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Santa Fe is a beautiful sorrel Quarter
Horse gelding. He was part of a lot of 100 horses and because of a terrible injury to his hind leg that left a
permanent 12" scar and blindness in one eye the dealer felt riding would never be in Santa Fe's future. Horses
like Santa Fe usually find themselves in slaughter houses. Katie Muir worked with Santa Fe to gain his trust all
last fall and winter by taking him for walks, playing with him in the fields, and grooming him. Now with the help of
our trainer, Katie is helping Santa Fe work through his issues and getting him back under saddle again.
Saturday,
March 7~ Saddle Up: Santa Fe has had an interesting first part of 2009. This gentle horse
received a huge gash on the left side of his body. Cherub, our large Belgian, lunged at him while he was entering his
stall. Santa Fe jumped and cut himself on the stall latch. It was quite a large wound but countless staples
and stitches later he was put back together. Because of his injury, Santa Fe has not been worked very much,
I wanted to give him time to heal, and he did heal very nicely.
I talked with Tamara, our trainer, about the two
of us working together to try to get a saddle on Santa Fe. Tamara decided we were not going to be riding that day due
to the very muddy fields. Instead she would work with Santa Fe while I finished doing the morning meds. I wanted
to see how the professional would do with him. She groomed him, cleaned his feet, and put the saddle pad on him.
I thought to myself, "I have gotten this far with him, watch this crazy horse accept the saddle with no issues!"
Santra Fe started to side step but Tamara continued trying to put the saddle on him and eventually she succeeded! I
could tell that he was nervous and uneasy with the saddle being on his back but she gave him a small peice of alfalfa cube
and waited for him to calm down. Then she removed the saddle and put it back on, repeating this several times.
Each time he was antsy but would 'forget' about the saddle when he got a treat!
I was so happy to see this
sight--Santa Fe with a saddle on his back! Next I started putting the saddle on and taking it off. I did that
several times from both his right side and left side. Once he was comfortable, I started to tighten the cinch.
I would hold it tight for a few seconds and then release it. He got moody as I tightened the cinch so I didn't reward
him; instead I let him stomp at the ground until he stopped! He was like a child throwing a tantrum and just needed
to work through it. I removed the saddle, reapplied it, and tightened the cinch several more times. Finally,
I decided that was enough for one day. I removed everything and just brushed him for a while. Afterwards
I led him out of the barn and walked around the fields with him so he could relax then I led him to the hay feeder so
he could munch on some fresh hay.
Santa Fe did a great job with Tamara and I learned so much by watching her work
with him. We are on our way!
April 27~ Saddled Up and Lunging!
For the last month Santa Fe and I have been working with the saddle. I have been saddling him up and removing
the saddle, like Tamara showed me. Santa Fe has calmed down tremendously and will allow me to groom and saddle him up
without throwing a fit. since he has relaxed, i hae started putting the saddle on, tightening the girth and doing groundwork
with him. He stands at ease with his ears up and nostrils flaring. Santa Fe is so proud to have his saddle on!
On Saturday the 18th, Tamara was at HPS and was lunging Morning Star and Legacy. She asked if I would like to
start lunging Santa Fe...of course I did! Tamara started with him as I watched. It has been years since I lunged
a horse, so it was great that I had the chance to watch her with him. You can learn so much by watching a trainer
work with a horse. Santa Fe did great! He went right into a trot and looked wonderful. He has a magnificent
gait. Then it was my turn to lung him. I have to admit it took me a while to get comfortable becasue it has been
years since I lunged a horse. We worked for about 30 minutes. Santa Fe did very well!
I
have been working with Santa Fe on a monthly basis after I finish feeding the horses on Monday nights. After working
with Tamara and lunging Santa Fe, I have continued to lunge him by myself. somtimes I will put the saddle on him while
other times I won't Either way he is doing great. I still feel a little awkward lunging so it has been
a growth period for both of us.
I feel that Santa Fe may be ready for me to get on his back with
the help of a side walker. You can see that he is unruffled with me, with saddling, and with doing groundwork, so it
is time for the next step. If he does as well as he has with everything else, it will be a breeze!
When I
started working with Santa Fe, it was a slow moving process. I took it slow at first so he would have a chance to bond
with me. When you work with a horse as battered as Santa Fe, you must show him that you are not going to hurt him and
that he can fully trust you. Because Santa Fe and I have a strong bond, he is making great strides. He is not
as skittish around the volunteers and other horses as he had been. Santa Fe is more comfortable and happy around the
barn. We are well on our way!
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June 17~ Sitting on his Back! ...Santa
Fe and I have been doing ground work and lunging and he is doing great. Unfortunately, May and June have been very wet,
so we have been limited as to how much work we can do in the fields. Santa Fe and I have struggled a little with lunging.
One would think that he would prefer to lunge in a right direction since he is blind in his left eye and his good eye would
be on me but he does okay in both directions. He is a calm horse and really likes to be close to me so it can be awkward
to lunge him. I was worried that I was doing something wrong, so last Sunday I asked Tamara to lunge him so I could
watch her. To my relief, she admitted that it was 'different' to lunge him. She tried lunging him so his
good eye was on her side but to our surprise he turned around so his blind eye was facing her. I was standing on the
far side of the round pen to observe and he watched me the entire time. He was trotting but not really paying attention
to Tamara.
I got out to the farm early today and decided that I was going to work with Santa Fe. I groomed
him and put his saddle on him but decided not to put a bridle on because he gets really antsy with a bit in his mouth.
He chews the bit like crazy so he may have used a hackamore before. He has an area on his nose that may be marks from
using a hackamore to roughly in the past. I will have to try several different styles to see what makes him comfortable.
Sandy arrived at the farm and said she would be glad to help me with him. I felt that we were ready for me to
get on his back and I needed her to be my holder. For the most part, Santa Fe and I have always worked by ourselves
but we are at the point where we needed another person. I fully trust Santa Fe but with his colorful past and it being
the first time, I needed someone to hold him while I tried to get on for the first time.
In the past I have shown the mounting block to Sata Fe several times
and let him smell it, look at it, and become accustomed to it. I lunged him first to calm him down and get any
bucks out of him before I tried to get on him. We walked over to the mounting block; Santa Fe smelled and looked at
it. I gave the lead rope to Sandy and placed the mounting lock on Santa Fe's right side. Even though he does
great when you do things on his blind side, I wanted him to be able to see me while I was trying to get on his back.
Talking to him the entire time, I stepped up the mounting block. I stood on the top step and rubbed Santa Fe's neck
and back Then I got off the block and let him smell my hands comforting him. I walked back up the mounting block,
and laid across the saddle. He started to side step so I quickly got off and reassured him that he was okay.
Once he calmed down, Sandy walked him back over to the mounting block, and
I laid across his back again. He just stood there with his ears forward! Reassuring him that he was okay and that
I wasn't going to hurt him allowed him to relax. Sandy and I had tried to do this last summer and Santa Fe totally
freaked out so we have come a long way in the over a year!
I stood back up and double-checked that Sandy was ready
and took a deep breath. I talked to Santa Fe telling him that I was going to sit on his back and he was going to be
safe. I gently put my weight on his back and sat down. His ears went back and he took a few steps but calmed right
down. What an emotional experience! I rubbed his neck and hips and contiuted to talk to him while I sat on his
back. You have no idea how bad I wanted to walk around the pasture with him but we didn't. It is important
to end a training session on a good note so I dismounted.
Santa Fe and I have been working together for over a
year creating a bond. This bond and his training allowed me to get on his back today. It is hard to put into words
how neat it was. There were times when I wondered if riding him was ever going to happen. I will sit on his back
several times before we start walking around the pasture with a side walker just so he can get used to it. I am so proud
of him!
September 28, 2009~ Slow & Steady...
It has been a slow progression for Santa Fe this summer. It was a huge step for Santa Fe to allow me
to sit on his back in June and from there it has been slow moving. Part of it was him fighting me and the other part
was me trying to find wout what he likes. Santa Fe was rather sensitive when I would move in the saddle. After
taking a closer look, it seemed that the saddle we chose for him was rather tight on his withers. We changed his saddle,
then his bridle and finally his bit. He really seems to like the new combination. His tack is now one area that
I do not have to worry about.
I tried several different things while riding him. I cannot thank Sandy enougth
for helping me. Santa Fe can be quite the handful for the the side walker. He likes to walk into them and throw
his head in their direction! I know she has gotten a head butt or two. I had tried merely sitting on his back
with a loose rein and allowing Sandy to control him. He had beebreally nervous and jumpy with that. The next time I
had more control with the reins and Sandy had merely been there if he took off. Santa Fe would walk towards
her and throw his head when I tried to turn him. I know I was getting frustrated because I felt like we should be progressing
more than we were. I know the emotional scars he bears are deep because he was really fighting the entire riding situation.
I was running out of ideas.
On Sunday, Tamara was out at the sanctuary for a training day.
I explained my frustrations to her, not with Santa Fe, but with our lack of progress. She and I were the only people
a the ranch so we decided to take Santa Fe into the side field to work with him. This was the second time that Santa
Fe and I had Tamara as the side walker. He knows Tamara as his farrier. I jokingly asked her if she'd
had her Wheaties this morning and she just laughed! I walked him around the pasture and he was the calmest he had ever
been. Tamara held him as I got on and he was okay, not a perfect gentleman, but okay, but he would not walk. Tamara
suggested I turn his head to one direction and just hold it there. Santa Fe's neck would eventually become uncomfortable
and he would walk. I tried it and he did take a step but then stopped. I repeated this several times until
he realized that I was serious and he needed to walk. Tamara was there walking along side in case I needed
help controling Santa Fe. He started "chasing" Tamara; it didn't matter which way I tried to turn
him or where Tamara was, he was on top of her. When I would try to turn him in the opposite direction, he would throw
his head in defiance. When he threw his head, the lead line would jump in the air, and hit his nose. We walked
around the pasture, trying to turn in different directions and keep moving. We agreed that we needed to start at
ground zero with him--get him to walk and turn. By the end, he was moving more consistently.
Tamara
asked if I had ever ridden him in the round pen alone. I said no because he was a handful with a side walker and I wasn't
sure how he would act without one. I wondered if the side walker may have been a part of his problem. I know that his
actions are in defiance of riding, not towards me personally, and his emotional scars are what are causing these actions.
The more I work with him, the more I believe that he was being ridden when he got hurt.
As I was dismounting, Tamara asked mehow I thought Santa Fe would do with
her on his back. I had no idea. I was the only to ever be on him. We walked over to the mounting blockand
I explained to Santa Fe what we were doing as I held him from his "good" side so he could see me. Tamara got
on and his ears went back and his eyes got big. He started to side step. I could tell he was very nervous and
didnot like this 'stranger' on his back. Santa Fe started rearing up and Tamara said maybe this wasn't
such a good idea! She stayed on for a while and his behavior escalated. It was time to get off! I calmed
him down and got back on. He was a much calmer horse and more attentive to me this time. Maybe he realized that
I wasn't as bad he had thought! That was a huge eye opener for me. He and I share a very special bond and he trusts
me 100%. I never imagined that he would act this way with Tamara. It illustrated the fact that not just anyone
can jump on a horse. I also learned that it was time help Santa Fe learn to trust others.
I was feeding again on Monday night but before I started to mix the
feed I took Santa Fe out. I wanted to see how he would be alone in the round pen. Sandy and her daughter, Cheyenne,
had come out just in case! He was a total gentleman and very calm. I walked him around the round pen and up to
the mounting block. I explained what I was going to do and he was listening to me. I I walked up the mounting
block and leaned on his back. He was totally relaxed! I started to get on and he side-stepped. Sandy stepped
forward to hold him. I got on and he was the most relaxed he had been since I had first put the saddle on him.
Sandy stepped away. I asked him to walk and away we went. His ears were up, his tail relaxed and we were walking
calmly. I asked him to and he did with little reservation. I asked him to stop and he did right on a dime.
Santa Fe was a totally different horse without a side walker! I will continue to work with himinthe round pen until
I feel that he is ready to work in the side field we use for training again. He can get nervous if there are lots of
horses and people around, so we will take our time. It is very easy to forget that Santa Fe has experienced more than
I want to imagine. He is such a sweet and loving horse. Every small step we take is a gentle leap for him. Even
though this summer was not as fast mving as I had thought it was going to be, it was a success! Santa Fe and I
are closer and understand what each other needs. We need to have others work with him and he needs to allow them into his
life. Santa Fe will continue to work on his trust issues and is going to make a great horse for someone!
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Horse Protection Society of N.C.
2135
Miller Rd China Grove, N.C. 28023
hps@horseprotection.org (704) 855-2978
501(c)3 Nonprofit
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