Glad for Stalls

The weather today was gross. Wind and snow and rain. Blech. So we played in the stalls.

Duncan has a tendency to be a little goofy in cold, wet, windy weather. I don't blame him. He worked through it though. Interestingly, he really prefers if I talk to him when we're working on something worrisome. Which doesn't come naturally to me, and sometimes I forget and get quiet. He did much better with the blanket flying over his back once I started babbling.

We also did some moving of various body parts. At one point he had me wondering if someone had taught him some showmanship or something, he's so sensitive and maneuverable, one tiny step at a time. It's probably just who he is, though.

I also picked up his feet, and worked on stretching one of them forward, but then my mom called and we just stood together for a bit while I talked on the phone.

Then I turned him loose with the saddle blanket on and watched.

No big deal.

Going back several years, I accidentally left all my Blocker tie rings in my trailer when I sold it. We haven't been super flush since then, and they became pretty expensive, so I didn't replace them. It made tying young mustangs for the first time more of a production, with lots of preparation and thought put into how to do things safely.

I decided it was time to get one again, depending on the price. I found a deal on eBay, from Blocker Ranch, the inventor of the ring, that was totally reasonable with free shipping, so I bought one and it got here super quick.

Tonight I tied Duncan for the first time, using the Blocker ring to make me feel better about it. I didn't want him pulling back, scrambling, flipping over or any of that in my barn where the close quarters would make it more dangerous. 

When I brought him home I was told he ties no problem. It turns out to be true. Happy day. :)