Weather Blues

May I just complain about the weather for a minute? Last week we were finally getting dry again and I was able to ride consistently for like a whole week. Mort and I were getting back into the swing of things and feeling great. I even had time to work Blue a couple times. Things felt good if I ignored the extended forecast. Unfortunately, I stopped being able to ignore it when it started dumping buckets of rain. We even had a tornado and flash flood warning last Friday. That never happens in January in Missouri. WTF, weather? After the sky stopped drenching us with water, it changed to ice, followed by an inch or so of snow. For those of you unfamiliar, snow makes the ground even more wet than rain because it soaks in as it melts. It's basically the difference of taking a shower versus a bath--only one of those gives you wrinkly fingers. Thankfully, the snow mostly melted yesterday as it got to about 40 degrees. But the ground is basically just a mud puddle at this point. We're supposed to get more rain tomorrow, followed by more snow on Friday. Then it stays pretty cold for the foreseeable future. We'll have lows in the single digits with highs hitting 40 if we're lucky. So we're basically going to be bouncing back and forth between frozen mud and mud for a long, long time. Here's to hoping that the weatherperson is wrong. My last ride on Mort was 6 days ago. Blue was worked 5 days ago. I'm actually hoping for some frozen ground this weekend so that we can at least do walk rides and the boys can go out in the pasture. I'll ride on the road a little bit as well, but Mort isn't confident out there yet so they're short adventures. I'm sure the boys are going to be tired of being stuck in the lot. I'm going to be tired of not riding. We'll make it through though. Next winter I'll have an arena that should be a little easier to navigate the wet ground with. We'll add even more rock to the lot so the boys have more of an area to stretch their legs without having to deal with mud. Here's to second winter and just taking it day-to-day.

Lesson Recap

Mort and I started off the year by taking a short trip to where my instructor teaches. It was our first field trip since the show in August (other than moving him home), and it was our first single day field trip since the last time we took a lesson there at the beginning of August. If you remember, that trip didn't go exactly as planned. He was pretty good for our lesson but it took a LONG time and some drama to get him back on the trailer. So, needless to say, I hoped this trip was a little easier on both of us. Mort and I have been hitting the trailer loading practice hard. I hook up every other week or so. He's gotten so comfortable that he just quietly follows me right up. To add some challenge to that, I've practiced in some less than ideal conditions (think noisy neighbors, high wind, etc.). We've had some set-backs, but overall he's gotten more and more confident. I felt like we were ready for an adventure, and I was certainly ready for a heated indoor arena. We set out Saturday morning. Mort followed me right up like a good boy. He was a bit up when we unloaded, but nothing dramatic or scary. He settled in his stall eating his alfalfa while Steven and I unloaded all his gear. Side bar: it's ridiculous how much stuff one horse needs for a one hour lesson off site. He tacked up quietly and we headed to the arena. He's been to this facility several times now, so he's fairly relaxed as long as it's quiet. Thankfully it was just us in there so we were able to warm-up and let him take in the sites on a loose rein. I slowly started to pick him up and play with suppleness and relaxation. The whole goal right now is to keep him relaxed through everything--especially when we leave home. So when he's happy, relaxed, and on the aids, I get to ask for more. If he stays relaxed, I get to ask for even more, but if he gets tense, we drop back down a level of difficultness. This will be my winter/spring training plan since we don't get to ride as consistently with the weather and footing. So we worked our way up slowly. Mort was overall in a great and learning mood. I actually asked if we could call it quits after some great trot leg yield into canter and my instructor agreed. We ended with some stretchy trot and called it a day. It wasn't my full time allotted for the lesson, but I am really trying to focus on his experience more than the training on these field trips. I can train at home for now and it'll all be there as he gets more and more confident in new places. I'm hoping that I can get out at least once more before our first schooling show of the year. We'll see. Mort happily munched on his alfalfa again as we loaded up the trailer. I started to get a bit nervous. Finally it was time to see how Mort would load for me. I walked up, he hesitated. I gave him a second to think and relax. I asked for a step forward and he gave me a couple. I gave him another second. I asked for more forward and he walked right on. Good boy! I was so, so happy with my boy. I can only hope his happy mood for both our lesson and the loading is a good sign on what we can accomplish this coming year. Blue handled being left home alone like a champ. I did lock him in the lot as I've been using the lot as their "safe space". It's where I lock them when I'm riding the other horse and they seem to handle that well. I also gave him a flake of alfalfa to ease his mind and his tummy if he had any nerves. But he never ran or paced that I saw and ate his hay, so I think he was happy enough. This is great since it's likely he'll be left alone when I take Mort to shows/clinics/etc. I'm not above borrowing a horse if needed, but if Blue continues to handle it well that's even better. A good start to the year. Mort was calm and happy for both our lesson and trailering. Blue wasn't worried about being left alone for several hours. The weather has been as nice as you can ask for in January in Missouri. I've got homework and a plan for the rest of winter and into spring. Here's to keeping it all up.

2020 Goals

Horse Show Related: Qualify for Regionals at First Level Show at Regionals at First Level A stretch goal. I'd like to if timing and finances work. Show Second Level Establish half-pass in trot and canter Master walking turn-on-haunches Clean up the walk-to-canter and canter-to-walk transitions Attend 3 shows Rider Related: Continue to work on getting a more even seat and hands Have my instructor out for 6 (or more) lessons Attend 2 clinics Horse Related: Finish the arena Fence in the third pasture Haul out for a trail ride Non-Horse Related: Run 1-2 half-marathons Run a marathon Very much a stretch goal depending on the time commitment and how my physical and mental health handle it Finish the house and move in Continue to work-out 3-4 times/week

2019 Goals

Checking in on my goals now that we're wrapping up the year. Riding-Related: Show 2nd Level This could go either way but I'm putting it out there for the universe to know about it This did not happen. The house and property took up a lot of time, stress/focus, and money. It was a stretch goal anyway. Establish half-pass in trot and canter Within this is haunches-in in trot and canter as well We have it at the walk, and I've started playing with it in the trot. Haunches-in is a hard concept for him. Be able to pick Mort up from a loose rein walk and have him "there" for me This is so much better than where we were at the beginning of the year. I've learned how to do it better and Mort has learned that it's not the end of the world most of the time. Develop Mort's medium/extended trot and canter I feel really good about these at home. We don't have the relaxation at shows to really give his best yet, but they're in there somewhere. Develop a more relaxed "back-up" I'd say we have this now. Establish a walking turn-on-haunches We've played with some really big ones, but I want to actually tackle them under the eye of my instructor Develop a more even seat Forever a work in progress of course, but definitely better than where I was at the beginning of the year. Have more control over which seat bone carries more weight AKA: don't allow Mort's body to dictate my seat as much Yes! Much more aware and quicker about fixing it. Probably won't ever be easy. Develop more consistent hands AKA: an even feel of his mouth on both sides, not allowing one hand to become lazy Much better than where I was at the beginning of the year. Get better about the release of aids so that Mort can become lighter off of them All these rider goals are going to continue to be works in progress, but as long as I'm working on them that's what counts I'd say he's lighter off the aids. It's a combination of things, but I'll give this some of the credit. I was probably only slightly above mediocre at really improving this. Don't allow myself to get frustrated I was really good about this--only having a few rides where my frustration was present. Being aware of this is a big part of why I backed off this fall. There was too much stress in my life outside of horses that I knew it would bleed into my rides if I tried for anything beyond basics. I'm proud of myself for recognizing that and backing off. Have my instructor out for 6 (or more) lessons I think I got 5 lessons in this year. Attend 2 clinics Ideally as a rider, but auditor will also be acceptable I signed up for a couple and they both ended up being cancelled! Hopefully I do better this next year. I did audit one in December. Attend 2 shows Well we went to one recognized show and that was it. I went as a groom to a couple though. Horse-Related: Get Mort consistent about loading with a ramp I want Mort to calmly walk onto all three trailers that I have access to Several of my other goals will rely upon this one We took a few field trips. He's gotten more and more confident about loading. And I've figured out a method that works for us when he doesn't want to load. I plan to practice every couple weeks at home to keep him sharp. Get our property horse They moved out there October 19th! Best feeling ever. The arena is still a work-in-progress, but it's coming along. Non Horse-Related: Run 2 half-marathons I got in two--one in June and one in September. The one in September was my fastest one yet. Run 6-8 miles/day 3-4 times/week Definitely didn't do this. But I ran 3-4 times/week. Now that I'm back in the gym I've also added some weight training. Lose 5lbs And learn how to maintain that weight Oh, this went up and down unfortunately (like it always does). I lose weight then get overconfident about what I need to do to maintain that and it creeps back on. Oh well. I'm healthy and fit and that's what actually matters (or at least that's what I try to tell myself). Work hard on getting our house built and working on our property Still working hard on it. We've got a house and roof and plumbing and duct work and electrical. Interior things are well underway. Hopefully we'll be in sometime in the spring or summer. Plant a small vegetable garden It was planted. And grew a few things. And was severely neglected. I think I need to wait until we're more settled into our lives at the house before I tackle this again.

2019 Horse Spending

I wanted to keep track of my horse spending this year. Several other blogs to it, and I was curious. I didn't come up with a budget or anything, but I wanted to see how my spending compared with others out there. And being financially-minded, to see if there were any areas where I could decrease in the future. It was a very atypical year. I moved Mort three times (two barns and then to the property). I bought a new horse. I also bought hay and equipment for the new barn. Essentially, things were pricey. I definitely did not include the actual costs of building fence and stalls etc. But I did include the "things" that I bought for the barn like buckets, rubber mats, hooks, etc. I definitely didn't go overboard on these things (and I also got most of my mats for free), so it didn't hurt too bad. I did not include Blue's price, but I did include the tack that I bought with him. I broke it down into the following categories: Board, supplements, farrier, misc. equipment, vet/dental, lessons/shows, and trailer. Board: $5456.23--$454.69/month This is by far the biggest category. Which makes sense--horses aren't cheap to take care of. They eat a lot. The barn where I was for the first two months of 2019 only charged $275/month. But when we moved to a much better barn it got bumped to $400/month ($410 in the summer for fly spray). Totally worth it obviously. This also includes the $1800 I spent on hay for the two guys this winter. Since they moved, it is where I put the feed and bedding costs. Thankfully, it's gone down tremendously since they're on 24/7 turnout and Blue doesn't eat much. I'm really interested to see how this compares next year with two horses living at home versus boarding one. Supplements: $1055--$87.92/month Mort's supplements changed a good deal this year, but thankfully the budget for them didn't. He went from an ulcer and hoof supplement to joint, ulcer, hindgut, skin and coat, and hoof. He also gets a bug supplement every summer. Mort turned 10 this year and started showing some age in his joints. Adding the supplement (and a stifle injection) seems to have helped this. I was able to keep the costs under control by using a combo supplement for joint, hindgut, skin and coat, and hoof. I also found a very similar ulcer supplement for significantly less money. I thought about moving him to just ulcer, hoof, and joint after he moved to save some money but I haven't pulled the trigger on that at this point. Blue is currently not on anything--we'll see if that changes next year. Farrier: $965--$80.42/month This really isn't too bad compared to a lot of folks out there. Mort has simple shoes on the front only. He is thankfully not too complicated. My cost went down some when we moved barns. I had to go with a new farrier again when he moved home. The new farrier is even less expensive (not why I chose him), but adding Blue still obviously puts us up a bit. Thankfully, two horses is still less than Mort was with the original farrier so I'm still coming out on top. If Blue ever needs shoes, that will go up though, so we'll see what next year brings. Misc. Equip: $1619.51--$134.96/month I admit that this is the one that I was worst at keeping track of. There are definitely a few purchases that I forgot. It was also a very expensive year with building a house, so I kept this spending to the minimum. I bought supplies for the barn, occasional tack, fly spray, etc. This was not the year for pretty new things--maybe next year or the year after. My list of "wants" is only growing. Vet/Dental: $520.10--$43.34/month That's right y'all, be jealous. To be completely honest, I still haven't gotten the bill for Mort's lameness exam and stifle injection from the summer (though I did remind the vet when she came out to do teeth and fall vaccinations). So I imagine this will at least double. But honestly I'm still not mad about it. Spring and fall vaccinations, floats for both boys, a spring fecal exam, and dewormer throughout the year. Thank goodness for healthy horses and no major accidents. Lessons/Shows: $997.50--$83.13/month This was another category that was low this year. Not only was I aware of spending money on "extra" things, but the time commitment of building is also ridiculous. So, this year was very slow on this front--only one show and a handful of lessons. I did also cut some from this by braiding at the show. Hopefully I will have more time to spend money here next year. Trailer: $216--$18/month Nothing went wrong with the trailer. All we had to pay for was the annual tire/bearing/check-up. We spent a lot on it last year updating the frame and floor. And there are certainly more updates that we want to make, but who knows when Steven will have time for that! Total: $10,829.34--$902.45/month That's a pretty big number, but it could be worse. We'll see if the money I save (if any) on board next year will be replaced with lessons, shows, and equipment. I'll also try to do an even better job keeping track to get a more accurate picture.

Since the Move

Both boys have settled into their new routines. Blue never seemed phased and Mort was overall pretty decent. He was a little scared and spookier the first week or two, but now he's as calm as he usually is. They both seem totally happy on 24/7 turnout. I did find them cold and wet a time or two at the beginning before they learned to go to the run-in, so now I lock them in the lot if it's going to be nasty. Feeding their hay in there has helped them want to hang out as well. I've been able to ride/lunge Mort 3-4 times each week while I work with Blue about twice. This is better than I was expecting. I was worried about winter weather and the shorter days, but I'm making it work. Of course, this means that some days are a quick 30 minute bareback ride before it gets dark, but I'm still happy with that. Mort seems to be holding his fitness well with all the turnout and I even managed to get Blue to lose a little weight. And, most importantly, both boys seem happy with the arrangement. Mort has been stellar since the move. As cheesy as it sounds, I feel like our relationship is even stronger than it was before. He comes out calm and happy (his version of calm) for our rides. He's standing well in the cross ties. He is easy enough to handle that even Steven had no issues taking care of the boys when I was out of town for work. And our rides have just been a blast. I'm having a ton of fun with him. Whether it's me hopping on bareback and walking him in the pasture, or going up to the field and putting in a dressage school, we're really clicking. He's forward but soft and listening. His lateral work has been coming easier and easier (though that haunches-in to the left at the trot is hard still). His transitions are getting stronger and smoother. We may be riding on a slight hill in a 3.5-acre field, but we're killing it. I've got a lesson scheduled this weekend at the indoor where my instructor teaches and I'm really interested to see how it translates. Blue and I are doing well too. He hasn't put a foot wrong (other than stepping on Steven's foot once by accident). He's been pretty steady and easy to deal with. That's about all we did for the first few weeks. I would lunge him or ride him 2-3 times/week. I'd groom him when he got dirty. I'd feed him and give him the occasional treat. We had a good working relationship, but there wasn't a whole lot more. Thankfully, he's started to open up for me more in the last couple weeks. I started playing with some more in-hand work to get creative on getting him worked when it was dark out. And he opened up a bit more for me. Whether it was his version of settling in or it helped him get to know me and my body language a bit more or whatever else, it seems like we know each other better now. I think he probably still has a little more personality to show me when he's ready, but I'm feeling good about where we're headed. Beyond our rides, it just feels great to be the only person for my guys. Even though I still check-in with my horse friends on random decisions, I love being in charge of their daily care and feeding. With me going out twice a day, they get groomed more often than when I was boarding and I monitor every change. I get to just spend more quality time with them and it's the best. Literally every time I feed I just stand there and watch them eat their hay for a few minutes soaking in the peacefulness of it.

Blue

Blue, or Bee B's Blue's Man. Is a 14-year old Rocky Mountain Horse gelding. He was owned by the same woman from 3-13 years of age. Due to financial reasons, she rehomed him to PALS (People and Animal Learning Services, Inc.). PALS is the therapeutic riding center that we leased my old guy, Fred, to while I was in college for his semi-retirement. So I knew they were good people and his old owner was still very involved in his life as well. They were retiring him from being a therapeutic horse after a year for a few reasons. He wasn't a fan of being with so many different people and would occasionally try testing them. Nor was he great with the less able-bodied folks. But, he was still safe and sane which were my goals with my second horse. When I tried him out in late September, I had a blast riding him and never had a moment of feeling unsafe or not being able to trust him. That's big for me, as I almost never trust a horse the first time I ride it. Blue has been trail ridden in several states and been to some big show facilities (including the Kentucky Horse Park. He travels well and settles in quickly. (He travelled like a champ on the six hour drive home.) He's an extremely easy keeper (aka pretty fat right now) and does all of the things that a horse should. I worked did some ground work with him Sunday and lightly lunged him Monday. He was well behaved and definitely does better with a lunge whip. He's very treat motivated and is looking for one at all times. I rode him for the first time at home Wednesday evening and he was a pretty good boy. He definitely wanted to "test" me with being lazy and leaning that shoulder toward the gate, but he was easy to correct and was never actually naughty. I felt good on him and was getting bored riding in the pasture, so I took him to the big field on the hill and he was a good boy out there as well. I see a lot of long walks in his future to try to get him into better shape. We did gait some but I don't feel good doing that for too long of intervals for a while. Short intervals of gaiting and endless walking. If the weather holds, I'm hoping to take him along the county road this weekend sometime. We'll see. So far, I'm happy with my choice and I'm sure he'll only get better as he settles in and gets to know me.