Writing to introduce myself : )

Hey: for the mustang vs. QH argument: Adopted BLM mustangs could also be purchased that had been trained by prisoners in Colorado. I've heard those animals were very well trained (all training was overseen by pros) and the result was mustangs adoptees that were used to being handled and worked and ridden. Also with the story set in Colorado, it would be a great tie-in.

Another thought on a mustang in a story: hearsay (from friends with BLM mustangs) has it that mustangs that are born in the wild, even completely gentled later, tend to NOT get along with domesticated horses. I don't remember if it was a matter of pecking order or the BLM mustangs never wanting to be part of a domestic herd. Though most mustangs once tamed and trained do bond well with humans. That I've heard consistently.

HorsebackWriter: have you found that to be true with your mustang?

dayne-jen said:

Another thought on a mustang in a story: hearsay (from friends with BLM mustangs) has it that mustangs that are born in the wild, even completely gentled later, tend to NOT get along with domesticated horses. I don't remember if it was a matter of pecking order or the BLM mustangs never wanting to be part of a domestic herd. Though most mustangs once tamed and trained do bond well with humans. That I've heard consistently.

HorsebackWriter: have you found that to be true with your mustang?

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I know quite a few people with mustangs (I also used to ride with a trainer that predominately used mustangs). Some are fantastic, but I hear they are not always completely trainable or reliable after they have been trained. The one I rode a couple of times a month was an absolute sweetheart.

I like the Colorado tie-in for the story, that's a good point.

I like the Colorado tie-in for the story, that's a good point.[/quote]


That's a little bit why I said it.

Also I too have known a few - Great horses those mustangs -lots of personality.

No matter the breed though, some horses don't get along well with others - Heck I din't get along well with others. People I mean. Horses, dogs cats, cows fine. People, well let's just say, some people get the ears pinned back snakey look quick.

Now I'm sorry but---The trainer in me would ask that you don't use the bit about "puffing the belly when you girth" - That is just not something we want people to think about horses or horse handlers unless that person is gonna get killed off. - You know "Put your knee in her gut so she lets the wind out." -STUPID!

If you tack up properly The girth is never an issue. YES some horses are "girthy" -But it comes from misshandling. -Some one in their past has saddled the way your about to describe (I hope not).

Correctly - Gently fasten the girth, so loose it touches only hair. Relax a second or two, and then sug it up a bit. (At this point a girthy horse may even turn and threaten, but you must stop before it annoys the horse -sometimes it helps to run your hand -With the hair between the girth and the horse) Walk the horse arond a minute, then tighten the girth -but only snugly, people have a tendency to make girths too tight. TEST the girth tightness UNDER the belly NOT along the ribs. A proper fit you should still be able to slide a finger in. GENTLY! don't yank it up. - This is almost a common problem. Would you like someone to yank as tight as they could a belt around you lungs? Reckon not.

Horses that "Hold Wind" have been girthed roughly ( and even at the wrong place and maybe given the horse galls)and it is not really holding wind so much as, bracing for the jolt.

I'm sooo sorry for going on - But.

In my novel 'Tom Named by Horse', he becomes a horse rancher, and so many common phrases, and actions - I simply won't use. Kill my chances? Maybe. I won't say, Break a horse ( I say start, or train, or work with, Tom even says "Fuss Over". wrong for the day? maybeI like to think I make it up in other ways to the reader).

Won't say Yanked his horse around - Like they have to do in every western movie. Stuff like that. I say turn. Sometimes spun. Never will I say spured the horse. I know a lot of people use spurs. I have weined many a rider, barrel racers included. -I will say, "His heels pounded his ponies ribs." "He touched heels to belly and the big stallion responded like a cannon ball." - If a horse can feel a fly, don't you think she can feel your heel?

Saddles always loosen after ridding a while, but for a lot of other reasons, Pads flattening out, horse sweeting out weight. On a long ride a horse can loose ten percent of its body weight.

Why not give the horse a funnier habit than the tired old girth thing? - I
like the lock idea myself. - I worked with a horse who would lie down when he got tired -Under saddle. Never could fix it entirely, though I was able to teach him to ask first, so I could hop off. True story. You could use that.

NOTE TO MONITERS-- this post was for writter research, and still about writing and on subject. (picture an old cripple whiping sweat from brow)

So Sorry but I've got a lot of soap boxes - Dutch

Dutch Henry said:

I like the Colorado tie-in for the story, that's a good point.

Now I'm sorry but---The trainer in me would ask that you don't use the bit about "puffing the belly when you girth" - That is just not something we want people to think about horses or horse handlers unless that person is gonna get killed off. - You know "Put your knee in her gut so she lets the wind out." -STUPID!

If you tack up properly The girth is never an issue. YES some horses are "girthy" -But it comes from misshandling. -Some one in their past has saddled the way your about to describe (I hope not).

Correctly - Gently fasten the girth, so loose it touches only hair. Relax a second or two, and then sug it up a bit. (At this point a girthy horse may even turn and threaten, but you must stop before it annoys the horse -sometimes it helps to run your hand -With the hair between the girth and the horse) Walk the horse arond a minute, then tighten the girth -but only snugly, people have a tendency to make girths too tight. TEST the girth tightness UNDER the belly NOT along the ribs. A proper fit you should still be able to slide a finger in. GENTLY! don't yank it up. - This is almost a common problem. Would you like someone to yank as tight as they could a belt around you lungs? Reckon not.

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Wow, absolutely, wow. This is such great stuff. I have to say that it was supposed to be a slightly funny part about the idiosyncrasies of this little mare (rescued - but from a life of work on a ranch, not from abuse) and I would never belt or kick a horse, or even yank up the girth! I have never owned a horse, but ridden quite a bit (for a non-horse owner). I went to riding camp a lot as a kid where we had to take care of our charges, was a Jillaroo as a teenager and when I lived in Colorado I used to be able to take horses out occasionally in the Rocky Mountain ranges. I learned to ride English, and squeeze with my knees or nudge with my heels when I'm riding. So, I wouldn't want to do anything that would suggest abusive behavior - or quite frankly anything was not considerate of the horse.

The horse segments are not a big part of the story, but a rounding out of the character's lifestyle. I had her Arab save her in the end, because it fit, but that's a small part too in terms of description. He comes to find her after she's been shot, stands still next to the side of a granite outcropping and she's able to slide down onto his back and blacks out.

However, I'm going to consider changing the girth to the lying down! It sounds much more interesting.

Thanks very much.

BTW, meant to say thanks to dayne-jen for info on Mustangs. Very good to know. I love learning about horses whether I need to or not!

It would tie in, because the MC lives in an area surrounded by BLM, but it needs to be a horse who definitely gets along with domesticated horses and is a consistent mount.

I think she's going to be a Quarter Horse!

Nope, I didn't know about the Snickers and Good & Plenty horse tie-ins. It's amazing (or maybe not) how many links there still are to horses, even in today's language and non-horse culture. Pick up a book on Western slang or cowboy terms, and a lot of it is very familiar, even if people don't know where the terms originated.

Good to hear about your mustang getting along with your other herdmembers! I don't remember who my info came from; obviously there are few trustworthy generalities when it comes to horses (or anything else).

Horses can be pretty clever: born wild, tamed, or born domestic. They've got nothing to do all day except try to figure out how to undo that gate clasp, untie a rope, get that fly-mask off, how to get their owner, etc.

Horses don't need much help--or any, except fate--for getting into trouble. Some of the most detail oriented (= anal) people about their animals that I know have had some of the most horrific accidents. Things that you'd absolutely NEVER imagine happening. Barring wrapping the animals in cotton-wadding and locking them in a closet, you do what you can to protect them, and leave the rest to God.

Did you see that email floating around the internet for awhile, I think it happened in Southern California, about that draft mare that fell into a low-walled stock water-tank? Once in, she got a fore-hoof caught in the watering mechanism piping and couldn't get out. She was able to keep her nose above water so she could breathe. Her owners noticed the other horses acting strangely and went out to check and discovered her trapped. Calls to a local vet, husband with a welding torch (to cut away pipe), and a skiploader later, they lifted the water tank and rolled her out and onto her feet, completely fine though very mellow from sedatives. The pictures were unbelievable.

Try writing that into a story! Non-horse people would have a hard time buying it without a ton of setup.

I've got two sets of fencing and gates (one automatic) on my property and I STILL worry about my 'kids' getting loose.

Em, I'm going to post that number on my workboard and pin rejections underneath it -- with a big, red number of the total right on top! Thaniks, and welcome.