He is soooo sleepy eyed in all of these picture lol. I felt bad for messing up his nap. I was having trouble keeping him standing still (since he doesn't know whoa when I'm on him yet) because all he wanted to do was mug the camera and play with anything he could get his mouth on. I finally figured out the best way to make him stand still is to scratch him on his favorite spot on his neck and chest so I'm laying across his neck in a lot of the picture. I think they turned out decent so that's fine. Also as far as riding goes I wasn't on him long, just long enough to get pictures, so I don't know if this even technically counts as his third ride . . . :D Here's the rest of the pictures. Also I'll answer another question at the bottom of the post.
P.S. I forgot to measure him for his progress report which was technically supposed to be on his birthday so I'll get it done tomorrow! I'm curious to see if he made it to 15.2hh. Cross your fingers!
He's still butt high . . . and he's sinking his back under my weight. We will definitely have to work on long and low to strengthen his back.
He kept getting caught with his eyes closed lol.
Neck scratchies! Notice his head stretched up and tilted to one side and his cocked rear leg? He was loving it!
More scratches. He goes off into a trance when I scratch his itchies.
More scratches. And still relaxing his leg. :)
He turned his face out of the shot, but I actually for once like how I look in this photo so I kept it. :D
My feet hang below his belly soooo bad!! I really hope he gets bigger. :)
Scratches. He was practically falling asleep. :)
Hugs!
More hugs!
This last one is when he tried to eat the camera lol. :D My husband managed to get this shot before getting covered in pony slobbers.
Okay, my question is from appydoesdressage over at Musings From LogDog Acres. She asked, "Even as a 3 year old riding more than a few times a week wouldn't hurt him. Have you had his knees xrayed to see if they have closed?" My answer: No, not yet. The incident with the feed has me a bit strapped for cash. It's not just his legs I worry about though, it's his back (did you notice how he dropped it so drastically under my weight) because the growth plates in their spine don't harden until as late as seven years old!!! I'm just going to take it easy with him so I don't cause any long term damage or teach him to dislike being ridden due to muscle pain, etc. I'm still going to do stuff on the ground with him like going for walks and learning stuff with clicker. :D
If you have any questions feel free to ask. I like answering them so I think I'm going to start adding my answers to interesting questions at the bottom of each of my posts. :D Thanks for all the awesome comments guys! You all make blogging so worth it!
I love how relaxed he looks in these pics.
ReplyDeleteInteresting that he needs to improve his muscle tone to support you. This is so totally awesome to watch.
ReplyDeleteI am curious about those growth plates since I have ridden lots of younger horses in my day.
Mango Momma
The hugs picture is beautiful. :)
ReplyDeleteVery awesome photo shoot. Even with his eyes shut I don't think you guys took any bad pictures. You look fine up there.
ReplyDeletePlease don't get paranoid about his back. I'm sure he'll be fine with you riding him.
I think you're wise about the weight/riding/age thing. There are people around here who put Percherons to work under the saddle and in harness at two, and that is child abuse. My two area both just three years old and we are watching them both very carefully to determine when they can be ridden without causing any long-term damage. It will probably be Violette first as she is a heavier build than Vidock.
ReplyDeleteWonderful pictures, he looks so chilled out about the whole thing :)
ReplyDeleteCongrats on the great first rides! We had Riva's legs x-rayed when she turned 4 and her growth plates were closed (she is TB x Warmblood). She has not grown in height between her 4th and 5th year - but definitely changed shape in width, topline, shoulders, etc.
ReplyDeleteKeep up the good work - love the sweet pictures!
Only the third ride, and he looks like he's had you sitting up there his whole life.
ReplyDeleteWhat a calm, sweet boy.
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