DESCRIPTION. 8-10yr 14h Appaloosa/Arabian Gelding. Sweet grey gelding with grey appaloosa spots. He enjoys scratches, cookies, people, and learning new things. Casper is actually a rescue horse, confiscated by the Sumter County SPCA out of a horrible situation. He had had VERY little handling up to the time that he was brought to his new foster home. Now he has excellent ground manners, has been started under saddle and has really taken an interest in people (after all, they have the treats and the scratches). He will be a flashy, pretty-moving boy for his new owner/partner! He is naturally a shy, curious boy, but has a huge heart, and tries very hard when learning new things. He deserves a bright future with a new human partner!

NEW! December 20th, 2009: Casper attended an Obstacle Course Clinic. This was his 7th ride EVER, and he did FABULOUSLY! We took our time to figure every obstacle out, but Casper tried very hard, and went through them easily after he had a good smell and look at everything. We had the flag on his head, he walked through water, over a bridge, over a tarp, under a huge tarp, through balloons and noodles, through tires, beside flares, and over a mattress. He also played with a ball, and let me bounce it on him and around him, and let me grab a raincoat and wrap it all over his body while I was on him. At the very end of the day, we had the opportunity to have our horses become comfortable with gunshots. At first Casper was not too comfortable with gunshots going off about 20ft from him, but after several shots and some reassurance, he was standing calmly with one back foot cocked during each gunshot, which was about 10ft away. This was also an event with about 20 other horses in the arena, and many, many people all over. He took it all like a seasoned horse, and nobody could believe that this was only his 7th ride. In addition, almost every other horse there was ridden with a bit; Casper was ridden with a Parelli rope hackmore and NO bit. He responded to all cues like a gentleman, and even rode all over the 60 acre facility, including around obstacles, equipment, trailers, vehicles, people and other horses confidently. What a great day!

ADOPTION PENDING THROUGH THE HUMANE SOCIETY/SPCA OF SUMTER COUNTY, INC.

Please contact the Sumter County SPCA at humane@sum.net for more information on adopting Casper or you may contact Bobbie at BobbieMillerTraining@Hotmail.com for more information on how he is progressing in his training.

See "Training" Notes at the bottom of this page below all the pictures.

December 20th, 2009: Casper and I went to an Obstacle Course Challenge clinic, and he did great! This was actually his 7th ride EVER, and I rode him in a Parelli hackmore. I couldn't have asked for better behavior!


December 20th, 2009: Here he is with some noodles, balloons, tin pans, and cloth pieces. Mind you this was a VERY windy day, so all these things were making a bunch of noise and whipping around in the wind.


December 20th, 2009: Casper went through the tires like a PRO!


December 20th, 2009: We tried to help Casper find a home by drawing on his butt =)


December 20th, 2009: We tried to help Casper find a home by drawing on his butt =)


December 20th, 2009: Casper going through the water obstacle. He went through like a champ.


December 20th, 2009: Casper liked the "springy" sensation of the mattress, so he had to paw at it a little. He went right over it with ease, as well.


December 20th, 2009: Casper also had no problems walking right through the center of the tires.


What cute head!


November 22, 2009: He picks up all four of his feet like a pro now!


November 22, 2009: Sweet boy, who has gained a tremendous amount of confidence now!


November 22, 2009: First time with the western saddle, and he did great!


November 22, 2009: Standing quietly for a good conformation shot.






December 29: We gave Casper a bath when the weather finally warmed up, and uncovered an Appy blanket over his rump! He is still wet in these pictures.


December 29: Still wet from a bath. Notice appaloosa blanket.


December 29: Still wet from a bath. Notice appaloosa blanket.


January 3rd 2010: Ready for a cold winter night!

TRAINING. As of December 30th, Casper has had 9 rides. He can walk and trot easily under saddle. We have started working on the canter, and should have a consistent canter very shortly. He also can walk over a tarp, wear a tarp, or go under a tarp. We've started dragging the tarp. From the ground, he will jump barrels, sidepass, move his forehand, we can open an umbrella and put it over him, we can bounce a large ball around him or on him, send him in either direction when circling/lunging, and also reverse on cue when circling/lunging. He stands quietly for mounting and dismounting, although we are working on relaxing more when mounting, as he gets a little tense. He is easy to catch in a pasture, and gets along well with other horses. He has been ridden around many horses, people, dogs, and equipment and keeps his focus on his rider well.

December 20th, 2009: Casper attended an Obstacle Course Clinic. This was his 7th ride EVER, and he did FABULOUSLY! We took our time to figure every obstacle out, but Casper tried very hard, and went through them easily after he had a good smell and look at everything. We had the flag on his head, he walked through water, over a bridge, over a tarp, under a huge tarp, through balloons and noodles, through tires, beside flares, and over a mattress. He also played with a ball, and let me bounce it on him and around him, and let me grab a raincoat and wrap it all over his body while I was on him. At the very end of the day, we had the opportunity to have our horses become comfortable with gunshots. At first Casper was not too comfortable with gunshots going off about 20ft from him, but after several shots and some reassurance, he was standing calmly with one back foot cocked during each gunshot, which was about 10ft away. This was also an event with about 20 other horses in the arena, and many, many people all over. He took it all like a seasoned horse, and nobody could believe that this was only his 7th ride. In addition, almost every other horse there was ridden with a bit; Casper was ridden with a Parelli rope hackmore and NO bit. He responded to all cues like a gentleman, and even rode all over the 60 acre facility, including around obstacles, equipment, trailers, vehicles, people and other horses confidently. What a great day!

As of November 20th, he leads, picks up all of his feet, drops his head to pressure, moves his hindquarters on cue, and has a worn a bareback pad with no issues. He is progressing nicely, and ready to continue is ground training to be started under saddle.

Bobbie Miller's Training Center
Apopka, FL
Email: BobbieMillerTraining@hotmail.com
Barn Phone: (407) 865-2713