after all the jacks are in their boxes

Have you ever had so much fun with your horses that you had trouble finding time to blog?  Well, that is what happened to me this past week!  Riding fun, Foggy fun and...MUD...not so much fun, but it sure keeps you busy!

Since I last posted, I have ridden every day.  My rides on Sovereign have been deliciously perfect and uneventful.  My rides on Pie have been eventful, but still good.  Foggy is the sweetest horse I have ever known and he is starting to fit in perfectly.  The mud, which became insistent on Thursday, is the worst I have ever seen and is tough to ignore no matter how hard I try.  

Just by dumb luck, Pie's riding days ended up being pretty windy.  On Valentine's Day we had huge gusts in the afternoon so I rode in the morning when the winds were considerably calmer, but Pie still was "electric" from the coming wind storm.  He barely kept me on.  He was trying very hard (to be good!) but there were too many distractions.  At the end of our ride, I came back to the barn and circled him around the pastures.  He did manage a few good, quiet steps, but Foggy and Sovey were racing around upsetting the big boy's nerves.  I had to dismount on my own in order to keep him from helping me to dismount.  

I felt like my ride on Pie was so short so I popped Sovey out of the pasture and hopped on bareback.  He was the perfect angel around the entire farm - wind or no wind - Sovey is amazing.  

The next day I tried again with Pie.  It was still windy.  I don't know whether I did something different or if Pie was just calmer and in a better frame of mind, but our ride was probably one of the best I have had on him ever.  He was eager to keep going, attempting to take all our exit trails off the property to nearby woods and to town.  I was mature (very tough for me!) and turned him around at various places to keep him eager.  What a pleasure to have the horse I remember who always wanted to head away from our farm!  He was just the very best.  I don't mean to personify his behaviour too much, but I swear it seemed like he was trying to prove to me how good he could be.  He was more than willing, like he was saying, "See, Julie, I'm a good boy just like Sovey!"

That day seemed like the best day to turn Pie out with Foggy for the first time.  Pie was loving and sweet to Foggy and there were zero problems.  After they spent the afternoon getting acquainted, I slipped Sovereign in with them.  All three boys grazed happily in the warm sunshine.  

I have been putting them together for a little bit each day.  Pie is fine with Foggy.  Sovereign is worried about his place in the herd and is determined to make sure that Foggy knows who is who and what is what.  Sovey will not let Foggy near the water until after he is done.  Foggy is very good about waiting, but there isn't water left for him because Sovey insists on swimming in the trough and pawing all the mud in and all the water out.  I am getting a little frustrated, trying endlessly to provide enough troughs only to have Sovey muddy them all up. Fortunately, Foggy's patience is without limit.  

I had a super week with the boys and I am trying to stay appreciative of our rides and the successful pasture turnouts.  Yesterday, the weak human that I am forgot all the good and only saw the mud and my poor pastures and the empty muddy water buckets.  Also, as soon as I groom them, they roll again.

This is what is waiting for me this morning!