Wizard Rides/Sessions 376- 381: Weird Fishes

Tuesday, 7/3/12

After work, Jon and I drove to the barn and took Wizard for a hike. We walked for about 2 miles, down to the lake and back. Wizard played in the lake, as he likes to do, and I can only assume a fish nibbled at his feet, and he LEAPT straight into the air. It was hilarious. It looked kind of like the drawing above. I could not stop laughing, and Jon was a little horrified.

Wednesday, 7/4/12

After Kris’ riding lesson, Kris and I took Wizard and Sunny out in the Assunpink for a trail ride. We rode up the “bowling pin” hill, and were just starting a little trot set when we came across people taking their dogs out for a hike. We passed them on the trail, and Wizard was a little funny about it. Sunny took over as leader and was happy to pass them. Wizard then realized that everything was okay and went back to being himself. He’s usually fine with dogs, so I’m not sure what got into him. We walked down to the lake, and the horses got to take a drink and paw around for a little bit before we took them home. I’m fortunate to board at the barn where there are not a lot of firework-loving neighbors, and the horses all were fine with the Fourth of July festivities.

Thursday, 7/5/12

This week, the air just got hotter and hotter with each passing day. Mom and I took Wizard for a hand walk later in the day. We walked to the lake and then explored the Horse Park of New Jersey. I was glad I was not riding him, because he was pretty energetic. I was able to longe him for just a few minutes on the side of a field, and it seemed to help him settle. On all our previous rides in the Horse Park, he has gotten pretty excited, so I was thrilled that he was better on Thursday. He was in a nervous sweat, though, so we did not stay too long. We probably walked about 2 1/2 miles.

Friday, 7/6/12

I got to the barn later in the day, did a quick photo project, and went out for a short trail ride with Bailey the Thoroughbred and his owner. This is Bailey:

I was interested to see how the two horses would feel about each other since they are similar in personality. Bailey is a taller, more substantial horse, but has a lot of the classic Thoroughbred personality. We rode down the road and onto the other side of the Assunpink, down into the long fields near the Horse Park. We were out for about 40 minutes. Wizard was pretty good, but got anxious for some legs of the journey because he walks a lot faster than Bailey does. I was able to rate his walk and circle back to keep close to them, but Wizard was chewing nervously on the bit for a lot of the walk. I was pleased, though, that he went out with a gelding instead of a mare and not one of his usual “friends” and did reasonably well.

Wizard was separated from Sunny today, and spent most of his time running across his paddock and whinnying. I know it will take time for him to settle down, and I’m watching him like a hawk in the meantime to make sure he does not get hurt or dehydrate himself. Ahhh, the life of a neurotic horse owner owning a neurotic horse.

Saturday, 7/7/12

HOT. HOT. HOT. Wizard has taken to sulking in the corner of his paddock where he can see Sunny the best. I took Wizard on a hand walk with Christie and Brigid. We went around a similar loop to the one I took with Bailey and his owner the day before. We added another field into the walk. By the time I got back to the barn, I was a sweaty mess. Hooray, fitness!

Sunday, 7/8/12

A series of strong thunderstorms twisted their way through Monmouth County, and there were several branches down at the barn. Christie and Brigid went out for a ride with me and Wizard. It was the best ride we’ve had in a while! Wizard was super-responsive, and settled in really nicely through the new back fields by the Horse Park, as well as when we rode through the Horse Park itself. We walked around all the big cross-country jumps, around the perimeter of the field, and up and down “Cardiac Hill”. Over all the hills, Wizard was fantastic. He followed my cues to walk instead of jogging up or down. The big cross-country field normally gets him pretty excited, but he was calm and curious for the entire ride. In the back fields before the Horse Park, we did just a short trot set. It was the first trotting I’ve done since I hurt my back in late May. It felt GREAT. I could feel a little stiffness in my back, but I wanted to trot all day long. My sensible side took over, and we walked the rest of the ride. Back at the barn, Wizard was MUCH better than he was for the past few days. The separation from Sunny had been causing him some anxiety during tackup and hosedown time, but on Sunday, he behaved. No hollering, no dancing around. I am guessing that it was partly due to the weather and partly due to him settling into his new routine with his pasturemates, Buck, Jesta, and Cisco. I upped his omeprazole granule dosage to two packets for now while he copes with his new herd. He lost weight since they moved in, partially from the running and partially from the stress, I think.