Quote for the week

It is amazing what a horse can do in spite of the rider

-Ray Hunt

So here is Hank the Tank doing what he knows he should be doing. He is packing around a beginning rider who doesn't have a clue what she is doing. Being a good guy he just sets about his business even though she is giving him the wrong cues...he knows when to ignore and when to listen. Hank works hard to do the right thing even when the rider is in the way.

I do the same thing with the DOR, sometimes she just gets in the way of getting the job done. She leans the wrong direction on a turn, flops a bit because she is trying to "stay loose", starts daydreaming and forgets what we are doing, or she asks me to something that is just plain stupid like touch the tarp with my nose...yep when there is a glacier in Texas. Or how about the time the DOR got all in the way when I was going to canter and the only way I had was up in the air with all four feet? See sometimes we horses have a lot to contend with.

Horses have a way of getting things done even when the rider is in the way. We try to give hints, sometimes we just do the right thing, on occasion we obviously point out the problem. Mark Rashid does a great job explaining about how horses to fine in spite of their riders in "Life Lessons From a Ranch Horse". While Buck was much more patient than many of us, he is a good example of how horses continue to do what we need to do while dealing with humans. It is nice for us when the rider works hard not to get in our way, when they work together with us.

Enjoy your day and don't forget to hug your DOR