Well, not exactly, but fingers and toes crossed.
This is my “mustang who thinks she’s hot stuff,” according to Copper the Quarter Horse, but who yes, did indeed buck someone off last weekend for the first time in her entire tenure as a riding horse.
Copper obviously thinks she gets away with murder (thank goodness THAT didn’t happen!), so I thought maybe I should step in and add a word about what I think happened and about my personal understanding of Bella. And I’m going to relay what she thinks about it all too.
First, you gotta understand that mustangs are a little different. I mean, a horse is a horse, of course, of course (as Mr. Ed used to say on t.v.), and mustangs are naturally subject to all the instinctive maneuvers and reactions of any other horse — only more so.
But they are not only self-preservative instinctively, as are all horses because they’re prey animals, they use their heads and have strong opinions about why they do things. At least I think most of them do. Bella sure does.
Now we know Bella didn’t buck off her rider because she was being self-preservative! Big duh there. She is a big, mellow girl who has been famous for being trustworthy, and who has ridden in that ring where she bucked too many times to count. So what was it.
Bella? Would you like to comment?
(She’s embarrassed.) Well, in some ways Copper was right. I really didn’t want to be up there doing all that. It was time to quit, and I’d had enough, and I’m out of practice, and no one was talking to me personally or paying much attention to me and noticing how I was feeling so I got kind of mad. Plus, I wasn’t used to that person, and she was laughing and not paying much attention, and, well . . . I really didn’t intend to take it so far, but when she let me have my head and didn’t seem to object too much, I thought she was going along with it all. I was really surprised when she landed beside me, and I ran off because I was afraid and scared!
Well, well, well. At least this is an honest answer. Bella and I went on to talk this through, and have ridden through it a couple of times since too, and she’s done just fine.
One thing is clear: Bella is used to my being 150% in tune with her when we’re riding together, including in tune while singing all the songs I sing to her, and saying all the encouraging words I say to her outloud. This is how she likes to do our riding together, whether we’re in the ring or out on a trail, so when it’s not happening she doesn’t like it one bit. This is fun for her and what she likes most.
Oh dear. It’s back to basics for us. Her favorite song?
I’M A LITTLE PONY, SHORT AND STOUT.
HERE IS MY HANDLE AND HERE IS MY SNOUT.
WHEN I GET ALL STEAMED UP, I MIGHT POUT
AND TIP YOU OVER AND DUMP YOU OUT !!!
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