Matilde Brandt - Life With A Friesian Dream Horse

Time 2020-10-15 19:03:53

Web Name: Matilde Brandt - Life With A Friesian Dream Horse

WebSite: http://matildebrandt.no

ID:83310

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When I started doing research about my second horse in early 2017, I looked at maaany different breeds WarlanderDrum HorseNorwegian Dole HorseNorth Swedish Draft HorseGypsy VannerShireClydesdaleBlack Forest horseDraft x Gypsy crossesFriesian crossesShire crossesIberian crossesNorikerPercheronAmerican CreamAnd maaany more. I was quite certain I wanted a stocky, tall horse, but not with the most typical draft horse features. I could not keep track on how many hours I spent on reading about horses last year, it was crazy! I ended up with a list of requirements and looked all over the world, except from South America and Australia. You would not believe me if I told you how difficult it was to find my horse.My requirements:Between 0 and 3 yearsExpected to reach at least 160 cmPerfect health and clean on x-raysPolite and healthy parentsCurious and intelligent personalityGrew up with other horsesGood hoovesNot bay or tobiano/piebaldPreferably not riddenIt might seem like a horrible list to some people, but I don t think so. People freaked about because I excluded certain colors. That s my choice. On the other hand I did not care about show results, I did not need anything purebred or fancy and I was willing to pay whatever the owner would ask to get what I wanted.Personality was an important one. Batman has always been a very sensitive and quite spooky horse and he can still be very challenging. If he s high on energy and hear a weird noise, he is the kind of horse who will immediately start running at the spot and get 3 meters tall, and I won t be able to get him down to the planet earth until we are back at the stables. I find that kind of behavior a little tiresome, because I get scared and start imagining the worst, but that s how he is.When some interesting Iberian crosses and Warlanders showed up, I started thinking very hard. I m not very brave on horseback and prefer horses whose energy level matches yours on that particular day. I want to be able to add more energy, but prefer horses that are a bit more down to earth to begin with. I could not imagine myself spending another decade with a jumpy horse built for instant action. I m NOT an instant action kind of rider. Training can of course make a huge difference, but you can t take away what the horses are bred to do over many thousands years. I therefore decided to stop looking at Warlanders and Iberian crosses.The other dilemma was my height. I ride bareback a lot and with my 184 cm and long legs, I feel too tall to ride very noble/light built horses and lower horses. Some riders manage to don t care about it, but I can t. I don t want to feel that I can t jump a log during hacking without pulling up my legs. I don t like my legs hanging below the horse s belly, pulling me out of balance in trot. I also prefer being smaller than my horse, and want everything to look balanced. Horses smaller than 160 cm is too low, no matter how wide.Therefore I started looking more at Draft crosses and especially the Drum horse. Huge, powerful, friendly and gorgeous. My search for the perfect Drum horse lead my all the way to the United States, but I had some bad luck and had eventually to let go of the dream horse due to health concerns at a very young age.In the end, it was between four breeds: Shire, Dole horse, North Swedish Draft and Drum. Everything could happen. I found a few interesting Shires in England and Scotland, sellers turned out to be douchebags, did not manage to find any other Shires I liked. Gave eventually up Drums and Shires and decided to get a Scandinavian horse instead. In other worlds, a horse that would fit in my trailer and would be available in my own country. Seemed very easy, after spending months on figuring out how to transport a horse from New York to Oslo.The Norwegian Dole Horse is one of three breeds native to Norway. They are light drafts, and are described as intelligent, strong, powerful, beautiful horses who make nice allrounders. I started liking them more and more after seeing them from a different point of view thad I had earlier. As dressage horses, running proud in the mountains with flowy manes and thick tails, instead of the more traditional way to use them, such as farm work and driving. I then realized that I could definitely have one, as long as it was tall enough.People laughed at me when I openly wrote that I wanted a young 160 cm Dole that was not bay, not ridden or driven. I ignored them, suddenly found one, and he was everything I wanted and more. The most stunning horse I had ever seen. He was perfect, it was love at first sight. At that point I was still kind of sad because of the American dream horse, but this one was definitely also a dream horse. He was clear at the vet exam, I was in heaven. Then issues started appearing and I understood that I should not trust the vet who did the pre purchase. The day I went to pick him up I brought my vet for a second vet exam with new xrays at the spot. Found multiple severe injuries. Fractures, no way to fix it. Another dream shattered. (ALWAYS DO A SECOND OPINION, AND A THIRD, AND FOURTH! And always do x-rays! A perfectly sound horse can have life threatening injures, I learned that the hard way)At this point, I had spent over 4000 euros on vet exams only. You can buy a decent Dole horse or two for that price, and I felt a bit annoyed, but kept going. I looked at some North Swedish horses online and they are absolutely gorgeous, but I was unable to find a horse tall enough. I also found another young Dole stallion who was lovely, but when I arrived there, I realized that I would make him look like a pony He was unfortunately way too small. I would do anything to be 165 cm, I thought, and drove back home.I still wanted a Dole or North Swede, but I did not want to buy something that was not the ultimate dream horse. A rare last minute opportunity suddenly showed up through a friend and within a week, I had finally found Iver. Finding a horse is definitely not easy. Finding a horse that also passes the pre purchase exam, is even harder. But it is possible, and I definitely learned a lot last fall. It was a rough journey, but thankfully, it had a happy ending.My search for the dream horse led me across the world, but the horse who eventually stole my heart had been there all the time, only an hour away. I m very happy I ended up with a Norwegian Horse. The Dole horse are facing extinction and in desperate need of some PR. It feels lovely to have a piece of our cultural heritage by my side and the opportunity to show the Dole horses to the world. Iver is nothing but the perfect combo of power, sensitivity, calmness and pride with great movements, perfect health and a kind personality. He is everything I needed; even though I did not know exactly what that would be.Peace, love and Friesian/Dole-hugs,Matilde, Batman IverHow I ended up with a Dole Horse was last modified: March 31st, 2018 by Matilde Brandt Reklame: Innlegg i samarbeid med Butterfly Mobil Norge / Post in collab with Butterfly Mobil NorgeFinaaaally! I ve been so excited about this blog post because it seems like our saddle hunt is finally over! I have been hiding something awesome underneath my riding skirt, literally! The past weeks, I have been riding in a Butterfly saddle.Since Iver arrived, I have been searching for our future saddle. I ve looked at maaany different brands and models recommended by friends, followers and retailers. All I knew is that I wanted a baroque type saddle without knee rolls, in other words; I had absolutely NO IDEA about where to start. I had no experience with Dole horses and how they are built and did not even know for certain what kind of body type Iver has. He is also only 3 years old and he will hopefully grow a lot more do you just buy a cheaper saddle and then find your ultimate dream saddle when the horse turns seven? Or is it possible to use the same saddle all the way? Is the saddle that is best for me also best for him? I had absolutely no clue I definitely needed some professional guidance.I have always ridden in random chosen saddles, and love Batman s Marjoman Riaño, but that type won t fit Iver. So I don t really have any opinions about the subject, except from these two:The saddle MUST fit the horse properlyThe saddle MUST fit me properly… which is basic knowledge. But I struggle with some lower back pain and stiffness around my pelvis, and the correct saddle can definitely help place me in a better position. So I should try to find a solution on that. I have early stage calcifications in both hip joints after riding a too wide horse with too big movements for 9 years, so a saddle that is a bit more friendly towards my body sounds good. I need my body to work for many more years!One of the first brands I looked at was Butterfly Saddles and immediately noticed a sentence about saddles developed for the female pelvis. Bonus points. Baroque look. More bonus points. Local retailers here in Norway. More bonus points. A hybrid-saddle best of both worlds! Even more bonus points!I read a bit about the Butterfly saddle tree system and asked around, and after I posted about it on my Instagram Story, my followers gladly told about their experience with the Butterfly saddles. I received a lot of responses from riders who seemed very happy about their choice of saddle. I have some friends in Norway too who loves their Butterfly saddles, so we invited Michelle from Butterfly Mobil Norge to come over and visit and she brought LOTS of saddles we could try! Butterfly saddles is basically the best of both worlds: it s a hybrid saddle with the flexibility of a treeless, and the stability of a traditional saddle At first, Michelle had a proper look at Iver s back and recommended me to book a new chiro-appointment, he lack some muscle in the topline and hopefully with a saddle who fits him 100% his spinalis-area will get better muscled. Michelle showed me the saddles and answered all my thousand questions.I rode in two different dressage saddles, first a Butterfly Carmen and then a coldblood saddle. The two I was most interested in is the BUTTERFLY® Richard Hinrichs Baroque Saddle Dressage and BUTTERFLY® Carmen Baroque Saddle Dressage. Both baroque saddles suited for Academic Art of Riding and classical dressage. They are basically the same, but with different seats.I liked Carmen a lot and felt very comfortable in it in walk. My stirrups were a little bit too short (because I have ridiculously long legs and no stirrup leathers on the planet seems to be long enough) but I liked it a lot! I felt home in the saddle right away. I rode Iver a bit in the field in the Carmen and holy guacamole, he was FLYING! Iver with Butterfly-wings! I felt a huge difference, as the entire horse suddenly started MOVING for real. At first I thought something was wrong with him because he felt so different, but when I saw the photos Linn took I realized that it was simply Iver who was able to move his shoulders hahah. Iver-approved it was!After testing the saddles a few times and reading more about the system, I decided to go for the Butterfly Hinrichs. It s SO pretty and will feel like Carmen to ride in in other words, I am suddenly in desperate need of stronger core muscles to be able to ride this summer! Iver might be a draft but he is moving like a Friesian. I can t wait to sit in the one I m having, as the saddle I tried on in these photos had a too large seat for me, I believe the Hinrichs will feel wonderful. And the best of all, Butterfly saddles are lifetime saddles , they can be adjusted as the horse grows so there are no need for saddle-panic when your horse suddenly turns seven.While I m waiting for our saddle, I m currently riding in the coldblood prototype, which is one of the best English dressage saddles I have ridden in. Iver likes it too, so in the meantime, we are enjoying our wings and counting the days until the baroque beauty finally arrives!Thank you so much for a wonderful afternoon, dear Michelle!Peace, love and Friesian Dole hugs,Matilde, Batman IverIver with Butterfly wings – trying the Butterfly saddle for the first time was last modified: March 30th, 2018 by Matilde Brandt ReklameI just downloaded the Dreams App and have finally started saving for a custom made working harness for Iver! The one we are using now is borrowed by a friend of mine and I would like to have my own, but harness is expensive and an investment for the future. A high quality working harness can last for hundred years and I want a special one for my special boy.As many people do, I think saving money can be very boring. Therefore I’m excited to test the Dreams App and see if that can lead me anywhere! Right now you can win 10.000 NOK by clicking on this link, download the app and create a dream! Maybe you want to save for your very own Dole Horse? Or a sleigh? Or a vacation to Scotland? Good luck! Haha, that doesn t sound like clickbait at all does it!? But yeah, I did actually keep Iver a secret for many weeks. Because I can be considered an extremely careful horse buyer, we ran two vet exams on Iver just to be 100% sure. On the other horses I had looked at we had ten(!) vets and consulting vets involved so two vet exams is not a lot in my crazy world of I don t want to buy myself more vet bills . And I won t mention the farriers, chiropractors, massage therapists and breed experts that was involved too Jesus H Roosevelt Christ, I m nuts.Because it had been snowing a lot, we did one at his stable outdoors and one in a clinic in Oslo with more facilities two weeks later as a follow-up.Because Iver needed to be trained before vet exam number two, we agreed that I would train him for a few weeks to get a chance to get to know him a little and keep him active.I picked him up all by myself and the driving conditions were horrible. Freezing temperatures and rain made the roads icy and the police asked people to stay away from the roads. I had to stop at a petrol station and wait for a while before I could continue. Thankfully, everything went well and he stood like a hero in the trailer all the way home.We even gave him a code name at the stable because I did not have any rumors spreading. He was named BB-8 for three weeks, hahah!I had my heart broken twice last year in the search for my next horse, and I wanted to be 100% sure before I told anyone this time. I even hid it from my mom, haha. His owner received daily updates and pictures and Iver and I became good friends.Iver lived in his own part of the turnout the weeks before I signed the papers, and got to meet both Batman and the rest of the horses. I knew it was a bit risky to bring him home and to spend time with him feeling-wise, but to be honest, I had been through that horrible sort of disappointment two times already, and had learned to shut the feelings out. If it happened a third time it would at least be some sort of ironic!I fell for two horses in the search for Batman s new friend, and last minute and after several health checks we discovered severe skeleton injuries and/or diseases in both horses. These two horses will always have a special place in my heart, I spent weeks and months on organizing transport ++ for these horses and as the vets cleared them both, I had already celebrated, both times. But it was too early. It was the worst decision I had to make, to say good bye to all the hopes and dreams I had in my mind for a long time, but it was the right thing to do. The most painful part was to inform the owners about what my vet-team had found. Nobody expects a young, untouched horse to have that sort of problems!I already have a horse with joint issues at a young age; I could simply not spend a fortune on a horse that might never grow up.I m therefore very happy I finally found the perfect horse at last, with both perfect x-rays, an excellent upbringing and a loving personality. Patience is the key!Here s some photos of our first weeks together!In the trailer, on our way home:Arrival at our barn.The first morning, he settled down very fast.Meeting Batman for the first time with no fence between them. Batman immediately showed him who s the boss haha!First hack around the barn. He did great! Because we was going to do a pre purchase lameness examination, he needed to be ridden on hacks three times per week.Our first liberty session went GREAT!And he helped me out with the daily chores The best hack we had, we cantered for the first time that day and I actually cried. I cried because I had agreed to purchase a horse after seeing him for only two hours based on nothing but the gut feeling and when I asked him for canter, all I did was to think canter. And then we flew. Everything felt right and when I asked him to go back to walk, all I did was to think walk . It was like riding Batman.Then the big day came .. The last vet examination. Iver behaved like a gentleman at the clinic. We lunged him outside and ran back and fourth maaany times. I was super nervous But they did not find anything unusal with his movements and his mouth looked fine too! I was SUPER HAPPY! I called the owner right afterwards, and the day after, he was mine.The first thing I did was to remove his shoes and let him live with Batman for a few days before he was let into the big herd.Photos from the secret weeks with Iver was last modified: January 17th, 2018 by Matilde Brandt

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