first kiss

[magical thyme]

First training session yesterday. I led Maizie by the halter into the barn, over to where the lead shanks were hanging. Her eyes scrunched up in fear at the sight of the leads, but she let me snap one on. Then tried to run out of the barn. I had been hoping to keep them in for the rain yesterday, last night and this am, but she was clearly too afraid of being trapped inside to be kept in safely. So instead we practiced leading, first inside the barn and then out. She backs nicely; going forward can be more problematic. I got stepped on once, but big as her feet are, she crushed my foot evenly so it didn't hurt as much as when I get under Dahli's feet, lol. So from me more panicked shrieking than actual agony!

the 2 of them spent the day and night out in the rain; their choice. I had dressed Dahli in her rainsheet; she's a desert flower and not used to being cold and wet. But by morning, they'd decided to come into the barn. There was work going on at the farm kitty corner behind, so lots of machine sounds. They made Maizie nervous, and it dawned on her that if she stood inside the barn and ate the hay facing out, she had a wall behind her and could face the woods watching and listening for any sounds of danger, and in good position to make a run for it. So the barn is finally becoming a safe haven.

I watched some videos on taming BLM horses last night. Found that I already do pretty much everything they've packaged up into "natural horsemanship" except I don't have a tiny pen to trap her in for handling, so literally have to wait for her to come to me.

First grooming this afternoon. She let me skritch her face and rub my hands over her eyes (trust). And then they both followed me to the gate when I headed up to get their dinner. She walked right up to the gate and bumped it, so I came back down to scootch her away. But first stopped to skritch her and she reached over the gate and kissed me on the face !

When I came back with their dinner mash, she practically ran me down following me into the formerly evil barn.

[KMOD]

1. awwwww

Yay!!!

[DeSwiss]

2. K&R