#valsrp

First trail ride for this beautiful girl! We took it easy, halfway up the red string trail and back. We made sure to rest before going well, and she did really well. I'm proud of her, and can't wait to get her used to longer distances so we can start exploring the mountains a bit more.

The next step for Dove was to desensitize her to the cows! Fortunately, we have a lot of those. We made sure to start from the other side of the wall and the next day, we made our way into the pasture, keeping our distance. Dove is naturally still skittish, but we'll take it slow. For now, just looking at the cows from afar was enough. We won't rush this.

Some polebending with our girl Dove! She's proved to have a knack for it and seems to like the weaving in between poles. Originally I'd planned to broaden her skill set a little more on a basic level, so whoever would d purchase her had options on how to continue with her training, but after talking with Carl about her seemingly passionate love for pole bending, we decided to settle on poles and barrels and see how she'd do. Until now I've only ridden her with a bosal, so I'll have to try a bridle with a bit soon because if anyone was teaching her how to respond to a bit properly, I'd prefer it if it wasn't someone who didn't know what they were doing with a bit in a horses mouth.

Running errands with a horse. It works. Fortunately, the people in Firgrove are very accommodating, so I just put Woody in a little pen while I took care of some business for Carl. He now officially got the mustangs registered, so I might have to take one or more under my wing soon. Woody is pretty much done here, so if anyone's interested in the sweet guy, I'd be open for any messages!

Turns out, I didn't have to wonder because he did amazing. I was a bit worried about the noise level, but he took everything like a champ! He'd be a nice companion for someone down the road. Fortunately, the weather was already heading towards autumn, so it wasn't too hot and we were able to cool off afterwards pretty quickly. I made sure to praise Cajun well afterwards.

Cajun is making great progress! Here's a picture from a relaxing ride on the beach a few days ago. On that day I learned that this sweet boy really likes splashing around in the water, and by the time we got back, both of us were pretty soaked. Fortunately, at the time it was still warm enough to enjoy a bath without freezing!

Remember the mustangs we'd had to keep? Yeah. Their quarantine just ended, so I'll have my hands full. However, just after one last show, Woody will be leaving us! I'll make an official sales post and if that doesn't work I'll try contacting a sales barn. I'll be sad to see him go, but he needs someone who can devote more of their time to him. I've got my plate full right now with around seven or eight project horses and Cleo. But I'm determined to make it work, even if it means sacrificing a few hours more of sleep.

Today I picked up Cleo from @/hooves_for_hope (instagram)! And surprise, this time she isn't a project horse, but my own. I saved up enough to be able to actively look for a horse of my own and she's the perfect match! I can't wait to get started to work with her and see how we fit together.