Horse Update

Hi All
All of us here at Poodle Place appreciate most animals (certain rodents not included), but are particularly fond of horses. Baron has a lifelong wish to play with horses which is further evidence of his nonverbal learning disability.  He just doesn't understand size differences.  He is particularly motivated to hang out with horses because he recognizes the love his beloved employee (that would be me) has for them.

I actually had a riding lesson last week in which I learned 4 important things.
1) Do not get into a discussion of catastrophic equestrian accidents in the middle of a lesson; this impairs concentration (never my strong suit).
2) When your trainer, after her beloved student decided not to jump the 2nd jump in a line at the last minute (response time also not a strength), wants to practice a quick turn after the first jump, do not, once again, turn away from the 2nd jump at the last minute.  This makes both horse and trainer very nervous.
3) When your trainer, in the interest of helping her beloved student (who by now is not so beloved) drills you on turning away from the problem while still avoiding the 2nd jump, do not turn in her direction.Trainers get really cranky when you turn towards them on a cantering horse. To be fair, my trainer said, "Didn't you see me standing here against the wall?"  I did see her, but didn't understand why she was standing there putting her life in jeopardy.  It never occurred to me to turn towards the center of the ring.  I thought my trainer was being foolhardy.
4) The horse who accompanied me on the aforementioned unfortunate incident earned extra treats.  The trainer earned either a bottle of wine or a bloody Mary at the next barn lunch, in addition to an increase in her life insurance policy!
All for now,
Botswain

Health Scare

Hi All,
We had a health scare here at Poodle place.  Baron has, despite our best efforts (not his), once again gained weight.  Also, there is a slight film over his eyes which does not impair vision and is no big deal (thank heavens) except it is sometimes associated with hypothyroidism.  The vet had to do a blood test (not inexpensive, but nothing about Baron is inexpensive) to rule out hypothyroidism, which is easily controlled with medication.

As you might imagine, the possibility not only of another health problem, but of giving Baron a pill to speed up his metabolism (read all previous posts for information on Baron's metabolism) put me in a tailspin, so to speak.  Visitors to our home have actually complimented me on the improvement in Baron's behavior.  One guest noted approvingly that Baron no longer jumps over the couches, then skids across the floor, followed by a cartwheel  as part of his enthusiastic welcome. 
The good news is that Baron's thyroid is normal (at least something about Baron is normal).  The bad news is that Baron now weighs 76 pounds and has to watch his boyish figure.
All for now,
Botswain