# Icelandic horses



## Oakshire_Farm (Dec 4, 2008)

Hey all! 

I have the opportunity to get a FREE 7 year old Icelandic. Here is what the person has said about it, what do you think? Is he going to be a good FREE horse??? She said he is fine at a walk and only showing signs of being lame at the trot. I am looking for a pony that I can take friends out on, my hubby can join us if he wants to come riding. That my daughters can grow into. At this point my oldest daughter is in a lesson program and is riding every friday, I will take him to the lessons and while daughter #1(8yr) is having her lesson put daughter #2 (6yr)on him and just do some lead line lessons. Daughter #2 just likes to wak, she gets quite afraid if the horse trot with her on them. The vet Colin, is highly regarded as the BEST equine specialist in our area.

His name is Blundur which means Simple in Icelandic. He is the sweetest boy ever. We bought him last year from Farquhar BC. When he came to us he looked lame a bit but I was unsure as they are a totally different breed to our horses and run differently. I took him to a trainer in Cedar who trains Icelandicâs. Yes, he was lame it was his right front. So I brought him back and took him to Colin, and had x-rays, and found nothing . we put him on Previcox and six months rest. Colin thought he might have had a sprain and needed some time off. In May I took him back to the trainer and he was still lame. He is not completely broke but with your girls, they would have time to learn together and he would be a great and safe lead line. Who knows, he can come sound some day, but my youngest daughter was getting upset as itâs been over a year since we got him. My oldest daughter has been riding him and training him to walk on and whoa with contact and pressure. Also I would like to have a give back option on himâ¦ if you like him and take him, and something comes up and you canât keep him, you would contact me, first.


What do you think??? I am going to look at him on sunday, or should I :runforhills:


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## Barn Yarns (Oct 7, 2012)

what was xrayed? just the foot and lower leg? could the lameness be up in the shoulder? do icelandics easily trot? myself, i would find it hard seeing a lameness at the tolt. 

if he has been lame for a year, it could be an old injury and that's just how he is going to be. What does farrier say?


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## Wolfy-hound (May 5, 2013)

My personal opinion...
I would be wary that he said he's "not completely broke" but says he'd be safe for your young girls to ride on. I also wouldn't be pleased to know that he's lame, was put on rest, and while STILL lame, he's had his own daughter riding him. 

It's just me, but I never considered a lame animal to buy or work on. Lame to me means there's an issue that needs to be solved. 

Of course, I don't know the horse or people involved, but my blind opinion based on your post is that.


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## malinda (May 12, 2002)

Prognosis for a sound horse sounds poor. You could sink a lot of money into trying to figure out his lameness and possibly never find anything conclusive, or even if you do, is it fixable?


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## Oakshire_Farm (Dec 4, 2008)

Thanks for all the comments.... keep them coming, I am hoping the person with the Icelandics will chime in at some point??

Here is a little more info, this is a "friend of a friend" not some random craigslist person trying to dump a lame horse. He is totally sound at a walk, the woman and her daughter ride him now. It is when you ask for a trot that he shows the lameness? When she has said if we have any problems they will take him back she truley means that. He was x-rays up the leg, they all came up as clear. She has said that her 200lb husband has riden him on trail rides and he is sound as long as they stay at a walk. Which is all I want for him. He is only going to be riden at a walk for my girls to come on family trail rides. She has said he is only green broke because all they do it walk on him...... so to say he is broke is not true. He has a good solid walk whoa. 

I am a horse lover, but at the end of the day if he turns out to not be sound at a walk at any point, I can get a excavator in for $80 and a .22 shell is what $.02...... I trust that the vet they have used has done all they can to rule out any problems that are in the bone, it is a soft tissue issue. I am not going to put this pony into hard work he will have a VERY easy life as mostly a pasture pet with a 30 min lead line lesson every week and the odd trail ride. 

I know NOTHING about this breed, so at this point that I am doing lots of breed research. I am going to meet the pony on sunday, I am going to take him for a little walk and see for my own eyes what he is like. The family that owns him right now are into the Western show scene in the area.


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## birchtreefarm (Jul 22, 2007)

If he was not an Icelandic, would you still want him? If he was "just" a grade horse of some sort, not an otherwise expensive, somewhat rare, and gaited breed, would you consider taking him, knowing he was lame and no one knew why or how to fix it?

If not, then maybe you are just thinking you might luck out and get an expensive breed for free, and maybe the lameness will resolve, and he'll be a good horse and you'll have hit the jackpot. Which might happen.

Or, he might have his lameness resolve eventually, and when he's feeling better, suddenly he's not the same horse anymore, and needs more training or someone with more experience.

It's possible that he has some low level of pain all the time that just doesn't show up at the walk, but affects him such that he isn't really showing anyone his true spirit. They are typically a breed that is spirited under saddle (of course there are exceptions). And a slow walk is not their preferred gait (of course there are exceptions).

And if he's lame at anything faster than a walk, I wouldn't put a 200lb man on him even if all they did was walk. That just seems unhelpful to his recovery.

I know FREE is hard to resist, but a lame horse is not really FREE.


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## brody (Feb 19, 2009)

a free horse costs just as much to feed as a bought one - a free lame horse often costs a LOT more to take care of - special shoes, supplements etc ...if you want a pet -then go for it - if you want something to ride -pass


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## birchtreefarm (Jul 22, 2007)

Oakshire_Farm said:


> I know NOTHING about this breed, so at this point that I am doing lots of breed research. I am going to meet the pony on sunday, I am going to take him for a little walk and see for my own eyes what he is like.


This is good - you should pay close attention to his demeanor, and I'm sure Bergere will chime in at some point, and she has much more experience with them than I do, but I also wanted to say this.

Icelandics are not like other horses. I know, I know, everyone probably says that about their favorite/preferred breed. But they aren't. They have something different going on upstairs - they seem, in general, to be a little more "thoughtful." If you can, you should go visit an Icelandic breeder and meet several horses to get a feel for them.

Also, it would be interesting to know where this guy came from, and who trained him, and when his training was started. Icelandics are typically not started before their fourth year. He's very young yet, and may have been started improperly or pushed too hard too early, which resulted in his lameness. Are the current owners his first owners who bought him from the breeder, or did they buy him from someone else? 

Most are registered, unless the breeder was very lax, and you should be able to see his registration papers (assuming the current owners have them) and see who bred him, and contact the breeder and find out about his parentage and their personalities. There's a breeder in Vernon which might be where he came from, although, I just did a worldwide search on his name, and no registered horses with the name Blundur are located in Canada, so perhaps he is not registered. "Blundur" also means "doze" or "nap/cat nap" so perhaps that is a sign of his personality. :happy2:

Good luck! You will probably fall in love - it's easy to do with this breed. Just be careful and be sure you want to take on a project like this.


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## bergere (May 11, 2002)

I have seen Icelandic's go lame, due to bad or poor saddle fit, or carrying a rider much too heavy for that horse.
He could have a long term abscess in his hoof..
There are a lot of reason he could be lame.

You could go look at him, see what you think.
Ask if he is UTD on vaccines and de worming. 
How is he with the farrier and so on.

But a caution with Icelandic's. Not all of them are mellow and easy going.
Most of them are very, very smart.
The last rescue I did, the mare showed all the signs of being mellow. But she was a walking bag of bones, full of worms, having a number of kinds of lice, mange and where there should of been frogs in her hooves, were pretty much rotted away.
2 years to get her healthy, and once she became healthy, she showed her true colors..
She isn't a nut by any means, has a stable mind, but she can be very bossy and pushy, if you allow her to be. And some where along the way, dealing with her past owners, she has learned a big bag of what I call, rent string tricks. Not fun to deal with.
Has taken while to re train her.
She is now a great horse, but it can take a lot of time re training them.

I do not know his background, so I can't hazard to guess how he will be. 

If you had his full name, I might be able to ask around about him. Blundur fra ?

Icelandic's are different than other breeds. Like Karen said, you have to deal with them to see just how different they are.


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## jennigrey (Jan 27, 2005)

The way I understand it, Icelandics developed a more thoughtful / less reactive mindset because of the lack of good feed during Icelandic winters and the lack of natural predators. The horses that were less skittish didn't waste calories on unnecessary spooking and running from things that weren't dangerous. The horses that spent their calories wisely made it through the winter in better flesh and were generally more successful.


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## birchtreefarm (Jul 22, 2007)

jennigrey said:


> The way I understand it, Icelandics developed a more thoughtful / less reactive mindset because of the lack of good feed during Icelandic winters and the lack of natural predators. The horses that were less skittish didn't waste calories on unnecessary spooking and running from things that weren't dangerous. The horses that spent their calories wisely made it through the winter in better flesh and were generally more successful.


I hadn't thought about the lack of winter feed aspect, but that's a good thought. Certainly the lack of predators means that they didn't have to run from anything except possibly people, but the Icelanders treasure their horses (even if they do also eat them) and they treasure the spirit of the Icelandic horse, and they depended on their horses as the horses also depended on them.


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## Oakshire_Farm (Dec 4, 2008)

Thanks for all the imput. I have chatted with a good friend of mine, she knows the woman that owns this horse, she has nothing but FANTASTIC things to say about her. 

He is 7years old right now, The woman that has him now bought him last year where there was a breeder that had a death in the family and they sold out all of their stock. So I know nothing of the breeder or who started his training? I have no idea if he is registered? She has told me he is utd on vaccines and worming. 

I really wonder, and I have seen this before... when horses live in little gravel paddocks they are not able to "heal" properly. They are not able to move around.... I would have him in a "natural" pasture area. Lots of trees, pasture, with other animals. Not on his own in a little gravel 20x50 paddock. 

His breed means nothing to me, I have never seen one in real life. There is no breeder that are around me, so going to look at others is not really a option. 

I guess I will just take a chance and go and meet him, get s feel for him. It never hurts to look right? HAHAHAHA Famous last words! I am not going to take the horse trailer with me, so I will have to think about him some more, my husband will be with me, asking if we really need another.


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## bergere (May 11, 2002)

jennigrey said:


> The way I understand it, Icelandics developed a more thoughtful / less reactive mindset because of the lack of good feed during Icelandic winters and the lack of natural predators. The horses that were less skittish didn't waste calories on unnecessary spooking and running from things that weren't dangerous. The horses that spent their calories wisely made it through the winter in better flesh and were generally more successful.


True in Iceland.
Not true here... in the US they do not cull the high string, over reactive and dangerous. They just toss them in the back pasture to breed more.
These are the ones I have spend 20 odd years in helping owners, that ended up with Icelandic's they could not handle.


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## bergere (May 11, 2002)

Oakshire_Farm said:


> Thanks for all the imput. I have chatted with a good friend of mine, she knows the woman that owns this horse, she has nothing but FANTASTIC things to say about her.
> 
> He is 7years old right now, The woman that has him now bought him last year where there was a breeder that had a death in the family and they sold out all of their stock. So I know nothing of the breeder or who started his training? I have no idea if he is registered? She has told me he is utd on vaccines and worming.
> 
> ...


There are many Icelandic Horse breeders up your way.
If you contact Robin Hood of Icelandic horse farm, she might be able to help you get more info about him.
http://www.icefarm.com/

There have also been many Icelandic Horse's dumped into the market via WA... so it is not impossible he was one of those.


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## Oakshire_Farm (Dec 4, 2008)

I know there is a few breeders in British Columbia.... but I am on Vancouver Island, that is a $100 ferry ride each way to go and see these breeders.... not to mention a nights stay in a hotel and paying for a farm sitter..... so not really a option. 

But I will send this guy a email and see what he says. I am going to try and track to the breeders name that this guy came from and see if he is known in the Icelandic community?


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## jennigrey (Jan 27, 2005)

There are a lot of Icelandics in the Pacific Northwest from the herd dispersal at Extreme Farms in Ellensburg, WA, back in fall of 2010. I think that, all told, maybe 200 horses left that farm over a three-month period. That's where "our" Falki came from. (I say "our" because he isn't actually mine - just boarded at my place. He's a great little horse.)


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## birchtreefarm (Jul 22, 2007)

Oakshire_Farm said:


> I guess I will just take a chance and go and meet him, get s feel for him. It never hurts to look right? HAHAHAHA Famous last words! I am not going to take the horse trailer with me, so I will have to think about him some more, my husband will be with me, asking if we really need another.


Just remember, we need pics! :happy2:


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## bergere (May 11, 2002)

There are Icelandic Horse owners on the Island too.

If you contact Robin Hood, she might be able to help.  
Most Icelandic Horse folks that have been around for awhile, knows who is out there with Icelandics. Robin has been around a very long time, breeding and training.


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## cedarcreekranch (Nov 24, 2010)

I'm more on the line of thinking if a horse is lame, he's lame, no matter the speed, and if it's gone on this long, it's probably permanent. He's only 7 so theoretically many years left in him - once your girls get more comfortable riding or you ride or someone else rides him, are you certain you'll only want to ever WALK? Eventually someone would want to be able to ride it at gait and cover some ground. As others have said, free is not always free in the long run. If you fall in love with him and it gets to the point where you can't even ride him at a walk, are you prepared to put him down, sell him, or keep him forever on your dime? Even if it means not being able to get another horse because of finances? Keeping a horse around 'just because' is an expensive pasture ornament. If he needs medical care just to be pastured, would you want to be responsible for that? Just playing devil's advocate here by looking at possibilities.


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## wr (Aug 10, 2003)

A lame horse is a lame horse no matter what the breed and in my opinion, a lame horse is going to cost you money. If the horse is lame at 7, it is highly unlikely that it is going to become less lame as she gets older so you may end up with a horse that you are not able to use at all at some point in the future. 

If you're looking for another horse, why not look for a sound one that actually has resale value?


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## GrannyCarol (Mar 23, 2005)

I'd think you'd really need to know exactly what's wrong with this horse before you commit to him. Why is he lame? Is it curable? It may not be cheap to do whatever testing is necessary to find out, but I agree that at the very least, you need to know what you are getting in to. Ask if you can get permission to talk to their vet and farrier to see if you can get a much more accurate diagnosis. Even so, you risk having an expensive pet you can't use, or paying a lot to try to get him comfortable. It's very hard to have to put one down, just devastating.


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## DaniR1968 (May 24, 2008)

As someone else stated, what happens when your children fall in love with him and he doesn't ever become sound and you send him back or? They will be broken hearted. 

Also, I doubt he is just sound at the walk. They couldn't tell he was lame in gait. They might not realize he is lame at the walk. It could be just a slight limp. Or he is not showing pain at the walk. Not to be unkind but I question anyone continuing to ride a horse that is relatively young that has lameness without knowing what caused it. I also question these people suggesting a young horse and children learn together? Um, no. That is a recipe for disaster. Having an amateur and/or child do the training usually does not go well. Those are the horses that later have to have all the bad training undone and then retrained.

There are free or very cheap horses out there that have no lameness problems that are already broke to ride and truly would make good children's horses.


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## bergere (May 11, 2002)

Another thought.

To people that do not know Icelandic gaits.... and the types of foot falls that entails.
Many times they think the horse's are lame, when they Tolt or do a Trot/Tolt or Pace/Tolt.
Horse's are not lame..... seen this so many times, it isn't funny.
They are just doing what some Icelandic's do.


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## Oakshire_Farm (Dec 4, 2008)

Alrighty, so after going and checking the little guy out....... he is pretty awesome. I did my best to get him to take a lame step and the best I got out of him was at one point when I asked for him to slow from a trot down to a walk ,there was 2 or 3 strides that felt a little off? The woman that owns him is really nice, she has turned down many people that had inquired about him. But after a long chat we both agreed that if his lameness was to ever get worse he will be put down. She did was going to have him put down but thought she would see if there was someone out there that was interested before she did it. He is a sweet little pasture pet. He LOVES kids, great with my girls climbing all around him. 

So we are going back on sunday with the trailer to bring him home.


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## birchtreefarm (Jul 22, 2007)

Oakshire_Farm said:


> Alrighty, so after going and checking the little guy out....... he is pretty awesome. I did my best to get him to take a lame step and the best I got out of him was at one point when I asked for him to slow from a trot down to a walk ,there was 2 or 3 strides that felt a little off?


When you get him home, have someone video him (holding the camera as still as possible!) while you or someone else rides him just as you did (walk to trot and back to walk), and post the video here. It would be a shame if he is indeed not really lame but is instead giving a few steps of tolt or stepping pace in there when transitioning, and the worst is assumed. I'm not saying he's not lame, but like Shari said, if you aren't familiar with how the gaits feel, you could attribute a bad gait performance to lameness.

He is very young and probably has had zero gait training. It's great that he seems to be rock-steady with kids and such. You may have gotten very very lucky, but please have someone knowledgeable about Icelandics, or at least gaited horses, evaluate his gaits for you.


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## Barnbum374 (Oct 5, 2013)

Our 5 year old draft cross was on and off being dead lame at a walk. One vet took x-rays up his leg but found no problems and told us to let him rest. Another vet was able to find arthritis in his shoulder from X-rays. He is now on Adequan and 2 years later is still doing great on it, although we do make sure to keep to light riding with him. Good luck!


Sent from my iPhone using Homesteading Today


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## birchtreefarm (Jul 22, 2007)

Any photos yet? :grin:


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## Oakshire_Farm (Dec 4, 2008)

HAHAHAHA, Sorry, no photos yet..... We picked him up yesterday, I kept him in the box stall over night. This morning I turned him out with my daughters arab and the mini. It went great! The arab took the place at herd boss! Which is what I wanted, he is a old man, so I did not want him on the bottom end of the totem pole. 

He has checked everything out and it just hanging out following the others around just has fit right in! When I first turned him out there was the normal run around, so it was GREAT to watch him move!!! I have yet to see any sign of lameness? Watching a tolt in real life sure is cool! I have watched pile of youtube videos, but in real life it sure looks smooth! I cannot wait to hop on and take him for a ride. 

This is our Canadian Thanksgiving, so I am cooking a big turkey feast today, other wise I would be running around with a camera


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## bergere (May 11, 2002)

Way cool! Can't wait for photos!


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## birchtreefarm (Jul 22, 2007)

:bored:


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## Oakshire_Farm (Dec 4, 2008)

I do not know how to post photos on here?????


I will put them on my farm fb page, give me 5 minutes and look there  I took a few crappy shot out side yesterday, these were the best, the rest were his wiskers on the lense........ I am going to haul him over to my daughters lesson on friday night, then I can get some better ones.


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## Oakshire_Farm (Dec 4, 2008)

ok, I posted some  on the fb page. Check him out! I will get some better ones very soon, I need someone to hold him for me to get come confo shots.


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## bergere (May 11, 2002)

right click on the photo, to copy the address. Click the square above the message box, that looks like a little yellow post card and put the address in the box that pops up.
Sounds a lot harder than it is.


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## bergere (May 11, 2002)

He is very nice looking!


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## Oakshire_Farm (Dec 4, 2008)

Like this?????


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## Oakshire_Farm (Dec 4, 2008)

HOLY CROW! I did it!!!


LMAO


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## bergere (May 11, 2002)

Yup, like that! VBG


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## Oakshire_Farm (Dec 4, 2008)

So last night hauled the little guy over to the indoor that my daughter takes lessons at. I tacked him up and got on. I do not think this little guy was ever broke? He has no idea that a squeeze means walk on? So a squeeze a bunch of kicks and we got forward motion, he was great but LAZY! So after my thighs started BURNING from trying to keep him going, I asked for a crop! Well, let me tell you, he is just so lazy it took a good hard whack to make him go, but I got him going quite nicley. I got him into a tolt. What a amazing feeling!!!! 

Anyways, I rode him pretty had for about 20 minutes, not a lame step? But he seems to have a weird step when he is picking up speed where he is not sure if he should trot or tolt? I think that may be confused as a lame step? But no head bobbing or any of the other signs of lameness. 

But then I got off and my daughter started trotting him in hand around the ring and we saw it. I hoped on him bareback and he was fine again? So he is only lame when he does not have a rider? lol 

So this morning my thighs are BURNING! And my daughters coach, who is a saddle seat rider/trainer. Figures that he may have a tendon on the wrong spot on the bone that just needs some massage? So we may get him some massage and see if that helps. But after all the pushing to make him go forward last night, I think he will be a good safe little kids pony. He will not bolt! hahaha, making him go is the hard part. I think that his "lameness" ha always been a excuse for him to get out of work. But he is smart and figures out what you want of him pretty quick.


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## bergere (May 11, 2002)

With some Icelandic's, people just get on and go, no training at all. So it is not impossible he has not been properly trained. 
And many Icelandic have never seen an arena, let alone an indoor one. At least the Icelandic's I have dealt with.
Sounds like he did very well in the indoor arena.. Even though he gave you a work out.

Odd steps in gait... if they mix gaits like Canter front/Tolt back or.. trot front/tolt back and, pacey tolt so on... will feel and look weird, like they are off or lame. But they are not.
One of my Foals, the last one I had, Edda, she used to have what I called, Blow outs...
She was 5 gaited, and galloped most every where... but there were times she would get going and her gaits were all over the place. Like she had 3 flat tires. LOL
She grew out of it Thank goodness.

Dyfra will Roll.. when she really wants to canter... which is the canter in front and Tolt in back... it looks really weird if you watch her doing that.

Sounds like a very good start with your Icelandic.


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## Oakshire_Farm (Dec 4, 2008)

I had my camera in my pocket the whole time last night. I forgot it was there until I got back in the truck!!! So no photos. 

He was really funny with the entrance to the ring, there is solid walls, then on a long side of the ring a 4ft doorway into stalls. Well every time I was coming along that side, he would hit the breaks HARD and try to unseat me. Lucky for me I strapped some velcro to my butt, and I don't come out of the saddle easy  But with the aide of me and my crop, I had him flying past that scary opening in no time. But it was pretty evident that he has always got his way. Once he realized I was not going to fall off or give up he did what I wanted. He is a smart little guy. I really like him. I can see why these little horses are so loved by the people that love them.


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## birchtreefarm (Jul 22, 2007)

Oakshire_Farm said:


> He is a smart little guy. I really like him. I can see why these little horses are so loved by the people that love them.


They are wicked smart and totally adorable, and you've now been assimilated. Resistance is futile. :grin:


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## Oakshire_Farm (Dec 4, 2008)

I have a Shire and a ShireXQH, they are my main riders, it is hard to get used to being so close to the ground! LOL But at least he is wide enough to make up for his lack of height, I am not ready to turn in the drafts for a bunch of shorties.... But I do like him, he will be a spare horse, to take friends out riding, so my daughter can bring friends out. I just want to get him going so he is good and safe.


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## PennyV (Jun 25, 2013)

Hi, I'm gonna butt my head in here and try to respond to a couple of things that stood out to me. Very much agreeing with everything *bergere* said, and chiming in. I don't currently own Icelandics, but I have contacts to breeders in Europe, and through them, to Iceland. (I'm not a pro, but friends will offer me Icelandics for sale occasionally.  ).

As far as my job... Right now, I'm a housewife, but I'm saving up for farrier school, and volunteering with barn chores at a couple of non-profits in my area. So you get an idea of what my horse background is. If you don't agree with me, you can just point me to the door. 



bergere said:


> I have seen Icelandic's go lame, due to bad or poor saddle fit, or carrying a rider much too heavy for that horse.
> He could have a long term abscess in his hoof..
> There are a lot of reason he could be lame.
> 
> If you had his full name, I might be able to ask around about him. Blundur fra ?


I'm with *bergere* on trying to ask for the papers, registration number USIHC or CIHF, or FEIF followed by a number. If he is registered, odds are even that his DNA information is stored with the breed registry.

I'm wholeheartedly agreeing with the saddle fit. An Icelandic horse at its natural gait, the tÃ¶lt, has much more natural shoulder movement. If you ride in an English saddle, you may get away without buying a custom saddle, but especially if you try to ride Western, you may need to have a custom saddle made, imagine pony or cob sized in the back, and almost draft width at the front, to accommodate the horse's natural gait.

As far as conformation goes, I took a snoop via the facebook link, and I can't say for sure from pictures taken from the front on uneven ground it looks like he is knock-kneed, and toes out. So there may be some conformation issue there, that affects how Blundur picks up his feet for a trot, that affects his soundness.



bergere said:


> With some Icelandic's, people just get on and go, no training at all. So it is not impossible he has not been properly trained.
> And many Icelandic have never seen an arena, let alone an indoor one. At least the Icelandic's I have dealt with.
> Sounds like he did very well in the indoor arena.. Even though he gave you a work out.
> 
> ...


I have to nod approvingly here, too. Especially if the horse hasn't been started by an Icelandic-savvy trainer, the horse's gait may be entirely untrained, and may in fact be a piggy-pace type of bumpy ride that's an in-between gait. I'd consult with an experienced farrier and vet, and try to get an Icelandic trainer to give him a look.

Icelandic horses in Iceland are trained to follow vocal cues, so saying walk, trot (brokk), tÃ¶lt or canter (stÃ¶kk) can cue him in on what you're asking.

You could also try test riding him at a tÃ¶lt. If he has training under his belt, he should pick it up with you rolling your weight back in the saddle a bit, raising your hands a little, almost like a half-halt, but at an upward angle towards your elbows, and either kiss at him, or say "TÃLT".

I have to confess, when I'm riding a Western trained horse, I usually feel like they're lame when they're just jogging or loping, rather than trotting "properly" or cantering, so there may be something there. I'd probably hand a video camera over to someone at the barn and have them film me ride, to get a better idea of how Blundur moves.

I prefer the tÃ¶lt over trot, and pace over canter or gallop, but not all gaited horses pick it up on their own, and if the horse isn't moving right, it's the least comfortable ride you can imagine.

I've come across some "I've had horses all my life..."-people who have no idea that Icelandics are gaited horses, that they're more than "ponies", and that they are capable of more than just "trail pony" jobs. I always try my hardest to be friendly and answer any questions I can, and help look up answers when I can. 

Here's the most recent Icelandic I was offered (I said no, but am regretting it a year later. I just got an update recently, and she's growing to be a beautiful mare. And she's showing great promise for showing, and later breeding). She figured out she can jump at three weeks old. I've ridden the dam repeatedly, and my friend is plotting to the sire to the next FEIF world championships.


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