A Two Mule Day!

Today Bonnie and I finally had our schedules work out so we could ride together! I did have to work in the afternoon but had the morning off. So, I contacted Cierra to see if she could ride and she was free after 9:30 am. That would work! So, I picked up Cierra and her horse, Tinkerbell at 9:30. The hoof boots I recommended for Cierra to order came in so we got them out to see if they fit. We would need them today anyway. We ordered them for her front feet. And..........ACK, they were a bit too small. DANG! But, the DID fit her hind feet so that was fine as the one's she was borrowing from me were working on her front feet just fine. So, we were good! Phew! I unloaded Luke and had Cierra load Tink in the front spot. That seems to be working very well for Tink. And Luke is such a good sport about getting in and out... and in and out.... and in and out of the trailer.

We met Bonnie over at  Triple J Farm to ride. Bonnie boards her mule there. So, today was going to be a two mule day! We got tacked up and knowing the flies would be bad, I loaned Marie's riding fly mask to Cierra for Tink. She'd never worn one while riding but Tink take everything new we throw at her in stride. She's such a good sensible mare, especially considering her young age and inexperience with many things. When we first tied Tink and Luke to the trailer, Luke was reaching into the trailer and grabbing mouthfuls of hay from the hay bag. Tink couldn't reach it so she was grabbing the hay out of Luke's mouth. And he was happily letting her. It was funny watching them. I did pull the hay bag out the window so they could both reach it. Soon, we headed out, me on Luke in the lead as bait for the deer fly. UGH! We rode right down through a mulch/fertilizer operation to start out. They were working with big equipment running. They are used to the horses going though so they don't mind. we wanted to see how Tink would handle it since it would be a fairly controlled situation. Tink didn't even batt an eye at any of it. Luke was highly suspicious of some dark colored footing but got up the courage to walk over it.......silly mule.....then, before we got onto the woods trail, a big dump truck came by us. We stopped to let it pass and Tink never batted an eye at it.

We did a bit of walking at first. Once out on the Cody loop, we did some trotting and a little cantering where we could. Tink and the mules were very good and got along well. Tink walks a bit slow but she has a nice strong trot and is very good and under control at the canter. On the way back, there was a tractor trailer in the middle of the trail/tote road that was running and there was a big loader operating behind it loading something into it. To get by it we had to skirt around it pretty closely. Again, I wondered how Cierra's Tink would handle it. Well, SHE was not the one to worry about. Luke was not at all sure it was a good idea to go by. He tried to turn once but let me pull him back around to face it. Then he started inching up to the truck...... when Bonnie passed by me on Dolly mule. Luke sucked right up to her and followed her by the tractor trailer. Once again, Tink never batted an eye at the tractor trailer, or the loader. Luke didn't care about the loader either, I'll give him credit for that. I have to say that at least what he lacks in pure boldness, he make up in not reacting in any way that is in any way hard to handle. Actually, he usually just freezes when he is unsure of something. At my age, I appreciate this reaction to fear. He's a good boy!

The flies were bad but mostly for me as I lead most of the ride. But, with the fly mask on Luke and a fly swisher, it was certainly tolerable. Tinkerbell's new boots worked great! We had a really nice ride and it was so good to finally ride with Bonnie! It's been too long! We sponged Tink and Luke back at the trailer. Tink loaded right up like a good girl. And I never heard her do any pawing in the trailer today either. I dropped Cierra and Tink off at  Upper Pond Stable , then headed home, settled Luke back into his pasture, gave him and Marie extra hay, just because........ and then headed to work.