[PHASE 1] To Load Or Not To Load

1st June - Day 1

After I’d chosen my project from the files, the volunteer had me follow her out to the paddocks. The boy I’d chosen was easy to spot, stood in the centre of the field with his head down towards the ground. Initially, I figured he was dozing, but the volunteer informed me that he frequently stood like that, not interacting with any of the other horses he was in with, mostly ignoring everything around him. My first impression was that he looked bored, but the rescue had plenty of enrichment opportunities he could have gotten involved in. 

He reminded me of some other horses I had worked with previously, horses that were so used to having to do ridden work that they didn’t know what to do with themselves when they weren’t being ridden. His file stated that he’d been a riding school horse, used for teaching younger riders, so I figured he’d probably gotten fed up of walking and trotting in circles for several hours a day. 

[Added in a different pen at a later date] Here’s where I made my first mistake. I assumed that he’d be pretty easy to work with, a horse in need of help to figure out how to do things for himself. I severely misjudged him.

2nd June - Day 2

“Pirate” was the name written on his paperwork, and I decided to keep it for him, it seemed fitting. I arrived quite late on the first day, much too late to make the drive back safely, so I stayed at a hotel nearby overnight. When I came to pick Pirate up in the morning, he was pretty easy to catch, and was more than happy to follow me out of the field. I gave him a brief check over in the rescue’s stable yard, mostly checking for any potential leg injuries. He seemed fine to me, but the full vet checkup would have to wait until I got him home.

I prepped my trailer for him, and then got him ready to be loaded. According to his paperwork, he’d never had to travel this kind of distance before, so I was a little worried about how he’d cope with the drive.

Loading him was… fun. He seemed to be cooperating very well at first, allowing me to lead him up the ramp without difficulty, until one of the rescue volunteers pulled a bag of treats out for a different horse. This was when I first saw some personality from Pirate, which I was glad for, even if this particular bit of personality involved him dragging me out of the trailer and attempting to pull me towards the rather shocked looking volunteer. Thankfully, I managed to regain his attention and get him loaded using a pack of polos I had in my jacket pocket. Despite the rocky loading experience, I was happy to see that he wasn’t completely defeated, and that he was able to act for himself on the ground. His file had only mentioned his ridden behaviour, so I had been worried that his ground behaviour would be that of the bored, empty shell of a horse I'd seen in the paddock the day before.

3rd June - Day 3

Pirate has settled in nicely to his stable. Thankfully he managed the long drive from the rescue without any issues too. He’s in quarantine for a week whilst I wait for his vet paperwork to make sure he’s up to date on his vaccinations, and I have a vet check booked for him tomorrow, along with a dental and farrier appointment later on in the week. His file said he’s always behaved for all his checks so hopefully that holds true. I’ve made sure to grab my emergency polos just in case though.

I can’t wait to start working with this horse, I really feel like I can make a difference with him. Going to wait for all his health checks, and then I’ll be making a plan of action for the next few weeks.