“10 yo Arab mare, bay, 15h $800”
No picture. No video. No idea why I called the phone number, set up a date to see her or drive the hour to do so.
But I did.
I could say that I made a mistake. She was 150lbs underweight, belly bloated with worms, huge chunks of hair missing, hooves grown over shoes that hadn’t been taken off in over a year and a very shut down attitude towards the world.
In the early days I swore I made a mistake. I left the barn in tears more often than not. I tried my hardest to get her to do anything. Even just walk. But she wouldn’t. She’d stand perfectly still while I nudged, clicked, tapped with a crop, kicked, yelled. Not a hair would flinch on her body. And then right when I gave up trying, she’d bolt wildly around all crazy.
Not necessarily safe but not mean either. She just had no interest in pleasing me at all.
The best thing I did was move to WI away from the prying eyes and pieces of advice of only partly sane horse people. Once there she was housed in my backyard (we had a sweet set up of renting the second house on a boarding facility until we got evicted when the land owner gambled our monthly rent away and the property was foreclosed on) and I had all the time in the world to slowly work with her and show her that I wasn’t going to leave or ask her to do anything unfair.
It took until year three of our time together before she let me in. Then everything changed.
In the last eight years Gem has taken me from clueless, but loving horse owner who was mostly a passenger to a much more educated, independent horsewoman and an active, thinking rider. It hasn’t always been fun. It’s likely never going to be pretty. But it has been worth every second of effort I’ve put into her.
Part of me wishes I had blogged at the beginning but mostly I’m glad I didn’t. I’m sure everyone would have just told me to sell her back then and what a shame it would have been to lose out on all these experiences.
Gem went from not able to walk under saddle to bolting madly to having a trainer tell me she’d never be able to canter to becoming a 100 mile endurance horse cantering the first 30 plus miles nearly straight and is now jumping 2′ fences and schooling over starter sized cross country fences.
She isn’t easy but neither am I. I think we do okay together and even with all my complaining on here about her I have no interest in looking at the world through any other ears. Here is to many more years with my Gemmiecakes!
The Roaming Rider 
She’s so lucky that you gave her a chance and the time she needed! It’s been awesome to watch her figure out this latest sport and decide she likes it, after having already been so successful as an endurance horse! Can’t wait to see more in 2018!
LikeLike
I was worried for a while that she was never going to wrap her head around it, but lately she seems pretty on board.
LikeLike
Happy Horseversary!
LikeLike
Thanks!!!
LikeLike
I am so glad you got her too! If it was easy what fun would THAT BE? HA! She def looks better now. OMG you did take a chance 🙂 HA!
LikeLike
She was so fugly back in the day and it could have gone a very different direction. Thankfully we are where we are now.
LikeLiked by 1 person
What a wonderful rescue story!! You turned her life around.
LikeLike
We both are very different than we were back then.
LikeLike
You are both so lucky to have each other 🙂
LikeLike
Exactly!
LikeLike
I love this so much ❤ Cheers to the two of you. Many more years to come!
LikeLike
Holy cow. Yeah, she looks NOTHING like the horse you purchased. What a great story!
LikeLike
Yay for Miss Gem!!!! Sometimes the wrong horse is the right horse and you have such a fun story to tell now 🙂 Love little Gem!!!!!
LikeLike
She has taught me more than I have taught her and no way would I be the rider I am today with a different horse.
LikeLike
Wow, she was a train wreck when you went to look at her but damn, look at her now. Well done. I think you should be very proud of the work you did.
LikeLike
Thank you. That means a lot.
LikeLike
Awwww! I’m a Gem fan 🙂
LikeLike
Happy Horsiversary! 8 years what a long and wonderful time together!
LikeLike
It’s been a wild and ever changing ride. I wish I was the horse person I am now but then I wouldn’t have been without her and all the mistakes I’ve made.
LikeLike
You’ve done an amazing job, and a hell of a lot more than what most people would!
Happy anniversary!
LikeLike