Progress Progress

Girlfriend engaged in her favorite
type of bonding activity.

So now on Friday nights I am working with Sara, who teaches our regular lessons at the barn, and Skye is really making progress.  My big concern with her ring behavior, i.e. throwing her head up and ears back and hollowing out her back when we trot, then not wanting to walk after she has trotted at all, has been that she is in some kind of pain. We have checked her back and saddle fit, and her behavior without tack, with tack and under saddle. And while I am still going to get her looked at by a chiropractor for my own comfort (a barn friend recommended one who is very good and very honest about whether your horse needs treatment or not), it appears that Skye's behavior is behavior based and not based in pain. That being said, I plan to continue doing exercises that supple and strengthen her back.



Anyway, that girlfriend was in heat on Thursday and was in her usual discombobulated mood over it. Plus, someone was shooting a gun somewhere off in the distance which didn't help. But we tacked her up and took her into the arena, where she made me look bad at first by being pretty trotty at the end of the lunge line. She is fine with my longer lead line, but gets tense in the presence of the lunge line and the lunge whip, (though you can run it all over her body and she doesn't flinch).

Sara took over, and worked her at the walk and the trot and helped calm her down. I take it so personally when Skye is unhappy at all, but Sara is encouraging me to trust my horse enough to let her work it out for herself that she is being foolish. Some horses won't get it, some will take a long time to get it, and some, like mine, will get it pretty quickly that the tension is coming from them, not from us. So we got her in her thinking and attention-paying frame of mind, and she calmed down considerably. Then we put the side reins on.

We had put side reins on before, and Skye had been, surprisingly to me, pretty chill about it. Last night, however, was another story. She tried to throw her head a little and kept backing up, but Sara just nudged her forward with the lunge whip until she got that forward with her head in a reasonable position would release the very light pressure. (Sara adjusted them so she had plenty of room to move but still couldn't reach the sky with her nose.) After a little work at the walk, Sara moved her into her trot, and after a couple of circuits of her moving her nose around, Skye settled into what looked like a comfortable rhythmic trot. Just what we were looking for.

Then Sara asked if I wanted to get on her, or have her do it. I've been curious to see if it's me that is causing or contributing to this behavior, and I'm not  going to turn down the opportunity to have a horse professional I trust (I love how she treats Skye, and Skye trusts and likes her, which means so much to me) ride my horse for me! At first, Skye did a nice relaxed walk, then a nice forward walk, and I started feeling pretty crappy, like it was me all along. But no, true to form, about five minutes in, she started breaking gait into a short-strided trot, nose in the air, ears back, back hollow. Sara worked with her teaching her to get comfortable with some contact, and working on her getting the idea to move her body away from real leg pressure, and adjust to normal leg contact. It took a few minutes of stress on Skye's part, but after a while she settled into a more rhythmic trot, like she had on the lunge line, and was getting used to contact. Despite her discombobulated mood, she ended up really doing well. And, shocking news alert: she looked just beautiful. I know I spend more time mooning over her and less time riding her, but I can't help it. I just love that mare.

Today was absolutely beautiful, so I headed out assuming someone would want to take a trail ride. Amazingly, only a couple of people were there riding in the ring. Crazy. So I got that girl and gave her a long intensive grooming, trimming her mane and giving her a little massage based on some techniques I found in an old Equine Massage book I ordered from an online used book seller. She usually acts like she tolerates grooming, but she really relaxed today and seemed to enjoy it.  Then we worked a little in the round pen on stretches and spent some time talking and letting her graze on the clover in the shade. Nothing exciting, but we had a nice time together.

Sweet boy in his stall. Enhance your viewing pleasure by
noting the cross on his back and his tiny hooves.

And, I said a final good-bye to that sweet dinky. He has been caught and put in a stall and will be delivered to his new home, where his sons have been for weeks, probably tomorrow. He looked tiny and alone in the stall, but he recognized me. I wished him good luck with the rest of his donkey life.  I will miss him. He charmed me so with his big eyes and long ears and stripey legs and tiny hooves. If his new owner is half as enchanted with him as I am, he will be fine.

"And I --ee-I will always love you!"
I don't sound a thing like Whitney Houston,
but the sentiment is the same. I love him so.

Good-bye to the Dinkies

So now that deer fly season is upon us, it is the time for fly masks. And the flies are so bad that the masks are appearing on all the horses, including Miss America herself.

Take me to your leader.
What a shame to cover such a pretty face.

I have been planning on getting one, but since the deer flies were bothering her, Erin was kind enough to put an old barn one on her. She is a good girl about wearing it, but she did want me to rub her pretty face when I took it off. Her eyes looked very clear though. Usually they run a little at this time of year. I don't know if the masks are much good for filtering pollen, but maybe it was flies bothering her last year. Whatever it is, I will be buying that girlfriend her very own so she can continue looking like an alien with her pasture buddies.

Thursday when I went out, it was with a heavy heart that I learned from the feeder that my beloved dinkies were to leave Friday morning. I grabbed some carrots and headed out to see them. They saw me from mid-pasture and immediately came in their roundabout way to meet me at the gate. I fed them from there, and rubbed their woolly foreheads and stroked their ears, as they are much more comfortable being touched from behind the fence. Then I brought Skye in and groomed and grazed her a little.

After I had put her back out with her lover boy Leo, I broke down and went into their pasture again with Brittany(Bon Jovi's very own barn girl), both of us loaded with carrots. They came over again, and we fed them. She got a text that her dad was there while we were out there, so she left, leaving me alone with them. I fed them some more carrots and had a nice talk with them, telling them they would loved and cared for in their new home, and not to stress too much about the process of getting there. They don't even like to be touched by anyone but me, so catching and trailering them wouldn't be anyone's idea of a good time. Certainly not theirs. Then I said good-bye and good luck, sadly stood up slowly and walked back toward the gate.

I had gone about 10 or 15 steps when I realized they were about ten paces behind me, following me as they do in a single file line. It just broke my heart open, and I had to blink back tears because it was by then too dark to wear my sunglasses to hide them. They stopped following me about 20 yards from the gate, but I looked back one more time. They were all standing there looking at me.

Dinkies, on another day. What else is there to say?

I got back out today to see the instructions on the board that one dinky was left in the big gelding pasture, and that assistance in catching him was welcomed. I asked Woody, who told me Echo (my favorite, to the extent I had one) had jumped through the rope fence and into that pasture and wouldn't let anyone near him. I grabbed a carrot and headed out to see if he would run from me too. I went out there calling him and sure enough, he came right up to me. I gave him three pieces of carrot, which he took, then asked for more. He wouldn't let me touch him though. I sat my butt down on the ground, and he came closer, then stood near me and grazed. When I stood up, he moved away a little.

The lone dinky.

Tomorrow when I am out there I will arm myself with carrots and a lead line and see if I can catch him. I had thought it might feel like a betrayal, but in the end it will be less stressful for him to not be chased around by people he doesn't really know. And though he didn't seem particularly stressed, I'm sure he would be happier with his sons at the new place. So tomorrow I'll see what I can do.

So I have been riding Skye, and she is up to her old tricks of not wanting to walk in the ring. She keeps breaking into a trot. I tried stopping her every time she did it, but she started just stopping from the trot and not wanting to walk. So I was letting her just trot, hopefully teaching her that breaking gait will equal more trotting than she really wants. The problem with this plan is twofold though. First, I don't have the leg power yet to trot that long, but my goodness I'm getting there. Second, she hollows her back and throws her head up when she trots which seems uncomfortable and makes me feel like I'm hurting her. I'm going to talk to a trainer that was working with Chloe about the same issue. I won't mind the trotting so much if I'm sure it is getting us both in shape. I just don't want to teach her the wrong things, one of which could be that being ridden means hurting.

She is a little bound to Leo, but at least today she didn't whinny for him like she did on Thursday. He is certainly worried about her though, as he whinnies periodically the entire time she is gone. He can see the arena from where he stands, and she could hear him. She got a little pissy at the end of our ride, and I think it was in part because she wanted to get back to him. I did not put her directly back with him for a while afterward though, and I didn't get off until I had half an arena's worth of a relaxed walk.

Love, equine style. It's sad that her happiness with him
could be a source of discord with me.
But he doesn't pay her board.

So I am back to square one riding wise, but I now know her so much better.

Tomorrow I really will have to say good-bye to the last dinky. Soon Reebok will be gone too. It's tough getting so attached, but there's not another way to do it.

Picture Perfect

I won a prize! Well, not really a prize, a drawing for a painting, but I still won it and I'm still very happy about it.  I follow an excellent equine artist named Linda Shantz on Facebook, and saw that she was having a contest to give away one of her beautiful paintings. The painting is of a filly named Polly, and lo and behold, it looks a lot like what my girl may have looked like as a filly. (Let's just all pause and acknowledge that Skye was probably the cutest filly in the history of the world. ) So I said that in my comment, and shared it, and some of my FB friends also liked and shared it, which increased my chances.  Then we were in the mountains to experience some snow and when I finally got some signal I saw that I had won it. And it is so beautiful, don't you think?

"Polly, Two Days Old" by Linda Shantz
Copyright Linda Shantz 2013. All right reserved.
Reproduced here with express permission.

Just gorgeous, and that photo doesn't even do it justice. It almost feels alive. I jumped up and down when I opened it, as it is so pretty, and the expression in the filly's eyes is so much like my Skye. I'm having it framed this week, and I'm going to hang it beside my desk at work to remind me why I'm working - to pay my horse bills (and other bills, but the horse bills seem to be the only ones I don't mind paying).

If you want to see more of Linda's work, her website is at lindashantz.com. She also has a cool blog at lindashantz.blogspot.com. You can also follow her on Facebook at Linda Shantz Artist. Consider yourself warned though: you will start wishing for some of her paintings.  The way she captures the life of the horses is just amazing.

In other news, Skye has a new boyfriend.  It is Leo, whose stall is beside hers. Yes, the one I said I wanted her to marry.  He was put in the gelding herd, but those toughies (who are actually among the sweetest horses I have known) were whooping up on him, so Erin wisely moved him into Skye's pasture. Skye runs a tight ship! Tammy, who owns Leo, said it was love at first sight for him (and who could blame him?). He got right by her side and wouldn't let anyone near her. She said she thought Skye was indifferent to him, but when I saw them together, I can see that ain't so . . . . .

Note how he is allowed to drink with the Queen.
He does seem to feel appropriately honored by her presence.

Yes, she is allowing him to DRINK WITH HER! As Queen of the Water Trough, her usual stance is that no one can drink or approach when she is drinking without risking her signature headswing with ears back reprimand.  It is a big victory for Reebok every time he sidles up when she is there, and she usually gives even him the hairy eyeball. But as you can see, Leo has special privileges.

I'm slightly worried that this love affair will affect my relationship with her, as her love for Magic caused me so much grief. But I love Leo so much, and the herd dynamics are good in this pasture, so I hope it works out.  Reebok and Ginger are not so sure about the whole thing though.

They were so funny, just standing right there motionless.
They are never allowed to do what Leo can do with her.

Aren't they hilarious? So cute even when suspicious.

And finally, for your viewing pleasure,  a dinky shot.

I call it "Portrait of the Dinky as a Young Man."
This is Bravo, the big daddy.

I have seen that Erin is officially letting people know they are up for adoption. It makes me sad, but I trust her completely to place them only somewhere where they will be well-treated, and perhaps get more attention than we can give them. (Neither Dave nor the city of Charlotte will consider allowing me to keep them in our backyard. Just in case you were wondering.)

I now need to get off this computer and go see my horse.

Catch Up

Well, I knew I had been busy, but I hadn't realized it had been so long since I posted. I think this kind of delay explains why I have so many half-empty journals. In my defense, the weather was crappy (which is actually odd for March in the Carolinas) and I was swamped. Part of the swamping is just getting life things done, but a big part of it is helping my son George with homework. He has so much, and though he doesn't need my help to do the work, he does need me there to keep his nose to the grindstone, and it wears me out.

Apropos of nothing, this is Sugar, one of the barn cats.
Unlike me, she doesn't appear to be tired.

I did get to ride again, but sadly it did not go as well I had hoped. Skye did the same thing she usually does with her trotting; she throws her head up and hollows out her back and even puts her ears back, which is very un-Skye-like. And once she trots, she doesn't want to come back to a walk. This is especially odd since it seems to pain her to trot. I did trot her a good bit to get her some exercise, but the next day I put my other saddle on her,  despite the fact that I bought  my new saddle especially to fit her.

The other saddle is a used Siegfried Stubben that I got off of eBay. I had ridden in the same type of saddle as a teenager and had this idea that it was just the best. Of course, then I was 125 pounds and rode for hours a day. Probably anything would fit my little butt. I hadn't put this one on Skye yet, and I have to say, the minute I was in it, it felt like home. I loved it. I also have to say though, that it sits pretty low on my girl's withers, and she behaved exactly the same way. I have looked at all sorts of things about saddle fitting, and had several people look at the way my Wintec fits her, and we have pretty much eliminated the saddle fit as the problem, but I'm sure it will continue to bug me.

Anyway, I was rather discouraged by this, as I felt like I was back at square one, then it rained off and on preventing me from riding. My Wednesday visits were great though. I was so tired both Wednesdays from work, from George's homework and from that durn class I'm teaching that I didn't even thinking about riding since it requires such patience. But my Wednesdays were wonderful.

Her Highness, waiting to be groomed

I groomed Skye and loved on her, then worked her a little on the lunge line just to get her moving and listening to me. I saw a little head bob in one direction, which sent my heart to my knees. Carey was grooming Nigel nearby, and I asked her to take a look. She saw it too, but suggested we let her run at liberty in the big arena so she could stretch out. I let her off the lead line and waved my arms at her. She stared at me. I tried to chase her, and she just kind of followed me around. Then I shook the lead line at her and she trotted in a circle around me as if on an invisible line.

When Carey finished laughing at us, she chased my girl, who trotted off and after about 10 strides looked perfect. Carey chased her again, and Skye cantered around, showing us a little buck for good measure. She ran around a little for fun, then spied some nice grass in a corner and stopped abruptly, put her head down and started munching. Carey and Craig agreed that she was adorable, and I don't even think they were humoring me.

Last Wednesday was also great. I was even more tired this time, but I really wanted to see my girl and get that release of tension that nothing but horses gives me. They were feeding when I got there, so I did my dinky duty first. (Those boys trotted up to me on their little stripey legs and pushed each other aside for carrots. Progress!) Then I just took my brushes out to the pasture and brushed Skye and Reebok in their feeding spaces as the sun started to go down. They were both filthy from rolling in mud.

Sweet Meat. You can see how dirt his legs are.
He is actually happier to be with me
than he looks. Or at least that's my story.

Skye stood like a statue while I groomed her and seemed to like it a lot better than in a grooming bay. She has that pull-back thing lurking in the back of her brain, and I can tell she is always more comfortable when she is not tied. When I had finished, I just let her go to graze on the nice grass in the separate feeding area and headed over to Reebok.

I usually don't get to brush him much because he is so antsy in the cross ties, and frankly I want to work on other things with him when I have the time. But this night was really good because he was completely relaxed being so near his herd and not tied up in any way. I brushed him pretty well, to the point where you can tell the borders of his white and his flea-bitten grey. He is actually a paint of with light flea-bitten grey and white, but you have to look closely to see it, and when he is dirty, as he has been, you can't tell it at all. I picked up his two front feet, but he balked a little at his back feet. I didn't insist on lifting his back hooves, since I wanted to keep things very relaxed (and I was out there alone, as the other folks were in the barn). I did rub his back legs and handled his fetlocks, and he let out a big sigh. Which is some progress. Then I leaned on his back from both sides, putting some weight on him. At first he just looked at me, then he relaxed and before I was done, he leaned into me a little. He loves his forehead to be rubbed, so I rubbed on him a little. At one point, I was rubbing his head and when I turned around, Skye was right there, looking for her forehead rub. Needless to say, I was feeling great by the time I put them back in the pasture together and put my brushes away.

Dinky Duty pays off!

As usual, I couldn't wait for Wednesday. I teach a looooooong class (4 hours straight - what on Earth was I thinking when I signed up for that?) on Monday nights, then Tuesday I had to drive down to Columbia, SC for work. So Wednesday is the day to go the barn. This week I was so exhausted from my long Monday and Tuesday, I considered bagging it and just heading down later on Thursday now that the time has changed. But in the end I couldn't stand it. I had to go see my girl.

I was so tired and it was pretty chilly, so I really didn't consider riding.  Skye had just been fed, so she was in a great mood, happy to meet me at the gate. I brought her in and groomed her. A couple of barn girls were there riding so I had the barn to myself and my horse. I seemed to take a long time to get very little done, but there's quite a bit of value in that sometimes. What I wanted was to hang out with my girl and relax. I took a long time getting her feet really clean in an effort to stave off her thrush getting any worse. (It's been rainy until this week, and for her, mud = thrush). I combed her mane and tail, promising her as I always do that I will never pull her mane, as she clearly had it done roughly in her past. Then we did our forehead to forehead thing. If she likes it half as much as I do, we're right where we need to be.

Skye. She's everywhere I want to be. Even
if she is looking fairly sarcastic here.

She also seemed up for doing something a little more stimulating, so I took her in the round pen for a little ground work. The vet has told me to leave off working much in a circle until we get her back in shape, but I just wanted to see what she remembered about moving her feet around for me. I used the methods in this new book I got (101 Horsemanship Exercises), which are laid out in a way that seems logical to me and which recommends methods I'm comfortable with. So I backed her up by pointing my finger. She was perfect. I moved her hindquarters with the bent back of my hand. She crossed her back legs just like the book recommended. I moved her forequarters the same way, and this time she did it PERFECTLY.

I had tried to move around her front half in the past, and Skye had met me with a far amount of resistance, for her. She doesn't like to move her forequarters for me on the ground other than backing up, and she doesn't like to lower her head on command, though she does it automatically for me to brush her face with the soft brush, comb her forelock and bridle her. Which is pretty damn hard to complain about. (Her Excellency!)

Anyway, I don't know whether it was my attitude, the use of the back of my flat fingers (gives even gentle pressure without poking as the trainer I used had shown me) or the sequence that I did them, but she seemed to know just what I wanted. I wonder if someone who had her before did these with her in the same order or the same way. Whatever they did, she remembered it.

However, I think they also used treats to do it, because she clearly felt she deserved some after each exercise. I told her good girl (which I say when I do treat her) and gave her some effusive love instead. She thought she'd been gypped, but I did give her some carrots when we were finished. Then I was mad that I hadn't planned to ride, as I hate to waste an opportunity, especially when we were so in sync. When I let her go, she hung out with me at the gate, and even let Reebok approach for some love.

Double the love. Double the goofiness. Take your pick.

Then I grabbed some carrots I'd left in the fridge and headed out to do my dinky duty. Even if they get re-homed somewhere else, being more tame will benefit them. So out I go calling "Dinky Doodles! Bravo, Echo, Zulu!" fully expecting them to respond mainly by stopping chewing and staring at me. Instead they looked up and started trotting toward me. Hurray! And let me tell ya, dinkies trotting toward you on their tiny hooves with their swishing little tails will cure whatever is wrong with you. It was so cute I had to catch my breath. This despite me such a tough customer.

(By the way, when I related this to Dave, he then said "You're getting attached to them." Gee, you think so?)

So then they mobbed me for carrots, and Bravo did his thing where he leans his whole side on me, and stands there for a long time to be rubbed on his back. I also rubbed Echo between his ears, and touched Zulu ever so lightly on his nose. That's victory.  I think Tammy, who is out there during the day now, must be visiting them when she gets time. Which is double victory. Because the dinkies need all the friends they can get. I do too.

Zulu contemplates the implication of our friendship.

Beautiful Day - in more ways than one

Oh, we are so spoiled here in the Carolinas. After a cold week, we had the most beautiful day yesterday. It was even more beautiful because I got to ride my girl. I called to her from the van on the way in, and by the time I grabbed her halter and got to the gate of her pasture, this is what I saw:

Where's my peppermint?

She's too much.

I brought her in, and she hesitated a little before she would go into the grooming bay. I gave her a lead rope a little tug and in she came. She then promptly pooped a nice steaming heap on the concrete floor of the bay. It occurred to me that every time she hesitates going into the bay, she poops. So I'm a little slow on the uptake! Next time she hesitates, I'll lead her into an outside area. I'll still have to scoop it, but it won't require the same hosing off process. Smart girl, trying to tell me. The upside is that I had just read an article on how it's a good idea to check your horse's poop for various health signs. I'm happy to report that her poop looks great, as far as poop goes. I'm also happy to report that I did not feel the need to post a photo of it here.

I also rode her a little, believe it or not. And she was great. Our issues in the past have been that 1) she would not walk in the ring (instead "jigging" or doing a little trot, the whole time) and 2) once she would walk in the ring, after I did trot her intentionally, she then would not want to walk. Yesterday, she walked perfectly, then when she trotted she came right down to a walk again. She did start to liven up a couple of times on the straightaways in the arena, as if she were going to break gait, but I just stopped her and petted her. I would take a deep breath that she could hear, then she would take a deep breath that I could hear, then we would walk on. The vet told me not to trot her much, which was good because my legs are shot after not having ridden much. (Riding Ike at a sitting trot is so easy, it really doesn't count as riding practice, or even exercise. He's wonderful.) I was flopping around up there, and not posting nearly as well I know I can. So we will get in shape together. Although she'll still be so much better looking. Which is not exactly shocking news.

When we were finished, I took her over to graze in the nice grazing spot by her pasture. We weren't there 5 minutes when we were joined by these two cuties.

Best buds. Now that Ginger has overcome her
urges to beat his butt.

Ginger wandered off after she figured out no peppermints were in the offing, but that sugar lump of a horse Reebok stood there looking delightful.

Sweetness. Not that I'm susceptible to
that sort of thing. 

This is now my favorite picture of him.


Then I had an appointment to keep to go meet someone with a small horse farm. I had spoken to this nice lady when I was looking for a new place to board, and we finally agreed on a time to meet. I had so much going on this weekend, but I think she was beginning to think I was blowing her off, so I went on out. I'm glad I did. She used to raise Arabians, and had her sweet and beautiful brood mares there. She also takes in rescues (which is what started our conversations). As we were walking around meeting the horses, she paused to make sure part of the electric fence was connected, and I kept walking to the pasture. When I got there, this little cutie came up to the fence and gave me a long and thoughtful look. I spoke to him a little, and he came a little closer.

This is Marvin. Once severely abused, now
permanently adored. He is the picture of health,
and very beautiful. He's probably about 12 hands tall.

Isn't he adorable? He is a hinny, which is the result of the breeding of a jenny (female donkey) and a stallion. It's kind of the reciprocal of a mule, which is the result of breeding a mare and a jack (male donkey).

When I turned around, his owner was looking at me in shock. She told me his story. He was found and caught after being loose in the area for around two years.  Between his extreme fear of people and the evidence on his body, it was clear he had been severely abused. There are gunshots on his shoulders, and all his ribs on one side had once been broken. She said it took months to get him to leave the far corner of the pasture even to come eat. She has had him for two years, and he usually comes over to the fence only with her, when she is alone. She had fully expected him to head directly to the far corner upon my approach. Instead he came over me on his own, and stood there while we talked. I felt so honored. It just filled me up to be trusted by him. There were a lot of fun things I could have done yesterday, ranging from a beer festival to a trail ride to just hanging out longer at the barn, but something told me to keep this appointment. This guy made me glad I did.

Cold Weather and Dinky Snobbery

This week was hard on me! I had a great time over the weekend with my boys (including my husband) in the cold snowy mountains, getting a last blast of winter before Spring. And boy did we get a blast on Sunday. It was freezing with an icy wind when we went tubing. I was cold, hungry and exhausted, and then I had to just tell myself to relax because we left way too late for me to see my girl on Sunday.

It was windy and cold (by Carolina standards, which may be hard to stomach for people in places where Winter is, well, wintery, for the whole season) on Wednesday, and I was tired and stressed but I knew the cure. I got in the car and got to the barn in time for feeding time. The only problem was I had been to the eye doctor, and my eyes were still slightly dilated so nothing had sharp edges. I tried to help feed the horses in Skye's pasture, but I could barely see to put the halters on. Skye was both impatient and perplexed, wondering what was wrong with me. Gray, that perpetual sweetie pie, was as good as gold, but the others couldn't figure out my problem. What's so interesting is that they could instantly tell I was not as I usually am, as my attitude shifted as soon as I realized I would have to fumble through it. By the time they had finished and I helped put them back in the pasture, their attitude was different.  So gentle. Of course, then their bellies were full, but still.

A formal dinner in her evening gown. Still pretty.

That Reebok boy. I think he looks like he's smiling here.
He too is in his formal attire. Rescued indeed, wasn't he?
He seemed to so glad to see me.

I did love on that girl for a minute, but my hands were stiff and I couldn't see, so I figured I would just get a general horse fix by hanging out in the barn out of the wind and love on the horses who eat in their stalls. On the way in, I stopped by my van to see if I could get some carrots to share, but I had locked my keys in the car. Luckily, this kind of bone-headed thing is unusual for me, and Dave was probably on his way home already so he just kept going south to unlock for me. The only reason this matters is that I then had only cookies to feed the dinkies. As you can see at the link below, they don't give a damn about a cookie.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IXMMXYlcQ1Q


I love the roundabout way they come to me, in a single file. One of them ate a cookie, but the others blew me off. Skye would sell my soul to the devil for one of those apple cookies, but these guys want carrots or nothin'.


When I got back I hung out in the barn admiring the three black beauties. I took this picture of them while I was talking so it is blurry. Apparently I am incapable of talking and shooting pictures at the same time.

Bon Jovi in the lime green, Black the Friesian in the middle,
and Incredible Ike himself at the end.

Finally Dave got there to let me in. It was so cold not even he wanted to stay out in it one more minute, and I'm pretty convinced he's about 60% polar bear , with his platinum blond hair and weird propensity for camping in snow.

Tomorrow we'll have highs in the 60's and sunshine. Riding weather at last.

Oh, and we go to daylight savings time over the weekend. Woot!

First Anniversary for me and my girl!

One year ago today (well, almost) I made a childhood and young adulthood and middle age adulthood dream come true when I bought Skye on February 29. I didn't get to bring her to the Greenway, where I first pasture-boarded her until 10 days later, as we had to wait for her Coggins test to come back. So I couldn't really believe it until the day we moved her to her new digs in the quarantine lot. That day I was just beside myself with happiness, convinced that I had bought the horse of my dreams. You can see why I would think that. Just look at her.

She had me at "hello."

Unfortunately, things didn't go as smoothly in those first months as I had hoped. My schedule didn't match that of my pasture mates, so I was usually dealing with her alone. She needed some work on her gas pedal, so I didn't feel comfortable riding alone, so I rarely rode. When I did, she was usually great on the trail. Until she wasn't. One day I cantered her for about 20 feet, and she never wanted to stop moving for the rest of the ride. Though she never tried to get rid of me, she felt out of control and it scared me. It was unsafe for me and for the people riding with me.

I then called on a local trainer who had been recommended to me, who told me Skye had no decent training at all. This seemed very wrong to me, but in the state of mind I was in, I went along since I had no confidence at that point. So my sweet girl spent a month at the trainer's. When she came back, she was the same for me under saddle as before the training, she and I had no relationship left and what had been a slight pull-back problem was now a full-blown paranoia. She pulled back and got loose at the Greenway once. Though she was easily caught, it rattled me. Weeks later she did it again (from someone going against my wishes in saddling her), and pulled the hitching post out of the ground.  Although she was never ever aggressive, I was beginning to wonder if she was too dangerous for me to keep. Finally, I trusted my instincts and stopped using that trainer.

During this time, she was deeply attached to a big gelding in her pasture. She always let me catch her, but she rarely took even one step toward me in the pasture. Then she would balk two or three times as I tried to lead her in, planting her feet and not moving. I'd have to snap the lead line, raise my arm or actually lunge her in place to get her to listen to me just to get her feet moving. By the time we'd get to the gate, I'd be so disappointed and frustrated that I would clean her feet, check her for cuts, spray her with fly spray and put her back. It occurred to me that I was actually relieved to be driving away from her. The pasture was beautiful, my pasture mates were all nice people, with nice horses that I liked, but I was getting nowhere fast with my girl. Finally, I made the decision to move to a barn with a round pen, an arena and a steady stream of people. That was our last chance. If I couldn't make it work with all the other factors in place, I'd give up and sell her. Maybe later I would get a quiet gelding more suited to a middle-aged woman instead of a gorgeous smart and spirited mare. I would have to  face the fact that I needed to get the horse I could handle, not the horse of my dreams.

Skye and the love of her life, Magic.  She loved him so much
she had no room in her heart for me. 

I made the move to Blue Wave Stable in September, and we settled in so quickly. From the very beginning, things went unbelievably well. People were always around so I felt more comfortable; I felt comfortable so I spent more time with her. Everyone loved Skye, and I had found my tribe of people whose idea of a good time was an evening at the barn after work. So I started this blog to write about it.

We've had a few more ups and downs, mostly with getting her feet evened out and her leg bump cleared up, but she now listens to me on the ground (making me look like I know what I'm going) and walks like a dream in the ring for me (which she wouldn't do at the Greenway. Ever.) Best of all, we have a real relationship. Here is the proof:

Six months ago, I couldn't get in her from the pasture. Now she is usually waiting at the gate when she sees my van. Tonight she had her back to me and was eating hay with her subjects when I called her, and in she came. Sometimes she trots and once she even cantered, but she's coming. And that's more than enough.

Weekly Horse Fix

Despite the fact that it has been a week since I posted, I did get out to the barn Sunday and Wednesday. Although we had snow last Saturday, which now seems like years ago, the roads were totally clear by late Sunday morning, so I hustled on down to the barn to see my girl.

Skye and all the other horses were in their stalls, as there was still snow and ice in the pasture, and no one wanted snow packed into their hooves. I  know in colder climates horses don't get babied like this, but these horses are my friends and I say "baby away!" The real danger was probably the real possibility in slipping in all the mud if they decide to kick their heels up after being in the stalls all night.

Miss America herself, Leo, and sticking out at the end is
that strawberry girl, Ginger. Skye is doing her dignified pose here.

Skye was in her own stall with her evening gown on, and of course, was a very good girl. She let me know, after she frisked me for cookies, that she would prefer to be out, but she is so well-behaved in a stall. I went in there and hung out with her for a while. She actually quit mugging me for treats and just stood for a while with me.

Beside her is a new horse at the barn, and - prepare to be shocked - I love him. His name is Leo, and he is a 20 year old Thoroughbred who was rescued by Healing Horses and then adopted by none other than the wonderful Tammy, who is a fellow dinky lover. He had been at a co-op barn, and apparently there was some sort of drama going on, so she brought him over.  Here he is.

This is Leo. I love his kind eye and intelligent face.
Plus, he's a horse, which pretty much gets him into
my good graces immediately. I'm a pretty tough customer.

See what I mean? A big bay sweetheart. I told Skye I wish she could marry him. In reality, the last thing she needs is to get attached to another gelding, so I'm very happy that he is in the stall beside her, but in the mellow gelding pasture. Tammy and I hung out with him in his stall for a while too, and he was just a big lump of sugar. I had really liked the little buckskin who had been there before, but I have to say this boy has totally stolen my heart.

Speaking of heart stealing, here is a resident lover boy Bon Jovi, that dashing devil, with snow on his face.  Even snow can't diminish the dignity of that boy. He is very dearly loved by one of the barn girls who also happens to be a very good rider And he's a Steady Eddy on the trail. Not just a pretty face.

Bon Jovi doing his imitation of a snow man.

Speaking of pretty faces . . . .

Pretty, and apparently very thoughtful.

You knew that was coming.

And I was proud of Reebok, that sweet potato boy. He was being a good boy in his stall when I got there, so apparently he is getting better all the time. I told him that when the time changes and I can be out there in the evenings, we will get him back on track. As you can see, he is enthused about it.

If not enthused about training, then at least quite interested in the peppermint
I gave Taylor to hold out to get his ears up. Which is a kind of training.

Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday at work were exhausting because I had a lot to do, and had a wicked cold. The kind of cold that makes you swear you will never take breathing through your nose for granted again. Nevertheless, I hustled down to the barn Wednesday evening because I needed my horse fix. Skye had just been fed, so I brought her in for some groomin' and grazin'.  The best part was just hanging around talking to everybody. Valerie was there riding around on Wren bareback. She has been taking some private lessons with a local trainer and says they are doing so well. Apparently Wren doesn't like the ring that much. That's always interesting to me since  all the horses I knew when I was growing up were used to ring work, but not to trails. It makes me remind myself that I need to remember to keep Skye good at both. I'm hoping I'll be able to take her on the trails around the barn soon.

I just hope I can ride her a little tomorrow, but I'll have to access the mud. It has rained so much this week that our backyard puddle makes it look like we have waterfront property.

The time changes March 10! Woot!

Snow Day!

I finally got to go see my girl today. This week was so busy, and then when I could go to the barn, the weather was crappy. I even got up early this morning to make sure I could get there, since the weather folks were calling for possible snow. This has happened a couple of times this year, so I didn't believe it. It was kind of sleeting when I left, but I figured I would bring her into the barn and at least spend some time with her. I didn't care if I got cold and wet.

Sure enough, on the way down there, it started snowing so I got to see my girl in the snow.  Of course, it was too warm for anything to stick but since the weather called for more snow in the afternoon and cold temperature, we brought all the horses in. I brought my beautiful girl in first, and she was wet and slightly pitiful, but not feeling sorry for herself. As I was putting her halter on her, I breathed into her nose and when I breathed in I got a good whiff of her horsey smell. Eau de Skye! It struck me how much I missed being with her, and it had only been five days. Pitiful.

Then I brought in the rest of the horses in her pasture, with Reebok bringing up the end. He was so sweet, and I gave him some extra attention. He was a little pushy being brought in, but considering the rest of his herd was in already and he wanted to be fed, he was actually pretty good. He wanted to go faster than I did, but he didn't crowd me and he did slow down when I said "easy." He didn't like being in the stall for long worth a damn though. He whinnied a few times, and when I just looked him he stopped. (Most likely because he wanted to, but I'm pretending it was because he was embarrassed to be whinnying for his herd, when I, an honorary herd member, was right there.)

Then we filled the hay bags so the evening feeders could just replace the bags. I love hay. I love the rectangular bales and the way it smells like Spring. We got them all filled, and had everybody all set, and I even had time to just hang out with Skye in her stall. After she had thoroughly checked out that I had no more treats, she just stood there with me, looking pretty.

She can't hardly believe it. This wasn't taken
today, as my case for my new iPhone hasn't arrived
yet, and I'm paranoid that  I will drop it and break it.
 It's still a funny, if untimely, picture.

After I got home, I did some housework and took a nap, planning to go the store for the makings for lasagne when I got up. So I got up, put some laundry in, and looked outside. Snow! For real. So then I had to go drive to the store before it got bad, because that's what Southerners do when it snows. When I got back, it was in full swing. Yay!

The house with snow. An unusual sight.

Of course tomorrow at the barn will be all about scooping poop out of the stalls since the horses will be in all night. Still, I feel better knowing Skye is in a warm stall tonight.

The only damper on the day was that Erin told me she has decided to re-home the dinkies. They are not free to keep, and she needs ones that will be friendly to everyone, not just me. I know she will find them a good safe home, but it breaks my heart. I love them so.

How will I live without them? They look
misleadingly large here, as I took this sitting down.
Unfortunately, they won't do this with anyone else.

Riding again!

Holy Guacamole, I can't believe it has been so long since I last wrote on here. I did get to the barn both days of last weekend, but you wouldn't know it from this blog. Last Saturday Erin told me she had spoken to the vet, who said if Skye's leg was in good shape after being in the pasture 24 hours without a wrap, I'd be good to start riding again. Still the walking only conditioning rides, but good gracious, it's a start. So Saturday I groomed her and grazed her, and left with instructions to let her spend one more night in the stall, unwrapped.

Sunday her bump looked stable, meaning it had remained the same smaller, bonier lump. I groomed her and  did some "listening" work in the round pen which didn't involve lunging her (on vet's orders, I'm to keep away from small circles for a while). Then after putting her up, I got out Reebok for a little while. He did okay, meaning not as well as he had been, but still lunging in both directions, backing up nicely when asked and respecting my personal space.  I had hoped to make some real improvements, but I settled for getting him listening to me for short periods.

I did make some good progress with the dinkies (miniature donkeys) though. Since moving into the bigger pasture behind the round pen, they have gotten the idea that they are Wild Dinkies of the American West or something and have not been as friendly (or perhaps they always thought they were Wild Dinkies of the American West but did not have the wherewithall to prove it in the paddock/mini pasture they were in). In any case, they had been staring at me from a distance, then walking a roundabout way to see me, then turning away from the apple and carrot cookies like high society snobs. But Sunday I brought carrots, and after a much shorter period of staring at me suspiciously, they came over and each took one. I snapped a carrot in half and the sound made them trot away on their precious little donkey hooves, but when I didn't chase after them they came back. All three took a carrot, and Bravo did his thing where he puts his little black mouth close to my face so I will breathe in his nose. (I know this from watching them, and the horses, with each other.)

Proof that Zulu is warming up. He would like
for me to point out that the halter is faded red, not pink.

But this week was Hell. I started my new job, requiring me to be gone all day (and away from the barn!) every day, and I had to teach the paralegal class 2 evenings this week. When Thursday rolled around, the only day giving me a chance to go down there in the early evening, it was raining.  So in addition to the stress of the work week and the second job, I couldn't even access my de-stressing mechanism. The whole working for a living thing so interferes with my favorite activities. There really needs to be some way around it.

Finally, Saturday arrived and I allowed myself to spend a long time at the barn. I got my girl and had just finished grooming her when Erin asked me if I would ride Bon Jovi to straighten him out a little. He was acting up a little by tossing his head with a beginner on him, and needed to ridden by someone who could make him do what he is supposed to, and but her back was hurting too badly for her to do it. So I got to ride that big beautiful boy a little. He did the head toss with me for a bit, but I essentially ignored it and pushed him around the ring with my legs.  He gave up his antics and was ready for riding again. Triumph. I would like to ride him again, as ever since my adventures with Goliath at the Greenway, I have a weakness for big black horses.

My good friend Goliath, who occupies a big Tennessee Walker-shaped place in my heart.
He later picked up that bag and threw it away from him
after discovering it held no carrots for him. It was worthless to him
apparently.

Then I rode Skye! Yes, that's right, I actually rode my own horse. She was perfect about being tacked up, and then was perfect in the ring. I stopped her a couple of times to back her (perfect) and to get her to give to the bit a little (okay) but overall I wanted a relaxing time in the ring that's what  I got. Such a good girl.

When we were finished with our short ride, I put her in her stall and then worked with Reebok.

Oh, that was a bit disappointing. He totally crowded me while being led, and while I was working him in the round pen. I swished the dressage whip at him, and he didn't care one bit; he'd barrel right into it. He seemed very confused, like he had forgotten all we had gone over. He was very distracted, and once again back to whinnying several times in a ten minute period. Sigh. So he is feeling herd-bound again. I had hoped having Skye right there watching would help, and maybe it did. In any case, I did get him going around me each way for a short period and got him to back a few steps. Then I just loved on him in the round pen for a while so he would at least have a positive feeling about being with me and feel safe being away from his herd. So no great progress, but maybe it helped him from backsliding more. Patience will be the name of the game.

Zulu again, since he usually
gets so little mention in the press.

Dinky Duty went swimmingly though! I called to them as I went out to their pasture. I called "Dinky Doodles!" and they looked at me with their big liquid eyes then started walking toward me with some degree of purpose. That's victory. (When I mentioned this to Dave later, he said no self-respecting animals would answer to "Dinky Doodles." This from someone who has been called and somewhat answered to "Sugar Plum Fairy". It was an ironic term, used by an au pair but still. Yet another reason why Dave should refrain from comment about the animals.) They came up and took their carrots with great solemnity, as eating carrots is a serious business for them. Then I touched all three of them. As usual, I traded a carrot for a pet with Echo, gave Bravo a long rub on his back and butt, and even stroked Zulu on the nose. This was the big victory as I have never touched him before. As with Reebok, I hadn't realized how far I had come with them until they regressed a little. But I still think I will win them over.

Today, Skye was lying down when I went to get her. While I know this is normal, my heart always sinks into my belly when I see it. As I came up and called her name, she stretched her head back to look at me upside down. Then she waited until I was about 10 feet from her to get up.  But she did get up gracefully and strolled over to me, and stuck her nose right in the halter. I tacked up without incident, and she was perfect under saddle. Once again, we could only walk, but I used my legs to steer her around some obstacles in the arena, so I feel like we did some work on our communication anyway.  Right about the 25 minute mark, I could feel her getting bored, so I got off, untacked her and put her in a stall while I put her tack away. After an apple and some apple cookies, I put her back in her pasture, and for the first time in a little while, she hung out with me at the gate. I know she was hoping for treats, but considering when she was on the combination stall/round pen rest she couldn't wait to get away from me, I'm taking it as progress.

It's enough to make me nervous. She was just napping though.
She's even lovely when she naps. Not that I'm susceptible
to that sort of thing.

Dave was gone all day today, so I didn't get Reebok out, but I did a few minutes of Dinky Duty. This time they were waiting for me by the gate by the time I got there, and did a little dinky swarm wanting their carrots. Once the carrots were all gone, they hung with me for a while, sniffing me and staring at me in that thoughtful way. I think they have decided to trust me again. Closer and closer.

A swarm of dinkies. Be not afraid.

I'm dreading a week away again, but I'm hoping I can get down there at least once in the evening this week. I'm counting the days until daylight savings time so I'll have hours of light after work.

Cold Horses

Today we had a weather event. In the Carolinas, a weather event means basically that we have a winter day similar to what other parts of the country (and the world for that matter) take for granted as a winter day. In our defense, it is rather icy and therefore treacherous on the roads, made more so by the inexperience of us non-wintry folks on the road. Which is a long way to say I didn't make it out to see my girl today because the roads got too icy before I could go. I slid on ice on a bridge and my wheel hit the curb, wrecking my rim and making my tire flat.

I got out there briefly yesterday and unwrapped the leg. The lump looked bigger to me than it did the day before (owing to my wrap instead of the vet's?) but not as big as before. I re-wrapped it, and even did it twice, but I didn't feel like my wrap was as good as before. I'm using a different padding, and I'm just not as competent with the thicker pad. But, she will be in for about 20 hours, so she'll get some true stall rest on it. Of course, she'll be in a charming mood tomorrow for it.

I'm thinking about her being chilly, despite the blanket and the stall. I'm worried about her feeling antsy, or not having enough hay or water. Because, of course, worrying about things keeps those things from happening. Doesn't it?

I'm thinking about her in the cold weather wishing she was outside looking like this:

Skye on a warmer day, no doubt wondering why I'm not
producing a cookie.

But I'm very grateful I have her someplace where she has a stall and people who will check on her for me when I cannot.  All the horses are in tonight, so tomorrow will be a poop scoopin' day. It will probably be in the 50's though, and the truth is I don't mind scooping poop. Cleaning the bathroom at home however, is another story.

No fracture!

Yay! The vet texted me first thing this morning with the news that there is no fracture in her leg. We didn't really think there was one, but it is a relief to know for sure. So instead of doing all the housework and work work that I needed to do, I hustled on down to the barn to see how the lump looked.

It's a good thing I got there, as my girl and her buddy Gray were still in their stalls. (Feeder had not put them in the round pen, and Erin is out of town.) I expected Skye to be very antsy, but she was perfect. I  put her out in the pen with her buddy and gave them their hay bags, and they were pretty happy together. I just went in there and loved on her a little, and she seemed happy about it. She may be blaming me for the stall time, but she also recognizes me as the one who takes care of her as well.

Here is Skye, either blaming me or recognizing my
tender loving care. Hard to tell.

I noticed yesterday how very affectionate Reebok is, and how I rub all over him and am affectionate in return. Skye is more reserved (she is a queen, after all), but I wondered if I am reserved with her too. So today I was exuberant with my love with her as I am with Reebok. She responded, but just as I expected her to, she was happy to get rubbed, but still a little aloof. The girl's got her dignity. Fortunately, I have none when it comes to horses so I'm perfectly happy to make a fool of myself over her and have her blow me off. So everybody's happy.

Anyway, I unwrapped the leg and ta-da - the lump is almost completely gone. The mysterious up and down lump. I let her wander in the round pen with her naked leg for about 20-30 minutes, then brought her back in to groom her and re-wrap it. I don't like the padding I got for her (at the vet's direction), so I'm going to pick up some quilting instead. I didn't like the first wrap I did, as it felt too loose to do anything so I did it again and felt pretty good about it. I'm getting pretty good at it! I'm very good at rolling the polos up as well. Why am I happier about that than I am about professional accomplishments? Clearly, horse fever messes with your brain.

I ended staying out far too long AGAIN, but I also made progress with my dinky doodles. I went in to love on them and they all stood up (they had been lounging in cat-like poses on the ground) and almost trotted over to me. Each got their cookie, though Zulu dropped his, as usual. Bravo came over for his long back scratching and leaned on me just like my dogs do. I rubbed him all over, and got a couple of good pets on Echo's head as well. My next strategic move will be to get someone else to pet those two while I try to get Zulu, the low man in the herd, to warm up. Stay tuned. Dinky drama!

The three wise men. Echo, Bravo and Zulu, from left to right.
Admire them at your peril.  They induce intense feelings of love
in a short time.

Good News, Bad News and Twins

So on Monday evening, the vet came out to take a look at my girl's leg once again. We had put her in the round pen, then in a stall at night, then round pen again for most of the day, all with her splint boots on.  The vet arrived. We took off the boot. The lump was again as small as it was when I got the go ahead to let her back in with her homies!

The vet that this convinced her more than ever that it is not in fact a fracture, but since it is acting strangely, and we don't want to waste any more time, we did some x-rays. Of course, this is the time that Skye decided to be a bit of a pain in the butt. She didn't want to be in the grooming bay, she didn't want to stand still, and she was acting nippy of all things. There was a half a bale of some gorgeous delicious-smelling hay right behind her, so I'm going to give her the benefit of the doubt and assume that's why she was being so bad. At one point, I looked her in the eye and said to the vet "I'm going to let her make the mistake (biting me) then correct her for making it."  I was pretty confident that she wouldn't really use her teeth on me (and I had a coat with thick arms!).  She looked at me when I said it, and I raised my eyebrows and raised my chin, as if to say "You looking at me?" Then she dropped her head a fraction of an inch, and though she didn't completely drop her attitude, the nippiness and restlessness stopped. The vet said if that's as bad as she gets, and it is, she is still pretty firmly in the good girl category.

Now we are waiting for the x-rays back. (She was taking more for someone else on Tuesday and asked if I minded if she processed them the same day.) However, the vet doesn't think there is a fracture, and that we may just have to leave it wrapped, keep her stalled at night and relatively contained during the day for the next 5 days, then ease her out of the wrap by leaving it unwrapped 2 hours a day, then 4, then during the day etc. This still sound like a long time before I will be able to ride her but I'm trying to be okay with it, as it is too cold this week (not really, but it is colder than it has been). When it is nice maybe I get on Reebok, or take a turn on my main man Ike or maybe even Bon Jovi.

Poor Skye. She is pretty sick of this whole thing, and she is clearly blaming me. Luckily, the dinkies don't blame me for anything, and Bravo let me rub him a good while long after I ran out of cookies. And while I was waiting for the vet I went and visited Reebok. I stood by the gate, and he came right over.  I loved on him, and he rested his head on the gate and leaned onto my head.  He is such a sweet affectionate animal. So many horses are somewhat inscrutable, and his expression is always the same, but his actions are always open and affectionate.

He's looking rather elegant and pensive here.
He has a lot of deep thoughts that he keeps to himself.

Today I got there to see her and make sure she got her round pen time with a buddy. Valerie (who owns Wren) was there with Gray at the ready to her buddy for the day. We put them together and then she mentioned that she needed to go to the lower barn to make sure the miniature horses were out. I had Claire with me, and both of us were all over going down there to see the twins.

As usual, my photo of them doesn't do them justice.
They are adorable, and a gorgeous bay color.

The twins are two year old Belgian Warmblood fillies who are out of Utah, a sweet mare up at the main  barn who can't be ridden because she has a "frozen hock" (result of weird treatment before Erin got her). They are so sweet and beautiful. I can't believe I had never taken the time to come see them before. Both of them are bay with stars and look like they could be Skye's daughters. So yes, they are exquisite. I fell in love with the smaller one instantly. Instantly, I tell you. I will be down there again soon. Like I have so much time to do that.

Remind you of anyone? Not that I
play favorites. Look at that face.

I was also happy to see Munchkin and Mistletoe. It's only been a few days that they have been down there, but it seemed like longer.

The Mincredibles, looking a little forlorn. They are used to
a lot of attention, as they irresistible.

It was beautiful out, even if it was a little chilly,  and we had a little time, so got out Reebok and lunged him in the big arena for a little bit. Unfortunately, he was not nearly as cooperative as he had been on Saturday. I had some trouble getting him away from me. All he wants to do is hang right next to me and get love. I did succeed in getting to go out and circle a few times in  each direction, and to back up a little.  I think I will work on moving his body around with me close to him, as he seemed to pick that as his specialty today. He was so sweet though, and his leading has improved almost 100%, even going back to the pasture. He whinnied much much less today (maybe only twice) and wasn't really pushy about going back to the pasture. He loves to get his rubs and hugs after I let him go. I think he actually enjoys it a little, as he clearly enjoys being with me. I know he will learn faster if I am firmer (as Skye will), but I'm a sucker for a sweet animal. Or a pretty animal. Or an ornery animal that has a bad history . . . .

Claire and I did some Dinky Duty before we left, and Bravo loved her. He let her rub his back a long time and touch his ears. She was enchanted, as he is bewitching with his liquid eyes and little black snoot. I, of course, am immune to the charms of miniature donkeys. A veritable tower of strength.