Trail riding horse

Well, it was hot again today but not quite as bad as yesterday. There was more of a breeze for one thing. That helps a lot. It keeps the flies down a little and it makes it easier to breathe. Even so, my mom came out early and I was glad she did.

I got in trouble right off the bat because I was being sassy to my new neighbor when she got there so when she opened my door, I stuck my head out with my ears back and my teeth bared. I didn't really mean to sass my mom; I was just still in the moment. She gave me her mad look and made the Bad Girl noise and I knew I'd messed up. So I poked my nose at her nicely to let her know I was sorry.

My stall was pretty messy, I'm afraid. When Kia left and I got anxious about having an empty stall next to me, I started pooping inside and stomping it all up. Now that there's a horse in the stall, I'm pooping outside again but I like to pee near the wall inside so she knows it's MY stall. It's important for horses to mark their boundaries. Mom cleaned up all the wet shavings but it didn't leave me very much and the guys hadn't left any outside for me. I wasn't looking forward to spending the night on such a light bed. I like to lie down in my stall. Some horses don't lie down that much but I do. It's comfy.

Then she groomed me and got me ready for a ride. She'd gotten a bucket of water earlier and now she took a sponge and wiped my chest and neck and my butt with water. That was nice and it helps keep me cool when we ride. Then she got my saddle pad out of my door and put it on my back and I just jumped right out of my skin!

There must have been a horsefly or bee on me when she put it on my back and as soon as the pad hit it, it bit me. Made me jump awfully and I yanked back against my halter which startled me too. Mom quickly said, "Whoa, Bella, easy!" and slipped the pad back off. I stopped pulling as soon as she spoke but I was still jumpy and when she reached out to touch me, I kind of jumped again. It was just so unexpected getting bit like that and I wasn't really sure what had happened.

She talked quietly to me again and slowly petted my neck then worked down along my shoulder to my back and flank. I was okay then. I knew she wasn't going to hurt me and she felt me all over and made sure I was okay. The stupid bug hadn't bit me anywhere the saddle was going and it didn't hurt anymore anyway - it had just startled the heck out of me.

She picked up the saddle pad and checked it carefully then slowly put it on my back again and it was fine. I felt a little silly making such a fuss but she wasn't mad or anything. She understands me pretty well. She finished saddling me with no more problems and then we headed out to ride.

I wasn't feeling particularly like doing anything. Even though it was early and not as hot as it would be, it was still hot enough for me to feel lazy. We rode around the Flat Arena a couple of times then she steered me out on the road and I figured we'd do poop loops. I didn't even really feel like that. I was walking pretty slowly and just poking along. Mom kept after me with her legs to move along better and I stepped it up a little bit but my heart wasn't really in it. We went into the Little Rolling Arena but even there I didn't get very lively.

We did a few circuits of that and then she rode me up to the regular Rolling Arena and we rode in there for a little bit. It was nicer in there. It has a roof so it was shady and there was a nice breeze blowing through it. I perked up a little bit and walked faster but I wasn't in any mood to do much more. Mom didn't try to make me though she did insist I walk along and not dawdle. Then she said, "Heck with this, Bella - let's go out on the trail. Maybe that will wake you up."

I was only half paying attention to her and didn't catch on to what she was saying until she rode me out of the arena on the side by where the Farm Horses live and pointed me through the gate and up the hill. Suddenly the day got a lot more interesting to me. I like going out on the trail. I haven't been for a long time but it's always fun. There's so much to see out there and Mom sometimes lets me run and I love that! I perked right up and we started walking up the first long hill.

It's a big hill. Mom always helps me by leaning forward on hills and giving me plenty of rein so I can put my neck down and really use my shoulders. That helps but I prefer to trot or better yet canter up them. I get to the top faster plus it's fun. So about halfway up, I broke into a little trot and she just leaned forward and let me so I quickly turned it into a canter.

We had a great canter up that hill! I love cantering uphill because you can just push off with your hindquarters and launch yourself up it. Mom likes it too, I can tell. The only wrinkle in the thing was that she hadn't tightened my girth the last notch and I could feel it slipping a little but it wasn't too bad. Once we stopped, she checked it and pulled it up and it had only gone back a little way. It wasn't uncomfortable or anything.

I was a little out of breath when I got to the top so she let me stop and blow for a couple of minutes. Then I realized we were out of my familiar surroundings and got a little nervous. I love it out on the trail but it makes me a little anxious too. I'm not used to being out there and it gets me excited but also a little spooky. There was a big pile of dirt and rocks near us that I thought looked like it might be hiding something and when we started walking again, I got pretty close to it and then shied sideways pretty hard when I thought I saw something move in it.

Mom straightened me out and reassured me but I was still pretty light and heads-up as we moved onto a part of the trail that led through a wooded section. It was kind of narrow and spooky and I tried to trot there but she wouldn't let me. Sometimes I just want to go fast so I can get through the scary parts and sometimes I want to go fast because it's fun. Sometimes I want to for both reasons.

The narrow part ended suddenly and we were out in the open on top of a hill that overlooks the whole farm. I could see the barns and pastures below and in the other direction I could see long rows of bushes where the guys work sometimes. Mom calls them vineyards. They have short bushes all lined up in row after row. They don't look that good to eat but I'd try them because you never know. The trail runs next to the vineyards which are behind a fence and it goes into the hills and all over the place. Mom headed me in that direction.

Even though I like being out there, I was hesitant to go. It's scary when there are no other horses with you. A lone horse is always in danger; Sparky told me that. He knows an awful lot about herd life so I trust him. I've come out with him before and it's a lot better because you have company. My mom is good company and she does understand me pretty well but she's not a horse even so. But she let me stand still and sniff the air and look around before she finally asked me to go on. it seemed okay so I did.

We rode along near the vineyard and came up to a gate. I remembered the gate. Beyond it, the trail forks in several directions and we've gone in all of them at different times. The picture shows what it looks like there but it doesn't show the trail we took because it's in the other direction. It goes around in a little circle and comes out again further down the hill above the farm.

While I was standing by the gate looking around, a man came down one of the trails on a strange contraption that Mom calls a bicycle. It's a narrow little thing with two wheels and the person sits between the wheels and makes his legs go around and around while the thing rolls. It's very strange and I don't know why anyone would roll along on one of those things when they could get themselves a good horse. I have seen some of them go really fast but I think I could go faster than any of them.

This one wasn't going fast at all but we let him go by and then followed. I was okay at first, walking along at a good clip and Mom kept talking to me, telling me how good I was being. Pretty soon though, I got a little jumpy. I couldn't see around the corners and I kept wondering if another bicycle or a horse would suddenly come zooming around one of them. I started pulling a little bit and tried to trot again but Mom just sat down deep and told me we were walking and that settled me down briefly. Not for long though - I got anxious again and kept pulling. I just couldn't help it.

Then we came around a corner and could see a long stretch of trail ahead. That was better. I still wanted to trot but more because it seemed like fun. Mom still didn't let me but she did loosen up her reins so I could walk faster and I was good about not taking off. At the end of that stretch, there was a sharp turn and the trail went down a steep hill. About halfway down, I knew where I was because I could see it came out at the top of the hill near where my old barn is. That made me feel a lot more confident and I clopped down the rest of the hill feeling pretty good. There was a gate at the bottom that was kind of narrow but Mom held it open and I went right through without knocking her knees on the sides and she told me I was a Good Girl.

Now we just had one hill to go down to get back on the farm and it was one I'd been up and down enough to recognize it. I stepped right out down it in a rolling fast walk and I could feel Mom on my back rolling with me. It's so nice to be able to walk downhill without it hurting! Before the Carrot Doctor fixed me, I had to wiggle an awful lot to get down a hill. Now I could run if Mom would let me but she won't.

We rode the rest of the way home with Mom telling me how good I'd been and I felt pretty good. It was a nice little ride and I'd worked up a good sweat. I was proud of myself for behaving out there and not being scared or too bouncy. Mom was very happy with me, I could tell. She unsaddled me and washed me down with some stuff called Vetrolin. It smells funny but good and it feels really nice after a long ride. Then she put me in my stall while she wiped off my tack. I peed and had a drink then went outside to rest.

After a little while, I heard her car and there she was driving right up next to my stall. Turns out she'd gone and gotten two bags of shavings down by the Little Rolling Arena. She gave me my bucket dinner and cleaned out the pee in my stall then dumped out the shavings so I had a nice bed after all. I should have known she wouldn't leave me with no shavings.

It was a really nice day.