Note at Liberty

This week I worked Note for the first time with tack on, including a saddle and bridle.  I discovered that he really loved his job racing, and he was excited to get back to it!  He thought the tack meant going out for a gallop, and he was pretty confused when I explained I wanted him to just mosey around on the lunge line and over obstacles.  He had a hard time with this idea, so after he had gotten himself a bit worked up in the arena, we adjourned to the round pen and I pulled all his equipment off and we did some liberty work to get him to settle.  He follows me around nicely with no halter or leadrope, walking and trotting next to me, always just in step with my stride.  Jasi took some excellent photos of us together.

When I sat down on the mounting block to give him some unstructured time, he came right over for a snuggle.  I guess he forgives me for being a strange human asking him to do a job very different from the one he performed which made him so successful in his career at the racetrack.