Luscious Locks

Yesterday I got out to the barn with every intention of riding.  Of course, when the BO meets me in the driveway and informs me my mare is "on fire," my resolve to actually ride the beast is always a little diminished.

P was definitely all sorts of hot and bothered when I showed up.  She was in the process of "running" her fence, which is a new trick she apparently learned.  I say "running" because the mare's fence is only about 5 strides long, which makes for 3 big gallopy strides, then a sliding stop, spin and three gallopy strides in the other direction... As I walked out of the barn I shouted her name with that "what the hell" tone and she immediately stopped, nickered at me, then went right back to running whatever imaginary race she had going on in her brain.

She didn't look panicked, or even really all that agitated.  Every time I walked up to her gate, she'd stop and come say hi, then when I walked away she'd go back to running the fence.  (weirdo).  I felt a little better when all the other horses seemed to be displaying similar issues (though not as dramatic), so maybe something was just in the air.  Whatever it was, it was more than enough to deter me from making it our first day back under saddle without the Regu-Mate.

I eased my guilt by saying I should have a day of free lunging and normal lunging prior to a ride... oh, and I should definitely wash her tail and trim up her whiskers prior to our vet visit on Thursday anyway


Of course, as soon as I pulled the mare in and started grooming, she acted like her energy was at an all time low, just licking and chewing with soft ears and eyes.  When I turned her out in the arena to get some bucks out, she just ambled around and sniffed the mirrors before finding a stray leaf to munch on.  When I finally CHASED her, the jets turned on and there was some serious steam to burn off.  I spent the whole time mentally debating whether I was glad to not be riding, or if I was a total chicken-dork for not saddling up (I still have no conclusion).  Either way, we free lunged for about 20 minutes, then I threw her on the line for another 20 for some better/more consistent trot work.

Afterward, I felt like we needed to "accomplish" something, so it was spa time.  The tail got a good washing and I doused it in show sheen so that I could comb through the thing while it was still a little damp.  I was somewhat horrified to realize that P's tail had been SO TANGLED, that when I actually brushed it out, her it was a good 4" longer than before.  I kept trying to make the mare stand up, since when she cocked a hip it was actually dragging on the ground.  Not quite sure when P started pumping hair out like a god damn Barbie Grow 'n Style, but apparently along with running her fence.. it's a new feature.

Seriously, this thing was above her fetlocks pre-wash

 P also got a good face trimming.  Bridle path (which I notoriously neglect out of laziness), whiskers, eyes, throat latch... all trimmed up and looking sharp.  P's gotten rid of most of her winter coat now, so she's looking sleek all around, but there were a few straggling hairs that were driving me a little nuts.

I've come to the conclusion that this mare loves clippers.  Anything else that comes within gnawing distance gets instantly slurped into her mouth for examination, thoroughly chewed/licked/rolled around, then spat back out... but with clippers she stands dead still.  Perfectly quiet.  Not a lip tremor or flinch even when I've got my hand in her nose to get the right angle on that last pesky whisker.  It's bizarre, but it's also really convenient, so I don't mind :)  Whatever Supermom did to get her to respect the clip... it worked.

Finally, since P's tail hadn't been clean enough to warrant trying out our new tail bag (courtesy of the every talented Denali's Mom), I busted out our new three tube bag to lock up P's locks and see if she was capable of destroying the thing overnight.

The purple is really more of a magenta, so it compliment's P's wardrobe nicely :)

 I also got confirmation this morning that the tail bag made it through the night (even with the lacquer of show sheen... ).  This just reaffirms that when I do bag a tail, I like three tubes.  They take an extra 30 seconds to put on, but since the bag is what gets braided, it basically holds itself on.  Love.