Goat Clipping

Poor old Connie is not very amused with me!! I just brought new clippers, quiet, good cordless clippers. They were so light and not worrying about the cord when she swung around was awesome. The blades were so deliciously sharp and it really looked like it was going to be an epic clip. You know one of those clips where your friend goes 'remember that clip of 2012' and you look off into the distance with a half smile on your face remembering the perfection that was that clip. 

Alas it was not meant to be for me this year, but I still have high hopes for '13! It's actually a pretty good clip and my new clippers are the bomb diggity. The problem was Connies rain scald, (that and her belly refused to dry after her bath). She looks definitely like she has some horse leprosy. I'd put a picture up, but she doesn't want the internet to see her all diseased like. The scaly skin did a lot to blunting my blades rapidly. It doesn't look active anymore but I suspect once the baldy type parts grow in she is going to have the weirdest hair patterns. I may have to clip again in like two weeks, which isn't a happy thought. The hair is so invasive, it just gets everywhere! Especially when you do up the neck and it falls straight into your face. Blerk! I get so carried away as well. The only hair left is on the front of her head and she is lucky to have that, I had to stop because I had to go! I even had a moment when I thought seriously about hogging her. Luckily my sense returned and she still has her mane. She doesn't have the face to pull it off. The bonus of her being clipped as that I can really treat the rain scald that I have too, though looking at her general condition I suspect she is probably a bit low in copper.

I thought I would consider the pros and cons of clipping.

Pros.

-If done well horse looks very tidy and you look like a pro.

-Horse dries faster and stays cleaner.

-If you don't clip and ride a hairy horse at shows you look like a newb.

Cons.

-Hair in the eyes.

-Hair up the nose.

-Hair in the bra.

-Many horses twitchy to clip, making it hard to do a good job.

-Hair in the shirt.

-Takes a lot of practice to do a good clip job, which means lots of hair in the face.

-Your arm still feels vibratey for hours afterwards.

-A bad clip makes you look like newb.

-When you miss a patch and don't notice soon enough to tidy it up, that patch is all you see until the summer coat comes in and it will really really annoy you.

-Hair in the mouth.

-It's nearly impossible to have even lines when you do blanket or trace clips.

-You spend a ridiculous amount of time hunched under your horses belly and close to those very hard feet while your horse gets increasingly ticklish.

-It takes a long time to do well.

-Did I mention the hair???

Seven Weeks and counting

The show season is coming! Connie has come down off the hill where she has spent the whole winter being a wild horse with regular hoof trims of course. I like to rest their hooves over the winter and let them be bear but Connie has one club foot and she gets abscess after abscess in the bigger foot and her feet crumble really badly so she has front shoes year round.

Anyway yesterday I had someone coming try out Bill so I had to leave work and grab Connie and Bill. They live at my Aunties house, but they have been up on the run-off block on the side of a steep hill. They were of course miles away and I hollering at the top of my lungs and once Connie heard me she came galloping over, telling me that she wanted more tlc than she had been getting.

Bill was amazing in her trial for a horse that had been dragged off the hill and hadn't been worked for months, but looked like a hairy bush pony. I watched that girl jump her over a 60cm jump and I was just like wow. I have never seen her jump before, I'm always the one riding her. She is amazing. I doubt I will sell her to be honest. I probably should sell but another year wont hurt and at least in full work she would be worth a lot more. Its crazy when I want to ride jumpers to sell such a naturally phenomenal jumper. I just need to be careful what I feed her and make sure she gets plenty of work. I'm looking at a rental property for me and my partner with four acres and stables on Saturday so fingers super crossed for that. It would be a huge step in the right direction.

I was so excited to ride Connie after work but I got home and she actually has a bit of rain scald on her back so pony got a medicated bath instead which went down like a lead balloon. Tantrums were thrown and she left no toys in her cot. She doesn't like baths at the best of times. Still it's exciting to have her nearby again, that the season is coming, and the sport I adore will soon swing to life.

I had the most amazing hunt

The farm was beautifully prepared so there were heaps of jumps and there were hare everywhere. We didn't even get close to catching one but we ran and ran and ran all day. Blue and I were absolutely on the same wavelength and while it's probably the strongest he has been in the bridle, he wasn't fizzy or silly at all, he didn't even jig which at the end of the hunt with a pair of double Ds and a full bladder after 3 hours riding, is always very appreciated. He was pretty knackered to be fair but he just goes and goes and I would start thinking it was time to be hanging out of the hill for a while and he would get another wind. He was just fabulous and I had a blast. It's an amazing feeling to be galloping over beautiful country with the sound of the hounds in your ears and a good strong horse underneath you.

So anyway, what worries me most about the future is what I'm going to do with Bill really. She needs more time than I have to give so I would like to sell her, but she isn't an easy horse to sell. People need to realise you can't buy a super well trained sound athletic horse with her breeding for the price I have on her. Its a bit of a pick any three of the four on those options, and thats what you get for that price she has on her.

I had planned for one girl to ride her and in return for some of her costs I would take the girl, Bill, and the girls horse to shows but seeing as the truck will be sold I will be back to a horse trailer and two horses max travelling. Then my mate was going to take her, whom would be an amazing option because she is a phenomenal rider and a professional, but she is downsizing and looking to do it more as a hobby so that option was out. At this stage I'll just have to leave her until the days get longer and do it myself. Or try and scrape together some money for 30 days training, though that is basically dependent on my getting another job. A better, closer one.

A comment on the previous post talked about catch rides and I already have 2 two of those sort of in the works. One is a stallion that has jumped up to 1.20m I think and is really well bred and has an incredible temperament but has been lame and I'm hoping to bring him into work (if the owner thinks I'm good enough) and see if he stays sound. The other I was going to buy, but couldn't justify that as a non truck owning competitor, or really have the money seeing as Bill isn't selling. She is a 17hh chestnut mare (I have never owned a chestnut) that has jumped 1.30 a bit early. She needs lots and lots of schooling but gets up the air ok and wants to do the right thing over the fences and is really bold. She would be a good horse for me to try some bigger tracks on, but she would be for sale and so could go at anytime. Still never straightforward horse so I'm hoping to find time for them both as well as my two.

Man plans, God laughs

This title has sat on my dashboard for maybe three weeks and still I haven't managed to put into words whats happening because I still don't know. Everything is so up in the air. I desperately need better employment before I run out of money, I don't know what I'm going to do with Bill. There aren't many people who want a slightly difficult green horse funnily enough. Many many inquiries to her ad but nothing with any real intent behind it. It sucks because she is amazing, but I can't afford to send her to a trainer to get her fixed for myself, and I don't have the time to fix her.

I feel so freaking stuck. I just can't really see the way forward and anytime I start to get a situation sorted it all just falls apart again. Connie will need to come off the hill soon to start her fitness regime but thankfully this winter she hasn't gotten fat and living on a hill she still looks pretty fit. Hairy though having not worn a cover all winter. They all look like bears.

Trucky is in for repairs up to $5500 and then she will be sold to recoup those losses for my parents. So I'll be transport down, but we can survive this, I'll beg borrow and steal. Right now it feels like a good time to give up, to grow up and let go of the little kid dreams. I'd have money and time and I could do something else. I'd get to see my partner in times when there is still actually daylight. Easier sure, but I'm not known for doing things the easy way. There is still some fight in the old dog yet.

EBOP Hunter Trials

As you can see a very successful day for me and the big horse Blue. He really is such a good boy now that we have a bit of a relationship going on and he knows who I am and that I wont smash his mouth. Being a half clydesdale with a bit of a high headed hollow jumping shape and a lot of knee action he isn't ever going to do amazingly well at hunter trails, but he is athletic enough to do quite well in the events not only judged on style.

I'm starting to get nervous in competition again and I don't know if it's because I have done hardly any competing or because with all the change and moving and a new job with a niggly boss I'm really struggling with my mental health. I'm keeping it together but sometimes it's really hard. Stupid mental illness. Anyone the first class is the eye opener and everyone has to do that class to prove they are capable of competing. Blue jumped pretty well though I over rode the double and made it an awkward one and a half strides and he touched the wire fence which is a big points loss.

The next class was the senior under 45 and he jumped really well and we ended up second in that class very cool, because that is my first ribbon ever in a hunter trial. The open hunter I had a really awkward jump over the tape jump. It had gotten a lot taller and I was like oh, and he went should I go past and I went nah better jump it and he did but it was just not a very pretty thing by that stage.

They do a steeplechase at this hunter trial and that was pretty exciting to watch they just went full out up and down these hills and over wire fences. Very exciting stuff. Then they had the handy hunter class and this was a very very difficult test. It's based around this little box that was about 3m across and 6m across and about 80-90cm high all the way around. You had to jump into the box and stop in the one stride of room available then pivot and jump from a stand still out the left hand side. Come round again and halt in the box again and then jump from a standstill again and halt on the otherside of that fence. The closer you could do the final halt to the fence, the better you would do. Knowing Blue pretty well
I had him dribble over the last fence and he basically landed in a halt. Yay for me! So he won that one.

Then it was the wire jump were you jump over the wire fence and and then turn and back over the same fence. Blue jumped ok but touched it both time.  Then they had a hairy legged race which is for the horses that are a half clydesdale and is another steeplechase. I wasn't that keen but got talked into it and off we went. Very exciting stuff. I haven't jumped fences at that pace since I evented. A bit frightening and I was a bit please please jump and don't chip but he was awesome and it was a real buzz. I won by a nose. The finish line is the last fence and it came down to a photo finish. That photo is below in the sentence below and is in the word "here". Please click it

Hairy legs picture click on the word HERE

Then there was the teams events which involved first a three abreast jumping contest over three fences. We started well but then I got behind the others and stuffed it up. Sorry guys. The next event involved opening a gate and doing a bit of a flag rash and then going through the gate again and closing it. My team was second in that. The final event involved the box again. The three riders in the team had to start in the box. Getting three horses into the box is hardwork because its so small! The first rider jumped out and bent around some poles, they jumped back into the box and the second rider jumped out and did a barrel race and then jumped back in. Then the final rider jumped out and jumped through a coffin-  jump, one stride to a ditch and two strides to another fence and then gallop back to the box. Now the trick is to have the others out of the way and bounce through the box because technically at that moment of landing all three are in the box again. The time stops when the final rider is out. We had a good run really, though didn't go flat out. Blue did he was super through the coffin and then bounced through the box like a real eventer. Consistency was the winner really and despite a few mistakes my team was second.

So overall it was an amazing day despite all the rain to start off with. It was nice to feel I still got it and am competitive. Especially with the fact that all my exciting plans for the future are starting to fall apart. Boo to that.

I have started a few cunning plans which will come to light in the next couple of months. Watch this space and be prepared for a new face or two ok. Good times ahead I'm sure. I will explain more when I'm not at work!

Sell Bill

I think the time has come to sell Bill. Which is stupid and emented because she is probably one of the most talented horses I have ever owned and definitely could be an amazing eventer or showjumper, her effortlessness over a fence is just amazing. THe problem is she is a difficult wee duck and she needs lots of work and lots of structure but I just can't offer her tat at the moment. I'm desperately chasing my tail just coping with life and all the changes and I'm doing her a disservice. It sucks, it breaks my heart. I feel like I'm failing her and myself. I have all these dreams of being a good rider but the reality is that I'm only very very average. We bred Bill out of my very favourite in the whole world horse, but in truth I don't feel I have ever realy developed a connection with her, we don't really fit together, she always went better with my sister whom adored her. I don't know, I guess I know she isn't really the horse for me, it just sucks to sell so much talent, when I want to be riding talent.Why are these decisions so hard? Realistically it isn't that hard, sell the horse you don't enjoy and get the one you want right. I already know whom I'm hoping to buy once she sells. I really just can't help feeling I'm a massive failure. More and more it feels like I'm never going to make it.