Phase 3 Loshenka Makeover 2024

The autumn air nipped at Roman’s face as they took in the scenery. The backside of Cactus Bloom Ranch was beautiful this time of year as the trees started changing and cool winds caused the grass on the rolling hills to sway not unlike ocean waves. Dressed in one of their signature oversized hoodies, their riding pants and boots, and a helmet, the cold wasn’t much of an issue. Their blue and black hair was pulled back into a low ponytail, and their riding gloves kept their fingers from going numb. Roman adjusted their seat slightly, patting Baby Girl on the neck before smiling proudly. The gold mare had come a long way, and Roman was still a little shocked that not only did the gold overo mare overcome her old issues, but bravely tackled new ones.

All the trust that Roman had earned and built upon with the young mare had paid off a hundred times over. She no longer had issues in the trailer, her spacial awareness was leagues better, and getting her under saddle had actually been far easier than Roman could have ever hoped for. Baby Girl had quickly become a keeper, the turning point being when Roman rode her into the arena one day just for a little exercise and not only did she go over the ground poles with ease, but confidently went over a small jump. Roman had just wanted to see what she would do, and had fully expected the Halo Loshenka to refuse and shy away from the jump. They now were training her for hunt seat. Or was it hunter jumper? Roman had heard both, but never knew which was the correct term. 

Now, in the chilly autumn with the sun lowering towards the horizon, Roman was simply enjoying a trail ride with Baby Girl. The days were getting shorter, and soon the weather wouldn’t permit these nice rides across Cactus Bloom. Roman took a deep breath, letting it out with a sigh that billowed out with a light fog. With a soft click to the gold mare, the pair started back on their leisurely stroll, the mare’s hooves thumping softly against the ground. The trail they were taking wound through several thickets of trees, mostly oaks with a few mesquite and cedars strewn in. The yucca plants they would pass were starting to look a little worse for wear with the cold, but of course the prickly pear patches were hardy as ever, almost like sentinels awaiting the return of summer once again. Baby Girl was steady in her movement, scanning her surroundings with her good eye and keeping her left ear on Roman to keep tabs on them. Her right ear swiveled, alert and scanning her surroundings on her blind side.

As the overo Loshenka walked calmly, Roman’s head was full of all manner of thoughts. Mostly just reminiscing on Baby Girl’s journey so far. The young mare had come a long way since the day Roman brought her home. She had setbacks, of course, but nothing could have prepared Roman for just how amazing she had become. From fearful of the trailer to an absolute rockstar at loading and unloading. From bumping into things and spooking herself, to now very aware of her surroundings and calm if she ever missteps or bumps into something on her blind side. Roman remembered their first ride on the gold overo mare, crying with joy as she put her trust in them and followed their directions. Dakota had been witness to that moment, originally there in case something were to go wrong. He had shed a tear himself at the achievement, congratulating Roman on the fact that all of their hard work had paid off.

The sky was turning a deeper shade of orange as the sun continued its lazy descent. Roman and Baby Girl crested a hill, and stopped once more to take in the scenery before them. From here, they could see the barns and arena, impressive and outstanding. To the left, hundreds of acres of pastures with hundreds of cows. Roman didn’t know much about cattle ranching, but from what they understood, a decent portion of those cows would be sold come springtime. Looking to the right, there were more pastures but much smaller. The larger of these were the homes of the retired and semi-retired horses. The smaller ones were the turnouts for all the working horses.

Roman smiled fondly, looking down at Baby Girl thankfully that she was meant to be more than just a pretty pasture pony. Not that they would have minded, but it was just nice to know that all the work they had put in wasn’t for naught. Roman had really fallen in love with the gold overo Loshenka mare, but they had made a promise to themself that if she wasn’t rideable, that they would have to sell her. Not because they didn’t love her, but because it wasn’t practical for them to have a pasture pet. Rome had it easy with Hidalgo, he had already been trained when they bought him from Dakota. However, they had always wanted to train their own horse, just to prove to themself that they could actually do it and do it well. Now, here they are riding Baby Girl, proof that they indeed can train a horse, and a disabled one at that. They figured that if they could train a half-blind horse to be ridden, then surely they could continue to train other horses, disabled or not.

With another cluck, off the pair went, following the winding trail back to the barn. By the time they got back, the sun had made its farewell and the sky was a beautiful mix of oranges, pinks, and reds that were slowly fading into deep blues and purples. After untacking Baby Girl and giving her a quick groom to remove grass burrs from her tail and legs, Roman put her in her stall. She immediately went for a drink, her ears twitching cutely with each gulp she took. Roman went about his nightly chores, preparing Baby Girl’s and Hidalgo’s dinner. The latter was chatty, politely demanding his food while the former waited patiently, water dripping from her lip. Once both of their horses were fed, Rome left the barn and made their way to the house. They went upstairs to their rented room, locking the door before flopping onto the bed. They laid there, staring at the ceiling as they once again reminded themself that they had done it. It had been a long and bumpy road, but Baby Girl was thriving and enjoying her life now rather than living in fear of what she couldn’t see. Rome was sure there would be challenges ahead, but knew with patience and trust, they could get through anything. After a while of staring at the ceiling and grinning to themself, Roman got up from their bed and walked to their computer. They figured it was time to start researching how to train for hunter jumper (Or was it hunt seat? They should probably look up the proper name of the event if they wanted to start training for it.) They knew it probably would not be easy, but then again, if it were easy to train horses, everyone would do it.