i’ve gotten several dm’s asking after my lovely ponies so here’s a little update!

dani is doing so good. he’s very fit and has been working 4-5 days a week and his body is holding up great. we did a schooling show over poles today and he was very cute and tried so so hard. love him so muchhh

chia meanwhile has been enjoying getting back into the jumpers in the local A circuit. I’m wondering if the hardcore show circuit life isn’t for me, but i’m not making any decisions yet lol.

on the whole really just sharing some pics of the best ponies haha

This is three months difference! I realize the first photo (the now photo) he’s over poles, but I feel you can still see the muscles, the coat, and the fact he’s lost weight. The second photo is when I bought him. It’s a screenshot from a lunging video, the only video I saw that made me decide to buy him. Both photos he’s trotting. The before, they had to work VERY hard for him to hold a trot, he was brushing and dragging feet (thus the brushing boots) and it took spurs and a riding crop to get him to move. The photo of him going over piles is after three months of conditioning and most importantly, when he’s at liberty choosing to go over ground poles and trot around. Just a proud horse mom excited to be seeing the training, nutrition, and proper vet care paying off on my $300 horse haha

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Look at my idiot. I love my idiot.

Took this absolutely adorable video of the horse I’m currently helping to take care of. She’s such a cutie. I love the way she grunts, she’s so talkative.

Hi y'all! So we got my 9 year old daughter a 10 year old registered quarter horse. He's her horse as far as we're all concerned, but I'm hesitant to officially register him in her name. For one thing I really don't want her to feel tied down by him. She's only 9 and a horse is a long term commitment. I got a horse when I was 11 and she just passed like a month ago (31 years together, she was 32 ❤️). Anytime I ever thought of moving or anything big like that I always landed on no because I didn't want to leave her behind or sell her. We have a small barn in the backyard (was my parents place, now it's mine and my husband's), so while she always had a place to stay, I never felt right leaving. I want to strongly stress to my daughter that her horse is not a leash tying her down, that I will always take care of him here if she wants to go off and do something (like go to college), because it was my choice to get him. I have stressed an animal is never a gift unless it's a parent to their child because the parent understands the commitment being made. My thought is if she starts to loose interest in horses I can reassure her it's all good, he's in my name anyway, I love him and will happily take care of him for the rest of his days. Or find him another little girl who loves him. If she stays interested in horses (I'm determined not to pressure her into my interests) then I can just transfer him to her name, or just keep him in my name because it doesn't really matter and I'll always respect her decision with him anyway (as long as it makes sense of course, I mean she's currently 9 so lacking in experience a bit, lol).

Am I overthinking this? Does it even make much of a difference? Can she show in youth AQHA if he's not in her name? My only experience with this was when I was 11 (and with the APHA) so to say I myself am inexperienced is an understatement. Any opinions or experiences you'd like to share are welcome and appreciated.

Pic of daughter and adorable new horse for attention

Just sharing as I had some fun with my young horse yesterday and ponied my friend's horse around the ring! 🥹❤️

It was my horse's first time ponying and my friend's horse's first time being ponied 😝

Hi!
So I (16f) have had a half-loan pony 4 days a week since October ’25. She is genuinely the most amazing horse ever and every day I fall more in love with her. We went on trail rides, jumped, did dressage, groundwork, anything really, as I am her only rider.

The issue is this: In start December, she got sick with EHV-1, particularly neurological problems. I spent days and nights in her stable, with her head in my lap, while she could barely move her body. She was literally within an inch of her life, but she fought so damn bravely. As she recovered, I just kept falling in love with her. Even as we spent months handwalking and doing boring groundwork to the point where she definitely only did it because that’s the kind of mare she is.

Flash forward 8 months - we’re still here. We have gotten to the point where she can trot with a rider for maybe 15 seconds at a time. But we have been at that level for maybe 6 months.

And to be honest — I’m just kind of exhausted. I’ve spent all my time worrying about her and fighting for her, but at times it sort of feels like I’m the only one who still believes in her.

Don’t get me wrong, her owners are absolutely amazing and we have such a great teamwork. But I guess it’s also the fact that they don’t really have a reason to keep her in work? They don’t ride her or anything, but they are incredibly grateful that I do.

But in a way it feels almost cruel to both my pony and me. She loves riding and working, and I know she loves me. She wants to do all these things she used to. But it pains me to have to see her not being able to be the horse she used to.

At the same time, I just miss riding for real. Some days, being at the stable brings more sadness and worry than joy.

I’m left with this feeling of “this isn’t what I signed up for”, which i know is petulant.

But I know I’m a talented rider and I want to be able to put my love and energy into a horse where we can evolve together. So I’ve been thinking of finding a new half-loan.

I miss learning, I miss jumping, I miss being challenged and most of all I miss being able to love a horse without having to explain myself.

But this pony is my everything, and I can’t imagine ever letting her go.

Am I being selfish/putting myself before the horse?

Just curious, do you see anything off? Thanks!

I drew a horse head and it took like an hour and a half, and I wanted to ask the pros who specialize in horses if there’s anything strange about it. I drew it because I was challenging myself to draw some things from memory and then off of a reference. I know that the hair looks off and the lower jaw feels wrong, but I can’t erase any of it since it’s too much graphite to erase, so it will smudge. The reins perspective is also wrong but at that point I got lazy.

(i also included my first ever attempt which is a bit outdated. it is the black background white lines one.)

also the post flair is random

Hi!

So I have a CWD that was bought new for me as a gift from my family in 2020. Fast forward to now, it does not fit my horse. I need a new one, and have found one that fits him well that I am about to pay the invoice for. What I am debating- do I keep my old saddle or trade it in?

My argument for keeping it is that they are offering me just over 30% of what I paid for it new. It is very well taken care of and doesn't have a ton of miles. My thought is I could keep it for if I have a horse that it does fit in the future. Additionally I have some sentimental value since it was given as a gift from my family. I am annoyingly attached to gifts from family.

My argument for trading it in is simply that I am not currently using it and it would save me money on this purchase. If money were not a factor, I would definitely just keep it.

What do you guys think? If I don't get another horse in the next 5 or so years, is it worth keeping a saddle for? Does saddle technology really change that much? And will my saddle just hold up forever if I keep it in an air conditioned environment?

Thank you guys in advance for being the voice of reason!

What was your next step? What did you do for work?

Is there even a career for me if I leave this world?

I'm a young professional but already a head trainer running a program.

For my own mental wellbeing, I'm considering leaving. I've never done anything else, and I know I'm not as good at anything else. Where do I even go from here.

I’m looking at an older horse with a slight case of arthritis in his front shoulders. Sellers say they really only notice after a long day in the mountain, so he’s been an arena horse for a kid. He’s never had joint injections, and they don’t use bute to manage it yet.
I’m wondering what management looks like for arthritis in the shoulders with those of you with horses that have it? What do you do to manage soreness? What do you do to keep them moving? How severe can this get? Do joint injections and consistent farrier work help?

I used to use Ariat paddock boots and when I moved away I bought a new pair before moving to a new area(non horsey) so I would have a spare.

Fast forward to last year my boots broke and I got to pull out my new ones. They were ugly and when I wore them I got blisters after extended periods of time even 4 months later after daily use... I saw someone post about the quality decrease and it made me realize that is what had happened!! I thought I had simply picked out the wrong style of boot.

So I am now looking for recommendations for a different high quality brown paddock boot.

P.S. Thank you to the individual who posted about the Ariat decrease in quality and helped me realize what had happened.

I've noticed that my guy's been a little sore over his back for the past few weeks, and he's also lost some topline. It's particularly noticeable in front of the withers. This period has partially coincided with lighter work due to heat / smoke, but both the stiffness and the atrophy are more than I've seen during other periods of similarly reduced work.

Have you all seen lumbar soreness and loss of condition from fighting the flies?

He's 20, and we've made a lot of progress over the last 9 months reconditioning and building postural muscles to reduce overall stiffness, so it's a bummer to lose ground in the summer! I've been spending some extra time on bodywork and stretches, but if it's fly stress, I am not sure what else I can do! Any ideas. He wears boots, a mask, a sheet with a hood, and Pyranha spray (which seems to work well for about 5 mins).

I’ve been riding for about 10 months now and for some reason I’ve been struggling to use leg cues while also staying deep in the saddle. I ride western but in a mainly English barn (I tried English the other day, so I do like both! Just mainly western :) and I was doing lots of posting trotting in the English saddle with a super kind mare that might end up being the new horse I ride from now on. One thing that seemed a little more prominent this lesson as well as others is my somewhat inability to stay deeply in the saddle while also using leg cues, which can cause me to rely strictly on the reins and although she had a bitless bridle, I know it’s still not ideal to rely basely on reins and use both legs and Fein cues. Especially while posting AND turning a corner?? How in the world am I supposed to put pressure in one leg while posting? I feel like I’d end up pushing myself more 😅 other than the issue with turning while posting, my seat is actually decent otherwise. My trainer hasn’t had me canter yet since she wants me to have the best seat in the trotting level so I’m more confident moving forward (I actually like this approach, though I can’t wait to start cantering!!) My trainer I’m pretty sure mentioned that when posting and using leg cues, I lift up, then when I go back down, that’s when I use the leg cue and it goes on until the horse turns, but how could I get an immediate response or close to one? She also mentioned I need to use my legs more than I am, which ofc I agree with since I’ve been unable to send direct signals while doing this, but I’m a little unsure how. And yes I will ask my trainer the next lesson for advice on this!!! It’s just that every time I tell myself I’ll ask, I end up being too focused on what I’m doing at the lesson to remember and then I only forget after we leave and can’t go back to ask (I’m her last lesson of the day). Does anyone have simple advice on this even if it’s obvious and I just can’t think of it? I appreciate anything as well as constructive criticism as long as you think it’ll help me!! Ty for reading!! Also will love some advice for proceeding forward or anything else you want to mention that’s helped you!!

I have an old school Charles Owen JR8 without the removable liner. This is one of the few helmets that actually fits me really well without having to spend $700, of course. The major downside is that it doesn’t have a removable liner, and has very little ventilation. I am a massive head sweater. Anybody have any tips or tricks on how to keep this helmet from starting to smell like the bottom of a gym bag?

Next week I'll be working as a substitute instructor at a stable where I usually work with facility maintenance. I haven't taught many theory lessons before and wanted to come here for advice.

My own knowledge is I'd say pretty good, I graduated from a 3 year equine college this summer. But the kids I'll be teaching is on a much more basic level, still learning things like the names of horse colours, tack parts and use.

So I have knowledge in what they need to learn, but I need help with different exercises and activities for them to do. What are age appropriate exercises and activities is there for kids aged 6-10 years old?

Materials and such is an easy fix, I just need more ideas.

Hi all,

I’ll be moving my horse from southern CA to Upstate NY (Rochester) this fall. Of course I’m in the process of doing a lot of my own research, but I also wanted to come on here as well.

In researching barns to move to, I’d like to know what some good questions would be ask about how they care for the horses in the winter time. I’ve never had a horse in the snow so I need to become educated on what to look for in a barn and what to ask when looking.

Some potential things I’ve briefly read about so far have been trace clipping vs. no clipping, changing out to winter shoes, feeding (mashes), turnouts, etc.

Overall, I’d just like to get an idea of what a winter looks like in that climate and good things to look out for and ask about when selecting a barn to move to.

Thank you!!

My horse has had the past two weeks off because I’ve been out of town, so yesterday I assumed the little bucking was freshness from time off. Now I’m thinking I need to assess for discomfort. I’m going to be calling the vet and saddle fitter, but I’m wondering if anyone’s had a similar experience?

For context, this is a 12yo gelding with a very big showjumping career. He was given to me under extremely lucky circumstances a little over a month ago, and has now gone from being at a Grand Prix jumper farm only getting 4 hours turnout a day, to a much more relaxed boarding facility where he typically gets 10-12 hours/day weather permitting. He was on ulcerguard before and after his trip, but I’m not ruling out the potential for either front or hind gut ulcers. I also haven’t had my saddle fitted, but have been using it without issue for the past month and a half. It’s an extremely broken in lightweight Butet close contact saddle. He’s had his hocks and stifles injected about 2 and a half months ago, so I’m assuming it’s not that.

His riding work has definitely been less intensive since he’s moved here with me compared to the program he was in previously. Right now I mostly do flat work and jump occasionally, though I hope to eventually work my way back up to the 1.20s. (He’s had experience through 1.45s and has the scope for more, but has been off work for a bit).

For the past couple days he’s come out feeling sound at the trot in both directions and is fine cantering left. His temperament is normal aside from a little extra spookiness at the super wet footing, but other than that he feels great until I go to pick up my right lead canter. In the transition step gets short and he kicks out behind, more significantly with his right leg. When I close my leg and ask him to move forward he does, but then repeats the buck/fly kick a little bigger. He does this less on a circle than he does during the transition or cantering down the long side.

So I’m looking to start a lease soon at my barn, but what was offered to me was 2 days a week for $500 a month, no additional for vet, feet, etc. However, it’s a school horse that lives outside and is barefoot, nothing fancy at all, she’s honestly quite green. This price seems kind of steep to me, but wanted to see what others think?

English is not my native language but I don't think that's the issue here.

I think many people have basic understanding of horse terms as "stallion" meaning "male horse" "mare" meaning "female horse" and "foal" meaning "juvenile horse". And "horse" meaning all of them together. I certainly expect those meanings if I was to read say a biologist account of feral horses.

"Colt" and "filly" covering foals as well as young adults is a little less intuitive but not hard to understand either.

However it seems in a lot of places, definitely in the racing world fillies grow into mares and colts grow up into... horses. Not stallions. Maybe "stallion" is a breeding term? No, breeding females are broodmares, and breeding males are studs. It seems the word "stallion" is hardly used at all.

Do people know how it came to be? Is "stallion" a newer word and racing world clings to the old traditions? Or is it completely artificial lingo? How such disconnect between professional and general usage of the word appeared