Happy Birthday, Kiki

 Two years already, can you believe it?  She started here.

Now we are here.

She's really starting to feel like a pony instead of a foal now.  She still has the attention span of a goldfish and a tendency to throw a fit when bored but she does walk around like she has a clue.  She steps over when asked, can straight tie, and can even cross tie when the ties aren't sized for gigantic warmbloods.  She gets bored fast when I'm trimming her mane but as soon as the curry comb is out, she might as well be a statue.  Princess Kiki does not move while getting groomed.

Kiki now has some dark shading coming in on her neck in contrast to all of the frosting on her mane.  I was worried she would outgrow the frosting but it's still here.

There's not much to expect from a two year old so that's pretty much it.  She came in, she got groomed, and we took some pictures.  The bridle will probably happen in June so she'll be ready for the breed shows in July.  Until then, she will continue to be my feral kelpie.

She has three friends currently and some more on the way.  Rumor has it that an Andalusian mare will be taking over as babysitter for the filly field and one of the broodmares is due at the end of May.  It's such a glorious way for her to grow up.  Now that she's two she's starting to have sessions with Trainer Z to lay down some groundwork.  Leave the field, be groomed, do something, go back out.  By fall she should understand what the lunge is for and how to wear a bridle and surcingle.  Not really lunging but understanding the idea that circles around a human is a thing.  Then back out for another feral winter.

We're not in a hurry, Keekanator.  No one wants to lose that adorable curious response to everything.

Baby's first clinic

 Kiki got to attend her first clinic!  We were lucky enough to have a sporthorse handling clinic at the barn where clinicians learned from professional handlers how to show horses of different ages.  It made for a long day for the barn team as we provided all of the demo horses from foals next to their dams up to mature stallions.  Theo was a piece of cake since he's very good about trotting along with a handler.  He got braided up and that was it.  Kiki, on the other hand, was a multi-day project.

Day one was standing in the pouring rain while wrestling her cob mane into braids.  

Oh, this pony is going to have some hair.  I asked her sire's owner if he happens to have a full double mane and she replied 'Welcome to the world of cob manes!'.  Oh dear.  You can see her bestie Viv watching us work.  You'll also notice my yearling is standing like a saint for braiding with a human holding her slack lead rope.  She tried to get fussy at the start and got her halter shaken which was enough correction for her.  She thought this was all odd but getting her mane and tail brushed out was nice so she was down for it.  We got both of the ladies braided up easily as they both stood very well and turned them out for the night with orders to make good choices.  

The next day we were pleasantly surprised to see the braids were still in.  We didn't pull them up until the last minute since we could loop them up quickly with bands.  The girls only had to walk a short distance to go up to the indoor but it was the first trip for both of them.  We kept them together as a pair the whole time so they would have a nice experience.  Kiki was still not sure about this whole thing.

Bombastic side eye

We did have to have a brief talk about her standing politely while waiting for Viv to have her turn.  She would just start walking forward and was indignant when we backed her up.  About a dozen times.  Ever wrangle a several hundred pound toddler that is politely insisting they want to go see their friend?  Yeah, I was sore the next day.  She was never rude, just stubbornly insistent.  After a dozen iterations she gave up and stood politely.  

The barn's intern was doing the clinic and she was trusted to take Kiki around the triangle.  Kiki was confused but tried very hard to be good even though some stranger was behind her and clearly needed watching.

You might notice her socks are completely covered in mud.  The 2022 girls were turned out briefly while we were wrangling the 2023 girls and of course they went straight into the mud.  The liver chestnut was easy to clean up but the buckskin with four socks?  Thank goodness it was a clinic.  Everyone was surprised by the polite yearlings that just trotted around and accepted pats from everyone that wanted to meet them.  After that arduous outing that took about 10 minutes in the indoor, it was back to the field for the babies.

It was such a perfect outing.  They saw a crowd, got handled by several people, got braided, had to stand quietly for minutes at a time, had to trot along with a stranger, and then went right back into their field.  Now we know what we need to work on.  Kiki has a big trot and she needs to get used to showing it off alongside a human.  

We also need to work on that mane.  This baby has so much hair already!  Another month until her first breed show and she's a very quick study, I suspect she'll understand the game by the time we get there.  Whether or not I can make it around the triangle without falling on my face?  That's a whole other matter.

The entire mare band out enjoying their field.  Three broodmares, two yearlings, and two fillies.  6 of them are fancy, inspected Hanoverians from similar bloodlines, several are related as mother/daughter or half sisters.  Then there's Kiki, the buckskin pony.

Welcome to the family, Kiki

 I didn't sleep a wink last night.  I kept waking up and checking the time to see if I'd overslept.  About 5am my hubby told me to just get up already.  Apparently I was keeping him up as well.  I went to the barn all excited with a shiny new halter in hand.  It was new pony day!

Poor Kiki, her morning started out so peacefully, hanging with her favorite colt

New bike day is a thing in the cycling community.  New pony day is similar but much cuter.

We grabbed Trainer Z's two horse trailer and her ancient mini pony Mr. Ben and headed off to the breeder.  The trailer got stripped so it would be a box stall with Mr. Ben tied to one side.  The idea is that it's small enough Kiki would have to stay on her side without the troubles of getting her into a slot.  She'd also have Mr. Ben as a model of what she should do.  Mostly face forward and eat hay.  We pulled into the breeder's farm and she put a lead rope on Kiki.  Mr. Ben was pulled out of the trailer so she'd have room without a strange pony, then we asked her to step up.  It took her a minute while she touched the ramp with her front feet a couple times to check but then she walked up calmly.  She got settled, we added Mr. Ben, and we hit the road.  It took maybe ten minutes from parking to departure and that included the breeder handing me a coat I'd forgotten at the inspection.

I believe Kiki's thoughts could be summed up as 'What.  The.  HELL.'

Two hour ride back and we caught glimpses of Miss Kiki peeking out the window with hay at the corners of her mouth.  All good!  We arrived at the barn and there was a whole team to coordinate the transfers.  First the very pregnant broodmare in the field got moved to her foaling paddock.  She was delighted with this and made not a peep.  The yearling left behind, Viv, made a lot of peeps and fussed dramatically while her owner held her lead rope like the string of a kite.  Then we unloaded Mr. Ben, then Kiki.  Kiki stepped down very daintily and followed Trainer Z with an absolutely shocked expression on her face.  What was this place?  What happened?  Who was that very noisy liver chestnut?

She repeats.  What.  The.  HELL.

The girls were turned loose and folks stepped back for the fireworks.  Except there were very few.  Viv yelled for a broodmare that was ready for peace and didn't respond.  Kiki stood transfixed, staring at the pine chip footing in the paddock.  She quickly decided that Viv clearly knew what was going on and started following her.  Viv is a bit of a dominant brat and was in a state so she wasn't very receptive.  Kiki quickly learned to follow at a respectful distance.  After ten minutes, Viv was starting to figure out that her friend wasn't coming back.  By thirty minutes, she was more interested in what the deal was with the strange filly.

Future best friends?  We certainly hope so.

I made a run to Tractor Supply and by the time I got back, they were both working on the round bale in their field.  Not exactly friendly as they kept it between them but friendly enough to enjoy mutual grazing time.

I went into the field once it was clear the girls were done with their settling in drama.  Kiki was, understandably, very skittish.  She'd been thrown in a metal box with strangers, taken to a strange place, then put in a field with a strange filly that was not at all as friendly as the colts she'd left behind.  I stood by the round bale pretending to graze and after about two minutes, she was joining me.  Once I convinced her that I wasn't going to take her anywhere or do anything weird, she was happy for skritches.  She's shedding like crazy and is one itchy baby.

I spent about ten minutes giving her attention (and explaining to Viv that I'm a grumpy old broodmare and my space is sacrosanct) before heading out so they could finish settling after a very big day.  They'll spend the rest of the week just existing, getting used to each other, and for Kiki learning the new routine.  This weekend they'll get adult supervision in the form of an older broodmare that isn't in foal.  By summer when the fields are ready, they'll be joined by the other broodmares to make a nice little herd.  It should be a great way to grow up with a mix of ages and temperaments.

Now I'm wildly over tired but excited.  She was very, very sensible about everything.  She's skittish right now but couldn't resist coming over to see what I was doing and get in some attention.  I suspect in a week or two she'll be ready for company and getting used to going for short walks.  Most importantly, I've decided royal blue is definitely her color and will need to buy her lots of things in that shade.

Welcome to the family, Kiki.

Preparing for Kiki

 I really, really didn't think I was going to be looking at things like this but . . . I've been watching the Westfalen NA posts very closely.  Waiting for the 2022 inspection results.

Your top scoring Welsh foal for the 2022 Westfalen NA inspection tour and one of the high point foals for the futurity:

August 2022, 4 months old

Quillane Marqui is making people turn their heads already.  Now that everything is settled and done, I'm finding out that Trainer Z was holding her breath, waiting to see if I'd pick Kiki or the other little filly.  I went with the buckskin that I'd been stalking for months and it seems I picked the right one.  Everyone is excited.  Trainer, breeder, stallion owner, and me, it really does take a village.  I'm trying to be a good equine citizen and kick up some fuss for her sire.  He had the number one KDR filly in the 2019 inspection (pre-pandemic) and now he's got a number one Welsh filly.  He does stamp his foals with that nice shoulder.  She got the dam's lovely topline, though.

We're just a couple weeks away from bringing Kiki home.  It seems impossible that she's almost a yearling already.  We're coordinating spring shots, feeding schedules, and halter sizes.  My trailer will be reconfigured to be a giant box stall and I'm borrowing an ancient Shetland pony from Trainer Z to give Kiki some company for her first trailer ride.  I'm also putting Trainer Z in the truck because I don't want to get into trouble moving my new filly and be on my own.  I'm excited and terrified to start this new adventure and would not be attempting it if I didn't have such an experienced trainer to play guide.  She's coaching me through everything from expectation setting to setting up my trailer.

Kiki is going to be a pistol.  Her breeder has started calling her Cheeky Kiki.  I've received clips of her full on body slamming the colts in their field and untying baling twine as fast as people can tie it.  She's sensitive, quick, and very smart.  Rumor has it that she's the queen of the foal group and only has to flick an ear for them to get out of her way, including the big colt.  Competition mare mind is how they're describing her.

December 2022, 8 months old

Seriously, that's how she trots around while playing with her friends in a muddy field in December.  It's a screen grab from a clip of the three foals being goofballs.  It's just how she do, she moves like the ground is too hot to touch.  The other foals are cantering.  I don't know if she'll make the pony cut off, she may end up 14.3 like her sire.  Not that it really matters to me, it's still a heck of a lot closer to the ground then Theo, but it would be nice if she could be an FEI pony for some very lucky teen.  I'd do it myself but the FEI pony test is for junior riders.

March 2023 at 10 months old

Her first outing will be in July at a USDF breed show.  I think the whole class of 2022 will be there so I'll be excited for the pictures.  I don't think any of her half sibs will be there so no 'Get of' type classes for her.  They're trying to repeat the breeding so maybe, in the future, she'll have some sibs and we can do a group for her dam and sire.  I'll have to ask her breeder if she wants to do a 'bred by' group since she'll have enough representatives of her work in attendance.  I will happily tow Kiki through to support her.    

For now, I count the days before Project Kiki begins.  AHHHHH.

Cob Mob

 I got to visit Kiki!  It was also the day that I dropped off the last check for her purchase and started transferring all of her paperwork to me as she's being weaned.  So I'm broke.  But let's focus on the cute.

Oh dear, Kiki

Poor Kiki, she's going through her first awkward phase that I've observed.  She's always been so balanced and then I came around the corner and just burst out laughing.  Oh, honey.  That butt.  What the hell?  

She's definitely in the middle of a growth spurt.  Her breeder and I agreed that we lucked out that she waited until after her inspection to pull this particular 'hide her behind the barn' phase.  Not unexpected at all, just hilarious for a filly that has hardly had a day where she didn't look perfect.  No, it's not the angle of the picture, she's just ridiculously butt high on the day I visited.  But I cuddled her and gave her all the skritches all the same because I know she'll catch up with that butt soon enough.

Kiki, honey, you don't fit anymore

She's still the sweet, sensitive young lady I've met before.  She absolutely loves to be touched, even on her belly or legs.  She doesn't really care so long as she's getting groomed.  She's putting on her winter coat and while the rest of the class of 2022 are showing how dark they can go, Kiki is sticking to her frosted buckskin look.  She has dark hairs mixed in but she isn't showing any signs of going super dark like the other foals.  She's hanging on to her light buckskin look and I'm delighted.

She's also a total heathen.  She has left  a lot of bite marks on the other foals.  I got to spectate while she reared and goaded the colt into galloping for her entertainment.  I didn't get pictures since I was out of range but she has the colt of the group well entertained.  They're being weaned together due to being very close in age and the other filly her age heading home to Canada today.  It's going to be a rough week for the class of 2022 with one foal leaving and two being weaned.  It had to happen but that doesn't mean it will be an easy week for a mama's girl like Kiki.  She certainly won't be alone but it won't be her favorite day.

A little grooming session with Avanti while I was on rump scratching duty

Back at home, I had an unobserved Theo ride and then he got a mini spa day.  We're going to avoid clipping him until after his last show of the season and then we're going to clip him conservatively since he's got a pro that can wait all day for him to dry if necessary.  The hope is that more hair = less tantrums.  I really don't want to risk Trainer Z.  They have a show together next weekend and then it's the off season for them.  There's a Second Level freestyle to finish and the final polish on his Third Level moves.  Trainer Z and I both have plans for next season.

He's sexy and he knows it

2023 is coming fast and I'm going to have my hands full showing a yearling filly and my Third Level horse (YES I'M GOING FOR IT).  I will catch up on my sleep now because come May?  Sleep is for the weak.

Foal Monday?

 I've heard that Foal Friday is a thing.  And I tried to participate on time but Monday is close enough on a holiday weekend.  I'm too far away to participate most weeks but the pictures from the inspection are starting to emerge and I got to visit Kiki this weekend.  So without further ado, pictures of pony foals!

All good photos credit to Spotted Vision Photography, all cell phone shots are me or Marqui's breeder.

Kiki has to go first, of course.  Poor thing trying to show her lovely movement in water up to her ankles due to the flash flood.  

She tried hard to be a good girl but you can tell she thought this was all a bad idea.  It doesn't help that her mom was so utterly done with this whole thing.  Please note Bonnie's expression as she is plotting her revenge while trotting through the storm.

Second?  Revere, the colt that enjoyed the inspection and his captive audience so much.  He did not want to end it and come back to the barn.  Retained by the breeder for obvious (omg got an 8.3) reasons.  He's a half-uncle to Avanti and Ozzy (same dam as their sire).

Third is Avanti, the little filly I waited for but ended up passing on.  She is such a personality, she will present you with her rump and refuse to move until she has received the skritches she wants.  She's shedding out jet black and will be stunning.  She's also growing into quite the little chunk.  She's going to be a strong, fast young lady.

Last but not least?  Ozzy.  This is a half brother to Avanti with the same sire.  He also enjoyed his inspection greatly as he got to run amok while people coo'ed to him.

Bonus picture of Ozzy checking in with the inspector to see if there were any other instructions.  The cobs are not a shy group.

She's not really a foal but she's still a filly and there was no way I was not going to share this picture.  Half sister to Avanti with the same dam, two year old Raleigh got an audible 'ooooh' from the spectators when she started moving.  And then a scramble to make sure she didn't jump out of the ring as she was clearly considering doing.  Spicy little red head.

And now for the candids of me visiting the mob for no other reason than I was in the area and wanted to love on my foal.  I have never been around a foal mob before and it was a lot of fun, even if I was definitely concerned that the kids were going to knock me over while jostling for position.

Rhya is the one giving me a kiss on the cheek, Kiki is the one wanting to know why I'm being interrupted from rump scratching duty.  The kids are starting to shed out and get ready for winter so they were even more itchy than usual.  Poor Avanti is going to shed her baby fuzz just in time for her winter fuzz.  

I love this picture and I'm going to look back at it a lot over the years.  Me cuddling with Kiki at 5 months old.  She's going to be quite sensitive but that's an attribute for a future dressage horse.  She loves cuddles and grooming.  Her ears never stop moving and she's very aware of everything around her.  She's going to be spicy but I think she's going to be the good kind of spicy.  You need some spice to move up the levels.

It'll probably be a couple weeks before I make it down for another visit.  She's being weaned at the end of the month, I can't believe she's already six months old! 

Meet Marqui

 Things don't always turn out the way you expected.  I went to my foal meet and greet with my heart set on one filly and walked away with another filly clearly imprinted on my mind as the next partner for me.

Everyone, meet Marqui.

Quillane Marqui (Stonecroft Gold Medallion x Taraco Mourinho)

She had my attention from the very first pictures of her standing outside with her dam.

She's about 12 hours old in that picture but it definitely made me stop scrolling.  And she just kept showing up in pictures looking like a million bucks.  I was already waiting for a different foal from the same breeder but the breeder had a hunch and held on to her for me.  I went to see her yesterday and . . .

She is now four months old and loves to sit on her butt.  Three nice gaits, super pretty head, playful and very smart personality.  As the breeder said, 'competition mare mind'.  She definitely wasn't happy when people weren't watching her though she's going through a 'can't catch me' phase.  She oozes sport pony potential.  She leads and picks up her feet like a lady and her baby clip was done with her loose in her stall while she watched with a curious expression.  She's quite certain she's a princess already and her dam has the long suffering face of someone ready for weaning as her filly rears up and whacks her with her front feet.

Believe it or not, her dam is 20 years old.  She's Stonecroft Gold Medallion and her sire is Stonecroft Bold as Brass. She has performance points in western pleasure from her youth but these days she just makes beautiful babies.  She likes to test people to see if you mean it (she is definitely a cob) but also loves to snuggle and get skritches.

Stonecroft Gold Medallion (Thornbeck Golden Deilen x Stonecroft Bold as Brass)

The sire is Taraco Mourinho, an imported stallion with good results in the dressage ring and approved Westfalen pony book.  This means Marqui is eligible for German Riding Pony as well as the NEDA Breeders Futurity.  Word has it that he's doing PSG work now.  He had the top Westfalen KDR foal in 2021 for NA out of a WB mare.  I believe this is his first purebred Welsh Cob foal.  I didn't get to meet him since he lives in FL but his owner is also his rider and she loves him.  His nickname is NP for Naughty Pony so we are getting plenty of sass.

Taraco Mourinho (Danaway Flash Jack x Paith Magical Meredith x Thorneyside Flyer)

His inspection notes include always going uphill and cooperative in all gaits.  Plenty of videos with him taking his mom for trail rides and some pictures of him playing in the ocean from when he lived in Maine.  Like the many cobs we met while touring the breeder's facility, he seems a good guy that has a sense of humor with many strong opinions.  And fantastic feet.  OMG the feet on these cobs, every single one had great feet.  So good.

Marqui's Westfalen inspection is August 23rd so that will be interesting.  I'll probably take that day off from work to go spectate.  Fingers crossed the judges like her as much as me and Trainer Z.  From there it's just a matter of waiting and letting her grow up.  I'm very excited and more than a bit intimidated by taking on this project.  I'll have Trainer Z and the breeder along for the ride but it's still quite an adventure.  

Welcome to the family, Marqui.  You'll have big horse shoes to fill but I think you've got it covered.