Be careful what you ask for and Airs above the ground

I was hacking Wolfie last week. We came off the old railway line to pass through a road between some houses to get onto the main road on our way home. A skip had been put in the middle of the road, not allowing much room on either side to get past. It was full of branches and garden waste sticking out the edges. I asked Wolfie to walk a little closer to it, I wasn't intending on trying to make him pass it, but just get a little closer. He started backing up at speed, the way he does before he abruptly spins and takes off. I shouted quite gruffly at him to stand.......and stand he did, so suddenly that I nearly went right over the front of his shoulder. I certainly got what I asked for. Yesterday, Wolfie and I trailered up to Mugdock Country Park. We were up and away before the birds were up as I wanted to get there before it got busy and with it being a bank holiday weekend, the place would have been mobbed with dog walkers, cyclists and families. Wolfie loaded brilliantly. He didn't travel great though, I heard him thudding around a bit and he was pretty sweated up when we got there. I had travelled him in his Thermatex rug, as I'm so paranoid about him getting a chill, but it was too warm for a knitted rug, so that didn't help. He also hates the travelling boots. I'm not sure whether to try bandaging him or travelling him without anything on his legs. I'm going to get one of the old string vest type sweat rugs and throw a fleece or something in the car which I can put on him when we get there if needed. I also think he fully expected to be going back to be incarcerated in the vet school. He seemed quite surprised when I unloaded him that he wasn't in the Weipers Centre car park. My trailer came with a full length breast bar. I'm going to get a full length breeching bar and remove the partition. Cross tie him and travel him without the partition. I think that would give him more room to balance himself. He's a broad little horse and there isn't much room between him and the partition and the side of the trailer. He was very excited and when I unloaded him about twelve Highland cows appeared over at the fence, staring at him through their big fringes. He hasn't really seen many cows and he's never seen a Highland cow. Tied to the trailer, he had grown to about 19hh. I quickly tacked him up. I was in a bit of a cafuffle trying to make sure I'd locked everything up, had the keys etc. That's where it would be really handy if someone else was with me.

I'd planned to ride a route around one of the main bridle paths that takes you around the loch in a loop. I think we were half way around the route before I even got my other foot in the stirrup. My plan was just to let him walk it out and let him settle. However, we completed the loop, which is over 2 miles and he was still powering on. He was clearly loving every minute of it. I decided to walk around again, just to try and have him settle and start listening to me. I was asking for half halts, but he ended up getting completely frustrated at me as he obviously wanted to continue his top speed power walk. When I asked him to soften and listen he eventually started tossing his head, cantering on the spot, bucking and then performing capriole... beautifully executed and controlled. There is a huge canter field up there, but there was no chance yesterday I was letting his feet hit grass. On one hand, it might just have got it out of his sytem and calmed him down, but I don't know the tracks or the terrain and I have a feeling he would have just went for it. I think we could have hacked around those bridle paths at that speed for most of the day, so once he was walking calmly (still trucking on though), I called it a day and we went back to the trailer. I was paranoid about getting him loaded before the car park got busy. It was a beautiful morning and the paths around there are great and the scenery is stunning. I did have my camera with me as I'd planned to take some pictures of our hack, but there was no way I was taking my hands off the reins to get my camera out my pocket and if I had managed, they would have just been a blur with the speed we were going. He loaded brilliantly again, bit sweated up when we got home and seemed delighted that he was home. Part of the problem is that he's not used to going places and coming home. He either goes to the vet school and has to stay there or he changes yards. All in all, I was really pleased. The more we do it, the better and more settled he will become. I doubt he will ever be the sort of robotic horse that you can just take anywhere, will just stand all day tied to the trailer and not bat an eye lid at anything going on, that's just not his temperament. He can be a handful but I wouldn't change a single part of him.