Horse stuff

[justacat]

A few of you have asked about my boys...which really gives me kind of a nice feeling. I mean, they consume so very much of my mind and thoughts and time and life, of me - between them on the one hand, and Bodie (the other Bodie *g*) and Doyle on the other, sometimes it feels like there's no room for anything else (poor long-suffering Mr. JaC

Comments

[ts5000]

They are gorgeous pictures. Thanks for sharing, and yep, I love reading about the boys. Bodie is gorgeous and you look very well seated.

All the best for the September shows.

[justacat]

Thank you, that's just so nice of you! I never think I look well seated when I see myself...

But I will agree that Bodie is gorgeous; he's a beautiful boy. We joke that he's not necessarily over-gifted in the brains department, but that's okay - he looks good, and he's a sweetheart.

[reginagiraffe]

I've always wondered... How does one fit a saddle to a horse? I mean, is it like measuring someone for a suit, where there are standard places you measure (length of back, width of back at a certain point, etc.) and that tells you what "size" to get? Do saddles come in sizes? Is there "off-the-rack" vs. "custom"?

[justacat]

Wow where to start?! Well, saddle fitting is an art and a science (and there are people who study it and become experts and are even certified in it; the easy answer to your question is, one fits a saddle to a horse by hiring one of these people! *g*). There are definitely places on the horse's back that you measure to help determine a saddle's fit, and saddles do come in different sizes - both different seat sizes, which are for the rider, and different tree sizes (the tree is sort of the internal structure of the saddle), which are for the horse - though every manufacturer has a different measuring system; Bodie takes an extra-wide tree in a Trilogy, but only a wide in a County.

But it's not only a matter of what "size" the horse is - eg, how wide he is at the points of the saddle tree - it's also what shape he is. There are horses with high bony withers; wide round horses; flat-backed horses, stocky horses and lean horses...and different saddles are suited to different shapes. Most saddle makers have a variety of different

[reginagiraffe]

Wow, what a fantastic and comprehensive response! You're better than Wikipedia! *g*

I figured it had to be more complicated than you saw in the movies where the cowboy has a saddle and slings it on any horse that comes his way. That might be comfortable for him but probably not for the horse. On the other hand, at pay-to-ride places, the saddle probably fits the horse pretty good but it's a crapshoot whether it will be comfortable for the customer, given the wide range of body sizes and shapes that will be using it.

[msmoat]

I'm so glad the treatment worked its magic on Griggs! That's a great relief for both of you. And Bodie may be looking suspiciously at the foliage, but he's gorgeous while he's doing it. *g* Thanks for sharing these--I love looking at photos of your boys!

[justacat]

I'm glad too - it was a great relief. He's doing so much better.

It would be nice if Bodie wouldn't view all such foliage as potentially deadly...but he's getting better. And yes, at least he looks good while he's wavering into the ring - though I don't think the judge thought so! *g*

Thanks for being indulgent of my photo-posting. I know we owe each other emails... I know you're busy, too, which sucks, but don't give up the writing completely (I sound like J) - focus on that big story! *g*

More soon! :-)

[heliophile_oxon]

Ay, sharing one's life with animals ... it's the best ever, but it's worries and responsibilities and expensive too. I bet horse health insurance is prohibitive ... me, I reckon they charge enough just for the dog! But it must be wonderful to see Griggs getting better and to know you did just the right thing.
Clearly you are a very expert rider, and although you mention improving at home and sometimes being frustrated when it comes to showing I imagine that probably only some sort of master-class with a top pro would have anything to offer you. Does that kind of thing happen?
Must be tough having to share your heart between two beautiful Bodies ... *g*

[justacat]

Wow, what an ego boost! *g* Your comment does remind me, though, that everything's relative...because in the horse world I live in, I am most definitely not an expert rider. I'm a struggling...well, certainly not a beginner, but I am so very far from a master... (though to answer your question, yes, there are top pros who give "clinics"; some of them prefer to teach only other professionals - they're more interested in the training of the horse, so they want the rider to really be an expert already and to be able to do exactly what they tell her to do - while others are also interested in teaching less-than-expert riders. Some are more intimidating than others! I've ridden in a few such clinics before...and my own trainer is a very expert rider herself). I compete at a fairly low level - Bodie could show at a slightly higher level, but I'm not yet able to ride him to that level. How I wish I were more of an expert, or at least...better! That's why I get so discouraged

[angel_ci5]

That's fantastic news about Griggs, what a huge relief that must be for you!
The photos are gorgeous, Bodie is indeed absolutely beautiful....you both look fantastic in the ring, thank you for posting them!

[justacat]

Thank you, for all those kind words, and for being indulgent of my photo posting... :-)

And yes, it's a huge relief about Griggs. He's getting older, and I worry a lot about him. Actually, I worry a lot about both of them, all the time, but his age adds an extra worry to the list. It's just so great to see him feeling better.