> I guess I'd like to ask Nancy what she sees in these videos. Well - there's a question I have been pondering myself. And my answer really doesn't have much to do with the photos. Tosca seems to have about the range of gaits that Hunter has, which works really well for what I do.
We purchased two mares. Tosca, who tends to be a bit lazy, was purchased for Stephanie to use as a therapy horse. She would mainly be led at the walk with a shifting load on her back. Tosca took one look at Stepanie and recognized her job - on the ground. Yrsa was an impulse purchase. I took one look at her sweet little face, wanted Tosca to travel with a friend, just wanted her to bring her home. She seems more energetic, gaits at liberty and melts my heart. I don't care what she is good (or not good at). What concerns me is that Tosca can be a little grumpy - bucked when we put Stephanie up on her. She uses her ears very expressively. She really sat down on the cross ties when a cat jumped out in front of her and then threw herself sideways into a bucket which rolled over and clattered around. Her reaction was not at all out of line, but it is out of line for Stephanie.. So ... what I'm thinking is that we might switch or at least let both mares try out the therapy horse role. Tosca is 13.3 and very sturdy. She could easily carry me. The laziness might go away with fitness or a saddle that fits her better. Yrsa is smaller, sweeter, calmer, but doesn't have a bond with Stephanie. I'm open to suggestions. What I was hoping for was a quiet lead line horse for a disabled rider and a nice trail horse for a crazed endurance rider. That's a joke, but I know it's the perception some have of endurance. I was actually thinking slow limited distance, that's 25 miles over a six hour period. I also like a horse that is well enough trained to do some arena work when the trails are too wet to use. Nancy
