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Re: [RC] trail riding the blind horse - Mike Lewis

My wife and I have a TB mare who is blind in one eye.  Your story is
inspirational.  :-)

She is the sweetest thing (the horse, but my wife isn't bad either) and
will do anything we ask her to do as far as jumps, dressage, etc.  She has
ridden part of one endurance ride as a "drag" horse and seems to handle
trails very well--very little spookiness.

Mike
--- Marcia Nelson <mnhorsin@xxxxxxxxxx> wrote:


I have a one eyed horse that has become an amazing trail horse. He also
jumps quite well. He was on a trailer to the killers when my farrier
noticed
him and bought him on the spot and vowed to find him a good home. I
ended up
as that good home. Sweet as all get out, but he'd buck his rider off
very
efficiently if asked to trot or canter. Hmmm, must be an explanation. I
found out he couldn't handle depth perception and would fall over on his
side at a canter even without a rider. So I went to work to get him to
work
as a team and trust his rider. Lots of in hand work, lots of ponying and
lots of obstacles. He and I won the 2005 NATRC Region 2 Novice
Championship
in Horse and Horsemanship. We were the high point team as well. He went
on
to earn a second place with one of my junior students for the 2006 year.
He
has a dream temperament and that is what it takes to live with a
handicap of
this magnitude. He doesn't ask questions, he just moves over with the
lightest request of the rider's leg and he responds to words and
encouragement. We have traversed a lot of difficult things on the trails
including major drop offs on his blind side. There has to be a great
bond to
make something like this work. He had to get used to shadows and depth
perception in a variety of settings. I had my hopes set on Tevis and
decided
that was too much to ask of him, so I am working with another horse
towards
that goal. There are limits to what I would ask of him. I wouldn't want
to
get him or me in trouble and so I am careful. Good luck!
Marcia Nelson




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Replies
[RC] trail riding the blind horse, Marcia Nelson