They Got here!!
The trip went without a hitch. They spent the night at the house of a very generous Forever Morgans supporter who offered her place near St. Joseph Missouri so they’d have somewhere to get out and stretch a little. Once here there was one small problem. GPS does not know where we live. It always sends people off in the other direction. I tried to give directions but didn’t do a good job. We ended up meeting her in town to lead them back this way.
I think it’s a good omen. We met them at the same gas station we met my parents at when they brought Princess Onna out.
Back at the house we unloaded the horses. Amarillo was in back. He walked out as calm and quiet as could be. Then immediately dropped his head and went to grazing as she went to get Harvey. He was completely unconcerned. In the pictures online he’s a very brown buckskin. In the pictures she sent me from the trip I couldn’t tell which was which. In person I still couldn’t tell. Amarillo was very pretty, big and thick. Easy to handle and very well behaved.
Harvey I had been hearing about ever since they left Alabama. He kept taking his halter off. Finally he broke it. He was wearing a spare she had and was far more concerned than Harvey. He was calling loudly from inside the trailer. Once out I didn’t have time to look. we turned and headed to the corral. Unhaltered they immediately went to munching weeds.
I don’t know which rout they took but not the one through Kansas.
We watched them eat while we stood and watched discussing horses in general. These two in particular. My two came running up to the gate calling out their welcomes. I had them locked away from the newcomers, a pen in between. Better safe than sorry. These two should be healthy but they’re coming from a long ways away. I am rather fond of Coyote and Rusty.
With more time to look I was surprised to see just how tiny and delicate Harvey was. His gorgeously well defined head was deer like in it’s shape and alertness. In his pictures he was a dark bay. Bleached out in the summer sun he is nearly the same buckskin color as Amarillo. His dark forelock is thick spilling over his large widely spaced eyes.
Neither one of them wanted anything to do with us. She spent some time telling me how they could only be caught with grain. That is so not a problem for me. I planned to get out there with some treats as soon as I could. Once she was off, on her way back home I grabbed my treat bag and went back out. I got a chance to listen to Anna Blake and stand still breathing. My horses catch me so fast I have no time to do anything but grab them and get going. With these two stood quietly and waited. They were understandably unsure. I was a strange person in a strange place after a long tiring trip.
In no time at all they came over sniffing cautiously. Amarillo braved me first. He wanted some food. He ate willingly out of my hand. Harvey, not so much. He was busy sniffing around on the ground looking for anything Amarillo dropped. Silly pony. Finally he figured it out and they took turns eating in a very mannerly… manner. We even got our first little bit of clicker training done!
I left a pile of hay next to the water. They didn’t want to walk through the mud in the gate to get to it. I turned and left carrying the food. They followed, a few steps then turned back. I went back too and fed them some more, then turned away. When Harvey followed a step I clicked him and gave him a handful. A few more steps, another handful. He wadded happily through the mud and found the hay. Amarillo followed along behind. Tomorrow hopefully we’ll start with a little targeting with some protected contact. I plan to do it right this time instead of starting in the middle like with Rusty.