Tell me what your 19 year olds are doing...

The horse I mainly ride is 21- he came to us as a 'spare' 4 years ago, wa s ridden for a yr, then off for a year as I had a young horse to bring on and then sold. For the last 2 years however, old boy Topper, has become a complete star! He is 100% in traffic, so we take young horses out with him as escort ,first leading them off him , then later OH riding the youngster.
We have built up a great bond. He is a gypsy traditional, and rather fat , and slight arthritic hocks. He is ridden 2 or 3 times aweek, usually slow road work , but lately have been on stubble fields - teaching O H s 4 yr old that cantering [ Topper cant gallop!] is fun!
 
Pretty much exactly the same as she was doing when I got her 5 years ago- only better :) hacking, showing, jumping, dressage, v occasional XC training when we go to riding camp.
 
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We have an older one who has just made the move to elementary and her dressage to music debut. Her work is improving all the time. 23 year old was in work doing 3\4 times a week, hacking, schooling, fun rides and little bits of local competition but he has just tweaked a check ligament so off atm. 25 year old is mainly just hacking now.
 
My traddie is 19; in the past he's been a trekking horse and had never seen the inside of an arena before I had him when he was 11, then he went off to equestrian college and was "schooled" for two years! He enjoyed the busy-ness of a bustling yard and thrived on it, and being used a lot.

Then he came home to me: I then made a huge mistake of putting him out on loan to a numpty girl who only had him for five weeks and then decided she "couldn't afford it" anymore (and left me with the embarrassment of the fact she'd paid sweet FA towards his livery since Day One :( ). So back home he came again!

Since then he's done Horse Agility and some TREC, and did surprisingly well at both. He is one of those multi-personality horses and as quirky as they come, so something where he's had to use his brain is exactly right for him. We would do more competing at this sort of stuff, only I don't have any transport.

He's been with me ever since, living home with me at my own yard. I've got a really super friend who rides out on him and thinks the world of him but won't let him get away with anything, and he's got a lovely little Welsh D mare as field-companion to keep him in order!! He is now officially a "happy hacker" and loves it. Most of the rides around here are about an hour's duration, tho' there are some longer rides where we're out for two hours to the local common where he enjoys a canter and an occasional buck, the monkey!

The essentials have been getting him at the right weight, getting his Sweet Itch management sorted (rugs, supplements, grazing etc), and getting his quirkiness issues sorted by putting him in with a self-opinionated mare who doesn't hesitate to tell him if he oversteps the mark; also getting the appropriate professional help at an early rather than later stage - at one stage he was a real nightmare to hack solo, plus ONLY having people on his back who will improve him and not wind him up! Also being fussy until I found the right saddle for him, which wasn't easy. Teeth and regular back checks have also been vital - he is a very honest horse and will very quickly tell you if things are not right, or if he dislikes a particular person anywhere near him and particularly on his back!

During his "previous life" I don't think he was treated all that well......... so its nice now that he's nice and settled and has got people around him who love him to bits.

I'll keep him to the end now: he won't be going anywhere, bless him.
 
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