Welcome to Fern Valley

Here in central Alberta prime farm country,my husband Martin and I work together raising beef cattle and Appaloosa horses. Fern valley appaloosas have long been known for their quality of temperament conformation and color.I have recently rediscovered a love of writing and have published 2 collections of poetry. "Telling Tails" and Tails Trails and Campfire stories" . I look forward to a future spreading my wings as an author and as a horse woman .

Monday 27 August 2012

A proud legacy

In my honorable mentions posts I talked about a mare I owned  C7 Sparks Jewel you can follow the link or look  under the page for "unforgettable Spots "
Well if you have read her story , you know it wasn't a  wonderful one, but I did my very best with her. I still own her Daughter Fern Valleys Jazz, and those who have been reading here a while  know  that my "special girl " Jazzy , makes NICE BABIES!

FV Jazz Time(Timer ) 

FV Sparks Image (Maggie ) 

And  of course  BEC's fav 
FV Dandy Line (Dandy )
(I always loved this Power take off shot) 

But this post in particular is about Maggie , a second generation filly  born here, and what she has become . 
Her story is  much happier than her grand dam. Maggie was born here. at last year sold to a young lady who  goes by" Kat". The cool thing about  Kat, other than she is a great little gal with wonderful ever growing horsemanship skills, is that her mom and  I went to school together! What great fun it was  for us to reconnect after all these years, and you know, we look  just the same ! Well maybe a little smarter! 
Anyhow  I digress.
Kat invited me out today to see her and Maggie , and well I jumped at the chance ! I love that I can follow upon horses I have sold. I have had some updates , Kat has emailed me from time to time, but nothing beats being there.
I got there , camera in hand and well ,here is the part you  likely want to see ...







 Kat has done the training herself, with support and supervision, and she has done a brilliant job. Maggie is soft , responsive and respectful. Kat and she have clearly bonded and it is clear how much she loves Maggie, but she is mindful of teaching  boundaries and has been very consistent in her handling of Maggie . and it has paid off big time ! Well done Kat!
Kat's mom Annette has also fallen for Maggie as you can see. What a great visit ! A great young lady who is going to do great things ,and her mom backing her up 100% you  just can't beat that! 
I have to apologize , there were videos too, and a great one of Maggie following Kat at liberty, but something went awry when I downloaded them and Poof! Gone! 
All in all I am so pleased to have been able to visit and thrilled at the success so far. I sure hope I am able to continue following this pair. 

Funny , when Maggie was born  "Sparks Image" popped into my head immediately , yet she doesn't  really look like my old mare , there was just something about her that made me think of Jewel. Whatever it was it fits , and the proud  legacy of my scared, scarred little mare  will live on in the likes of Maggie . And what a legacy it is! 
Thanks for the visit ladies! and everyone remember,
Stay safe !edited to add, I did find the videos after all !!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XwtW-eWxwCI

13 comments:

kestrel said...

Now that's an excellent review right there! Happy horse, happy human, and beautiful pictures and poetry...life is good!

Christmas-etc... said...

Oh... what a wonderful story. So nice to follow up on those babies! Maggie is just beautiful and Kat is such a lucky young lady to have such a house and a Mom who is behind her all the way. Well done to you too! It must have been such a grand visit!
Blessings!
Ann
PS After quite a long break - for many reasons - I'm back to blogging land and looking forward to keeping up with your amazing life through your lovely blog!

Anonymous said...

It must be so nice to see one of your babies doing so well! They look marvelous together - happy and relaxed!

GoLightly said...

OMG, what a gorgeous mare she's blossomed into!
wow!!!!!!!

Kudos to all involved in this mare's development.

I can't get over how well she looks...

Reddunappy said...

I bet it is wonderful to see those babies you have raised! Especially when they have turned out so well and happy!!

Nicole said...

So awesome you got to see the progress! And a funny side note, over the weekend I was working with my step-daughter getting her ready for a show this up coming weekend and somehow English saddles got brought up. Well she asked what one was and hubby said they were ugly so she immediately piped in they were ugly. I was like how do you know, you've never seen one. So then when we got to my parents I pulled my mom's old English saddle out and she's like that's so ugly. LOL

Cut-N-Jump said...

Maggie landed in a Great home it looks like. While I may not catch things with the horses, usually it is equitation that stands out to me. Kat is flawless in those pics.

Wow! It is so nice to see the straight line from elbow to bit, soft contact, no gaping at the mouth. Heels down and back under her hip where they belong, centered- not leaning in or out, truly balanced with the horse. Someone taught her well and it looks like they will go far together. Awesome!

Shirley said...

They look like a team, contented with each other. How lovely that Kat did her own training on a young horse- it speaks well for your breeding program.

4RRanch said...

Wow, how wonderful to be able to follow up on the babies you raised. Looks like she is doing great.

Crystal said...

She sure looks good and it looks like a perfect home!

BrownEyed Cowgirl said...

That's awesome! Kat rides beautifully and Maggie looks splendid. I have no doubt that Dandy landed just as lucky...but I sure do miss seeing 'my' handsome boy on your blog. ;-)

aurora said...

Wow, this is fantastic! How rewarding for all concerned!!

Janice said...

Looks like a great match.That Mare looks so nice to ride. I was watching a Documentary on Buck Brannaman and he made a comment about "Everything you do with a horse is a dance" when that Mare trots she looks like she is dancing.