Day 192

First day out of the new year! What a better way than to get hooves trimmed?

Since the farrier was out today, nothing really exciting happened. Nina and Brie got trimmed, Nina while tranquilized and Brie was, in the farrier's words, "awesome" because she picked up all her hooves for him without being asked. Harry, though, apparently had really bad front hooves. I know a couple weeks back he got that big chip on the inside of his front left hoof that Paco cut off because it was just hanging. The farrier pointed out that Harry's been riding on his frogs because his hoof wall is in such poor condition. We made the decision to put shoes back on his front hooves. He had to be tranquilized to do that because he got one shoe on and then started trying to rear. But overall, they're all fixed up pretty now and I can't wait to ride Harry tomorrow to see if this changes anything even a little bit.

What I am mad about, though, is Paco riding Harry without telling me beforehand. Actually, I don't like Paco riding Harry at all. It's a really tricky situation because we're friends, but I just don't want him interfering with what I'm trying to accomplish with Harry -- building up his confidence. I know that Harry is really energetic, hyper, and stubborn, but I don't believe that he's mean or is confident. I believe that horses are the same on the ground as they are in the saddle. What I mean by this is that Harry is a spooky horse on the ground, therefore he's a spooky horse in the saddle. I can prove this with Brie. She's like bomb-proof on the ground and is pretty much bomb-proof outside (whether or not she wants to cooperate is a different story). I believe that Harry's spookiness stems from his lack of confidence and while I don't get to work on that on the ground so often, I'm really trying to build up his confidence in the saddle by the work I've been doing that past couple of weeks by trying to get him to collect his own feet and maintain his own speed without me doing all of the work for him, sometimes the wrong way and making him upset. If Paco is going behind me and doing God knows what while I'm not there (not that I think that he's harming him), then how is what I'm doing supposed to stick? It's bad enough that I get ridiculed about doing Parelli techniques and hounded about wasting time while I'm doing them so I can't improve him on the ground, but I have to be working double on riding too? No, I don't appreciate this. And Paco, being older, of course thinks I'm just being a stubborn kid and not wanting to listen to him and his help, but honestly, Paco contradicts himself all of the time. If he's not someone who's consistent in what he's trying to "teach" me, then how am I even supposed to believe what I'm doing is right if the next day what I'm doing is wrong?

Take for example, yesterday when Paco rode Harry he changed the bit. I have no idea what bit he used and he didn't want to show me, but when WE wanted to change the bit, Paco told us No, No, No. Now suddenly it's okay? He can get into our tack room, why couldn't he just use our bit? I want to tell him and I know it shouldn't affect our friendship, but I know that it will. It just comes down to my own horse's well being and the progress I'm trying to make. I know that I should appreciate him exercising Harry because he doesn't get trained and it's cold out, but honestly, that's another thing. Paco should be putting them outside. So what if it's cold? As long as it's above freezing and there's no ice on the ground, I fully believe that they all should be out in the fresh air. It drives me insane because I know they aren't getting out.

This is why I need to, as much as I want to quit, stay in school and force myself into a good job. That way I can get my own barn and my own land and take care of my horses the way that they're supposed to be taken care of.