the third week

This week has been nuts, and Azania and I have had days that seem to blur together. He has learned to hold his feet up a little longer in preparation for the farrier. He got his first bath which he was really not a fan of. He had two days off and a day or two where all we did was ground work on the 22ft rope in the herd of horses. He is great and is just a joy to work with. He wants to please but still has bratty moments. He is learning to tie and he dug a hole to China while on the tie ring. He is enjoying being in the herd of horses and is dominant without being too harsh. He simply knows his size. When you call his name he comes to greet you and will leave his friends. He is absolutely fascinated by kids.

And today is day 23 and he is, like always, a brilliant boy. Azania comes to be caught and I take him to the roundpen. Today he goes through the gates better. He is a little concerned that he can't fit :)
He is doing better in the roundpen off halter, walk, trot and lope on command. He comes to me gladly and works better on the rope this time. The saddling is absolutely no issue and he works a little with it before I get on. Again no big deal with the mounting then we work on walk/trot and whoa. No backup yet but when I take a feel on the halter he drops at the poll and considers it. I still am riding in the halter and really working our right and left but he still has some resistance. He resists less as the ride continues and he gets softer. He trots easily with a click or a touch of my heel. I am starting to prepare for his lope and once he almost did it but not quite. I get off and, as my friend Lizz says, we introduce him to junk food..... Cookies :)