[gr3ystones]

Username: buckskin.
Name: Fritz
Gender: Stallion
Colour: Sooty gold champagne splash white
Eye Colour: Blue grape
Genotype: ee/aa/Chch/Splspl

[heffalumps]

I wish to claim this horse!
Username: buckskin.
Name: Fritz

[heffalumps]

entry one

the first day we got Fritz was by far an extravagant one. He was clearly a bold and fearless young stallion with a Napoleon height complex but from the second he got off that truck, I knew all I wanted to do was get him to the point of washing. For he came caked in layers of wet dirt cloaks, covered from head to toe in mud that i can only assume came from some kind of secret Mustang festival that us humans don't know about, but this beast made it impossible for me to label a colour. Not that it was important, all I really wanted was something with a sound mind but a flashy coat would be a bonus, like anyone, I like something with a big of a ''look at me" presence.

he stared at me, eyes wide and boarded with white rings of what I only assumed was fear; I don't like strangers gawking at me, so I could only imagine how this boy felt. I had to admit that "Fritz" was the first name that came to mind as I was in a little bit of a rush to put in that application form but I felt that it was fitting, the stallion appeared to be a little.... defensive when it came to his new surroundings. Oh how i wanted to get in there and start working with him immediately, I wanted to build that trust and that relationship but I knew that he needed to settle in, maybe even bond with another horse or animal I had on the property. I couldn't rush this and with first impressions I could only imagine the train wreck I was perusing if I decided to started working with him right off the bat. Give him a few days i reminded myself as I watched the muddy beast trot back and forth, calling desperately for any comforting response, familiar or not. He got no response, most of my horses didn't take kindly to strangers and this boy seemed to be no exception. "You'll be right, mate." I said gently, tapping my hand on the metal rail before taking a step back and making my way back to the barn. There was work to be done and Fritz needed to settle in.

(383 words, short but yeah)

entry two- the first haltering





entry three




entry four

I had had Fritz for a little over two months by the time i put a saddle on him for the first time. He had done so well with the last few weeks of training and enjoyed playing with the large exercise balls; it got to the point where I left one in his paddock for him to play with while the other horses were out. He didn't get lonely after that. Early Friday afternoon, I brought the muddy beast in to the cross ties and made an attempt to scrub at the mud to no avail, it didn't seem like it was bothering him but i managed to get a few chucks off of his girth area so the saddle rested more comfortably.
I took some time in the tack room just looking at saddles, trying to decide on what I wanted to put on him. It was one thing to decide if his first saddling should be done with a light weight all purpose or dressage saddle, or if he would be better suited to my stock saddles, but I also had to take in consideration his build. He was a chunky boy with plenty of muscle but at the exact same time, he had a narrow back and a high wither. It was not the ideal situation at all. After some time i landed on old faithful, the torn and tattered synthetic all purpose saddle I had learnt to ride on decades before, sure it wasn't much to look at but it was still structurally sound and had been on a horse quite similar to Fritz. With the old black saddle resting on the left forearm, I reached for a saddle cloth and gel pad riser (just in case) and headed back out the the muddy stallion who stood ever so patiently. "Good boy, Fritz." I said gently as I reintroduced the dull red saddle cloth, allowing him to smell it before rubbing him down with it before finally placing it on his back with care. He seemed fine with it, infact he didn't really care at all. I moved on to the saddle, removing the girth before once again allowing the horse to smell it and have a good look before gently resting it on his back. As nerve-wrecking as it was for me, Fritz was content as could be and served more focus on the horse in the stall across from where he stood.
"You're so good." I praised as i rubbed him down before turning around to pick up the girth, I walked around him with one hand tracing his outline so I could attach the girth to the two points. I returned to his left and pulled the girth up, slowly adjusting the buckle up each hole until it rested firmly. "What a good lad!" I praised again before clipping his leadrope back onto his halter, unclipping the crossties before taking him out to the round pen. I never would have thought that the crazy mud covered stallion that first came to me would ever been so relaxed, hell, horses I have handled since weanlings weren't this relaxed about new things.
(528 words)

[heffalumps]

WASH DAY

The day finally came, the one where it stopped raining and it was warm enough to take the horses out into the field. Now that Fritz was lightly backed and going along great, I felt that it was now the time for me to give him the bath he deserved, so as the temperature rose I prepared the washbay by placing brushes and currycombs, shampoo and glo-white on the small 'shelf' on the rail. "Are you ready, Fritz?" I said excitedly as I let myself into his stall; the stallion turned towards me with a small nicker and nudge, he was really trusting me and I love it. I love him. I could only imagine how stunning my boy was going to be once and scrubbed all that caked on mud off of his coat, even if he was plain as could be, I knew that I would still think he was the most stunning creature in the world. Fritz was my first proper project, and although I had dealt with green horses in the past, I had never had anything like him. Fritz was one of a kind, a special horse with one unique personality and some very...interesting quirks.
I led him out of the barn and took him into the round pen for some free lunging, just to get some of that pent up energy out of him. Our fifteen minute session was filled with happy bucks as Fritz galloped around the round pen, I had only had to send him off and that was it, he played and ran and I let him be, knowing he would come into me once he was done and that he did. "Are you done now?" I joked as I clipped the leadrope back onto him before leading him out and making our to the wash bays. Sure I had hosed him off in the past but that mud seemed to really stick to him, staining his coat perilously. But that day I was determined to get it off, all of it.
I clipped him into the crossties and turned on the house, soaking his coat with the water before emptying half a bottle of hoss gloss onto his body. Thats when i grabbed the currycomb and went to town on his coat, I scrubbed and I scrubbed and I scrubbed but it seemed like bits and pieces wouldn't budge but I added more shampoo and water and kept on scrubbing. Despite the aches and pains in my entire upper body, Fritz seemed to be enjoying the massage and I was enjoying seeing his coat to appear. After what felt like hours, I moved onto his other side, having to add more water to allow myself to get some soap going. I repeated the process before washing the soap off and starting again, this time using the rest of the bottle and focusing on his mane and tail. I attacked his mane and tail with the come, getting all those dreads out and running my hands through some more shampoo for added ease.
By the time I had finished with him, he was spotless. His coat shone against the sun and I was amazed, Fritz was a beautifully vibrant.........

(540 words)

[gr3ystones]

Such good art and storytelling!
You got yourself a sooty gold champagne splash <3