Day One

Jack and I

Today was a colder day, so I was excited when I got turned out with my best bud again. I hope I get as big as Jack some day, he’s good at everything. He beats me running to the fence every time and he’s so tall he can reach over the fence to tell those other horses to get away from our grass. 

When Michael and Sam got here, I was even happier. What a lovely day to learn something. I got my right lead (that lead is so darn difficult), fairly quickly on the lunge-line. My left side was a breeze as always. Sam says I haven’t built up enough muscle and it’s hard to help me put my body in the right position to pick up the right lead on a lunge-line, so they are patient with me. (By the way, I know all these things that humans say because I’m very smart. The most intellectual pony you could ever meet.) 

Today, after our lunge-line warm-up, they put the lead rope around both sides of the halter and we did some ground work. I am really good at that stuff, I bring my head right away and step my shoulder over or move my hips around whenever they ask. I am very perceptive. :)

Then Sam got the step stool and climbed on both sides of me, just like yesterday. I stood very still for this, to make it easier. But then, Sam asked me something she had never asked before! At first I was confused... she usually only clucked to me on the ground, and that meant go forward. Surely she didn’t mean go forward while carrying her?? What was I, a donkey?? 

So I tried to take some steps forward. That satisfied her, she stopped clucking and pet my neck. So I kept trying to go forward for her. It was tough, my legs felt wobbly trying to move around with something big moving on top of me. But I got better at it. I was perplexed again when she picked up on the lead rope and asked for me to turn and move my hips from up there, but she was patient and waited until I figured it out. 

Once I started to get the hang of it, she got off me. Michael gave me a sugar cube, so I guess I did something right!! 

Sam and I