Later, we turned him out with Hairy in the outdoor arena. That lasted for about 5 minutes. At first he just walked around and nibbled but then he decided to stretch his legs a bit which he really needed.
After he had run for a few minutes he got anxious for the security of the barn and decided he might try to climb the fence. Not jump… climb.
It was clear he was just going to work himself up, so we caught him. Rather than take him right back to the barn we stopped in the yard to try to calm down and graze.He did graze a bit but didn’t settle down easily and was still on the move. I guess I’ll have to spend some time leading him outside to get him used to being out again and turn his attention back to more productive activities like grazing. He has not attached himself to Hairy at all and could really care less if Hairy was involved. Hopefully if we don’t let him get himself worked up first he will settle in to graze easier. If it isn’t raining too hard tomorrow I’ll give that a try. At least he was mannerly. After catching him, getting the chain over his nose to bring him back down to earth was a little tricky but otherwise he was not bad to handle.
2 comments:
One of my friends went to look at a 2 year old, and as it turns out, the colt had never been turned out. He didn't KNOW what the outside was. they found this out when the groom from the farm was helping them load him on the trailer to go home, after they bought him.
He now does go outside, but why not take care of that early in life.
My thoughts exactly! Although, I can see why people keep them in. They're a big responsibility. On the other hand, some people raise horses outside 24/7 and I've heard plenty of tales where the horse was frantic and anxious being confined in a stall. It's very important to expose them to a wide variety of confinements and expectations.
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