Moving Confirmed

Notice has been given and the receiving barn has been notified that Rush will be joining their family- all that remains, now, is waiting! And planning the trailer ride over. Details.

The first frost/snow and subsequent frozen ground for the past week kind of unbalanced Rush for a bit, but I think she's getting the hang of it. Luckily the frozen ground now means that she's getting most all of her hay, and as a result she's really packed on the pounds, to the point where her ribs are barely visible :)

She'll be moving on the 9th/10th, I've determined. I just need to figure out the logistical details. A wonderful, wonderful friend has offered to trailer her over for me, so I don't need to worry about finding a trailering company (any paying them!) to move her over. I'm ridiculously excited for her to move, especially since she'll be right next to the indoor ring instead of half a mile away (maybe I'm exaggerating, but it's still a PITA to get her from her pasture to a ring). I think she'll really like having friends in her turnout again, and it'll be adorable to watch the bay TB mare herd wander around the mare pasture.

Setting Things in Motion

While the people at the barn I'm currently at are wonderful, there are many care issues that I've been unhappy with and have been searching for a new barn for quite some time. You know, little things such as they don't offer blanketing as a service (at all), they feed hay on the muddy ground in the pastures so half of it gets lost, and the groom leads the horses around the property by looping the lead rope around the horse's neck. Little things.

Oh, and Rush being uncomfortably skinny due to the feeding situation. That too.

So anyways, all of those things set the ball rolling for me to find a new place- and I've been looking for many weeks, without much luck, until now. The problem with my barn search was that a) it had to be in the same price range as my current place and b) it had to be accessible by bus, and relatively nearby so the commute didn't take all day.

So that's quite a tall order. But I'm happy to say, I found a place I think I'll be happy at. I went for a barn tour today and it seems to be a very friendly but casual place where the grounds are immaculate and the care is excellent. They weigh their hay (yay!), feed alfalfa (double yay!!), have a mirrored indoor, plenty of turnout, and spacious stalls. Everyone I met was warm and welcoming, the stable hand seemed very knowledgeable (and actually knows English), and all the horses were in good shape and very happy. I even caught the tail end of a lesson and was impressed with the instructor.

All that remains doing is the moving! 

January Goals

• Get Rush back up to a healthy weight - no ribs!
• Give notice to move to new barn (hopefully, if it pans out)
• Build up hind end strength through trot and canter sets
• Ride at least 4x a week
• Work on transitions during every warm uo
• Learn how to shoulder in + shoulder out