Scary Saddle Monster

Last week, Nikster the Wonder Horse, feeling that I was getting too complacent, decided he didn't want to wear a saddle anymore.

When I first got him, he was "broken" (hate that word), but really nervous about saddling. I'd lift the saddle up toward his back and like the Loch Ness Monster, his long neck would shoot up and every muscle in his body stiffen. In Nik language, that means "I'm about two seconds away from a nuclear meltdown." Anyway, after some work, he got over that.

Because I do all my tacking and grooming in his paddock, I never tie him up. Honestly, I like giving him the option to leave when he doesn't like something. Nik, like his owner, resists being forced to do anything, so he's much safer to be around if he has an "opt out" clause. Besides, the macho, abusive cowboy shit wouldn't work with a horse like Nik. He'd explode and take out everything and everyone within a ten mile radius.

Something must have upset him and his microscopic brain connected the event to saddles. (I have not idea, really.) When I reached for the saddle, he turned around and walked away.

Back to square one, first with the saddle pad, then the saddle. Anyway, today he was back to normal and bored with the process.

And folks say women are complicated....

***

We finally have some color in the yard as the first spring flowers are starting to bloom. I'll get some pix up tomorrow. I think I'm getting a handle on growing things in a climate that resembles a food dehydrator.

And yes, I know. I fried my blog template--SIZZLE. So if your link has gone missing, it's because I had to use a backup template from last November. Oops. Butter fingers.

P.K.