Horse lessons

     A few days ago after a rain storm,  I went outside to feed the horses.  They were waiting for me at the gate, anticipating the new batch of hay which contained a bit of alfalfa.  I usually duck under the electric fence with a canvas hay bag full of three flakes of hay, one for each of the horses.  This time, however, I decided not to go in their paddock because the sloping hill was muddy and I didn't want anyone to slip if there was a scuffle over who was walking down the hill first.  Instead, I went around the perimeter of the  fence and about halfway down the sloped part of the pen, tossed a flake of hay under it to Annie, the lead mare.  I then walked to the bottom of the paddock where it is flat and wanted to duck under the fence to put of flake of hay in the black feed tub sitting near a juniper tree.  Copper had made his way over to the tub while I walked on the outside of the fence, but Domingo was standing at an angle between the fence, the tree and where Copper stood at the tub, effectively blocking my ability to come under the fence.  Domingo does not move away easily when asked and as I hesitated for a moment, Annie calmly walked over to him and swung her rear end around at him, sending him shooting backwards out of the way.  She then casually walked back to her hay and resumed eating while I put Copper's hay in the tub and fed Domingo in a spot some distance away.  I was amazed that she had seen what I wanted to do and had come to help me when I hesitated.  It was as if she was showing me how to solve the problem with her firm, clear direction.  She didn't kick out or become overly aggressive, she just made her point and went back to calmly eating. I think what Annie was showing me was that it's sometimes better not to hesitate, but instead to just go forward into a situation with firmness and clarity.  In other words, don't be afraid to speak up! 
     With that in mind,  I am launching my first blog post ever!  It is my hope that I can share some of the passion that I feel towards animals as our friends, companions and teachers on life's journey.  Thank you for joining me!

Welcome!

Welcome to Cauda Equina Arts : Blog, thanks for visiting and be sure to check in for more blog entries to come.