The Undoing of the Pony

It is ominously dry and hot here. I'm not looking forward to the next five months. I need to speed up my snowbird plan a bit it seems. Everyone is to be moving to central Florida, drilling wells into the aquifer to water their lawns, Ginnie Springs is selling huge volumes of water directly to Nestle the rivers are drying up. The wildlife is paying the price. Seems like only the crows are thriving actually.  

Anyways. Returning to the regularly scheduled horse programming from the doom and gloom. Monday Ms. GY and I set out to have a nice neighborhood hack. We line this up about once a week and both of us go out another one or two times solo. Well. It was not in fact a nice neighborhood hack. 

The neighbor at the corner has leased out their fields to someone who is farming. Who brought out some agricultural scale waterer aka horse murdering device. We wisely approached on foot, but eventually had to call it and not make the usual loop. 

We back tracked a bit, and I hopped back on the pony. He did strike out and almost rear right after I got back on, emotions were still very high. Ms. GY had one false start getting on her much taller horse and then managed it. We tried to take a different way around the loop. Except there was a new flatbed with crap on it in the neighbor's yard. And her horse tried to turn around and straight up bolt home. He politely acquiesced to her request that he NOT, but we were done. They led the way home as Butterball cantered in place behind them. We had loads of collection but zero relaxation. Once we made it back to the home base, Butterball and I galloped for probably ten minutes before his brain cells came back to roost. This is my usual method of dealing with his feelings when they are a bit out of control: go forward until you're tired then go forward a bit longer. It just took a very long time this go round. Fitness work for the week done. 

I was going to go back out the next day, but my husband and I painted the house. It so desperately needed to be done and this stretch with no rain seemed like the perfect time. We did the back and one side ALL DAY Tuesday and the front Wednesday. Which led to a 1 PM ride time on Wednesday, and it was about 87 degrees. The perfect time to head back out to reassure Butterball that the world off the farm was not going to kill him. I set out in bareback pad plus silicone grip breeches with a pocket full of treats. 

GOLDEN PAT OF BUTTER

Still looks kinda green but is very crunchy. Unrelated, but his frosting in his mane is growing back in too 

Turned AWAY from the sprinkler field to start so we would end up approaching from the side

Beautiful blue sky, dry sand and grass

I tried to get a pic as he turned for a treat, but this was the closest I could get

More sand, so much sand, it's becoming a dessert

Through the woods we go

Sprinkler fields to the right 

Some snax to be had

Closer still to where the beast was living

Alert and slightly confused, where is it? 

If his thoughts were captions, this would've definitely read "??????" 

Oookay I guess I can have snacks if it isn't here...

Headed on home

The absolute best view

The ride did a lot towards securing his marbles again. I feel bad he ended up so unsettled on Monday, but I really didn't think he would be that bothered. So then my expectations had to catch up to the reality of how he was feeling.