I think...

... Bella really likes her new home. Last weekend I found her sleeping out in the middle of the pasture while Heart grazed beside her...It almost looked like mum and her sleeping foal. I think they like each other and obviously Bella is feeling very secure :)

flat out sleeping like a baby - life as an OTTB is sooo exhausting!

waking up

got her in the most awkward moment while getting up :D

Uh, that was good, now she's ready to go again :)

Heart and Bella in Love...

Yeah, finally Bella has decided Heart might be more interesting than the mineral stone and Heart has actually realized that he now has a new girl in the field with him! :)

I first turned both of them loos together the evening the day before yesterday. At first they sniffed each other and there was a bit of squeaking and kicking and Heart pushing poor Bella all over the small part of the field behind our barn. But after that they seemed to forget, that the other one even existed. Heart wandered of to the side of the field with the ponies again and Bella stayed in the small part of the field behind the barn.

Yesterday evening after working her I walked Bella over to the big field and turned her loos in there. She wandered off and explored the field for a few minutes, but then came cantering straight back to the barn and wouldn't leave anymore.

So today I took some treats and made her follow me into the big field and as soon as she past the opening she wasn't even interested in the treats anymore, but trotted right down the field to where Heart was. And then finally happened what I was so hoping for. They bonded. They trotted and cantered up and down the field together... bucking and jumping and showing of their beautiful gaits! They wandered around grazing, always following each other. They stuck together all the time, even when we brought them in for their evening feed. And they went off together when we turned them loos afterwards. I'm so happy they like each other!!!

in love :)

following each other everywhere

Basti bringing the babies in for their evening feed

grazing side by side after dinner

Day III - farrier, rain and more ground work

So today for a long time it has not really stopped raining for the entire day... it's been poring down. Contrary to me my horses don't seem to care. I'd even say they like the rain :) I don't really like it and since I'm kind of sick already and the farrier had been here in the morning we didn't do much today. Pistol told me to give Heart three more days for his feet to heal, so he had another lazy wellness day with some grooming and a big portion of mash.... 

Bella wasn't quite as "lucky"... I took her into the arena for some more ground work. We've been working on longing the way I want her to for the last three days. It's getting better. She doesn't argue with me anymore every time I send her running in one direction. I think we only had about three unasked changes of direction today. It still looks anything but smooth, but we are getting there, step by step ;)

Bella soaked from the rain and still happily diving into the fresh grass

Heart, also soaked, but nothing will keep him from munching his favorite food - fresh grass

Bella in love...

... with our mineral stone!!!

she will spend hours liking it every now and then and in between just sniffing and pushing it around... it cracks me up :D

Bella gets her first regular shoes

Today Bella and Heart had a farrier appointment. I was a bit nervous about it for several reasons.

Becky had told me, that Bella tends to get a bit nervous when having the farrier work on her feet. So I wasn't sure how she would behave in a new environment and with new people... but she was perfect. Not one second, that she got scared or misbehaved. She stood so quietly that I even got to take a picture while holding her :)

Next was Heart. Peggy and I had taken off his shoes last week because his feet had started growing like mad all of a sudden and had began to grow over the shoes. Without shoes he was a bit sore on his feet and therefore didn't enjoy having any of them picked up. He had been a bit of a brat about it ever since we took the shoes of. But he was pretty good today. We just had to make sure we didn't keep any of the front ones up for too long at a time. He did fidget a bit, because he always tried to turn his head to see what our farrier Pistol was doing, but that was rather cute. He even tried sticking his head between his legs to get a glimpse at it. So I did have my hands full keeping him from pinching Pistol in the butt ;) and didn't get to take a picture of him.

Bella's first day with us

When I came to the stall this morning for feeding time, Bella gave me a very loud greeting. After breakfast I led her around the smaller part of our pasture and then turned her loos. She ran up and down her pasture a couple of times and then stuck with Lori, our barn owner, and me at the top of the pasture, wandering around and taking a good look at everything while taking a nip at the grass every now and then. We had to walk down the pasture with her once more before she dared to investigate everything by herself. She is now also familiar with the hot wire.  We gave her two hours on the whole of the small pasture and then put up another fence across to limit the grass she could get at, but she seemed more interested in our mineral salt in the barn anyway... she has almost cleaned it up :D

In the evening I started her of with some ground work... she's quit the little diva, testing me... whenever I wanted her to circle me one way, she would try going the other way... if I had her going one way she would all of a sudden rear up and turn at the same time. Just like a bratty little kid. Like clockwork... if I wanted her to go left, she would try going right, if I asked her to go right, she would try going left :D It took me a bit to convince her who's the boss. She reminds me so much of my German mare. She has the same determination. It's going to be fun and I'm very excited to see how she's going to fight with, instead of against me, once we have grown into a team.

ups... a hot wire :D

somethings going to jump out and eat her any minute :D

I'm a brave girl... I can walk down to the end of the pasture by myself ;)

Bella on the left and Heart on the right... I hope they will be able to share the entire field soon

what's that silly fence doing there. that wasn't there earlier? how am I supposed to get at all that nice grass on the other side?

Bella arrives

It was so exciting picking up Bella at Turfway Park and meeting Becky, Bella’s Trainer. Becky is so nice and I really enjoyed finally meeting her in person.

                                

We had spent Tuesday and Friday at the Equine Affair and made a stop at Turfway Park on our way back. Bella was due to be picked up by our shipper Tony and we decided to be there and see her off. I even got to load her myself.

Tony is the best shipper we could have asked for. He really cares about the horses and does anything to make the journey as comfortable as possible for them. We all started off together, Bella leaving the track in her trailer right in front of us. Basti and I then drove ahead and arrived home about an hour before Bella. Since she was so well being taken care off, she logically arrived home safely in the evening. Yada, Bella’s stall neighbor from the track, who was traveling with her and went on to Main also looked good when she passed through here.

On his way to us Tony had picked up a mule, which he had to unload in order to unload Bella. We decided to have some fun and pretend that he was the “horse” I was waiting for. Everyone waiting with me, my friends and barn owners fell in love with the mule at once. She was very pretty… but then we unloaded Bella and I would have never changed her for the mule ;)

Bella is so beautiful! After unloading her she dove right into the fresh grass and the hay in her stall. I made her some mash and she ate a bit of it. It was too funny watching her making funny faces while doing so. She seemed a bit confused by the consistency of it :D When we came back for the second time after having dinner ourselves she was lying down sleeping in her stall. She got up to greet us and then soon laid back down while I was still in her stall. She is so very sweet.

Heart and her also said hi to each other. It wasn’t very spectacular. They sniffed when I walked Bella passed Heart and then Bella went on to investigate everything else…

Going to get Bella

Walking out of her stall at the track one last time

she walked right in without any hesitation :)

four white socks...

leaving the track... passing the security at the entrance

off she goes

waiting for Bella with Lori and Chris... Lori didn't want her picture taken... her reaction made Chris and me laugh ;)

here she comes!

Tony parked the trailer in the ditch, so Bella wouldn't have to step off from as high and not onto the paved road

Bella's first glance at her new home

Bella with her traveling mate the mule

the mule, which we pretended was my new "horse"

Yada, Bella's stall neighbor at the track traveled with her. She went on to Main

Isn't she a sweety?

mampf

unloading Bella

a nice rub is always good

Bella's first bite of Alabama grass

what a proud girl

first step into her new home

first time Bella and Heart see each other. Heart greeted her with a load Hello!

 

so cute!

it didn't take her long to find the hay

who's that girl? Heart couldn't stop looking at her

sleepy girl, exhausted from the trip and all the excitement