Ride Along a Nearby Reservoir

'Mr F' is enjoying going out and nothing is ever as interesting as going to new places!

'Lillian' offered to take us over to reservoir whith beautiful walks all around the lake. I myself have never been there for a walk and only ever driven past it, I always thought how beautiful it must be to walk there.  

It was a frosty but beautifully sunny morning. Trailer loading went fine and we got on our way.

'Mr F' was a little steamy when unloading but not actually sweating, which I was pleased to see. Unloading in the car park went well and both 'Kitten' and 'Mr F' were relaxed while waiting for us to get ready.

Much to the amusement of 'Lillian', watching me mount 'Mr F' does something make for comical entertainement. A 5feet tall human trying to get on a 16+hands horse without stirrups can be a little tricky. It helps that I am fairly agile and reasonably balanced ... anything of a little height will do, garden benches, grit bins, stonewalls ... and if it isn't heigh enough I do the rest in a leap. Not always very gracefully I admit but 'Mr F' is very good at standing still - mostly.

The walks around the lake were open for all, walkers, cyclists and horses. We  met plenty of walkers with dogs, children, cyclists and also sheep. Both 'Mr F' and 'Kitten' behaved impeccably. 'Mr F' was marching on proudly, twice the pace as normal and 'Kitten' had a hard time keeping up. He keenly  observed the surroundings, navigated well around icy parts on the path and I am quite sure that he also enjoyed the attention he and 'Kitten' receive from passers by.

There was a bit of excitement when we rode over the actual dam which was then followed by a narrow road with open grass section on a downhill slope on one said and the water on the other side. 'Kitten' was getting a little excited and both were somewhat jogging along for a while, especially as we approached all the boats, making a fair amount of noise while bobbing on the water.

'Kitten' took a while to calm down but was relaxed once more by the time we reached the trailer.

Both 'Lillian' and I are feel that it is important to have the horse in a settled state before loading into the trailer. It is one of the many reasons why I enjoy riding with 'Lillian', there is always plenty of time given to the horse.

"Hurry up and wait!"  Something to put on the wall of every stable and trailer.

It was yet another most enjoyable ride and both I and 'Mr F' are looking forward to our next outing.

'I scratch your back you scratch mine'

While walking the spiritual path encouraged through Aikido, I also seem to be stepping on a more meaningful path with the equine 'crew'.

Rather than constantly having expectations, intentions and thoughts, I am happy with just 'being'.

And so, over the past weeks and months, there have been some interesting observations with the interactions between myself and the equine crew.

In partiuclar of course with 'Kitten' and 'Mr F', as they are together and most of my time outdoors is spent with 'Mr F'.

Some 2 weeks ago I went about with my usual mucking out routine, the evening one being less work so I have more time to groom and attend 'Mr F'.

Upon entering the stable equipped with broom etc, 'Mr F' came straight to me and began lifting his back leg giving me a clear hint that he's got that itch again, somewhere back there.

It can take a while until I find the right spot, which is very clearly displayed in 'Mr F's multitude of grimasses, from ears pinched back in frustration because I cannot find the right spot to shivering in sheer extasy when I found the spot. This time I noticed 'Kitten' watching us intently.



I was still massaging 'Mr F', when I heard very quiet hoovesteps (all barefoot) behind me but continued with 'Mr F''s massage. Suddenly I could feel this warm air down my neck ... shortly followed by 'Kitten's lips who now were gently nibbling my neck, moving upwards and all over my skull sending tingles down my spine from the sensation. She was so very gentle, not once did she use her teeth. (something 'Mr F' has yet to learn!)


And so, while 'Kitten' was grooming me, I was doing the same to 'Mr F' who in turn now started to groom 'Kitten'. 

If I stopped scratching 'Mr F', he too would stop. I was obviously now included in some kind of friendly grooming ritual.

And so, the next half hour or so we spent grooming each other. In fact I received the most wonderful back massage from 'Kitten.

At the end I was stunned that something so simple and pure would take me more than 2 years to take place.

This grooming routine is now a regular thing, sometimes a matter of just a few minutes, sometimes for longer. No matter where, in the stables in the morning or during daytime when I have a moment to go and visit them. 

And I get an excellent back massage!

Once more over the hills and away

To liven up the horses a little, we decided to take them somwhere different in the trailer.

'Mr F' hasn't been out in the trailer since he had that fall inside the trailer, due to the driver doing an emergency brake, resulting in both me and 'Mr F' falling. I was luckily with him in the trailer because the first part of the journey (just up the road) was just 'Mr F' on his own. I didn't want him to panic inside the trailer and so I went with him. This is another piece of the story that I yet have to convert into a blog post when I have time.

This was back in August I think or even before and since then he hadn't been near a trailer. 

'Lillian' suggested a trip to a lovely spot nearby which we had been before and I remember it to be most pleasant with plenty of views and changable terrain, such as open fields, dark woods etc.

I was hoping the change of scenery would bring back some life into 'Mr F'.

Trailer loading went surprisingly well considering his last experience. There was a little hesitation at first but I found the best way to get him into the trailer is to lead him towards the ramp purposefully yet relaxed and when the point comes where he likes to stop and pretend that he is 'thinking about it', just ignore it and continue. He immediately follows willingly. This workes almost every time.

'Kitten' too was OK with the loading. 

The trip to our start point went well. 'Mr F' was a little sweaty when unloading but nowhere near as much as he used to. We tacked up and went on our way.

At first there was a good distance on the road and both were a tad excited so there was much jogging going on. But eventually both calmed down.

'Mr F' was full of beans and really enjoyed it. His body movement was smooth and free. As I ride with just a bareback pad, I can feel what is going on underneath me in some detail.

We went over open fields and eventually came to a large wooded area. 'Lillian' knew the area quite well and suggested we would go off the bridle path and follow some tracks into the woods. It was great!

There were narrow passages, there were tree roots and big rocks, there was mud and big puddles, and 'Mr F' really loved it all! He was very clever with placing his feet so that he didn't slip and slide around and it didn't bother him when I had to hold on to his neck while we ducked under the branches. He was very pleased with it all and had a great time.

'Kitten' meanwhile was not all that sure but decided to tag along. I too loved that bit in the woods just as much as 'Mr F'.

The last bit of the ride was a long uphill bit of old road and when we reached the top, 'Kitten' was getting a little tired. 'Mr F' on the other hand was still full of it and marched on, keenly observing anything.

In total it was about 5 miles and it took us about 2 hours ... including fiddling around with gates without dismounting (it was so muddy!). All good exercises for both horse and rider. It was a very leisurely ride, lots of walking and a little trotting but plenty of exploring.

Loading up went well, although 'Kitten' had to think about it a little harder.

The trip home went well too, not too much traffic. Surprisingly, 'Mr F' wasn't sweating on the way home, in fact he had dried out by the time we arrived. 

He was certainly pleased with himself and I was pleased too.

Quality Time Is Important

After that bandage incident 'Mr F' just wasn't quite the same. I cannot possibly describe what I mean, it just was 'in the air'. 

He did seem a little 'down trodden' as well and sometimes just stood in the stable, staring into a corner. Something I hadn't seen him before. 

In my head I went through all the possible causes, appart from that incident with the bandages. 

This is when it suddenly occured to me that I hadn't been spending as much time with him as I used to. We didn't spend any 'quality' time together. Our time together over the past months had been either either mucking out, doing hoof maintenance or grooming and the odd ride. I was pre-occupied with other matters.

'Mr F' doesn't react well to harsh words or rough treatment, in the rare situations I should foolishly choose this option as a last resort he quickly makes me understand that this is not 'how things are done' and closes down, refusing to co-oporate until I come up with the right method. 

And looking back it is usually the best method and one that works with other horses too.

'Mr F' is a horse that needs living beings around him. If its a human, than he will make sure for some time that he trusts that person. He may look placid and willing, but you get on the wrong side of him and you'll know. 'Mr F' isn't an 'cuddly' horse, his way of showing affection (and horses do do that) is not so much through touch but more through being close. The only exception is our grooming routine (you scratch my back, I scratch yours). Most of the time when I go to say hello in the field, he comes up and prefers to just stand next to me, his nose very close to my face, side by side. That's all that is needed.

Then we have 'Kitten' who is showing a great deal of her affection by nibbles my neck and skull with her lips. Its her morning greeting. 

So, having come to realise that I was somewhat neglecting 'Mr F' mental well being by not spending the right kind of time with him I had to change. 

Yesterday evening I went to muck out and while I was in the stable, 'Mr F' sort of turned away from me and just stood there, hanging his head, giving a very depressed appearance. Out of impulse I went to place my hands on his body, not thinking but to just feel with my hands 'Mr F's body. I felt the hair of his coat, his ribs, his gentle breathing, the warmth, his scent. It was very peaceful and I felt my palms become very warm. I don't know for how long i did this but at some point my housemate came out to check if I was OK as it was now dark and I apparently had been out here for some time.

I put 'Mr F's' rug back on and stood with him for a while before going indoors for food and sleep.

The next early morning when I went to muck out, his eyes had 'opened up' again, he was no longer distant. We went on a ride with 'Lililan' later that afternoon and I noticed that he was moving much better and 'Lillian' noticed it too.

It appears we are once more reading off the same page.