SEPTEMBER 2010 THE RIDER /57
REAL ESTATE:
Horse Hunting vs House Hunting By Teri Davidson.
Our family has sadly started the search for a horse who we hope will bring joy back into our daughters life after her experiencing the loss of her nine year old warmblood hunter jumper a few weeks ago.
And what a tumultuous time it has been.
When I market homes for sale I try to promote the property for what it is. No property is perfect but it ends up that there is always someone who is looking for exactly what each individu- al home has to offer. If the property happens to be alongside an existing rail- way line, I tell the potential buyers where it is because there will be someone who is fine with a train nearby. Also I understand each buyer has a list of attributes they feel their new home must have and they will want to look at properties which they are hoping will fulfill as many of those “wants and must haves” as possible. And if they do look at something and it isn’t suitable I don’t become angry, sullen and make disparaging remarks about the buyers inability to recognize a good home
when they see it. I wouldn’t even think of it! Lots of potential buyers call on my ads for further information and I am as honest about the faults the homes have as I am about the good things each one offers. If they are looking for a property for horses and the property I am advertising doesn’t suit horses why wouldn’t I tell them? Makes sense to me. My pictures are NOT blurry and distorted. I call potential buyers right back, arrange a viewing if the property advertised seems to fit or tell them about oth- ers I have which may suit them better once they’ve shared with me what they are looking for.
Totally different when it comes to horses. I am amazed by the sellers responses when you say their horse isn’t a good match based on either the answers to the questions you ask or after trying to ride the horse being offered for sale. We have been cursed at, lamb based on equine forums and hung up on. Incredible.
One particular young lady is offering a beautiful horse for sale with pictures and two flat work videos. We are looking for a hunter who can go to jumper and her ad indicated this horse was suitable for young rid- ers, confidence builder etc. The flat work videos looked very promising. However over to one side on you tube was the same horse doing his first hunter show. Very forward and needing to be half halted every time he jumped over
Ottawa Valley
in order to slow him down. He was really moving around the course, too quickly for our liking. I called to cancel our view- ing, apologized and wished her the best of luck with this horse who was wonder- ful but would not be a good match for us. She was very polite and thanked us for not wasting her time, com- mented in future we shouldn’t really be looking at any thoroughbreds since they all are as quick and hot as hers was. She is entitled to her opinion so I said nothing in response. We nicely finished the conver- sation. Ten minutes later she was on a public forum ranting about me and say- ing I needed to spend $50,000 to 100,000 dollars for a “ perfect” horse, she quoted me as saying things which were inaccurate terms in horse language and portraying me as a com- plete fool who should buy a merry-go-round horse. Good marketing is an important tool no matter what the product. Accurate information, the ability and patience to answer ques- tions , to not take things personally if someone doesn’t like what you have for sale.
If the house is small and dark don’t promote it as spacious and bright
..instead focus on it’s other attributes like maybe it’s large spacious treed lot with beautiful views. Say the rooms are smaller there will be buyers who are looking for a gorgeous lot and know they can add on to a smaller home or per- haps open up the rooms.
Don’t say the horse can jump if he can’t. I personal- ly don’t need a jumper and like a horse who is laid back. A strong forward moving horse is perfect for a strong confident
rider....provided that is what they want.
want to buy your horse or your house doesn’t mean there is anything wrong with either. Just means it doesn’t suit them.
If someone doesn’t
Traveling in the Best Circles
Make your marking dollars work properly for you. Put the price in your ads , take great pictures that show the product for what it is. Don’t over promote. I don’t make the properties I am marketing look better than they are. I’ve learned the buyer is disappointed when they see it and then it is a waste of everyones time.
Here’s hoping I find a kind, sweet tempered per- fect horse ...or least perfect for
us......soon.
And if you are looking for the perfect home or farm give me a call..I will work hard to find you the perfect.....or at least what you think as the buyer, is perfect ......... property for you.
Teri Davidson is Broker/Owner of Associate Realty Brantford Inc. and has been a member of the Brantford Regional Real Estate Association for over thirty-three years. She and her family also own and operate “White House farm” in Ancaster, Ontario where they raise Registered AQHA and APHA quality horses.
------ By Faith Meredith
Director of Riding, Meredith Manor Interna- tional Equestrian Centre WAVERLY, WV—Before either horses or riders mas- ter the sequential stages of their respective learning trees, they will travel in endless circles. The circle is the basic school figure we use to develop the essentials of rhythm and relaxation in either horse or rider. As they school their horses, riders should strive to make every circle the best they possibly can. Circle work helps horses develop the muscles necessary to carry them- selves properly in balance. Paradoxically, riding cir- cles is the best way to teach a horse to go straight. Going “straight” on a circle means that the horse’s hind feet follow the tracks of his front feet. In other words, if you imagine a line on the ground forming the circle, the horse’s inside front and hind feet stay on the inside
Erin, Caledon & Surrounding Areas
of that line while his out- side front and hind feet stay on the outside of it. As the horse works to stay straight on a circle, he strengthens muscles on the inside while stretching muscles on the outside. Just as we are right- or left- handed, horses tend to have a dominant side, too. Working the horse in both directions on a circle helps him overcome that tenden- cy and become more even- ly muscled. The benefits of circle work for the horse include improved strength, balance, straightness, and flexibility.
Riders must not only understand the theoretical mechanics of the aids that direct the horse on a circle they must also learn to apply those aids correctly in order to achieve consis- tently round circles of the same size. Riders do not simply apply the correct mechanical aids and leave them “on” to keep a horse traveling on a circle. Keep- ing the horse moving in a consistent rhythm while maintaining the correct shape of the circle requires that the rider continually communicate with the horse by:
· applying the aids, · assessing their affect,
then
· reapplying the aids, adjusting their pressures as needed to make them more effective.
· Repeat. Repeat. Repeat. Etc.
The constant evalua- tion and adjustment of the
Durham Region
aids while repeating the circle shape gradually refine the green horse’s understanding of the aids. Repetition also helps refine the rider’s application of individual aids and her coordination of the corridor of aids as a whole. Like the horse, the rider also devel- ops both sides of her body. Riding circles will help her improve her balance, her strength, and her ability to coordinate the aids while riding in any direction. While the aids for a circle are always the same, their application becomes more subtle as the horse’s training and level of under- standing increase. To start, the rider places just slightly more weight on her inside seat bone. Her inside leg lies at the girth where it acts as the “driving” leg. Her outside leg lies slightly behind the girth where it acts as a “keeping” leg to prevent the horse’s hindquarters from swinging to the outside of the circle. The inside rein positions the horse’s head slightly to the inside of the circle. The outside rein receives the forward motion initiated by the driving inside leg and maintains the horse’s straightness on the circle. The inside rein does not pull the horse’s head in the direction of travel and the outside rein maintains just enough elastic contact to hold the horse straight while allowing free for- ward movement. Remem-
Continued on Page 58
75 First Street, Suite 14,
Orangeville, ON L9W 2E7
Erin: 519-833-0569 Tor: 905-450-3355
jguagliardi@royallepage.ca www.jacquelineguagliardi.com
Orangeville Area York & Durham Regions
Southwestern Ontario
www.murraygibbons.com
• Serving South Western Ontario • 30 Years Experience • International and local clientele
All types Farms, Rural, Residential, Development Lands
MURRAY Gibbons, B.Sc., Agr., Broker of Record
Great Lakes Realty & Auctions Inc. Waterford, Ontario
Office: 519-443-6443 or Cell 519-757-5595 Email:
murray@murraygibbons.com
Simcoe County Brant County
Teri Davidson Broker/Owner
29 yrs full-time experience • Canada's Most Referred Realtor
Serving: Brant, Haldimand, Norfolk, Oxford, South Dumfries, North Dumfries, Ancaster, Flamborough, Cambridge and Woodstock.
Associate Realty Brantford Inc.
519-752-4116 • (519) 647-3330
teridavidson@execulink.com
Kawartha Lakes
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