Things I don’t enjoy in life: humidity, extreme dust, Friday afternoon meetings, bad drivers, and FLIES!!!

To help troubleshoot the flies issue, Absorbine sent me three of their UltraShield fly sprays to review – UltraShield Sport, UltraShield Sport Continuous Spray (Aerosol), and UltraShield Red.    I’ve been using these three products for about a month now, and have gathered my thoughts for you dear readers who may dislike flies as much as me (really, who really likes flies anyway?).

UltraShield Red

The idea behind UltraShield Red fly spray is that it is designed to hold up to the sun’s harsh UV rays that can break down the chemicals in fly spray over long periods of turnout.

Pros: The fly spray is light, has a nice smell, and leaves a touch of softness in the hair.  It actually reminds me of ShowSheen a bit, because the horse is nice and shiny but it’s NOT slick like ShowSheen.  Below you can see a picture of shiny Simon with his UltraShield Red on.

Cons: None that I can think of.

Did Flies Hate it?  Flies didn’t love it!  I spray pretty heavily, especially on his front legs, but after application I didn’t notice any flies bothering him while I was grooming, riding or after.

Would I buy it? I absolutely would buy this fly spray.  For sure!

UltraShield Sport

This UltraShield fly spray is designed to be resistant to sweat and water.  A  good idea for our hot Texas summers!

Pros: The fly spray definitely is going to last through a sweaty horse or some very light hosing/rain.

Cons: It’s really, really thick.  Simon is not afraid of the spray bottle at all but when I sprayed him with this the first time and some white, kinda gloppy spray came out he was all ‘wtf?’  It surprised me too.  Also, after you spray and brush it in and start to ride your horse you get this nice filmy layer of oily dirt all over the coat where you sprayed.  This isn’t the first oil based fly spray I’ve used that does this, but I don’t like it.  Picture of what I’m talking about below:

I mean, maybe this fly spray is meant for horses that are much cleaner than mine… but for the typical non-wellington show horse he’s not that dirty.

Did Flies Hate it? Oily dirt gloop or not, flies don’t like this stuff.

Would I buy it?  Nope, not for me.  Too thick and greasy.

UltraShield Sport Continous Spray

Same deal as the regular UltraShield Sport, but in an aerosol spray can that may or may not kill the ozone.

Pros: Very light!  No goop, but a fine spray that covers out well.

Cons: You might inhale some if you groom near fans.  It’s misty and fine so it’s a tad hard to get all of it on the horse.

Do flies hate it? No fly problems here!

Would I buy it?  Yes!!! This is my favorite spray that I’ve used, and I will probably be replacing my bottle.

Hope this helps some of you wayward fly spray shoppers!  Do you have a favorite fly spray that you use?

Disclaimer: Absorbine sent me these products to review but I received no otherwise compensation or instructions for writing this post!

Not this…

Simon however, has been the exception to this rule.  He is my Black Beauty. When I come to the barn, he whickers to me… almost without fail. As soon as he sees my car or me walking up I get this big hearty whinny that warms my heart. When I turn him out, he hangs around for cuddles and treats and watches me go at the fence line. I always thought he was a horse that enjoyed the company of people more than other horses.

This is where we insert the hysterical laughing. BHAHAHAHAHAHAHA. I was wrong, so wrong.

Simon had a training ride Monday, where he was reported to have been fantastic.  Tuesday he had the day off because I thought it was going to rain, but he deserved it because he’s been working hard and being so good.  I was excited to ride last night, and this is pretty much a summary of what happened.

He was inverted, hot, evasive, spooky… basically everything he is usually not.  To top it all off, frankly he pissed me off and I started riding shitty and over using my hands – which is something I hate doing.  We walk/trot/cantered and somehow found a positive note to end on, before I turned him out (without treats mind you!).

Sweaty naughty horse is naughty.

As I turned him out, I realized that I was a crack head thinking he was my Black Beauty horse.  Now that he has lots of turnout and a buddy, he’s stopped depending on me so much and acting like a normal horse.  Plus last night we were pissed at each other, which didn’t make things better.  I turned him out with his buddy, Oliver, and he quickly walked away to give me the cold shoulder.

This is Oliver and I love him more than you Mom.

I watched him ignore me for a bit, and chatted with Oliver before leaving.  Oliver as it turns out, is super duper friendly.  He’s also 17hh+ and chunky and gorgeous.  He probably jumps 3′ and does auto changes, and he loves me (and everyone else).  Maybe he is my Black Beauty?

“Hi hi hi hi hi hi hi! I’m Oliver! I love you!” As Simon ignores us both and eats.

Sigh.  Today is another day I suppose!  Maybe I won’t ride like crap this time.

Also Fact: A crappy ride can earn the same ribbon that a good ride doesn’t earn.

More Facts: I haven’t won a ribbon in a really, really, really long time… and I really miss them.

For years, my ribbons stayed in a box with my mom because she was toying with the idea of sewing them into a quilt for me.  I couldn’t really get behind that idea, because I have some strange ribbon colors from one show series in particular and I don’t want a beautiful ribbon quilt to be covered with rainbow stripes.  At my pleading, she mailed them to me this week.

Ribbons!  I gleefully went through them and took a trip down memory lane.  I don’t remember every ribbon, but I do remember every show… especially when I started to count them and create pie charts like Viva Carlos did because I think it is the best idea ever.

Since I have only shown 3 horses in my life, and 2 out of the 3 were just one off times… I divided my ribbons into ones won by Elvis, ones won through IHSA (Intercollegiate Horse Show Association) and “Other” which includes hunter pace ribbons, a loaner horse and the 1 ribbon from my 4H County Horse Show disaster.

I wasn’t at all surprised to see just how many ribbons Elvis won me, because he’s the only horse I’ve ever consistently shown.  What was surprising is that I won more IHSA ribbons than others… I always thought I kinda sucked at IHSA, but I really didn’t so much.

Of all our ribbons, most of them were won at a show series called Johnston County Horse Show Series.  It was an open show held every month with year-end points, and one year we went to most shows in order to point chase.  Also, at each JCHSS show I would do a halter division, jumping division, and under saddle divisions – so it was a lot more classes than your normal hunter/jumper show.  The other shows listed here I think I only went to once or twice, excluding Triangle Hunt because those were the hunter paces sponsored by our fox hunting club.

All in all, I have won 85 ribbons so far in my horse show career.  Certainly not as many as some, but I’m pretty proud!  This is enough to send them off for a quilt, but since there are a handful of ribbons I don’t want to cut up (first champion, some IHSA ribbons, etc) and the printed ‘winning’ stripe on most of my ribbons is a rainbow color… I don’t think I will be quilting with these.

Won lots of pretty ribbons doing this!

I think my plan is to make a pillow with some of the older ones.  On many ribbons, the rosette has become discolored under the plastic (especially the cheaper ones).  A pillow also won’t take as many as a quilt.

Ribbons… gimme!

Since I don’t want rainbow stripes in my pillow, I thought about making those into a ribbon belt.  What could be better luck at a horse show than a belt made of ribbons you’ve already won?

Winner na na na na boo boo

For the special ones, I’m going to roll them up and place them in a large glass jar.  That way I can see the pretty rosettes that are meaningful to me without them being cut up or stored away in a dusty box.

Maybe one day if I’m lucky, I’ll have some ribbons of Simon’s to throw into the jar.  I sure do hope so… I loooooooooove ribbons!

Do you guys have any good ideas with what I can do with all of these, or clever ways you display your own ribbons?

What is his/her registered name? Sinister WInd – a hateful name, but weirdly appropriate since we live on a hurricane prone island.

Lineage? Buckpasser, Native Dancer, Tom Fool and Man O’ War through War Admiral. Sadly the nearest famous relative is Foolish Pleasure, winner of the ill-fated match race where Ruffian broke down.

Did your OTTB race? No race record I can find, but I know he trained at the track. Both fronts have pin firing scars, so I suspect at some point he bowed tendons or popped major splints. More relevant – he’s very energy conservant… (l-a-z-y)

What do you do now with them? Val came to me with a hip injury that ended his jumping career, so my main goal is to keep him sound and fit while we learn dressage. For the last couple of years, we’ve been doing this on our own. There are no trainers closer than 5 – 6 hours away, so it’s the occasional
road trip to a clinic, books and reviewing video for now.

If your OTTB was a musician, who would they be? Well, not sure about a musician. Val Kilmer (Tombstone version) is the inspiration for Val’s name so – embarrassing, but there you go.

Your OTTB is on a desert horsey island. He/she can bring three items – what are they? Snack, treats and delicious things that go in his mouth.

Your OTTB is deathly afraid of… The invader kitties that strut through the back of his paddock. (the nerve of them) He’s not such a scaredy cat, but he definitely will melt down
if physically uncomfortable in the slightest. A very princess and the pea kind of guy.

Your OTTB is really brave about… Phe (formerly) death dealing row of black plastic trash bins. They are boring now. (thanks to clicker + treats)

If your OTTB could change one thing about his environment or training, what would it be? A friend or two. Of the lady horse variety.

How would your OTTB introduce themselves to a new herd of horses? Kiss up to the alfa gelding, avoid the second in command and figure out the way into the mare’s pasture. Mad social skills on this one.

And finally, your OTTB makes you proud every day because… He’s such a sweet horse. He is a great communicator, and has improved my riding and horsemanship immensely. He doesn’t make things easy – but he’s honest.

He gives you what you ask for. A super ambassador for OTTBs!

Want to submit your OTTB to be featured on this blog? e-mail me answers to this set of interview questions and some pictures to be featured, and maybe next time you check She Moved to Texas your horse will be featured as the OTTB Spotlight of the week!

That being said, Texas summer is here and it is already sweltering.  Saturday was a high of 97 and Sunday wasn’t much cooler.  It’s the time of year where I need to plan my weekend schedule around riding in the cool hours of the day, and not whenever I feel like it.  This weekend I totally failed at that, and therefore rode 30 minutes top and ended up with me and my horse both a sweaty mess.

Saturday he was still a little looky at everything, so I threw him on the lunge line for 10 minutes before I got on.  The barn was empty, so it was a great time to get him desensitized to things.  He was missing his RF shoe, but wasn’t off at all so we rode WTC in the dirt jump ring basically just to get him out and listening.  Got a lovely, lovely canter which I thought was a fluke… because I just lightly two pointed with my reins loose and he cantered happily along with his head relaxed.  After our ride, we rode around the property past all the previously scary pastures and I could tell he was really settling down.

Sunday is lesson day at the barn, so when I got there mid morning it was packed.  Got Simon out, and he seemed chill/exhausted/partied too hard.  He’s been transitioned to what should be his normal turnout situation – out back in a medium sized paddock with a big warmblood gelding named Oliver.  The weekend feeder told me she thought Oliver was alpha (big shocker here), and I noticed some bites on him Sunday but nothing I wouldn’t expect from a transitional period.

The farrier had tacked on a shoe for me (he may be my new favorite person, that was so nice to do on a Sunday!) so I felt fine riding in the grass ring while lessons were going on in the dirt ring.  Since Simon was so chill, I hopped on without lunging for the first time and felt like I had my 100% normal chill OTTB, yay!  I’ll spare you the boring details of our ride, but it involved a lot of sweating and another lovely canter… maybe not a fluke after all.

He has his first training ride today, and then I’ll ride tomorrow.

Now a question for all you fellow tack ho’s – what would you do if you ordered a new pair of stirrup leathers and your flat length was 2 holes from the top?  I got the SmartPak 54″ lined stirrup leathers, and while the quality is decent for the price they seem sooooooooo long.  I must have been riding in more like 50-52′s before, but the only options SmartPak has are 48″ and 54″.  Without any stretching or thinking about jumping length stirrups, I only have 2 holes to go before I need to punch them.  So I don’t know whether to just deal with it because they were cheap or return them while I still can and see if the 48″ is do-able.  I’m 5’8″ – had no idea these would be too long!

Still, I’m only human and here are the 5 things currently on my wish list!

1. KL Select Red Barn Fancy Stitch Standing Martingale
My bridle is KL Select, and it’s gorgeous. It’s 5 years old and has been used almost daily for several years, but doesn’t show any wear. Can’t say the same about my martingale that I’ve had the same amount of time, so I’d love to upgrade the martingale to the same maker as my bridle.

2. Piper Knee Patch Breeches

I don’t have tons of schooling breeches by any means… but I don’t exactly need these. Still, they’re in my new barn’s colors and they’re cute and fun and reasonably priced… so I want them

3. KK Ultra D Ring Bit
Every trainer I’ve ever worked with has loooooooved these bits. At $150 new, they’re not easy for my wallet to stomach so I’ve always gotten the Korsteel knock off versions at almost 1/10th of the price. The last Korsteel bit I got Simon really pinched his mouth though, so maybe it’s time I cough up for the real thing?

4. KL Select Square Raised Figure 8 Noseband
I really don’t need this at all. Not one bit… but at not much more than the SmartPak brand nosebands in a fine leather quality that will match my bridle it’s hard to resist, right?

5. Ultra Thinline Half Pad
This is probably the only thing on this list I may actually buy sooner than later. I loved how Simon moved in my Thinline fleece pad which I just sold, but hated cleaning the actual fleece. This would let me layer the thinline shock absorption that we loved but be able to be much more flexible with my other saddle pads (ie easily cleaned!).

That’s my list. What have you been lusting over lately?

As for Simon’s 1st day at the barn – his official word is that this is the weirdest horse show he has ever been to.

When I was driving down the long farm driveway with speed bumps (aka I was driving slowly) I looked across the paddocks and noticed some horses running in the very back of the farm. Huh, I thought, one of those looks like my skinny little red thoroughbred.

Turns out it was!

After I changed and went to go find him, I noticed the farm hand bringing him to the empty paddock by the barn.  ”That’s mine!” I told him and went to grab Simon, who was soaked in sweat, panting, and looking overall frantic.  The farm hand apologized and said “he wasn’t being bad” and that they were running and he went to get him when the trainer/barn owner told him to, but I wasn’t upset.  I just grabbed the lead rope and took him to the cross ties to stand under the fans and cool off (they have fans!!!).

I took my time getting ready, where Simon seemed just a little overwhelmed by the entire situation.  Every time a new horse would walk by, usually a fabulously muscled up gigantic warmblood, he would try to make them his new best friend.  Hey!  Hey!  I’m Simon!  I’m OTTB.  Are you OTTB?  Do you want to be my new best friend? Wow how did you get so big!  You must have a fantastic diet.

They were not very impressed.

Even though Simon had already lunged himself for me, I decided to stick to my original plan of lunging first and getting on if he was good.  Plus I wanted to see if he was sound from all the galloping in the pasture.  We headed to the big grass ring, and did a lot of walk/slow trot circles in different areas so he could get a feel of things.

The biggest problem with the grass ring is that it is full of tasty grass.  Simon has never really been asked to work on grass, and he couldn’t understand why we would want to ride on precious, tasty grass.

When I did get on, there was a lot of looking around.  The barn and rings are surrounded by paddocks with horses turned out, and people riding around.  There is a lot of activity for a little red ottb to handle.

When I did get on we did a lot of walking.  Simon is a good boy, but he wasn’t listening at all.  So we just did some circles and some walk spirals and really anything I could do that wasn’t pushing him too hard but still trying to get him to listen.  When we eventually did a small amount of trotting, I realized that while he’s still a bit uncoordinated and out of shape the grass ring is difficult for him.  It’s a really nice ring, but there are still some divots and uneven areas.  For the most part it is fine, but we did have one of these moments…

That resulted in him throwing a shoe.  Hopefully the farrier will be able to put a new one on today – extra points for having a farrier live on the property

After our short ride, I walked him around the dirt jumping ring a bit and talked to the trainer some.  Hosed him down in one of the two concrete indoor wash racks, which he could have cared less about and coated him in fly spray for the night.  When I was grooming him after our ride there was a horse lunging in the round pen behind the barn.  It was funny, because you could only see the horse through a window behind Simon and when the horse would canter around Simon would get a gray blur out of the corner of his eye.

It took a few minutes for him to figure out what was going on, but he was so tired and brain dead by this point I think he just gave up.

I turned him out in the “good” paddock by the barn, and watched him for a few minutes.  He called to his friends that don’t exist yet, stared at the water trough for a while before finally deciding to drink some, and generally just looked at everything.

Today they are going to try and find him a different paddock that he likes to be his permanent home, and a buddy to go out with.  The general consensus is that he seems pretty overwhelmed/concerned for him, but since he is my best baby he is expressing those feelings without causing any harm to me or anyone else.  I’m sure he’ll settle down more this weekend.  He better, because I am tickled pink with this place and he’s going to stay there

I don’t exactly know why, but this barn move has been stressing me out. It shouldn’t, because new trainer is great and Jen is great and Simon is pretty great too. Think I just need to lock Nancy Negative in a closet because I really need to stop worrying so much.

So Jen arrived with her beautiful truck and trailer, and my horse decided to make a good first impression by refusing to get in. Thank you horse, thank you so much.

This bothered me, because he’s usually a really reliable loader but he was just being a brat. To quote Jen, he pulled a “I don’t wanna go and you can’t make me.” I tried asking nicely several times, but agreed to get a crop at her suggestion. After a few polite taps on the rump I whacked him one good time and then he went right on. Bratty pony.

On the road, he was a little but of a wiggle worm but no real naughty behavior. I followed the trailer and noticed he shifted his weight a ton, wasn’t eating and didn’t seem very comfortable. Oh great, I thought – were going to arrive there and he’s going to be all colicky and I’ll be that new boarder with the problem horse who’s always freaking out about things. See? Negative Nancy reading her ugly head again.

Really though, the ride was wonderfully uneventful. We arrived at the farm and immediately after getting off the trailer he pooped. Phew! At first he was a little wild eyed but we walked around some to see the sites.

Luckily his nervousness didn’t last long due to this wonderful thing called grass, which there is a lot of at the farm.

He settled down, Jen took some adorable pictures of us… And the rest is pretty uneventful.

We turned him out in the round pen for the night to get him used to his new home, and today he will get to go out in a paddock for the day. I’m sure in a few days he will transition to the full night time turnout with his tbd buddy, but trainer wants to supervise him out in the electric fence for what may be the first time. Y’all know me – I’m all for caution and taking things slow Am going out tonight to lunge and maybe ride – will see what he feels up to. But yes, fun adventures up ahead for sure!

Don’t forget to enter the Happy Hound Custom Equestrian Stationary Giveaway! I’ll be drawing the winners tomorrow morning, and you can enter by simply commenting here.

A while ago I announced that I would be moving Simon to a new barn and today is the day. Jen from Wyvern Oaks has graciously offered to trailer him to the new barn for me this afternoon (thank you thank you thank you 100 times thank you!). I’m both excited and anxious about it.

Making the decision wasn’t an easy one for me, and I waffled for a long time – hence the subject of this post. Here’s a list of things I think everyone should ask themselves before they pursue moving their horse to a new boarding situation.

Questions to Ask While Evaluating Your Current Boarding Situation

• Have things changed at your current barn, or are they the same as they always have been?
• Are you frustrated by things that can be changed (like management) or cannot be changed (like facilities)?
• If you are frustrated by things that can be changed, have you made an honest effort to try and address them?
• Will you be leaving anything you can’t replace or replicate if you change barns?
• Is your horse happy in his current boarding situation?

Defining What You Want in a Boarding Barn

• List out your “bare bones” essential facilities, ie a ring with lights.  Everyone wants their new barn to have a fancy indoor and a Euro hot walker and a hydrotherapy pool… but realistically what do you have to have to consider a place?
• Make a budget.  We don’t enjoy our horses if we have to fully sacrifice clothes and gas and showing in order to keep them
• List out what makes you unhappy about current boarding barn.  Just saying “I don’t like it!” won’t help you when trying to pick out a new place.  Have identifiable triggers that you can look for in places that hopefully satisfy these needs.
• Are there any goals that you want to accomplish but felt you can’t in current boarding situation?  When I boarded at the trail riding barn, I felt like I couldn’t advance in hunter/jumpers – so I moved to a barn that had a good lesson program.
• Make a map.  For working adult amateurs like myself, I suggest boarding close to home or close to work.  Decide which is best for you and pick a driving radius around either area
• What kind of people do you want to be around?  This is really important for me.  Do you like the “AA” clique or do you want a more relaxed family experience?  Barn websites will often tell the story of the atmosphere before you even step foot on the property.

Lauren’s Order of Top Boarding Priorities in a Barn

1. Horse Care – if my pony aint happy, aint nobody happy.  Excellent care should be the most important.  I want to feel like I can go on vacation for two weeks and not need someone to check in on my ponykins.
   
2. Price – I can afford to board here, and still do things like eat food and occasionally go to a movie.
3. Facilities - frills are great even though they’re often expensive, but I need the bare minimum facilities available for me to be able to ride my horse safely.  On top of riding, the stalls need to be roomy and safe.  Pastures adequate and not filled with junk or have dangerous fencing.
4. Training – the instruction is quality and affordable.  I feel like I can advance my riding and my horse’s training to the next level, or at the very least I can maintain where I am now.  I can show with a team and trainer and have guidance as we progress in our horsey career.  I can afford to do these things without convincing my husband we should take a 2nd mortgage.
5. Location - I don’t spend more time driving than I do visiting my horse.  The barn is located in a place that I can easily hit my goal of riding 3-5 times per week.
6. People – the barn is a part of my social life, and I enjoy spending time at this place.  I feel like (at least some) fellow boarders are my friends, and there’s a good sense of community.

I was lucky in that my recent decision to move primarily came down to #5 – which means my old barn did a lot of things right.  Will update tomorrow with pictures to document Simon’s great migration to north Austin!

What’s your priority list when choosing an appropriate boarding facility for your horse?

What is his/her registered name? His Jockey Club name is Acuna, but the USEF knows him as Hakuna Matata. I’m told the switch came because helpful show secretaries were always “fixing” his name at shows anyways.

Lineage? Awesome x Adorable (Fancy x Cute). For those who are tied to “actual facts”, Cuna is an Executive Partner baby out of Cabernet Dawn (Cox’s Ridge). Further back, he has bigger names, but my good friend the pedigree researcher found out that Executive Partner raced until he was 10 and lived to be a hearty 32, while Cox’s Ridge is known for putting good minds on his babies. I want Cuna to channel that awesome longevity, so I’m thrilled with his lineage.

Did your OTTB race? Yes. Cuna raced like he jumps–enough to pay the bills, never putting himself into a bad situation. He ran for 5 years, won $25k, and only won once. He retired sound with clean legs, just because his trainer (wish I could have met her) thought he needed a new job.

What do you do now with them? Cuna and I do everything together. We trail ride, dabble in eventing, play in the jumper ring, and just entered our first dressage show(!!). He also has an extensive wardrobe that I force him to model so I can take pictures. Given enough cookies, he can be a good sport about almost anything.

If your OTTB was a musician, who would they be? Johnny Cash in his later years–gravelly voice, don’t give a shit attitude, acoustic style, universally beloved.

Your OTTB is on a desert horsey island. He/she can bring three items – what are they? His stall, a groom, bell boots. He does not believe in “roughing it”.

Your OTTB is deathly afraid of… Loose horses galloping straight at him. Maybe bears. That’s about it. Horses are fine if they gallop past him, just not at him. Don’t think he’d like bears.

Your OTTB is really brave about… Pretty much everything. He is a cool customer and he always looks out for #1. That includes not wasting energy on being scared of stupid shit.

If your OTTB could change one thing about his environment or training, what would it be? More galloping, ditch the dressage. If we could alternate cookie/pampering days with XC and gallops, that would really be ideal. Also we would jump like 4 days a week.

How would your OTTB introduce themselves to a new herd of horses?
“This is my spot. I am a mean ass bastard horse and I will dismember your ass if you come in it. Can I go back to my box now? Hate turnout.”

And finally, your OTTB makes you proud every day because… He’s the best horse ever? Seriously. He is my jumping school master, he is sane and level headed, and his darling face and dorky personality make me laugh every single day. I can run XC or give pony rides and the day is better just because he is in it.

Want to submit your OTTB to be featured on this blog? e-mail me answers to this set of interview questions and some pictures to be featured, and maybe next time you check She Moved to Texas your horse will be featured as the OTTB Spotlight of the week!