DAY FOUR - Visiting Big Mack

Thursday mornings are my weekly walk with Donna, and today I decided to bring Possum along. After his breakfast, I gave him a good grooming and dosed him with fly spray, and when Donna came down to meet me, Possum came along. It was nice and sunny but not too hot, and he was very well behaved on the two mile trek down the hill and to the end of the road and back.

Later in the afternoon, I tacked him up and mounted him from the stump in the paddock at about 2:45. The plan was to re-introduce Possum and Big Mack, and Donna was waiting for us. By the time I got on him, the wind had finally picked up, and so I started with a few loops around the paddock first. Then, we walked through the barn and took a spin around the back yard. Then, we trotted up the road a bit and came upon Big Mack grazing in his secondary grass paddock. There was a happy reunion between the two, and they were both very well behaved. And because I was on Possum and Mack was grazing, they both didn't seem to need to buddy up. Donna and I were quite pleased.

I walked him around the field on their property closest to the road first, then I took him to the larger back field. The wind was whipping, but we did a couple of trots, and then I asked him for a canter. The first direction he went well (though, a little fast, I must admit), but when I asked him to canter in the opposite direction, he did eventually buck, a little. I did my best to kick him forward and circle, and then I made him do it again, and he was little better. After that, we walked around the whole field, and did another short trot, then I left their property and went down to Lenny's house. Since old Lenny has passed and the house is on the market, I was excited to take a spin around his back yard. It sure is a beautiful place. Possum enjoyed seeing the sights, and then we turned for home. We did a short trot back up the hill on the dirt road, and two of Jeff's trucks came by (we were walking by this time), and Possum was very good. He also didn't give me a hard time about leaving the Dodge farm. We got back to the barn and I looked at the time. We had been out for one hour.

I brushed him down and he seemed happy to hang out in the paddock with a fresh flake of hay. I fed him his supper at 4:45, and threw in a snapped up carrot for good measure. He's munching on more hay in his stall now.. that damn wind is still whipping.

All in all, he's being really, really good.