Saturday was Duke-Day at the barn. And it was a good thing too, because Bear had been wearing shoes for quite a few weeks.
For reasons out of our control, we got to the barn a little later than we hoped. That meant we were a little ways down on the list. So I spent quite a bit of time hanging out and talking to the other boarders. It is still interesting for me to be around all the other horses and see how they are for things like hoof trimmings.
After awhile Robin and I went out to get our guys. They were easy, and they were quite happy to just hangout with us indoors for awhile. Bear was actually a bit muddy (it had rained the night before), so I spent a long while scrubbing all the crusties out of his coat. He enjoyed that.
When it was our turn for a trim Bear was pretty good. He was certainly calm and happy to be standing for me, but at one point he shifted a bit and bumped into the stall wall. And he is still pretty tight in his right, hind leg. Duke had to go slow and keep that leg a little lower. But all in all it was pretty good since Bear had never had a trim here and never met Duke before. I imagine things will go smoother the next time.
And as far as his feet go, Duke says they look great. They are solid and should be fine for barefooting in all the plush grass we have. Still, I’ll be sure to keep a close eye on them.
After some more hanging out we put the guys out to pasture and snapped a few goofy pictures of them.
Bear still waking up from our long, relaxing grooming session.
Mid yawn, or sticking out tongue? It can be hard to tell as Bear is getting a bit more relaxed and goofy around us.
He’s got a ways to go before he is as goofy as Steen, though.