Royalsonofaboonsmal (Happy)

Royalsonofaboonsmal is a 2008 colt nick named Happy by Cay Oh Pep and out of a Flynns Gayson ofaDoc mare Flynns lil Tejon. Now the reason I nick named him Happy is when he was one day old and trying out is new legs he stumbled into me and kicked me in the leg for being in his way, so in old cowboy fashion I name him the opposite of his little attitude. Now little Happy never kick me again sense that day but he has been a hand full. He was the only foal born that year so he got into trouble frequently by leaving his mother screaming and running the fence to go visit the neighbors. At four and a half months old I had had enough of his touring the neighborhood and I decided to wean him. Not having a playmate I put him in the barn next to another horse. Now as independent as this colt had always been I didn't think this would hit him so hard but the day he found out he couldn't get out, his little world came crashing down around him, he refused to eat and ran the stall for days. I put his mother in the next stall and still he took all the hide off his face running into the gate. He had broken the hot wire so many times he couldn't believe he couldn't run through this too. He finally settled down after a week or so but he lost all his baby fat. My high powered cutting horse I have always wanted was now this skinny little thing I was embarrassed to own.
I am a Reining horse trainer and I like the look and mind of a Reiner. Happy was something else entirely. Flighty was an understatement. I knew Cutting breed horses were a little different from all the horses I have had in training through the years but I had never really bred for one. Trying to understand this over reactive colt I tried not to take his flightiness as a bad thing. I halter broke him, taught him to lunge briefly and then tie, then put him out to pasture with some others younger horses to grow, hoping he would grow out of this funky stage soon. I only handle him when needed like feet care, worming and the such. I don't handle my babies much, I want them to be horses not pets. I have found that pets on the most part don't make good performance horses with a good work ethic. They take the training personal and lack try and so I leave them to grow up like a horse. They become pet in the training process but with a stronger work ethic and better boundaries.

Now Happy is two and starting his training under saddle. I remind him of the lessons I taught him when he was young and now he is ready to go to work. I have decided to blog his progress in the hopes it will make me keep up on his training. Every year I fall behind on my own horses, and I mean every year, it really sad, clients always come first and at the end of the day I get lazy. I am wanting to get him into the snaffle bit two year old select sales and so hoping I will not fall behind again here go's my first training blog.

Day One:I took him out to the round pen and sacked him out with a blanket. He doesn't like me touching him much so this took awhile before he would stand and let me put it on both sides. I put the saddle on and he stood well, wide eyed but stood still. I have grabbed him under his girth a few times to get him used to the feeling and so I went ahead and cinched him to the first hole. He went straight up bucking and now was chasing me around the pen thinking I would save him for this thing on him back and yes I was running to get out of the way. I didn't get a chance to get the saddle very tight and now it was up on his neck forcing his head down between his front legs, he stop bucking as fast as he had started and stood frozen. I waited a minute or two and then went up to him and repositioned the saddle and cinched him up tighter this time. He rounded his back but didn't start bucking again. I sent him around the pen, he is irritated and kicked at the stirrups a few time and then tucked his ass and ran a bit finally settling down to carry the saddle around like a trooper.