 Erin & Zippo N Dixon | Zip (2010) by Erin My sister and I had been interested in and loved horses since we could remember. We played horses, we drew horses, we looked at horses. When we finally began to take English riding lessons at a nearby barn, I read all I could about owning and riding horses. One of my favorite activities while I was taking lessons was when our neighbors would let us ride some of their horses around the arena. On the short drive to their house, we would always pass a large, lush pasture with two similar chestnut paint horses grazing in it. My family wondered who got to own those pretty horses, not knowing that one day WE would be the owners of one of them! After about 2 years of taking lessons, my mom met the owner of the two paints. A week later we went to look at Zippo N Dixon, and soon after we were the proud owners of our first horse. After owning Zip a few months, it turned out that I would be the one riding him most of the time, and he really became 'my' horse. Zip was 12 years old when we bought him, and his owner's daughter had shown him in every class possible at the county horse show, had ridden him all over the trails, gone fox hunting with him, and even played polo off him at one point. My inexperience and his consistency made us the perfect pair, and my parents never had to worry - Zip would take care of me. In the five years that I have owned him, I have shown Zip in the county fair twice, ridden him on 4 hour trail-rides through Nebraska National Forest, sorted cows, jumped 3 feet, and just let him run, clinging on for dear life with nothing between me and his soft back. He hasn't always been the perfect horse though. I had to ask for help when Zip began to take off with me, not listening when I tried to slow him down. This month he will be 17 years old, and the longer I own him the more I realize how lucky I was and still am to have Zip as my first horse. |
Mary: I've always wished I had a couple horses to watch frolicking down in the field. Zip and three sheep are pretty close to that!
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The sheep keep Zip from being lonely, but he bosses them around! | Horsing around: After Erin sprays him off, he loves to roll in the dirt! |
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Snooping: He wants to know what's going on in here. Sometimes he tries to eat my camera.
Horse pictures by Erin changing-gears.php
