The Training Begins...

For baby horses, training is a crucial part of their upbringing. It is easier to train a horse when they're young, rather than older, so they can grow up learning and remembering as they age. When India was first bought, she couldn't be touched anywhere on her body except her face. She was terrified of any contact touching her body, especially her belly, and especially on her left side (we assume from possible trailering accidents when traveling cross country to Ontario).

"It's been a hard 15 minutes of training!

Just like human babies, distraction is a big part of India's life. Because she is so young, even the little things excite her and distract her from what she is being asked to do or learn. I immediately started gradually touching her more and more everyday, and after about a month, I could touch her anywhere without her feeling scared. Now, India can be touched anywhere, and won't buck or kick at all; she had become very tolerant to human interaction, which is key in training.
To get her used to the world, India had to go through some intense tests! The goal is to have your horse be 'bomb proof' which basically means they have little to no fear of anything. This included walking on the road, crossing traffic, walking through forests with deer, birds and loud noises, walking through water, spraying her with hoses, shooting cap guns, popping balloons, covering her with a tarp, walking on rocks, and much more. After lots of persistent work, India is now fearless to almost anything..... except geese, they're pretty scary.
In the long run, all of this little training helps India in the future, when she becomes old enough to be ridden (around 2 years old) she will be less inclined to spooking and being jittery with a person on her back. At only a year and 4 months old, India is showing remarkable promise into being the perfect little horse one day!

The Story Begins

The history of India begins July 2012. Born on a PMU (pregnant mares urine) farm, a little black filly with a white blaze on her nose was born. The filly was in a herd with over a hundred horses and their newborn foals just born in the sunny July heat. Little did they know their fate was dark. PMU horses are called 'broodmares', which means that their only job, is to keep having babies over and over again until they can physically have no more. This filly's broodmare was draft. Big and strong and nurturing towards her little baby, protecting and feeding her like all mothers do. One day, when all the foals were growing up and no longer relied on their mothers as much, the farmers realized that all their herd was now useless. They had taken all the urine from the broodmares that they needed, and had an abundance of little
babies, just playing in a field burning a hole in their pockets. The herd came all the way from Alberta on a livestock truck, taking half the horses to Saskatchewan, and the other half to Ontario. On the way over, truck drivers would stop at rescues and sell some of the horses and their babies to better homes. The ones that were left over, came to the St. Jacobs auction. The little filly was then separated from her mother, who was no longer useful and was old and weak and sick. She was sold to the meat man, leaving the little filly all alone in a big scary auction house. By this time, the filly was 8 months old and growing like a weed! A Mennonite boy saw her and all her potential and bought the little filly and brought her to a farmer he knew of so she could stay safe there until she found a permanent home. The farmer and his wife did not like animals. The little filly was kept in a small indoor pen in a dirty barn, her stall was dark and damp, she was surrounded in her own feces and had limited food and water. A nearby horse rescue heard of the awful conditions these horses were in, and immediately tried to find them new homes. One of the rescue people had seen me ride before and a little while later, the little filly was mine. Her name was now India, and she had a loving and carefree home where she could run outside and be the baby she never got to be. This is where our story begins.

Giddy Up on Idioms

Have you ever wondered where certain sayings come from? Have you ever been told to "hold your horses!" or "get off your high horse!"? Well it's about time we learn what these horse related idioms really mean!

Example: "Hey! I bought you a new car!" said Sid to her daughter one sunny afternoon, "Does it have air conditioning?" asked Sid's daughter. "Don't look a gift horse in the mouth young lady" replied Sid.
Meaning: this idiom basically means not to be ungrateful for things you are given. In the horse world, when buying a horse from someone, the condition of their teeth is a big reflection on how healthy they are. If your horse has very healthy, clean teeth, it is healthier than a horse with rotting gums. If you are given a horse, it's rude to look at it's teeth before thanking someone for it, which is ungrateful.

Example: "Are you ready yet?" Johnny asked his girlfriend. "Hold your horses! I'm coming!"
Meaning: This idiom comes from the racing part of the horse world. Before racing, race horses become very excited and ready to go so much so that they become overly excited and try to leave their gate early. Trainers were told to hold their horses and be patient, which is what the saying means.

Example: "Look! The marathon runners are neck and neck! Richard may win, but just by a nose!"

The Horses are neck and neck

Meaning: These idioms, just like hold your horses, comes from the race world. The first one, 'neck and neck' means that things are very close to each other. When horses are running and are neck and neck, it means they are side by side, going the same speed, making viewers anxious on what one will win. The second one 'just by a nose', also comes from the same sort of situation as 'neck and neck', and it means that someone won just barely before the other, just like the first horse who's nose to cross the finish line wins.

Horse related idioms and sayings are everywhere, and most of the time we use them without even realizing the relation to equestrianism. You heard this straight from the horse's mouth!

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Huh?!

In the equestrian world, there are many diverse terms. All equipment has it's own 'technical' name, so before you get lost in my blog and don't know what I'm talking about, here are a few definitions that will make you an equestrian pro in no time!

The Equipment:
1. Bit- The bit is the metal bar that goes in the horse's mouth, and is connected to the bridal
2. Bridal- A bridal is the head piece the bit is connected to, and goes over the horse's ears
3. Reins- The reins are the 'steering wheel' of the horse, they are what the rider uses to steer
4. Saddle pad- The saddle pad is essentially a thick blanket that sits under the saddle, to avoid the saddle pinching the horse
5. Saddle- The saddle is the seat the rider sits in when riding
6. Stirrups- Where the rider places their feet when riding; they are connected to both sides of the saddle
7. Girth or Cinch- The belt that goes around the horses 'armpits' to hold the saddle into place
8. Halter- The 'collar' for horses
9. Lead line or Lead rope- The 'leash' for horses

Some Anatomy:
1. Muzzle- The horse's face
2. Crest- The neck of the horse
3. The barrel- the horse's middle body
4. Mane- The horse's (usually long) hair on it's crest
5. Withers- The part of the horse that sits at the end of the mane, it's like a human shoulder blade
6. Dock- The part just above the horse's tail
7. Fetlock- a part of the leg just above the hooves
8. Hooves- The horse's feet

Rough Draft

When most people think of horses, the first thing they usually think of is the classic cowboy-horse they've seen in movies, but did you know that just like cats and dogs, horses have different breeds too? It's true! Horses are categorized into different breeds depending on their appearance and work ethic. When you watch old western movies, the horses are generally tall, proud, and very loyal to their rider, these horses are a breed called a Quarter horse. Quarter horses are the most common breed of horse, and are basically the horse equivalent of a Golden Retriever. Other breeds are used for other reasons, like the Standardbred, most commonly recognized as the race horse. India is a breed of horse called Draft X. Draft horses are usually the horses you see pulling carriages or, in the olden days, pulling farm equipment. The name 'Draft' comes from the old English dragen meaning to haul, which describes exactly the original purpose of this breed. The 'X' means cross. Just like cross breeds in dogs, horses have cross breeds as well. India's mother was a Draft, and her father was a Standardbred (race horse), making her a mix of both. Because Draft is the more dominant gene, India looks like a breed of Draft called a Percheron. Because of her Draft X breed, when she is old enough to start training, she can be trained to pull a wagon, pull farm equipment, or for a person to ride. Drafts have a stocky build, and are usually around 6 feet and can live up to 35 years.

Little Orphan Indie

"Monday February 4th 2013, Today I went to St Jacobs for lunch with friends.... I came home with a pony." I don't have a diary, but if I did, that would probably have been the entry on that date 7 months ago. Horses have always been a major part of my life growing up. It all started when I was a little kid and would watch old westerns with my Grandpa when he would babysit me; I became fascinated with the idea of being a cowboy and would talk about horses 24/7, like nothing else even mattered. As the obsession continued, I started helping physically disabled kids learn how to ride everyday after school, in trade for being able to ride the facilitator's horses. I had been around horses all my life, but I never thought I would own one, especially by bidding randomly on one at an auction. I saw the filly I bought, only 5 minutes before I bought her. She was malnourished and came all the way from Alberta on an transport truck, along with about 25 other horses from a farm that impregnated horses over and over again, to use their urine for birth control medication. Because 25 horses requires a LOT of money, the owner was forced to sell all of their livestock, and here is where they came. When I first bought her, my filly was 450 pounds and only 7 months old, barely old enough to be weened away from her mother. I brought her back to the barn I've always rode at and decided to name her India, because at the time, the white patch on her face, looked like the shape of India. Only looking at how cute she was, I had no idea raising a baby horse would be so much work.....