This was my mare Star, 15.3 hds 1100 lbs. A now 13 yr old mare of unknown origins, we believe her to be an Appendix. She was a very sweet mare to deal with from the start. She was a rescue from the Petaluma Livestock Yard. Stubborn as all get out did not want to load when we got her. She had been in great health expect her feet. We had no back ground info and started her from scratch. I discovered she responded very well to Clinton Anderson training. I had several people complain that she had Navicular I said no she didn't cause she wasn't limping every step. I took her to the vet and what she had was Laminitis an inflammation of the inner hoof wall tissues. She was caught just in time and her feet saved. This effort made her front feet very easy to pick up. The next boarding facility I took her to had a trailer I could use a trailer to train her to load. I got her to load 5 times after 25 minutes of intensive training. Now only takes a couple minutes to get her to load. Would have been easier but she was never loaded but once a month. I got her trained to ride in a halter and bareback pad. My son happened to be the first to ride her then I did more so. Last year she had been in Gymkhanas and doing well under saddle. She had her health issues along the way, but she did wonderfully. Even with all her aches and pains and dealing with cold back she was a sweet pleasing mare. From scratch to finished horse. Rescues can be the most difficult horses to work with and she had been with her cold back issue, I got her over it, and her pic above shows her in good health and happy. For those who do not know about some horse equipment, the white reins are homemade draw reins (not a tie down). They were used for a short time to help round out her neck and strengthen her back. In the process they keep them from gaining momentum into a buck. She had still full range of motion she could even toss her head the reins just kept her from tossing her nose out which kept her flat. They were only used for a months time and, only for warm up, and then taken off her. My son does not have cowboy boots, because I could not afford them at the time. To replace them every couple visits I only got him every other weekend. He would grow out of them. Sorry I am putting this up I had a person with very bad tastes who decided to take it upon themselves to comment poorly on this picture without knowing the situation. This person did not even cowboy up and sent a false email to me so I could not respond back. I love all horses very much and would never do anything to them to hurt them. She is a very happy horse.
Better picture coming soon. This was my mare as well some time ago. She was not a rescue but of a great bloodline. This is Sunnie a breeding stock APHA, 15.1 hds and 1000 lbs. I got her at 18 months old. Her new owners gave her the nick name Turtle cause she was a horse that loved to go slow. I had her trained with Ollie Galligan and took lessons learning more from him. He broke her in a halter with a saddle and she did beautifully. He is a reining trainer she was not really built for it, or had the speed for it. So I started training her for western pleasure. After a month I took her to a show in Sebastopol, and she was a blast to be on and so well behaved. I went to do the Futurity class which is 4 and under. LOL I was stopped from entering, because everyone thought she was much older from her behavior. I told them no she is 3 yrs and I just trained her so well that she behaved like a any horse should in at show or anywhere else. We got to do the class. We did a few other classes. We got nothing but 6th place, but I was happy it was her first show and she was so well behaved. I had several offers for her by the end of the show, but she wasn't for sale for another yr. I breed her to a stallion called Imperial Snips looked much like her but 16 hds 1300 lbs, and a QH. The next pic was the result.
Stormie a few moths old. Sire Imperial Snips and Dam Justanothersunrise (Sunnie). His name was to be Midnight Storm for he had been born at that time. A little brick house of muscle, a spitfire and very smart. A cute little sweetheart. I sold him by the time he was 9 months old didn't get to do much with him. You can see his legs in the picture with mom.
Cross-Calaber. Palomino Anglo-Arab. I was 17 yrs when I got him. He was my first horse and the one I learned most of my rescued horse training with. He had been confiscated by the police, down in the desert along with 3 others. At 18 months he had still been nursing to survive. Calaber was for the most part healthy, but still a little underweight. He was the hardest horse I ever worked with. He could not be unhaltered for a couple months, until I was taught properly how to catch a horse in his frame of mind, never had a problem after. I knew how to catch a horse that had a good life, but he was for the most part never handled and afraid. He was released to me under the condition that I had a year to turn him around. Make him a stable friendly horse. He was head, ear shy, and to approach him with out his knowledge was to have him jump 3 ft out of his skin. It took 4 months of much patience to get him over his head shyness, at this time as well I could lift his feet, and brush him all over except the ears. At the 9 month mark I could saddle him and even mounted him didn't go so well LOL. He was relesed to me fully for the Officer that released him to me saw how much I done with him. I got him at 18 months by the time he was 4 yrs old. He was solid quiet horse, with no problems with ears. I had been tossed a couple of times but I learned to keep my seat and he stopped bucking. He was my greatest teacher. Dogs could run under him, cars and truck didn't scare him. Last I knew he was in a good home in Salinas in his forever home. I hope I get the chance to see him again, and see how he is doing, but being close to 20 yrs by now I may never get to see him again. Love to the Foregone Family.