Dressage Life |
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Ozark 16.3 hh, Bay, Gelding Hanoverian / TB Reg. Canadian Hunter 1985 - ? Bought Dec. 1, 1988, Sold Aug. 1994 Just A Dream
I bought Ozark on Dec. 1st 1988. This horse was suppose to be the one. He was an unbacked 3 year old or so I thought. He had very good conformation and a sweet personality. The only thing I was told he knew was how to lunge which I continued. I then started to work more with him by adding on a bridle, surcingle and side reins. He accepted those fine. Then it was adding a saddle which also went fine. All of this went very easy maybe too easy. I worked him in these over the following few months. Then came the day I put my weight on him. The first time he leapt away from the person holding him and bucked, so I ended up on the ground. The next time he stood still and all I did was sit on him for a couple of minutes then got off. He was very good and didn't fuss at all. The very next day I put the saddle on him for another lunging session. Ozark took on step forward with the saddle on then went berserk. Bucking and spinning around in his stall. He would not let anyone in his stall to take the saddle off without going nuts again. It took some time for him to settle down so I could get the saddle off. I had done everything right, there should have been no reason for this to happen. I kept trying to saddle him up a few times after that incident and Ozark would not have anything to do with it. Something was definitely wrong. It was then I found out from someone who knew the agent that I bought Ozark through, did attempt to start him and had tried to back him. When this person did back Ozark, he went into a bucking frenzy and ran into a mirror and broke it. This explained everything. I was not going to give up on this horse. It took a year to find a professional willing to back and train him and then Ozark spent 6 months altogether in training with this person. When I did get Ozark back he was always going to be cold-backed, but that was OK because I could finally ride and train him. I was able to train him up to almost the Medium 3 level and jump a 3'6" course with no problems. Ozark was very bold and a quick learner. I never did have the opportunity to be able to compete with him as that I was very short of funds and had decided to go to College. I decided to sell him because we never really did got along. We were like sandpaper together. I sold in August of 1994. The last thing I heard about him was that he went to Nova Scotia as a Show Jumper.
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