Outsmarted

Yesterday was Easter. That's what my mom said, anyway. She told me that's the day the Easter Bunny comes and gives treats to small people and hides pretty colored eggs for them to find. I don't really understand any of that but it sounds kind of nice. I love treats, and I love Bunnies. They're small and they look soft. I see Bunnies around here sometimes. They're little brown animals with fuzzy white tails and they kind of hop around in the grass and eat, and then they sort of sit up and look around and sometimes they run off again. They're cute. One time I saw a Bunny outside my paddock in the grass near the Flat Arena and I was wishing it would come closer so I could sniff noses with it but it didn't. My mom says that some racehorses have their own pets to keep them company and that some of them have dogs, and some of them have goats, or cats, or other horses but if I was a racehorse, I'd want a Bunny.

Anyway, yesterday when my mom came I had just gotten my dinner hay so she let me eat for a while before we did anything. I like it when she does that. I'm so hungry by the time I get my hay that I get pretty upset if I have to leave it right off. She always lets me eat at least a little bit so I have something in my tummy. It helps me pay attention to her instead of thinking about my hay.

When she did take me out, all we did was go for a walk. I like walks and I've been a pretty Good Girl on our walks but after I got loose the other day, I kind of got the idea in my head that I could do that whenever I wanted to. The other day after our work in the Round Pen, my mom was bringing me back to the barn and we were just getting close to the grass when she led me under the roof thing along the front of the stalls. I knew then that she wasn't going to let me eat grass and that made me mad! Even though the guys cut all the grass the other day, there's still some short grass left and I thought I ought to be able to eat some. I'd been a Good Girl in our workout and I'd behaved on our walk and it didn't seem fair that I couldn't have some grass.

So all of a sudden, I rushed forward and across the front of my mom toward the grass. I timed it so she was right next to one of those pole things that hold up the roof. I thought it would work just like the tree worked down by the Pony Arena and she'd have to let go of me and I could go have grass. I wasn't really trying to be bad. At the time, it didn't seem that bad. It just seemed fair.

But she was too quick for me and she grabbed my halter next to my face, dug her elbow into my neck and made me turn my head. Once that happened, my body kind of had to follow and instead of going into the grass, I just got dragged around in a circle. She was mad! She told me, "NO, Bella!" and then made me walk forward again. Well, I was mad too! So I just lunged in front of her again!

For the next little while, we had a pretty good argument about it. She kept walking me up and down that aisle, asking me to walk straight and to stop when she told me to and I kept trying to rush toward that grass and drag my lead out of her hand. Every time, she pulled me around and made me go forward again and every time, I'd try my trick with a few changes to try to catch her off guard. It got pretty wild.

Finally, we were walking along with me pulling left and her forcing me straight and she asked me to stop again. I fought her but I ended up doing it, not because I was being good or wanted to do what I was told but because I was trying to buy some time and maybe fake her out. I thought if I stopped, she might relax her hold and then I could take off again. But before I could do it, and as soon as I stopped, she said, "Good Girl!" in that happy voice she uses when I'm really, really good - and she gave me a cookie.

Well, that was a surprise and it messed me all up. I mean, I was obviously not going to get to the grass without a major battle and even if I did, she'd probably just pull me off it before I got more than a couple of bites. On the other hand, if I behaved myself and did what she wanted me to do, there was a chance I might get another cookie. I really like cookies.

The hard part was that I hated to give up now. I really like to get my way and it felt like I was backing down to behave after all the effort I'd put into being bad. By this time, she'd asked me to walk on again and I hadn't fully made up my mind what I was going to do. She asked me to stop again near my stall and I sort of lurched to a stop, pulling a bit but not so bad as I had before and, sure enough! Another cookie.

Well, that sort of took the wind out of my sails. I started behaving after that. I didn't get a cookie every time but the thing about that is, you know you might get one so you try really hard to be good enough for it to happen. By the time my mom put me to bed, I was walking pretty well up and down that stupid aisle and I'd stopped rushing for the grass entirely.

Yesterday, we worked on that whole thing again. First my mom walked me down the road, then she walked me some in the Flat Arena (and let me roll - that was nice) and then she walked me up and down that aisle a few times. At first I sort of half-heartedly tried my trick but she was ready for it so I gave up and walked pretty well and stopped when she told me, and I got some cookies for it which was really nice.

It just goes to show, my mom's pretty smart. And I'll do about anything for a cookie.