Let's face it, this blog has been quite low on laughs lately. But I did find a couple of old photos today that made me smile so I thought I'd share. 


This one made me laugh because the horse looks terrified and I look like a total git.

And this one tickled me because Cady looks like she's in Alcatraz.

This one is little Cad being beautiful on Monday. We had a really nice potter around the arena apart from a brief moment when I was about to get on, took my coat off and scared her and she diddled off for a canter  and a mouthful of grass. It was quite funny really. Horses are great comedians.

Time to face forward

I put off writing yesterday's post for ages but actually it was quite cathartic and I rode Cady last night for the first time in ages.


It was a bit hairy in parts but I stuck to my new rules, pinched from Kelly Marks/Zen Habits!


1. Start very small.
2. Do only one change at a time.
3. Be present and enjoy the activity (don’t focus on results).
4. Be grateful for every step you take.


We're now working on making friends with the far side of the arena, which is flanked by waving trees and noisy birds. I'll keep you posted. 

Well. This is the post I hoped I would never write. Harvey horse has been put down.

 

His feet did not get better (there were complications with his abscesses and he began to show a pulse in all four feet so there may have been something else lurking) and he began to be aggressive with the other geldings in his field, we think possibly as some kind of defence mechanism.

 

I organised a separate field for him but he was distressed when the horses nearby weren't out and I decided that enough was enough. I never cared if I got to ride Harvey, as long as he had a happy life with his chums in the field, but this was no longer the case and I felt he had become increasingly stressed in his box and spooky to lead which he had never been before.

Beautiful Harvey horse

 

I hope at some point I'm going to feel like he had a nice time with me, albeit far too short, but at the moment it just feels like a disaster. When you love your horse it's a massive contradiction to then end their life with a phone call and my predominant feeling at the moment is sheer guilt. The saving grace is that I feel lucky to have a horse who was such a gentlemen about life, despite what he'd been through. 

I really miss him and I'm finding myself reluctant to spend time at the yard but again I hope in time this will change. Cady is a massive comfort and continues to be her lovely, cheeky self. 

I suppose if there's something to learn from this it's that we have to enjoy them while they're here (and while we are). If my writing is a bit sparse for a while then please accept my apologies.