ever had a horse...

[Megibo]

...that you just fit with ?

Did you use to have it? Do you still own it? etc etc ?

I mean one you got a really strong bond with whether it came easily or you had to work for it.

I've got a mare that I've had 6 years, she's my first horse and I always plan to have her. May get another in future as she's 13.3 but nothing bigger than 14.2. anyway, long story short for the first year i shared her with my sister-just didn't like her and she didn't like me. sister shot up and moved on to horses and i had to have her or no pony. Six months later we hated eachother and just didn't understand eachother at all. Then got lessons with a brilliant instructor and after 5 lessons we began to speak the same language! many years and more lessons followed that and now i wouldn't ever be apart from her. Being together is as easy as breathing

Ever had/have a horse you just fit with ? I think I get on so well with mine because after our initial difficulties we found out we were very alike underneath! if that makes any sense, whatsoever.

 

[ebonyallen]

This is my third horse and she is my soul mate, she saved and gave me my life back when I really thought there was no point in going on. I fell off her and broke my leg,3years later after many ops leg had to be removed above the knee, two day before they took my leg off Ebony fractured her leg, we have got through some very tough times together and she gave me the strength to carry on when I really just wanted to give up and die, she looks out for me now and seems to know that something is wrong with me,we do everything together and she is my world and my reason to carry on. I love her to bits

 

[Megibo]

This is my third horse and she is my soul mate, she saved and gave me my life back when I really thought there was no point in going on. I fell off her and broke my leg,3years later after many ops leg had to be removed above the knee, two day before they took my leg off Ebony fractured her leg, we have got through some very tough times together and she gave me the strength to carry on when I really just wanted to give up and die, she looks out for me now and seems to know that something is wrong with me,we do everything together and she is my world and my reason to carry on. I love her to bits

she sounds fab!

 

[maree t]

My son has the strongest bond with his pony that I have ever seen. We went to look at a horse for me and spotted this lovely NF . He was only 3 and son was 10 ....what a recipie for disaster that could have been !! the pony was bought in and tied up, when Ben approached him he wrapped his head and neck right round him , then when we walked away he went loopy until he went back. Two days of sulking etc and his Dad said we were allowed to go and buy him. He loaded himself into the trailer and came home with us. The first day he laid down for a snooze and Ben went and sat with him and they stayed there for ages.My son has been chosen to ride in the Area show jumping team with him, he does dresage, picnic rides and is the most special pony. We will never sell him but will loan from here when the time comes as he is a cracker and loves going out and about, far too good to do nothing but Ben has kept growing and the day will have to be faced
I suspect that ben may not want another horse , it just wont be the same for him

 

[Megibo]

My son has the strongest bond with his pony that I have ever seen. We went to look at a horse for me and spotted this lovely NF . He was only 3 and son was 10 ....what a recipie for disaster that could have been !! the pony was bought in and tied up, when Ben approached him he wrapped his head and neck right round him , then when we walked away he went loopy until he went back. Two days of sulking etc and his Dad said we were allowed to go and buy him. He loaded himself into the trailer and came home with us. The first day he laid down for a snooze and Ben went and sat with him and they stayed there for ages.My son has been chosen to ride in the Area show jumping team with him, he does dresage, picnic rides and is the most special pony. We will never sell him but will loan from here when the time comes as he is a cracker and loves going out and about, far too good to do nothing but Ben has kept growing and the day will have to be faced
I suspect that ben may not want another horse , it just wont be the same for him

he sounds like a lovely pony. agreed though, once you have a strong bond with one you can't imagine feeling that way for a different horse. I like other horses sure, and there's a really sweet mare I ride but I always always prefer her. even if she reverted to her old ways i'd still like her best

 

[ThePinkPony]

My youngster.

We clicked instantly, wether it was the fact that her feildmate barged her out the way and i pushed him back to give her a fuss the first time i met her, or the fact that she is a total darling.

Backed up by the fact that the first time i lunged her, she was perfect, wheras her owner couldnt really even get a decent circle with her.

 

[bumblelion]

Me and my tb have a very close bond. He is very hot headed and I basically rescued him from being locked in a stable at a riding school for 2 years! It took a while for him to gain my trust but we know each other inside out! When I first got him, I couldn't get near his legs, he had such a fear so even picking his feet out would take me hours! I can now do anything with him, except pull his mane!! He can be a loony to lead if there's too much going on and when he was on livery I was told after he nearly killed the YO that no one will ever do him again for me! Even though he was in a chiffney also! I then immediately moved to a house with land, for him mainly! With me, he's a completely different horse, he has his moments but you can see he tries so hard not to land on me or knock me in any way!!!

 

[brighteyes]

My son has the strongest bond with his pony that I have ever seen. We went to look at a horse for me and spotted this lovely NF . He was only 3 and son was 10 ....what a recipie for disaster that could have been !! the pony was bought in and tied up, when Ben approached him he wrapped his head and neck right round him , then when we walked away he went loopy until he went back. Two days of sulking etc and his Dad said we were allowed to go and buy him. He loaded himself into the trailer and came home with us. The first day he laid down for a snooze and Ben went and sat with him and they stayed there for ages.My son has been chosen to ride in the Area show jumping team with him, he does dresage, picnic rides and is the most special pony. We will never sell him but will loan from here when the time comes as he is a cracker and loves going out and about, far too good to do nothing but Ben has kept growing and the day will have to be faced
I suspect that ben may not want another horse , it just wont be the same for him

Boys are different to girls. Mine had a similar bond with his first pony. He now has another who will do for him and him only, and she is equally as special. We kept his first pony for her 'ever', too. Ones as special as that deserve to be given a secure future.

 

[Spotsrock]

Beau.

 

[Elf On A Shelf]

My big broken pony, Jeff. When I first started working in the racing yard I wasn't allowed much to do with him as he was a big bolshy 6yo who was keen as, jig jogged everywhere and cantered sideways home from the gallops everyday. In their wisdom, the head girl decided she didn't want to take him racing and so packed me off with him, only the 2nd time I had ever been racing, with the warning - oh he will probably give you some pretty hefty bruises by the time he is finished with you! Great! Just what a 16yo wants to hear!

So off we set to the parade ring and he couldn't have been nicer. He just toddled along next to me without a care in the world. Let him go to race and that's where things started to go wrong. He jumped off, jumped 10 fences and at the 11th he hit the deck. Got up and galloped back over to the let off point. I took one look at him and went OH ****!!! He was bleeding - A LOT! So we got his saddle off and used the number cloth to stem the bleeding which was coming from his chest. As the trainer held the cloth in place I dragged him to the vets box. The next 15mins seemed like a year. The vets poked and prodded and came to the conclusion that all they could do was stuff the hole up with cotton wool and stitch it over. What the could see that he had done was sever 1 of the arteries 4in away from his heart so he was literally pumping the blood straight out of his body. The floor was a mess. He must have lost at least half his body contents of blood. As I stood there holdinghis head the vets gave him 1/2hour. If he lived that long they would move him to the stable next door and gave him 2% chance of being able to do this.

Half an hour later and we lead him to the next box down where he promptly collasped. To this day I have no recollection of what we did next or what drugs he was given but one thing I do remember is his owner standing in the doorway in tears telling the vets just to try and save him, keep him alive even if he never races again. I hate to imagine what was going on in the vets heads when she said this as it was obvious he was a gonna. 10 mins later and he staggers to his feet. The vets gave him an hour in that box to survive - we have gone up to 3% survival rate now - and then they would phone Newmarket and arrange his transport there. Again they didn't even begin to think he would survive but they were given no choice, the owner refused to have him pts. His chances of surviving the 1.5hour trip to Newmarket? 5%. This is where I had to leave him and head home. I hated doing it but sometimes you really have no choice.

2 hours later and 3 more collapses he arrived at Newmarket where they promptly set him up on the operating table. 8 vets had hung around for this interesting piece of heart surgery. What they found when they opened him up shocked them all. He hadn't just severed 1 artery, he had done both and veins. His heart was literally hanging on by a thread. They patched him up and gave him a 10% survival rate.

3 months later he was back home. He spent another 3 months in a field and then was back in training. When he came back in the boss gave me the chance to ride him everyday and if I got on with him then I could keep riding him. From that day forward we never looked back. He raced another 25 times, won 5 of them and was placed in pretty much the rest. He did himself another serious injury in a race he won, he struck into himself, into his fetlock and had to have joint flush surgery and he was less than an mm away from the tendon sheath, if he had hit that then it was curtains for him. At the end of his 11yo year his owner gifted him to me as, for 4 years, we had been through hell and back, twice, and now we are there again, not quite as dramatic this time, it is just a hole in a tendon round a fetlock on a hind leg to contend with this time! He doesn't do things by half does the Hocamaffe!

But he is here, since retiring he has been a show horse and was never out of the first 4. So I shall patch him up as best I can and have him as a field ornament for the rest of his days. If he is never ridden again then I don't mind so long as I have my Hocamaffe to greet me everyday. I can do anything with him, go anywhere, do anything or just sit in his stable whilst he goes to sleep on my legs. He truly is a once in a lifetime horse.

 

[Megibo]

My big broken pony, Jeff. When I first started working in the racing yard I wasn't allowed much to do with him as he was a big bolshy 6yo who was keen as, jig jogged everywhere and cantered sideways home from the gallops everyday. In their wisdom, the head girl decided she didn't want to take him racing and so packed me off with him, only the 2nd time I had ever been racing, with the warning - oh he will probably give you some pretty hefty bruises by the time he is finished with you! Great! Just what a 16yo wants to hear!

So off we set to the parade ring and he couldn't have been nicer. He just toddled along next to me without a care in the world. Let him go to race and that's where things started to go wrong. He jumped off, jumped 10 fences and at the 11th he hit the deck. Got up and galloped back over to the let off point. I took one look at him and went OH ****!!! He was bleeding - A LOT! So we got his saddle off and used the number cloth to stem the bleeding which was coming from his chest. As the trainer held the cloth in place I dragged him to the vets box. The next 15mins seemed like a year. The vets poked and prodded and came to the conclusion that all they could do was stuff the hole up with cotton wool and stitch it over. What the could see that he had done was sever 1 of the arteries 4in away from his heart so he was literally pumping the blood straight out of his body. The floor was a mess. He must have lost at least half his body contents of blood. As I stood there holdinghis head the vets gave him 1/2hour. If he lived that long they would move him to the stable next door and gave him 2% chance of being able to do this.

Half an hour later and we lead him to the next box down where he promptly collasped. To this day I have no recollection of what we did next or what drugs he was given but one thing I do remember is his owner standing in the doorway in tears telling the vets just to try and save him, keep him alive even if he never races again. I hate to imagine what was going on in the vets heads when she said this as it was obvious he was a gonna. 10 mins later and he staggers to his feet. The vets gave him an hour in that box to survive - we have gone up to 3% survival rate now - and then they would phone Newmarket and arrange his transport there. Again they didn't even begin to think he would survive but they were given no choice, the owner refused to have him pts. His chances of surviving the 1.5hour trip to Newmarket? 5%. This is where I had to leave him and head home. I hated doing it but sometimes you really have no choice.

2 hours later and 3 more collapses he arrived at Newmarket where they promptly set him up on the operating table. 8 vets had hung around for this interesting piece of heart surgery. What they found when they opened him up shocked them all. He hadn't just severed 1 artery, he had done both and veins. His heart was literally hanging on by a thread. They patched him up and gave him a 10% survival rate.

3 months later he was back home. He spent another 3 months in a field and then was back in training. When he came back in the boss gave me the chance to ride him everyday and if I got on with him then I could keep riding him. From that day forward we never looked back. He raced another 25 times, won 5 of them and was placed in pretty much the rest. He did himself another serious injury in a race he won, he struck into himself, into his fetlock and had to have joint flush surgery and he was less than an mm away from the tendon sheath, if he had hit that then it was curtains for him. At the end of his 11yo year his owner gifted him to me as, for 4 years, we had been through hell and back, twice, and now we are there again, not quite as dramatic this time, it is just a hole in a tendon round a fetlock on a hind leg to contend with this time! He doesn't do things by half does the Hocamaffe!

But he is here, since retiring he has been a show horse and was never out of the first 4. So I shall patch him up as best I can and have him as a field ornament for the rest of his days. If he is never ridden again then I don't mind so long as I have my Hocamaffe to greet me everyday. I can do anything with him, go anywhere, do anything or just sit in his stable whilst he goes to sleep on my legs. He truly is a once in a lifetime horse.

sorry but holy cow! what a horse and what a will to live! what an amazing animal to know and love!!

 

[Elf On A Shelf]

sorry but holy cow! what a horse and what a will to live! what an amazing animal to know and love!!

His owners were just glad he was insured! His Newmarket vet's fee came to £14.5k. His joint flush was £5k - but he had just won an £8k race so he kinda covered that bit lol! If I were to insure him now I couldn't. It would cost an absolute fortune! And his Heart and Near Fore would be exempt. Also his lungs and airways as he was a bleeder and has had a wind op. And now his Off Hind would be exempt for his current injury so really, why insure 2 legs, a bum and a tail for £400 a month?

 

[Megibo]

His owners were just glad he was insured! His Newmarket vet's fee came to £14.5k. His joint flush was £5k - but he had just won an £8k race so he kinda covered that bit lol! If I were to insure him now I couldn't. It would cost an absolute fortune! And his Heart and Near Fore would be exempt. Also his lungs and airways as he was a bleeder and has had a wind op. And now his Off Hind would be exempt for his current injury so really, why insure 2 legs, a bum and a tail for £400 a month?

haha good point

 

[BrightOrbit]

My little mare who i've had for 8 years now, definitely chose me
When i walked into the yard to view her she let out a huge neigh, her owner looked at me puzzled and said 'she never does that?' (and she's never done it since) I like to think it was her little way of saying ' I approve '
However i was young when i got her and she is very Fiery and sensitive, we had some real problems for the first 2 or 3 years (lots of tears from me and tantrums from her) and at one point she was nearly sold but i always knew deep down that we could be really great together.
After a few lessons and lots of hard work later i realised that we were a perfect match we are both at times fiery and senstive which is why we clashed i suppose but now i have an understanding of her (and a good sense of humour)
We work bloody well together and I have been told by numerous instructors that she really tunes in when being ridden by me and no one rides her quite like i do
She's definitely taught me a few lessons along the way and I've gained a lot of experience from her!
Very pleased i never sold her as she is without a doubt the love of my life

 

[albeg]

I clicked with my boy too. He's my first horse, got him as a green 5yo, which could have been a disaster. Tried him out once, then brought my RI to see him, and as they wouldn't let us take him on trial, bought him without one. We've had some moments where communication has been sketchy, but he doesn't really enjoy himself with anyone else riding him, although he will tolerate them. I love him to bits, he's a very special pony, he seems to understand when I need someone to moan to, knows when I'm in a bad mood, and tends to do stuff that makes me laugh. He nearly always comes down to the gate if he's behind the house when I get home from college, and when he's in livery, gets excited when I arrive.
I was asked the first time I did PC camp why I bought a 5yo who hadn't done anything, and once the RI saw us working together, he realised why, he even told another instructor to watch us jumping, as we got on really well together and had a connection. (naturally I fell off right after that! )

 

[4faults]

My big mare, Kay. I had the most beautiful black 4yo gelding, a total gem with paces to die for and a lovely jump when the oppurtunity to buy a scrawny 17.2 bay mare with no muscle very cheap came up.
She's well bred but a bit of a basket case, extremely sensitive and spooky, her previous owner bought her to SJ and I'm assuming they didn't get on. When I viewed her she had been left out in a field for 6 months. I got on and all the way to the paddock she jumped around and spooked, once in there she was flinging her head around and rearing up but in the moments of quiet I saw a lovely horse who just needed some TLC and someone to understand her.
My OH and I decided she was worth a shot for the money being asked so we brought her home, my OH started schooling her and as time went on both of them became more and more wound up with each other so he asked a professional rider on our yard to do bits with her but they didnt get on either. Kay would become so upset with the person riding her she would go up full height.
As a last resort I started riding her and gave my youngster some time off and I fell in love. She is the sweetest mare and just needs some understanding, she tries her socks off for me and I feel completely safe on her. We clicked so well that when I found a new job and didn't have time for 2 I found myself selling my youngster instead.
Now 9 months on emerged from the scrawny neurotic mess that we brought home is a powerful dressage horse with tons of presence and ability, who is sweet and willing to try anything for me. She is my horse of a lifetime

 

[Tnavas]

Definately - My Clydesdale Serenity - it was love at first sight she was 6 months old. Ipaid for her on the spot. Within 5km of a nasty gravel road I'd named her Sarah - Hebrew for Princess and she is just that - she has to be treated like a lady or she goes aloof. She preens when out and about and peole always come up to her at shows and she always greets them graciously.

She will be with me till the end of our days.

This is my favourite picture of her. She was politely asking for a mint that she knew was inside my glove

 

[Megibo]

everyone's horses sound fab. it's especially worth it if you've had problems and managed to work through them and even if you didn't have any to start it's still worth it

brightorbit-i know what you mean about the horse choosing you. we turned up at a closing riding school/polo yard and i naturally went off for a walk around. i came to a door with the nameplate 'nutmeg' on and looked in and saw a gorgeous mare who looked at me and promptly marched up to the door and headbutted me multiple times and kicked the door when i walked away.

the first two we looked at were not suitable and then they brought her out, and to start with she was perfect!

 

[benson21]

A year ago I would of said Benson was my one and only! I had him on long term loan, and he taught me so much. he taught me how to ride, he trusted me and I trusted him. And in the end I lived because he died.
I never ever thought I could have such a bond like that again, But now I have Donovan. When we saw him at the sales and went into his pen, he snuggled into me straight away, and his eyes were asking 'What is going on???' We bought him, he loaded the next day without a question, and he came home. That was just over 6 months ago.
Now, when he hears my car in the morning at the weekends he wickers over the door. If I dare stop and talk to anyone before him, he has a tantrum. I feel we were meant to be.

 

[vroutledge]

I got one my horses for my 10th birthday he was 5months old and a right little bugger, he was my best friend and i loved spending time playing with him as a foal even if it did give him weird habbits later on in life, when he turned 3 he was turned out for the summer at 15hh but unfortunately i'd had a huge growth spurt and was worried he was going to be too small as i was growing out of my current 14.3hh horse/pony. After a couple of months of being out we thought he seemed bigger so decided to measure him this time he measured in at 16hh it was amazing considering his dam was 15.1hh and his sire was 15.2hh. In the end he finished up at 16.2hh and i grew to 5ft10 so he miraculously grew with me, he copied everything i did if i laughed he laughed, if i was mucking out he would sweep up or try helping (hindering half the time) if i was in a grumpy mood he would be grumpy....he was my horse of a life time. He adores jumping and he used to like venturing, i often caught him popping over the wall in to the next doors fields thinking the grass was greener.....as a yearling he jumped a 5 bar gate and he used to always do a houdini act often trying to raid the feed bins. not only his growth matched mine but his character did too....im sure he was a human in his past life.

 

[ABC]

My tb I have 4 horses, three of which are capable of good competition results yet its my scrawny little tb I love the most.
He is grumpy, unrideable and everything you don't want in a horse, but the moment that horse trusts you, he will lay down his life in order to save yours and I will do the same for him.
When I first got him he was untouchable. I couldn't stroke his legs, belly, head...now, after hours of hard work I can
He is a nightmare for anyone else to handle, rearing up, barging etc, yet with me he is as gentle as a lamb.
He is so untrusting he's a nightmare, but I wouldn't change him for the world.
I love my scruffy, scrawny, crazy tb more than anything in the world because we have the most amaxing bond I could wish for, and it can only get better.
We've had our issues, we still have a few, but I'm determined to get through them with him because he well and truly is my soul mate.
He makes me laugh, and when I'm sad he'll nuzzle me, he knows when I'm not in the mood and when he should be as good as gold.
We've been through so much, and I've only had him 6months
But yeah, the horse who is the opposite of what I wanted in every way is my soul mate

God, I'm feeling all emotional now

Horses, eh? They really are the most majestic animals in the world...

 

[Mince Pie]

My cob. I went to a local dealer to look at another horse and saw this scrawny, hairy little pony tied in the yard. Went over to say hello and he wrapped his head and neck around me and gave me a cuddle. I asked to sit on him and 5 mins later was writing out a cheque!
As soon as I walk onto the yard he will call out to me, and if he is in I will talk to him and he will nicker back. He follows me like a dog, and licks me to death in the field. He will always try to steal my food, but very politely! If I sit with him in his stable he will put his head on my shoulder and fall asleep! I have always said that we are soulmates

 

[soxsmummy]

yes, i have her just now .
she came to yard as a 2 year old , never paid any attention to her , 4 yr old she broke owners arm , they got girls to ride her she turned into a fiend !
my friend who owned her took ill , i started doing her , with no intention of riding her because she had gotten stroppy , wouldnt catch and had a dirty stop by this point .

started dealing with her and have never had such a sweet horse! we jus click , she has started jumping again and won her 1st showjumping comp at weekend

 

[Megibo]

fab replies. do you think horses can be your soul mates then ?

I like to think my mare is mine. I theorise that in every life you live you have companions and you find eachother one way or another. Sometimes my mare is so attuned to me I really believe it!
Also never been able to sell her or even loan her long term-she always comes back. Had 6 wonderful years and I look forward to many more, I just wish horses could live as long as people do.