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GentlewoodFarms
September 6, 2017

AGC #6 ~ From High Up

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Since I only have one riding horse now, it is rapidly becoming a routine to ride her in the evening, just as the sun is beginning to think about going down and the heat of the day is waning off. I can't ride her every evening, because I don't ride when I'm home alone, and I can't ride on Tuesdays because that's when I take Riley to Therapy Dog class. But I'm trying really hard to get at least three rides a week on her, and so far, I'm managing right at that.

Java's not the horse that Dolce was. She never will be. She's quieter and smarter, which means there is a lot less sparkle to her and a lot more work negotiating what I ask her to do. She's very stiff bending to the right, so we do a lot of flexion work that direction, and she's improving dramatically. But she always has what she thinks is a better idea, and she always makes a point to let me know that "the tack room is that way, can we quit now?" So there is a lot of "let's redo that, Java, until you can do it MY way with less drama, ok?" And eventually, I win and we quit.

This evening, however, she started the day as a complete idiot. I went to trim her bridle path - the part of her mane where the top of the bridle fits behind her ears, which needs to be shaved so the bridle fits on her skin instead of her hair - and she flipped completely out, rearing up and over, breaking her halter in the process, and landing herself on the ground with her legs in the air. Now. I've trimmed this mare's bridle path regularly since she was three days old. I mean, it's like OLD news. But today, you'd have thought she'd never SEEN clippers before.

Probably has something to do with the big bloody welt on her butt from the horsefly that's been pestering her all day. She must have thought he was fixing to bite her ear.

Anyway, after that was over, I seriously considered whether it was going to be even safe to get on her. I had a really bad wreck on a horse in the late 90's, and I tend to be overly cautious as a result. But just as quickly I realized that I had a small pen, and I could get on her in there, control the stupid if I ended up needing to, and so I saddled her up and off we went.

Two minutes in the pen and then we were out in the pasture, working on big round right turn circles, turns on the forehand (moving her back end in a circle around her stationary front end), and even did some nice trot work.

So - I was brave and she was good. And I'm proud of myself for putting on my big girl britches. They're actually starting to feel like they MIGHT be a good fit!


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