The horse Don bought for himself back in February turned out to be a bit more attitudinal than we thought. This is NOT the easy-going little plug he appeared to be when we test-rode him. He's a lean, mean, roping machine. He wants to go fast; he wants to chase cows.
We had some "rodeos" with him after he'd been here a couple months. Even before that, Don had decided to take some lessons at the local arena...but with Jake's attitude problems, it was imperative.
A young cowgirl/horse trainer named Maggie has been working with Jake AND Don at the arena, and the transformation is utterly amazing. Don's learning how to control (and calm) a hot horse. I'll admit that Jake's got my number and he knows it...so I'm keeping my hands off him from now on. But Don has what it takes to make him behave, and Jake is accepting that.
In a way it's good that Jake is Don's first horse, because Don is having to learn MUCH more about these critters than he otherwise might if he'd gotten an old plug. And that will make him a safer rider, whether it's on Jake or another horse in his future.
