I walked Newt to the arena. He was completely cooperative on the lunge with no bucking or kicking and only one head shake. We walked and trotted. His past few outings to the arena lead me to be cautious. It was a calm morning with little wind and Newt was not excited. I rode him in the arena. We did “needlepoint” and “Oval” exercises. Newt did very good for the first time at these exercises. My mounting process seems to be much better this spring on both Newt and Magic. They stand still, pretty much, to accommodate me getting in the saddle and set to go. In the past horses moving off when I was mounting happened all the time. I expect that I have improved my process and it is easier for them to stand than it might have been when I just hauled myself into the saddle. Let’s hope this is true. We rode in the Oak pasture up to the pond. Just about the time we arrived at the bottom of the dam, York showed up. I knew to watch out because a lab will often run up and dive into the pond with a big splash. Just such a situation spooked Tut so much one time that I “stepped off” as he bolted for the barn. Anyway I was able to control the situation enough that there was no problem and we rode back to the gate. After getting through the gate, I rode Newt to the barn. He was looking for a spook and several times I could feel an alert in his body. I talked to him and petted him and reassured him. He did not do a full spook and we made it successfully to the barn. (I have experienced a full spook with Newt. It is very violent and I hit the good soft grass hard.) I think Newt was trusting me and thinking control rather than calamity. That is good progress. It was a good ride.
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