May 24- More MUD +bits Ride 62,63,64

My training journal says:
MUD MUD MUD MUD Beer grain MUD

Cleaning up the grain bucket.

5/16 Ride 62. Rinsed him off decently. Very sloppy everywhere. Finally got the Courbette saddle from Hawaii. Tried it on him and walked without stirrups (I had left them on the old saddle) in the indoor arena. OK fit but pinching withers if he raised his head.


5/17 Ride 63. Outdoor arena with Courbette with homemade tester half-pad (memory foam bath mat cut in half lengthwise). Walk/trot, walk over poles. Sore-footed, definitely from standing in mud so much. Good-natured. Refresher in standing for mounting, turn on forehand, back, whoa. Today preferred front of arena and wouldn't approach the back corner nearest the pasture which is usually a favorite place to stop and watch Beatrice throw a fit that he's gone.


5/19 fed grain in pasture. MUD MUD MUD

5/24 Ride 64. Rinsed legs again, better manners this time. VERY stiff picking up both hind feet, wanted to stretch forward instead. Slipped in the mud? Seems likely. I don't think I can get the horse chiropractor out before the farrier comes on next Friday. Very short easy ride in half-flooded round pen (I will take a shovel to it next time I swear) with bareback pad and new Western bit. Trying to introduce leverage bit but he hated the single-joint mouthpiece and he hated the double-joint copper mouthpiece one today. I should sell them both and buy a Myler... Very fussy and easily distracted, but he has not had a lot of exercise lately with the footing being so awful.

At least the grass is growing nicely, and Sherlock gets to enjoy some hand-grazing as we walk to the barn and back. This picture as about as clean as he ever got this month. And still had mud in his mane.

The best part of the day- snack time

May 9- MUD

We returned from a wonderful but exhausting trip to LA, we drove this time and spent a day in BC with Mom and Mike.

And it was raining. And it has continued to rain all week. And it's likely to snow tonight. Crazy.

galoshgalosh

5/5 Sherlock was allowing the other horses to share the shelter until he saw I had carrots, then he drove everyone off. Lots of grumpy faces but he didn't actually bite or kick anyone. I cannot find my jelly-scrubber mitt. It's a soft rubber grooming mitt that Sherlock loves- I can even get mud off his face with it.  Went to Murdoch's to get a new one and they didn't have any. Went to Saddle Up and they didn't have any. Oh well. Plenty of time.

5/7 Early to work, so went to Foxcreek to get a jelly-scrubber. They were out of them, despite the owner and the clerk and me all staring at the wall of grooming tools willing it to appear. I don't know why we insist on continuing to search when we have looked at every single thing five times already and determined the needed thing is not there.






5/8 Day off work. SO I went to Colorado Tack to get a jelly-scrubber. YES! They had two left in stock and I got them both, so now I have a backup. $4 item and I drove all over the county to get it. Planned to buy some sandbags to improve the pasture drainage, groom and feed. Took one look at the hardware store lines and went home, drank tea and finished reading both Small Favor and The Third Man Factor.

Bea, Max and Sherlock demand carrots

5/9 Bought my first-ever pair of galoshes and went out to the stable with my new jelly-scrubber. Drainage has actually improved, it has cut a channel now and is running off instead of standing water at the gate. Mud at gate might be shovel-able tomorrow. Sherlock was ruling the shelter as usual, but he, Bea and Max all emerged for some carrots.

I got him cleaned up a bit with the awesome powers of the jelly-scrubber, he rubs his face on it quite happily. Still a lot of mud but cleaned up his topline where he's most likely to get rainrot. He really needs his legs rinsed and dried. I hope early next week it will clear a few days and give me a chance to get him totally dry.

A river runs through it today