Your Dose of Freya

[BlackOak2]

O.o Holy Creepers! She's looking good.

And she's finally growing into her ears.

Her color is gorgeous. Forget the spots, she has a great base coat, very rich. Almost just on a rich milk chocolate. The spots are incredible icing.

How does she move, now that she's growing into her adult conformation? Is she showing the breeding match we all hope she does?

[Silverine]

So how she moves very much depends on the day. Her neck is still very upside-down because she works maybe once a month, so she doesn't use herself the way a well-trained horse is expected to. We're going to work on that now that it's summer and I actually have time to devote to training.

When she collects herself and moves correctly, she is gorgeous. There have been a couple times when I've asked her to canter where she pulls her hind end under and lifts the front through the transition and it is just so, so pretty.

Here's a bit of her moving from today. She was actually off, especially to the right. She's due to have her hooves trimmed on Tuesday, so it could be that her feet are unbalanced, or she may have hurt herself in the field being a baby. So of course she didn't move like I would have hoped. Oh well. Here it is anyway.



Please don't mind her tail. It was growing in nicely, but her fly sheet is just a bit too big and rubbed the top of it out.

And here is her being super smart and chill about stupid rope things.



I also got a little video to introduce everyone to the herd, since I realized I hadn't done that before. Thomas is my friend's pony, but as it stands he's basically my third horse that I don't pay for since I do all of the care for him. But we knew that would happen when she brought him over.

Also, apparently Mojo is also off. She was walking oddly on her left front. So maybe she and Freya were having a good-ol'-time and they both strained something. Either way, the farrier will be here on Tuesday to give their hooves a look and neither is off enough for me to be overly concerned.



And here's some better pictures of how Freya's spots are coming in. She gets more and more white with every shed, and has two big new spots on either shoulder.

[BlackOak2]

Seriously though... She's cut to do something, certainly. A very good match between Mojo and the sire. Maybe not the best he's produced, but for movement between the two of them (Mojo and him), Freya is an intimidating mover.

My fav picture is definitely that backline from her rump (the last pic).

Yeash.
Really, congrats on her. I could think that every breeder wants to produce one that's like her.

eh... I like foals.

[brettdiesel]

Wow Freya is so cute, are you training her yet? I hope we'll get to see more pictures of her as she grows.

[Silverine]

Wow Freya is so cute, are you training her yet? I hope we'll get to see more pictures of her as she grows.

No riding, yet, but definitely training. Now that it's summer I've started everyone on a rotation - I work Mojo on Mondays and Thursdays, Freya gets Tuesdays and Fridays, and Thomas (friend's pony that's basically mine) gets Wednesdays and maybe Saturdays if I feel like it. Freya also does a little bit of something every day before I put her out after breakfast. So far that has consisted of hopping on and off the trailer and once walking over a tiny crossrail. Just to engage her brain a little.

Tomorrow I'm planning on using the surcingle to run a butt rope on her to see if that helps her bring her hind end under at all. It won't be tight - I'm not trying to pull it under her, I just want that little bit of a feel around her back end to make her more aware of where it is and what she's doing with it. We'll see what she thinks.

[brettdiesel]

Wow Freya is so cute, are you training her yet? I hope we'll get to see more pictures of her as she grows.

No riding, yet, but definitely training. Now that it's summer I've started everyone on a rotation - I work Mojo on Mondays and Thursdays, Freya gets Tuesdays and Fridays, and Thomas (friend's pony that's basically mine) gets Wednesdays and maybe Saturdays if I feel like it. Freya also does a little bit of something every day before I put her out after breakfast. So far that has consisted of hopping on and off the trailer and once walking over a tiny crossrail. Just to engage her brain a little.

Tomorrow I'm planning on using the surcingle to run a butt rope on her to see if that helps her bring her hind end under at all. It won't be tight - I'm not trying to pull it under her, I just want that little bit of a feel around her back end to make her more aware of where it is and what she's doing with it. We'll see what she thinks.

Awesome, good luck!

[Silverine]

Here's a video of my little group coming in from pasture. Freya is always the first up the hill, but Thomas is always the first inside.



And Mojo doesn't get a flymask because she refuses to wear one. I've tried literally every kind that exists and either she rips it off in five seconds, or it manages to stay on but she tries so hard to rip it off that she injures herself. So she gets to be naked.

[Silverine]

So my friend came to the barn today to play around with the ponies. I had her work with Freya, since I'm the only one who has ever actually done anything with her.

Here is a quick snippet of their lunging:


My friend also put her on the trailer and backed her off, showing that she can still come off in reverse with another person. Yay! But also, my friend was super anxious about the whole trailer loading thing because she'd never done it before and Freya just gave her this look like, "geez, lady, it's really not a big deal." She's such a good girl. <3

You can see some of Freya actually knowing how to hold herself in the clip above.

[BlackOak2]

You can see some of Freya actually knowing how to hold herself in the clip above.

Kind of amazing that as a baby and without anybody on her back to help give her cues, that she's already starting to try that rounding-out.

Very nice to see that she appears to be thinking that the carriage is much more comfortable for her body to move in, instead of the strung-out of most horses.

I can just imagine:
Mojo: Okay, filly. Now the way you can carry yourself best, is to collect yourself into a frame.
Freya: A what? What's a Frame?
Mojo: Well, get your hooves under you and focus your head on your feet.
Freya: On my feet?
Mojo: Yeah, think of looking at your feet.
--
Mojo: NO! Don't look at your feet. Think about your feet.
Freya: Ohhh...
Mojo: Now you're getting it. How's it feel?
Freya: Ooo... Feels good.
--
Freya: Uh... What was I supposed to be doing again?
Mojo (shakes head): Babies... Favorite Person will help when she backs you, filly.
Freya: What's Backs?
Mojo walks off, returning to grazing, ignoring Freya.

I do wonder, how she'll be to ride? Some horses are easy and you don't feel it, some are hard and you feel it... then others feel super easy but you get off and you can't move the next day!

[Silverine]

She doesn't always get it. She still mostly does her "giraffe on four pogo sticks" impression. But she has moments where she gets into it and I can just see the wheels turning as she realizes it's more comfortable to go that way. And then her muscles get tired and she loses it.

As far as riding, I think she's going to have Mojo's big, swinging walk, and a lovely uphill canter - the kind that holds you in the seat. I honestly have no idea what her trot is going to be like. I'm horrible at judging how a trot will feel under saddle by just watching it. She mostly looks mildly springy so I'm hoping she'll be a smooth ride. But a bouncy trot is definitely not the end of the world.