Horse Play

I believe I have mentioned before how busy life can be!  I haven’t been able to ride as much as I would have liked. The weather has been warm and muggy after work. There have been a few days at the job that have totally worn me out, so I didn’t do much after coming home.   I also made the choice one day to skip going on a ride and instead visit an old friend after work.

I was fretting about how my horses are so out of shape, nowhere near the condition they should be. How can I make time to do all that needed to be done!? The stock trailer is parked in my field. I need to seal the floor with a water stain. I need to sand and paint some rust areas.  There are weeds to be cut down in the pasture, the fence wire needs tightening…and so on! I also have 3 dogs that need time and attention. The days aren’t long enough, the weekends even shorter, and I don’t have the energy I used to have.

Did some thinking while brushing Ginger and Brego yesterday.  I am never going to have all the time I would like to have, that is just life. I am going to be okay with it. I will make the best of it and enjoy the time that I do have!  My horses aren’t stalled. They are constantly moving and grazing and I do see them running around on occasion! They are on a (approx.) 2 acre lot.  They are happy.

It isn’t always about the riding. I enjoy it-I really do. I also enjoy having my ‘horse time’ and hanging out with them! I had such a good time grooming them yesterday!  They also enjoyed it!  Ginger stood quiet while tied, even though Brego wasn’t close by. I gave her a thorough brushing and talked and sang to her! (my radio is in the barn, always on the FLN station)!  We genuinely enjoyed each others company!

And when it was Brego’s turn, it was exactly the same!  We both were very relaxed. He makes me laugh when he swings his butt around so I can scratch it! I reminded him to stand still. I am going to be consistent about that now. But I did scratch it! He lifts his hind leg also so I can scratch his inner thighs! I am going to get a picture of that!  I hope I am able to post it! It looks so funny-just like a male dog urinating!

I cannot but hope that those times grooming help to build and solidify our trust with each other. I could have taken Brego out for a short ride down the road, but opted out. I am so bored with and  have come to hate road riding.  There is always road riding to do to get anywhere nice to ride!

I bought  sandpaper and primer today so I could  start working on the stock trailer! Unfortunately, it rained all day. At least I have it here so I can start when the weather clears!

In the meantime, I am going to stop worrying about ‘not riding’.  I will  take advantage of the times I am able to implement ‘training’ when I am with them. For example:when I am with them in the field and decide to pick up and look at a hoof, I expect them to stand quietly until I am done—there will be no walking off. I am going to start tying them to the trailer so they get used to it. ( I use the quick release knot and/or the slow release hook I bought). Someone, and I can’t remember who, said that every time we are with our horse we are training them, in one way or another. I agree.