Well, Nathan tried to get Nathan out of his paddock for me, but Trigger knew Nathan isn't as tall (or skilled with the halter) as me, and Trigger knew it, so he kept lifting his head when Nathan was trying to buckle the halter. But I went and gave him a hand, and we took Trigger to the tying-up tree and picked his feet in anticipation of the farrier arriving.
The farrier arrived precisely on time, and trimmed his feet. He showed me a few things about how Trigger moves, and trimmed him accordingly, and recommends I go ahead and shoe him at the next visit in five weeks. He said Trigger was well-behaved (and he was), so that was good.
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| Well, you can't really tell because of the grass, but just take my word for it that they're freshly trimmed. |
A fellow barn-mate was there, and was going to be getting a lesson, and I asked if she minded if I watched, and she didn't, so I hung out there and we all chatted and let the horses graze. I also did Trigger's mane in a diamond "braid".
Then Nathan and Trigger and I watched the lesson on groundwork, and a little bit of the riding lesson (I also checked whether the trainer minded), then went off on another little "trail hike." We again walked 2.5 miles, this time in the other direction, and this time with Nathan along, too.
Probably due to all the loving on him and petting and grooming and rubbing, Trigger was more than happy to hike along with me, but wanted to be RIGHT next to me, so my elbow had a bit of a discussion with Trigger (I just put my hand on my hip and let him bump into my elbow to show him where my personal bubble was), and the rest of the walk, he only needed a gentle reminder most of the time. (He needed the elbow again a couple of times right next to the little "waterfalls" he's always a bit concerned about.) I had heard there was a pond this direction, and we did find it, but it wasn't a pond like I was imagining. The banks were still as steep as those of the canal, so Trigger couldn't drink, and I couldn't test how he does in water. But we did see a cute duck couple (the lady duck had already flown away, but her husband was more laid-back, and just watched us and swam around).
Coincidentally, we arrived back the same time as the other two (barn-mate and instructor), so I got the chance to chat a bit again. Then we put Trigger away and headed home for a nice summer dinner of salad and artichokes (it was snowing yesterday, and today I got sweaty and sunburned, though it wasn't all THAT warm out).
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