Blink Once For Yes

I made a new friend last weekend, a city girl whose only pet is a small dog, and I had the opportunity to show her the barn and let her meet the mustangs.  She admired each of them, and relished being able to spend time in the presence of horses.  While she was petting Capri, and we were talking about mustangs and horses in general, she asked a question that I wasn't sure I could answer.  You know how when you're talking to your cat, and you're looking deep into his eyes, and he gives a slow, sure blink in response?

 My friend was wondering if horses do that, and I said I wasn't sure, but maybe, but if they do it seems less deliberate than when a cat does it.  I think dogs do it sometimes, but a horse?  It seems like they blink if I'm petting them, but when I'm talking to them they tend to stare.  What do you think?  Blink once for yes...

When You Care Enough To...Glare?

Belle turned a corner tonight.  A little corner, but a corner nonetheless.  She showed emotion!  I mean an emotion other than fear and avoidance.  And she showed it to me!

Up to now, when Belle has had her dinner, she would eat if I was with her, but only if I would hold very still.  If I made a move, she would stop and back away from her hay until I backed up, then she would return and gingerly resume her meal.  Tonight, however, I leaned on the rails in a forward, relaxed posture like I might do with any other horse. 

I didn't really expect her to eat with me there like that.  But, eat she did. 

But that's not all.  My presence didn't please her.  That's no big surprise, and it doesn't hurt my feelings.  The big surprise was that she became annoyed with me.  So annoyed, that she actually pinned her ears and stuck her nose towards me and GLARED!  TWICE!  She cared enough to glare at me!  Next thing you know she'll be showing me her hooves!  I can't wait!  Any emotion is good...it gives me something to work with.  I care, therefore I glare...that's so sweet!

A Little Bit Braver

Sweet, beautiful Belle is still making little bits of progress.  Nothing monumental, and each little thing would hardly be worth writing about individually, but together the little bits add up to a smidgen of hope that one day Belle will be ready to join up with me and learn to enjoy domesticity.

Our good friend Capri is back for more training, and the two mares are enjoying hanging out together during the day.  Capri is the boss, and Belle will follow her, which surprised and charmed me the first time I put them together.  Part of the day, Capri gets to go out in the pasture to nibble on what's left of the grass.  Belle gets as close as she can to Capri's pasture and keeps an eye on her.

It makes me happy to see Belle care about somebody, even if it isn't me.  She needs to get engaged with life, to learn to embrace the challenges, and show some emotion.  It's a funny thing about her, really; she shows very little emotion about anything.  She doesn't seem depressed, but she's just a little too disinterested.  An emotional flat-liner, I suppose you could say.  No head-tossing or kicking up her heels, no nickering or bickering with other horses, not even a glare to spare for her ever-persistent trainer.

She is mighty cute, though, isn't she?  She lets me love her from a distance, and for now that is good enough.  Through patience and faith, trust will surely come.  Right?