Hell-horse revisited

Big B, the horse from my post Making the best of what you have, has begun to make a liar out of me. He's being so good and I'm beginning to like him. I'm not totally there yet, but it's a start. I definitely have a deep respect for his talent.

This is from a couple of weeks ago. He has filled out a lot since then.

After his previous mishaps Ty, my fiancé, said we really need to make a point of paying extra attention to him. So we try to pet him every time we walk by his stall. We let him graze as often as we can. I make sure to love on him for a few minutes before I start tacking him and really take my time. It seems to be working.

I realize this is just normal routine with saddle horses. Having twelve horses at the track,  Ty and I have to really focus on not just going through the motions. We get really busy. Babying a horse that acts like he wants to kill me or himself doesn't normally land on the top of my priority list. It's worth it though.

Big B now has his head out of the stall most of the time and is actually looking for attention. He hardly did before. He doesn't weave any more. When he is out on the track, he is more forward and seems to enjoy being there. I don't feel like he is going to bite or kick when I go into his stall, though I still don't let my guard completely down.

It's pretty gratifying to watch him progress physically too. Big B is getting stronger fast. Today he went like a champ! He really came under himself and stayed loose over his back, very uphill. His movement has always been really good, but it's getting to the amazing level fast!

All in all, both Ty and I are very happy with how quick he is progressing. Fingers crossed that he keeps improving at this pace.