Disposition
Pictured is a photo of Smokey, Sabu & me in the Wickenburg, AZ desert, taken in March
of 2007.
Smokey has been my primary riding buddy for 3 or 4 years. Sabu, the toy poodle, is my
closest fur-person buddy. Because I care so much for them, they care about and watch
out for each other. Smokey always knows where Sabu is on the trail, taking care not to
step on him. Sabu loves to run in Smokey's shadow on hot, sunny days in the summer.
When the trail's not ultra-dusty, Sabu can be found 3" behind Smoke's left hind foot. If
he knows the trail well, or we're heading home, Sabu will be 20-30' in front of us, leading
the way, turning around to check on our progress every 100 yards or so.
Amazingly, Sabu has done 13 miles on the ground by himself. When he gets hot, or
needs a rest break or a drink of water, he'll stand up on his back legs & wave his arms.
I'll tell him to go somewhere where we can safely pick him up (climb, jump, there), then I
reach for my trusty "picker-upper" that's hooked to the pommel, Smokey sidepasses
over to him, I grab his little harness & hoist him aboard -- in the saddle, in front of me.
(He wears prescription sunglasses due to an eye problem, not because he looks so cute.
But then, he is, isn't he?)
This intra-species communication and attentiveness is indicative of a very special
disposition. I loved that in Smokey when I first got him as an untrained 3 year old. It's
what brought us to Foxtrotters, and what kept me looking for siblings of his. We now
own 4 horses by the same sire, Hitman's Main Man, who sadly passed away this past
winter. He was the epitome of a special, kind and care-taking horse. Since we treasure
that beyond measure, we're planning on standing his last son, our 2006 colt, Mythical
Magus, so that wonderful disposition can live on.
Click on the photo of Magus below, running free in the North pasture, at 8 weeks old.
Pictured is a photo of Smokey, Sabu & me in the Wickenburg, AZ desert, taken in March
of 2007.
Smokey has been my primary riding buddy for 3 or 4 years. Sabu, the toy poodle, is my
closest fur-person buddy. Because I care so much for them, they care about and watch
out for each other. Smokey always knows where Sabu is on the trail, taking care not to
step on him. Sabu loves to run in Smokey's shadow on hot, sunny days in the summer.
When the trail's not ultra-dusty, Sabu can be found 3" behind Smoke's left hind foot. If
he knows the trail well, or we're heading home, Sabu will be 20-30' in front of us, leading
the way, turning around to check on our progress every 100 yards or so.
Amazingly, Sabu has done 13 miles on the ground by himself. When he gets hot, or
needs a rest break or a drink of water, he'll stand up on his back legs & wave his arms.
I'll tell him to go somewhere where we can safely pick him up (climb, jump, there), then I
reach for my trusty "picker-upper" that's hooked to the pommel, Smokey sidepasses
over to him, I grab his little harness & hoist him aboard -- in the saddle, in front of me.
(He wears prescription sunglasses due to an eye problem, not because he looks so cute.
But then, he is, isn't he?)
This intra-species communication and attentiveness is indicative of a very special
disposition. I loved that in Smokey when I first got him as an untrained 3 year old. It's
what brought us to Foxtrotters, and what kept me looking for siblings of his. We now
own 4 horses by the same sire, Hitman's Main Man, who sadly passed away this past
winter. He was the epitome of a special, kind and care-taking horse. Since we treasure
that beyond measure, we're planning on standing his last son, our 2006 colt, Mythical
Magus, so that wonderful disposition can live on.
Click on the photo of Magus below, running free in the North pasture, at 8 weeks old.
| Click on above photo to see Smokey & me pick up Sabu when he's tired. |
| On the trail with Sabu |
| Too many snakes & too much sunshine! |