• Address: Smithburg, WV 26436 (map)
• Date Posted: 11/01/09
• Offered by: Shelter

Standardbred - Medium - Young - Male - Horse - kickboxer
Description
Kickboxer Kosmos: STB gelding. Here's a note from his former adopter who is returning him so she and her retired husband can now go RV'ing, their life's dream. " I have had Kos since October 2004. Almost all of the riding I have done with Kos has been on trails, either alone or with 2-15 other horses. Trails were on paths, through fields, through woods, up hill, down hill, across the road, across streams, over logs and just about everywhere in the area. Kos goes well alone or in a group. When in a group he seems to prefer to either be in front or in the middle. When he's last, he gets antsy. My guess is that's the race horse in him. When Kos is spooked he will sometimes circle around to go away from an object. He will not run away, but will circle. He isn't bad about it, but it may be unsettling for a real beginner that is not used to horses. Other times Kos will stand and look at the object. If you let him stand still and inspect it, he will generally go up to it. You can always tell when he's starting to get uncomfortable about something, because he will get tense. Once he trusts you, he will go anywhere. I have only ridden Kos on the road, except for crossing, a couple of times. It appeared to me that he is not used to cars passing close by. He did not try to run or anything, but seemed nervous about it. If someone plans to ride him in traffic, I would recommend they get him used to that under a controlled situation first, for safety's sake. As I mentioned in my earlier e-mail, all of the riding I have done was walking or trotting. I did canter Kos once recently. However, it was hard to get him into a canter. He trotted faster and faster for some time before he finally started cantering. (You gotta love those race horses! :-) Quite honestly, I hesitated working him at a canter because I don't feel my seat is as good as it should be. Consequently, as he trotted faster and faster I had difficulty maintaining a good seat to be able to give the proper aids to clearly tell him what I wanted. I had planned to have a professional trainer work with him on the canter but it just wasn't that important to me. I rode just for the fun of being out with him and enjoying the scenery. Most of the places we rode there weren't a lot of places that had long, clear areas to canter so it wasn't a problem. Since we have many miles of trails near my house, I had no need or desire to go elsewhere. I do not have a horse trailer, so Kos has only been trailered twice in the last 2 years, when he was moved to and from Bayfield Farm. The first time he walked on without a problem. Last time (a year ago) he hesitated loading, but all I had to do was bring a rope around his butt and hold it and he walked right on. Kos is completely dependable on the ground, with adults and children. He would never bite or kick. He has a wonderful disposition and loves attention. My 2 grandchildren have ridden him on lead line since they were 2 years old (they are now 5). Kos ties well and cross ties. He is good about fly spray, bathing, for the farrier and for the vet. I leave his legs unclipped to give him extra protection against the brushy areas where we ride. I just do his bridle path with scissors, but I'm sure he would be fine about clippers, as he was clipped while racing. While here, Kos has been on 24/7 pasture with a run-in shed, although he never uses it. From spring of 2006 until November of 2007 he had a pasturemate (gelding) and they got along well. I boarded Kos at Bayfield Farm for almost a year - from November 2007 until spring of 2008. During that time he was on pasture with a herd during the day and in a box stall at night. He currently gets 2 quarts of grain in the morning and evening. He gets a good coat in winter. Since we don't get a lot of really cold weather here, I have not blanketed him in winter, but I don't think he would do well without a blanket if the weather was below freezing for prolonged periods. All in all, Kos is a real sweetheart. He is fun and dependable to work around and to ride. He has a wonderful disposition and I know I will miss him terribly
Characteristics
Breed: Standardbred
Age: Young
Size: Medium
Gender: Male
Offered by: Shelter
Petfinder ID: 14330613
additional information
Second Wind Adoption Program | West Union, WV | 304-873-3532 | secondwindadopt@aol.com
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http://www.petfinder.com/petnote/displaypet.cgi?petid=14330613
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