Jenny and Jig

Category: Jig

  • What happened next

    In the days after Jig got his new home, it was a mix of challenge and fun. I immediately had a blast getting to know him by grooming and walking him around the pasture. I gave him treats and tried to just spend time with him. He seemed to enjoy the grooming and even let my kids pet him as well. He was eating well, but the worrisome thing was his pacing. He would spend most of the day pacing up and down the fence. From what I could gather, that was normal for a horse in a new environment. One day, he eventually stopped pacing and I was glad for that! He did create a nice path for water to flow down the hill in a big rain storm, though. Silver lining!

    One thing to note was that Jig came to me a bit skinny. I also had chosen to forego a vet check before I bought him because a few were not available to go to see him and I felt comfortable letting it go considering he had been living with our farrier. I had a vet come out about a month after he had been with us. He checked Jig out and said he seemed in good health and gave him his annual shots. I also wormed him. He did say he (and I) could use some training and said he felt that Jig had gotten away with quite a lot, but seemed like a good horse. He also asked how much I paid for him and said I got what I paid for..hmm..I don’t think that was a compliment because I didn’t pay that much in the world of horse buying! For full transparency in case it helps anyone, I paid 1200 and that included the transport to my house which was about an hour and half. He said he seemed like he might be a little lame and had a trainer that could confirm or deny and that I should reach out. That in itself will be another post! Overall, he said I should ride him and enjoy and see him next year.

    Here is Jig within the month that I got him:

    For feeding the vet said he was a bit thin and suggested a feeding regimen of alfalfa, senior stable mix, and wet cobb.

    Here is Jig 9 months later after that diet:

    At that time he got 2 to 3 flakes of alfalfa a day, a low starch/sugar stable mix with glucosamine and chondritin, wet cob, and sometimes I added Bute-less or MSM if the mix didn’t have it.

    9 months later and not without our share of issues along the way, but I do believe we have forged a bond and I’m very thankful for this horse. In many ways he is a dream come true!

  • How it all started

    I decided to start this blog to write out my journey with my horse, Jig, and any other barnyard and life musings.

    Jig is a 24 year old paint horse gelding. He is my first horse to own. I got him from a farrier we use for our goats, who got him from one of her clients that was getting rid of all of her horses after her husband had passed. Besides the husband riding him, the only information our farrier had was that he had been a barrel racing horse previously with a woman who had owned him. That sure explains his fiery spirit.

    He came with papers, and it showed a farm he had been born on in California as the original owner. It doesn’t seem to exist anymore. When I showed my horse owning neighbor the papers, she didn’t think they were his because of the coloring. It showed a tobiano foal from a gray mare. If you see him now, you would think he is just a gray quarter horse. However, I have read that paints can lose their coloring over time, and become “ghost paints.” I have noticed when I give him a bathe that I can see the tobiano marking outlines. So, I’m going with ghost paint!

    How Jig came into my life is when our lovely farrier said she had the perfect horse for us when I mentioned I was thinking of getting one. I went to her place with my young daughter to see him and “test ride.” We followed her to go out and catch him with a bucket of grain. He came running. At first I was taken aback at how tall he was. It was quite intimidating. I measured him later and he is around 16 hands. Big boy!

    She groomed and saddled him and rode him first. Then it was my turn, and although I was nervous, I was so happy to be riding again. I thought about it for about a week after we went home and really couldn’t say no. I will say, my husband had doubts due to his age, any my talented horsewoman neighbor said “she’s just looking for somewhere for him to die.” Oof! I just couldn’t escape the feeling that we needed each other. Me much more so than him, probably! After all, he was enjoying munching on grass in a huge pasture with a knowledgeable farrier taking care of him! I am a mom of two though, and I really wanted a project for me. That’s a story for another time though.

    So, Jig arrived in April for me as an early birthday present. I was home with my daughter waiting on the porch for the trailer to arrive. It was quite a scene. My dear farrier coming down the road with her big truck and trailer, popped her cowboy hat topped head out the window and asked if it was ok to park in front of my neighbor’s house. She pulled up and I had to tell my neighbor I didn’t quite take her advice! She said, “Nope, you sure didn’t, but you’ll have fun though!” I was glad she didn’t disapprove too much because I think she’s very cool. There was a lot of neighing coming out of the trailer. Both from Jig and the horse the farrier brought along as a buddy, and all 7 of my neighbor’s horses excitedly greeting them.

    When she brought him out of the trailer he had a slight limp and gash on his back leg. It was covered in a red colored medicine which made it look worse. The farrier said he had cut it on the fence that morning. Not a great start for sure. She walked him in through the gate and it was a very exciting yet nerve wracking moment. I definitely had thoughts of “what have I done?!” floating through my head. He was quite nervous, loud, and fidgety as she tied him and I was unsure of what I had gotten myself into. She reminded me that it was a new place for him and would take him time to settle in. After we got all of his belongings together (he came with a mechanical hackamore and grooming bag) we let him into the pasture. He immediately started eating grass and the farrier and I went to sign papers and I gave her the check. We said goodbye and see you in 6 weeks for a hoof trim, and my three year old daughter and I sat together to watch him and I took in a deep breath. I have a horse! Little me would be so proud.