At A Glance
Gender: Gelding
Height: 15 hh
Breed: Grade, likely gaited
Age: 6
Handlers Experience: Intermediate
Riders Experience: Advanced
Ideal Home: Someone experienced in starting young, green horses
Lewis is a 6 year old, 15 hh Grade gelding who joins us for training from Gerda’s Equine Rescue. He was rescued from a kill pen as an unhandled stallion, and the folks at Gerda’s spent a lot of time acclimating him to the very basics such as haltering and leading. He is nervous around people, but has made great progress with consistent handling. Lewis will spend the next few weeks in quarantine, and once we begin getting to know him we will be sure to post further updates.
August 2024 Update: This handsome chestnut is so much more outgoing than we expected! Lewis has quickly become easy to catch in the field (a handful of cookies doesn’t hurt, even if we don’t need them) and he is extremely interested in learning about his surroundings. Given a few moments to assess the situation, he becomes a willing partner. He is very playful with his herdmates and gets along easily with them. We are slowly introducing Lewis to new experiences while being careful to not overwhelm him— we’d rather let him acclimate at his own pace than set him back by asking too much too soon, but each day we are impressed by what he is ready to learn.
February 2025 update: Lewis has been packing a rider around at the walk and trot for about 4 days a week now in 20-40 minute sessions for the past 2 months, and he is doing a wonderful job! He has worn both English and western saddles (including a back cinch and a rope) and has taken it all in stride. He prefers to stop and think about what is being asked of him rather than “act first, think later”, which will serve him very well in life.
Lewis has a laid-back personality that makes him more of a “woah” ride than “go” ride. Thanks to his gaitedness, he has a smooth flat-foot walk and a super comfy trot. That being said, Lewis is still very green, and will need a rider with training experience to help him continue to be his best self. We feel that Lewis will excel as a trail horse in the future, but he would appreciate some time learning to be confident with various obstacles, cues, and terrain. We are looking forward to getting him out on the trails with a confident friend soon to continue building his fitness!
Lewis’s ideal home will prefer trails over ringwork, have experience training green horses, and has friends for Lewis to play with in his downtime.
