On warmish days, Hap likes to play in water. Since it was a nice day, I put him in the horse trailer and took him to my trainer’s today so I could ride him briefly in the arena. She has a visitor’s paddock out front near her arena. Hap must have emptied twenty gallons from the stock tank in ten minutes. On a really hot day, he can empty a stock tank: using his head as a shovel to scoop water on his chest and front legs. I’ve even seen him totally submerge his head and part of his neck in the water.
Unfortunately, after I got him there, I discovered he had a rather nasty cough. I seem to remember similar coughs this time of year during previous years, so it may be an allergy. However, even if it is a cold, equine colds are like human colds: they tend to be self-limiting, though very infectious.
I did ride him briefly, and learned that he still considers himself a broke horse (as much as he ever did) and that he doesn’t mind working in the arena without shoes. He has been barefoot for two months now, and although I haven’t seen him have any problems here at home, I wanted to know if he would be okay with my weight on his back.