Can Horse Haven horses be ridden?

This is a question we hear a lot. It is one of the first questions a potential adopter may pose. And it's one of the last things we learn about a horse during it's stay at Horse Haven. It takes many weeks, sometimes months, before a horse is healthy enough for under saddle evaluation. We certainly learn a lot about each horse and it's level of prior training just by having it at the barn. Interactions on a daily basis help us piece together the horse puzzle. We quickly figure out if a horse is hard to catch in the field and if it leads well. We learn if it does or does not know how to stand patiently for grooming, the farrier or the vet. We can observe it's reactions when we introduce a saddle and bridle. But to actually evaluate a horse with a rider, somebody has to get on.
 We've recruited numerous "crash dummies" from our volunteer corps over the years and I am happy to report that we've not had any serious incidents. And I am eternally grateful to those brave souls who place their behinds on the backs of thousand pound critters with sketchy histories. Their service is so very important because any amount of under saddle education makes a horse infinitely more adoptable. The speed at which well trained horses are adopted is amazing.
 The horses that haven't been trained or haven't been evaluated yet are much harder to place. It is the truly brave adopter who follows his or her heart and picks a horse because they are drawn to it on a deeper level. Such was the case with Alyssa and Texas.
 Texas was part of a small herd that lived in and around a burned out cabin on a mountain in Morgan County. He was not much to look at when he arrived at Horse Haven. The neighbors had been tossing hay across the fence so he wasn't too awful thin. He was a little old, plain bay horse with good size ears, very narrow through his chest and a skinny little pencil neck. Alyssa and her husband had applied to adopt a donkey as a companion animal and were at the barn to meet the long ear, when Alyssa spotted Texas and he spotted her. Often times, the horse picks the person and Texas picked Alyssa. He seemed to know that she was "his" person, the one he had waited for. While he had picked up weight during his stay with us, he still had a lot of filling out left to do and had not been evaluated under saddle. He was a very friendly guy with very little personal space. And Alyssa fell in love.
Papers were filled out and arrangements for transportation were made. They picked up their new herd a few days later.  In addition to Texas and the donkey, Alyssa and Andrew decided to also take home Trio, a cute little spotted gelding.
Texas has became a large part of Alyssa's life and has proven to be up for anything.

Halloween themed horse shows......

Competitive trail rides........

And even Alyssa's wedding.

 So to answer the question.....Yes, Horse Haven horses can be ridden. And they can do a whole lot more.