Limping through the breed show

 As Theo breezed into his eight weeks of vacation, I started gearing up to take Kiki out to the breed show.  The two year old version seems so grown up with her bridle and ridiculously long forelock.

That forelock touches her nostrils

We also had took the opportunity to practice trailering.  Not really for Kiki who has always loaded well but for her bff who did not load well last year.  With two girls and one boy going to the show (Trainer Z's junior stallion), I was hauling the two girls myself.  We loaded them right after Theo's last show and with a little grain, they both walked right on.  No problems!  In the interest of good experiences, we decided to leave my trailer at the barn and practice again the next weekend.

Hooking up my trailer turned out to be a bit of a problem.  While sitting for a week, my goose neck sunk down just far enough to be too low for my truck.  Ugh.  So we decided that I would hook up the next day before my lesson (after Trainer Z had used the tractor to retrieve my trailer) and we could practice then.  I showed up nice and early so I could hook up before my ride.  I was walking out to my trailer and talking to another rider when I stepped on a rock on the soft dirt and fell down.  As I hit the ground on top of my ankle, I heard a pop.

That's not a shadow, that's the bruising 

Appropriate new tattoo is appropriate.  I got the tattoo the day before this little incident and the nurses at the urgent care thought it was perfect.  It also affected some of the first aid when it happened since I had an open wound just over my ankle which ruled out sticking it in a bucket of cold water.  I really did consider riding since I could just ride without stirrups but several moms gave me the look of death and told me absolutely not.  

Yes, I sprained it.  I sprained it badly enough that it immediately started swelling and I had to sit on the ground with the ants for ten minutes while my body overreacted and suggested I should pass out.  I spent the whole week before the breed show icing, wrapping, and elevating my ankle while avoiding putting weight on it.  I really, really needed it to work for the show!  Fortunately I had a professional handler as backup but I was still hoping I could limp around enough for amateur handler.

Spoiler:  Did not do amateur handler.  Or any kind of running.  I limped around the breed show looking pathetic but still got everything done but handling!  It helps that I have the best two year old in the world.  Absolutely foot perfect the whole weekend.

Kiki and part of her fan club.  The whole show was like this for her.

She is so good.  I could wax poetic about how good she is for hours.  I groomed and braided her loose in her stall all weekend, she was down for it.  If you show her a curry comb she turns into a statue because she loves to be curried.  Trainer Z's five year old helped wash her socks while she was in a new wash stall.  Everywhere I took her, people wanted to meet her and pet her.  I bridled her probably 15 times this weekend and it was a complete non-issue.  Her mouth is quiet and it really doesn't seem to bother her.  We decided to try lighting her up a bit while she was showing since she's proven to be so polite and it did help.  Day 1 got her six trips into the ring and Reserve Grand Champion Pony.  Day 2 was a different judge and she went Reserve Champion Pony Filly.  

She is so stinking polite about everything, the handler loves her because there is no drama.  Her spicey moment was when she shook her head at the walk.  Once.  And tried out cantering when asked to trot bigger but it was so polite.

Seriously, every run looked pretty much like that.  By the end of the weekend she was doing better about not breaking to canter, she's getting the idea.  She's not the polished presentation of some of the other fillies but her future is in performance and she politely does the job in a strange ring all by her lonesome.  Also did the job with all of the other ponies for the Grand Championship class.  

Chilling and waiting for her turn like no big deal

It was a lot of trips into the ring for the baby and she was definitely ready to get her braids out and head home.

Honestly, she still won't leave her braids in.  She did one of her Welsh classes with her hair loose again because it was all we could do to keep her braided for the multiple trips for the filly classes.  It is the only thing she doesn't do well at shows.  Oh, that, and deciding that everything needs to be touched and/or put in her mouth.

Fortunately she likes to touch people, not bite them

She's so interactive, she wants to be involved in whatever you're doing.  We had to close her stall door at some points because she was getting too creative with what to do with her time.  Her hay net kept her occupied most of the time and the frequent trips into the ring kept her from getting bored.  Her fan club is extensive and made sure she had attention at all times.  It doesn't hurt that she immediately greets anyone that visits.  She's still a little shy and doesn't like it when people immediately reach for her face but if someone introduces themselves politely, she's quite convinced she is a princess that is loved by all.  She started the weekend being a bit of a brat about getting haltered so many times but by day three was pretty chill with it.  After the show we threw her in her field and she was so happy to go back to her feral kelpie lifestyle.

My ankle was absolutely killing me by the end of the weekend but I also had a whole armful of ribbons to bring home.  It did make my ankle feel better.

Unfortunately that will be her only show this year.  Between my sprained ankle, a work trip, and my very long show season, she won't be going to the breed finals show.  She didn't qualify for finals so it would just be a one day show that's 4+ hours away.  And I still won't be able to do the amateur handler class, it's all I can do to get my ankle into a boot and get on Theo.  Breed finals are also a week before regionals with Theo and with a four day work trip in between, something had to give.  Given her perfect behavior, I don't think it will be a setback in her training if she misses this outing.

The pony is going to pony regardless of outings

Instead she will spend September in kindergarten, building on her progress and learning about new things like lunge lines and wearing tack.  Nothing too exciting or any actual work but enough to expose her to new things and give her stuff to think about this winter.  Since she can be skittish with new things, I'm excited to get her introduced to these new concepts while she's still little.  Kiki is very sensitive and can be quite reactive, there's a reason we've never used a chain shank with her.  She's very trusting of people she knows but her pony mare side eye is epic when her people are doing things that make no sense.  She tends to have a big reaction when first introduced to things, then realizes it's fine because no one around her is reacting and never cares about it again.  Her first blanket was kind of ridiculous with her shaking and refusing to walk, now she gets her blanket tossed on while she's loose in the field.  She threw a tantrum the first time she realized she was tied, now she cross-ties like it's nothing.

I'm sad we won't be doing any year end awards this year but there's still plenty of time for that.  Seeing her in a bridle made me realize that we're not that far away from her going under saddle.  How is it all going by so quickly?

Happy Birthday, Kiki

 Two years already, can you believe it?  She started here.

Now we are here.

She's really starting to feel like a pony instead of a foal now.  She still has the attention span of a goldfish and a tendency to throw a fit when bored but she does walk around like she has a clue.  She steps over when asked, can straight tie, and can even cross tie when the ties aren't sized for gigantic warmbloods.  She gets bored fast when I'm trimming her mane but as soon as the curry comb is out, she might as well be a statue.  Princess Kiki does not move while getting groomed.

Kiki now has some dark shading coming in on her neck in contrast to all of the frosting on her mane.  I was worried she would outgrow the frosting but it's still here.

There's not much to expect from a two year old so that's pretty much it.  She came in, she got groomed, and we took some pictures.  The bridle will probably happen in June so she'll be ready for the breed shows in July.  Until then, she will continue to be my feral kelpie.

She has three friends currently and some more on the way.  Rumor has it that an Andalusian mare will be taking over as babysitter for the filly field and one of the broodmares is due at the end of May.  It's such a glorious way for her to grow up.  Now that she's two she's starting to have sessions with Trainer Z to lay down some groundwork.  Leave the field, be groomed, do something, go back out.  By fall she should understand what the lunge is for and how to wear a bridle and surcingle.  Not really lunging but understanding the idea that circles around a human is a thing.  Then back out for another feral winter.

We're not in a hurry, Keekanator.  No one wants to lose that adorable curious response to everything.

There be dragons here

 For the most part, my yearling spends her time growing and tormenting the other fillies in her field.  She gallops, plays, eats a lot, and sleeps.  Occasionally tries to mug the other fillies for their food.  It's a full schedule but she somehow manages.

It really is the best way to grow up.  She's got her bff who is the same age and two fillies that are a year younger (but already her height, such is the life of the pony at a dressage barn).  She also has the supervision of a mare that keeps the little herd in line.  The Moose is turning five, starting her under saddle career, and has no patience for fillies that think they are in charge.  It's fantastic for Kiki who is quite used to a boss mare telling her what to do.  We don't want her to start thinking she's in charge.

As for her training, it's somewhat intermittent as it should be at this age.  When I have time, I bring her up to the little barn to practice being tied and groomed.  She enjoys the attention quite a bit and is an enthusiastic student.  With repetition she's gotten used to the idea of walking away from her friends.  They mind a lot more than she does.  She ties with a blocker ring to prevent any bad or scary experiences at this age.  She respects the pressure on her halter and instead spends her time systematically knocking over anything she can touch.  Boots up to dry?  She goes down the row like a cat, knocking them all over.  Box of mints that seems securely closed?  She can open that.

But Catie, why do you allow her to do that?  Why not tie her somewhere with nothing in reach?  We live in a world of cross ties and Kiki is too young to be introduced to those.  I clip her blocker ring to the ring for the cross ties and use that for her tying practice.  It allows me to tie her just about anywhere the grown horses go but it also means she's close enough to the wall to touch things.  It's fine, once she's knocked everything down she doesn't have anything else to mess with.  I keep things down to 15 - 20 minute sessions since she's just a baby.  In hand work consists of starting, stopping, turning, and we recently started to work the turn on the forehand.  She'll start working on a longer line this spring to introduce moving around me and letting me manipulate her body more.

She got her year end ribbon from the National Dressage Pony Cup and that warranted a trip to the indoor for a quick sock scrub and some pictures out of the mud and snow.

They are definitely not professional photos (and her socks did not wash up well in the cold) but she is looking so very grown up these days.  She has started to chunk out and her shoulders have caught up with her butt.  I'm really excited for how she's maturing and can't wait to take her out as a two year old.  I was also excited that she walked up the road and into the wash stall while ignoring the shouts of the stallions that had noticed the new girl in town.  She stood for mane shortening and sock scrubbing and currying before walking into the indoor.  What you can't see are the two young horses being worked in lessons while she's in the ring and the winter storm blowing in.  She handled it all gracefully for a filly just short of two years old.  No chain shank, no rope halter.  She was also shedding and very, very itchy.

She wanted to roll in the dry sand so badly but it seemed a bad idea with the ribbon and lessons going on.  She settled for scratching herself thoroughly with her blanket off and having a big shake.

When she was younger Trainer Z used a feed bag for her meals like she does with all of her babies and I have to say, it's genius.  Putting on her halter is the same gesture as putting on a feed bag so she is very relaxed about it and associates it with her favorite things in life:  food and attention.  When I held up her ribbon to let her get a look, she automatically put her head through the loop.  I expect she'll accept her bridle with grace this spring when we start getting her ready for the breed shows.  She's also very used to her blankets now and I was able to adjust her leg straps with her loose in her field.  I'll probably introduce her to a surcingle this summer so she can carry a saddle pad while doing ground work.  

This is far from my first Welsh and honestly Theo might as well be an honorary Welsh with his sense of fairness, mischievous streak, self preservation instincts, and his habit of choosing specific people as 'safe'.  For Trainer Z, it's a new adventure.  Kiki is the feral swamp creature, the ceffyl dŵr (Welsh water horse, hopefully the southern Wales version) that won't stay out of the pond and storms around the field causing havoc while the warmblood fillies stare at her in confusion.  She's the punk rocker in with the European debutantes.  She's a native pony and, more importantly, a Welsh Cob.  She is not a dead head or beginner friendly.  She is very smart, very aware of her environment, and absolutely ready to take charge of a situation if she believes she needs to.  She is as much dragon as she is beloved princess.  She has a strong sense of 'stranger danger' still and the biggest side eye of her adventure to the indoor arena was when I handed her to a stranger and walked away.  It's good for her to practice but she always softens when Trainer Z or I take her back.  

She will be an interesting journey as a competition mare that is also a Welsh Cob.  That is a lot of opinions in a very adorable package.  I expect her to be very soft to correction and reactive to her environment with a big engine.  We don't correct her with more than voice or a tap on the chest because that's all it takes, more than that would cause anxiety.  I expect her to be a bit intense when working but also happy to mosey on a long rein because she's curious and gregarious.  She'll need to be another positive reinforcement pony that is playing a game but with the rules of unacceptable behavior set in stone.  I also expect her to command respect in the warmup.  I loved riding Fiona in the warmup because other horses automatically got out of her way.  A mature, confident mare is not to be messed with and Kiki is already showing that charisma.  Theo is, unfortunately, quite loveable and horses have no issue with getting in his bubble.  The fillies give way when Kiki storms through.

That's the Moose trying to put Kiki in time out on the other side of the pond because she's bringing the chaos.  She does this all the time and the other fillies stare at her in wonder.  Trainer Z's husband loves her because she's so bold and so ridiculous.  I'm more interested in that uphill canter.

I'm really enjoying this journey and so happy I took the plunge.  I've never helped raise a baby or watched one grow into the potential seen when she was still tiny.  Keek has been perfect for this as she loves to come in and let me practice.  She'll turn two the weekend before I graduate.  I'll have to arrange for a proper photoshoot to celebrate.  A lovely filly like her should have pictures where she doesn't look like a kelpie.

Princess Keekanator

 Now that I'm done fussing over that Third level debut, I can double back and show off what the Keekanator did at her last show of the season.

A small hint of what my future dressage mare will look like

No one knew how much fun we were going to have with this poor filly's name.  Quillane Marqui is such an elegant name but no, she's Kiki-kins, the Keekanator, Cheeky Kiki, Kiki Monster, etc.  She definitely knows her name is Kiki and will happily trot up to anyone in her field that says her name.  She is quite convinced she is a beloved princess and you know what, she's right.

A quick photo before putting my phone away so I could receive the enthusiastic filly brigade that came hustling when I called for Kiki.  L to R, Let's Begin WPF 'Lottie' (current year WB filly), Kiki, and La Vie en Rose WPF 'Viv' (yearling WB filly).  A lot of Grand Prix potential in this picture.

She handled her second show very much like she did her first.  She stood for her bath, got on the trailer with two adult geldings she'd never met with nothing more than a weird look (it helped that the gelding next to her is very sweet and submissive, they were immediate buddies), and settled into her stall.  For whatever reason she was put in an extra large stall and she looked a bit ridiculous.

She could practically practice her triangle in this stall

We walked every where and checked out everything.  No need for a chain shank or rope halter, Kiki understands the drill.  We go places, we look at things, and we eat.  We eat a lot.  Got to love that native pony common sense.

Really could not care less so long as there was grass

Once in her stall for the night, the naps commenced.  Baby pony requires at least two lay down naps a day when showing plus sleeping at night.

Please hold, Keekanator is recharging

So how did the actual showing go?  Great!  She left her braids in all day!  It helped that I grazed her between classes to help keep her distracted but she didn't try to systematically remove them.  We practiced being tied for grooming and braiding which she accepted gracefully after all of our work on releasing to pressure from the halter.  She is already very easy to handle in a stall and enjoys all of the grooming and fussing.  So much fussing, she's learning to live with an ammy that likes to hug, kiss, and generally love on her pony.  It's not my fault she has a very kissable nose.  I had complete conversations with people while draped over her butt.  She ignored me and ate her hay.

Kiki still doesn't get the idea of being big and sassy in the ring, she still trots along very politely with the person leading her.  She understands that she's going places with people but she isn't in a hurry.  It seems her base reaction to something new or overwhelming is to stop and look.  Her spooks are in place for the most part.  While trotting a bunch of geese coming from behind spooked her and she scooted for a couple steps before stopping to stare.  For a future performance horse, I'm quite cool with her spook being mostly stationary followed by cautious investigation.

Her breeder mentioned that her 'stranger danger' response to new people is quite common in Welsh cobs and that I might as well get used to handling her myself at breed shows.  She will probably always trot off better for me.  Guess I have to swap out my endurance running for some sprint training before next season.  I had the professional handle her for pony filly but when the handler was double booked, I filled in for the Welsh breed class.  Her movement scored better with me handling.

So pretty, so polite

I didn't use a whip person in my amateur handler because she trots just fine coming along with me.  She already understands no one is actually going to hit her.  I tapped her on the hip with the dressage whip at one point and her eyes got very big.  Little girl is very sensitive to correction, I will have to remember that in the future.  

So relaxed that she looks ready to doze off

We won the amateur handler with a 77% and comments from the judge on what a lovely bond we have.  Showing the handler class with a yearling is a bit of a challenge but Miss Kiki is very smart and seems to enjoy all of the people admiring her.  She knows how to hit her marks.

She knows to change stance when I touch her chest, next year hoping we can do it with a bit of bridle pressure

And then she went back home and went back to her feral, swamp creature life.  We got dinged on presentation for her socks not being white enough and I shrugged.  She is a swamp creature, no shampoo is going to turn those things back to shining white.  And she's happy this way so it's fine.

Still the best of friends and about to be big sisters to two WB weanling fillies

Her first year of showing is done and was a complete success.  Sure, no crazy placings or champion ribbons, but she got very respectable scores and comments from lots of people about her calm mind and excellent behavior.  She now loads into the trailer like a champ, sleeps in a stall away from home, and marches into strange rings because she knows that it's not a big deal.  For a future performance horse, it's everything I could want.  I had her help me pack the trailer on the last day so she walked with me while I carried all sorts of big, noisy, odd things and threw them in the dressing room.  By the last trip, I was draping things over her for her to carry.  She considers me odd but harmless and I'm delighted with that.  I can't say enough about what a good start the breed shows have been.  By the time she goes into the ring for her first under saddle test, she's going to think it's a complete non-issue.

We also got an email from the USDF today.  #16 for yearling fillies in DSHB horse of the year and #1 Welsh yearling filly.  So she'll get some fancy satin after all.

Media Dump: Brookside Breed Show

 When your filly's breeder is also the photographer, you get some fantastic pictures.  It doesn't hurt that's she's growing up just gorgeous.  All photos courtesy of Studio Equus.

Tada!  Looking completely civilized and like a show horse.  She's growing up so beautifully, looking less and less like a baby every week.  She dapples up so nicely.  21 braids to get that full double mane contained.  All of the other horses I did got 11.

Such a polite trot but I can see why this got us comments like 'needs more push' and 'needs more shoulder freedom'.

Polite little trit-trot only gets you a 7.6.  Which is a great score but the three other pony fillies were all GRPs from a dressage breeder and the winner got a 7.8 in the trot.  It was very close with Kiki at 76.5% and the winner at 77.1% and reserve at 77.0%.  Little lady needs to show off that big cob trot since movement has a coefficient of 3.

Seriously could not hear this dang judge, there are several pictures of me staring in confusion.

Pretty girl.  Kind of excited for her to cob out but we're all watching her height closely.  She shot up again.  Might be a small horse, not a pony.  

It was a lot of forelock when it was loose for her Welsh classes.  Fortunately her mane was full of braiding wax and laid down nicely long enough to get around.

Good gravy her face.  Everyone commented on her beautiful face and kind eye.  She got her sire's eye and an uncanny resemblance to her sire's sire as a yearling, Danaway Flash Jack.

She's not so sure about this trotting along with a stranger while the nice lady suddenly tries to chase her with a whip.  Going to have to train her mane on the right side to get the full effect of the silver hair from her frosted gene.

I love this last picture as we're both looking at the judge going 'huh?  You want us to what?'.  I did not do well in amateur handler but the judge was also kind of a jerk.  I couldn't hear him and he did not like to repeat himself.  I also did not need the extended lecture about forgetting my phone in my back pocket after braiding nine horses and needing to coordinate across multiple barns.  Or the comments about my fitness and how it was clear I don't do this kind of thing.  But worth it for the picture of us both looking utterly confused.  Breeder said she trotted off nicer for me than the professional handler so we're taking note:  Kiki loves people but currently isn't cool with working for strangers.  She does it but with a big question mark over her head.

Entries are going in for the breed show in September.  We have no illusions of grand winnings, the pony fillies division is apparently very hot and Miss Kiki appears to be one that will show better once she's matured a bit more.  The 'toe out' and 'cow hock' comments are fine for a filly that's going to gain a lot of width as well as height in the upcoming years.  I'm really looking forward to presenting her as a three year old, all grown up and confident with lots of ground work to develop the in hand trot.  

For her yearling year?  Polite, calm, happy is the name of the game.  Oh, and her very first sugar cube.  Baby pony worked very hard and hard working show ponies get sugar cubes.  Her pupils immediately dilated, I might have created a monster.

Superstar

 Things you want from a baby horse at her first show:

• Can be led - Check!  Very polite, no need for the rope halter or a chain shank, Kiki is a lady and goes where she is asked with minimal hauling the handler off in search of grass or mischief
  
  
  
• Can be trotted - Check!  Could use some more enthusiasm honestly, she's a bit too polite right now.  Very lady like trotting does not show off her movement but it earned her points with the handler who found her easy to manage and steer.
• Can be groomed - Check!  She loves it.  The baths have taken some work but now that she realizes warm water and soap lead to whole body scrubs, she is on board.  Good thing she likes it, her four white stockings take a lot of scrubbing.  She likes having her belly curried so we'll keep up on that, don't want to lose that.
  
  
  
• Can be stabled - Check!  She enjoyed having her own stall with her own hay net.  She made friends with the buckskin yearling pony filly next door and anyone else that was willing to stop by and visit with her.  She's fairly neat for a filly, just one manure stain that needed a scrub but I had to stay on top of picking her stall because her color shows any bit of dirt.  By the last day she was not happy to go back into her boring box but she was so polite I got comments from the neighbors.
  
  
  
• Can be trailered - Check!  While her bff was having none of the trailering, Kiki saw that the food lady was in there and she had a hay net.  A quick sniff and check to make sure the flooring was up to her standard before she hopped up the step so she could get her food.  Pony has a one track mind.
• Eats/drinks/sleeps - Check!  Especially eats, this girl will eat anywhere, any time.  When her friend was being dramatic about the trailer, she was happily grazing and ignoring everything.  So long as she had a hay net, we could braid and groom with her loose in her stall.  She did get some Gastro Guard as a preventative each day but that tummy was never empty.  She also slept a lot.  Saturday included three lay down naps during the day.
  
  
  
• Doesn't bite/kick/trample anyone - Check!  So, so people friendly.  She was delighted that everyone wanted to pet her and tell her she was pretty.
• Can be braided - HAHAHAHAHA NOPE.  Oh, you can braid her.  She doesn't mind a bit, stands there eating hay with perfect manners.  Within five minutes of me leaving the stall she had one out.  Fifteen minutes she had four or five.  Forty-five minutes?  Disaster.  She uses her hind foot and systematically tears them out as soon as you leave.  She will also go down and roll to shove shavings into them or drag along the wall to bust the bands.  I ended up doing her last class with her hair down each day since it was her Welsh class and the other Welsh owner wanted to show her horse as a native pony with her hair down.  I certainly wasn't going to argue against taking her braids out early.  She was so damn good about so many things, I was not going to fight her on her braids.  We just took them out after her yearling pony filly class and called it a day.  That's a fight we'll handle another time.

So Cheeky Kiki is a show pony!  She was last in almost every class (got first of two in her second Welsh class) but she's in an awkward stage and doesn't understand that a show is when you get sassy and big.  She's very cooperative but the judges wanted to see more push and freedom in her movement.  We all know it's there, just not in the ring.  Yet.  She may be one of those that does better when she's three, all cobbed out, and a confident mare as opposed to a confused filly.  The goal for the weekend was to introduce her to showing in a positive way and we completely succeeded at that.  We both learned a lot.  Her breeder was the show photographer so I know we'll have lovely pictures soon.

I need to find a neck cover in size small pony before her next show.  I won't have any kind of a chance of keeping her braided without some armor.  But it's a good primary problem to have.

Baby's first clinic

 Kiki got to attend her first clinic!  We were lucky enough to have a sporthorse handling clinic at the barn where clinicians learned from professional handlers how to show horses of different ages.  It made for a long day for the barn team as we provided all of the demo horses from foals next to their dams up to mature stallions.  Theo was a piece of cake since he's very good about trotting along with a handler.  He got braided up and that was it.  Kiki, on the other hand, was a multi-day project.

Day one was standing in the pouring rain while wrestling her cob mane into braids.  

Oh, this pony is going to have some hair.  I asked her sire's owner if he happens to have a full double mane and she replied 'Welcome to the world of cob manes!'.  Oh dear.  You can see her bestie Viv watching us work.  You'll also notice my yearling is standing like a saint for braiding with a human holding her slack lead rope.  She tried to get fussy at the start and got her halter shaken which was enough correction for her.  She thought this was all odd but getting her mane and tail brushed out was nice so she was down for it.  We got both of the ladies braided up easily as they both stood very well and turned them out for the night with orders to make good choices.  

The next day we were pleasantly surprised to see the braids were still in.  We didn't pull them up until the last minute since we could loop them up quickly with bands.  The girls only had to walk a short distance to go up to the indoor but it was the first trip for both of them.  We kept them together as a pair the whole time so they would have a nice experience.  Kiki was still not sure about this whole thing.

Bombastic side eye

We did have to have a brief talk about her standing politely while waiting for Viv to have her turn.  She would just start walking forward and was indignant when we backed her up.  About a dozen times.  Ever wrangle a several hundred pound toddler that is politely insisting they want to go see their friend?  Yeah, I was sore the next day.  She was never rude, just stubbornly insistent.  After a dozen iterations she gave up and stood politely.  

The barn's intern was doing the clinic and she was trusted to take Kiki around the triangle.  Kiki was confused but tried very hard to be good even though some stranger was behind her and clearly needed watching.

You might notice her socks are completely covered in mud.  The 2022 girls were turned out briefly while we were wrangling the 2023 girls and of course they went straight into the mud.  The liver chestnut was easy to clean up but the buckskin with four socks?  Thank goodness it was a clinic.  Everyone was surprised by the polite yearlings that just trotted around and accepted pats from everyone that wanted to meet them.  After that arduous outing that took about 10 minutes in the indoor, it was back to the field for the babies.

It was such a perfect outing.  They saw a crowd, got handled by several people, got braided, had to stand quietly for minutes at a time, had to trot along with a stranger, and then went right back into their field.  Now we know what we need to work on.  Kiki has a big trot and she needs to get used to showing it off alongside a human.  

We also need to work on that mane.  This baby has so much hair already!  Another month until her first breed show and she's a very quick study, I suspect she'll understand the game by the time we get there.  Whether or not I can make it around the triangle without falling on my face?  That's a whole other matter.

The entire mare band out enjoying their field.  Three broodmares, two yearlings, and two fillies.  6 of them are fancy, inspected Hanoverians from similar bloodlines, several are related as mother/daughter or half sisters.  Then there's Kiki, the buckskin pony.

Welcome to the family, Kiki

 I didn't sleep a wink last night.  I kept waking up and checking the time to see if I'd overslept.  About 5am my hubby told me to just get up already.  Apparently I was keeping him up as well.  I went to the barn all excited with a shiny new halter in hand.  It was new pony day!

Poor Kiki, her morning started out so peacefully, hanging with her favorite colt

New bike day is a thing in the cycling community.  New pony day is similar but much cuter.

We grabbed Trainer Z's two horse trailer and her ancient mini pony Mr. Ben and headed off to the breeder.  The trailer got stripped so it would be a box stall with Mr. Ben tied to one side.  The idea is that it's small enough Kiki would have to stay on her side without the troubles of getting her into a slot.  She'd also have Mr. Ben as a model of what she should do.  Mostly face forward and eat hay.  We pulled into the breeder's farm and she put a lead rope on Kiki.  Mr. Ben was pulled out of the trailer so she'd have room without a strange pony, then we asked her to step up.  It took her a minute while she touched the ramp with her front feet a couple times to check but then she walked up calmly.  She got settled, we added Mr. Ben, and we hit the road.  It took maybe ten minutes from parking to departure and that included the breeder handing me a coat I'd forgotten at the inspection.

I believe Kiki's thoughts could be summed up as 'What.  The.  HELL.'

Two hour ride back and we caught glimpses of Miss Kiki peeking out the window with hay at the corners of her mouth.  All good!  We arrived at the barn and there was a whole team to coordinate the transfers.  First the very pregnant broodmare in the field got moved to her foaling paddock.  She was delighted with this and made not a peep.  The yearling left behind, Viv, made a lot of peeps and fussed dramatically while her owner held her lead rope like the string of a kite.  Then we unloaded Mr. Ben, then Kiki.  Kiki stepped down very daintily and followed Trainer Z with an absolutely shocked expression on her face.  What was this place?  What happened?  Who was that very noisy liver chestnut?

She repeats.  What.  The.  HELL.

The girls were turned loose and folks stepped back for the fireworks.  Except there were very few.  Viv yelled for a broodmare that was ready for peace and didn't respond.  Kiki stood transfixed, staring at the pine chip footing in the paddock.  She quickly decided that Viv clearly knew what was going on and started following her.  Viv is a bit of a dominant brat and was in a state so she wasn't very receptive.  Kiki quickly learned to follow at a respectful distance.  After ten minutes, Viv was starting to figure out that her friend wasn't coming back.  By thirty minutes, she was more interested in what the deal was with the strange filly.

Future best friends?  We certainly hope so.

I made a run to Tractor Supply and by the time I got back, they were both working on the round bale in their field.  Not exactly friendly as they kept it between them but friendly enough to enjoy mutual grazing time.

I went into the field once it was clear the girls were done with their settling in drama.  Kiki was, understandably, very skittish.  She'd been thrown in a metal box with strangers, taken to a strange place, then put in a field with a strange filly that was not at all as friendly as the colts she'd left behind.  I stood by the round bale pretending to graze and after about two minutes, she was joining me.  Once I convinced her that I wasn't going to take her anywhere or do anything weird, she was happy for skritches.  She's shedding like crazy and is one itchy baby.

I spent about ten minutes giving her attention (and explaining to Viv that I'm a grumpy old broodmare and my space is sacrosanct) before heading out so they could finish settling after a very big day.  They'll spend the rest of the week just existing, getting used to each other, and for Kiki learning the new routine.  This weekend they'll get adult supervision in the form of an older broodmare that isn't in foal.  By summer when the fields are ready, they'll be joined by the other broodmares to make a nice little herd.  It should be a great way to grow up with a mix of ages and temperaments.

Now I'm wildly over tired but excited.  She was very, very sensible about everything.  She's skittish right now but couldn't resist coming over to see what I was doing and get in some attention.  I suspect in a week or two she'll be ready for company and getting used to going for short walks.  Most importantly, I've decided royal blue is definitely her color and will need to buy her lots of things in that shade.

Welcome to the family, Kiki.