Our daughters learned to ride on a QH X TB
gelding that had a wonderful mind. He always wanted to go one speed faster
than we adults wanted to go. Had a blazingly fast walk, and was pretty hot
when we rode him. But put one of the girls on him, and we could see the
different look in his eye. He shifted down into "granny low" and walked
quietly and carefully around in the yard. One of our girls at about age 4
or 5, rode him solo down the hill to her grandmother's house, 3/4 mile
away. He kept turning around just outside the yard and coming back.
She was in tears of frustration. I handed her a little switch off a bush
in our yard and told her to apply it to his butt when he tried that again.
She did....and they were on their way. She rode down the hill to visit
Grandma, then rode home. He was her mount until she was about 12, when we
found a great horse for her. This new guy was unregistered Standardbred who
could trot like a fiend. My husband finished his first 50-miler on him,
our daughter finished Tevis on him, she rode fences and worked cattle on him,
and he ended his years in Idaho as a packhorse on deer hunts. One of those
horses you wish you could clone. So was the QH X TB, who became a splendid
driving horse. We drove him in weddings, parades, out to picnics, and I
drove him twice to our girls' elementary school to pick them up in the
afternoon, 5 miles each way and two crossings of a state highway. Wouldn't
do that now, as traffic has become greater and faster.
The point here being......some horses just
know how to take care of kids. (Sorry, I was off
reminiscing.........)
My best memories with kids concern skiing and
riding. My kids started riding when they were 3 or so. They
started skiing when they were 6 and 9, we started them together. It was
just the best family time ever. For whatever reason, those horses and ponies
took better care of those kids than they did the adults. I took them on
their first 35 competitive ride when they were 6 and 9. Other than me
giving my horse heat bumps from turning around so much to encourage those kids
('it is just a little further' which was repeated after 5 miles until the
finish), those kids did just great. I was their worst problem as I was
nervous Nellie mom. They helped me in the barn with putting up hay,
cleaning stalls, etc. It didn't take long before they were skiing with
us either. Now they worry about old mom on the slopes. I always
felt that they learned a great appreciation of the out of doors as well as
good responsibility. Dr. Quackenbush's aunt
Jeanie
