Second Day
I went out last night to check on him one last time. He was pacing the fence, of course, and came to meet me. The flash light didn’t phase him at all. And he ran towards the scary hay carrying monster again.
The next morning I was glad to see he was still alive. Still running the fenceline and still not going to his feed. He was friendly and came to meet me though. We had fog and hoar frost and the horses were nicely tipped in white. I had planned to keep him well away from the other two for a few days. I know he had been quarantined after he got picked up from the sale but he had been at another barn, with horses I assume, and had come so far, I wanted to be careful. But he was having such a fit by himself I was worried for him. We let the other two out so they could get to know each other over the fence.
They meandered slowly down to him and snorted and squealed over the fence a little. There was no drama. I decided they were in no way threatened by this scrawny new baby horse. Then they left back to their hay and he resumed his frantic pacing.
So I went against all usual horse introducing rules and turned them all in together.
Coyote, true to his normal rotten self, was a jerk. But it went well I think. Everybody survived without injury. I put hay out in many different places and he had no problem finding feed he could get to. And now that he could get to the other horses he was fine being away from them.
I read once on The Terrorized Trail Guide that when she brought a horse home from the sale barn instead of leaving them to settle in she went out many times through the day to visit them and offer comfort and friendship in those first stressful days. So I’ve been trying it. I go out as often as I can and offer a cookie, a curry or just a friendly scratch.
He’s started to come to meet me when I go out.
sounds like you are enjoying this. So glad