Poppy was such a brave girl on her first trail ride on the more open section of the trails. I have hand walked her in the same location previously and she has gotten more confident each time so we decided it was time to try under saddle. She did have quite a major spook on a new section of the trail where it got narrow and dense. We have been working on desensitization in the trail environment so we will try another trail ride soon.
Please enjoy Poppy’s Basic Skills video demonstrating her ability to perform simple, daily tasks such as being haltered, groomed, tacked up, and mounted.
Please excuse Poppy’s dancing after mounting as there was lots of activity at the barn that evening and Poppy still can get a bit anxious with other people milling about.
You may notice we elected to pass on 2 skills - bridling and trailering. Poppy is very sensitive around her mouth following some significant dental work. While I have been working on getting her used to the bit, she is not yet entirely comfortable with it and I’ve been riding her in a simple halter with great success since our first ride. Poppy definitely has a lot of past trauma around trailering. I have been working a couple sessions with a trainer and doing lots of practice loading sessions myself. While she has improved and her anxiety has decreased, she does not load on the first try yet. I will share a separate video of some trailer loading practice.
Poppy loves a nice cold shower and stands quietly to be sprayed off. Sometimes she even plays in the water and drinks out of the hose!
Today was our fourth riding session with Poppy. Even after a bit of an out-of-character anxious outburst during our lunging session, Poppy settled very quickly and was very focused for our ride. Today, we did lots of turning exercises to work on loosening up some of Poppy’s restrictions. She is already bending further and getting easier to steer with lighter cues.
I have been working with Poppy to stand quietly while tied. She has come a long way in just a couple weeks. Today, we captured that moment of calmness we’ve been working toward. While she tends to dance around and paw initially, she settles in once the grooming starts.
Poppy is a 10 year old ex-racehorse who has spent the last 5+ years living in a pasture. She is quite a cute, eye-catching mare with great movement. We she arrived she needed a dental and some hoof care.
Poppy is a very personable and curious girl. It is clear that she has had fairly extensive training in the past and just needs some gentle reminders, though she does exhibit some ex-racehorse tendencies.
Most of Poppy’s basic skills are quite good - she is easy to catch, picks up her feet, accepts fly spray, and enjoys being groomed and bathed. However, she can be pushy and impatient and does not like to stand still for long (especially while tied). I am working on building her tolerance for standing without dancing in place.
Poppy lunges well and has caught on quickly to ground driving. She takes a saddle just fine, though I have not started riding her yet since we have been working through her dental issues. We are hoping to start riding next week!
From what I’ve seen so far, Poppy would be well-suited to an owner looking for an athletic horse. She is quite adaptable to new environments so she would make a great show horse for a young teenager looking for a jumping/show partner. Poppy has proven she has a sharp mind and gets bored easily so her ideal fit would be someone who can challenge her by teaching her new skills and giving her plenty of exercise (even a good trail ride).
Stay tuned for updates after the first ride!
