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5/5/02
Tempest's First Ride
The sky was gray, overcast, temperature 43 degrees and Tempest
had arrived at her first LD 25 mile ride in San Jose at the Grant
Ranch.
It was expected she would be restless being tied to the trailer
with Shaq on one side and her on the other. She called, pawed
on the trailer and was acting obnoxious. I hobbled her and it
took maybe an hour for her to figure out that she could make
it easier for herself to stand still. She had been standing quietly
so it was time to do the pre-ride Veting. She did pretty well
even though the Vet was on her tippy toes. The Vet said, "The
start should be interesting". I said, "I will wait
15 minutes after most riders have left." As it turned out
it was 12 minutes after everyone had started.
She returned to the trailer quietly so
I decided not to hobble her. She did ok a few minutes, but she
started pawing. Wrong! So, I put the hobbles back on and gave
her a hay bag. She had been standing quietly and had not pulled
the bobbles tight. Good for her. She also showed in her eye that
she had it figured out , so the light had gone on inside her
head, at least for the time being. I knew she would test at some
point but it looked like we are over the hump.
Hobbling her would not have been a good idea here, if she had
not been hobbled everyday before and after each ride while saddling
and unsaddling. This is a good example where a daily routine
develops a desired habit response. They are a creature of habit.
The untrained observer would probably have been upset with the
antics Tempest displayed. It was not pretty. But, she had to
work it out and thankfully she got it solved. The preparation
at home and knowing that you just have to watch and wait takes
time to learn as a horseman. The interesting thing is that Tempest
never lost any skin. She ruffed some hair on her legs but lost
no skin. Once she showed that she had softened, I went back a
few times to pet, rub, and give her a little treat to eat. She
deserved it.
To be continued............. |
