Tag 7220 -Palomino Buttes - 2022 WA Mustang Challenge

Merry Christmas from Maizy, her “brothers”, and I! We hope you were able to celebrate with loved ones and wish you a year of hope, joy, and adventure in 2023.

Also, I’m a little biased, but I’m pretty sure Maizy and Benni (2019 bay Palomino Butte gelding) are the cutest pair💕They typically live in separate fields, but have gotten a little extra turn out time together this month. Maizy loves having a buddy to groom and hang out with. I always feed them seperate dinners, but they’re pals and usually eat out of the same grain pan and hay net.

In case you’re wondering what Maizy has been up to!! She’s currently living her best life turned out in a big field just growing up and being a horse. While she’s enjoying her time just being a horse, I think she misses having a daily job as she loves to chase my car (really any car) when I drive past her field and is always quick to meet me at the fence💕 She is still handled regularly and comes into the barn at weekly to be groomed, saddled, and tied. We practice showmanship on occasion too😊

Maizy was very lightly started this fall.. probably only 10-12 short rides, mostly at a walk. Ride #6 I hauled her to the beach. She navigated the driftwood like a champ and was 100% fine with me ponying another horse off of her. I also dropped my reins (oops).. she step on them and then causally stepped off and waited for me to get off and grab them. She’s going to make someone an awesome future trail horse!!😊

The last two days have been a testament to the type of horse Maizy is: she’s a tad sassy, but is so sensible and smart. I’ve touched her once since we got home from MYWY 2.5 weeks ago. Yesterday I pulled her out of the field, tied her, groomed her, cleaned her feet, saddled her up in my big, heavy saddle for the first time, and got on. She wiggled a little bit the first few times I hopped in the stirrup, but then stood like a champ. Today, I got back on her and asked her to walk around a little bit. Our woah and go buttons need a little more practice, but she was super quiet while she tried to figure it out. Afterwards, I led her back down the road to her field in the dark. She followed on a loose rope, even with the coyotes moving in the bushes, other horses running, and car lights coming towards us.

I love this filly and wish I could keep her forever🦄💕However, feel free to reach out if you think she’s the one for you… Maizy loves people and I know that in the long run I don’t have time to give her all the scratches, adventures, and kisses she deserves.

I told everyone at the competition that if Maizy didn’t find her forever home while we were there, I’d be building a fence on Monday! So I brought her home with me and built a fence last Monday😊 I’m out of town for two weeks and go back to work as soon as I get home, so Maizy is getting some time out in the field to just be a horse! She’s loving it, but still comes to great me every time I walk down to her pasture💕Hopefully I’ll have time to put a handful of rides on her this fall before she spends the rest of the winter just growing up.

My little golden unicorn was such a good girl this weekend❤️ She was polite in her stall, a super star in the warm up (she’s even learned new tricks like straddling a pole, walking a plank, and side-passing a barrel), and easy to handle around the show grounds. She’s even had a few different competitors take her for walks and was great with them also!

Our goes in the arena weren’t quiet as polished as I’d hoped as Maizy was a little nervous/wiggly, but her nerves were completely understandable. It’s a lot to ask a horse that’s only 120 days out of the wild to walk away from the heard into a brand new arena and ground tie. It’s a lot to ask them to trot straight up to a crowed fence in front of a sea of white tents they’ve never been close to before. It’s a lot to ask them to spend a whole weekend in a stall. Maizy kept her cool, tried everything I asked her to, and showed just how solid she is in new situations. I absolutely LOVE this filly and couldn’t be more proud of her💕 We earned some respectable scores and ended up placing 3rd in our division and won the adult Rookie buckle❤️

Maizy didn’t find her forever home at the competition this weekend, which is fine with me because I really want the privilege of putting the first ride on her❤️ Stay tuned for updates! And feel free to reach out if you think she may be the horse for you.

Maizy and I did a little photo shoot before we leave for Cle Elum tomorrow (featuring her brothers Benni the bay and Jesse the paint)💕 Regardless of how things go in Cle Elum, I couldn’t have asked for a better first makeover horse. Maizy is brave, kind, beautiful and has given me so much confidence. She was quick to trust and has been willing to try anything I’ve asked of her. She has opinions and isn’t afraid to voice them, but is a horse I feel comfortable taking anywhere. As I walked her down to her field to turn her out this morning I realized how quickly she’s truly become “one of the herd” at the barn. In 4 months she’s learned to do all the things I’d expect a domestic raised 2 year old to do. She (mostly) stood tied for the shoer yesterday, she respects the fences regardless of where I turn her out, she hauls great alone or with others, is easy to catch, blankets over the head, stands quietly to be saddled, and fell sleep during her last bath. I’ve always wanted a hair color twin and she’s been the best one I ever could have asked for❤️

I was out of town last week, so Maizy got some time off. But just before I left I finally hauled her out for her first trail ride! Plain and simple: Maizy is one of the good ones🦄 The whole ride felt just like ponying one of the solid, broke, kids horse from back in my trail guide/camp counselor days. We crossed a couple streams, meandered through a brushy area, and went up and down switch backs. She took it all in stride and followed willingly the whole time. Thanks so much for having us Scout’s Trail! You guys were so fun to ride with and definitely set us up for success😊 And also, shout out to my pal Dodger, for being a pretty great pony horse❤️ Maizy reminds me so much of him in his younger days.

PC: Scout’s Trail

Baby girl rocked her first horse show today!! We just showed in English Showmanship (in Western attire.. I don’t have a complete English outfit anymore). I was hoping to do in hand trail and western showmanship with her as well, but I had a family wedding to get to😊 Maizy was quiet, calm, and unphased by all the activity. She stood at the trailer for several hours like a champ and I was super happy with how her pattern went. If hay was cheaper there is no way I’d even think about letting this little lady go❤️

Another big day for my favorite yellow pony! We hauled to a clinic with Erika Hunter and had so much fun! We both learned a lot and she was a rock star for her first solo trailer ride and second time hauling off the property. She’s been such a good girl that I gave one of my 4-H kids whose only met Maizy once have the honor of saddling her for the first time. Maizy handled it like an old pro❤️

This girl is one in a million❤️ She’s been ready to haul for a while, but today I finally had a friend to go with me and a truck/trailer to borrow.

Maizy spent an hour tied in the trailer this morning and stood quietly the whole time (I didn’t mean to leave her in their that long… but it was vet day at the barn today and we had lots to do!). The 4-H mom’s were all super impressed with her.

This afternoon I loaded her back up and hauled over to a friend’s arena. She was quiet to haul and handled everything new SO well. She snorted a little bit when we first got there, but quickly settled to her usual calm, quiet self. The video below was taken about 5-10 minutes after we got there. I wish my broke, seasoned show horse was as quiet as her! Huge future youth horse potential in this sweet girl❤️

Maizy needs a show name!! For some reason I can’t get the poll feature to work.. so feel free to vote or make suggestions below😊

1. Maizamillion
2. Maizy its Mableine (because so.much.hair)
3. Always Amazing
4. It’s Been Amazing
5. Driving Miss Maizy
6. Maizy Later
7. Call Me Maizy

This week consisted of a little showmanship practice, intro to spray bottles, more practice blanketing, a few walks around the farm, some obstacle practice, and lots of grooming and cuddles because they’re her f

Sunny Sundays are for sleepy snuggles! She really is as sweet as she looks❤️ I really didn’t think I’d get this attached to a horse I know will only be mine for a season. Maizy continues to take everything in stride… the construction zone, meeting new horses, offering to investigate the scary wash rack, the measuring stick (she’s just under 14.2 at the moment), standing for a very long tail washing, and all the crazy that comes with living in a family oriented 4-H barn. Lots of her visitors have commented on her quiet demeanor and can’t believe she was recently wild. Keep your eye out for an update video later this week!

In honor of Mother’s Day, here are a few pictures of Maizy in the wild with her mama and sister (courtesy of Mustang Meg)❤️

So thankful for this filly and the opportunity to work with her. This week we went for a walk around the farm… down the barn isles, through the ditch, over a bridge, up and down the rock wall and she took it all in stride. There is a construction projected going on in the field next to hers and while she’s snorted and looked at the tractor, caution tape, post digger, and boards going up, she’s bravely walked past it every time I’ve asked. She definitely has a few opinions and a little bit of sas (she would really prefer nothing other than my stick touch her lower legs) but is just so much fun.

I can’t wait until summer when I’ll have ALL the time to work with this sweet girl❤️ Maizy is very much “in your pocket” and craves attention. She has the kindest eyes and a pretty sensible head on her shoulders. Our biggest barrier is my busy schedule.. She just wants to be loved on 24/7. We started out just doing 10 minute sessions, but I’m pretty convinced if I had the whole day to spend with her she’d stick with me the whole day.

I’m my own photographer and I’m a very “in the moment” person, so I didn’t take very many pictures the past two weeks😬

Here’s what we’ve been up to:
-dreadlock removal.. this was great practice with 2 hands on her. She was a little leery at first, but is a champ now!
-a little halter practice. It’s getting easier each time!
-intro to lunging. Not because I plan on trotting her baby legs in circles, but because I want to be able to send/stop her.
-desensitizing whole body to rope, stick, string, hand.
-a few walks around the arena/following the big horses with riders.
-all the face rubs❤️ She melts into my hands and falls asleep when I rub under her forelock.
-intro to tying.
-intro to picking front feet up with rope pressure. She’s got this down and even let me pick up her left front with my hand the one time I asked.
-met the dogs. They ran at her barking. She wasn’t too sure what to think, but stood and watched. She looked at them and quietly sniffed noses.
-hosed a layer of dirt off her legs.

I’m continually amazed at how smart, calm, and willing she is. She does have a little bit off sass and isn’t afraid to voice her opinion when she feels the need (getting her back in her pen after hand grazing the first few times was a struggle), but for the most part, if you show her once, she retains it.. even after days of no handling.❤️

This filly is so quiet, curious, and willing! I’m having so much fun with her already and can’t wait to see what the summer brings😊
Day 1: Her #1 priority was eating all the fresh grass in her pen (which I don’t blame her.. if I’d gone 7 months with no ice cream or chocolate, that would be my primary focus too), but she still wanted to check me out and let me pet all over her face and lead a few steps
Day 2: She let me take her tag and drag line off and was so brave about haltering❤️ We also worked a bit on leading. She’s been absolutely fascinated by the wheelbarrow every time I’ve cleaned her pen and isn’t sure why I won’t just bring it in there for her to play with.. I think this little one might want some toys🤦🏼‍♀️😂
So excited to see where this adventure takes us😊

Tag 7220 -Palomino Buttes - 2022 WA Mustang Challenge updated their business hours.

Maizy was such a good girl on pick up day❤️ She wasn’t too difficult to halter and was a pretty quiet girl overal. I picked her because of her kind eyes and quiet disposition in the selection video. So far she’s living up to the disposition I was hoping she’d have!