You know that feeling when you’re about to say something really stupid.. but it’s also a bit true..so you double down and say it anyway?
Well, um.. here goes 😳
For the first few weeks after Big Gangles arrived, he seemed really silent.
I mean, it’s not like I was expecting him to start rapping or reciting Shakespeare…but it’s just that he seemed completely silent, like he wasn’t even communicating with body language.
He wasn’t overly anxious, barely got excited… he just seemed a bit glazed and like there was not a lot going on upstairs.
One day, while we were walking along side-by-side, I said to him
“Mate, are you on mute?”
And just a heads up, if you ever find yourself speaking to an animal about why they don’t speak back…yes, indeedy, you WILL feel more than a bit batshit crazy 🤣
Anyway, people often talks about ‘shut down’ horses and I began to wonder if that’s what we were dealing with.
The concept didn’t quite sit right though, because it’s usually associated with horses that have endured trauma and or excessive stress – and the Big Fella’s life as the world’s slowest racehorse really didn’t seem so bad 🤷♀️
Until I realised that right here, his new home, was probably the source of real stress for him…
It was a gut punchy realisation but one that made sense.
He had shredded his legs on the first night, was barely eating and was pretty overwhelmed by the knuckle heads that were his new horsey friends.
So after a few weeks of staring at the depressed horse statue in the paddock, I couldn’t bear it anymore so I brought him into the house yard where he would at least need to interact with me (and the dogs) on a basic level.
And then, when his feet were a bit less sensitive (thems the joys of the transition from shod to barefoot… but that’s a story for another day) I played mix and match with his paddock mates.
Some of these forced friendships worked well… others not so much.
Over time it became clear though, he much prefers the company of stumpy legged friends and inserted himself squarely into the Pony Squad.
The change in him was nearly instant when he chose his squadron. He was expressive and interested and started to relish the daily routine.
He now joins the chorus of ‘HURRY THE HELL UP!’ neighs at dinner time and is much more interested in the world around him.
Thankfully, he hasn’t turned into an obnoxious, over-confident twat though. He’s still has a super chilled persona…. and that’s how his name arrived out nowhere.
One day I said to him ‘Hey Buddy, you’re just as cool as a cucumber aren’t you?”
So ‘Cucumber’ it is… and I reckon that name suits him right down to the ground.
Next up, things take a turn for the worse and you can read what happens here