I am not in a rush to ride her as she is only just over two. We had a great lounge workout on Saturday. On Sunday, it was later in the day (closer to feeding time), it was windy, and she was just a little more spooky. I am sure it would have been fine to saddle her up but I just didn't feel comfortable with it. Besides, Ranch Boy was occupied with another project and I want someone to be in the corral with me when I get ride her.
I did bridle her on Saturday, though! Doesn't she look pretty? I am not sure I love the horsehair futurity browband though, it kind of covers her white star! I need to get her a different snaffle bit. This is just a normal snaffle, I was thinking of starting her with a rubber or thicker metal one to be softer on the mouth. Paint Girl could wrap a bit for me with her special wrapping stuff too....maybe I'll haul the bit to our next family event and have her do that for me. Then again, does the wrapping or rubber just make a bit more likely to be "played with" in their mouths?
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Several of the ranch horses have awful colds. I did not know this last week when my mom and I rode, as I put Luna in a pen next to the ranch horse corral while we rode and then noticed horses coughing. So unfortunately my horses have been exposed, but so far I haven't noticed them showing any symptoms. I won't be taking them to the ranch until next week or until this runs it's course, so no big workouts for my ponies! Enjoy your summer vaca, My Boy & Luna!!
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Have a great weekend, everyone!!
Ranch Girl
6 comments:
She sure is a cutie. I don't know about the wrapping or rubber . I like just a nice copper mouth egg butt snaffle
Wrapping the bit does not cause them to want to play with it more. We wrap a lot of bits at the Arab farm, depending on the horse. Chance's bit is wrapped right now but I will be unwrapping it soon. Some have more sensitive mouths, we actually have a couple of Arabs that we have to keep the bit wrapped permanently because of the sensitivity of their mouths. I can bring my wrap next weekend if you want.
I am sure your ponies will enjoy their summer vacation!! And hopefully the ranch ponies will feel better soon!
I think it depends on what she wants too. My Bailey horse needs ocupying her mind (with 2 or 3 other at least) cause she finds trouble if bored, so a roller snaffle worked well for her, but mostly I just used a plain sweet iron bit unless they didnt like it.
If wrapping the bit helps, do it. Rubber mouthpieces are ok, but don't encourage salivation. My favorite snaffle is a Myler bit, copper mouth, D-ring and it cannot collapse fully like a regular snaffle. This provides more tongue relief than a regular snaffle, and cannot pinch the tongue. I love it, and recommend it highly. Your Luna is a beautiful girl, love her roaning. As far as riding anytime, I'm a big fan of trusting your gut and letting the horse tell you when they're ready...you'll just know when to mount up. Thanks for visiting my blog and commenting! If everything goes well, tonight might be the night when I mount Eagle for the first time ever...I'm a little nervous, but am going to try to stay out of my head, breathe and relax and just trust that it's going to be perfect!! I don't generally enjoy riding when it's windy either...big bugaboos everywhere!! :)
I started with a nice wide rubber singl jointed snaffle. It worked well for our first few rides, however I would recommend a sweet iron french link snaffle. I feel like you have a good, non-rushed start and would probably benefit from that bit off the bat. Every horse is different, of course, but I think it's a good started next to a rubber. I'm ordering one (again, the first once got lost in the mail) for my mustang. I've used it on other horses and loved it. Rubber bits don't encourage salivation at all and other bits can be mild and help make a horse go softer. The sweet iron encourages salivation, the french link makes your cues extra clear in an even more mild way than the nutcracker action of a single jointed. I just did a ton of research for my guy, and wrote a post on it which is why my comment is so long! Keep us posted on what you use!
Horses with colds can be a real downer when at the ranch. You got to owe it to them, though. They are the ones who give excitement at ranches. Next time, better check for symptoms like loss of appetite, energy, nasal dripping, mucus, and overall lethargy. Once proven the horse has a cold, take it to a secluded area, sanitize it, and sterilize its brushes and food bins.
Rodger Ciliberto
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