Horsey Questions Tag

I found this on another blog and thought I would have a go! There are a couple of tags here so yup... :3 Feel free to use it yourselves!1. How long have you been riding?The first time I ever sat on a horse was for my 6th birthday (I had a party at a pony club). But I didn't start taking lessons until I moved and I was like 7 turning 8 years old. So it's like almost 10 years.
2. Favorite color?Absolutely love dapple bays! They are just simply gorgeous, but I also love palomino-sabino colourings as well.3. Favorite breed?I can't exactly chose a specific breed because they are all just lovely. I would narrow it down to Clydesdales, Thoroughbreds, Warmbloods and Cleveland Bays.4. Why did you get into riding?When I was like 2 or 3 the movie Spirit: Stallion of the Cimmeron herd came out and I fell in love with horses because of that movie. But ever since I was born I had been watching, reading and playing with anything horsey so ya.5. Most difficult horse you’ve ridden and why.Jazz (my baby boy)... Because he was trained to race he had that in his mind and retraining him was difficult. Just getting him to walk over a stick on the ground would be like WW3 haha, but he has improved so much and I could never ever thank him for all he has taught me.6. Your dream horse.Jazz. I couldn't ask for a better 1st horse or dream horse in my life. He may not be worth $1 million to anyone else, but he is to me because without him I don't think I would have continued with horses and without him I would know way less then what I do now.7. First horse you’ve ever ridden?A little bay pony called Cocoa I believe. That was for my 6th birthday party.
10.  Worst fall?I've had heaps of falls but I will say this one because it is the only fall where I have actually broken something. I was riding a pony at my old riding park/centre and we were doing 'bounce pony' and the horse/pony (Prince) got into a canter and I just some-how flipped off him, landed on my right side and managed to break my left wrist... yup. Physics.11. Equestrian pet peeves?I hate people who put horses through pain because they think what they are doing is good for the horse and is the best way to do it. I hate people who say horse riding isn't a sport or that it is easy or we just sit there. I hate people who think they are number one at horse riding and don't need any help or direction with their riding, because chances are they do... everyone needs a bit of help with riding or horses in general.

12. Scariest horse related experience?I don't really have one. I have never been in a situation where I have been scared of the horse, not even when Jazz freaked out over a bird and charged towards me (I just stood their laughing at him because he is a big silly bum).
Have I ever…1. Ridden the opposite discipline?Well I have ridden in stock saddles and learnt a bit of that and I have done barrels (in stock saddle) but I have never ridden in western or learnt however it is something I would love to try.2. Fallen?Multiple times. The best was when I flipped over backwards and somehow ended up sitting on the jump. That's talent.3. Vaulted?No but is something I would love to try.4. Showed?Nope. I really want to but I know a lot of people just do it for the money or the pretty ribbons and I hope that when I do eventually go and show I don't meet anyone like that... and that I don't turn into someone like that.5. Got kicked?Yes. When Jazz had Seedy Toe I tried to put the boot on his foot and he kicked me in the knee. :/6. Bucked?Jazz used to buck heaps (like after or before jumps or during transitions into Canter) but I have never been hit by him from it or have never been bucked off.7. Barrel raced?Nope.8. Done dressage?Jazz and I are currently working on our Dressage Skillz :3
9. Ridden bareback?Yes and was so proud when I cantered bareback for the first time. LEVEL UP! haha10. Ridden a horse taller than 17hh?I may have? Big Jess was the first horse I rode at my riding centre/park thingy and I was pretty tall (possibly 17hh)... But I also have ridden at Susan River Home Stead (like a bajillion times) and at other places and I may have ridden a 17hh there but idk.11. Ridden a horse shorter than 13hh?Yes... They have such short strides xD12. Cried because of a horse?I cried when I find out Jazz had Seedy Toe because my dad said we had to put him down... But then he said he was joking and he would be fine. I literally died inside...

This or That1. Tall or short?
Tall. The bigger the better!2. Horse or pony?I don't mind ponies but I prefer horses because I am very comfortable with larger strides whereas shorter strides I am all over the place and look like a sack of potatoes.3. Warmblood or draft?Both! I love warmbloods and I love drafts!
4. QH or TB?Thoroughbred all the way! nothing against quarter horses though...5. Western or English?I ride english so english... would love to have a go at western.6. Trail riding or ring work?Trail riding is really great and I believe does good work with the horse too because it gets them out there and comfortable with different situation... plus you can go with friends and site seeing and yah.7. Bareback or with a saddle?I love bareback but I don't do it extremely often, and the saddle is better for horses back because of the pressure distribution... plus it is more comfortable... Jazz has the spiniest back Ouch!
8. Difficult to ride or push button?

Either :3

Shoes and No Shoes

So it has been a while since I last posted. Been super busy lately with school and work and last week I finished my year 10 school camp! It was totally awesome and I dare to say my legs are deader then ever before... I never want to see another bike in my life... or a hill.
On the note of camp, I did find some new trails that I really want to take Jazz out on now... hopefully in the future I can go and travel to the trails with him and have a really good trail ride because the views on some of them wear simply incredible.

Anyways, on to more serious stuff. I thought that today I should talk about horses with shoes and horses without shoes. Me personally... no shoes for the win! I don't like the fact that horses should have to have metal shoes on their feet. I absolutely cannot stand people who hot shoe a horse. Ugh! Why would you heat up the piece of metal and shove it on the horses sensitive foot in the first place? Thats like putting your fingernails into fire and leaving it there for a good minute or so. Even cold shoeing is stupid. I dislike both factors. Shoeing just causes problems for the horse, and the only time I believe a horse should have a shoe on its hoof is if it has problems with it such as Seedy Toe, Laminates or if it has a cracked hoof.

Jazz was only shoed when I first got him because the race tracks had rules that the horses needed to be shoed or they could not race. After a week or so we had the farrier out to trim and remove the shoes and they were so soft that he was basically tip toeing everywhere. He was most likely shoed since his training which was probably at age 2 or 3 and so his feet hadn't fully developed... poor baby.
We left his shoes off and let his feet grow stronger and harder... we also had to put some oil stuff on his feet to help (forgot what it was called) and it did the trick. The only other time he had shoes on was when he unfortunately got Seedy Toe on his back left leg due to a split that happened while I was on holiday and the 2011 floods where going on. He had his hoof flushed and then patched up then wore a horrible boot that he broke multiple times... Then after 4 weeks he had to be shoed to let the gap heal up completely (which took about 2-3 weeks). He wore that shoe for that period and then was off it for good. No need for those metal devils unless it is to help heal the foot from some sort of damage.

Shoes are just no good for horses. Their feet become soft, they cannot contract and move properly, they hurt, they cost far too much money then needed and they are just stupid. Horses should be happy and comfortable and not have to go through pain to do what their owner asks. Shoeing a horse can be expensive too and why waste money on doing something that may effect the horse in a negative way? For me to shoe Jazz is about $120 (which is extremely cheap considering I know someone who does it for $200+) where as to just get his feet trimmed and cleaned is about $50. Big difference and he is clearly more happy without the extra weight on his legs.

I know incidence where people leave the shoes on for too long and the horses hoof has grown bigger and the shoe has not fallen off yet or has lost nails but not all of them. That causes problems and the hoof cannot grow correctly and can even be painful for the horse. Some nails come out of the hoof but stay in the shoe and every time the horse walks the nail drives through the hoof again either going through the same hole making it bigger, or just hitting other parts of the hoof.

Moving onto flexibility... above is a gif that shoes the natural flexion of a horses foot. Yes that's right, the hoof flexes! Blood pumps around the hoof and circulates through it and blah blah blah. When the horse has a shoe on its foot, it stops the natural blood flow and causes problems, hence why the foot goes soft after a while. Metal shoes put stress on the horses hoof and strains it too.

The shoe does nothing but stop natural movement and flow and constricts the hoof. A horse can walk easily barefoot on pavement and it would cause less if not no damage to a horse who is shoed walking on pavement because it has the extra weight, not flexion and different pressure. The wall of the horses hoof can also become dead and painful due to the nails. Infection can also come from the nails if left in and they rust or whatever.

If a horse is needed to be shoed because "you can't go into a competition or out on a group hack without shoes" or whatever, then see if you or your farrier can get their hands on some plastic shoes. I don't use them however I have seen them and I read an article about endurance horses who use plastic shoes and glue them to the horses feet. They can easily be removed and help with natural flow and flexion and cause little to no damage to a horses hoof and its wall. 

There are many different kinds of plastic shoes that are available. There are different coloured ones, different shaped ones and ones with more or less gripping and different types of plastic ones. The best part is, you can remove them after a couple of weeks (using a special glue remover) and reuse them if they are still in good condition. There are also shoes which can go around the hoof and use a little bit of glue on the surface area of the toe. Some can be expensive however most are cheaper than metal shoes and depending on the brand can be purchased from shops and placed on the hoof for the same price as a metal shoe. Some can even be down by the owner with instructions on how to do so.

So if you really need to shoe your horse, plastics are the way to go. No pain, no nails, reusable, never rust, comfortable, affordable and guess what... you can get them in pink.

I will still stick to no shoeing Jazz however if it comes to the time that I go to a show and have to have shoes on, then I will definitely be looking for some lime green plastics.

One last thing, I leave a question for you all... Is this really necessary?

Unhappy horse and stupid people who think they are cool and know best =-=

What are your thoughts on this article? Leave a comment below!

Bits and no Bits

So here's the situation...

I ride Jazz with a bit; most of the time at least. I don’t know why but it’s just the fact that it is there. I prefer to not ride with the bit due to the fact that Jazz is pretty head-strong and I find myself pulling on the reins too much, causing me to pull on the bit which is probably hurting him.

It’s my own preference with the bit and without the bit. To me, I prefer no bit but that doesn’t mean I don’t use it… mainly because I forget to take it off the bridle…

The thing is, a lot of people think that riding a horse on the bit is good and the bit is how you control the horse.

Nope.

Your legs, voice, and gestures should be the ones controlling the horse.

I know of someone who yanked on the reins too much that it tore the horses mouth because of the metal bar in it.

That’s a hard thing to do, but not too hard if you think that your legs are just there to whack the horse in the stomach and hope for the best, and that the reins are the key to go and stop.

The point of riding bitless is that your horse is more comfortable and that one step closer to being ‘natural’ and happy of course! Honestly, how would you feel if you had a large metal bar in your mouth and someone was sitting on your back yanking the hell out of it. It would be pretty painful and you’d want that person to stop right away. Maybe that’s the reason why your horse is rearing and kicking… not because he’s naughty, but because you’re hurting his mouth. The mouth is a sensitive area and I’m pretty sure that it would be nicer if it weren’t torn up with the constant yanking.

I am a culprit of owning a bit and riding with one... and this post probably makes no sense… But I am trying to say that bits aren’t the greatest option when riding but my opinion shouldn’t stop you from not using it. Just use it carefully and don’t control the horse with the bit because he probably won’t enjoy it.

No bits? It’s great, you don’t have to worry about the terrible thought of tearing your horses mouth open anymore. Yea that’s all I got.

Honestly, I ride both ways. Bit or no bit. As long as I am not yanking on the reins and hurting Jazz’s mouth, I will continue to ride with a bit… I just like that I can count on Jazz without one too.

So have a go without a bit for once. You never know, your horse might just like you that little bit more for being able to ride a day without a metal bar in its mouth.

What are your thoughts on bits? Tell me in a comment below!

The First Post!

Woah! What is this? Where am I? Oh right, it's the internet. Hi, my name is Jaimi and I am starting this blog to share my thoughts, tips, tricks and opinions on anything related to horses!

Why am I starting this? Because I feel like it, haha!

First of all, the big question. Yes, I have a horse! He is a beautiful 16.2hh thoroughbred gelding turning 10 this August! My baby Jazz <3 He's a bit cheeky but I love him to bits and he has taught me so much during the long 6 years of owning him.

What about me you say? Welp, I am 16 this May (26th) and am 100% in love with animals. Horses are at the top and I would do anything for them. I began taking riding lessons at age 7 until I was 12 and a half, because riding lessons became far too expensive, the fuel to go drive out and see him at the equestrian park was heaps, plus I had to pay for boarding Jazz and pay for feed and millions of other things. I know, there are no excuses... I'm a terrible person for my millions of excuses for quitting lessons, but honestly I think it was for the better. Now he is closer to me (he is being adgisted) and I have more money to spend on the baby... lot of carrots for Jazz-a-roony. He was a straight off the track race horse which I was lucky to get for free because my Opa owned him ^-^ However there came the 100's of vet bills and long hours of re-training and the feed and the amount of times he jumped out and broke fences... Oh the pain! But I loved him no matter what. Even when I have to stand there for hours a day just trying to brush the massive knot out of his gorgeously long and beautiful tail :(
Anyways, I believe that Jazz taught me more about horses then any trainer ever had. Of cause I could use some lessons, and I have been to the riding club down the road a few times, however, it won't stop me from trying something my way and learning from my mistakes... without costing some broken limbs on me or Jazz of course. Funny, first time I broke my arm was falling off a bike not a horse... Skills!

Continuing on, I watch a lot of online tutorials, hear from other trainers, read millions of magazines and books and of course I have a lot of horse-lover friends of mine, in which I hear their opinions 24/7. I'm not saying I am a genius or a master or that anyone should forget what they have been taught and listen to me. Just, hear my opinion and maybe tell me yours because guess what, I don't know everything about horses or horse things or people for that matter, but I do love to learn more about these incredible animals and maybe more about training and riding and natural horsemanship which I have been trying to get into lately.

So this is where it begins. This is how it starts. Lets get going shall we!?