We’ve had a few nice warm days and it’s been time to start Zelda back into regular work. When it’s in the 50s, you don’t want to miss the opportunity to be outside in the sun.
Not that she agrees. Yesterday, we had a few, well, disagreements about her work ethic. We had been out for about half an hour when she decided she’d done enough. She refused to take the turn I wanted — she knew the shortest way home.
She planted her feet. She squealed. She backed up.
When you have an opinionated mare (is there any other kind?) giving up is not an option. Zelda is smart. And she’s pretty sure she’s the alfa mare.
Fighting with her isn’t an option. She’s a big girl and surprisingly athletic. She would win. Especially when I’m not wearing spurs.
So we negotiated. We changed the topic of discussion. And in the end, we went where I wanted to go.
Zelda still has a heavy winter coat. It is, after all, still February. She really enjoyed her apres ride roll.
Today we went out again, this time with some friends. It was her first time off property in months and she was about 18 hands tall. We had some squealing, a few bucks, and a very wet saddlepad. We didn’t work hard, but it was hot.
The featured picture for this post is after she rolled in the sand ring, near where we parked! Then she rolled again when we got home.