Changes and Treats

Sorry I haven't been on in a while, we have a lot going on. I was offered a working student position in Mass and decided to take it! I'll be up there living with Eventer Stephie Baer for a year and Banks is coming! I just got word from the shipper yesterday that he will be leaving either the 16th or the 17th of this month and I'll be heading up on the 19th. I think I'm more nervous for him than myself. He's a quick learner but I'm not sure how hes going to feel about the 18 wheeler he's going to be traveling on. Thankfully the shipper is experienced with OTTBs and I'll be there to load him.

On another note he took his first treat from me about a week ago! It sounds silly to be so excited but thats a huge step. He's not a big fan of his nose being touched and is still rather timid and wouldn't take a treat from me for the longest time. When he finally did you could tell he didn't quite know how to go about it, although he was very gentle. He is now a treat monger (sp?) and is all over me everytime I enter his stall. He obviously believes they appear in the palms of my hands so he is always sniffing my palms and pockets. He becomes more personable everytime we spend time together. It's diffrent with him than any other horse I've had, it's like he dosen't know how to "really" be a horse. Normal horsie things like fly spray and treats are foreign to him and standing cross tied is still a challenge. I love watching his progress though. I adore watching him figure things out and be brave.

Last week we had a horrible storm and huge puddles around the barn so I intentionally decided to go outside and work on our groundwork in the puddles. He was very timid at first and wanted nothing to do with those big black holes in the ground but after a few minutes he began to trust me and started walking through them and was rewarded with a treat. By the end of our work he would walk out the puddle stop when I said whoa and look back at me like "Mom where is my treat!?" like I said I LOVE watching him figure things out. He's  got a mind like no other horse I've owned and I love it. If I had the room I'd get another OTTB in a heart beat.

If anyone is considering another horse I would highly suggest an OTTB.

12.2 Hand Pony

Tonight my trainer decided that Banks is a 12.2 hand pony stuck in a 16.3 hand OTTB body. We mainly worked on ground work tonight as he hasn't had much of it. It truly astounded me how quick he learns. We worked on whoa, back, walk on and lunging both directions. The left was easy but the right, not so much. Although it was hard for him to "get it" going to the right he finally figured it out.I'm excited to work with him on the ground and teach him the basics. Were prob going to do groundwork for the next 2 weeks and slowly transition to riding. The bond on the ground means a lot to me and it's definatly something i suggest you guys try working on.

The beginning of Banks

For those who don't know Banks is my first OTTB. He came into my life after Rocky my Welsh cross was diagnosed with a catastrophic stifle injury and is now un-rideable. Banks formally known as Jury and JC registered as Siouxperdude arrived at the barn on Saturday he's 4 and has only had 5 starts and was just too slow. Banks is going to be my next eventer. He was nervous on the trailer ride home. You can tell it's all a new experience for him. Although it took a while I was proud of his bravery and getting on the trailer he never took a step backwards.

I've been out to see him everyday since he's arrived. Sunday I took him out, cross tied him and fly sprayed him you can tell there is a lot that is new to him like fly spray and treats he still thinks fly spray is going to eat him and has absolutly no clue what treats are. It's almost sad that no one ever loved him enough to feed treats or fly spray him. Hes still standoffish and isn't really used to being petted esp on his nose but he gets better and better everyday.

Yesterday I rode him for the first time at my barn in the indoor and he was a very good boy. He looked around a lot and was "up" but near the end of our ride he relaxed, reached for contact and became very relaxed. I see a lot of potential in this horse and can't wait to begin pur journey together!