Show ready, trail loving Arab mare for half lease in Portland area!
We are looking for a long-term, committed leaser who wants to enjoy a well trained, well behaved horse friend without having to cover the full costs of ownership. This horse is not suitable for competitive gaming, jumping or high stepping english classes, but she excels at many other activities.
Bella is a 22 year old, lovely, dappled bay, old-style, stocky, registered purebred Arabian mare with a heart of gold. She is the perennial barn favorite and makes friends everywhere she goes thanks to her sweet nature. She is a solid citizen with excellent ground manners and she loves people.
Bella is a finished western pleasure horse. She has been shown in 4h and OHSET by teens for a number of years, so the show scene is not new to her. She knows all the tricks: walk, trot, jog, canter, lope, and she is also naturally gaited. She neck reins (may be rusty) or rides with two hands, counter canter, flying leads (with effort lol), collects up real nice, turn on haunch/fore, backs, side passes, nice transitions, oh and she has a nice rollback as well. She is a fantastic trail horse who is very happy going out alone and will go through water, over bridges, etc. if she trusts you. In group rides she can be a little more of a handful if you dont let her be in the lead, but if you put her in front she will chill out. She is chill and laid back but you can also get her hyped up and she loves a good gallop. She is good at sensing what her rider is up for and either taking advantage of it, or going along with it. Bella is very smart, and is also a very fun ride! She loves gaming a little too much and gets too hot, and she is aging now, so I don't want her gamed seriously. Bathes and hauls good but gets grumpy about cold water baths; then again, so do I. Bella gives hugs, kisses, stands up like a halter horse, and also does a basic bow.
Vices: She is very cinchy, has been for about 5 years, has been checked by vet, has also had saddle fit assessed, we have tried many different girth types and materials, I have spent hundreds of dollars trying to satisfy her in this area and nothing does, everything checks out with the vet, she just gets annoyed about wearing a cinch, but ya know, it is necessary. Perhaps it is a habit at this point, it started when her back changed and the saddle was too big and we went through a journey finding one that fits, then trying all kinds of different girths, more than one of which galled her. So i suspect it is just a bad habit/emotional reaction at this point. So you have to be able to handle a horse that will get super grumpy at that point in your interaction. (note, I am still trying different girths…)
Bella excels at western pleasure but could also excel at dressage, western dressage, hunter pleasure, competitive trail, reining, ranch riding or endurance and she likes to boss cows around. I have been told by dressage riders that she would do well in that discipline. She is great to just hang out with and putz around in the arena or go out alone for peaceful, quiet, relaxing trail rides. Bella is a low-key, low-maintenance, kind and mellow horse who is pretty much just easy and a pleasure to be around.
I have both English and Western saddles that fit Bella so you can ride in either format.
Bella is 14.2 hands tall measured with a stick on concrete. She weighs 850lbs when in good condition so based on the 20% rule, she can safely carry 170 lbs. Please include the saddle weight (about 20 lbs) in your calculations of whether this horse can safely carry your weight. You should probably be approximately my size so you can use her saddles. I am using a 15” western saddle, and a 17.5” all purpose english saddle. Please note that there is no flexibility on weight here, you should be 155 lbs or less to ride this horse. Bella is currently about 75lbs overweight because she is a very easy keeper and I cant ride her enough to keep her in shape. Her weight has been discussed with the vet. At this point she is on a diet, Remission and needs more exercise.
You: enjoy the grooming and connection as much as the riding and are looking for a long term horse friend that you can ride on a regular schedule. You should be an intermediate rider at a minimum, and if you don’t know how to collect a horse or how important lateral work is, you should be getting weekly lessons with me, my trainer or an approved trainer to expand your skill set. Bella would be great to learn advanced skills on, as she knows how to do things but you have to ask right. If you don’t know how to ask, you should definitely be getting lessons from my trainer. Unfortunately I have limited flexibility for approving other trainers. My trainer is a multiple time pinto world champion trainer in English and Western Pleasure and she has trained both myself and my horse correctly, and I dont have a lot of time to assess other trainers. I’ve invested a lot of time and money to make Bella into a very fun little pleasure horse who is just really easy to ride, and I dont want any of that getting undone.
Bella is never “naughty,” she is genuinely sweet natured, so if you are having an issue with her you can assume it is a “rider error” or communication problem, and she does not need “correction.” You should be the type of rider who can pause, assess what you may or may not be doing wrong, and figure out how to ask so she understands, rather than getting frustrated and taking it out on her. In other words, you MUST be soft and kind.
You should be capable of making her walk, trot, canter, back, turn on the haunch, turn on the fore, at a minimum. You should be experienced enough with horses that I do not need to be involved in your regular riding time and you’ll be fine to handle her, groom, saddle, ride and set up feed if needed, all without help. If you are an experienced rider you can do almost anything with her. Take her on trail rides. Take her to clinics or shows. Have fun! Ultimately you can be interested in almost any discipline with her but if you’re looking for a jumper, competitive gamer, or high stepping English horse, Bella is not a good fit. The best fit for Bella would be an advanced adult rider who just wants weekly horse time, enjoys putzing around on the trails at the barn and in the arena, is relaxed and non-competitive. Bella is aging and can have some days where she is stiff, so having a full blown 2 hour riding adventure every time you come to the barn is probably not your highest priority, but being considerate, adjusting plans, and spending time with a sweet horse even on the occasional off day, is. (To be clear, I do ride her when she is stiff but I listen for when she tells me she is done and we generally will do a shorter, 20 minute or so ride on days where she feels off, then go for a walk, rub down with absorbine, etc. Also those days are not that frequent, but happen every couple/few months.) Since Bella is aging, you should be able to tell when she is not feeling her best or is sore and willing to skip a ride on occasion, or just go at her speed if she is not up for something. She can get stiff in her hocks, making her back sore sometimes. It has not happened since I put her on a joint supplement, but she still sometimes has days where she says she is not up for a lot. Most of the time she is quite energetic, so you should also be able to handle a horse that wants to get some of that energy out.
We have a sweet little community at our barn and there are opportunities to haul out with others to do fun stuff like cow sorting, trail rides, etc. Sometimes the cows even come to us. Bella loves bossing the calves. We would each need to be flexible when it comes to those sorts of things and make sure the outing is a good fit for Bella. For example, a jumping show or clinic? No. Cow sorting? Yes!
You should be up front and good at communication since we will be coordinating our time with her, responsible and dependable, have a reliable source of income, and your personality should jive with mine. Bella's last leaser decided to buy a horse, and the previous leasers were with us for 5 years until the daughter graduated, and I’m hoping to find another person who wants to stick with us for the long haul whom I don’t have to worry about. We should probably be on the same page about clipping -- she is primarily a pleasure horse and needs her whiskers and her hair - the amount of time she might spend in a show ring or being ridden does not justify removing these.
When you come to try her out, you will be expected to saddle her up, walk, trot, canter, stop and back. Bonus points if you can get her into a nicely collected jog and lope, and turn on the haunch/fore. This will help me assess your skill level and if you are a good fit with her.
Bella is currently located at Holcomb Hills in Oregon City and we are planning to stay there for the foreseeable future. This barn has hot/cold wash rack, huge indoor arena, trails, outdoor arena under construction, grooming areas, private paddock turnout, full care, and a nice community of no-drama riders.
Cost: $325 per month for 3 days a week of riding. This covers board, hoof trims, feed, and a small amount deposited into a vet fund since she is no longer able to be insured due to her age. This also covers her yearly vet expenses and shots, chiro when needed, fly spray, supplements, and everything else.
The professional looking photos were taken in 2020 after she had had a year out of work with no exercise. Her topline is a lot better now!