Most horse-crazy girls of any age will tell you that of course a horse can love you back. And I don’t care what the skeptics and hard-nosed trainers of the world say. They didn’t see what my horse did the other day.
I’ve been a little busy lately with house projects and committee meetings, and not riding a lot since I’m still sans saddle. I’ve been visiting Ace, brushing him, playing on the ground in bits, and riding bareback some. But no serious work. And I spent two days painting and …

It’s been an interesting week in horse ownership for me, with two pretty large revelations about Ace:

my saddle doesn’t fit any more
he’s allergic to … well … something

I swear, with everything our horses put us through, it’s gotta be like raising kids sometimes.
Saddle Selling and Buying
Ace is a tough on saddle fit, because he’s got such a high, long wither. I was so fortunate that the saddle I had fit him, as a new one wasn’t really in the cards. It was narrow enough to fit his back well and …

I would be totally remiss if I didn’t wish my handsome, sweet pony a very Happy Birthday. He officially turns 10 today! Doesn’t that sound old? It always seems like such a big leap to me when horses go from single digits to double digits.
I don’t do anything big for horsey birthdays, but I will of course stop out to clean out his foot (abscess is clear and healing nicely, by the way) and spoil him with a few extra cookies than normal.
I’ll also give him some birthday hugs and …

I am a very happy camper right now because Ace blew an abscess over the weekend. I am not a happy camper because Ace has been a royal pain in the you-know-what about letting me soak said hoof.
If that sounds weird that I’m happy my horse blew an abscess, here’s what happened:
Ace has had some heat in his back left foot off and on for the last month. It was never accompanied by any unsoundness, indication of discomfort, swelling, etc. He’s also been tripping over that foot frequently, which tells …

A while ago we had a big discussion on this blog on what to use for Ace’s show name. After lots of great suggestions from you readers, discussion on which we liked best and why, and a poll to narrow it down, we came up with calling Ace “Ascension.” It’s a great word, and described where we were in our training at that time.
The only problem was that it just never felt quite right. I’d look at Ace and think of Ascension, and it just wasn’t him, as much as …

You know that old saying, “time heals all wounds”? Even though I’m pretty sure it’s referring to broken hearts and the like, it sure does apply to our horses! From weight issues to hoof issues to injuries, time and patience seem to be the best thing we can give our horses.
That’s certainly been the case with Ace’s feet … that have dealt with flare issues, an abscess, bad thrush, and a toe crack all within the last year and a half. With patience and regular trimming, his feet are now …

I very much hesitate to put this in writing lest I jinx myself, but Ace has officially been sound for the longest stretch of our relationship. After the abscess of last December, the injury of April, and the infection of June, July, and August, Ace has been sound since the beginning of September! That’s four whole months in which we’ve been able to train without interruption!
Between that and access to a larger arena in which to work, we’re progressing amazingly.
A year ago, I was lucky if Ace went forward when …