Sable Morgan Horses

"I wrote this article for publishing in an England morgan horse magazine in Nov 2002 and thought since it is my life story I would put it here with my funny stories"

MORGANS FOR EVERYONE

I love my Morgans and I think they fit the bill as a all round pleasure horse for just about anyone. You can find Morgans in all shapes and sizes and temperaments. I prefer my Morgans to be of good solid builds with good legs, beautiful heads and wonderful willing attitudes.

In the mid 80's I found my hubby to be and wonder of wonder he owned a farm! I could see the possibilities! Shortly after we got married I decided it was time to finally own my own horse. I had always been horse crazy (all my school books have horses drawn all over them) and I spent as much time as I could at the local stables and race track just being around horses. My first couple of horses just didn't work out and then a friend suggested a Morgan. I vaguely remembered the movie Justin Morgan had a horse but that was about all. My quest had begun.

I started researching the breed and talking to people about them and then I visited a big Morgan farm in Alberta and I was hooked! They had a lot of beautiful morgans there and I fell in love with Nicola of Will a Way. A big black mare who just happened to be in foal to the lovely Whispering Highbeam another beautiful black Morgan. Of course at that time I was convinced that owning a stud colt would not be a good thing so I said he she had a colt I didn't want it. Naturally she had a colt. I did really like him though and when he came back with his mom after getting rebred I changed my mind. So although he carries the prefix JMF Boogie Beam, Boogie has always been here and been my horse. I watched him being born and he has only been away from the farm the one time when he was a month old and his mom was away being bred.

I had a few people tell me that women shouldn't handle studs and that since I had never handled a stud that this might not work out. However my mentor told me to "treat him as a horse first and a stud second" I have never looked back. I expected him to behave and he did. He was so laid back right from the start that I had and still have people who comment that "he sure doesn't act like a stud". I believe the Morgan temperament is the prime reason for this.

Morgans are so trainable! They are truly a smart horse and sometimes they can be too smart! I have found over the years that the foals I work with (I imprint them at birth) don't need many reminders as they grow, they know the rules and listen really well. However sometimes they might not be suited for a timid person as they will figure out how they can get around them. If you let a Morgan push you around you will find they will always do this unless you correct them. I love working with the foals as my little ones never seem to be aggressive or hyper. They each have their own personality and more often than not they love to play and will come over to anyone just to see if they can get a scratch or some attention. I start "training" them from day one as I introduce the halter and lead and start playing and feeling them all over. I pick up their feet and handled them a lot but not a lot of focused work or anything. I just want them to let me do whatever I want. Our leading is easily done with not a lot force just an easy pull and release to get the foal used to giving into pressure. I also use a butt rope to encourage them to go foreword but many times I need to slow them down as they are so exuberant!. After several days of leading I don't usually spend much more time on it until they are a few months old and then I will do some reminders by putting the halter on and off and leading them some more. I think foals should be allowed to be babies and as long as they listen to me I don't want to regiment their lives, that will come later.

Boogie was my first foal and so I am sure I did a lot of things wrong with him but being the good boy he is he forgave my mistakes and we learned together. When he was two I started driving him with his mom. I had never driven a single horse much less a team but I had thought his mom was broke to drive double and I had heard an old broke horse will teach a young one how to drive. After I had driven them a few times I found out the that Nikki had never driven double in her life! Guess they both learned with me! I now use Boogie to train any youngsters that I have as two year olds and he teaches them how to go nicely in harness.

When Boogie was three years old I got on him and started riding. I have found over the years most people who have morgans have a similar story, they just get on and go. I had ridden Boogie for about a year when I decided to take some clinics with him. The trainer was a well known and respected guy and he watched Boogie and I for a little while and then asked me what I wanted to take home from the clinic. I told him I that Boogie and I weren't really going in the same direction anymore and it seemed like I needed to learn how to ask him to go where I wanted him to. He then commented that Boogie was such a good-natured laid back boy that he was just allowing me to go for a ride and that we really were not "talking" to each other. By the end of the two day clinic it was like I was riding a different horse! I had learned how to use some cues and now Boogie knew what I wanted and he responded beautifully! It was a great weekend for us and we have never looked back.

I started riding in parades with Boogie when he was four and over the years have gone to many parades. I changed my costume over the years and no matter how many dangling sparkling things I added Boogie never minded. I never questioned the fact he might not like some of the stuff I was putting on him I just put it on him and away we went.

We also dressed up for Halloween every year and went to town to 'scare" the kids. We are a big hit as no one else does this and people have told me its just not the same when they don't see me wandering around in some strange outfit or another. Boogie takes all this in stride, including the droves of kids who want to pet him. I think Morgans are really suited to parade work as they naturally hold their head up and have a high waterfall flowing type of tail carriage. Boogie picks his feet up more when we are in a parade and every now and then he bellows out a greeting which makes the kids laugh.

My kids eventually decided they wanted to come with me so I just tossed them up behind me and we started going to parades as a threesome. I even rode in a few parades when I was seven months pregnant and with a kid behind me. Gotta love the Morgan temperament.

I had never intended to go into breeding morgans other than one or two foals a year but somehow I just kept getting more and more mares and I have been very fortunate to be placing my foals all over Canada and the US. The Morgan foal seems to be a natural choice for people wanting to raise and train a foal as they just seem to be so trainable right from the start. They seem to be just so willing to learn.

I have people ask about bloodlines and while I have many Beamington bred mares I think good Morgans come from many different lines and I prefer to look at the horse in front of me to decide if she has the qualities I am looking for. The older lines tend to be a bit plainer in looks with those sturdy legs and big deep bodies and the Beamington tends to give a pretty head and eye while maintaining the good bodies. Nowadays most people like pretty and I do as well but I will take a plainer well built Morgan over a pretty but not so will built one any day.

I find that Morgans will do just about anything you ask of them. You see them doing everything from trail riding to World Championships. If you are looking for a calm sensible pretty horse that can do it all you should look at the Morgan.