[I LuvMyHorses]

Well, isn't he a handsome boy!!! I love both of your outfits. Great pics

[ivyschex]

Very nice! How old is he? And how long did it take you to train him to show that well?

Thanks,

Ivy

[tbtrainer]

You guys look fantastic... love the photo shopped ears... who knew?

[AintNoSaint]

He is 9 years old. I started him as a 3 year old and got all the groundwork and the sitting on him part down. But once I was on him he would only go backwards (very slowly, if at all). I put him with my trainer while I went off to college and she had a very hard time with him. He was SO stubborn.

I put him with another trainer for a while that got him broke to ride (he was going saddleseat - country english pleasure - as a 4 & 5 year old) and I showed him saddleseat for a year. It turned out not to be his thing, so we switched him to a hunter/western horse halfway thru 2004 (he was 5). He has not been "in training" with a trainer since 2004, but I have ridden him and taken lessons with a few different trainers.

I've been showing him fairly lightly since then, and we only do a few shows a year. Once this horse was broke he was REALLY easy - he is an amazingly quick learner, and doesn't forget much. I don't actually ride him very much...I let him be a horse, and try to trail ride as much as possible, only schooling for the show ring when we have a competition coming up. It keeps him really happy and willing to give me 100% when we go in the ring. We have a great partnership.