A cold welcome for Ludo

ycbm

ycbm

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In more than one serve of the word. First the snow:

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And also my cob, who has been pretty violent every time I have introduced a new horse. I wait until all squealing and fuss stop when they are talking over stable doors, but he always chases and kicks newcomers.

I had them in the barn together because of the snow, but I couldn't leave them unattended. And Ludo has to move to stop the swelling from yesterday's castration, so I decided that it would be best to put them out in the field where he couldn't be cornered.

Tonight I will have to split them up again. Tomorrow, my QHx is going off to be assessed by a local professional yard to see if he will get on better in a busier environment. If he does, then they will probably sell him for me. If so, I'll be sad to see him go, but I have a big feeling that I'm not the right home for him now, and he needs more to do to keep his mind occupied.

Ludo is still dripping a bit of blood, and his back legs are covered in dried old stuff, but I was told to expect that. He's not very good about having his legs handled yet, so we had a training session this morning. I got him to accept me running my hand down his forelegs to his foot and leaving it there briefly. And the same on the back to the cannon bones. That was enough for one day.

He has some bad mud fever scabs on one pastern, but he's on antibiotics which will sort it anyway, so I'm not going to fight him to get that treated.

I have watched him move, walk trot and canter, and I honestly think that he has better paces than a dressage warmblood by a GP stallion which I used to own. He really lifts and floats, and he has a huge length of stride. He's a very exciting prospect for a couple of years time. I plan to back him and ride him gently next year when he is three, if he is strong enough.


Sorry about the quality of the photo. Yes he really is that deep through the girth, and his rib cage is very round and wide too. His neck is a bit long, and if I'm really, really picky his front legs might not be quite straight. But I think he's pretty well made and should mature into a very handsome white boy with a lot of horse chestnut brown spots.
 
No I don't think his neck is long, he has a nice neck attachment and he will grow into it. He'll look so different by time he's 6... look forward to updates :)
 
I must have missed telling you how lovely he is, my friend has a Trotter x Arab( bogoff) 3 year old, her movement is beautiful , Iv'e been watching her grow which has been interesting. Up until a year ago her head was more trotter, then suddenly it started to dish slightly and she's now very pretty as well as having a massive floating gate which is a joy to watch. She's strawberry roan at the moment but will grey out with brown trouting .
I shall enjoy following Ludo's progress YCBM. x
 
Shady said:
I must have missed telling you how lovely he is, my friend has a Trotter x Arab( bogoff) 3 year old, her movement is beautiful , Iv'e been watching her grow which has been interesting. Up until a year ago her head was more trotter, then suddenly it started to dish slightly and she's now very pretty as well as having a massive floating gate which is a joy to watch. She's strawberry roan at the moment but will grey out with brown trouting .
I shall enjoy following Ludo's progress YCBM. x
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Well I'm a fan of the trotter cross appaloosa now :)

He already has a dished face which I'm hoping will get bigger. I knew he moved well but I only saw him trot across a bumpy field. Now I've seen him trot on the flat and canter across a cropped piece of field, and I think I have totally fallen on my feet. I've never owned a horse who moved better. I'm including three big moving warmbloods with GP sires in that, too.

And he is a lovely gentle fellow, loves cuddles, doesn't fuss about anything even though he has been moved from a field full of mares to a small stable yard, and seriously assaulted by a vet.

If you didn't catch it on the other thread, and if he stays Arab looking, his posh name will be Sheik of the Dice :)

I feel very lucky tonight.
 
Looking good this morning. No new blood, very little swelling. He is absolutely lovely, so friendly :)

I put a rug on him because it's so foul today, driving sleet. I am sure it's the first rug he's ever had on him. But I just put it on and did up all the straps, even leg straps! When they said he was quiet, they meant it.

Tonight will be his first night in the barn with his field mate, so fingers crossed that the more confined space won't be an issue. I'll be leaving far more food than they can eat, to be sure that doesn't cause any arguments.

Next step will be to bring my girls back home. I really miss them!
 
All quiet tonight. Came in when called, took the rug off with no bother. I'm a bit surprised how his wither has popped up after only two days on a hillside, but very happy about it. He let me put my hands down his legs, even on the mud fever, which is disappearing. I've just checked on them in the barn. Ludo is eating, Henry is sleeping.
 
I think he's settled, what do you reckon :) ?


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What a smashing temperament he has. Ripped out of a field of mares on Wednesday, getting injured in the process, gelded on Friday, kept alone until Saturday when he was attacked by Henry. Best pals on Sunday and totally relaxed on Monday morning.

It doesn't bode well for a white future, though, that he has chosen to lie in the only patch of dirty wet bedding in the entire barn!
 
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LadySam said:
Aw. He sounds such a sweetie! I agree with you. I think you might have fallen on your feet with this one.
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A dressage friend who breeds warmbloods saw his walk yesterday and was so astonished she almost swore, and she never does. His temperament is every bit what they told me it was. I'm bringing my girls back home soon, I think he will be fine with them around the place (not mixed, obviously, as he is still fertile).

He's a bit thin, btw, that mound is all rib cage!
 
ycbm said:
A dressage friend who breeds warmbloods saw his walk yesterday and was so astonished she almost swore, and she never does. His temperament is every bit what they told me it was. I'm bringing my girls back home soon, I think he will be fine with them around the place (not mixed, obviously, as he is still fertile).

He's a bit thin, btw, that mound is all rib cage!
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Yeah, I can see that. But he's young and you've only had him five minutes. You know what you're doing with getting a bit of condition on him. You'll have him looking absolutely stunning by the end of spring. Even if he is still a bit gangly.

You know, saying all these things about his paces means there has to be video soon... it's not fair to tease us like this.
 
LadySam said:
Yeah, I can see that. But he's young and you've only had him five minutes. You know what you're doing with getting a bit of condition on him. You'll have him looking absolutely stunning by the end of spring. Even if he is still a bit gangly.

You know, saying all these things about his paces means there has to be video soon... it's not fair to tease us like this.
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I know, I know! But you really, really can't expect me to stand outside a minute longer than necessary on a day like this, it's utterly foul. Dry weather forecast for later in the week, so I'll get some movies then.

He's been a very good boy this morning. I have picked up all his feet. I could have picked them out as well, but I decided not to as he had been so good. He's snatchy with the fronts and bit kicky with the back ones, and has a tendency to try to squash you into the wall, but he takes correction very politely. I've managed to slather sudocrem on the mud fever scabs to soften them so they drop off. The antibiotics have sorted it out nicely and with decent feeding and minerals, I hope he won't be prone to it. He's hardly swollen at all from the operation.
 
Too flipping cold to stand and take photos! I'm getting my girls back home tomorrow so that might cause some ructions, we'll see.

More feet lessons today. Better. Turned Ludo out totally on his own while I rode Henry out on a hack. Couldn't care less.

I still can't believe my eyes when I see him move :)
 
I've taken some video but it won't load to YouTube from a Google Pixel C, I've no idea why. It wasn't good anyway because my friend was freezing, so the plan is to get more tomorrow in a format that we know will work, with a skilled video operator :)

Meanwhile, I have brought my little girls home. It was so sad when I went to fetch them. They were ecstatic to see me, and ran to the van to go home. They've both lost a lot of weight in just a week, even though there was a ton of grass where they were, which I guess must be due to stress. They had plenty available to lose, so that's actually a bonus, though sadly not the way it was achieved.

Ludo met them over a door on Wednesday. Ludo and Tiddlywinks :D. He went in the yard with them, on a lunge line on Thursday morning. He was so sweet with them, and them with him, with no sign whatever of any sexual attraction, that they went out as a foursome in a field with a big refuge area that they could go in if he worried them. But they clearly think he's the bees' knees! So they all went in the barn together last night and I checked on them (by camera, in bed) through the night and all was calm.

This morning he was being a bit obstructive to get his feet picked out, but we got there with one or two sharp words. Then I realised that the girls had left the yard and he was worried about it. Yet this gentle two year old, six days after being gelded, eight days in a new home, let me correct him and pick out his feet. He is a real little gentleman.

I couldn't be happier with him.
 
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