Amazing Riddle
On the shorter side, this horse is full of spirit and strength. He is constantly flipping his long mane to draw attention to himself. He is very smart and will take advantage of any opportunity to search pockets for treats.
Statistics - A Description of Riddle
Amazing Riddle goes by the barn name "Riddle". He is a Spotted Tennesee
Walking Horse gelding that was born in 2007 and he also gaits (walks out fast).
He is not actually "Spotted", but that is how they describe a pinto colored TWH.
He is officially a large pony at 14-1 (57 inches), just one inch short of being
conswidered a horse.
He is considered a black and white, but is black color is really more of a grey. His
mane also has the greying, the hairs are long and slightly kinky. And his tail is mostly
black with grey and he holds it up like a flag whenever he walks fast or runs around in
his pen. He has a wide white blaze that covers his face from his forehead all the way to
his nose. Around his eyes remains dark, so when he rolls his eyes, the white scelera of
his eyeball really stands out.
The Beginning - How We Obtained Riddle
Riddle came to the ranch in mid December of 2014, weeks after his picture had
been forwarded to us. Yes, our hearts always go out to the down trodden,
but there was something special about him. The Oregon Human Society had
been struggling for over a year to find homes for several rescued horses.
These horses were small, actually large ponies, and they had only been used for
breeding purposes, never broke for riding. Upon meeting him, we were impressed with
his spirit. It was clear that he was playful and ready to move on from his troubled
past.
Accepting a rescue animal is always challenging, because there will always be questions
regarding their mistreatment. In Riddles case, we were told there was neglect. But it
is also obvious that there was abuse. He is very afraid of whips/training sticks (which
we use as tools, not as punishment) and we are working hard at helping him learn that he
is safe with us.
Horse Tails - Funny Things & Stories About Riddle
Riddle has come to the ranch as an unbroke horse, never having had a rider on his back.
So we do expect to have many stories by the time he is actually being ridden.
Our training process builds confidence and trust with the horse. We will spend many hours
and subject him to as much of trail riding life as possible before ever climbing on his back.
This includesleading him while riding another horse (called ponying) on many of our trail
rides.
The first time we ponied him, he started off very responsive and giving to the slightest
pull to move forward. As we headed down the driveway, he was right behind us. Then we
turned down a trail and he had to step between bushes and over some logs. When a bush
touched his leg he leapt about two feet into the air. Unfortunately, coming back to earth
caused bushes to touch all his legs.
Fear took over and he bolted forward around us, hit the end of the rope, and whirled back
around to stand in the trail facing us. He could clearly see that the leading horse was
calmly standing in brush and not fearful. So he also calmed down and was soon following us
cross country through brush and fallen trees.
The Present - What We Think About Riddle
Riddle has a lot of personality, some is very similar to Dodger. So we aren't sure if it
is a TWH trait or a rescue horse trait.
He is very smart and learns quickly, but he tries so hard to please us that he exhausts himself.
His fast walking gait looks so smooth as he circles the round pen and he has no trouble keeping
up when we take him out on the trail. He is still very relaxed about accepting the saddle and
never jumped when it fell onto the ground the other day, good sign that he isn't spooky.
We continue to rub and pet him with the whip and training stick, and though he has stopped rearing
at them, he is still very nervous.
