If you had told me, when I was about eight, that someday I would really, truly have a horse, I wouldn't have believed you.
But here he is.
His name is Avi. And to be precise, he's not mine. He belongs to the Resident Teen. But I can bask in the glow of her adoration of him.
He is a six-year-old Thoroughbred gelding, born in Kentucky.
He actually did some racing (more on that in another post), but retired from that and so joined the ranks of many other off-the-track-Thoroughbreds, or OTTBs, as they are known.
His second career began straightaway as he went into hunter/jumper training at a local stable.
He even picked up a few ribbons in his new job.
And it was at the stable where he met the Resident Teen, who is also in hunter/jumper training.
Before you could say "double-jointed snaffle," we had ourselves a horse.
Well, whoa there a second. Not so fast. First he needed a vet check.
And then he had to get into a trailer in order to travel to his new stable. He wasn't having any of it.
Eventually Avi must have decided it was getting boring to stand on the ramp being gently poked by a crutch (one of the experienced handlers loading him was laid up with a badly sprained leg) and so he responded to the encouragement at his other end and stepped in nicely.
A short ride later, he followed his new rider into a pasture to check out the surroundings.
Later, he met some of his new companions, all of whom were intensely curious about the newcomer.
I think I am still in rather a state of shock.
But here he is.
His name is Avi. And to be precise, he's not mine. He belongs to the Resident Teen. But I can bask in the glow of her adoration of him.
He is a six-year-old Thoroughbred gelding, born in Kentucky.
He actually did some racing (more on that in another post), but retired from that and so joined the ranks of many other off-the-track-Thoroughbreds, or OTTBs, as they are known.
His second career began straightaway as he went into hunter/jumper training at a local stable.
He even picked up a few ribbons in his new job.
And it was at the stable where he met the Resident Teen, who is also in hunter/jumper training.
Before you could say "double-jointed snaffle," we had ourselves a horse.
Well, whoa there a second. Not so fast. First he needed a vet check.
And then he had to get into a trailer in order to travel to his new stable. He wasn't having any of it.
Eventually Avi must have decided it was getting boring to stand on the ramp being gently poked by a crutch (one of the experienced handlers loading him was laid up with a badly sprained leg) and so he responded to the encouragement at his other end and stepped in nicely.
A short ride later, he followed his new rider into a pasture to check out the surroundings.
Later, he met some of his new companions, all of whom were intensely curious about the newcomer.
I think I am still in rather a state of shock.
Welcome to the family Avi!
ReplyDeleteNicker nicker snort! (translation: thank you!)
DeleteMany congratulations to you and the Resident Teen on finally joining the wonderful world of horse ownership, looking forward to reading all about your adventures with Avi.
ReplyDeleteThanks! Ah, already he's thrown a shoe and gotten a minor tummy ache :) Not exactly the stuff of adventure but I hear horses have it in them to throw monkey wrenches in the routine for sure.
DeleteBrilliant - so glad you and the resident teen are be-horsed!
ReplyDeleteIt's all a bit stunning, really. And it's rather amazing that you can just go out and buy a horse without needing a license, whereas I had to buy tags for the cats and the dog. I guess it makes sense yet it seems quite out of proportion!
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