Princess and The P(olos)

She's just the cutest princess ever :)

Katai is most certainly a princess and most certainly very, very clear about when she doesn't like something. When she was younger I mostly just made her deal with it and she got lots of tough love. However, as she's grown and developed into a really well behaved riding pony who pretty much deals with everything I throw at her I've started to take a softer stance on the things that she still doesn't like. For fly spray I just spray it on a mitt and rub it on her (which she still objects to but not as much) and there isn't much else she doesn't like.

However, she was occasionally objecting to her PoH dressage boots. I always figured it was more due to them meaning she was going to be doing work or that she was too hormonal to handle them. When I started using the Hufglocken boots she clearly wasn't a fan and would pick up her feet or move away like she used to with the PoH boots, however she did that every time I put them on rather than more randomly like she was. I kept on using them figuring she'd get over it but her behavior kept getting worse to the point where she was nipping at me and pinning her ears.

Exactly how I feel after a big meal

I finally wised up, took the hint and stopped using them. In fact, I don't think I'll be able to continue to use them with her so I'll probably need to find them a new home which is so sad because they are so cute!! Since that point I was so sick of dealing with her being unhappy about her boots that I've started to use polos with her and it's made a HUGE difference. She's entirely stopped objecting to me putting them on and her riding is calmer as well. Every once in awhile when we transitions to canter she used to leap forward or kick out, probably because she caught the boot on her other hind leg or something (sounds like something I'd do when I'm running really) but now thats stopped. I will still use the PoH boots but mostly I'm going to be using polos with her since that's clearly what she prefers.

Then there is the whole sensitive princess ulcer thing.

*Public Service Announcement* I realize that she's not being a sensitive princess and that she was hurting. The thought of that hurts me. I'm really glad I figured it out (finally) and am doing something about it so please don't take this the wrong way. *Public Service Announcement Over*

The ulcer meds have been making a HUGE difference. Katai has been completely back to her sweet self and the constantly pinned ears, reactivity to being touched, and general crabbiness is gone. Or was until tonight however I'm pretty sure that she was both in heat and maybe feeling like this was going to be a lot of work since this was her third ridden day in a row. Yay for goals!

I'm hoping that she's back to being her happy perky eared self for my ride on Thursday.