The first day was the hardest. We had to move Little Dude into Lookie’s stall the day we put Lookie down. That was hard for me to do, but I had to. The horse next to him needs a companion at night.

The Friday after, the farrier came out for LD & realized that there was no more Lookie to have done. No more seeing the farrier every 3-4 weeks. No more frantic phone calls and texts telling dennis that lookie had lost his packing &/or shoes. I get to see the farrier in a more normal time frame now.

I miss Lookie & his antics. There is no more dancing horse asking for treats next to the fence. The gates are safe for the moment, as niether LD or Deseo are as smart as Lookie. Don’t get me wrong, LD is a character, just a different type of character. He dives fences. He plays with me in the pasture. He give hugs and kisses (as long as you get down on his level).  It is going to take me some time to adjust to this new life.

As far as a new horse, We am looking for one, but it is going to take time. We won’t just settle for just anyone.  It is got to be a lot like Lookie. We will know the horse when we meet him. I don’t think that we are going to seriously look until after the winter season is done. The show season is really busy for Paul & I, but you never know.

LD will be showing this season with me as his driver (I hope). Wish us Luck. If everything goes as planned, our first public outing will be September 18th, 2010 in Wellington, FL.

So, let me begin. Lookie was put down on July 5th, 2010, after an almost 3 year fight with laminitis. I did what was best for him, not what was easiest for me. I loved him so much, it hurts. We had plans for the winter show season, but they were not meant to be.

We always dreaded the summer. Lookie’s feet were always at thier worst during this time of year. This year was no different. What began like an abcsess or an injury in his rear left leg, became the catalyst for that foot & his front feet. They just couldn’t hold together long enough. 

We will carry on. Little dude will have To learn to show without his big brother & Port Mayaka will be emotional for me. I think about him everytime I’m around the barn.

Lookie is with us in spirit & I will never forget him. There will be other horses in our lives, but lookie will always be special in my eyes. I just hope we can live up to the expectations that lookie had for us, now that he is gone.

Paul has been continuing to try riding lookie in dressage. He has some success with it. We have also been driving him a lot more. I think it is helping him strengthen his back a lot.

So, let me formally introduce little dude. he is 7yr old 39″ mini. lots of trust/handling issues. I don’t know if he will ever be completely sane, but I love him too bits. he is getting the driving thing SLOWLY but surely. I had to get him a custom harness in order to get one to fit him correctly. We have wrecked a couple times already. It is always for something you didn’t plan or train for when you long-line/drag.

The first time he wrecked the cart, his back foot slid & his breeching bumped into his rear. he bucked up & put his back feet in my face a couple times. Then, he got a leg over one of the shafts and the cart rolled. I got tossed, but I held on to the riens and I got him stopped. he busted up the harness, but the cart was fine. the lesson learned was that he needed to be a little tighter in his rig.

the second time, we got too close to a jump in the arena (note: he doesn’t like when one of the cart wheels leaves the ground) again we bucked, legs went over the shafts & again I was tossed. cart got some very bent shafts and I a very bruised hip. He went back to ground driving until I could re-evaluate the driving issues.

I decided that …
1) he needed a better fitting harness
2) he was getting a kicking/bucking strap
3) he IS going to learn to drive & be a proper young gentleman.

So, fast forward 2 montths from the last wreck. We have been working LD almost everyday & he has been getting better. With the better fitting harness, the kicking strap, and a repaired cart, I think we might be able to a competent driver one day. Lookie has been helping show LD that he can do it. Lookie acts more like a big brother to LD. I am still a little gun shy, but Paul has demonstrated that in his new rig LD can’t get the cart flipped.

Time will tell. Lookie & LD are attending a driving clinic with bob giles in the first part of april. LD MIGHT be going to the port mayaka may day HDT. I have to see how his driving progresses.

Paul has been working with Lookie a lot. I am going to post some videos of parts of his workout from today. I really do believe that Lookie & him are going to do great this winter. I think he might try to qualify for regionals. I don’t know. We will see.

Paul has been taking some lessons with lookie to work on his posture and Lookie’s relaxation. I believe that it is working. The pair is starting to look like a dressage pair.

I am hoping to post more often as I get back to being more active wth horses then I have been. I have been pretty sick since the end of July, but I am doing much better now, so let the horse games begin anew.

Paul has been working Lookie both saddle-less & bridle-less. I decided to borrow some one’s video camera (thanks dad!) and video tape Paul & Lookie’s riding. I have posted a compilation to YouTube for everyone’s enjoyment. The video contains several clips. Paul working saddle-less & bridle-less (the is only a rope around Lookie’s neck), Paul riding Lookie’s canter in a saddle & halter (don’t totally trust him yet in the canter) & then Paul working Lookie traditionally.

Hope you enjoy.

Well, if you have been following my twitter posts (@lookielou), you know that we got Lookie a harness & a cart.    I don’t think I have ever seen Lookie so happy to work. He loves the cart. We have been having issues with his legs, so it was decided that Lookie would become my driving horse.

We had gotten a harness for another horse, so we pulled it out and fitted to him (blinders & all). He never flinched. We then ground drove him for a couple days (dragging a trailer tire down a gravel driveway along with him) & then I ordered the cart. I got the cart & hooked him up. He was an angel. We went to the St. Sebastian River Preserve Area and drove him around. Same thing (a perfect angel) (see video below). We have continued to drive him. I am really looking forward to seeing his progress as we progress with his CDE/Driven Dressage Training.

Also, I didn’t get the best video from Paul & Lookie’s saddle seat class. I did get a good picture though.

I did post a video of my friend riding saddle seat in the same class. Below is the video of that. In the video, you do get glimpses of Paul and Lookie in the video as well. I was the best that I could get together. Bonnie is riding a Fjord horse, named Thor, in the class. She is also the one who talked Paul into riding Lookie Saddle seat.

So, I have been doing lots of research. minis, carts, ponies, events, etc. I went over to plant city to a HDT. it was cool. driven dressage, cones, and a marathon. I met some of the nicest people. I am still looking for the right horse, but as the news of my discipline change, I have been able to start to work with other people’s driving horses. I look forward to what the future holds for me.

On a another front, Paul is going to be riding Lookie saddle seat tomorrow at a local 4H show. I am going to do 2 halter classes with Lookie before hand with him as well. I will post the video of the class tomorrow (hopefully). Our friend, Bonnie, will be showing with Lookie in the saddle seat class. It is going to be a fun day!!!

I had a good show day yesterday. Lookie was calm and willing. Romeo was up to his tricks, but he still performed just the way Paul believed he would. I don’t think I ever had such a peaceful show day. Normally they are hectic at best. I am always worried or rushing something. But, Paul has been really pushing Lookie to behave and do what he is supposed to & that new saddle has really helped Lookie. He is actually starting to use his back more effectively with suspension and power. It is amazing to feel. I still need to figure out what my hands are doing (I still am not realizing when I lose contact or when i am using inside rein instead of the outside) and learn to sit his trot without using my legs to grip, but I think that I am finally starting to make progress into the realm of just riding and not thinking about every single detail of the ride.

I finally picked up a book called “Centered riding by Sally Swift” and only have just begun to read it. I am hoping that it will be help me. I have read about the soft eyes and the breathing. I only realized that I have been holding my breath during Lookie’s antics and if I remember to breath, he calms down A LOT faster.

The soft eyes is still a big trick for me because I just don’t always prepare Lookie for where we need to be. It is going to be a work in progress.With Romeo, Paul is going to start working with him & me on the canter thing. When I rode Romeo’s canter a couple weeks ago, Paul discovered why Lookie might be flipping his leads on me. I twist my shoulders every stride and don’t follow the motions in my hips. (As I said, I am not a natural rider, just a determined one!) Romeo is just WAY more tolerant of my funny body reactions. I am actually looking forward to it. I have never really ridden a canter correctly, this should be interesting (video cameras might be needed…. keep you informed – LOL!)

Lisa (Romeo’s Owner) took some pictures of Romeo & Lookie at the show yesterday. I have uploaded them. Here is the link to the flickr:http://www.flickr.com/photos/lookieloudressage/sets/72157615018748008/

Also, just so everyone knows, Mary, the young lady that Paul was training, has decided to take some time off from horse shows & training. We wish her well in what ever she decide to do.

Here is my example. As everyone knows Lookie & I don’t always ride up to our potential, but we have been working on it diligently. So, since Paul had been working him almost exclusively, Paul had noticed that Lookie still didn’t want to round his back. Paul said these words “Lookie needs another saddle. This one just isn’t working for him.” Now mind you that this would be Lookie’s 6th saddle since I have owned him. They either seem to fit me or him, but not both of us at the same time. So, Paul & I talked. We decided that we would go get Lookie & I fitted for this next saddle. I checked around with my horsey friends & looked around online and set the idea aside for a couple weeks. But then I ran into this ad in dressage today on Schleese (saddle fit for life) and i was floored at how versatile their saddles were and how they can change the shape to accommodate a wide range of horses. So, I called, asked some questions, & set up an appointment. Boy, am I glad I did! I found out that none of my saddle had actually been wide enough for him & that his shoulders were being pinched from the saddles because of his high withers. They measured me and Lookie & then had us try out several saddles. The first one Lookie was his normal self in & Paul ended up having to ride him. But, the next one helped him relax his back & rounded for the first time without being forced to. It was wonderful! He didn’t like the last saddles, we bought the Schleese Elite for him. It has been working for us so well. He now willingly stretches his next down & he is much more under himself. So, was the purchase one of a tackaholic, you decide.