited that it was hard to say anything. I went into his stall and pat him for a little while until the paper was done.

Once it was done I was allowed to put my halter on him and lead him out. He was a perfect gentleman. He loaded like a dream (stupid laws wouldn't let me ride in the trailor, not fair at all). He had a good ride home, all three hours of it. But we got home.

He heat was oppressive but he handled it like a trooper. When in the corral he started to run around flicking his tail. Then he settled down and started to eat. That is when the others started to call him (he is still a bit studdy). He ignored them for a while but then he started to call them back (boy he is loud, haha). We let him settle in for the night. He got a wiff of our mare who suddenly went into heat. Any hopes of settling in for the night was over (did I mention he is still a bit studdy?). He called and called all night. We felt bad for him. But it will be over soon, and he will be with the herd.

When we go out side now he will call to us. He loves to get brushed, especually on the neck. He is very food modivated. He is very hungry, but he is not subtle about showing his itchy spots or having me scratch them.

The decision about gelding him must have been very hard. We are a firm no breeding family and he will have a happy life being apart of a herd (family).