OTTB - The Indoor Arena

Bouffe spent about thirty minutes loose in the indoor arena this morning. His anxiety level was high, as he did an extended trot, one direction and then the other, around and around the perimeter of the indoor space for ten to fifteen minutes, before finally settling down to working trot and then a walk. Eventually he did get down and roll in the sand, which I was glad to see him do. 

The weather has been hot, so after today's session, the next time I go to the farm I plan on riding Bouffe outside, with no trips to the indoor.

I got the feeling today that from being turned out for so long before I got him, with little or no human interaction that Bouffe is herd bound. I need to talk to Leslie and see what she has planned for a field mate for Bouffe, which I'm not sure would help or make worse his behavior in the indoor arena. 

I wore myself out pretty good today supervising Bouffe's "playtime" and I will have to see in the morning if I go to the farm tomorrow, or wait until the weekend. I did swim a few laps when I got home to keep with the exercise program, which includes a regiment of stretching exercises every morning for my back, which I broke twelve years ago, and my legs for the MS; in addition, I also have dressage exercises I found on the Internet http://dressageridertraining.com/ I do feel so much better now that I am getting fit!