Well, it has been several months since my last blog entry. We are well into Winter and new discoveries are being made. My horse Sugar is not a Winter lover. This is our first together as the season turns wet, cold and as Pooh would say 'Blustery'. Perhaps this is why my sage mentor Gina says it takes a full year to know a horse. I am bearing witness to this as the days get shorter, darker and less outdoor friendly. Sugar is not a prissy mare as some are but she is not fond of trudging through slippery mud to find a spot to relieve herself. She seeks shelter from the rain but does not balk at the necessity to sometimes have to walk under showering skies to get a little much needed exercise.
The windy ranch makes new rustling sounds that stir new suspicions in her. She often chooses not to listen to my calming voice. I am sure she is certain that I do not see or hear the dangers in the bushes and trees that she does. Deer scamper through the property seeking their own refuge and she is still adjusting to their presence.
As her hair gets thicker I start to consider the benefits of a horse blanket. So many horse owners are quick to warm there equines even with full Winter coats. I am new at horse ownership so I keep questioning..."Is Sugar cold? Does she need to be blanketed too? Does her body not meet the demand of her comfort by providing her with a warm enough fur coat? I finally quell my own misgivings by purchasing a rain sheet. It is light weight and water proof so at least she will stay dry and thereby also stay warm without negating the effects of her own physical properties. She willingly obliges my silly human worries and wears the sheet without resistence. It is navy and purple.
Horseback riding is not a Winter activity in my mind so it has been several weeks since I have been on her back and may be several more to come. I have no interest in bundling up with hat and gloves and soothing her new found spookiness. Why force the issue for either or us? I want it to be pleasurable for both of us when we ride together. So her Winter days will consist mostly of turnouts and round penning and running the arena track followed by lazy hours of grazing in the ever green pastures. Hopefully Spring will come early as its predecessor did and Sugar and I can resume a more fully engaged exchange between horse and rider. Until then we will slop through the mud and soggy leaf ladden trails that meander through the ranch property as we take our leisure walks past stalled horses and puddled arenas while I continue to say "It's ok Sugar there is nothing over there that will harm you....that's just a deer....that's just another horse" or "That's just another human"..." You are safe and okay with me".
