Taming Sherlock (2024)

12/06/2024

Guess I couldn't wait till the weekend, it was hot enough I knew a bath would feel good. Most of the videos are honestly quite boring. It went pretty much how I expected, uneventful. Mostly just didn't like the water going over his butt, but otherwise he did well for first time with water/a bath!
Such a shiny, happy, healthy, well behaved, handsome boy 😊🥰

10/06/2024

Sherlock just checking in to say "hi" and show you how shiny his summer coat is!
Haven't done a whole lot training wise lately, but next weekend is supposed to be hot. We're gonna try bath time, so stay tuned for that 😎

26/05/2024

His face is not amused but I think he sure does appreciate his boots! The flies are just horrible right now and thankfully he accepted these fairly fast ❤️😊
Don't ask where the other ear to his mask is, I don't know either 🤷‍♀️🤦‍♀️

16/05/2024

Feed bags? No problem ✅️
And enjoying his afternoons on pasture ✅️

06/05/2024

It was super windy today and Sherlock wanted to play hard to catch. After that he was his typical good boy self 🥰 lunged, saddled, checked out the flowers, walked through a narrow gate and on a sidewalk, thought about following me into the tack room (which I told him he couldn't 😂)

02/05/2024

I saw another trainer I follow post this and thought it would be fun to see your guy's answers! Here's mine! I'll put a blank copy in the comments, just copy and fill in your answers.

ANYONE WITH MORE THAN ONE HORSE POST YOUR ANSWERS!!! 🐴 Let's have some fun! 🙌

-How many horses do you have? 7
-Oldest Horse? Dakota, he's 26
-Youngest Horse? Harlee and Scout are coming yearlings
-Meanest Horse? Belle, but more like a boss mare type mean
-Shyest Horse? None are too shy, unless you're new to them
-Friendliest horse? Keeno or Belle
-Dirtiest horse? Nacho and Scout like mud the best
-Largest horse? Dakota is just over 15hh, Keeno isn't far behind
-Smallest horse? Scout, I think he's gonna stay a lil guy
-Any purebreds? Belle APHA Keeno APHA Scout AQHA Harlee APHA
-Who do you use for your non-horsey friend? Dakota for sure
-Who is your escape artist? Thankfully they're all good
-Who has the most energy? Harlee when they go to pasture, otherwise Keeno
-Who is your favorite horse to ride? Belle
-Who is your favorite trickster? Keeno and Sherlock like learning and doing tricks
-Who goes out the most with you? Belle for sure
-Who is your absolute favorite? That's not a fair question, they're each a favorite in their own way

01/05/2024

Unsure, but appreciated
That's about how I think he felt about the fly mask. I like this style cause it's easier for them to see out of. But I think he definitely appreciated not having the bugs in his eyes and ears!

27/04/2024

Sherlock getting his first taste of pasture.. blessed with lots of rain the past couple weeks, got the grass really growing.
Between eating and running I think he had a pretty fun afternoon! He's a really pretty mover!

25/04/2024

"Mom, brush me instead"

14/04/2024

Summer weather showed up which means flies did too! Time to start introducing things such as fly spray, fly mask/boots, and water hose for baths. Today was fly spray. I always start with a bottle full of water so if they want to dance around I can keep spraying without wasting expensive fly spray. Of course Sherlock didn't care and he was sprayed down and on his merry way within minutes.

07/04/2024

Sherlock's first off the property adventure! An indoor arena! I'll let the photos/videos speak for themselves ❤️
This boy has the best mind

05/04/2024

Sherlock is making his weekend plans... any guesses on what he might do??
Hint: it's supposed to be rainy and windy and we want to get out of the elements!

31/03/2024

So I'm curious!
Where do all of Sherlock's followers live?
And how did you come across his page?

Not sure if I ever mentioned, but Sherlock lives in South Dakota USA

29/03/2024

Brain surgery day!! (Aka gelding 😉)
He absolutely hates me right now, as soon as they stood him up he didn't waste anytime stumbling out the barn door. He was so done with us. But now he can start thinking with his real brain

24/03/2024

Little bit of moisture won't stop us. He was practically begging to do something every time I've gone out there the past couple days. He had quite a bit of energy but once we got that worked out he was back to his typical eager to please self.
He learned his second trick- "fist bump" 100% useless but one of the best things to show people 😂

11/03/2024

The saddle makes him look so small! But I promise, he's not that small and the saddle is super light weight! He wore it for a few minutes and made a few circles without a fuss! Little jumpy while placing it on his back but overall good day for him.

04/03/2024

5.5 mile pony ride on Saturday, some fun with "pick me up" trick from random objects, and ground driving! He had a great weekend! All things considered he's coming along super fast, and he's not that far behind training wise compared to my other one his age. Will be doing a saddle hopefully soon.

29/02/2024

Long post! What Sherlock's been learning the past couple weeks.. I don't have videos of everything, sometimes I forget to set my phone up.
Fine tuning his flex, sidepass, yield hindquarters, lower head
Learning to lunge, walk/trot both directions
Tossing an old saddle pad on him and walking around, having it hit the ground a few times
Introduction to a cinch with the surcingle, as well as long lines going over his butt and legs in preparation for ground driving soon
And my favorite trick to teach every horse- "pick me up!"
Oh and nap time, lots and lots of naps soaking up the sun

20/02/2024

Sherlock's first trim with my farrier! I trimmed his fronts awhile back, but this was his first full trim along with first time meeting someone new. Besides a few jumps, he was an absolute gentleman! So grateful to have a super patient and confident farrier willing to go slow with him. This first trim set him up for hopefully great trimming forever. Don't mind his ears, he wasn't mean, he was just listening.

17/02/2024

Well guys, I'm not sure I can call his page taming Sherlock anymore... I think he's fairly well tamed!
The FIRST time he's seen a trailer since we brought him home! (Ran on by a chute from the auction) He WILLINGLY within a minute walked right in. When they decide "sure, I'll follow you into that loud dark moving box" that's how you know you've earned their trust ❤️
When I first decided I wanted to try loading him today I wasn't sure what to expect, but the more I thought about it I was like, I bet he really just walks right in. And sure enough, he did.

11/02/2024

First 2 mile ride in the books for Sherlock. And tossed an old saddle pad on him for fun. He's starting to have no care in the world about new things! Helps having an old soul next to him to help teach him the ropes

10/02/2024

Sherlock's Saturday afternoon involved:
-first time outside of his pen (everything I've done with him till today has been in the baby pen, just till we established more trust with eachother)
-walked around the big horses pasture
-met the dogs, goats, and chickens
-followed mom into the quanset, cement is weird to walk on
-walked around the yard and down the driveway
-stood tied for the first time (with a buddy)
-got brushed because he says it's shedding season!
-picked up and cleaned all 4 feet
Today went so well, honestly way better than I expected. I didn't think he would be so calm about everything outside the pen. Today showed me his willingness to please and adventure attitude. This boosted both of our confidence and I really cannot wait to adventure more with him!!

05/02/2024

"I’ve seen many horses messed up by impatient humans and being pushed too fast, and I’ve yet to see one messed up by being patient with them."
-Author Unknown

I've definitely taken my time with Sherlock, partly because of the weather but mostly because I want every experience with him to be a good one. I haven't moved as fast as most people would've with him, and I'm ok with that. Today, I picked up all 4 feet for the first time. (First video, it's long but it's raw unedited of how I work with him) It went great, no threats of kicking, so now we build on that for longer periods of time in prep for the farrier.
The videos following that are of his new "play table" 😂 for as wild/spooky as he can be, he's so curious. So I thought I'd give him more to explore, or self desensitize lol he really likes things that make noise, so the crinkly toy and the jug with rocks were fun to move around.

26/01/2024

So we tried something different tonight.. I went less on the forced lessons and more on letting him explore his curiosity. Since he takes down the blanket in the barn, unplugs the tank heater, moves the molasses lick tub all over the pasture, and just recently learned he could turn on the barn lights, I thought he might enjoy the soccer ball. He had a great time checking it out, until he nosed it just a little too much and scared himself 😂 I knew it would go alot better if I just put it there and pretended to go do something else, which is exactly what happened. Excited to see if he gets more confident and plays with it more throughout the week.

21/01/2024

It was finally double digits, above zero! Still windy so I didn't do a whole lot, but I had to do something with the babies. He did play hard to catch for a minute, but nothing terrible. We just refreshed some things he already knows like flexing and picking up front feet. I did add teaching him to lower his head, cause if he gets draft size it's definitely easier to be having him learn to lower his head for me now compared to when he's full grown! I really need to work on his hind feet more, I'm hoping that will be next weekends accomplishment.

18/01/2024

Hey guys- sorry you haven't seen much of Sherlock lately... we've been dealing with some brutal cold weather, snow, and wind so the only thing I've been doing with the horses is making sure they've got full bellies to stay nice and warm! Hopefully this weekend I can spend some time with him..
Is there anything you guys want to see? Do you prefer pictures or videos? Let me know in the comments what kinds of posts you enjoy!

Taming Sherlock