First Horse to Enroll in Lifetime Performance Program has a Great Story

The very first enrollment into the new WDAA Lifetime Performance & Points program is Tango, a Paint Gelding owned by Jessica Shier of Ortonville, Michigan. Please read her story below about how she came to own Tango and their journey into Western Dressage!

In March of 2012 my first horse Robby passed away. With one lonely horse at home, I knew I should get her a companion. My horse search brought me to a Craigslist ad for a just turned 3 year old stud colt. I called the person to arrange to meet him. Tango had been purchased the weekend prior from a local horse auction. The woman that bought him was a regular and saw he was being bid on by the local kill buyer. Tango reminded her of her own horse so she outbid him and brought him home. She did not however have the space for him and she needed to sell him. He was not much to look at, small, scrawny, his coat was coarse and drab, and he seemed a bit despondent, but I saw something in him and bought him that day. Once I got Tango home I realized he was covered in lice, and was anemic. I shaved him and treated him, put him on an appropriate feeding program, and had him gelded. It didn’t take long for him to start to blossom, his summer coat was shiny and his body filled out, he was turning into a lovely young horse.

I myself had not competed for several years, but had rode dressage in the past. I looked at this small stocky horse and knew he was not going to be the next Grand Prix dressage horse and I wanted to find something that we could thrive at together. Originally I thought about reining, but flipping through a local horse magazine I saw an ad for an instructor in my area that was promoting for people to come out and try a Western Dressage test. I thought that sounded interesting and I reached out to her and started Western Dressage lessons with Tango.

My instructor Dorothy Mueller encouraged me to compete with Tango last year even though I was not sure I was ready. By the end of the year I had brought home our State Affiliate’s High Point award for a novice horse in Intro Level. This year we competed again starting at Basic Level but graduating to Level 1 tests in the middle of the show season. Tango and I have been part of Western Dressage demonstrations for our Michigan WDAA Affiliate and next year I hope to show Level 2 and I plan to bring Tango to the Western Dressage World Show in Tulsa! It’s great to be part of an organization where my little rescue horse can show his stuff and get recognized for his accomplishments!