Since racehorses make me cry, and I have been crying anyway, we did the only logical thing and got me a racehorse.

An ex-racehorse, really.

Here we are unloading Dreamer on the date of his delivery (my husband is the smiling guy with the cowboy hat on). The Jockey Club name is Dreamport, and he is a dream come true. I will be using him as a riding horse.

There are a number of Thoroughbred rescue organizations. Ours came through Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation. Many racehorses are done with their career by age 4, and since a large horse can live at least 20 more years after that, their life has just begun. The adoptions are extremely affordable.

Unfortunately, some owners opt to send their racehorses for slaughter. Thoroughbred rescues hope to give the animals a second chance.

Our horse is a six year old grandson of Seattle Slew (1977 Triple Crown Winner) and is a direct descendant of Man O’ War (my favorite racehorse) 5x in his pedigree.

He is a sweet, quiet gentleman, especially for one so young.

He is definitely a rescue animal because he is rescuing me.

I was happy to see her more responsive to my cues to continue on her way, even if she was apprehensive about what may lay ahead. She refused to go around a huge boulder on the outset (a sure place for a cougar to be hiding!) but then she decided to trust me. I am asking a lot of her: most young green horses would have older, experienced horses to go out with them.

Our first intentional obstacle was a birch tree I knew was down over the path. According to the training book I’m using (John Lyons On Horses), if I want a versatile trail animal, I am supposed to provide trail problems for her to solve.

To our right was an old fieldstone wall buried in dirt and leaves. I thought it was a mound of ground, but she quickly figured out that it was rocks underneath. She was reluctant to face the path again with such a dolt on board, but I steered her to the left this time, indicating that I was aware of the problem and we would not be scaling a stone wall.

To the left was part of our woods. She entered calmly and we picked our way through the trees. I noticed she naturally did not get too close to the tree trunks with me (or try to “scrape me off,” as some would say.) I am relieved and proud of her for this. She also avoided low hanging branches which would not have hit her, but were a problem for me. Can I hope that she is being considerate of her rider? I believe she is, which I found to be true later.

Eventually we saw a spot to get back on the trail and continued on our way.

She does not take my cues to increase her speed yet, but will increase speed at her own will! I could not allow her to jog downhill as she is wont to do. My training book says to let her jog or lope (in Western tack, the term is lope- in English tack it’s a canter, a bit faster: she is tacked Western) at will just so she can learn to carry a rider. This is the most- um, exciting part to my riding her right now, but I am adjusting. I’ve known her since the day of her birth (and we bought her at 10 days old) or else I doubt I could trust an animal like this.   

Yesterday she loped with a rider on her back for the very first time. She tried to buck as she ran; I think I was spoiling her good time by keeping her speed reasonable. She had a little “pop” with each stride. I kept her head up and talked to her.

Something had told me to use our sheepskin saddle pad on her. Now I know why: it’s so that what happened to me yesterday will never happen to one of my kids! The pad is too thick for her and makes the saddle slip.

As Ebony loped downfield and we navigated a turn, I was suddenly a rider at 2 o’clock when I should have been at 12 o’clock.  She didn’t like the feel of a saddle working its way down her side and started to shrug me off even more, from the shoulder, mid-stride. By now I was dealing with the situation from her shoulder (I’ve never had a saddle slip on me before.) I was trying to stay astride but realized it would be more prudent to bail, so I did bail off!

Ebony was a good girl, then. I think I still had the rains as I fell (you’re supposed to hold on to them) but as I land I let go, so as not to get trampled. I was on my feet again in no time, but the important thing is, Ebony stopped as soon as she lost her rider, and stood there looking at me! I was happy to see that a riderless horse would not be galloping into our yard (the only condition in which I told my husband to come looking for me in.)

I unsaddled her and re-did all the tack out in the field. She stood quietly and did not try to graze. She did not move when I re-mounted her. All of these things are really good foundational trail riding traits. She rubbed her head on my shoulder as I saddled her. No hard feelings! She’s as capricious as any woman.

No more loping for today with that fat saddle pad on there! So we moseyed home.

All in all I learned a lot about her riding issues, which are improved and which are not: she learned the lay of the land more, and that we would be obliged to stay on her at a jog and a lope, if you please.

I have phone calls in to local trainers who may be able to help me with her cues. I would definitely like to switch to going faster paces when I ask.

Maybe I will ride her on most Sundays, except those Sundays when I am not feeling up to any death-defying feats. I did get that jolt to the system I needed, in the form of ground meets rear. Yee-haw!

Here are photos of Scott round penning Ebony this evening. The basic introduction to round penning a horse is down below.

This is him starting Ebony off:

Ebony ran herself around for a while. As you can see, she is really leaning into the turn and digging her heels into the sod. 

This is Scott having Ebony do an inside turn. I was not fast enough to get her bucks and rears when she misbehaves! (I'm sorry!)

This is Ebony asking to come in now. A horse will snake its head along the ground, even at a run. The first time I saw her do it "just like the book said" I was amazed.

Ebony's request to come in has been denied. She is still too feisty. She is now down to a trot (on her own) and watching Scott's every move. Notice her head tilted toward Scott, with her ears pricked in his direction. His shoulders are squared to her, not allowing her to come in.

Scott has turned his shoulders diagonal to Ebony, and she now appraoches him as she has permission to "join the herd."

Ebony has "joined up" with Scott. He is leading her around the pen with nothing attached to her. She has a great need to be accepted at this point. From here we go to the training issue of the session.

Scott is working on attention span. Ebony holds still while Scott runs his hands over her. She is expected to hold still and not graze or become distracted. She did well today.

At this point in the training you can pick your issue and work with it. So far I have taught Ebony to face me when I call her name, and to face her own fears (by "spooking in place"). Most of the things I teach her are safety recommendations from John Lyons' book On Horses. I have seen her use the things I taught her outside of the round pen.

Now here is Scott telling her she did a good job.

Rule #1 is we always end on a successful plateau.

Right now Ebony feels secure and affirmed.

We saddled her and let our 2nd oldest ride her around the round pen for a while (after I tried her out). It was evening.

They are both feeling big!

Videos of round penning are probably available. Trainers who round pen do crowd demonstrations in a variety of areas. Some use an arena or a fairground. A local horse club could probably get a trainer to come to your area. Often they will use local horses for their demonstration. Also a horse farm nearby might know of a local trainer who round pens, when a demonstration is scheduled, or might have any further information.

Thank you for sharing this journey with us!

Our pony has been trained exclusively on the round pen method, which uses the horse’s language to train. Monty Roberts, the original horse whisperer, discovered the language of the horse. We are using methods from Christian John Lyons, specifically his book On Horses with Sinclair Browning. It was made to go out to the round pen with you.

We know our pony Ebony’s history because we’ve known her since her birth and purchased her at 11 days old. A local round penning trainer worked with her some with a friend’s son, who was learning to train, so he learned with Ebony. That family also taught us the round penning techniques first hand. Prior to that we gave Ebony regular handling since her birth and we could already mount her.

Round Penning

The round pen is 50’ across (ours is a little smaller than most, but so is she). We send the horse away and she will soon ask to come in and be reconciled to us. That is the same tactic the lead mare does in a herd. The stallion leads, but the lead mare disciplines. We send her away by squaring our shoulders to her and literally walking toward her. She takes flight around the outside of the pen. We are speaking her language and she understands.

The principle rests on the fact that the person in the middle of the ring will push the horse to run until the horse’s lungs tell its brain to acquiesce to the leader in the middle of the ring (the human). The horse will “ask” to come in, in which case she is agreeing to be submissive, but she is also deciding to trust us. The horse asks to come in by snaking her head along the ground as she runs. As soon as we say “yes” with our body (turning our shoulders diagonal to her shoulders- we call it “opening up”) she stops and approaches us.

After she approaches, we turn and lead her around the ring by simply walking. She follows with her head to our shoulder. There are absolutely no ropes or even a halter on the horse when we round pen. This is called “join up.” It is based on understanding their herd behavior. It is a beauty to behold.

After join up, we can move on to the lesson of the day. If she loses concentration, we send her out again. A horse under this training can be saddled without being tied, taught to face fear (instead of running), and any number of things. Older horses who’ve never been round penned still speak horse, so it can be used to re-train an older horse also.

I want to mention that we can switch the horse’s direction in the round pen by stepping back (inside turn) or pushing in (outside turn). It is amazing to me because Ebony completely has her eye on us the whole time and responds to our every que. She is listening to our body because she wants to be reconciled to us. To a herd animal, being cut off is life threatening.

Our safety is in speaking her language and if need be- being able to roll under the fence posts away from her! I had to do this once but I found out later I was speaking to her incorrectly. She was not really charging me down. Horses hate stepping on humans, anyway. They like solid stuff under their feet, and we’re squishy. They are likely to go around us. Right, Mom?

(Family moment: my Mom was standing in the wrong place a year ago at Chincoteague, VA when the northern herd of wild ponies was stampeding in. They were headed straight toward her, but they fanned around her rather than run her down. If only she’d had the video camera on!) So you see, she proved the point for us. 

One time Ebony did confront me but I deserved it. I wasn’t listening to her when she was asking nicely to come in. I had friends watching and was letting them see her run (she’s so beautiful). She didn’t have my concentration and she deserved it at that time. She squared her shoulders to me and faced me. She was right. I didn’t back off (I couldn’t- I have her psyched into thinking I’m the boss) but I did send her away once more and then let her come right back in. I wear my riding helmet when I’m round penning her.

My husband does not wear a helmet, but he towers over her and I believe she respects him more. She can be bratty and has been known to kick her heels up when she is sent away. She also has a favorite direction, so when turned in the opposite direction she rears. We are miles away in the middle of the ring when she does this, so we watch her stop, rear, spin on her hind legs, and gallop off in the other direction. She’s a bad girl when she does that, but it’s breathtaking nonetheless. She gets extra laps for attitude, though!

Ebony is a 7 year old black Morgan cross 12.2 hand pony. I hope to take pictures at her next round penning and post them here.

I don’t know why, but I get emotional about racehorses. As a kid I watched the feature race every Saturday evening. While boys knew baseball stats, I knew stats on horses and jockeys. My favorite all-time racehorse hero is Man ‘O War. I can’t even say his name without getting choked up. 

I never really got into show-jumping. Horses run to the glory of God, but they will not naturally jump a 7 foot barrier, unless being chased by a tiger or another horse higher up on the chain of command.

A decade after watching those races, I went to the Meadowlands Racetrack (NJ) one day and asked for a job. [It should be noted that I did have a good amount of prior horse experience. To be specific: private lessons in English & Western riding, and owning (a) horse(s).] I started hot-walking racehorses (to cool them down). That trainer was a prim and proper, sweater buttoned up every morning methodical trainer who was also never going to allow a girl to exercise a racehorse.

In the barn next door was an unkempt unorthodox trainer who would let me ride. I took a horse out onto the track, and did alright, but it was evident that it took more strength than I had to exercise the horses that were up and racing. However, a lifetime dream had come true: I’d ridden a racehorse on a racetrack!

I also got to see the Belmont stables.

They sent me to the farm in south Jersey to ride the racehorses being trained for the track. Sitting astride one of them brings to my mind the word “locomotive” … a 1500 pound perfectly functioning muscle mass aerobic machine, hurling itself through space, a force of momentum.

Of course, God says it best:

(He has) given the horse strength (and) clothed his neck with thunder

see it in Job 39:19 KJV

Horse fever is like chocolate. You have to be born it. You cannot try to like chocolate, and you cannot try to like horses. You just love them. Many of you probably have sons or daughters with horse fever, or maybe you have it yourself. It is not a phase: it will not go away. Take me for an example. My kids already know that after I’m gone, some of my ashes have to be spread in a bluegrass racehorse pasture in Kentucky.

God blessed me and allowed my first child to be born on the first Saturday in May, Kentucky Derby Day, within 15 minutes of post-time. Maybe it was God’s way of telling me I was getting a new life. While the horses paraded to the starting gate, I was running my own race against the clock, giving myself up for dead and pushing my first child out, fast (natural childbirth), because he was in a little bit of stress. (No one was more shocked than I was to see us both alive in the room afterward- but that is another story.) My brother-in-law was at his house watching the Derby for me, and we still have the teddy bear named after that winning horse.

Since we got rid of the TV years ago, the only thing I miss watching are the Triple Crown races every year: The Kentucky Derby, the Preakness, and the Belmont. I guess it’s good I missed this Preakness. My poor husband would have had a useless wife for a couple of days. (For those who don’t know, Kentucky Derby winner Barbaro’s rear leg shattered very early in the Preakness.)

News accounts of Barbaro say he was uncharacteristic the day of the Preakness. He tried to buck his jockey off on the way to the gate. He tripped the doors open before the start.

I wonder if Barbaro knew something, knowing or unknowingly, about the race.

It wouldn’t occur to a good race horse to just not run when asked to. War horses in the past were trained to run into a deadly clamor of swords and shields when asked to. My guess is Barbaro wouldn’t have just stood there once the doors were opened.

Before the race this horse was constantly monitored and given supreme medical attention. There are people who love him who are crushed and grieving right now. My heart goes out to all the people who love Barbaro, and everyone involved. May God be with them all, especially Barbaro, as they help him.

I started Spring training with our pony. Working with her is the most relaxing thing I do for my mind (body, feels it!) -  you have to be ready in case 850 lbs. decides it wants to jump on your head. I can't think about anything but the pony when I am with her. 

Her baby picture is here; her grown-up photo, here.

I had very good safety training around horses as a child, and the rest comes from spending a good deal of time with them. For example, I never noticed how I am always aware of where a horse's feet are until I started showing that skill to my children.

Once you have a horse with children, you hear every horror story there is about kids getting killed by their horse. It's like when we got the tractor, although I do appreciate the love in all those warnings, and the fact remains the stories are true. We have cared for our pony since the day of her birth, but that does not make us any safer around her. So far, in every death story we've heard, we can pinpoint the safety rule that was broken. Still, accidents can happen.

You can never relax your guard in the presence of a horse. I don't mean you carry fear around: it's like the ocean- a healthy respect, and never turn your back. Most horses are not out to hurt people, but in any given situation they will still respond like a horse: run. This is not an appropriate response for an animal tied up or with a person mounted on its back. The horse picks up your feelings, so with horses you have to learn how to be calm no matter what. It helps you get ready for children!

When I am with the horse (she's a pony, 12.2 hands*) I cannot contemplate lessons, politics, what's for dinner, or anything under the sun. My mind can briefly capture a thought, but then it's back to the pony. I don't mean only while riding or round-penning (more on round penning another time). Yesterday after grooming her, I had her out grazing on a lead-line. I still had to be careful. 

Horses can be trained to be calm in the presence of a human, but it's not foolproof, and in a percieved crisis, the horse will still look to you for comfort- a good horse will. Our 7 year old pony is still not completely there yet. 7 is still an inexperienced age for a horse, and to confuse things more, we are somewhat of her herd to her (also coming up in another post).

She can't be worked until after the farrier comes this morning. We cut back her protein, and now her hoofs are chipped! I'm upping the protein again.

(I realize these posts belong on our homestead blog, but training Ebony our pony has a lot to do with me personally, and there might be some horse lovers here, so I thought I'd keep the thread here. There is a sidebar link to it on our Providence blog, entitled Training Our Pony.)

* a hand = 4 inches. It's a cowboy measurement, the average distance across a man's sideways hand. The measurement goes from the ground up to the wither (where the neck meets the back). Cowboys would just measure with their hands the size of a horse. The measurement is still used today. 12.2 hands means 12 x 4 inches plus 2 more inches, so 50" at the wither (a pony).

  Horse start at 14.2 hands ( I think). Average horses are 15.2  More large riding horses are 16-17 hands.