Sugar is my dream horse. Ever since the day I met her, I knew she had to be mine. Bringing her home the first day she belonged to me, February 9th 2003, was like finding an old teddy bear I had lost. I trusted her right from the beginning as if I'd known her before. She was exactly what I was looking for - about 14.2hh, registered American Quarter Horse, mare. She's even a unique colour like I'd always dreamed of. She loves to do all the things I love to do - trailride, jump small x-rails, basic dressage, western pleasure.

She's a genuinely kind soul who tries her best. She's extremely gentle and takes care of whoever is around her. I've never seen her bite, kick, pin her ears, be pushy, etc. Even when she (thinks) she's starving at dinner time, she'll wait patiently. I would trust a child on her back or under her feet. She's as bombproof as they come and takes everything in stride. New environments are no big deal for her.

Sugar was born in Alberta in 1985 and brought to BC as a weanling by a well-known local rancher. She was sold as a 4 year old to a western pleasure trainer by whom she was broke, used as a lesson horse and maybe shown, though I don't know this for sure. A few years later she was sold to a breeder who bred Sugar to her AQHA stallion, True Blue Quincy, and produced four red roan foals, two fillies and two colts. Her babies are now strewn throughout BC and Washington and I hope to one day visit a few of them.

In 1996 she was sold to the woman I bought her from. This lady used her as a family and trail horse for her sons and husband as well as bred her twice; once to the APHA stallion Eternal Scribbles and once to the Thoroughbred stallion Malmo. The Paint baby is a stunning sorrel and white overo filly foaled in 1998. The half-Thoroughbred red roan filly was foaled in 2002 and is now a 2-year-old.

Sugar's favourite past times include grazing in the field, hanging out with her equine buddies, going for trailrides and exploring new places (she loves to bush-whack her way through the trails), and spending time with me. She loves any sort of attention be it petting, grooming, bathing or treat feeding. She LOVES kids and will follow them around like a loyal puppy. Everyone loves her and her nickname around the barn is "Sugarbear".

Sugar is an American Quarter Horse registered under the name "Win A Snip". She's about 14.2hh and currently 19 years old (foaled in 1985). Her colour is "red roan", liver chestnut roan in the summer and a rusty chestnut colour in the winter. Her colour can be a variety of shades according to the light and surroundings. I've even had a few people tell me she looks purple when she's out in the field. She's a very healthy mare who enjoys life to the fullest - sore days are very rare for her.

Sugar is my pleasure horse; during the summer we go on some trailrides for fun and maybe sometime we'll try a schooling show or two, but generally she's my buddy to learn on and play with. I'll be her last owner; I don't ever plan to sell her. She'll always have a good life as long as I'm her owner.

I started this training log to keep track of Sugar's progress in weight and muscle gain after I bought her, as well as my riding, and of course to keep an eye on how our relationship is growing and changing. It'll be awesome to look back a few years from now and read all that I've written. Maybe it'll help the readers in some way too; someone in the process of buying their first horse to read up on what to expect, someone who has a problem with their horse that I've encountered with Sugar, or maybe just for entertainment. Either way, enjoy what I've written - maybe you'll learn something. I know I have.