Dante Improves

Each day, I seem to be a little bit sadder about Cruiser. I thought it was supposed to go the other way! I don’t even feel like riding, but I have been, anyway. One thing that really makes me feel better is working with Dante.

I mentioned how awful he was on Monday. Well, he was the opposite on Wednesday. I was so tickled with the improvement. After a generous turnout where he ran plenty (which didn’t help at all on Monday) I took him for a little walk. We started with the same routine that we did on Monday, and we had no issues whatsoever. I pushed the envelope by adding the loop—still good. He got plenty of praise and a few clicks, too. I then went back to the barn, passed it up and headed down the driveway. We stopped about 20 feet from the street and watched a few cars go by. He didn’t see bothered by them, but he didn’t want to stand still. I simply kept circling him around and stopping him when he was facing the street. It was all so uneventful. I brought him back to the barn, and he reminded me of Mingo—the way he carefully walked with his head about the height of my hip. He was extremely relaxed. I will push the envelope more this weekend.

I want him to be back to his old self by the time the river is low enough to cross. Ellen is very nervous about all this—it is her nature—so I am glad I am able to help her. She needs to see him behave with me. She is a very visual person, and if she can see it, she can process it.

Cole has been very good on his hill trips with Starry. I wish it wouldn’t rain so much! We haven’t crossed the river in over a week.