They say that even the best horses have their quirks and we recently discovered that Mo is no exception. He’s an escape artist! Yes, apparently on a semi regular basis he and his friend Sherman will carefully dismantle the electric fencing in their turn out area using their teeth to grab the rubber handles. Then they happily gallop down the long driveway, relishing their freedom… as well as the chase that ensues when people notice they are loose.
The first time I heard this I almost didn’t believe it. No, not Mo. Really? He’s always so chill, just like you see the photo above. In fact, the other day my son was riding him in the ring when snow came sliding off the roof making a loud zipping, then crashing noise. The other horses bolted, but not Mo. He just kept mo-zying along like nothing had happened.
But then, I got to see Mo’s antics first hand and became a believer. My son was riding him again in the ring when a 4 year old bay gelding got loose and started running around. At first Mo just kept on doing his thing. But then our trainer asked my son to halt and dismount, just in case of shenanigans. This made total sense and I’m glad she did this, because a few minutes later the other gelding ran between her and Mo, causing her to let go of his reins.
That caused quite a change in Mo’s demeanor! In an instant, instead of a laid back lesson horse, he became this powerful black animal running around the arena with another horse. On the one hand I was shocked… I mean, I always knew he was strong – he’s a horse after all – but he’s always so calm and so gentle, I just didn’t realize he had it in him. And yet once my shock passed, I couldn’t help but marvel at how beautiful he looked. His usually relaxed neck was arched and muscular, his long mane, flowing in the breeze. Instead of a slow trot, he galloped with such grace and vigor. Without a rider on his back he was a completely different horse.
After some 20 minutes of mischief, Mo finally allowed our trainer to catch him. Then she turned to us with a look of exasperation and remarked, “That’s the one thing about Mo. If he gets loose sometimes he likes to play keep away!”
Well, well Mo. Who knew?
This newfound knowledge of Mo didn’t really change how we feel about him. We still love him and think he is a great match for us. But here again is one of the many benefits of leasing a horse, because if I had bought him and discovered later that he wouldn’t let you catch him sometimes, that would have annoyed me. But since we are leasing and he is boarded at a stable where they bring him in before our lessons, it didn’t bother me so much. If anything I appreciated even more just how chill he usually is under saddle when he has that kind of fire inside him.
Our New Quarter Horse T-Shirt, Mugs & Dream Journal
After seeing Mo running in the arena we couldn’t share the memory of his strength & beauty. We wanted to capture the memory somehow. So what did we do? We made Quarter Horse mugs in Mo’s likeness of course! The timing was perfect because we have so many Haflinger themed items in our Etsy shop and on Amazon, but to date hadn’t made anything Quarter Horse themed. That’s all changing now!
You Can’t Buy Happiness, But You Can Buy a Quarter Horse – And That’s Kinda The Same Thing
First up is our new Quarter Horse t-shirt! I love this shirt so much – as soon as we made it I got one for myself and started wearing it. Every time I see it in the mirror it makes me smile and I’m reminded of how lucky we are to have found Mo. However long we end up leasing him, I think we are devoted Quarter Horse fans now.
Prancing Quarter Horse Mugs – 11oz and 15oz Galloping Quarter Horse Mugs – 11oz and 15oz
Our New Quarter Horse Mugs
Next we made Quarter Horse mugs with original watercolor art showing a beautiful horse either prancing or galloping across the mug. Mo was our inspiration for both poses and I think the illustrations really capture the grace & power of the Quarter Horse breed. Each mug is available in 2 sizes, and we have an 11oz mug with each design. They are perfect for hot chocolate, coffee or tea and are my son’s favorite mugs right now.
Our Quarter Horse Dream Journal
Finally, we used one of the watercolor horses to create a dream journal that’s now available on Amazon. This journal has 150 lined pages perfect for recording your dreams – whether they’re the ones you have at night, or the ones you have for the future!
It’s funny how 20 minutes of Mo’s antics inspired us to make these new Quarter Horse gifts, but that’s how it goes. Sometimes you see something that just captures your mind’s eye and compels you to create.