Rags and I had a fine ride this afternoon. It was clear, cool, breezy, and he was in the mood to show off his stuff, I think. While riding around in the north horse lot to give R- time to get to the gate into the Near Meadow, Rags indicated he wanted to speed up. I gave him a nudge and we had a few strides of trot, a fairly uncertain jog-trot, but a clear two-beat gait for maybe ten yards. Oho, I thought. It’s a good day to see if he can produce that on the trail. We went up the east trail to the Dry Woods, west along the front, and to Rags’ surprise turned right around a live oak canopy (it comes down to the ground) and headed north on the inside angle of the Dry Woods to the North Fence. He’s been on this part of the trail twice, going the other way, but since horses need to process things from both sides, it was at least partly new to him. No hesitation, although he did look into the woods as if expecting something to leap out. Nothing moved there today, but deer do bed down in the west part of the Dry Woods fairly often. At the View Corner I turned him left, downslope, on the trail we’d come up a week ago. He felt uncertain, though he kept moving until we came to the pile of poop he’d left there a week ago, going the other direction. He stopped short, leaned down to sniff, and then decided he couldn’t go on and wanted to turn back.
Could have been any of several things: he remembered he’d gotten home the other direction before, or a predator had “marked” the pile and he smelled the predator, or just ‘This is far enough, I want to go home now.” We had one of our low drama disagreements and then he walked on the way I wanted. When we got to the bottom of the trail, the open mowed area he’s now been in several times, he cheered up. I stopped him, and he got a cookie, and stood there until I asked him to walk on. (My long-term plan is that he’ll get a treat at the farthest extent of any hack, as well as one at the end. He then went willingly on the N/S trail to the South Fence–another left turn, plus the winding trail itself. A big loud helicopter from Fort Hood flew over us, but he ignored that. Yay. We crossed Center Walk, and went on to the south. This time after the left turn I took him on the south side of Cloud Pavilion, close to it (he wasn’t sure about that but he went), and on back east toward the Near Meadow and the Old Ditch. There’s a long straight stretch, mowed wide enough to see if there’s anything to worry about, and since he knew he was headed home he was walking very briskly. So I nudged and asked him for a little trot, and got it, again not for a long stretch and not a particularly strong trot, but it was a trot. We crossed the ditch at a grassy place, angled across the Near meadow (avoiding the picnic grove but passing near it, and finally through the gate back into the north horse lot.
His small trot is both quick and a little uncertain—he’s not used to the feel of someone posting in that saddle (and I don’t know if his original trainer posted at all.) It’s an easy trot to sit, as you’d expect from his conformation and probable breeding, and it doesn’t give much upward impetus in posting. We trotted a couple of short stretches, then were too close to the end of that straight area, so no more trotting today. Interestingly, just before he trots, his already quick walk shifted for a moment into what almost felt like one of the lateral 4-beat gaits. VERY comfortable. At the moment, his trot under saddle isn’t steady and “forward” but tentative, unlike his walk. He has more muscle than he did back in December (I can see it in his shoulder, hindquarters, and gaskins) but given his hock formation I’m not sure he’s ready for long periods of trot. Our ground is HARD when it’s not muddy. I’m asking for trot only on well-grassed sections of trail where the grass isn’t pedestaled (less chance to trip.) The total distance today was something over a mile, so covering it in 20 minutes meant he was averaging at least 3 mph…in spite of four halts (one of his volition, 3 of mine).
After the ride he was warm under the saddle, just about to show some sweat. I untacked him, palpated his back, did an after ride grooming, including of course picking out his hooves, and he got a couple of cookies. (So did Tigger, head over the gate from outside the barn, watching Rags get all the attention…so he had to be recognized and admired and fed a couple of horse cookies, too.) Then I hayed them (Rags spent some time at the water tub before going out to eat hay) , shut them out so I could do their evening feeds, let them back in when I had mixed and wetted the feeds and put the bowls where they go. Then let them in.
I’m pleased with the way Rags seems to be learning some things, though not as much with his failure to acquire some other behaviors I want. But after all…I haven’t been able to ride every day, or near it, since I got him, or even since he was trimmed after that long hiatus. It’s been a long time since I rode a horse this green with the intent of bringing one on. He IS progressing, and it’s clear he’s going to be a confident horse out in the open (some aren’t, if they’ve been confined too much in stalls and arenas.) He can spook big, though his common alarm leads to a very small spook. He can decide not to cooperate, but he changes his mind with firm, but nonabusive persuasion. My increasing confidence that he’s not going to buck, bolt, rear, bite, or kick is leading to his increasing confidence that I know what I’m doing and he’s safe doing what I ask.
It’s supposed to be sunny tomorrow, Tuesday, and maybe Wednesday morning, then stormy through Thursday, and maybe Friday, and sunny on Saturday, if not Friday. So tomorrow’s another planned ride, this time back to the East Grass, making a similar loop around the whole thing. With some more trotting, but still not much. (Of course, plans may not survive contact with other things…like the arrival of new solar panels…but we’ll find out.)