Busy Weekend!

What a weekend! Saturday was a flurry of activity. Ben had his first farrier appointment, and he was a super boy- done in about 15 minutes. Normally this is not something to comment about- but this Saturday there was A LOT going on at the barn- almost all the boarders were there doing some thing or another...and the weather was AMAZING- tons of wind gusts, whipping rain, horses gone wild and spooked...except for Ben. LOL.

Quite a bit of toe was taken back- but my farrier wanted to be conservative as well as effective- so he thinks after the next trim his hooves will look about as awesome as they can be- so we're part of the way there. Was very pleased with the overall quality- he said he's never seen a Standie with bad hooves. HOORAH!

Shortly after the farrier appointment, my saddle fitter friend came by to do some tracings of Ben's back, and to look at my saddles to find the best one for him, if possible. This is not something I should be admitting to..but here you go, my collection:

Ben may look like a boy who likes his beer, but he sure does have champagne taste! The best fitting saddle was, as I thought, my Prestige Galileo, in combination with a thinline half pad with front shims. Total outfit for him, if I had to buy it new, would be somewhere around $3700.  Lucky for him we'll use this set up for a few weeks, but we are going to look at a less expensive alternative- something we can use daily without my stomach turning at the wear and tear, LOL. Fitter Friend will be out in a few weeks with those options and if they work, he'll still be getting a custom fitted saddle to his back...but one he can grow and change in that's not expensive leather.

He was a pretty good boy for the fitting. A little bit of a fidget- but he was surrounded by a few onlookers- and was a little peeved at us for taking him away from his grain bucket that was running late- the 3 year old mind cannot comprehend such inconvienences. He was also a little girthy despite the best of care to girth nice and slow and gradual- we definitely have to work on that. Nothing outrageous- just a little bit naughty- about as much as one would expect from a green bean.

I do want to say that he really did impress the fitter- she had no idea Standies have such pretty movement. Ben has a phenomenal trot, and such a ground covering walk- she said he's going to give those warmbloods a run for their money and show them how to really get the job done! LOL

Well, yesterday must've pooped him out because today when I got to the barn the boy was snoozing in his paddock- chin resting on the dirt. I could kick myself for not having my camera on hand, he was so cute.

But we must not have done too badly in his eyes because later on when he was back up, he was very interested in being social. I spent some time scritching his favorite spots, and he showed me his amazing magical horsey-hypnotic skillz- he somehow befriended my VERY anti-social OTTB mare, Tally. Over the fence, of course- but still- not many, if any, have that ability. Most horses ellicite a nasty face, rush at the fence, spin-and-kick action. But not Ben! She was very into sniffing and kissing noses. Not so much as a squeal came out of her.  Much appreciated, Ben, Thank You!

On another note- his cut on that left hock is healing really nicely. the hair is coming in BLACK (YAY for no white scar tissue hair!), and the scab is almost all closed and healed. I've been trying to rub Vitamin E Oil on it every chance I get- so hopefully that is helping.

One last random note: his tooth finally came out! I missed it of course- but there are other loose ones in there- but still likely a week or so before coming out. Maybe I'll get one!

Hmm, that is all I can think of at the moment! This week we're going to work on this girthing stuff, and also some bridling. I haven't tried bridling yet, but I have been working on desensitizing him to the touch around his muzzle. He's doing really well- his flinch reaction is almost gone and he almost seems to enjoy all the massaging. Hopefully this week I will finally be able to get on him in our round pen and go for a wee ride- the idea being that we can start walking around the big arena, and maybe this weekend, if the weather holds out, go on for a hack. Would be nice, right?!