Puppy/Pony Show and Tell

Last night I brought some new friends from work out to the barn to see Walker. I'm sure as horse-crazed people you can understand that any chance to show off your baby to people who are genuinely (or even remotely) interested is a chance worth jumping at.

Feast your eyes on this adorable thing

Actually we had a puppy/pony show and tell since one of the girls just got a new puppy. Walker seemed mildly interested in the puppy but stopped caring the minute I brought out the apples.

One of the girls even rode him last night, despite having no experience with horses. This is why I love my horse. On Monday, he tries to buck me into the dirt, and on Tuesday he's a total babysitter. I walked with her at first, but it was clear that he was on his best behaviour. They even jogged a little.

I was also impressed with my friend who seems to be a bit of a natural. I explained to her to use her legs to turn before she asked with her reins, and I demonstrated how I could direct Walker around the arena with no reins (he's very good at that). After a little fiddling, I was wildly impressed to discover that she was actually using her legs. I thought to myself, if she can get over her instincts in 5 minutes flat and listen to directions that well, she should take lessons.

I hopped on Walker for a few seconds before she did and put him quickly through his paces so I could gage his mood and show them the difference between the gaits. Other than that, he didn't get worked too hard, which I'm sure he appreciated - I know my poor aching body did! He seemed a little stiff even though I stretched him, but that's only to be expected after his self-imposed workout Monday night while we rode. Besides, I was purposely trying to bring out the well-behaved slow-moving WP horse in him, lest he decide to scrape my new found friend along the arena wall! 

But he was a good boy. Mommy was so proud.