Summer 2010, in short

Well, I had a fantastic summer here on PEI. I competed in six miniature horse shows with the horses I trained myself. Over the course of the summer, Montana and Cheyenne have taken home one 6th, two 5ths, six 4ths, three 3rds, eight 2nds, thirteen 1sts, and a Reserve Champ. This is the second year I have ever competed in any horse shows, with very tough competition to boot (come of these kids have been showing since they were two!). Hopefully, I'll have two horses trained and ready to compete in driving classes for next summer! The best part of showing for me is training the horse, and showing it yourself; that way, even if you don't place, you have the satisfaction of knowing that your horse did a good job, and is gaining experience. ...Of course, building a good reputation helps, too. :)

As far as riding goes, I'm still riding Dama, the Icelandic horse. We have progressed very far in the short year that I've been riding her. She's gone from not understanding leg cues to me being able to steer her with minimal leg and rein pressure. She backs up willingly, moves forward without balking, and will even go for rides outside of the the field (BIG change, let me tell you!). She is attentive, and no longer looks peeved at being saddled. I am just very happy with her overall. I do miss horses with a large stride though (AJ)!

Also this summer, I went to vet camp at the Atlantic Veterinary College. It was a lot of fun, and very very interesting. We got to dissect pig hearts, watch a necropsy done on a calf, and work on some bacteriology and parasitology labs, among other neat things. Also, a few kids fainted, so I guess not everyone was having as good a time as I was. Oh, well.