8-22-00 I've been pretty busy lately, without much time for Ms. Spirit. Today she was an angel though. I stuck her in the round pen, and drapped her lead rope over one of the bars (no wrapping or anything like that). She stood perfectly still while I groomed her, never taking up the slack. It was weird--I really wonder if she was taught to tie somewhere along the way. When I went to go pick out her feet, she had her left hind ready for me with the weight off of it and picked it up when I asked! What a good girl.
8-24-00 Nothing exciting today. Just groomed, flysprayed and picked out the feet I can pick up. I'm beginning to get Spirit ready for her trim--this farrier does draw the feet out on front of the horse with trims, but instead of setting the foot on a stand, he sets it on his knees! I'd never seen it done that way before. Spirit was nervous about the whole idea of resting her foot on me, but I got both fronts out and kind of in position. It's a start at least. I was amazed today at just how I have Spirit's attention when I'm working with her. I had her in the round pen, and all the other horses were thundering about as it was right before feeding time. Even with the horses galloping, kicking and squealing _right_ on the other side of the panels (all of two or three feet away) Spirit didn't move and did what I asked immediatly. Even her ears were on me most of the time. Amazing...
8-26-00 Again, a day of not doing much. I put Spirit in the round pen to finish off Springer's ricebran. It started to rain, and Spirit was running around in it. I don't know if she was spooking a bit or just playing in it. I haltered her and led her around in the pen and outside of it, just to see if I would have her attention. I did. <grin>
Oh, almost forgot. Carol said there's some new people in the neighborhood. A married couple and the wife is a trainer. They came over to buy eggs and the woman saw Spirit and told Carol several times to tell me that she was interested in buying Spirit. Spirit isn't for sale, but it's always nice to have people ask <grin> I'm curious what the woman would offer me...
I got pics back of Spirit in her sheet...
9-27-00 Wow! I sure haven't been keeping up with Spirit's journal, have I? Well, I haven't really done anything with her in the past couple weeks, so there's nothing to go back and fill in. Today, though, she got her front feet trimmed for the very first time! We gave her 1 cc of Dermosedan (a sedative) and Tim only had to spend a few minutes under her. She was fabulous--it was really a non-event. There was no pulling back or fighting. Tim only took off a little bit of foot (Spirit grows her feet pretty balanced, and wears them off pretty balanced) and did say that if I ever decide to shoe her, she'll easily take a size three shoe. She's got some big feet! Tim and I decided that she wasn't ready to do the hinds, as she's not reliably picking up and holding her right hind. We'll do her all around in 6 weeks, though.
10-4-00 Wow. October already. Where has this year gone? Not much going on in Spirit-land. I've been busy with school and such, and my mom and I just got back from LA. Today was completely uneventful at the barn, except for one weird thing--Spirit was really mouthy again. I think it's very strange that I see this behavior the day after I return from somewhere, and at no other time. Huh. <shrug>
10-5-00 It's supposed to be cold tomorrow, and it's been drizzling tonight, so Spirit got her blanket on. She wore it for a couple days in September when we had a cold wet spell, and she's getting very good about letting me put it on her. I just have to go slow. In case anyone out there is curious, I bought a Weatherbeeta Extreme turnout sheet for her. It was a quick buy--she was standing out in the rain shivering, and I had to do something. I have one of these exteme sheets for both Springer and Shaman (another quick buy in Sham's case) and _love_ them. And it fits Spirit _really_ well. Yay :-)
I feel bad about not working Spirit at all lately. I really wanted to have her going under saddle by now, and haven't gotten there. In fact, I haven't put her in the round pen and worked her in tack or even naked in ages <sigh>. She's _has_ gotten really good about letting me catch her and leading in strange situations (well, as strange as they come at my quiet little barn, anyway) and she did get her front feet trimmed... I don't know. I feel like I should be so much farther. And I know I would be so much farther if I would just make more time for really working with her. So, the question of the day is... <drumroll please> "Is it good for Spirit to have a "break" in her learning? Is it better for her to have some time off? Is she going to learn the little, subtle-type things now, or is it just wasted time?" I don't know. I guess she's always learning. But _what_ she's learning right now...that I don't know.
Pics of Ms. Mare in her new blanket soon. It just fits her _so_ well. I couldn't be happier. She wears a (are you ready for this?) 84" blanket! She's right about 16 hands--maybe an inch in either direction. Springer, who's 15.3 1/4, wears a 76. Spirit is one big pony ;-)
