Vet Check

Not to much new to report with Cupid.  He had a vet appointment for vaccines.  The vet said he is looking good.  The hoof seems healed and his hind end is much stronger.  After discussing it with my vet I decided to keep Cupid in the stall instead of 24/7 turnout.  He is looking very good right now, and is just so accident prone it may be for the best. 

He's been really into giving me kisses lately

We went on a little trail ride around the property this weekend.  Overall Cupid was pretty good, but was getting a little quick again the trail he was spooky on last time, so I turned him around and made him walk back out on it and he walked back calmly the second time.

Great view!

On Sunday we did some arena work, but were both being kind of lazy.  There were a few other horses sharing the arena but Cupid was good.  We just did one short canter each direction, and also trotted over a few poles.

Cupid got a new turnout sheet.  Although I really liked the teal one he had, the binding was coming off and it had a few little punctures in it.  The new one is actually the same as his mid-weight turnout blanket just without any filling. 

Springtime

I think the worst of the rain is finally over.  (Though there is a 60% chance of rain for Friday...)  The horses are enjoying the grass.

Cupid's feet seem to be much better.  My trainer asked me last week if I wanted to do some polework but I wanted to wait a little longer - I don't want him to hit a pole and shock his feet.  So we've been focusing on our dressage work.  Since Cupid often gets cranky in transitions, especially from walk going back to trot, we have been doing them mainly from a shoulder fore so his weight is in his hind end to ease the transitions and also so he is more focused.  It seems to be going well, except sometimes for me it's hard to focus on both the shoulder fore and a transition!

He's had a few days with a little extra spunk but no spring fever like he had last year.  However on Saturday I went on a little trail ride around the property and he got a little excited on a trail he's been on a hundred times before.  It was pretty windy, I don't know if that's what set him off.  He was prancing and tossing his head, and plowed forward a few times.  I turned him around and walked back down the trail but the second time coming back he was even worst.  I was not feeling confident so I got off and led him back and worked him in the arena a little.  But there were a few other horses in the arena and I didn't even want to canter.  Sometimes I am a big chicken.  I was feeling discouraged, and thinking that even though I don't want to sell Cupid maybe I need to find a more confident rider to half lease him and jump and show him. 

Sunday was much better, the weather was beautiful and Cupid was back to his normal sweet self.  We did a little work in the outdoor arena then did the trails around the property again and Cupid was perfect.  We went down a trail that was pretty overgrown, Cupid had to go through with bushes brushing both his sides and it didn't faze him.  Afterwards I gave him a bath.  I noticed he is missing a chunk of his tail, I don't know if he has been rubbing or just caught it in something.  I put on some M-T-G.

Hi neighbor!

Thrush

Though Cupid has been looking a lot better, he still wasn't 100%.  We were almost there, but on Sunday he felt a little sore again.  Today the horseshoer confirmed that he had some thrush deep in his heel and said Cupid was sensitive on it.  He treated it with a product called Tomorrow, which was originally developed for cow udders!  I ordered more with overnight shipping, hopefully it will help Cupid feel better.

Getting Back on Track

Today I cantered Cupid for the first time in about a month, and it felt great!  We started trotting last week, and Cupid had more energy than usual.  By that I mean he was moving nice and forward, not anything naughty.  We've been continuing building on our walk work, working on bending and counter bending at the trot, as well as shortening and lengthening the stride.  I still need to work on the same things - keeping my hands low and closed, elbows soft, legs long, seatbones under me, and shoulders back.  Sometimes I feel like I'm making progress but usually if I get better at one thing I get worst at something else!

Lunging with balancing reins

We started today with a quick lunge, to see how Cupid was moving.  He looked okay, so I got on.  He still gets a little bratty sometimes when I ask for a trot.  Before I even ask, as I'm gathering the reins and preparing he knows something is coming and gets really crooked and balky.  I am working on asking once with just a squeeze (no lifting my legs off his sides for a big pony kick!) and following up with the crop if he doesn't listen.  Then if he trots tell him he's good, and move on not making a big deal out of it.  Then we trot a few steps, go back to a walk and try again.  Usually I do about 3 transitions. 

We did a little trot work on a circle, me focusing on my hands and keeping him nice and round.  We had a few nice moments when I could feel him really use himself.  Then we cantered on the circle.  We did two sets each direction and it was very good - we got the leads correct each time, kept a decent circle, and Cupid didn't try dropping to a trot.

I'm very relieved Cupid seems to be healing.  Our trainer said we can probably start jumping in a few weeks if there are no setbacks.