This is the story of Zeebar as told by Kelley Hobart, Zeebar’s former owner. We are so grateful to Kelley for sending Zeebar our way. He will be well-loved by all at the K2 Equestrian Center!
This is a little bit about Zeebar’s past history. Lovingly called “Zoom Zoom” around the barn, as he was always ready to work from the moment your foot hit the stirrups. Matter of fact, he rarely stood still long enough for my backside to hit the saddle!
Welcome Zeebar!
How Zeebar Came to Us
Lauren, my daughter, had her pony named Tina. Tina was about 12 hands and was Lauren’s buddy for many years. Tina was a Fjord-Shetland cross that the kids rode and drove with an easy entry cart. However, as Lauren grew, little Tina didn’t. Lauren could lean over Tina’s side and almost touch the ground on the other side. She had grown too big for the pony, so it was time to find our daughter a horse. She was simply too tall to ride our dear little pony any longer.
I searched online using the Bay Area Equestrian Network and DreamHorse.com. For over a year, I picked up every horse magazine and local newspaper, hunting for the perfect horse for my daughter. I asked all of my friends if they knew of a horse that would fit the bill.
Lauren was a rather timid rider, so we needed a confident horse–the horse could not look to Lauren for confidence. I needed a horse that liked to canter, as this was Lauren’s favorite gait. Her horse needed to stop on a dime, and I wanted a very well-trained horse that she did not have to fight with. This was a tremendous “bill” to fill.
Months flew by. Lauren and I rode about 15 horses, but never found the perfect one. They were either too green, not confident, gaited (had a weird canter), or just too expensive for the budget we had set.
Then I saw an ad for Zeebar. The ad listed he all the traits we had been looking for. He was a registered quarter horse, born in Amarillo, Texas, and raised on the famous Al Dunning Quarter Horse Ranch in Arizona. He was eventually moved to a ranch in Sacramento. Al and his students have won over 35 world championships in reining, cutting and working cow-horse classes. His horses are top quality and are sold in the $30,000 to $50,000 range. Zeebar’s sire was Jesse Quinn and his dam was Decal Daise. On Jesse Quinn’s side was Sir Quincy Dan, who had been a five-time world champion quarter horse and had sired many beautiful, top-quality quarter horses. On his dam’s side, he was two generations from Doc’s Dee Bar, which is a grandson of the famous Doc Bar stallion. His bloodline has produced hundreds of reining, cutting, and cow-horse champions. The horses from this bloodline are smart, extremely athletic, sensible, easy to train, and of course “cowy.” Needless to say, I was very excited to ride Zeebar; he sounded like a dream come true, and he was being sold at a price that was within our budget.
Zeebar was 16 years old and had been a Header and Heeler for high school rodeo for nearly 10 years. That meant that he was fast. Perfect, that’s just what we were looking for. He had won at least two saddles and many other prizes with his young rider. The girl who owned him had since graduated from high school, and was working full time as a trainer at a reining barn. She was selling all of her horses because she was too tired to ride her own horses at the end of the day. She had 6 horses or so, and Zeebar was the first to sell.
Zeebar enjoys a little grooming from a new friend at K2!
Meeting Zeebar for the First Time
We were off to Marysville California to try Zeebar. It was nearly three hours from our house, and we had to fight the Bay Area traffic to get there. We pulled up to the house and could see Zeebar in the back pasture. We met the family, and the young owner had well-worn western boots with spurs, which were never removed. She easily slid her feet into the boots, as if those boots were the perfect mold of her foot. I don’t remember if she tightened the shoe laces or not but she went straight out to get Zeebar from the field. I remember she said, “Don’t forget to talk to him, as he likes that.” When he came out of the field, he shied around the side of a building, like he was afraid of it. I asked about it his behavior, and was told the girl’s father was a butcher; that building was where the pigs were slaughtered. Zeebar knew that building was a place to stay away from!
She took out some well-worn tack and Zeebar dropped his head for her to slip the handmade bit into his mouth. She said her Dad had made the bit, and it looked like rusty copper and rather severe. I made a mental note to give the bit back to the family and use a regular curb bit instead. It would be a similar, but less severe.
Zeebar making new friends at K2 Equestrian Center.
Zeebar had not been ridden in well over a year, and she said he would be a little “rusty.” I rode him first to make sure he was safe before I put Lauren on him. He had a very nice gait. His conformation was good and he was a big stocky boy. He could transition into a canter from the walk, which is difficult for any horse to do, let alone a horse that’s out of shape. He was ready to work from the moment I got on his back. He rounded his neck and put his head into working position. I always laughed when Zeebar did this; you never had to ask him to work. If anything, I had to teach him to wait for my command. There were times when he would do what he thought I wanted him to do, but sometimes he “guessed” wrong and I would give him a correction for the mistake.
We decided to buy him right then and there. We could not take him home yet as my trailer was being repaired. The owners were thrilled to have us take Zeebar, and said they would keep him until we could pick him up. I still had people calling me about horses they had for sale, even after I had purchased Zeebar. When I told one caller that I had purchased Zeebar he said, “I know Z, I can’t believe they sold him because he was such a great horse.” He said they had hated to compete against him because he was so good.
Homecoming
When we finally brought him home he was high strung and antsy. He thought he still needed to compete, but he didn’t need to compete with us. It took more than 6 months for me to take him out on the trail. He would pin his ears back like he did not like people, but I knew better than that. I only did trail rides and let Lauren bask in the sun on his back while she rode bareback. Gradually, he relaxed and settled in well with the other horses.
He was well-trained and a true gentleman and he helped me train many young horses and children. I would tie two year old horses to the saddle horn and canter down the trail. Zeebar would teach them to follow calmly with a swish of his tail. He would do whatever I asked of him from swimming in rivers to jumping through chest-high mud. He could be cross at times, but hands down, he was the most useable and athletic horse I’ve ever ridden. He gave any timid horse confidence, and there was nothing that would spook Zeebar. I would trust my life and my daughter’s life with Z, and knew that he would always take care of us. Our neighbors had water-slides and large community gatherings on their ranch. The kids would come over and would line up to take a ride on Z, and the other horses.
His New, Bright Future
Zeebar and Sage at K2 Equestrian Center
Zeebar is older now and has move on to a new career in helping autistic and special needs children. He is well-suited for the job! I will always love and miss him–he was the epitome of a true horse “gentleman,” and the world is better off for having him in it!
–Kelley Hobart
I’d love to know how Z did with the kids. I know he can be a stubborn guy and was very particular about how he should be treated. But I loved him so much, he was my rock. He was so loving and gentle, even if he didn’t look like it. He was my horse for years and my best friend. I hope he brought as much happiness to your center as he did to me.
Lauren hobart