Saturday, July 18, 2009

Update

My goodness it has been a time of ups and downs. No sooner do I feel that I am making progess, when we seem to take a few steps backwards.

I scratched him from the last Kaurilands, as he was just too demented to even get his cover off the preceding day, let alone ride him (incidentally Willie had been totally jelly brained the previous day also).

For about a week, he was just beside himself.
I had restricted his grass, but given later developments, obviously not enough. Although one really likes to see their horses round and glossy in Winter, I guess rideability must come first.

He has, along with his two paddock mates, for the past week been brought in at night off the grass, and during the day he has his own smallish mud area with very little grass for daytime turnout. His hard feed also consists of predominantly meadow chaff, and I have now added back in a rice based feed.

The last four days, he has been fine. Although too wet and slippery in the paddock to do anything but trot, he basically hasnt put a foot wrong....funnily enough he has spooked less than Willie (although Willie does have the run of the big paddock during the day, and gets proper dinners).

Today, I even cantered him right around the paddock feeling that the wind had dried it out enough to be ok.....he again was absolutely fine, no spooks, no skedaddles, no naps, nothing. He did one (normal horse) type of baby skedaddle on the right rein; I halted him, then trotted on as if nothing had happened and he resumed good behaviour.

Now the scary thing, is that having committed our recent progress (and return of sanity), to black and white, does that mean I have now jinxed it?

Let us hope not!