The Duke of Newcastle would call them fully dressed (‘dressaged’) or managed (a la?’to manage’ or ‘maneged’).
All horses offered by Harmony Cross …
- Have been academically prepared to understand ‘classical’ aids
- Have been well socialized – among horses and humans – to provide a safe, flexible riding partner, regardless of discipline or level of experience
- Trailer-load easily; clip, bathe, and generally dote on you, provided access to you
- Perform school-quality, highly modifiable gates
- Are highly responsive to aids
- Use correct neck pitch and head placement to self-carry across all gaits and maneuvers
- Have solid left and right canters, perform simple changes – flying changes installed where noted
- Execute a full range of accessible, ‘carrying’ trots, from piaffe or deaux piaffe to school and extended trots. (Proper carriage makes ‘posting’ unnecessary).
- Are highly responsive to the leg, meaning?easy-but-ready changes of inflection/bend, gait, collection, speed, including ready, short, and, if required, sliding stops
- Have extensive trail riding/out-of-arena hacking exposure and experience
- Are easily operable with ‘one hand on the curb’ – but also with the double bridle, or a simple snaffle … or bareback with a halter and lead rope, if you must
- Have no known soundness or behavioral issues, and are high performers shod or barefoot
- Are comfortable in ‘English’ or ‘Western’ (colonial stock) tackle
- Are in ‘ready’/athletic condition
- Are rideable in ‘arcade mode’, i.e.: are easily piloted by novice riders to go forward, go left, go right, and quickly, easily halt on either the heels or hand.
… unless otherwise noted en dossier.
That’s approximately 15 more things than your last horse. And you know it. 🙂