Life was getting pretty boring in that stall. I'd forgotten how much I hated stall rest. At first it was kind of fun. I got to visit with some different horses and I didn't have to share my hay at all. But I couldn't walk around like I can in the pasture and browse for little bits of grass. I couldn't go out under the trees for my nap. I couldn't take a gallop across the hills. I was just stuck in a dumb old stall and paddock.
My mom came out every day and got me out and that was nice but it wasn't for long enough. I'm used to being out all day and all night. Only getting out for a few hours a day was starting to feel really stupid. She'd groom me, and feed me, and ride me, or walk me around and that was nice. And we'd go play on the tires or the teeter-totter bridge thing and that was fun. We'd go down to the other end of the ranch and she'd let me drink out of the water trough that has the fish in it. I like that one. The fish tickle your nose. I stick my nose deep in the water so it's right up to my eyes and I let the fish swim up to me and nibble on me. It doesn't hurt. They just want to see what you are and it feels funny. I love those fish! I wish we had fish in our water trough.
But I missed my friends and I especially missed my brothers. One day I saw Sparky and his girl walking by and I was so sad! Sparky's girl is nice and later she came in the barn and gave me some carrots and petted me but I was still kind of sad because I wasn't able to sniff Sparky's nose and let him know that I miss him. The paddock has a sort of steep hill at the edge of it so he couldn't come close enough. So I just stood there and looked at him. His girl took a picture. I guess I look pretty pathetic.
I also hated being in that dumb stall because when my mom took me out of it, I had to walk down the aisle with horses on either side all trying to bite my butt! All of them! I'd come out the stall door and I'd get nervous right away because I knew what was coming but my mom would make me stand there while she closed the door and the whole time I'd have my butt clenched up tight, just waiting for someone to bite it. Then she'd ask me to walk and I'd bounce forward so I could get out of there quick and she'd get mad at me! Can you imagine!? Here I was getting my butt bit right to pieces and she expected me to walk nicely down that aisle of rotten, savage, cannibalistic miscreants! It was very annoying. My mom is usually pretty good about understanding what I'm telling her but she's also a stickler for Manners and she said she didn't care if they chewed my butt to ribbons, I better walk nicely and not run her over or I'd be sorry.
To be fair, I never actually did get bit but it was a close thing and it's only because I'm quick on my feet. I'm sure of it. Anyway, it doesn't matter now because my mom came out on Thanksgiving and decided to put me back in the pasture.
It was a windy day but nice. She saddled me up and rode me all over the ranch the way she has been and I was very good, even though I'd been cooped up in a stall and the wind was blowing. I only startled once when a chicken appeared out of nowhere. I'm not afraid of chickens. I like them actually. They make nice sounds and sometimes they came in my stall which I liked because they were company. And sometimes they have baby chickens and they're really cute. There are some babies out there now, just little small fluffy yellow things that make a funny chirp, chirp, chirp noise. So I like chickens. But this chicken just popped out from behind a fence and startled me something awful.
There was a time that I would have bounced sideways and tried to take off running. I don't do that anymore though. For one thing, it's not Manners at all. But for another, I trust my mom. I could tell that she was a little startled too but she wasn't afraid and she was still nice and quiet on my back. So I startled - I couldn't help that - but it was just a quick startle in place. Then I saw it was a chicken and I went right on. I wasn't embarrassed. After all, even my mom was taken by surprise. And I knew I'd behaved well because she pet me and told me I was a Good Girl. So that was all right.
Once we were done, she checked my neck carefully and told me she was going to put me back out with my brothers. She said my neck was healing nicely and she poked it and it didn't even hurt. So she fed me my bucket outside like I usually get it and then brought me to the pasture gate. I was happy to be back in there. I stood by the gate a few minutes just looking up the hill at the herd and then I saw Sparky move away from the others and start toward me. I let out a big whinny and began running toward him and he whinnied in return with his deep, welcoming voice. We sniffed each other all over and squealed a little bit because we were so happy to see each other again. He sniffed my neck carefully and then Dooley came over and joined us and he and I sniffed each other and it was so good to be with them again! Then we all moved off together in our little herd and everything felt right with the world.
So now I'm happy again. Yesterday my mom came out to check on me and I was taking a nap. She walked up to me but I didn't feel like getting up so I just rolled up onto my chest and greeted her with a nicker. She petted me and scratched my withers for a while but she told me I didn't have to get up. She just wanted to check my neck which she did and said it looked fine. She stayed with me for quite a while just petting me and it was really nice. Then she went and said hello to Sparky. Sparky was off in another area of the pasture with Fargo and Fargo's brother and the little Palomino gelding whose name I've forgotten. They're all very nice but they're young and Sparky said he was going to Take Them Under His Wing. I'm not sure why he said that because he doesn't have any wings that I've ever seen but Dooley said that it meant Sparky was going to Show Them the Ropes. Well, I'm not sure what that means either. There aren't any ropes out here. There are a lot of fly masks because people keep putting them on their horses and we all take them off because pasture horses don't need fly masks. That's what Sparky says anyway. He says we should live like wild horses and wild horses don't wear silly masks. One horse has been wearing a blanket the past few days and she looks awfully embarrassed, poor thing. Some of the other horses snicker behind her butt but Sparky said we shouldn't because it's not her fault. It was her person who did it to her.
Anyway, what I think is that Sparky is teaching those young horses how to be good pasture horses like he taught me. He's letting them know where to poop and how to stay warm when it's cold and windy. He's showing them where they can find the best napping and rolling spots and how to stand guard over the herd. Sparky's good at all that stuff and he likes teaching the new horses because he says they need to learn to do things the right way so they don't endanger us by being foolish.
Dooley meanwhile was off being foolish.
So everything is back to normal and I'm glad of it. Hopefully my mom will come out today and we'll have some more nice times.
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