Ingrid

Ok, so I've always loved horses, and from the age of 10 til 15 i took horseback riding lessons, English style. Then my parents and I moved to Belgium for 2 years, I continued there, but the instructor and I didn't get along well, and basically completely ruined my confidence. I returned home when i was 16 but didn't take up horseback riding, even though i would occasionally ride out in the countryside. Anway so now here I am, 23 years old, studying, and I miss horseback riding so much:( I'm studying abroad now, and have no opportunity to ride here, I plan to start again when i return to Europe (im from Norway) and this time i want to actually learn everything. I know how to brush a horse, and how to put the tack on it, but that's about it. I want to learn enough so that I can actually own my own horse and my dream is to learn dressage, now i just know basic walk, trot, canter, gallop and I can jump a little, but i never learned much dressage AND i feel i need to "catch up" last time I was riding i felt i had lost the rythm, I'm sure i can get into it again with proper lessons, or am I naive? I know some people who own horses and it's my impression that they've been riding pretty much all their life. So is it simply too late for me? or can i become an good equesterian if i try hard enough?

Thanks for any insight or advice

I've always loved horses, but just taken lessons at a local stable, the horses there are handled by a lot of different people so i never felt much connection with the individual horses. But if you actually own your own horse and takes care of him well, does your horse then bond with you? say, like humans and dogs can bond?

My pekingese sometimes cough-sneezes (sound like a mix both), it seems like he does it when he is not happy. For example, im walking him and he wants to go to the left and i take him to the right, then he makes this sneeze, or if i don't rub his belly enough, and if i lift him down from my bed. Is it his way of objecting or am i wrong?

I'm considering to get a cat, right now I have a pekingese dog. My dog is fine with cats and in general he is very calm and laid-back. I grew up always having a cat, but now i live on my own. I've been looking into different breeds but I'm really not sure which one would be suitable, or even if i should get a pedigree.

The cat would need to:

be kept indoors, although i want to train it to walk on a leash , i did that with my old cat,

and i want a cat that loves to cuddle.

Any recommendations? I've never owned a pedigree cat before, but not sure if a domestic cat will adapt well to live indoors.

I have a pekingese, and I know they originated in china where they were supposed to resemble the mythical lion-like guardian animal. But at dog shows all the pekingese i've seen just look like lumps of hair, can't even distinguish their legs or tails. I personally think they look so much better with shorter hair, they even do look a bit like lions if u don't let the hair grow too long. ...So what's the purpose of letting their hair grow so long?

I'm thinking bout getting a samoyed dog, has been my dream for years, but I've heard they tend to be too "friendly" and thus are not very good guard dogs. Is it true? i know it depends on the indidual dog and how u socialize it, but is there a general pattern?