Thursday, March 15, 2012

bitless and in the wild

I picked up a hackamore at Dover on Wednesday so Lauren could ride Lucy in it.

On a small side rant, Dover had two hackamore options:

1. Herm Sprenger Comi Hackamore for $185
2. Herm Sprenger Short Shank Hackamore for $94

SERIOUSLY, Dover?! That's all you have to offer? SmartPak has a cheapie $25 hackamore that is not overly pretty to look at, but it does the job!

Anyway, I chose the $94 version and I still can't believe that of all of the Herm Sprenger products I could have spent $94 on, it was a hackamore that I bought.

The GOOD news is that Lu seems to really like it! Lauren had a good ride yesterday (Wednesday) and today, and though I need to doctor my bridle a bit to allow the hackamore to sit higher up on her face, she really does seem so much happier in it than she is in a bit.

Maybe it wasn't such a bad expense, afterall. I mean I could have bought three cheap bits that she would have probably hated.

Anyway, I had a crappy day today, so even though Lauren already rode, I decided to take Lucy and Cairo on a trail ride. It is really hard to be sad, upset, and stressed out when I'm out in the woods with my dog and my horse. Jeez I am beginning to sound like a country song!

Lucy did really well. She was a bit looky at first, but I let her stand still and survey everything when she needed to. We went along the trails and around a big field, about an hour in total, though most of it was walking. We did trot a bit and we had a little canter, but Cairo got very excited and went into hyperactive mode when Lucy started cantering, and though Lu didn't do anything bad, I chose to mitigate any potential blow-up and just bring her back down to a walk.

On the walk back to the barn, I recorded a little video so you could all see Lucy's newest trick:



She's a clever muffin :)

12 comments:

  1. She's so cute! Loved that video. =-) Sorry about having a crappy day.

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  2. Awww, treats! Cairo is such a good dog sticking with you guys.

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  3. I have a Herm Sprenger hackamore. I remember getting it a few years ago off eBay. You paid $94. It was $82 at the the time I got it, and I ended up paying $36. I've got a fleecey biothane noseband and a curb chain on it for Mitch, and I ride him occasionally in it. He likes it quite a bit.

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    1. It sounds like you got something closer to the $184 version that Dover has. I would have preferred that version because the action seemed closer to the Western one I borrowed to try her on. This is just a leather noseband with the shanks on either side. It does't have a curb chain or anything under her chin, just the leather strap.

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    2. Nah, purty sure it was the now-$94 one. It had the padded leather noseband piece and the chin strap. I got the biothane noseband and curb chain from Running Bear. In turquoise, of course.

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  4. OMG! That video made me laugh hysterically. Too freakin cute:)

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  5. I have the same hackamore. I too cringed at the price but the horses do like it, so I guess it was worth it.... Such a cute little video! I would love to have a dog to take along on trail rides. Sigh, maybe someday.

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  6. Lucy is such a smart pony! :)

    For sooome reason I was saying your dogs name as 'Kayro'... I guess that is just the southerner in me! haha! From now on, I will say Cairo! :)

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  7. Ouch. Score one for Dover.

    Glad you have something to ride in though. Fun times!

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  8. Shouldve looked on ebay. I got an amazing leather/sheepskin Hackamore for $25, free Shipping. Works just fine.

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    1. The problem is I needed it rather quickly so that Lauren didn't miss another week of riding. But I agree, eBay is awesome!

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