Pony is Sound

I've been working two jobs these last couple weeks, which is both awesome (yay money!) and not so awesome (boo no time!). Plus, it's been cold, wet, muddy and miserable, meaning that my barn time has been limited. Whenever I've had the energy to ride, the wind is gusting and Cherry is sniffing the air like there just might be demons lurking over that next hill.

Today the weather was nice for a change, but I'm so dead tired from lack of sleep last night that I don't think I can handle it. Besides, I haven't been riding regularly, and we all know what happens when Cherry isn't ridden regularly... Wheee! It's time to RUN!!!! OMG what was that?! ZOMG scary!!! This is FUN!

Not what I want to deal with right now.

Since it was so nice out, I turned Cherry out in the outdoor turnout paddock where there's a thin crop of grass coming up. She snorted a bit, so I chased her around so she'd forget about the grass for a minute and move.

This turnout is on a fairly steep hill, and Cherry went trotting and cantering around with her tail flagged and her head up in perfect "excited Arabian" form. She even threw in a little bucking for good measure.

I love watching horses move out just for the fun of it. Today was doubly cool because she didn't take a single lame step the whole time, not one. In the indoor arena, she appears to be kinda on and off lame, and it really bugs me. Out in the dirt though, she's perfectly sound. Extended trot downhill, no problem!

The arena footing is pretty shitty, and there's several uneven and hard spots littered all over. Her hooves aren't quite tough enough to handle it yet, so her stride is thrown off and she's lame. It really screws with my head. I scrutinize her gait, watch her like a hawk, and drive myself demented wondering if it's the arthritis, the hoof, or something new.

It's not. She's fine, her hooves just aren't ready to handle the crap footing without protection yet.

I guess no more indoor arena turnout without boots. To save my sanity if nothing else.