Finding a Sound Horse

This is the photo that they posted of the mare. I liked what I saw, but did not like the fact that her front and back feet were so close together. When I drove down to see her, she does not stand this way as she stands square. She is a sweetheart, and quick as a cat! She looks so much like the first horse that I ever owned, "Jigger."

What I wish I could change about her, is her size. She is 14 hands tall, and I like a taller horse.

It will not quit raining here and is so muddy, that I want to ride her the first time when the ground is a bit firmer. Still wet, but not like Owl sh!+!

Funny how she does not trust a new person. She is skittish around the head and face, but once she gets to know you, she will let you touch her anywhere.

The first horse I owned, Jigger, would take advantage of a new rider. The first thing he would do was to put his head down and start grazing. He knew that was a no-no. But he was testing. Then when the new rider would kick him slightly to make him get his head up, he would lunge and kick. He was hilarious, but I would have to warn a new rider not to let him get his head down from the beginning.

But with an experienced rider, I would just let it happen. I remember telling an older man that he would try him up to see where they stood; when he got on him, he spurred him out and then Jigger knew that he was not dealing with a green rider. Such a very smart horse he was. He was half Quarter Horse and half Mustang. The picture above looks so much like him that It could pass for him easily.

That's a great pedigree. I've had a bunch of poco buenos and they are fun horses. Every one of them had a huge personality. They are by far the smartest horses I've ever dealt with and every one of them had their own specific quirk. The jackie bee should help quite a bit in keeping her babies good natured. The blue valentine can go either way. I've seen quite a few that were really good minded but some of them can really favor hancock.

My oldest gelding reminds me of those great horses of years ago. He's out of a linebred Yellowjacket mare, sired by a Dreamfeature X Skipper W bred stallion. He is a registered Appy with show papers lol! He was actually a nationally ranked rope horse in the ApHC as a 3 and 4 year old. His dam and paternal grand dam were rank mares, but this guy has always been ready to work. Fast, level headed, grit, can work all day, and will take on any cow.  He is one of very few horses I  have ever rode that will push stock down an alley with his chest.  I can throw a big spade bit in his mouth and go cut stock, bareback and all I have to do is hold on! I have no idea how I will replace him when the time comes... 




rollers board game

Here is a cutting horse stallion that I really like not far from me.

Chuckie, Yellow Jacket was reportedly mean as hell.... and twice as fast. I'm fairly certain he is in one of the Western Horsemens' "Legends" books. If you haven't ever checked them out, you should. I get the feeling you will enjoy them. My gelding Outlaw, looks like a shorter version of YJ. My gelding's dam was a classic YJ. She was mean. She tested you every time you threw a leg over her. She was pretty, a mile long red dun with a pretty head, huge hip and perfect legs. And she was fast. I mean, the kind of fast where your eyes dry out because the tears have been wind whipped right out of them. When we were kids, my brother and I would race our favorite mares at least once a week. His favorite at the time was that dun YJ mare. We had a field driveway about 2 miles long, fairly flat and pure sand. We would flat race from a dead start, to the mile mark....bareback with snaffles on our mares (so dumb, but my god, it was fun!). That dun YJ mare beat EVERY single animal we put against her, no matter how it was bred, built or trained. She would stretch out so hard, her top line dropped down 6 inches and her ears disappeared into her neck. It also took her another 1/2 mile to stop. She was an impressive mare, to say the least.

It's funny, but my Outlaw is just a bit mean too. What you don't see in the pictures I posted is that he will crow hop at least one time every time I kick him into a lope. You also don't see that when he's eating grain, be it out of a pan or a bunk, he lifts his left foot off the ground and tucks it up against his elbow, like he wants to paw but knows he will get smacked with a bucket if he does lol. You also don't see that he is capable of opening gates, and when he goes for an adventure likes to destroy my lawn during the night. He also loves to bait my dogs to kick the shyte out of them. Having said all that, he is still one of the 5 best horses I have ever rode!

Chuckie if you like a horse with brains, stick with the poco buenos.
I had one that would untie any horse within reach. He never untied himself in the five or so years that I owned him.
His half brother would untie himself no matter what knot you used and then just stand there and wait for you to come see it and then he'd act like he was going to take off when you got close (but never did)
I had one, one of the sweetest little mares I've ever owned, that would pin her ears and make a face at cowboys. She'd stand there and act fine and then when they least expected it she'd do it and make them jump. I owned her from weaning until ten and she never bit anyone. My kids learned how to ride on her. as soon as she did it and got the reaction she wanted she'd work her lips like "that was fun". If they didn't react she never did it to them again.
I had one that would open gates.
I had one that I could step off of and push cattle on foot and he'd work by himself just as well as if I was on him.

I owned an Appaloosa mare. She was 16 hands tall and as calm as they come. From the first time I rode her, I could get close to any kind of farm equipment such as combines and cotton pickers. She was a real sweetheart!!