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Horse #7: E

roamingridersite

It dawned on at 6 pm with another hour of travel to go that maybe this was a stupid idea. I was alone with only the most vague sense of where I was going, it was super late and would only be later by the time all this was done and I was on my way home and I should be studying. As I got through the last of the Charlotte area rush hour traffic and saw that I was finally drawing near the end, I texted Dusty the address just in case it was some serial killer ploy to get half sane horse women to his home and I never came back. You never know.

What was I doing travelling for nearly 3 hours up I85 after work on a Wednesday? Going to meet a horse, of course.

I had seen the ad for E three weeks, maybe even four weeks, prior on one of the many horse sales sites like dream horse or equine now etc… I really liked the sound of the ad and the pictures that accompanied it, but the seller never answered my email or text. I gave up and kept looking. Monday morning I came across two interesting things:

  1. A was back up for sale under a new name, same pictures and same price. Interesting. I was tempted to comment asking if the RF navicular issue was resolved, but took the high road hoping he would potentially land in a safe spot eventually.
  2. I also saw an ad for a really great looking gelding that sounded vaguely familiar. Looking through the pictures I recognized his face. It was E! I tagged Trainer and contacted the seller. She quickly replied to me that day and we set up a time for Tuesday evening to go meet him. Then she messaged me that evening pushing me back to Wednesday and I was frustrated. She had someone else wanting to look at him Tuesday afternoon and I was not happy, but I really liked the look of him. Honestly, I sorta wrote him off at that point figuring whoever was looking at him Tuesday afternoon would purchase him.

Wednesday at lunch I messaged her to verify he was still available and he was! Which is what led to me fighting traffic all the way up to a small town in NC late into the evening.

So who is this horse?

E is a 7 year old 15.2H registered Appaloosa gelding hailing from Canada. The current owner has had him since August making him the most well known of all the horses I had seen to date. He was some grand champion of the hunter world up there until he was sold to SC. I’m not sure why he was sold but I know he was purchased due to his calm demeanor and willing attitude by the current owner. Since last summer he has been teaching kids and wimpy adults like me the basics of w/t/c and going over small jumps. He has also been extensively trail ridden, taken over logs and ditches and worked on cows. He was a pretty good all around type of guy.

Going in I was a little hesitant just because I’m not typically a fan of the Appy. Not that I have much personal experience its just that the flimsy hair and the look they have in the eye like they always are throwing shade at you has been a bit off putting to me.

I arrived 30 minutes late thanks to all the traffic and MVAs I passed and the owner was very generous about it. It was 7pm, but she wasn’t in a rush and let me look him over and say hello. In fact, she was the best seller to date. She immediately asked me what I was wanting in a horse, what I was going to be doing with him and what the living situation would be. She informed me that he can crib if left in a stall for multiple days but keeping hay in front of him stops it. He didn’t crib on the fence line out in pasture and didn’t suck wind. She filled me in on his background and that he was a bit picky about bit choices and was currently going in a D ring Myler.

The first thing I noticed was that he was fat. Like jiggling in places he shouldn’t be fat. Other than that he looked really well put together, had a lovely head and a soft, fluffy nose I couldn’t get enough of. Gem has a tiny little Arab nose and for some reason I was addicted to petting his soft, fuzzy muzzle. He didn’t mind at all and came in for some pretty epic head cuddles.

She had her working student get on him to show him w/t/c and over jumps. She warned me that he did prefer the left lead in canter and that her student is bad going right and I noticed that he was a bit sticky going right but did pick it up and picked it up willingly after the jumps.

What I really liked though was how steady he was. He did what she asked and didn’t seem to need nagging, crops and spurs but also wasn’t ripping her arms out. Kinda of do the thing but with the least energy expenditure as possible type. The ring was filled with gorgeous jumps: painted butterflies, black silhouettes of cowboys and cowgirls, and pine trees. Things I wouldn’t be brave enough to get Gem over with all the pretty colors and solid planks.

When it was my turn, I did my typical get on, walk and halt. I always make sure I have brakes. Some things are negotiable, but brakes are not. He had a really nice halt, but even better he walked back off without me having to get after him. This pretty much was true for my entire test ride. He was responsive to everything without being over reactive or tense. Once I asked for something, he did it until I asked for something else. Which was awesome until I started talking and forgot to really steer and then he basically tried to leave the arena because, well I didn’t tell him not to and it was in our path. Oops. Sorry big fella!

His canter was amazing. The canter transition is my nemesis. I get so tense due to all my time with Gem and her flying off on me, that I ask to canter but hold back and it falls apart. With E, all I did was sit tall and barely brush my heel against him and we were cantering. Slowly. And in control.

Magic pixie dust was in the air.

After that I decided to jump him. Now, with every other horse I have tried I only felt comfortable asking over a single tiny cross rail and pretty much immediately pulled them up afterward. I’m a wimp. With E I immediately pointed him at the butterfly combo and he was very unimpressed with it, barely taking the time to trot it. So I came back around and put my leg on and really pushed him. He still was a bit awkward and no where near as fluid as with the young rider, but he went over. After that I came around and took the black plank. All on my own without my Trainer there to force me.

Bravery…I found it.

After that I was done. I really liked him. I liked his stocky build. I liked his calm yet inquisitive nature. I felt he would be a good fit for me and Wyatt could even ride him if he wanted to some day.

I have a video that the student grabbed for me but it is 7 minutes long and taking forever to upload.

So….I paid my deposit!!!

The PPE isn’t until the 11th and I’m holding off anything super exciting in my mind until then. I didn’t see any outward issues, Trainer did notice anything in the videos and he has a pretty easy past history so fingers crossed this one passes. If not, I may get into mountain biking instead.

Published by roamingridersite

42 thoughts on “Horse #7: E”

  1. Oh, he’s CUTE!!! I’m a sucker for Appys, having grown up with the spotty pony and gotten very used to her almost-human eye expressions. That bravery he makes you feel — bingo! Keeping my fingers crossed for you on the PPE.

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  2. Awww he’s adorable! Very very sweet face and kind eye ❤ That's what I look for most in a horse as well. Their eyes tell you so much! So glad he seems great even after that long drive! Definitely makes it worth it. And I am crossing all of my crossables that the PPE results pass with flying colors!

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  3. I seriously think Appy’s have more whites to their eyes for increased side eye and disdain of us. I think Appy’s treated right are amazing, but stubborn as heck when they feel slighted. He is very cute. It will prob take you a bit to learn to not jump defensively, I know I can’t get previous horse;s jump issues out of my head with new horses until proven saintly lol. Fingers triple crossed he passes PPE.

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    1. My PTSD is going to take a while to work through for sure. What I fell in love with was he ability to deal with it and move out without holding a grudge. Gem holds grudges for forever so this was new territory for me

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  6. I love his stocky build. And he’s super cute. Reminds me of a NE rider’s POA mare and up and coming gelding (son of her mare) in the face. And LOL mountain biking. It’s almost as expensive as horses if you really get into it. I have put off all of the upgrades I can with it to keep it cheap as I can.

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  7. It’s cool that he came back on the market and you got to try him out. Hopefully, the PPE goes well and you can bring home a steady eddie to ride around and improve on. Has he been tried on trails/xc?

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  8. This is SO exciting! He seems lovely!! And I’m super impressed you drove that far after work! As for A… that is super sketchy that hes back for sale with a new name. I’ve heard of that happening but still….

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    1. Yeah…I saw his ad and was like..OMG SUPER CUTE HORSE…wait a second….he looks familiar. Ugh.

      I’ve had horses sell before I can go see them. Apparently I’m the only full time working horse shopper. I really liked him and knew he could be a strong contender so I made the drive. Plus I was pissed at the Hubby so it gave me a whole evening to chill out 🙂

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  10. oh i like him a lot. I texted you but was curious his breeding. Also appy’s (and qh ask me how I know) usually have notoriously bad feet (as in tiny) but my farrier has made Remus’s feet robust and much bigger now. It takes some work but it can happen!! PS He is NOT that fat. Look at Remus early photos. LOL. AND PPS you may need to limit his grass if he is an air fern. But he is cute cute cute!

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    1. His feet are actually surprisingly large! He is currently shod all around but his feet look lovely and I plan on at least pulling the hinds to start. If he needs them then fine but I’d like to try.

      He jiggled!!! He is FAT! He is also eating way a high fat high protein feed and doing little work. I’ll throw him in my ration balancer and in work and see how he does. He may end up needing a grazing muzzle spring and fall when the fescue is growing but we will see. I’m used to air ferns 🙂 It’s the high octane horses I know nothing about!!

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      1. oh good fingers, legs, eyes all crossed here….:) For some reason people love those type of horses fat. Do it gradually and he will slim up nicely! 🙂 Holy cow the 11th is far away 🙂 HA HA (WAIT i guess this means you might not be coming to MD? LOL)

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  11. YAY!!!! He is adorable! I love how brave he made you feel. THAT is exactly what you need, so that is exciting!! 🙂 I am so hoping the PPE goes well. And how sad that A is back on the market under a new name. Hope others do a thorough PPE on him like you did. 😦

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      1. Exactly! And I don’t remember fancy being on your list 😉 I’m into fun and safe now. That’s all I want. Horses are too expensive not to be fun and I’m not in a place where I can take extra risk (obviously there’s always risk around horses, I just don’t need extra) for injuries. I’ve had too many head injuries.

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  16. Feel like appy’s can be very hit or miss with people haha. I was lucky enough to ride an appy mare briefly in high school that I really adored and lends me to always giving them a chance 🙂 He is so cute and I love that you felt confident on him! Sending more good thoughts about the PPE for him!

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  17. I mean, I’ve got my part appy and I just REALLY love that side eye their sclera gives them. He’s super cute and I really hope the pre purchase goes well!

    My appy air fern does really well on just a ration balancer so she doesn’t feel left out of the grain game. And then I add in biotin for extra help to keep her feet nice. The only trouble I ever had was when I took her from Florida to wet wet Seattle but Biotin has leveled it all out. It sounds like he’s already pretty good though! And he doesn’t have that totally ratty appy mane or tail either!

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    1. I know very little about the breed so it is nice to hear any info. Our current two get fat in air and feel slighted by the ration balancer they get but life’s not fair like that!

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  18. What a cutie! Fingers crossed for this one. Such a shame about A being for sale under a new name. I just went and found the ad- what a ripoff. I’d only ever heard good things about them, but won’t recommend them anymore.

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    1. Right? I mean at least be honest about what the horse is and he isn’t worth that price. My concern is that they could have nerved him or something and they don’t have to tell people that. Scary.

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