Trotting is fun!

            Yesterday Talana and I had a really wonderful ride. It was terribly hot - almost 80 degrees! Oh my, almost Virginia weather! - and neither of us really wanted to work too hard. So we did some nice walking over poles and some figure eights and serpentines. And I thought we would trot around just a little bit, because I want to keep practicing that. I have definitely been getting better at balancing while we trot, and I've been doing better at holding the reins usefully instead of forgetting to keep contact with them while I'm focused on staying attached to her back. Well, I made a big breakthrough yesterday.
            Our first little bit of trotting went fine. She moved out when I asked, I kept aware of the reins throughout, she didn't pull her head down, and I didn't bounce around much. She slowed and halted when I asked. And I noticed something.
            As I sat back for the halt and gently squeezed the reins, we slowed. And in between the original trotting speed and the actual halt there were a couple of steps of a much different trot. I have observed this a few times now. I have been thinking, "How can I get that movement, only on purpose?" Because it is much smoother and "floatier" than the trot she has been giving me. This time, as I felt it happen, I realized just what is going on here. She's giving that nice movement in response to my seat - as I sit back a bit more, I am balanced differently. I am more settled. Somehow, that must make it easier for her to move nicely, and since she'd surely rather move nicely, she does. So I get two steps of lovely trot just as she's slowing for the halt that I've asked for.
            Well! I thought, That's an easy thing to fix then! So we turned around and trotted back the other direction, only this time I sat back just a tad from what I'd been doing. It felt so nice and comfortable, and made all the world of difference for both of us. Talana seemed to really like it better, and stayed focused on me the whole time. It was an easy fix after all! I am so happy. After that excellent trot, I decided we were done trotting for the day. No point punishing a good deed in that hot sun by doing it again. Instead of trotting some more, we stood for a minute to take a break.
           The other thing we did was go walk around the yard, outside the fence. Talana was very curious about all the stuff out there - cars going by, trees, lilacs, apples on the ground - yet she listened to me very well. After maybe three or five minutes of walking around the yard, we went back to the fence and quit for the day. I gave Talana the biggest apple I could find from our trees, and she spent the afternoon relaxing under her tent.
            Now we have a new toy to play with. Today my bareback pad arrived in the mail, and we are going to try it out soon! No more sore seat bones for me, no more grumpy Talana when I accidentally bounce around on her back too much (or ride around for a long time, which we haven't actually done yet).

Riding adventures

            Today Talana and I did some riding in the morning. It was a little more exciting than usual; I got spilled on the ground. Both Talana and I were so focused on what we were doing that when Alice the dog decided to bark suddenly, we both jumped. Talana felt me slipping, and tried valiantly to stop in time to keep me on her back, but I was just a tad too off-balance and basically slid right off of her. I am convinced that if I had been able to grab her mane or hang on for a fraction of a second longer, I wouldn't have landed on the ground, because I could feel that she was getting us stopped as soon as she could. The fall itself was no big deal, really. I landed on one thigh, sort of sideways to the ground as though I was going to lie down for a nap. I got a couple scrapes and a bruise. The wind was knocked out of me for about thirty seconds, and then I was fine. I reached out and grabbed Talana's reins and asked her to come over to me while I sat on the ground, because she looked kind of worried. She sniffed me and I patted her face so that she knew I was ok. She seemed to feel better about things after that. And then I got up and got back on, and we went back to what we were doing. But first we went and took a good look at Alice, so that Talana knew what spooked her.
            Other than that little incident (during which I was glad I have a short horse), we had a wonderful ride! I put out some makeshift poles to walk over. At first I put them too far apart, but once I got them positioned better we walked over them several times. This is what we were absorbed in doing when Alice interrupted us. What was so fascinating about walking over poles? It changed Talana's stride. I put them just far enough apart that she had to reach a tiny bit to walk over them, and immediately she stretched out into this long-striding walk that I've never felt before. She even continued to walk like that after going over the poles! It felt nice. We were moving along at a good pace; not slow, and her strides weren't short and choppy like they sometimes get when she's walking but wants to trot. I guess we were just so focused on how that was going that we forgot about the dog.
            After walking over the poles, we practiced trotting some more. I'm still basically pointing her in a straight line and then concentrating on my seat when we trot. But this time, Talana didn't unbalance me by pulling her head down partway through. Maybe she's realizing her back feels better when I'm balanced, and pulling her head down is a good way to make me bounce around up there. So we did very well at the trot today! We even trotted over the poles a couple of times, and she used a lovely sort of jog that seemed comfortable for both of us. I am getting better and better at the sitting trot, which I must admit I've never been great at. But the way my muscles are (so tense, always), I just can't seem to post without stirrups. And I figure, does it really matter whether I post or sit right now? I need to get better at both anyway.
            I am very pleased with our progress. Talana is moving more smoothly and evenly every day. She seems to be learning to pick up the pace I'm asking for and maintain it, rather than going a few steps and changing her speed. At the beginning we were doing a lot of walk a few steps, walk very very slowly a couple steps, speed up to a fast walk for two steps, slow down and see if we can stop now... drat, we have to keep walking. Now when I ask her to walk, we're walking, and less of this silliness about seeing if we can get the human to forget what we were doing. I'm sure it helps that I'm relaxing more and not lurching about so much. And as of today, I'm seeing similar improvements to our trotting.
            I'm not riding for more than twenty minutes a day so far, and most of that walking. But I am amazed at how far we have come in such a short time. Talana is so much more willing, even though we started out in a good place with that. She's softer to my cues now, and I think she enjoys our little lessons. I am also getting much better at giving consistent cues, particularly with my legs and seat. That's something I've never had an opportunity to practice, but Talana responds beautifully when I do it right. I'm thinking more and more about Dressage, and wondering what we can learn besides the basic things we're already doing.
            The other thing I'm thinking about is riding with just a neck rope and seeing how that goes. I am quite sure Talana will not decide to take advantage of that by zooming out from under me. She may, however, decide that grazing is an option. I think we will practice with the rope on the ground first so that she learns the cues. I really don't think she will know what to do at first. She doesn't know how to neck rein at all, and that seems like an indicator that the neck rope will be a little odd to her. I think it will be fun to see if I can teach her. I want to know what she can do if she has the freedom to move her head any way she likes.

Making a sidepull halter/bridle thing

            Ever since I discovered that bitless bridles exist, I have been very interested in them. When I was little and taking riding lessons with other children, I watched other kids steer their horses by yanking the reins. I saw the reactions the horses gave them: tossing heads and pinned ears, turning quickly and tightly to escape the pain. I was always afraid of doing that to the horse I was riding, so I didn't do a very good job steering a lot of the time. While my heart may have been in the right place, I didn't understand the difference between appropriate pressure and excessive pressure, so I did not progress very much in my ability to communicate with my horse.
            Now that I'm older, I understand this better. It is entirely possible to ride with a bit and be gentle. But - you have to have the skill to do it. And your horse needs to be trained sufficiently to understand what you are asking. Between me and Talana, we have enough rusty spots in our training that I can't say for certain that I wouldn't accidentally yank on her mouth. The idea of trying to re-teach her that riding can be fun and gentle while having something in her mouth that with the simplest error on my part can cause her pain in a delicate place... I just don't like that idea.
            So, the thought that I can do the same things except without a bit really appeals to me. I thought at least we'd give it a try and see what she thinks. After all, if she's happy enough to do what I ask with no bit, why do I need one? For the basic things I'm asking her to do - walk, trot, back, go around this obstacle or that - we probably don't need the minute finesse of a direct line from my fingers to her mouth.
            Another thing that appeals to me is simple tack that I can understand. A nice thing about a sidepull is that it's basically a halter. I know how those work, and I understand how I'm putting pressure on her, and where, when I tug on different parts of it. That helps me feel more confident and secure in my movements, because I am not concerned with accidentally hurting her.
            It's such a simple piece of tack, in fact, that I can make them myself. I found a tutorial with pictures online, and set to work with some rope I got to play around with. It takes a lot of rope to make a halter! They recommend 18 feet. I'm not sure exactly how much I used to make Talana's, but it was at least that much. The rope I used was fairly soft and wide. It's not that thin stuff that I see on most rope halters, but that's ok. This one is a test run anyway, and I wasn't even sure it would work.
            It only took me three hours to end up with a serviceable halter, however. I added loops on the nose knots so that I can attach reins made from the same rope. And I went right outside and put it on Talana to see how it worked.
            It worked! Talana has now gotten so used to it that she puts it on herself if I hold the noseband open for her. She seems cheerful about it each time. And she's taking direction from it very well. It took her five or ten minutes to get the hang of how the different cues feel, but after that she seems happy with it. It seems to be soft enough over her nose because the rope I used is so thick. I may still put padding there when I start riding her around for longer periods of time.
            Hooray! I will probably try to get some pictures of it to post so that you can see what it looks like. I think it's not the nicest looking thing ever, but it works well enough for me.

Beautiful Talana, all nice and relaxed

            While my previous post was all about training "issues" we've been having (or "opportunities," as I prefer to think of them), Talana is settling in very well indeed. She seems to enjoy the time I spend with her, and when I'm not right there with her, she's happily grazing or drowsing in the sun. I've even seen her using the tent to scratch an itch!
            I keep taking pictures and then comparing them to how she looked when she first stepped off the trailer. In my eyes, she's more beautiful every day she's here.

            Is that a hint of dappling I'm seeing? I keep thinking I can almost see it. She's never been dappled before, but maybe I can hope.

            She seems to always have this cheerful expression when I'm hanging out in the field with her. "Oh, hello human! Whatcha doin'? What's that thing you're holding, is it an apple? Can I sniff it?"

            Poor sunburned nose! I'm going to see if I can find some appropriate sunblock to put on it, because that looks really uncomfortable.

            I see some muscle there in her hind end! That wasn't there before. Chris Lombard is right, hills really make a difference. Our meadow is basically one big hill, with some steeper parts and some flatter parts. Any time we go down there, she has to work just because of the terrain. I have also noticed that she's walking more smoothly.

            The flowers here are wild oregano, or at least escaped oregano. It's all through our lawn. So far, Talana has been reluctant to eat it. I'm not sure if it tastes weird, or has a weird texture, or maybe she just doesn't want to argue with the bees, who really love those flowers. Or, perhaps, she is unwilling to eat something she does not recognize. That's ok. It smells nice when she trots through it.
            Her supplement has arrived, and I've started adding it to her feed. She doesn't seem to notice that it's there. I guess it will be a while before we see any changes that we can pin on the supplement, so now it's wait and see. I do think she looks pretty good right now, though! Everyone who has looked at her has exclaimed, "She's 29? Whoa!" I am glad that others think she looks good, too, including the vet who checked her out before she left Virginia.
            And really, I think she's the prettiest part of my world right now.

Ground driving, circles

            Ever since the clinic with Chris Lombard, I've been wanting to try ground driving. So I got two long ropes and a shorter rope that I rigged up as a sort of surcingle. And Talana and I went driving a couple times! It was an adventure.
            To start with, neither of us know what we're doing. I was pretty sure Talana had never done this before, and I was right. She was confused from the start about me being behind her instead of beside or in front of her, and at first she kept swinging around to face me. But in a few minutes, she realized that I was back there on purpose (whatever weird human purpose that might be), and stopped trying to "fix" our positions.
            Once she got that figured out, she had to figure out that the long ropes are more like reins than a lunge line. That one was tougher for her, and she hasn't really got it yet. When I stand directly behind her, she will turn her head however I cue her, and she will back up. But if I'm at all to either side, she just doesn't seem to register that she can turn away from me. At all. She will sidepass or back or circle me instead; anything not to turn away from me. I've gotten her to turn away exactly twice now, and I really don't think she understood that she was doing the right thing when she did it, even though I released the cue and praised her.
            The next difficulty we encountered - or next training/learning opportunity - was going in a straight line. Talana is really stuck on circles. When we are in a wide open space, she insists on circling. And I'm not good enough with the lines yet to correct that early on, and then she won't turn away from me and straighten out. But! All is not lost! When we go up and down the driveway, she has the same tendency to circle, but the edge of the driveway seems to help guide her visually. It seems like the combination of seeing the path in front of her and feeling my cues that match it helps her understand what I'm asking. So we have done that a little, and successfully.
            I've been keeping our ground driving sessions short. When it's so new and difficult for her, I don't want to make her too frustrated and sour about it. But that circling like she's on a lunge line or in a round pen had me curious what she knows about working that way. So I took away one line and the surcingle to see what she knows how to do.
            And that's when I found out where there are some big holes in her training.

           She will move out into a circle quite well. She will pick up a trot quite well. And then she will not focus on me at all. Not a bit. It's like her brain turns off when she moves her feet. She's not watching my body language or reading me at all. She's not noticing ninety percent of what I'm doing, because she's looking over there. Or maybe in that other direction. But not at me.
            So I worked on interrupting that by asking her to change her pace. If I get really aggressive, she'll flick her ear in my direction for a second, pick up a canter while looking kind of fearful, then immediately quit paying attention to me while cantering for a few strides before dropping back to a trot. Now, at first I thought I just needed to work on finessing that a bit, but she gave exactly that same response every. Single. Time. And yes, I could keep her cantering by chasing her, but she just got more and more upset while not looking at me, and started stumbling because she wouldn't look at where she was going, either. So that wasn't working, and anyway I don't want to canter her too much right now because she's out of shape. So I asked her to come back down to a trot, and eventually she realized I wasn't pushing anymore and did that.
            Then I tried to re-focus her attention on me by turning her, thinking maybe that would get her brain clicked back into gear. Nope. Yes, I could turn her, but again, she was completely checked out the entire time. It was like I had to lead her by the nose to turn her because she was not looking at my body language. At all. By this time, I was quite baffled. I asked her to "Whoa," and eventually she noticed that I wasn't pushing anymore (just as before), and dropped to a walk. But she did not stop. I "Whoa'ed" again, and eventually did get her stopped. I had her stand a minute to take a break for both of us. But she did not want to stand. She was all antsy. She just kept antsing back and forth and side to side. It was clear she thought she ought to be moving.
            If I gave her any line at all to work with at this point, even if I stood still in my "I'm relaxed and not asking you to do anything" pose, she started circling me at a fast walk. While not looking at me at all. Golly!
            I also tried having her do a turn on the forehand for me a few times, to see if I could get her looking at me that way. I could get her to do it, but I swear she did not absorb a bit of what I was asking. I could bump her hindquarters with the end of the lead rope, and she would move, but she still wasn't focused on me or on what she was doing. And... she still kept trying to circle instead of turning properly, although I could get her to do it. By this point I was ready to give up for the day. Since the moment I first let her circle, she had not paid me a bit of attention. She was acting like a different horse than the one who was trying to figure out the driving lines, or the one who has been carefully carrying me around the backyard. I needed to stew on this overnight.

            The more I thought about the little details of how she was moving and what she was doing, the more I thought she and I were coming from different places when I was trying to work with her. I was looking for engagement and focus, and she was looking for a way out. Somewhere someone taught her that all you have to do on a lunge line is move your feet when they chase you, and then endure it until it's over. I think that once her brain clicked into that mode, she didn't notice that I was doing things differently because she didn't realize that it's possible. And the more I asked her to move her feet, the worse it got.
            So how can I break that cycle? Making her more upset by circling her more just doesn't sit right with me. And I don't care how long I've known her, I don't want to be attached to a horse who's trying to get away from me at a trot or a canter. Or any speed, really. I kept thinking about ways to move her feet. She doesn't know the wiggling-lead-rope back up cue. And how can I teach her that if she won't stop mindlessly circling me? I have to stop that circling.
            I became convinced that I had to teach her to stop moving her feet, before I can teach her how I want her to move her feet. But she won't stop when I ask! I thought. And then I realized how silly that is. I have read about how to do this, and Chris Lombard's video shows it, too. I need to teach her the basics of what later becomes ground tying.
            So this is what I did. I took my grooming bucket down in the meadow and left it in a strategic spot. The meadow is where I've been working with her and having so much trouble, so that's where we're going to do this. Then I got Talana haltered up and led her down to the bucket. At first she was just like before, looking anywhere except at where I am and where we're going. I just ignored that and asked her to stand by the bucket. She gave it a sniff, and stood for a moment. Then she began to walk forward.
            As soon as she took one step, I asked her to back the way she knows how. (That's pressure on her nose from pulling the lead rope toward her butt while making a "ch ch ch" noise.) As soon as her feet were back where we started, I released the cue and picked up a curry comb. She looked at the curry comb, looked away, and took a step. I backed her a little further this time, then walked her forward to her spot and started to curry her. Then we did that a bunch more.
            Each time she stood a little longer, and by the time she was all brushed, Talana had one ear on me at all times and looked a lot more relaxed. That was the end of the lesson, so I picked up the bucket and we walked back to her fence. She walked on a looser lead than I have ever used with her, and did a wonderful job the whole way home.
            Then today we did it again. I placed the bucket in a more distracting spot. Today she was able to pay enough attention to me to start learning a different cue for backing up. I use the same sound, but wiggle the lead rope until she backs. She's really starting to get it. I'm also getting better at escalating it appropriately when she is slow to respond. We stood in the difficult, distracting area long enough to get her curried all over. She did pretty well. Then we moved back to the same spot we'd used previously, and she found it easier to stand there. She even relaxed enough to graze while I brushed her. I used that as an opportunity to teach her a new rule: If I've asked you to stand, you can graze if and only if you don't move your feet. Talana has always been so good about picking her head up right away when asked, so I feel comfortable with this rule. With another horse, I probably would insist that they not eat in this situation unless I gave specific permission.
            I have seen a couple of big improvements already. Talana is leading more politely, and even when she's interested in her surroundings I can get her to halt when I ask. I also have a way to back her to where I would like her to be if she has inched ahead of me, and she's starting to listen to just the verbal cue. She is also standing more calmly when I ask her to stand. I think she is beginning to trust that if I ask her to stay put, she will be ok. Yes, even if there's a sail boat going by. And her ears actually follow me when I move! That's the mare I know. As she masters the idea of standing when and where I ask her to until I ask her to move again, I can start moving a step away from her as she's standing, then another step. Eventually, I'm hoping to get her to ground tie in unfamiliar places. Then I will know that she fully understands that I'm the one who tells her when and where to move her feet.
            As for the circling issues, I'm really considering trying not to circle her at all for a long time. The point of the circling exercises actually has nothing to do with circles, anyhow. It's actually about she and I tuning in with each other's body language and responding to each other. If I want her to be engaging her mind as well as her body, I've got to find ways to do it that don't wear that circular groove any deeper into her mind. It's not useful at all. It occurs to me that ground driving may be particularly useful for this, if I can teach her that it's a totally different game.

Saddle testing

            On Monday, I don't have work, so I was able to spend all day with Talana again. My mother sent a saddle along with Talana. I have been told in the past that this saddle does not fit her, but since horses do change shape a bit over time I thought I would try it out and see if I could tell. It's an English saddle, and Mom lost track of the stirrups at some point, but I can always get new ones.
            First I just set the saddle on Talana's back without a pad or girth to see if anything looked out of place. I'll be the first one to admit that I don't know what I'm looking at, though, so I was not surprised when I looked at it and thought, "Well, there she is with a saddle on her back. Um... it looks like a saddle!" So I tried a more hands-on approach and got out the pad and the girth to cinch her up for a ride.
            Talana was a doll about letting me tighten the girth. She made a little face once or twice, but I didn't even have a halter on her and she stood beautifully for me. It still looked ok to me, so I got out the sidepull halter/bridle that I made for her (perhaps I'll make another post about that later; it was a fun project) and took her over to the upside down bucket I'm using as a mounting block.
            We walked around for a little bit, and even without stirrups I definitely felt more secure in the saddle. But I did notice that it's not as soft and comfortable as her back. She is shaped very nicely for riding bareback. We didn't have any problems walking around, and she responded well to my cues. So I decided we'd try trotting a little bit.
            That's where the problem came in. For one thing, I had difficulty posting properly - I must be depending on the stirrups too much, and having trouble without them. Also, while Talana seemed delighted to be asked to move out a bit, she almost immediately pinned her ears each time we trotted. No bucking, no bad behavior, just pinned ears and shaking her head slightly. After a few times, she started resisting a little when I asked her to trot. I thought she was probably uncomfortable, so I hopped off and took off the saddle.
            Then I hopped back on and we walked and trotted a little more. This time when I asked her to trot, her ears were up and she seemed cheerful about it. I was doing a little bit better at posting, but still not wonderful, so we went back to walking after one short, successful trot.
            I really suspect there is something about that saddle that pinches her. I don't know what or where, or if it's fixable. But I don't think I should be riding her around in that particular saddle. I am afraid my mother will be disappointed; she likes that saddle very much and seemed invested in the idea that I use it.
            Although I am really enjoying riding around bareback, I do want to have a saddle for going out on trails or unfamiliar places. It just makes sense to me to have the added security if I need it. I have a new horse-loving friend at work who has a pony about Talana's size, and several saddles that fit him. We are thinking of trying them on Talana, and this saddle on the pony, just to see if there's a difference.
            Overall, I think it was a successful experiment. I got a lot of information out of it, and Talana was so good even when she wasn't happy about what we were doing. I made sure we ended on a good note, and Talana tried to follow me out of the gate again. This time she didn't holler after me, though. She stood and grazed instead. I think she has realized that I'm coming back soon when I walk away, not leaving her behind.

Talana is home!

            My beautiful girl has been here since Friday, and I've been having so much fun spending time with her that I haven't even posted pictures yet! She arrived Friday evening about an hour before dark. She was sore from the long trip and stumbled coming off the trailer, but no harm done. For the first couple of minutes, she just stared at the ground with an expression of relief, as though she was saying, "Thank goodness this ground isn't moving! It is so much easier to stand on!" And then the fellow who had taken her off the trailer handed me her lead rope, and I rubbed her neck. She gave a big sigh, and I led her over to her new field which is also my backyard.
            Talana took one look at that nice long grass that I've been growing just for her, and grabbed the biggest bite she could. After a couple of minutes of watching her, I thought she wouldn't notice if I walked back to the shippers to talk to them - but she noticed! She hollered for me the moment I was out of sight. My partner was watching her for me, and he says that she didn't move, just picked up her head and called for me. And then went back to grazing exactly where she had left off.

            We made molasses cookies for the shippers. They were surprised and delighted. I figured they deserved something special for bringing Talana to me.

             This was the night she arrived. I've gotten used to bigger horses. I almost forgot what it's like to be able to put my arm over her back! She had a little scrape on her right hind leg, probably acquired during the trip. So I cleaned it off and put a bit of Swat there to keep the bugs off overnight until I could get a better look at it in the morning. That's why I'm holding a pink-smudged paper towel.
            The next morning the area around the scrape was a little puffy, but there weren't any flies bothering her. I cleaned it off better and saw that it really is just a little scrape. I put some Neosporin on it, and the puffiness was gone in a couple hours. Now it's healing up nicely and I'm sure it will be all better soon. Here is what she looked like from my window that morning:

            She has her tent so she can get out of the rain or sun if she likes. At first she was a bit skeptical of it. It does make creaking and flapping noises in the wind. She wasn't really afraid; she just seemed to think that it was a better idea to stand next to it rather than under it.
             Talana had clearly had her mane brushed out before she came northward. It wasn't a big tangle as it usually gets when I am not there to tidy it up. Her mane has more white hairs than I remember. She was very dusty with the red Virginia clay that makes it so difficult to garden at my parents' house. Her white socks were sort of chestnut colored, and anywhere I touched her my hand was coated with iron-rich dust. So I curried her and brushed her and curried her and brushed her. And I got out the coconut oil and massaged it all through her mane and tail and combed them out. She was so very happy with the attention, she just drowsed in the sun and sighed and yawned. Then I got a rag and a big bucket of water and gave her a bath. She didn't even try to step away from the water. It must have felt so good to have someone scrub all the dirt off of her. I used the dog's shampoo, which is oatmeal and coconut based. It worked really well, and her coat is softer now than it has ever been in my memory. Now when I brush her, loose hair comes off and no dust. Her socks are actually white again.
            I walked her down to the meadow after her bath. I want her to see where she will be living. She won't be in the backyard all the time; when she eats the grass down enough I will move her fence and make it bigger. She's here because I want to keep an eye on her until she's settled in. She was excited about the meadow. The river was a big deal for her to see. There was a sail boat coming in, and she stood and watched it for a long time. I'm not sure she's seen that much water before. The grass down there has now been Talana Approved. In fact, she seems to prefer it to the stuff in the back yard, which appears to be a finer-leaved species of some sort.
            It rained on us when we were coming back up the hill, so she got wet on top. She didn't seem to mind at all.

            And then when it got a little darker, I took a picture of her with the sunset.

            I was so happy on Saturday. I got to spend the entire day fussing over Talana, and she seemed to enjoy it very much. Every time I walked away from her, she followed me to the gate and neighed when I left her behind.
            Sunday morning was even better. I woke up knowing she was here, and safe, and that her first full day had gone well. Sunday morning Talana was moving more smoothly, and I think the soreness from her journey had retreated by that point. I brushed her and cleaned out her hooves.
            I have been reading about hoof care, and learning a lot. What I've been reading makes me wonder if her feet need a bit of attention. She's moving fine - particularly for an old girl with arthritis in her rear legs - but I think her toes might be a bit long and I notice that the groove between her soles and hoof walls seems deeper than maybe it should be. I scraped a bunch of grit out of there on each hoof. But, I don't really know if or how much this is out of the ordinary. So I will ask the farrier to tell me all about Talana's hooves when she comes to look at/trim them.
              I do know that the noticeable growth rings I see on the outsides of her hooves are a sign that things aren't ideal. Based on what I know about what she's been fed and what I've been reading about growing healthy hooves, I am pretty darn certain she needs a supplement with copper and zinc in it added to her grain. So I have ordered one and we'll see if that makes a difference. While her fur is soft and somewhat shiny, she's not glossy the way I would expect if she's getting all her vitamins and minerals. Her mane and tail are also dull, and although I keep putting coconut oil in them, it just gets absorbed right in in a couple hours and then they aren't shiny anymore. After I put the oil in Fable's mane and tail a couple of times, they stayed shiny.
            The other thing I've learned from reading is that excess iron inhibits the absorption of copper and zinc. Remember that iron-rich dirt I mentioned? That's what the grass she's been eating all her life grows in. So maybe that is the root of the things I'm noticing.
            But, aside from thoughts about nutrition and hoof care - Sunday was lovely! After I tidied her up, I put her halter on and attached one lead rope to each side of it to make reins. It turns out that the lead ropes are much too long to be practical and bump her all the way down at her pasterns when she walks. But she was a good sport about it. I hopped up bareback to see if either of us can remember what to do.
            Well, I think she remembers better than me! Or maybe her muscles are just in better shape. She was very responsive to my cues, and she worked to keep me balanced. Thank goodness, because I think if she hadn't been trying so hard I'd have toppled right off in the first couple of minutes before my body adjusted and relaxed. But once I was able to relax a little, I felt more secure and we were able to walk around the yard for a few minutes. I realized after a bit that I wasn't using the reins very much because she was responding to my seat and legs. This made me very happy, because I have never felt like I was doing the right thing with my legs before. Talana responded so well, I just kept laughing because it worked! She turned both directions for me, she walked on, halted and backed as well. Each time I asked her to do something, she seemed surprised when I praised her for responding. She became very soft and willing when she discovered that I was so happy with her. We even walked under and around the tent a few times. And then I got off and brushed her and told her what a wonderful girl she is. And then I took some pictures of her.

            I have so much to say about all the things we've been doing that I didn't even notice it's bed time. I had better go to sleep, or I'll be too tired after work to play with Talana tomorrow, and we can't have that! Hopefully this big long update with many pictures will keep my readers busy until the next installment.