Groundwork and Riding

On Saturday Buckshot and I had a good ride at the barn. The weather was cloudy and slightly warm, a perfect pre-spring day. We worked on our gate opening project, which is coming along very slowly, but coming along. Buckshot is curious what these funny little exercises are that we are doing at the gate. But he is trying his best to get them right. After that, we rode, first our phase one walking for twenty minutes. Then when we started trotting, he was ready to go! He trotted very energetically. After a bit, a student in the class came out with her horse and Buckshot was so happy to see another horse in the arena. Then a few more students and horses came out, including my sister on her school horse. We trotted and cantered nicely and then went on a trail ride. When we got to the field arena, we did some work there. Buckshot again trotted with great energy and enthusiasm. We cantered a few times as well. Then we headed back to the barn. In all, Buckshot and I rode for two hours. He did great!

Sunday was a rainy day. I drove to the barn in the rain. Once at the farm, I used the time to clean out my tack trunk, all the way to the bottom! I’ve become friends with one of the barn cats that owns this particular barn, and he helped me with the cleaning, by supervising as much as he possibly could! You probably know what I mean – rubbing my legs, and sniffing everything and getting in the way as much as possible! LOL! But encouraging me all the same! I threw out some old and unusable items, and wiped down everything. I even brought some brushes home to wash. I’m bad about keeping my grooming tools in tip-top condition. So I am determined to wash these brushes, take them back and exchange them for some others, and eventually get them all cleaned. I hope to get them washed really well maybe once a year. (That’s about as likely as my vacuuming goals, which are “whenever!” LOL!)

After cleaning my tack trunk, the rain had stopped so I went up to Buckshot’s pasture with some cones and a dressage whip and we did groundwork exercises in his pasture. He did very well; he was attentive, and tried hard with each exercise. Finally, however, he seemed to lose interest (he started eating grass instead of listening to me). Since he had done quite a few exercises by then, I thought it was fair to bring our work to an end. I worked on picking up poop in his yard and some in the grass. He went into his barn/run in, and had a chat or a nap with his pasturemate.

Then today, Monday, I took off of work to go out to the barn for a vet call. It was time for Buckshot’s annual vaccinations and fecal count and I wanted to be there. We had several horses for the vet to see. Buckshot did great- he didn’t even flinch at the shots! She listened to his heart and said it sounded fine, and strong. And he had kindly deposited some poop just minutes before she arrived so getting a sample was easy. I watched another horse get his teeth floated. And the other horses were looked at as well.

Later, I went back to Buckshot’s pasture and we had another good groundwork session. He tried really hard to do what I asked. In trying to do a half pass, he moved his feet, he tried, but I could almost hear his frustration “But I don’t know what you are asking for!” I told him it was one of the harder things to do, and I understood his frustration, but I appreciated it that he was trying so very hard to get it, or get something right. So I gave him the thank-you treat.

He is also so funny at times. When he thinks he has gotten an exercise right, or that he has done it enough, he will nicker, as if to say, I’ve done it! I’ve done it! Now do I get the treat! I love his young-horse innocence and enthusiasm! And the best, the very best moments I have with Buckshot are not when I am riding him, but are the times in his pasture when I am walking and he is right there by my arm, with his head low, relaxed and trusting and wanting to be with me. Those are the big heart-warming, heart-swelling moments for me, when I love and appreciate him so very much! Thank you, dear Buckshot!

Weekend Rides

This past weekend we had beautiful weather in Virginia – sunny and in the 60’s. Just a touch of autumn coolness, warmed ever so slightly by sunshine. Beautiful! Buckshot did great during our rides on Saturday and Sunday. We warmed up with twenty minutes of walking, and then began some trotting. We did patterns (figure eights, large circles, along the rail, and a new pattern, called riding routine), and exercises (alternate 8 strides of walking with 8 of trotting, cone bending, riding diagonally across the arena, etc). He had good energy, and a willing, responsive attitude. He didn’t seem off or stiff at all. We also walked down the driveway with other horses (the driveway I haven’t been able to get him down by ourselves, riding or in hand)- he did fine with other horses nearby. At the field arena, we walked around the perimeter, followed by one lap around at the trot. Then we went into the woods to follow the trail (again, always with at least one other horse/rider). He did fine on the trail, and wasn’t as trippy as he had been a few weeks ago. Then back down the driveway to the arena and barn to dismount. Wonderful rides! Great weather and a willing, happy Buckshot!

I also got his new bridle set up. First I removed his bit from his old bridle, which was a major accomplishment! I don’t know about you, but for me, changing a bit is one of the hardest tack jobs to do – loosening those leather straps from what seems like cement, and getting the new leather straps on exactly right is a hard job! Of course, if I had cleaned my old bridle properly all along – by disassembling it and cleaning it, instead of my short cut cleaning where I didn’t actually take it apart at all – it would come apart much easier…. Anyway, I got the bit attached to the new bridle in time for Saturday. On Saturday, after grooming Buckshot, I tried it on him. It didn’t fit! The noseband was way too tight on the farthest buckle hole. I had to take it off and go get his old bridle, and change the bit back to his old bridle, right in his stall. He stood ever so patiently as I pulled and tugged at all the straps again! LOL! I got the bit reattached to his old bridle and put it on him. (By the way, I also had cleaned the bit very thoroughly - using salt! The BO suggested this as a cleaner and it made the bit shine beautifully! )

My kind BO suggested that we put additional holes in the straps and see if that would help the new bridle fit. She has a miraculous hole-puncher that goes through leather as if it was paper! So we put multiple holes on the straps. At this point I regretted buying a “cob” size and regretted saying to myself when I bought it, “Oh, it looks like it’ll fit him…” (Just about every piece of tack I’ve ever bought Buckshot I’ve gotten the wrong size! I don’t know why I trust my eyes, and memory, and just say, “it looks like it’ll fit him!” I’ve had to return and exchange so many things I bought for him! LOL! ) But with all the new holes, and several of the straps buckled at the very, very end (with no ends to go in the leather keepers!), it fit him! I wonder if the browband is still a little too snug for him – I can move it and can just squeeze my little finger under it, but now that I know I am making a “cob” size bridle fit a “horse” size head, I wonder if the browbrand is really too small for him. I’ll see what I think later this week. I may decide to just get him another bridle altogether. But for now, at least he looks quite handsome in his new bridle!