Things TC is Afraid Of

I once wrote a list of things that TC made me hate. It was in the first few months of having him home from rehab where I was still getting used to having my horse back.

Since fully accepting that a) TC is just a spooky horse that needs a confident rider, b) he is GOING to bolt sometimes but less often when I don't sit there anticipating it, and c) I can sit anything he gives me (within reason, please don't take this as a personal challenge, TC), I've hated a lot less things from TC's back. The book I keep talking about puts it really plainly: TC will habituate to things over time.

And it's true! Since switching the way I deal with his spooks by NOT changing anything I'm doing (mostly) and instead simply ignoring him, TC's confidence has soared (almost like not being agreed with that his fear is justified has made him realize that spooking at stupid shit is stupid) has surprised me in many ways.

Most recently, I was chatting with a friend and two cats got into a yowling fight right next to TC. They then scattered and one ran under TC's belly and one ran behind his hind legs. TC completely and utterly ignored the cats and continued to beg my friend for love.

The day he passed his vet check and I was sure I was going to
buy him, obviously he has to be really annoying as I take a picture
of "my" new horse

That's not to say that the very next day we didn't totally run away from... wind. So we're kind of in a funny place where TC is gaining confidence about spooky things at different rates. Cats fighting under your belly? Totally fine. Wind rustling in a tree you walk by every day? Completely horrifying. So I've compiled a couple new lists for TC.

Things that scare TC:
- The trail behind the riding school (other trails are okay)
- Bird shadows
- Walking out of or into a center aisle barn
- The saddle rack by the English barn that has been there for years
- The mats by the tractor (but not the tractor) that have been there for years
- Sprinklers that he can see go on every day from his paddock
- Trees rustling in the wind, but only some trees and only from some angles
- The time he thought a tired bull dog had contracted the plague and was going to give it to him

Things that do not scare TC

- Cats running under his legs

- Cats climbing trees right near the arena 

- The resident chicken having a dust bath

- The resident chicken chasing pigeons across the arena in front of him

- A tractor driving up behind him

- Sudden, unexpected Halloween decorations blowing in the wind (trees not okay, halloween decorations fine??)

- Bicycles zipping by him

- Strollers

- Beach ball polo being played near him (to the point of him being whacked in the leg with the ball)

I dunno I just really sometimes think that my horse doesn’t make sense.