RB Week in Review Videos

[Michelle Clarke]

[fantasykiger]

great video ..I love seeing your horses in action Daily farm life with those characters must be a total joy. I smiled as Halconero tried to play with the chickens.
I see that you aquired Captain, what a darling colt he is, walking around the barn greeting everyone.

[DianneC]

Who is the stout girl on the far left at 1:52? And the one in the lead at 1:41? They are all so healthy and happy looking, such a pleasure to watch them! Captain is so calm, just checking everything and everybody out. Interesting that he baby mouthed Charro but not Hawk.

[Michelle Clarke]

The one on the far left at 1:52 is Cora: Desi x Momma (QHx)...she is a big gal! The one in the lead at 1:41 is your favorite Dianne; Nesas' filly Luna. I love Electra (at 1:07 and 1:25) - she's such a little sausage!

Yes, I was grateful for the opportunity to purchase Captian. He is a real sweet horse and they have done a nice job handling him. I plan to acclimate him with Fabio and Brune (the yearling colts), probably next week. He definately needs some boys to play with! His two favorite horses to visit are Hawk and Charro. In Charros' alley, there is a regular Preifert panel cutting it in half, with the other half attached to Capitans pen. I let him in their for some time during the day and he and Charro play fight and nip at eachother. Charro never gets out of hand or rough with him.

To this day, if I bring Rev (who is now eight years old) over by Charro, Rev will tuck his tail and baby mouth. Rev was raised with Charro, Madonna and also Chilli and Chach for the first few months. Charro used to play with Rev all the time - not so much Chach. Now that I think about it, Charro is not to fond of the crossbred colts, but really likes the purebreds and interacts with them.

The next frames with Hawk was with Spike, the rooster, climbing over the hen to let Hawk know he needed to move on...Hawk decided it best to leave!

[DianneC]

Yes, I kind of knew it was Luna and you're right, she's my fav. The others are all striking looking, especially MisChiva, but all are exceptional.

[Michelle Clarke]

Chiva is my favorite. She's not the most girlie looking filly, but she is by far the sweetest, smartest, most curious and active of them all. I am actually not thrilled about the pinto color, but I have high hopes for her for producing some nice foals in the future. She is Charro top and bottom, so that maternal line is strong.

I do like Luna lots but she has a lot to prove to me being Nesas' first foal. She started out being a very bossy, assertive alpha with this group, but after getting corrected quite a bit from me, she has calmed down and began to be more fair. I am looking forward to doing some training with her to see where her mind is and how much she really tries. She can be emotional but holds it together and does not wig out.

Kahlua is her full sister and is sensitive, but not emotional. She is actually pretty level headed, so that is a good sign for future Nesa babies.

[DianneC]

Do you find that color and mind type goes together? I find red heads more hot and emotional, but I've only had two and they were related.

[Michelle Clarke]

Interesting question...something I have been keeping an eye on with our breeding program. I do find that many traits are linked; of course, there are always exceptions. The dun horses were known forever with the old cowboys to be the best horses; roans are said to be hard to train and yes, the reds difficult because they are more sensitive. I wonder though, how much of the color was related to being certain bloodlines.

It is definately related when you look at Paints. Many vets/farriers have told me the worst horses to deal with are the toveros. My take is that when you start getting white over the spine and brain, it effects the neuro system. Scientists had to stop using albino rats for experiements because they were not getting true results. White skin, lacking of pigment, is an issue. The biggest issue is when you start breeding paint to paint to paint - not so much color to solid. Generations of lack of pigment affects things more. Just look at the breeds of animals that are white (lacking of pigment) that are very prone to being deaf - now linked to paints in the horse breeds also. Prone to cancer and other maladies.

Funny though...consistantly the worst horses we have in for training are Paints that have not color - cropouts. There are plenty of times we get a horse in and after a few weeks, I see a pattern in behavior and ask the owner the breeding - bingo - cropout! Not saying they are all bad, but when they are bad - they are bad!

[sbutter]

Love the video!

[Michelle Clarke]

This weeks video...will have sound shortly.

[sbutter]

Love these videos! Just keep them coming!

[fantasykiger]

That is a another great video, love watching the babies play. I did notice a couple of the horses do the same thing my Pintaloosa mare does when trotting around, whether on the end of a lunge line or freely, they drop their nose to the ground. My Pintaloosa will drop her nose so low to actually glide it across the dirt for a few strides, like she is tracking. Not so bad when it is just dirt but when I am ponying her and she drags it along the pavement on the road, I worry she might leave some skin behind...silly girl.

[DianneC]

Chinny did that too at a big trot when he was at liberty. I called it the tracking trot because it sure looked like he was searching for scent.

[lindad]

Love the videos. Always looked forward to Dianne and Joan's photography, now I can look forward to these videos. Your horses are just wonderful!

[Michelle Clarke]

Thanks for the comments....we actually teach the horses that reach. It is part of our relax response when moving forward and stepping those hind legs far underneath. We want the back loose and swinging, the muscle groups extending and the neck hanging the head (not holding it up) without dropping the base of the neck. This is the first part of our longevity program and taking the stress off of the skeletal structure and joints.

I will get some video of Rev, who is further along in these exercises....probably not this week, as the roundpen is under water after 17 inches of rain!!!