Mandy Hansford had never considered owning a standardbred, but this year has been full of pleasant surprises after welcoming ‘goofy and kind’ ex-pacer Callen into her family.
“I’d ridden a lot as a junior, but as I got older, the pursuit of university studies, travel and family commitments got in the way and I sold my horses. It’s an age-old story that I’m sure many women share”, Mandy reflects.
“We got our five-year-old daughter a beautifully bred pony after she developed a keen interest in horses. Soon after, I started feeling the urge to get back in the saddle, but I had really stretched the budget on my daughter’s pony.
“I could only afford an off-the-track horse, as these were in my price range. I wanted something safe and I knew standardbreds fit that brief, but I was concerned about pacing and retraining the canter. This put doubt in my mind as to whether a standardbred would be suitable for me.
“I’d spoken with Nicole [Touzel, of Mazel Park] before and we discussed a gelding she had for sale. We tried arranging for me to meet this particular horse, but things kept getting delayed.
“On the day I finally drove over to Nicole’s place, the horse I planned to view had fallen lame with a hoof abscess and I could not ride him. When I walked out into the paddock to meet him, he pinned his ears back at me and wanted nothing to do with me!
“Nicole introduced me to another horse, Callen (who raced as Stunin Warrior), she had on the property for retraining and he and I just instantly clicked.
“Although I had my reservations about a standardbred, I had a ride on Callen and was really impressed by how honest he was, despite being very green.
“Afterwards, I stood talking to Nicole and Callen came and put his head on my shoulder. He was so sweet and I knew in that moment I’d found the right horse”.
With Nicole extending a six-week retraining program to her Hero horses, Callen remained at Marzel Park to further his skills before rehoming.
Arriving at Mandy’s place in January, Mandy made the conscious decision to ‘start slow and focus on relationship-building’.
“Callen is my forever horse and it feels like we have a lifetime of experiences ahead of us, as he’s so young” Mandy explains.
“We started off focusing on groundwork and some natural horsemanship exercises. I’d go out and just sit in Call’s paddock and he’d come over and rest his head on me.
“This time spent building our bond helped to create this beautiful connection we now share. Call seeks me out and he loves touching and sitting quietly with me. We really enjoy each other’s company.
“We started slowly with ridden work too, just establishing a solid walk, trot and canter and casually riding with friends.
“One of the most memorable days of my life was when I first got to share a trail ride with my daughter, who was riding her pony. Although it was short and her dad was leading her, it was just such a special moment and I kept thinking ‘this is what it’s all about!’”
After attending a recent pony club gymkhana and making plans to undergo a month of extended dressage training with a trainer, Callen’s future is looking very promising.
“I’m excited to get back into some of the riding activities I enjoyed when I was younger. I’ve joined the Lake Boga Adult Riding Club and plan do some clinics and low-level competitions in the future”, Mandy explains.
“That said, I’m also conscious not to push Call too fast. I’ve accepted he’s young and I’ve had a big gap in my riding career. So, we’re just taking things slowly. It really doesn’t matter how long it takes to progress.
“As expected with any green horse, we’ve faced a few challenges early in our partnership, but we’ve just taken them as they come and Call tries very hard to please.
“Since I began working with Callen, all my initial doubts about standardbreds have vanished. Despite warnings from others about the effort needed to retrain the trot and canter, my experience has been overwhelmingly positive.
“Establishing Callen’s gaits to be relaxed and balanced didn’t take any longer than it would have with any other young, off-the-track, or green horse.
“I believe it’s crucial to share this, so that negative comments don’t discourage people from considering a standardbred. They make such lovely horses and, at least in my experience, retraining is much more straightforward than people may realise.
“After bringing home Callen, I definitely would take on another standardbred and recommend them to others. The breed is known for being kind, calm, willing and funny.
“Even within our first year together, I can say I’ve never had a connection with a horse like the one I share with Callen. He is just amazing”.
