Here's Desi.......

Shortly after Lady and JoJo came on board - my niece ( yep- another horse loving relative ) was moving her ex-racehorse,  to Wisconsin for some R&R.  He had some work done on his back legs and needed time to heal.  We were all there anxiously waiting for his trailer to come barreling down the long driveway.....and it finally arrived.  Desi looked around and took in the sights like a real seasoned traveler.  They unloaded him into the front round pen ( away from other equine in the beginning ) and he immediately began consuming the hay that was placed on the ground for his dining pleasure. This was a good sign since horses will abandon all food if they are feeling stressed or threatened in any way.

After spending some time in the pen - he was moved to the end stall of the barn and immediately checked out the outdoor run.  His side fence backed up to the large pasture where his future stall mates were outside  grazing happily.  They all noticed each other, but did little to introduce themselves - the hot wire kind of deterred  that idea!  Race horses are around many other horses BUT are not allowed to socialize, so Desi watched them for a while and then returned to his inspection of  his new surroundings. 

At one point JoJo said, " I should rename Lady and call her Lucy - that way we could have Lucy and Desi"!!  Gotta love that lady.........

Nice digs..........

Good hay...............

                                            Possible future play mates........

 

Introducing J-La........

I had heard that there was going to be a new equine coming to the barn and I was anxious to meet her owner.  Lady turned out to be a beautiful grey Arabian and she had been given to JoJo as a gift by her girlfriend of many years.    What a pair they made......a retired carriage horse and a woman who had always dreamed of having her own horse.  The beginning was a little comical  - watching Jo try to catch Lady in the pasture.  One day was particularly funny as my niece, myself and Jo were all trying to convince the mare that being caught was more enjoyable than being loose in the pasture with her fellow herd.  We used the grain bucket as incentive and it worked - especially when the other equine thought it was a real treat to have grain so soon again after breakfast.

Eventually, the owner of the property and JoJo worked together on a training schedule for Lady and the pair began to bond nicely.  It also helped that Jo only lived a few blocks away and saw Lady very often the first few weeks.  Having someone to ride with on Saturday mornings was so much fun - especially - since she also enjoyed being there by 8am.

                                Lady being ridden by the BOSS before Jo gets on.

                                 Jo and Lady going for a spin around the arena.

                                


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Sound Familiar???

Things went smoothly as summer approached and now it was June.  I always have to lunge Bud before riding him and this particular Saturday he was REALLY feeling his oats.  When I started  to change direction ( you should always do both sides -going left and right - so all their muscles are being worked).  There was some slack in the rope and  HE noticed it immediately and bolted .....with my ring finger tangled in the line!  I quickly let go of the rope and he proceeded to run around looking like he's possessed by the devil with the lunge line flying in the wind.  The other horses grazing in the pasture popped their heads - they began running around too.....but stopped...... when they realized their big, huge threat was none other than their stable mate, Bud. 

I tried in vain to capture the wild beast......to no avail.  Whenever he stopped to graze, I slowly walked in his direction and he would gallop off to another spot dragging the lunge line behind him.  It just so happened that Piedmont was grazing close by .......so I slowly made by way over to the elder man and loudly declared my undying love for him ( he never even raised his head - but - Buddha didn't know that).  It didn't take long for an interested party to mosey over and begin grazing next to his mentor.

Later, when I was atop the Buddha, I felt pressure from my left hand - I looked down and saw that my wedding rings were slowly disappearing from sight ...due to the swelling.  I wrestled them off before my whole hand blew up!!  After a week with no improvement, I went to the Doc and had an xray taken -then was told the ring finger could stay swollen for up to 3 years.  Up until recently, I wore my rings around my neck - now I've graduated to 1/2 a day.  Thank you Buddha...........

Buddha and I getting ready to lunge.

Buddha enjoying the lush green grass

                                                  Piedmont happily munching away.

Our Second Year....

The previous posts all happened our first year together and now we're up to our Sophomore status with even more tales to share.  During the month of March, I had to visit relatives in Ohio and had work commitments throughout the week.  I ended up NOT seeing Bud for 2 full weeks, so.... the following Saturday I was up at the crack of dawn headed for Wisconsin and couldn't wait to see my boy.

I must admit I was a tad "nervous" approaching his stall, but when I did, I heard the most wonderful, soft nickers (horse speak for I'm so glad to see you/do you have a carrot?).  It was SO heart warming!  I really thought he would not remember me or ignore me and continue to eat his hay out in his run.  Instead, he approached me and lowered his head to get his halter on so we could begin our Saturday morning ritual.  Gad, I love this creature.....

                                 Buddha and I getting ready to ride, ride, ride...........

Ouch.......

Bud's Ballad will again be on hiatus due to my mother falling and breaking her hip.

Man and/or Beast

Our next  field trip was back to Charley's turf and this time Buddha and Pardy walked right up to him -  paid their respects and we saddled up.  We had a great time trotting and cantering within the large space and after awhile....we decided it was time to call it a day.  I had switched out Bud's bridle for a halter and  lead rope and was in the process of undoing the chain  that was wrapped around the gate.  As soon as Bud felt slack in the lead rope - presto - he was gone!  He was tearing around the field like a maniac, with his lead rope blowing in the wind behind him- scaring him to death -  and would not let me get close enough to help calm him down.

Meanwhile, Pardy is watching  him with a quizzical look, but continued  to stand perfectly still and enjoy his nice juicy red apple.  I decided to ignore the haltered beast and give all my attention to Pardy - something I had learned in my 6 year career working in a  preschool.  When you can't get a childs attention - place your attention on another and curiousity/jealously will get the better of them.  (There is not a whole lot of difference between man and beast in that area.)  I bet it wasn't 2 minutes and guess who was trying to horn in on my love fest with Pardy?  Yep, Buddha couldn't stand not having my attention  and was standing right behind me waiting for his beloved apple.  I did make him wait a bit and finally turned around.... picked up the now filthy lead rope and handed him his juicy red  apple.  He seemed unphased by what had happened and this time stood perfectly still while I undid the chain and we walked quietly through the gate and back to the trailer.  I wish I had a memory like Bud's...... there one minute and erased the next.

Happy (?) Trails

Later that month Bud and I were invited to join my niece and Pardy on their yearly outing with 26 other horses - do I know how to have fun or what???  By this time, Bud was an expert at loading, traveling, and unloading and was happily munching away at his hay when word came that it was time to mount up.  I had lounged him before hand and he seemed mellow.  Once in the saddle, we let other horses go by first and slowly followed behind them.  Other riders came up behind us and greeted us and moved on.  This is when Bud decided if they can pass him HE can pass them.  Before I knew it we had arrived at almost the front of the pack.  Some riders were not happy with Bud's arrival and told us to "stay back - my horse is green and isn't fond of horses following that close" - like this was MY idea??  When I tried to slow Bud down and take him to the side and do circles, he decided to imitate Trigger and was rearing up and bucking.  At that moment......I felt like .....give it your best shot cause I'm staying on!!  He performed for a few minutes (altho it felt like hours) and settled into a nice slow gait.  I turned around to locate my niece and she was right where we had left her... at the end of the pack with Pardy plodding along enjoying the view of other horses' rear ends.  One of the riders  asked who the lady as that was having SO much trouble with her horse........my niece replied " I don't know - never saw her before!"  So much for family ties.........

Needless to say, we were the talk of the BBQ that followed and one lady stopped by our table and stated,  "Wow, that horse looked so docile tied next to the trailer earlier - I wonder what happened?"  Another said, " If that had been me - I'd had been off and walking".  I just smiled and looked over at Bud and Pardy as they seemed content to bask in the sun and enjoy their surroundings.  I'm sure Bud had thoughts of winning our little battle of wills - as I did.  Truth is I loved every moment of playing Roy Rogers on her trusty steed...........

                                             Buddha and I ready for our next adventure 

                                           My niece and Pardy after our trail ride & BBQ