Charlie is lookin' for cookies. Because of the extremely soggy nature of our winters, where we keep our horses, we give our horses the winter season completely off. Yesterday I got Charlie in the round pen, for a very short and light re-introduction to working out. What can I say? She did great. Her actions and re-actions to my cues were only the slightest bit rusty. Her gait was a lot better than the last time I'd had her in there (she's got that slight arthritis in her rea

Is having a bond with your horse important to you? When going down the path to horse ownership many of us may have an expectation that, at some point, there will be a certain level of bonding. Being completely up front with you, I would have to say that in my experience this could happen at any given point in your journey with your horse, but that it greatly depends on what you do with it. In some cases, however, it won’t happen at all. It is a sad, frustrating, and disappoin

I'm writing this as an update to what I've been going through in my journey with my OTTB Charlie. Being the owner of a OTTB can be so rewarding, but it can also be incredibly disappointing, and scary. I don't have any answers yet, but I will soon. Charlie is lame, and I'm not sure why. She limps pretty badly, and so I have called the vet to come take a look at her (which will happen soon, but as of writing this has not). Since owning her, I have rarely been able to ride her,

Charlie having a little conversation with her baby brother. I know no one asked for this, but my fingers are itching to write and it's all I could think of, so here we go! I was not in the market for a Thoroughbred when I met Charlie. I was looking for a project horse, yes, but something I could actually get into barrel racing on. Yeah, I totally missed the mark! Some negative stereotypes about Thoroughbreds can be true! In a list below I have confessed the major ones I have

If you have been among horses at all, I'm sure you've heard of at least one or two of these stereotypes, if not all of them. Thoroughbreds are- * Hot blooded * Too sensitive (personality/body) * Mentally ruined/crazy * Difficult to handle/don't want to work * Not easy keepers (require too much feed) * Or that they are prone to having bad quality feet/legs.         There may be more, but these are the most common assumptions that I think we all come across at some point.      

There are a few ways people tend to buy/get horses, and sadly it looks like some of the more dishonest and risky ways are becoming a lot more prevalent, which actually horrified me when I was in the search for my current horse. The fact that there are online shops, where you can bid on or purchase a horse that you haven't seen in person is absolutely insane.          When I was in the market for a horse, it almost seemed like there weren't many available in the more tradition

Charlie really enjoys her mash    I am super happy to provide something really helpful here! The first question most OTTB adopters might have is, "Just what do I need to feed this thing?". It's a very good question, and it isn't going to be a 'one size fits all' answer. I can only share what has worked for our own OTTBs. When I brought Charlie home, she was not the typical 'race fit' horse just retired from the track. She had been taken completely off of her training to be a

There are advocates out there that swear that the training of these young horses is not harmful to them. There are voices out there, that I have a great deal of trust in, that go into detail about how the training of these young athletes should work. In their experiences, it has not been enough of an issue for them to speak against it. To that I still have to disagree. While I understand that their experience has led them to believe that this is not a problem for the young ho

Remington Remington is not my horse; he is my mom's horse. I have worked with him, and ridden him on a few occasions, so I'm just sharing my perspective on him.         While I was on the hunt for my next horse, my parents had put in a request with a Thoroughbred rescue team for a rideable horse, and they had done it with the intention for it to be my next horse, however I had found Charlie before we heard back from them. Once we did hear back from them, and that they had fo

This is my OTTB. Her registered name is Bitz of Code, her barn name is Charlie, and when she's being a little spicy, I call her Miss Charlene!         Charlie was born into the life of a Racing Thoroughbred, here in California. For a time, her home was at Golden Gate Fields. From birth, she was raised with the hope that she would become a racehorse, and she was put through the process that all racing horses go through. According to her previous owners she was one of the most