Trot, canter, poop, trot, canter, pee, trot, canter poop again.

For all of you Equestrian's that are sensitive about poo, or just people who strolled on my blog to see cute ponies..sigh, I have no hope. I think Red pooped three times and peed once during our ride. He does this every time.....

Mom and I went out to the barn yesterday evening around 4:30 and decided to ride. Jeff was watching two babies, somewhat fussy ones, so we had to make it quick. I tied Red, groomed him, then tacked him up.
Let out a sigh of relief, as well.

Last time he was tacked up, he was foundering, and his tack barely fit, his breast collar didn't fit all all. This time, it clipped perfectly!! Perfect, loose fit again. Phew.

Since Red lost *another* halter, I already had put his bridle on and tied him with the reins, so I went ahead and mounted so mom could tie Spirit and get him ready. The driveway where we normally tie to the posts was full of cars so we didn't have room. :( Really excited to get our cross-ties built soon!!! :D :D


Red was a gentleman and let me mount over in the grass without spinning, let me move him around before I got on so I was on a hill and he wasn't, because hey, I'm only 5'3 and he's about 15.3 if not taller now, it's hard to mount him when your stirrups are fairly short and you are hot and sweaty just from lifting the saddle and tack, and your jeans are sticking to you. Sigh, I really want a pair of stretchy breeches for the Summer..

Anywho, A had some people out to the barn to help her work Tucker, Hercules and Jericho, just to let you guys know and brief ya a little, Tucker was a rescue, not sure of his breeding. He spent the majority of his life in a pasture and had only set foot in a barn when A bought him, he had no hoof care and he looked pretty bad. A cleaned him up and has been working him, but she's thinking about selling because she has 6(?) horses and she's never really felt a bond with Tucker, he had to be helped and so she was there. He had an abscess, a  terrible one, a couple months back and he's still acted a tad tender footed, but he needed to be worked desperately. Hercules is her husband's young TWH, I think he's four or five or something, they were recently given him by his owner who also boards, we'll call him C, at our barn and actually leases the property..we are confusing at our barn. ;) C is SUPER nice. Hercules is just now being broke and is doing amazing, but he doesn't know his cues at all and A wanted someone to help out with that. Last but not least, one of my favorite horses at the barn..Jericho is a skiddish Mustang, also a rescue. A is his owner, when she got him you could barely get near him and now he's improved like crazy. He's been a round pen horse for awhile but yesterday he *FINALLY* got to go outside of the round pen and did AMAZING! :) Yaaayy!!!!

Watching with those "I don't care" ears.

I was the first to walk out with Red and so I rode out to watch them working. One of the gates is right on a hill above the round pen about a hundred feet away, so I had a nice view and Red enjoyed watching Tucker..They brought Tucker out of the pen and he refused to move. After a few minutes we decided to walk Red out to see if Tucker would follow. I rode Red out the gate while the woman hopped on Tucker again, he bucked as Red was passing and the guy seemed a little like, "uh oh" and I hopped off, moved Red to the side so he'd get out of the way faster, don't want to be bucked, ;), and hopped back on. Somehow, I dropped my reins and I twisted in the saddle to grab them, all the while Red stood like a good guy and just waited for me to fix everything. I kicked him, pointed to the four acres and he went straight there. Clucked my tongue, he trotted up there, he went to the water in the four acres and kind of stood there like, "Uhhhh...could you drop your reins lady??" and I loosened them enough so he could drink. Tucker still didn't follow, so once he was done I cantered him back down the hill and tried again, this time talking to Tucker. He still didn't want to move, so I went and cantered into the four acres and to see if he would follow if Tucker would go if Red was out of sight. Nope. Cantered back. Nothing worked. :P A grabbed one of my crops and that got Tucker going a little. Finally, mom came up with Spirit, apparently chose to ride bareback because the only tack she had was her bridle and reins. ;) Back when my mom was younger, her first horse was well over 16.HH, she'd hop on that horse-apparently, I wasn't born yet, LOL-and go ride around with just a halter. She is known for her crazy horses. A wild App with a attitude named Beauty, her favorite horse she ever owned. Her heart horse. Before Beauty, who was actually an ugly App with a rat mane and tail and modeled skin, she owned several Arabians, all very hyper. She didn't like lazy, she wanted fast and hyper. She barrel raced, raced cars, rode into a side of public property even when a man threatened to shoot her and cussed her out because she was in "his property" and got her policeman friend to join her on a ride just to  clear it up. Later, when the man realized he couldn't do a thing about her riding, she would go there all the time with friends and their horses. So of course, when she found Spirit, she needed something a little more docile than she would've before, especially since she'd been out of the saddle for so long, but still wanted something with spirit, pun intended. We really weren't sure if he'd do okay bareback since he is very hyped up, but he did great! No pictures then because my phone was shoved in my boot and I couldn't get it out on the trails. :(

Once she was up there with me, we rode around the four acres for a minute, cantered the "pony's"  and headed to the trails. It was still muddy and we had to be home soon since Jeff was alone, so we didn't take the whole thing. Plus, we wanted to give the horses some TLC afterwards, so after about forty five minutes we headed back to the barn. Red led the whole time and I must say, he did fantastic!! He normally hates leading but he did very well. We galloped up the hill to get back, one of our steeper hills that Red loves galloping up, and I managed to hang out. :)) Tried to take me in the woods but I averted that crisis. ;) He wanted to race Spirit *so* *bad* but we didn't let them..:)) Mom bareback+Spirit's tiny hooves+Spirit's whole bucking at other horses too close thing+we weren't sure if they were still working down in the pen..yeah, didn't want to chance it. :)) I took Red the long way down and mom took the easier, shorter way. They were working Hurk then, one of Red's BFF's, so I got close to the round pen to watch for a minute then went down to untack him.

J, the owner of the whole farm, was down there with his colt that sadly got a case of rain rot and was brushing him out. Mom tied Spirit to put his fly mask on, sunscreen and fly spray and I untacked Red while he was untied..love having such a good horse! :D I randomly decided to take pictures after I got the breast collar off so here they are..ignore how ruffled and lazy I look..

Normally, I'd dress nicer even to just go to the barn, but it was a good 90 degrees and we had been working all day...

This sums up our personalities in a nutshell. Red's like, "What'cha doin' up there?"

Photo creds to my mom for those^^^^

Here's a selife.

 So I'm pretty much positive that Red has sweet itch, so I bought him some anti-fungal stuff to prevent rubbing and to cause hair growth..I forgot the name of it, I'll try and remember next time. ;) Anywho, put that stuff in his mane and tail, hopefully it works. Crossing my fingers!! He got the special treatment..fly spray, anti fungal spray, MTG on his chest where it's been scabby, SWAT on his nose and tail..Good grooming to scrape the sweat, cuddles and a treat. :)

Hmmmm?? Treats??? The only way to make his ears go up.

Once he was untacked I took some pictures.














 

Notice that tongue.

As for my schedule..I'll probably go by again tonight just to put the stuff in his mane but no riding. It's supposed to rain. :( Really not sure on my schedule. May ride again this weekend if we're able. Hoping to go to a rodeo Friday if we can find a babysitter. :)

UPDATE ON CHIP: Chip is settled in his new home!! Yay!!!

Nothing better than when we're together.

Saw Red for the first time in five days this evening. ^_^ Finally got to the barn about an hour ago, it's been surprisingly sunny today even though we had a 50% chance of thunderstorms, when we have more than a 20% chance it's normally going to pour, but it's been super nice in my neck of the woods..

Went out and J-the owner of the whole farm and a lovely man-had already stalled the horses for A, our barn manager, and was sitting out in the front and letting his colt graze..walked down to say hello. Step dad, mom, Petey and N, our newest foster baby, came with us so we couldn't stay for long. N is only 8 months so she isn't in to the DVD player yet, but Petey is always great in the car for awhile. We opened the side doors and N was pretty interested in looking around outside so she was good. I went in Red's stall, said hello and decided to bring him out before he ate. A wasn't there yet so I had some time to kill. Got his lead off of the new hook next to his stall-completely adore the convenience of that-and hooked it around his neck since he lost ANOTHER halter. Now he's lost his teal halter, two red ones, his green and purple one and his rope halter. :P Took him out and decided to put his bridle on so I could tie him without having to borrow a halter and find one that actually fit his big head. Before I brushed him out I decided to hop on and see how he felt..I walked him around beforehand and he seemed 100% fine, no more stiffness or anything. Didn't seem like his hooves were bothering him like they would with founder/laminitis. I hopped on a wooden bench and got him to get close enough which took a good while. :P Decided to be stubborn! :)) He finally let me mount and I hopped on bareback, didn't have the time to tack him up and to be honest I really, really love those quiet, random bareback rides around the farm. I walked him for a minute to see if I felt any lameness and he was great. A little stubborn in the beginning but after he got the hang of things again he was fine. Raven was up near the house grazing so I walked Red up there so they could say hi. There was a bunny up there too and it let us come pretty close before takin' off. We walked up and down the drive and around the house in the grass, since A hadn't been there yet and we knew she'd be arriving soon I didn't walk on the driveway or down the road and get in her way. I let him trot around the grass for a minute and he seemed to want to, but I still haven't gotten a hang of bareback riding enough to be able to trot without feeling like I'm gonna fall. :P We rode for a little while then A showed up and she said hello to Red, Red and I went down the driveway and went back and forth then, walked around the fenceline and walked to the gate leading to the colts and filly's old pasture-they have full turnout now but go in there to eat at night along with Spirit-said hi to Spirit on the other side until mom called him in the stall to brush him, fly spray and put his sunscreen on again. Plus he lost his fly mask and she needed to grab it. We rode around for about thirty minutes, then I walked back to the front and discovered something very very bad.

His mane is falling out.

UGHHHHH

UGH.

It's all from him *rubbing* so I'm buying him a neck hood ASAP, hopefully he won't get overheated in it. If he does I'll try something else but I really, really, really want this to work because it'd solve that problem.If any of you guys have any tips or have used a neck cover/mane saver or a sleazy-a horse hood-let me know!! Don't want him overheated, so I'm leaning towards the neck covers. I may buy some listerine because I've heard that helps with itching??? If any of you guys have ideas, please, please let me know. I'm not going to let him torture himself again and I LOOOVE his long mane. :( I don't want to roach it. Really, really don't want to roach. Florida has early Summers and Tennessee's starts later, I'm hoping he'll be alright. Obviously his weight/muscle will be okay, but I don't want scabs. At all. I bought a fly sheet for him for the rest of his body but I need something really bad for his mane. :(

I stayed on his back so I could really soak the mane with MTG, I mean I soaked it. All of it, not just the bad spots. Coated it with it, soaked it, his mane was drenched! :)) Then I put it in the forelock and tail. His tail is looking fantastic so that's good news.. It's starting to grow but that's because we've wrapped it, can't wrap his whole neck unless I get the neck hood, but I'm doing more searching on it before I spend $$$$ on one.

Got that all in then walked around for a few more minutes. He really needed to be groomed so after about 35 minutes I dismounted-WITHOUT any help or a mounting block, first time I've done it without falling, tripping or looking dumb woohoo-and tied him so I could groom him out. I brushed him out, he was coated with mud since it's been raining a LOT lately, horrible flooding in my neck of the woods here! His legs were nasty, he looked like a chestnut..You could barely see the black on his legs because the mud was so light. :)) I didn't comb his mane or tail out since we just soaked it, and it looked pretty good anyways. The mane was really straight and nice since we had soaked it and the tangles got worked out so it wasn't really needed. I loved on him for a few minutes then moved to his legs. got the back legs, checked his hooves and he picked them up without a problem, normally he's terrible at that, his hooves were clean so I just stretched them and did the same with the fronts. No heat or stiffness anymore. When he had the founder issue his stomach kind of sagged like a pregnant mare but today he looked perfect again. Phew.  No more signs of founder, he's drinking again and eating perfect.

Fly sprayed him, put MTG on his chest where he has those splotchy bald spots and FORGOT to put my glove on. :P :P Now my hand smells like MTG even though I've washed them like three hundred times. :( :( :(

Put him back in the stall with his fly mask since he'd be turned out right after eating. He's officially on low starch feed and he loves it!!! Cuddled with him more then talked for a minute and headed out.

Since my step-dad came he took some pictures of us riding, then I took a few of just Redman. He has a super nice phone with an awesome camera so I love taking pictures with it. ;)

So not use to seeing shorter hair on me...

On a brightside his face looks less horrible and flaky. :) :) Plus he's got a cute SWAT pink nosey!!

This is what I have dubbed his "seductive" face.

Soaked forelock!! MAN i love this bridle..

So he's got this high step thing goin' on..he's been doing it occasionally on the trails and it's so cute! :))

Meet Spirit's beloved, Bella the filly. ;) We brought Spirit in and it was love at first whinny.

My mom's horse Spirit :) Notice his blue eyes.

Bella saying "HEEEEEEY GUYS!!" Also, don't freak about the barbed wire. ;) The wires aren't super sharp and they are only in that pasture and they only eat in that one now. ;) Working on replacing all of it!! This WAS a cattle farm.

Pitiful conformation shot since he's relaxing and putting his hoof up, but look how tank-ish he is!!

This is us chilling in front of our HUGE fan in the barn!

Favorite!! Why you ask?? 1. My feet are proper and my heels are DOWN! 2. I love the background and how Raven is in it. 3. Red's eyes are cute and sweet. 4. He looks all coppery. 5. He's adorable and we look cute together. ;)

Step-dad with Bella! Look at her face!!

This is me rubbing MTG in his mane. ;) I LOOOVE this stuff.Totally putting this on their facebook wall or something.

Butt shot

My face is hysterical. This is my "OH SHOOT DON'T TROT DOWN THE HILL WHEN I'M RIDING YOU BAREBACK I'M GONNA DIE" face.

Now, here is a comparision..

December 2, 2012. Ignore my posture. :(

December 22, 2012

February 24th, 2013

April 29th, 2013

May 20th, 2013

May 23rd, 2013

July 8th, 2013

I didn't go that far back, but the majority of you guys know how skinny he was in September, he was bald, his ribs were showing and his butt was scrawny. He was a dull dark brown, now he's a beautiful bright, copper color. He's done amazing..Sometimes I get so bummed about his mane and tail problems and don't realize how far he's come. I mean, muscle and weight wise, WOW!Not only that but his color has changed SO much!! This horse is worth his albeit large weight in gold.

If he was a mare, I'd rename him and call him Penny.

Red wears his sassy pants & Spirit takes a bit. Finally.

So, we will *not* be able to get out to the barn and ride tomorrow because we got a respit call-for those of you who aren't familiar with foster care lingo, respit is when you take a child for the weekend to give other foster parents a break-for a little girl and we decided to help out and take it, we'd be going to pick her up right at 4:30 and Chip's possible owner will be there at 4:00 and we have to drive a good distance, so we're hoping to swing by on the way home if all is well. Since we can't ride tomorrow, mom and I decided to head out tonight and go for a short ride. We probably rode for an hour or more, and it was just us because Ann needed to work her husband's new horse, Hercules, who was already at the barn and was owned by Chip's owner. He's a 3 year old TWH-or saddlebred, I forget-and has only been worked with a saddle once before, so he needs the work.

Playing with his mother a few months ago.

You'd never think he was such a silly dude.

He is a fly mask ripper, a halter stealer, an escape artist..but he's a sweet horse and very docile, especially when being worked. The other day, we stalled the horses up to feed and he got out of his stall-how he did it we have no idea, it was latched tight!-and just walked out, put his head on me and stood there like, "hey guys, what are you talking about???" Plus his eyes always look so silly..like he's either done drugs or is really sad. But he is really pretty, I love his markings. He should mature to be about 15 H.H!! Of course he won't be seriously worked until he's matured enough since he's only 3, but they have sat on him before just to get him used to it, then hopped off. He's done great!!

ALSO something I'm EXTREMELY HAPPY about!! THE STALL GATES HAVE BEEN FIXED! Before, Red's stall door swung out an awkward way and it wouldn't close, so I had to open it, push Red outside, close it while holding Red, latch it with a lead rope and try to keep Red from running off,it was a pain. Now, we have fancy doors like these:

Just without the bars. :D :D YAY!!

I got Red out, tied him, got his tail wrap off..and then I freaked. Red randomly YELPED like a little girl and knowing his tail was sensitive due to possible arthritis from breaking it when he was a colt-an ugly wittle colt :( :(-I freaked out and thought I hurt him! I was being gentle, but I was wondering if I just pushed a bad place or something. Ann looked up like, "What in the world?" and then he did it again. This time I just stood there. Turns out Raven, a colt, was trying to bite him and he was scared. :( :( I got in front of him and he hid behind my back. DUDE. You are a 15.3 huge QH, you could take a 500 pound, 13.2 HH TWH colt! :)) Apparently, Red isn't a fan of being bullied.

This is what we did afterwards. Which he actually does all the time.By himself. I love it.

Once Raven was shooe'd away, I put his bridle on, tied the reins, put MTG on his tail and decided to let it air out while it was raining tonight so it wouldn't get all dry. I'll wrap it tomorrow or the next day again. It's really starting to look better, gettin' some hair growth!! Yipee!! I tacked him up, left the splint boots and ear bonnet this time because we were kind of rushed and I didn't think he'd need them. I mounted, he tried to spin a couple times but after about three tries he stood still like the good boy he is. ;) Mounted, stood while mom finished with Spirit..He FINALLY took his bit without a fight!!!! We think it was the sunburn on his nose.

Red put on his sassy pants.

Oh my goodness, for the first time in forever I wished I had a crop.




We went out, he did GREAT for the first few minutes, perfect!! He tripped a few times but that's normal for Red, he always trips. At one point I asked if he looked lame because he did some weird trip movement but mom said he looked perfect, and when I got off I walked him and he was fine. Must've been all the rocks that were washed up during the storm the other day. I think most of his issue was because, 1. He's nervous around Spirit, 2. This is the first time he's ridden with ONLY Spirit, normally he hangs out with one of Ann's horses that he is comfortable with and walks with them and stays in line, 3. Mom was the only one with us and he knew he could push me more than usual. Honestly, it wasn't that bad. He was sassy, but we had a lot of good moments. We trotted around a lot but I stuck with a walk for awhile because of all of the mud, once we got up to grass I let him canter. Went all around the farm and into the 4 acres after we were done on the trails, he did well up there other than one moment of, "I'm going to the barn and seeing what Hercules is doing in that round pen!!" and I made him do a little barrel formation twice. ;) There were wonderfully placed bushes up there in a perfect barrel racing formation and we trotted around them. ;) We didn't do great, but hey, it's a start and I think those tests are good for him.

We took some pictures on the trails, of course..

Don't look at his poor tail. :( :( :(

And I ONLY took pictures of ONE STINKING SIDE. I meant to snap a few pictures of my new saddle concho but completely forgot.

Went back to the barn, said hello to Hurk, tied Red, put his halter on, tied the lead rope again, untacked him, used the sweat scraper, fly sprayed again, put MTG on his face and on his tail again, rammed my finger into wood and got a splinter, got it out, gave Red treats-three, because when I tried giving him two he kept looking for his other, whoever says horses can't count is stupid!-took him in front of the fan, then walked around, stalled him up. Gave him kisses. :) He did that hugging thing like he does every time he sees me..Gah I love this horse, even with ugly sassy pants on. Really, the sassy pants came off once I dismounted and fly sprayed again, I'm still guessing it was the bugs.

I'm just so happy about his coat now, it's so shiny!!!!

Anywho, good ride. :) Testing horses are good sometimes, keeps you on your toes-or should I say heels considering proper EQ??-and gives you more experience.

Once we were done he ate dinner and got turned out again to go play. :) It's been a nice day. Before the ride I took my labrador out to the creek and let her swim around. It's been hot today so it was a treat for both of us. I completely forgot to take pictures, but picture a cute, shedding, fluffy black lab swimming with me wishing I could swim too. ;) Shallow water! :P

What did y'all do today? (Any tips on tail wrapping? :D)

Late grooming sessions.

The other day I went to the barn to see if the owner of Chip was there...we've decided we just can't take him and we would rather talk to this man in person than call him on the phone. He wasn't there, and we only had a few minutes because we had to get home and feed the animals at home before the storms arrived. I grabbed all of my supplies, brush, mane and tail comb, fly spray, MTG and a hoof pick, and ran in his stall. He had just finished eating and was about to be let out..you could tell he knew. ;) He kept looking at the door like, "Okay girl, it's time for me to go play!!" but he was a good boy nonetheless.

Until I got to the hoof picking.

He does good with hoof picking, not fantastic but good.. He's stubborn on the first hoof, so I have to tug it a lot, but once I'm done with that one, he picks up the other three when I said, "Pick it up" and I don't have to touch him. As usual, he did fine with the hoof picking, but he had a lot of mud on the outside and I took the soft brush on the other side of the pick and brushed it lightly. He didn't act like it hurt, but he acted like it was annoying and kept trying to put his hoof down. I don't know if he's just never had that done or what. :)) Anyways, he did fine after that. He had grown about five inches due to the mud and I had to pick them. :))  :))

After that, I slathered on the MTG....

Ew

 Soaked his balding tail, it seems to be doing better, got the bald spots on his face probably from a halter, got random little bald spots 'cuz I'm paranoid. Forgot to wear gloves. My hands STILL smell like that stuff. has anyone else ever used it?? It's a magic product, amazing. It does wonders but MAN does this stuff smell!!!

Anywho, got all that beautifying stuff done. He's still doing really well, honestly. Last year in July he had scabs covering him, half an inch of mane, a brown, blah Bay color and just didn't act the same, now he acts like he feels good. He didn't act like that before. I'm just bummed about his balding face and tail..the face isn't as bad, honestly, it looks like a typical bay with black on it's face.

I know this isn't a Bay but his face looks like that. ;)

 I'm honestly still very happy with his improvement, plus, bugs really have been bad this Summer..But he's about to face the worst heat, going to be almost 100 degrees today and it hasn't been this hot here since he arrived. I'm nervous. Either way, he's amazing and gorgeous and wonderful but I just really don't want to see him go back to what he was. It really isn't the looks that bother me, it's the fact that he ITCHES. That's annoying, I mean, I'd HATE to itch so bad that I scratch sore spots onto myself and my hair falls out. Luckily now we have fly spray we can use without causing more problems...I fully believe that fly spray was his major problem.

Now, pictures.


 
 Only two which is annoying for an avid photo taker..the lighting in his stall is terrible. One half is too bright because the big barn door was open and his stall is right next to the door, then the other half was too dark. :P Flash made his color look weird and with no flash you couldn't see him. Grrrrr. #Darkhorseprobs. We can always take great pictures of Spirit in there because he is light and he just pops up. He actually shows up in the camera.. darn white horse.

Anywho....Will hopefully get to the barn this evening when it cools off. I want to ride this weekend if it's not too hot, but I owe my step-dad a ride on Red. Haha! He is the babysitter who watches "Petey" when mom and I go out to ride, he loves riding but sacrifices for us...maybe he can get out Saturday and I can get out Sunday and just tag team a little. Red could us the double duty so long as it's not hot. He gets so sweaty..I  hate for him to get overheated.

Anyways, really haven't had that much amazing barn time other than when we rode, which was indeed amazing. Just a few short grooming sessions, but better than nothing, plus I know Red enjoys it just as much as me..I know he likes trail riding, especially after this past month or two, but he works hard for me, he deserves TLC in between rides. I don't want him to think the only reason I come out is to ride and he gets to dread it because he only thinks I work him. And yes, I think he's that smart. ;) Take Spirit for instance-you could honestly do the same with Red-he was hard to catch for this girl who, every time she took him out, barrel raced *hard*. He got to dread it because he never got treats, or a little grooming session or just random affection. Red was the same, but instead of barrel racing, it was kids. Kids would pile on him, crop him, kick him too hard then pull back on the reins when he did what they told him..Honestly I'd hate having Red's job but sometimes, in my house, you feel like you do. ;) thankfully Red does indeed love kiddos, even now...weirdo. I'd hate them.

Not sure for our schedule this week..it's all up to the weather. I'll probably get out there every day, maybe every other day, depending on the rain that's coming tomorrow, our schedule and heat.

Baby goats+Red tack+A horse named Red=A happy Kalin.

Today was the best day ever. Maybe not ever..the day I got Red may take the cake, but it was in my top ten list of best days. Let's have a short rundown..

We woke up to find these cutie patooties, one of which was not expected and caught us completely by surprise,

Still need a name for the grey one..she's a girl. Any ideas??

Then we went to a yardsale with tack and bought a halter for 2 bucks..barely used..and super nice. Probably cost about $30 at Tractor Supply. We may buy one of their saddles as well. Still contemplating. Anywho, went to Sonic, ate like pigs, then went to ze barn! Woot. Now more on what y'all care about...

When we got to the barn all of the horses were stalled and our barn friends were waiting on us so we could all ride together, well, mom, Ann and I..Ann's husband was going to ride the 4-wheeler and John was going to hang out around the barn with his colt. ^_^. So, got Red out, I tied him, groomed him out, fly sprayed and tacked up. Mom got Spirit out of the 4 acres and tacked him up..He has a problem with taking the bit so until we get his teeth floated and know he's not hurting, we'll use a hack. He can use both, but he does better with a snaffle. If that doesn't help him, we'll try a new bit! I went to use the new rubber nosed hackamore I bought for Red, but the bridle sat too close to his eyes and it looked uncomfortable, so I decided to wait until I put it on another bridle, so I just used the leather. He does fine with it, anyways.

Anyways, I checked for any new wounds on Red and allergy marks..nothing new. His tail looks awful but I'm still coating it with MTG and I don't think it'll get worse..

Waiting for me to mount. :)

Once we were all tacked up, Ann took the lead and I followed with Spirit and mom behind..Spirit acts bad following but mom is trying to get him settled, he's been doing better with it. Still not great, but way better. We went through the barn this time and went to the trails first, I took the lead then and I trotted through the majority of the trails until we got to a rockier area. Then we slowed down so Red wouldn't hurt himself or trip. We went up to the ten acre pasture with the subdivision around it and I cantered around through it alone for a few minutes. Red was wanting to race Patches, so I let him go neck and neck with her and cantered around for awhile until I decided to take a quick trot around the pasture alone.

Trotting around by ourselves for a second!

We cantered back to meet the others on the other side of the pasture and we rode around there for about thirty minutes and found a few pretty wild flowers. :) I took a couple more pictures but they haven't finished uploading. :P :P I'll post them later when they are done!

Red did so amazing.He had a few stubborn moments and I have a scratch down my shoulder from him taking me up a hill and into the woods when we were heading home, but that was kind of my fault because I didn't take charge and tell him no!

This was the first time we've ever really done more than a walk while on the  TRAILS. We've cantered in pastures but I've never gone faster than a walk on the actual trail and it was fun, although I have a few tiny "gashes" from tree limbs. ;)

I tested him a few times and made him turn around and go the opposite direction as everyone else..normally he'll act up but he did fine other than when we were heading back and I dropped the cellphone. Mom dismounted to get it because I didn't even notice until she said something and we knew that it would be a good test for Spirit to see how he'd do with her dismounting on the trail..he did fine, but when I turned Red around to help, he was NOT having it and bunny hopped a couple times, nothing major.

I haven't had to bring a crop with me in over a month, when I got him, I was told I'd ALWAYS have to have one or else he'd be stubborn. I haven't needed one in a long time. If he acts bad, all I have to do is say "NO!!" or show him my hand or rein and he stops. :)) :)) Yay for progress!!

I took him over a couple little logs and he managed to trot over them smoothly..This was kind of a trot pole test to see if he'd just run into them...I don't want to invest in trot poles if he is just going to run into them and trip. :P :P He did good though.

After about a two hour ride, we went back and untacked, and Red and I had a little photoshoot with his red tack! Ignore his lack of fly bonnet..It fell off when we were cantering and I just tied it to my saddle horn.

Wish I wore red too..

After every ride he stands there with his head wrapped around me. So cute!!

Selfies are good.

I have more but like I said above, they haven't finished uploading. I'll post them later. Stupid slow phone/email. :(

Once he was untacked I fly sprayed him again with the natural stuff we made because he was covered due to the sweat..Then I slathered MTG all in his tail and other bald spots. He still looks good considering how he looked last year. I'm considering buying a tail guard for his upper tail. Has anyone had any bad experiences with them???? He's rubbed one place raw. I hate seeing it like that.

All in all it was a fabulous day!! I'll post more baby goat pictures soon too..I think everyone should have to look at them. ;) Hopefully we'll have more tomorrow!!!!


Are you planning on riding this weekend? What will you do? What do you think of Red's new color? ;)

PS: I'll be doing a product review on the red leg wraps/boot thingies soon. Look out for that. And if I forget, hassle me about it. LOL!!

"Are you eating her belt??"

Red has an obsession.

He likes to nibble on the ends of my western belt and literally grate his teeth on the stones. Don't know why. Every time I wear a belt buckle-which is basically everyday-or if I wear this western belt, he nibbles on it. It's not a bite, it's a nibble. The other people at the barn haven't seen him do it, so when I went in the barn today where Red was lounging and waiting for food, he greeted me like this, as always-

"I like to hug!!"

and for the first couple minutes he stayed in that position, then, I got the MTG, fly spray, cut ointment-spray, comb and brush, went back in, and started combing his mane. As usual, he starts nibbling on the belt then. I have horse teeth marks on the pink stones from this, okay? I don't care though, it's kinda cute..Plus, it's a Western Pleasure belt, isn't it supposed to be all horsey?

A person at the barn looks at him and was like, "Red, are you eating her belt??" and he looked up at him like, huh?

"What are you talking about? I always do this!"

Then continued his munching. I said, "Yes, he always does this." Yes..I have a bizarre "pony" I do, indeed!

I brushed him out real good, made sure there was no more mud caked onto his hair

Then I began the real work. I literally SMOTHERED his tail with MTG since it's going bald again in order to stop the itching so he doesn't rub. It didn't look as rubbed or messy as it did yesterday evening when I put the MTG on it the last time, so I think it's working! It seems like it's the same, but if it continues stopping the itch, I'm hoping the hair will be back to how it was beforehand in a few weeks, give or take.. I really don't *mind* if it goes back to it's old baldness..I'll love him and think he's gorgeous regardless, but I really, really, really really want him to continue on this path of healing.

Not a great picture but you can kind of see the balder spots.

Other than his tail, he still has no bad places other than a couple bald places on his chest, but I'm not worried about those, they are tiny and I've kept MTG on them and they don't seem to itch anymore..

After the MTG, I saw a sore on his knee that was probably from running into something or playing with the other horses, so I sprayed a spray-on ointment on it to help it heal faster..Checked for dirt around his sheath since he has a history of beans and I'm supposed to make sure it doesn't look nasty down there. ;) ;) Looked fine though!

Waiting at the gate for food..

Every time I see this horse-which is pretty much daily-I just fall in love even more. He is just so loving and sweet!!! I walk in and he wraps his head around me, Jeff walks in with the baby stroller and my little brother and Red walks over to "Petey" and sniffs his head like, "Hey, I know you!!" and is so personable. I love this pony!

"Yeah yeah yeah I love you too, now where is my grain?"

Spirit was in Red's stall, so Red was just hanging out in the front of the barn and ate his grain in there like yesterday. :) He does really good doing that and at the moment, we need one more stall, so one horse-normally Red-gets to roam around..We're planning on building another stall June/July... :)

:) :)

Going to try and ride this next week..It may rain this weekend, so.... :P Spirit needs a bath, so while mom bathes him I'll probably ride Red in the round pen and work him..