Shadow, Standardbred mare, 23 years
Shadow is the lead mare, the "Queen" of our herd and this black beauty has an outstanding personality and interesting history. Never raced, used as a broodmare once, being schooled in dressage and show jumping, she arrived here long time ago as a "Problem horse": She could buck very well and had taught a lot of people, especially kids, to fly. Saddle marks on her back also tell a story from several non-fitting saddles before we got her. She has been at North River now for 13 years and NOBODY believes us when meeting her that she had such a history.
She is absolutely EVERYBODY's darling, our best teacher ever and one in a million (but we think that about all our horses;-)). She has taught from absolute beginners to very experienced people a lot about communication and about themsleves over the years. She has patiently carried people, who have never been on a horse and or being very scared through the bush, even a blind lady. Experienced riders fall in love with her because she is so soft to ride (if you offer softness). Basic classical dressage or show jumping, she does it and all in a ropehalter. Our friend Matina from Germany would have loved to take her home with her;-). We could have sold her thousands of times (but we never will) and her fanclub is growing and goes as far as Germany.
She is absolutely EVERYBODY's darling, our best teacher ever and one in a million (but we think that about all our horses;-)). She has taught from absolute beginners to very experienced people a lot about communication and about themsleves over the years. She has patiently carried people, who have never been on a horse and or being very scared through the bush, even a blind lady. Experienced riders fall in love with her because she is so soft to ride (if you offer softness). Basic classical dressage or show jumping, she does it and all in a ropehalter. Our friend Matina from Germany would have loved to take her home with her;-). We could have sold her thousands of times (but we never will) and her fanclub is growing and goes as far as Germany.
Robbie, Standardbred gelding, 24 years
Shadow's "husband" and a patient uncle for the foals in our herd.
Ian bought him off the race track, when Robbie (Robbie Hanover) was 4 years old and never made it there because of his attitude of: "I'll beat you tomorrow".
Ian started Robbie under saddle and he became his one and only competition horse for endurance riding. Robbie has been at North River now for nearly 20 years, so there a lot of tales to tell from the endurances rides and all those years of trekking. Robbie has carried many people and worked hard, being a very solid, very tall boy he has carried some weight over the years. Not anymore. After a paddock accident (a gallop down the hill to catch up to the herd which ended in a fall on his head and neck): Robbie was lucky to be alive and so are we. He is our assertiveness trainer, if you are not doing anything or too much this horse can walk absolute slow motion. And he works that out in the first few metres of a ride if he can have his rider on or not (well, as most horses do...).Robbie is also an absolute confidence builder, if you want to fall off you have to run to the edge and jump;-). Now being semi retired he carries children out on the treks and has given a few people the joy of their first canter on a horse ever, as he is an absolute armchair.
Ian bought him off the race track, when Robbie (Robbie Hanover) was 4 years old and never made it there because of his attitude of: "I'll beat you tomorrow".
Ian started Robbie under saddle and he became his one and only competition horse for endurance riding. Robbie has been at North River now for nearly 20 years, so there a lot of tales to tell from the endurances rides and all those years of trekking. Robbie has carried many people and worked hard, being a very solid, very tall boy he has carried some weight over the years. Not anymore. After a paddock accident (a gallop down the hill to catch up to the herd which ended in a fall on his head and neck): Robbie was lucky to be alive and so are we. He is our assertiveness trainer, if you are not doing anything or too much this horse can walk absolute slow motion. And he works that out in the first few metres of a ride if he can have his rider on or not (well, as most horses do...).Robbie is also an absolute confidence builder, if you want to fall off you have to run to the edge and jump;-). Now being semi retired he carries children out on the treks and has given a few people the joy of their first canter on a horse ever, as he is an absolute armchair.
