heart-soul-horse

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Ok psycho, can you please let your withers catch up to your ass before you grow anymore?

Yearling fall is the worst 🥲

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OMG

So, my trainer had a client’s saddle stolen out of her trailer a while back… right after a nosy employee quit and left the state fairly quickly. Yeah, we all know where the saddle went, it’s not hard to connect the dots.

Y’ALL, THIS BITCH JUST POSTED IT FOR SALE ON FACEBOOK.

Unfortunately the client’s horse has passed and she’s gotten rid of all her horse stuff, including the paperwork for that saddle. But it’s legit the same saddle. How do I know? I bought the same exact saddle after trying that client’s saddle, and it looks exactly like mine. Exactly.

Trainer messaged her about the saddle and she’s trying to play dumb and it’s just not working. I wish we could have nailed her to the wall on stealing it, makes me so mad!

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I swear to all the gods, I’m about to start slapping people.

Me: Hi, has your stud been tested for IMM? I have a mare that’s a carrier that I’m looking to breed, but I won’t breed carrier to carrier so I can try to breed away from it.

Them: I’m not going to test for that it costs to much money, and it’s all a scam anyway.

Me: Ok, thanks for your time.

Them: Hey wait, if you think it’s so bad then why are you even breeding that mare anyway? Don’t “you people” hate that stuff?

Me: Well, she won 70k and her foals are starting to show and win as well. I understand the condition it causes and know how to treat symptoms/manage it if it were to become a problem; I’m not looking to spread it willy-nilly if I can help it but I’m also not just going to ax her from an already tightening gene pool for one small thing. But anyway, like I said, thanks for your time.

Them: Oh, but if she’s a money earner and you’re showing her foals I want to breed my stud to her!

Me: Do one $45 test and I’ll think about it…(not)

It never ends 🤦

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Today was a really special day for me. The daughter of the first mare I trained myself(with help) got her first ride today. I wasn’t the one riding unfortunately, was unsaddling/hosing off others, but I did get to watch and video. I’m so happy with how she’s doing and how cute of a mover under saddle she’s going to be, and it’s such a blessing to be able to look back on her lineage.

Her sire was purchased to bring in new blood, but her dam is three generations deep in our herd blood on both sides, each from different sires. Her sire side traces back to the Tobiano stud and her dam side to the Overo stud that my family have been breeding with since the early 90s. Looking at her pedigree isn’t just looking at show records and LTEs, it’s looking back at horses I’ve known and ridden and taken care of, and horses I’ve seen born, grow, and have foals of their own.

I’m so lucky to be able to do what I do, I just hope the future will brighten up just a tiny bit for the colored horses and those of us who see real value in trying to breed and raise good ones.

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It just keeps getting worse. APHA has decided to charge even more and force everyone into a ‘Paynt Point’ program to reward point earners. Unfortunately, the open division has to pay in but doesn’t get money back, and with the new no color requirements people are going to be buying double reg quarters to have the best chance of getting that money back. Fuck all of us paint breeders who are actually trying to breed good, COLORED horses I guess.

Also, my vet is no longer doing ANY after hours work. They are 8-5, mon-fri, no exceptions. Closest vet that apparently will see large animals after hours is now 1.5hrs away, and if they can’t then it’s 2.5hrs to the next one.

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The price of actual colored paints is already dropping. The price of overo crop outs and double reg solids is staying the same. We’re all fucked and there’s absolutely nothing we can do about it, except watch it all crash and burn into dust. I’m so excited for my future in a dying industry.

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This foaling year has been the absolute roughest, and while I’ve been thru some rough ones, this one just takes the cake. Last baby is on the ground… and 4hrs away in the ICU 😞 Hoping to hear she makes it thru the night 🤞🤞

Edit 4/21- Filly is still with us, and is starting to improve! ❤️

Edit 5/2- Filly had been doing really, really well but is now going downhill, unfortunately. Bastard antibiotic resistant bug has gone from her navel to her lungs and now starting to go into her joints. The vets are going to try one last push, but if she doesn’t improve then there’s nothing further that will fix her. I actually got to see her on her last good day(29th), was really hoping I’d get to bring her home sometime soon. Fucking sucks. Hoping for a miracle

Edit 5/3- It spread too far, too fast; literally overnight went from uncomfortable to nearly unmanageable pain due to the uncontrollable joint infections spreading like wildfire. She was sent to that great pasture in the sky around noon. Vets are going to necropsy and see if they can learn anything. Really fucking sucks

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London International Horse Show

João Gonçalves on Madragoa das Arcas; Gilberto Filipe on Zinque

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Working cows today. El Rey is earning his keep. Acts like a lazy old gelding until a cow takes off and he goes from a slow walk to a dead run after her lol

Also just found out my favorite heifer of the year is a freemartin 😩

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This is Gilberto Filipe, who dominated the World Association for Working Equitation Qualifier in Segovia, Spain, in March 2024. I think this is his Lusitano stallion Iranio.

Video from magda_konno on Instagram! Link in the comments.

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Mongolian horse archer; pulled from Instagram from a repost account that did not include the og source

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Had cooled semen shipped in for a mare today and when I went to message the stallion owner that it looked great, it autocorrected “semen” to “amen” 🤣🤣🤣

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I can’t decide which compliment is better-

“I love this horse I bought from you so much that I want another one”

or

“My colt starter had only had my baby for a week and likes them so much that they want to buy them/want to buy one just like them”

Just 🥰

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APHA fucked it up good. Idk what to do now

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Had a foal about 3 weeks ago that would not breathe and passed. Fucking sucked.

Just saw another mare foaling and came down and opened the barn doors to the worst gasping sound I’ve heard. Stupid child turned their head all the way back around in the water bag and had it plastered over their face 🤦 Thankfully mare was great and let me pull it off, but holy fuck can I please catch a break please

Edit: It’s a filly! And she’s red 🥲 No breaks caught. I do really like her tho, definitely going to breed the cross again.

2 weeks later- Another mare tears all the way up thru her rectum! Great! Fuck this foaling year!

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Nothing worse then finally foaling out the baby you’ve been so excited for all year… and then he won’t breathe.

Heartbreak is always going to be a part of life, and especially a part of raising animals, but it still sucks no matter what.

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This filly is an hour and a half old and she’s already kicked both me and her mom… she’s gonna be fun