Mustang Saga

It was a momentous occasion today! My mom rode her horse for the very first time!

What's that you say? You recognize that horse? Did I mention Bella had a new owner? I think I might have, but I'm not sure.

I rode her first, since she was a little unsure and cranky. Bella, not my mom, silly. She was a joy to ride. Cranky, yes, but she did what I asked and overcame her fears. Then my mom climbed aboard and rode for the first time. We had planned on ponying them around the property, but Bella's stifle was having trouble so we called it good for the day.

I got in a little warm-up ride on Tonka, but I put him away after just a bit. I just didn't feel like trotting circles today.

This afternoon I got Cisco out and it was a very interesting ride. First, some Jehovah's Witnesses came and I had to be slightly rude. I hate it when that happens. I'm sure they're nice people and they're doing what they think is right, but they're invading my privacy. Anyway, after that I thought I might take Cisco up the driveway. He was being pretty good and I wanted to see if he'd be "bad" so we could work on it. We got halfway to the road, and I decided to turn around, just in case things went south where there wasn't room to handle it. He was anxious, worried, but I wouldn't say scared. He tried to keep going. I think he really didn't want to leave but that was the direction his energy was going and he had to do something with it. As I asked him to turn, he kind of did, then all his different body parts started to go in different directions and we backed off the driveway and he really leaned down into the bit. So I just set my hands and sat there and waited for him to give. Pretty quick he quit moving around and gave. And we stepped back onto the driveway and went back past the mares and into the pasture to work on serpentines and circles and straight lines and just basically staying between my hands and my legs. He did quite well. I noticed a few interesting things about his body though, that make me think he might need some bodywork or a chiropractor. When traveling in a straight line his neck is headed right. Like so:

And he has a hard time giving slightly to the left. He can bring his whole head and neck around, but then it seems to throw him off balance and his right front gets stumbly. His left hind is a bit "off" as well, in a more subtle way. The hoof is a bit clubbed and there is a dent in his butt muscle. Interesting stuff. I hope we can get it worked out. I don't think it's an excuse for his behavior, but it probably doesn't help if he's all crooked in his body and possibly in pain. I know I don't perform well when I'm hurting.

I'm off, still lots to do today. But I rode three horses today and soaked up all the sun I possibly could, so I'm happy. :)