BOOMER
January 26, 2024
Boomer came to us from a dealer that had purchased a herd of horses from a family in financial trouble. At the time of the initial call, he was an intact stud that had spent much of his life running with a herd of mares. After having him gelded (we have a policy that says no intact studs at our rescue) he, along with Sable, arrived last week. Although Sable was malnourished and frail, Boomer was in fairly good shape. He is younger, maybe 12 and he is a survivor. Filthy and covered with rain rot, Boomer is an extrovert for sure. His life hasn’t always been easy, we know a bit of history that we can not share at this time, but Boomer has had some very neglectful homes. Deemed unmanageable by several owners, Boomer has been passed around for years but somewhere in his travels, someone has worked with him. He is basically a very very good boy and as the testosterone dwindles from his veins, it will be so fun to see the gelding he will become. We haven’t done a lot with him yet but so far, we can tell you he is excellent on a lead line, very respectful. I haven’t taken him out of the paddock yet, but he will yield and walk quietly beside me, even when he was excited when his new roomie showed up. He can be a bit pushy with his nose, something that can be worked with, and he is not a fan at all of having his back feet picked up – that will be a daily project for a while but certainly nothing that we haven’t seen before. He hates to take wormer medicine – we can work with that We will be giving him yummy stuff in a tube every day until he realizes that it is a tasty thing, not a scary thing that we will force into him. Boomer is a smart boy and it won’t take long to teach this boy to trust and that playing with us can be fun. It's not often we get horses young enough and healthy enough to possibly have a future under saddle, but I have high hopes for this boy.
Every horse deserves a friend – even if you think they are fine alone – they aren’t. People often tell us “My horse likes being alone” – I wonder how people know this? Because the horse continues to eat? Well, that’s survival. Because they don’t holler and scream? At some point it becomes useless, and all hope of company is lost and they give up – they have no option. And when a horse is added to their lives, they may fight and seem like they don’t like each other so people think the horse prefers to be alone – this is so against their genetics. Of course, they will ‘fight’ and work out their places in the relationship but horses are herd animals and they are prey – never are they happier alone. Solitary life for a horse can cause lifelong issues – we have seen it many times. A horse that has been alone for a significant amount of time arrives and once they have a herd, it is terrifying for them to be separated from that herd, so afraid they will once again be alone. So, we do everything we can to provide company for every horse we have. We knew we couldn’t bring in a mare. With Boomers hormones still raging and the only thing he has ever known is how to make babies – he will continue to be potent for several weeks and his stud like behavior toward mares may never go away completely so we knew we needed a gelding. A quiet gelding that wouldn’t pose a threat. Welcome Rango.
February 10, 2024
Boomer, who came to us as a freshly gelded 12 year old, has proven to know way more than he let on to begin with. He is such an extrovert. Walk in the pasture and his head pops up immediately - next thing you know Boomer is beside you Not pushy (even at mealtime) he just loves attention. We have been working on his feet - farrier was able to do his fronts and the backs can hopefully be done next time. Why he isn't a fan of having his backs done is beyond me - is it fear or pain or simply "nah I don't think i want to do that" - with daily work he will eventually learn that working with his feet is a good thing, it brings scratches and rubs and maybe even a treat Nothing bad about it. We have gone on a couple of walks down the road - first two times he was excellent and so happy and curious - the last time we had a big truck with a trailer wiz by .... well that was a bit scary but he recovered quickly and on we went. I will be doing a walk by the herd pasture soon so we can walk up over the hill, hoping that will be more relaxing (after we get by the herd). We are excited to announce that Boomer has been accepted into the Horses with Hope program. Paris and Dory are gaining leaps and bounds, working 5 days a week and learning so much - we can not be more excited that come this spring, Boomer will be joining our girls and heading to Hope, Maine and starting school.
Boomer came to us from a dealer that had purchased a herd of horses from a family in financial trouble. At the time of the initial call, he was an intact stud that had spent much of his life running with a herd of mares. After having him gelded (we have a policy that says no intact studs at our rescue) he, along with Sable, arrived last week. Although Sable was malnourished and frail, Boomer was in fairly good shape. He is younger, maybe 12 and he is a survivor. Filthy and covered with rain rot, Boomer is an extrovert for sure. His life hasn’t always been easy, we know a bit of history that we can not share at this time, but Boomer has had some very neglectful homes. Deemed unmanageable by several owners, Boomer has been passed around for years but somewhere in his travels, someone has worked with him. He is basically a very very good boy and as the testosterone dwindles from his veins, it will be so fun to see the gelding he will become. We haven’t done a lot with him yet but so far, we can tell you he is excellent on a lead line, very respectful. I haven’t taken him out of the paddock yet, but he will yield and walk quietly beside me, even when he was excited when his new roomie showed up. He can be a bit pushy with his nose, something that can be worked with, and he is not a fan at all of having his back feet picked up – that will be a daily project for a while but certainly nothing that we haven’t seen before. He hates to take wormer medicine – we can work with that We will be giving him yummy stuff in a tube every day until he realizes that it is a tasty thing, not a scary thing that we will force into him. Boomer is a smart boy and it won’t take long to teach this boy to trust and that playing with us can be fun. It's not often we get horses young enough and healthy enough to possibly have a future under saddle, but I have high hopes for this boy.
Every horse deserves a friend – even if you think they are fine alone – they aren’t. People often tell us “My horse likes being alone” – I wonder how people know this? Because the horse continues to eat? Well, that’s survival. Because they don’t holler and scream? At some point it becomes useless, and all hope of company is lost and they give up – they have no option. And when a horse is added to their lives, they may fight and seem like they don’t like each other so people think the horse prefers to be alone – this is so against their genetics. Of course, they will ‘fight’ and work out their places in the relationship but horses are herd animals and they are prey – never are they happier alone. Solitary life for a horse can cause lifelong issues – we have seen it many times. A horse that has been alone for a significant amount of time arrives and once they have a herd, it is terrifying for them to be separated from that herd, so afraid they will once again be alone. So, we do everything we can to provide company for every horse we have. We knew we couldn’t bring in a mare. With Boomers hormones still raging and the only thing he has ever known is how to make babies – he will continue to be potent for several weeks and his stud like behavior toward mares may never go away completely so we knew we needed a gelding. A quiet gelding that wouldn’t pose a threat. Welcome Rango.
February 10, 2024
Boomer, who came to us as a freshly gelded 12 year old, has proven to know way more than he let on to begin with. He is such an extrovert. Walk in the pasture and his head pops up immediately - next thing you know Boomer is beside you Not pushy (even at mealtime) he just loves attention. We have been working on his feet - farrier was able to do his fronts and the backs can hopefully be done next time. Why he isn't a fan of having his backs done is beyond me - is it fear or pain or simply "nah I don't think i want to do that" - with daily work he will eventually learn that working with his feet is a good thing, it brings scratches and rubs and maybe even a treat Nothing bad about it. We have gone on a couple of walks down the road - first two times he was excellent and so happy and curious - the last time we had a big truck with a trailer wiz by .... well that was a bit scary but he recovered quickly and on we went. I will be doing a walk by the herd pasture soon so we can walk up over the hill, hoping that will be more relaxing (after we get by the herd). We are excited to announce that Boomer has been accepted into the Horses with Hope program. Paris and Dory are gaining leaps and bounds, working 5 days a week and learning so much - we can not be more excited that come this spring, Boomer will be joining our girls and heading to Hope, Maine and starting school.