Horsin Around Session 4 November 16, 2012

Horsin Around Session 4- Gail Fantetti's

Double Gailyes, Triple Kathy's, Quadruple the fun!

We all arrived between 11:30 and Noon with our bounties of food and goodness and everyone wearing huge smiles of good will and intent.  G. Fantetti was such a great host and really has such a wonderfully laid out beautiful home and farm.  A good time was had by all...........................
Host: Gail Fantetti
Goal:  Getting to know Buster back from Kim's farm.
Attending:  Not in order of importance.....
Fantetti (duh)
Searcy, Gayle Puckett, Kendra, Alicia, Pat Powel, Judy, Kajia, Evey, Kathy Klump@#2, Chris Voelker, KAthy Reilmam, Kim Yelton, Lynda, , Buster, Spirit and BamBam and one big goat.
 Noted:  Fantetti had coffee hot and ready for the people as they arrived and made even more when she ran out.  Everything about Gails house was warm and country cowboy/cowgirl all the way down to the cowgirl coffee cups.  How cool.  Her bathroom was so western cowgirl and her toilet paper holder was a curb bit.  I loved that and heard others mention the outhouse bathroom with a real toilet as well.

Everyone headed out to the barn around noonish to check out Gails barn and horses.  We had an absolutely beautiful day for our gathering for it was brisk and sunny as we walked down to the barn together with mounting anticipation and talking to one another as if we were all old friends.  It really was a great group of people as we would all soon learn.
Buster was pulled out of the paddock right away and saddled up before you know it.  In the mean time Judy pulled out Spirit (the gray rescue arabian) and lunged a little.  Gail also lunged Spirit but wrapped the whip end around Spirits leg and she laughed like the dickens.   Spirit ran off with the whip dangling from the ankle area.
 Judy pulled out her clicker to show us the affirmation on clicker training and reward.  She had Spirit eating out of her hand in just a few minutes.  It was pretty good to see though I thought it worked in the opposite direction so now I know.  It was somewhat like the Pavlov experiment..  She would click her clicker and then Spirit would lower the head and touch her hand and Judy would reward the horse with a small treat.  Spirit will work for Cheerios!  It didn't take long.   What Judy did not realize is that she also trained me in lowering my head for Cheerios but she came off no Cheerios for me.  Poor Searcy.
Judy also works at the Lebanon parade every year as a volunteer at one of the sign up booths or something.  That was pretty crazy for she lives in Indiana and works in Kendra's neck of the woods once in a while.  AWESOME!
     Judy also took her pony and demonstrated with her  trainer friend, Clinician Andy Marcoux at  the Equine Affair.  That is a great goal and a dream met in Judy's life.  Wish we could have caught that at the equine affair.  She would have made us proud.  That is a big deal.  I believe that it was one of her ponies that drive.  GREAT JOB JUDY.  The word of the day that Judy contributed was "Whoopty Doo".  I have been saying that every since.   Judy was quite a delight to have around and a pleasure to listen to.
Kim climbed onto Busters back and rode off into the paddock with little effort.  He was great and acted as if he had been ridden every day since he had returned to Gails house from his training session at Kims farm.    Upon Kims return on Buster from the paddock she sat up there for a while and spoke from the horsetop and someone realized that he had lost his buck strap from the back line of the saddle.  Everyone was on the hunt when Alicia finally pulled it from her pocket and returned it to Gail.  I suppose she was going to put the stolen buck strap into her sock drawer with all the brownies that she used to horde when we were children.  I could always find chocolate in Alicia's sock drawer and now I suppose missing odds and ends from other peoples saddles.  We were all proud of Alicia for returning the stolen part. '-)
Believe it or not, we had a second Kathy Klump.  Kathy Klump #2.  Wow, whoda thunk.   Kathy #2 put out an invite to ride on the trails at her farm when we all get to the point to travel to each others place with our horses.  A personal goal of the group colletively.  Gathering with our horses.  How fun.
Bam Bam is pulled from the paddock by G.Fantetti.  BamBam is a large draft mix with a built in line that looks like a saddle on his back.  The first thing that Fantetti did was hit BamBam in the face with the saddle.   I don't know how she did that but she did.  BamBam took one from the team as if he is used to being knocked in the face with different things.  After pulling the saddle off of BamBam's face it made its way to his back and it didn't really seem to fit so off it came without incident.  NOW, it is time to put the bridle onto the horse and this is where hilerity ensued.  The bridle went on with pretty much ease but then Gail tried to get the rope halter off from undernieth the bridle by unhooking the knot and pulling it thru but the nose band was stuck under the bridle straps.  She said that she knows that she has seen people do it this way before so she is attempting to do this too.  By this point Kim, Chris, Kathys, the sisters and their mother and the Gayle are all laughing out loud.  I heard Kim say that Gail was going to have to start over and remove the bridle.  Bambam is chewing on the halter with the bit in his mouth and someone says......"HE'S EATIN IT!"  BamBam ate the halter.
 At this point Kim helps Gail remove the bridle and then pried the halter out of BamBams teeth (he had a flossing) and Gail was to put the bridle back onto BamBam.   She switched her hand to better grip the leather and yes, she poked her horse in the eye.  She said" AAAHHHHHH, I POKED HIM IN THE EYE!"  That is three horse sessions where Gail has poked or crushed something.  I think that everone laughed so hard that some were rolling on the ground.  Gail said that she has never poked things in the eyes, ever, until her recently.  Suuuurrrre.
BamBam was saddled and unsaddled due to fitting issues and Kim, again, Kim, Jumps up on his back and rides off to the paddock.   BamBam tried to have his way with Kim but she wasn't having any of that.  She got him corrected straight away and off to the trail and back.  We then took Bambam   and Buster off to the round pen where we got some great pictures and Fantetti rode her horse for the first time since he returned from training at Kims farm.   She looked splendid on her steed and did quite well and way more relaxed than anyone had thought she would be.  It was talked about her natural relaxed state among those hanging on the side lines.  She looked like she had been up there over one hundred times.
Searcy on BamBam and Gail on Buster, they rode around and talked about what and where they had all been.  One horse tried to bite the other so Searcy figured she would stay clear of Gail and her wild ways.  At this point Gail dismounts Buster and Searcy posed for stellar photos ontop of Bam.  They looked really quite natural and good together if I do say so myself.  Alicia took great pictures with Searcy's camera.  Way to shoot it Alicia.
Kajia takes over BamBam after Searcy dismounted, (finally) and Kajia rode Bam around the round pen with great ease.  It was determined that everyone wanted BamBam.  I know I do and he had a built in saddle line.  How awesome is that?
When it is figured that Fantetti had met her goal of riding Buster, we all headed back to the barn, where Evey road Buster.  She did great on an unknown horse.  Quite good with her mothers guided hand.
Horses up and all are hungry and heading back to the barn.  We headed to the house for the feast in little groups.  Kendra had to go back to get a stuffed giraffe or something and fetched Searcy's coat......Again and we hit the house with hunger.
It was a day of Salads,  Chicken salads, garden salads and Gails Bruschetta pie.  Homemade bread and cookies of all sorts.  Pumpkin Pie and much much more.  Banana Cream Pie, Turkey Salad,  Buffalo chicken Dip.  Spinach Salad.  WOW...Food was plentiful and good!  We ate like queens.
That is it in a nut shell, there are many other things to say about the session but I was asked not to put it in, such as Kathy Klump 2 put her friend Chris V, (which most of us met that day) on a strange horse of hers.  Strange to Chris that is and Chris told Patty and I that she had to be buzzed in order to get up there.  She asked me not to put that in.   That all started because Pat said that she doesn't enjoy riding other peoples horses.  She there you have it.  Chris might have even said "tanked" to ride a horse she didn't know.   Sounds like a great recipe to me!!!!!  TEEEEEHEEE and HEEEHAW.

Farriers that everyone uses.
Dave Swartz-Said to be good with the horses
Mark Franks- Expensive but the best and has taught many of the locals.  Pricey!
Tommy Lingrich.  Trained under Mark
Ty Bowel-  Also trained under Mark but a very good farrier but also pricey.  Enjoys a farm where he can knock out many horses verses two or five like the most of us have!
Jim Bray.  Don't know anything about him other than he is a farrier.
All is well that ends well.  Hope to see some of you at Pat Powells on the 15th of December at her farm at 11741 North Hogan Road, Aurora Indiana 47001 at 11AM.
Much Love and great hanging with you all.  good times!

By the way, Linda lives in her barn, Wayne Barn builder style with her two mares, Memory and Sadiea.  She wants to hold a session in the spring where we bring our horses.  I am sooooooooooooo In on that!  She may even have some hay for sale.  Who knows.