I'm pretty sure that Lacey has decided that all our lesson kids are "hers". She's such a ham for them, so lovey-dovey with them, and SO careful around them.
Today, though, she kinda took it to the next level.
Today was the day that my only pair of kids comes. It's a brother/sister pair and their mom comes to watch. They just adore Lacey, they're always snuggling with her, ptting her, etc, basically all her favoritest things ever.
After their lesson was done (and they were up at their car, right outside Lacey's fence), I shut the gates to Lacey's shelter so she couldn't leave because I had another lesson in ten minutes and I didn't want her to roll and get muddy. However, she was basically throwing a fit. Neighing and nickering and trying to paw at the gate in such a way that she almost got her foot stuck. So I decided to let her out since I don't need broken horse, you know? Haha
So, as soon as I opened the gate Lacey RUSHED out, and I figured that she was going to go over to her buddies, right? Wrong. She trotted out of the gate and cantered up the hill and screeched to a halt at the fence closest to the car that the lesson kids were getting into (they were changing shoes and stuff). Then, she stuck her head over the fence and was basically trying to sniff them/the car. Then, once they had said hi to her (and cooed all over her about her adorable-ness), she went over to the gate that I use to get her out of the field and stood there, hitting it with her nose and staring at me (I was inside the fence with her) like "excuse me, but I would really like to be let out so I can visit with these people..."
It was just hilarious because she used to be SUCH an introvert. She was friendly to me and not many people aside from that, and here she's basically begging these kids to pay attention to her.
I find it so amazing that really the thing that caused this change in demeanor was going to camp together last summer. I would let her out to wander and come to find her thirty minutes later only to find her surrounded by 10, or sometimes more, little girls, just standing there, letting them love her. Before that, she'd put up with attention but she NEVER looked for it.
Who knew that you could teach a horse to love being loved! :lol:
Today, though, she kinda took it to the next level.
Today was the day that my only pair of kids comes. It's a brother/sister pair and their mom comes to watch. They just adore Lacey, they're always snuggling with her, ptting her, etc, basically all her favoritest things ever.
After their lesson was done (and they were up at their car, right outside Lacey's fence), I shut the gates to Lacey's shelter so she couldn't leave because I had another lesson in ten minutes and I didn't want her to roll and get muddy. However, she was basically throwing a fit. Neighing and nickering and trying to paw at the gate in such a way that she almost got her foot stuck. So I decided to let her out since I don't need broken horse, you know? Haha
So, as soon as I opened the gate Lacey RUSHED out, and I figured that she was going to go over to her buddies, right? Wrong. She trotted out of the gate and cantered up the hill and screeched to a halt at the fence closest to the car that the lesson kids were getting into (they were changing shoes and stuff). Then, she stuck her head over the fence and was basically trying to sniff them/the car. Then, once they had said hi to her (and cooed all over her about her adorable-ness), she went over to the gate that I use to get her out of the field and stood there, hitting it with her nose and staring at me (I was inside the fence with her) like "excuse me, but I would really like to be let out so I can visit with these people..."
It was just hilarious because she used to be SUCH an introvert. She was friendly to me and not many people aside from that, and here she's basically begging these kids to pay attention to her.
I find it so amazing that really the thing that caused this change in demeanor was going to camp together last summer. I would let her out to wander and come to find her thirty minutes later only to find her surrounded by 10, or sometimes more, little girls, just standing there, letting them love her. Before that, she'd put up with attention but she NEVER looked for it.
Who knew that you could teach a horse to love being loved! :lol: