What's funny, is from reading many of your blogs, this weekend there must have been an air carried memo to all horses to be on their sweetest behaviour. Well, Laz, certainly got that memo.
Lazarus was a DREAM from start to finish.
The day was supposed to be rainy, but like the typical weatherman, they say one thing and the opposite happens. Thankfully, it was an amazing Fall day, 70 degrees, sunny and just a little breezy.
I went out with such high hopes praying that Laz would be of similar mind set.
I called to him when I pulled up and parked and he spun and nickered with such delight that I thought "Yes!!"
He is looking like a sweet Teddy bear lately with his winter coat coming in, and I was a little worried about working him in this warm weather. However, this boy is in SHAPE. He barely will sweat even after an hour of work. Now, I know we aren't in major work mode, but even still, he's in great shape.
I started out hand walking him and he was much calmer in the arena than last time. He spooked a couple times, but it was more of a worried, rush out of the scary corners but he never yanked his loose lead, so it was very minor. Good boy!! Again, I don't mind if he shows he's concerned and wants to move, just keep it more controlled, which he did.
I decided to bridle him up in our bitless and ride.
Way too nice of a day to not.
He was a dream-boat-lover gelding!
Every small leg aid, he responded to. He was moving so nicely and trotting out and stretching out his neck, happily grunting and snorting the whole way. Ears were pricked but gaggled back and forth lazily.
The BO brought in a few of her horses (one at a time) for some ground work, so I took that opportunity to work around them and encourage Laz to focus on me. Go Team Laz.
He did great! No jigging, no anxious behaviour. A couple times he was focused on Ellie, the 2 yr old, when she cantered around and he snaked his neck a bit but I was able to bring him back with a couple of half halts and leg, and we continued our work!
Lots of trotting circles and serpentines and diagonals, etc. It was a pretend dressage day-bitless and bareback. It that ghetto dressage? Well, we were rocking it. We rode for about 50 minutes and I could have gone another 2 hours but I purposely kept my jacket on to gauge how warm Laz would be in his thicker fur. We walked for about 10 minutes and I hopped off wanting to scream to the world...THIS IS MY DREAM HORSE!! He was just SUCH a gentle boy, eager to work, but kept a cool, calm head all day.
I took him inside for some nose wiping (don't you think it keeps the bacteria away, thus a healthier horse?!), some holistic EEE nosode meds, carrot treats and the daily ointment of random wounds. He stood like a seasoned rock. He nuzzled. I really think, it was a day, where he felt proud of himself, content and loved.
I would like to order about 364 more of these days please!!! :)
Sorry no pictures...I was just in the moment of bliss and enjoying it for myself.
Don't ya just love those days when you & your pony are both just in tune with eachother and having a great time?! There's nothing like it. :-)
ReplyDeleteOh, and I just recently learned that walking is THE best thing for building pony muscles (well, an active, swinging walk, that is) -- so, even if he might not be ready to do a 100-mile endurance race, I'm sure all the walking has done him a world of good.
Woooohooo, Team Laz!
It was so lovely yesterday here. I had to take my sweatshirt off when I was riding and Indigo has been on her best behavior all summer and surprisingly fall too!
ReplyDeleteYou know that horses do not sweat more/less because they are more/less fit like humans do. They sweat the same amount regardless of their conditioning. If a horse is being worked hard and stops sweating it's a cause for concern because anhydrosis is a very serious medical condition in horses. Some horses just sweat more than others. It takes me a lot to get Indigo sweated up yet I can do half of that work with say, Sheba and she would be twice as sweaty.
This was so nice to read...thank you for sharing it...no photos necessary...as I can 'see' you both! Hard to miss your 1,000 watt smile! Happy Trails!
ReplyDeleteHow great!! There really must have been some memo going around, Honey got it too. It was brisk and very windy and I free lunged her in the pasture with no areguments or attemps to run off. In fact when it came time to ride she was a total plug (not that I'm complaining now)!
ReplyDeleteI think it's better that you cut it short and ended on a good note, that is likely to stick with him "being a good boy = less work". Oh, and I haven't forgotten about your DVD's eiter... I just havne't made it to the post office yet, these darn 12hour days are getting in the way of my free time. I'm throwing an extra one in, though I doubt you need it- it's riding with the correct seat position. Anyway, they should be there soon.
Yes! Tucker definitely got that memo! They must all be happy that it's fall, I think it's the best season for a horse... the weather is cooler, the grass isn't all gone yet, and the bugs are gone. So glad you had a great day with your boy!
ReplyDeleteYess! I had a barrel racing show this weekend and my horse was ah-maz-ing. It makes me so happy when horses are nice. ;) I'm so sick and tired of grumpy, mean, unresponsive horses that it was nice for my horse to turn angelic for once. Seems like Missy got the memo! ;)
ReplyDelete~MunciEquestrian~
Hmmm, yes, this all sounds very familiar:) :)
ReplyDeleteIn our case, the great ride this weekend carried over to tonight when he was a gem as well. I hope the same for you and Mr. Laz. Go Thoroughbreds! :)
I deleted my own note! What? I wrote to say that Laz IS very dreamy--something you have known all along! My horse too is getting all teddy bearish. I do love it when the woolies come in.
ReplyDeleteHooray for a great Laz. I knew you would see your Wonder Pony again. It is always like that, a scary session is followed by the most amazing gentle giant ever. Kristen, I think it is a great idea to gauge his workouts by your heat factor - or your fitness factor. I don't know much about the over heating and winter coats, but I do know a lot about people working out their horses too hard, too quickly, too sporadically. It is my pet peeve. As a runner, I work out (myself) slowly and at my current fitness level and consistently. Therefore, that is what I do with my horses. I see people who couldn't run for 10 minutes themselves start their horses trotting in 2 minutes out of the barn and then they canter and trot for 30 minutes (OR MORE!) and then put the horse away for three days or until the next weekend. This is cruel and injury inducing at any age. Take it slow! Walk a ton, and if you can't be consistent (every day or every other day at the very least) then keep it easy and short! Be fair and honest - what can you do? Would you be sore the next day if you worked out for 1 hour? Our sweet horses deserve as much consideration. Just because they are bigger than us does not mean they are necessarily ready for a huge workout. And spooky/naughty behavior doesn't always equal extra energy - it could mean "ouch -you keep making me do something that hurts". Anyway, if it is extra energy, walking cures that too without extra stress.
ReplyDeleteGlad Laz was the sweet angel you know he is!
Awwww sounds like such a fantastic day! I don't blame you for the pictures. This morning I went out onto the lease land to walk with my husband and Aslan. Of course Chrome had to come play too (by chasing the dog). He was galloping around being silly and looking totally gorgeous and I was so upset that I didn't take my camera with me. My husband told me to stop worrying about it and just enjoy the moment! Oops I forgot hehe. So yeah don't worry about not taking pictures on the perfect days, just enjoy them. :)
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