Introducing Toby

Ambers Echo said:
Say hi to Toby....

I stopped actively looking and then he popped up on my FB feed just in the next town along from me.

He's a 5 yo unregistered irish horse. 15.1
Very, very sweet. We have had him since Saturday and so far all good.... He has been relaxed in the field and lying down in the stable. I have hacked him out both on his own and with Dolly and he coped fine with bin lorries (I did not expect them to be there!), bikes, cars etc. Izzy is also riding when her arm allows which is fun for her too.

Introduced him to the show jumps and the dressage boards and he was curious but not fearful.

He is very, very green so I am basically starting from scratch with him assuming he knows very little. So been teaching him to stand still, stand at a mounting block, lead properly, yield to pressure etc. He is very willing, learns quickly and he is very calm, steady, without being lazy. I like him a lot though he is very different to what I am used to: It's been a long time since I have ridden a horse who is not super-forward all the time.

He is also extremely friendly and just nice to be around! I think we will have a lot of fun with him for a year or two.....

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Ambers Echo said:
Say hi to Toby....

I stopped actively looking and then he popped up on my FB feed just in the next town along from me.

He's a 5 yo unregistered irish horse. 15.1
Very, very sweet. We have had him since Saturday and so far all good.... He has been relaxed in the field and lying down in the stable. I have hacked him out both on his own and with Dolly and he coped fine with bin lorries (I did not expect them to be there!), bikes, cars etc. Izzy is also riding when her arm allows which is fun for her too.

Introduced him to the show jumps and the dressage boards and he was curious but not fearful.

He is very, very green so I am basically starting from scratch with him assuming he knows very little. So been teaching him to stand still, stand at a mounting block, lead properly, yield to pressure etc. He is very willing, learns quickly and he is very calm, steady, without being lazy. I like him a lot though he is very different to what I am used to: It's been a long time since I have ridden a horse who is not super-forward all the time.

He is also extremely friendly and just nice to be around! I think we will have a lot of fun with him for a year or two.....

98342015_1564781353681996_1939708793965248512_n.jpg


100634114_3046016972145030_2342684452699766784_o.jpg


100475326_3046016805478380_8110004316300902400_o.jpg


100104691_3046016902145037_1720425046779887616_o.jpg
Click to expand...
He looks and sounds smashing.
 
So I rounded my lovely weekend off with a glorious evening hack. All these years I have assumed I don't like hacking when in fact I just don't like hacking AMBER! Bless her, she is still my number one horse and she was not particularly difficult to hack. She was good in traffic and non spooky. Bt she wasn't restful either. Always on a mission. Life with Amber was lived at 100mph. Which made her the worl'd most awesome XC horse but she was less fun to take on an evening amble. Toby on the other hand is Mr Pipe and Slippers and I feel SOOO comfortable hacking him. He just never looks at anything. Stands still. Needs encouragement to go not whoa. And turns out hacking is really very pleasant.....

It was a weekend of 2 halves - torrential rain in my dressage lesson:


And then lovely and sunny.

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Cheshire is posh! We are definitely Derbyshire!! I am basically on the border between Derbyshire, Staffordshire and Cheshire. Toby came from Cheshire though. That dealer does have nice horses in quite often for anyone looking. But his prices have gone up a lot in line wth the crazy market currently.
 
Ambers Echo said:
Cheshire is posh! We are definitely Derbyshire!! I am basically on the border between Derbyshire, Staffordshire and Cheshire. Toby came from Cheshire though. That dealer does have nice horses in quite often for anyone looking. But his prices have gone up a lot in line wth the crazy market currently.
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If Cheshire is posh I’d better move somewhere else! ???
 
Had a little jump on Toby. And I really do mean LITTLE. Just teeny X poles. It was not very pretty to start with. He does not really know what to do with his legs! But he was willing and honest. At the moment all I really want to do is get him used to the idea of poles and jumps. Our focus is flatwork and hacking. But it's a start and I now have my Time Zero Jumping video too as a 'this is where we began' clip. Hopefully in a few months time he will look very different over fences.....
 
So whenever I have a wobble about Tobes, he goes and behaves like a total superstar. I've missed riding Amber loads this week and Toby is just so goofy and all over me all the time. So I was thinking ok get him going SJ and XC and sell him! But he was FANTASTIC at Somerford today. He actually suits me far more than Amber does - when she's unsure she launches herself at things. Toby takes his time to work it out then pops up, across or over nicely. He's a calm, kind, safe horse and riding him is just fun and relaxing. He is very green but just such a lovely temperament. Even if he's not quite got his legs connected to his brain yet! My lovely friends organised a photographer to come and take pictures so prepare for Toby spam when I get them.
 
There is a lot to be said for an easygoing horse whose behaviour is predictable in most situations and doesn’t cause you stress and anxiety when you take it out. In my mid forties that’s exactly what I want from a horse. I suppose the more difficult horses give you a greater sense of achievement when something goes well, but I don’t need the drama in my life these days!
 
I am so pleased you are understanding how much pleasure can be gained from having "a nice horse"! I have a friend who has owned and ridden tricky horses for the last 40 years and when offered a quieter, "nicer" horse she asked....... what would I do with it"? "Enjoy it", was the answer!!
 
Trouper said:
Well whatever his breeding is, I think you should officially re-classify him as 'Unicorn'. He is just what most of us dream of having in a horse!!
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Agreed! He's just the sort of thing I'd have loved a few years ago when I was still riding regularly (I would still love him now, only now I wouldn't be able to ride one side of him!)
 
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