team barney
Well-Known Member
Bla Bla Bla, bl**dy hate people's misconceptions regarding stallions. In all honestly i was one of them at some point in the past (didn't know any better - not quite PP standards though thank god) but having spend the last 10 years working with a friends 2 Lusitano stallions which she brought back with her as 2 year olds from the Portuguese stud where she worked handing the youngstock I can safely say I am converted!
Her two have completely different personalities but they are a sight easier to handle than most of the P2P / event horses I've worked with! They happily travel together (side by side in a 2 horse box), turn out alone, boxed the winter next to mares, didn't try to maim/rape/pillage all the little kids on their wizzy little ponies and people riding mares in season at the last competition we went too, in fact we were complemented on our wonderfully behaved horses (having a snooze outside the warmup ring while all the other competitors were crazily throwing their horses over huge jumps). Over there it's unusual to geld, they're turned out with the mares and taught a few boundaries along the way.
Makes me really quite angry! As soon as she found other accommodation they were removed from her previous 'yard' (the parental kind) when her farmer father insisted on wafting a steel pipe about whenever he went near them. Wouldn't mind but the one he insisted needed battering can normally only excite himself to the point of wandering over to ask for cuddles when we're in his field! (Well, until he sees a jump in the school
They sound lovely (I have a bit of a soft spot for lusitanos). I am glad your friend found a new yard for them.
Lot's of farmers seem quite "over cautious" when handling horses. I used to get hay from one how was under the impression that every horse (mare, gelding, stallion, colt or filly) was out to kill him. Perhaps he read some Parelli literature, I am sure they must have mentioned death by horse at least 50 times in the level one DVD alone!!!!
