Scottie had his freeze branding for loss of use at the weekend and it has all started to feel very real now. It’s felt like a really long year and a half battling to get him right and worrying about the outcome. While I am just waiting for the money to come through now, I feel happier that everything is finalised. The pressure is off and I feel like I am actually enjoying Scottie again.
I am still sticking to the original plan of having a look at Scottie in April and hopefully (everything crossed) he will be able to start slowly coming back into work. I am quietly confident that if he is as good as he was before Christmas that this should be fine! But however Scottie looks in April, I want to enjoy him this Summer and I want to get out and do something!
So I am starting to keep an eye out for local shows with some nice in hand classes, just to get out and have some fun. No pressure about winning, but a reason to get all smart and get out. Even if he isn’t sound enough to start riding, throughout the whole process he has been sound on a straight line and on the left circle. So I am confident that he will be more than capable of the tiny amounts of trotting required in in hand classes. Especially considering the antics he gets up to in the field!
If at the end of the Summer he hasn’t started returning to work, I will look to turn him away over the winter and have another look next year. But I think it would be good for both of us to do something this summer, even if it is just a lot of walking in hand.
Last Updated on 14/01/2022
