Love This Boy

We've been just hanging out this last week and a half, enjoying ourselves, since we don't have any tack (my fault, but I'm loathe to begin saddle-shopping), and since the Boy's feet are sore.

Regarding feet, I decided to hold out a while and see if they improve with proper barefoot trimming. If not, I'll do shoes. We don't plan on doing a lot of competition or such, so that's not a big deal. So far he's progressing slowly but steadily--he's 100% on the grass, even if the ground is hard, and today he was only mildly ouchy on sandy gravel, bark chips, the lumpy arena footing, and the rock-hard barn aisle.  Woo! If he stays barefoot that long, I'll put some boots on his Christmas list just in case. ;)

So we are doing groundwork and hand walks, lots of them. The trails are nice and it's a great experience for him. He LOVES them and power-walks along so that I can hardly keep up, if I let him! Put some steering and brakes on and the boy will be a XC machine someday!

Out for a walk

Also introducing some undemanding time, which the boy currently thinks is nothing worth thinking about, but he'll come around. It's always fun to just chill in the pasture with a herd of horses--you really get insight into the herd dynamics and into the personality of the different horses. Today was the first time for that, and while he stared at me for a very long time from behind a few little trees, he didn't decide to come up and investigate. I think I'll be doing that regularly.

Handsome face

We have an official photographer in the Brother, so that's quite nice. :) I've promised him a ride when River's ready, as payment. Haha. The Brother knows how to ride, so it's not too far in the distance!

I leave for two weeks a week from today, so he'll get a long break. Hopefully he's not a crazy herd-bound maniac when I come back. . .