January Cool Down

Ransom was sweating before I even saddled him up. It’s the first week of January and we haven’t seen rain in a month. Ransom’s wearing a winter coat that is confused by this dry spell. Today was so warm I soaked up the sun in a T-shirt as we worked in the arena. Our productive workout left Ransom’s shoulder and chest wet, the long hair curling with sweat.

These days, I spend as much time cooling him out as I do riding him. I’m tempted to clip his coat for this purpose, but I’d rather leave him fuzzy than have to blanket him every day. So instead we went for a long walk, Ransom trying to look dignified with a magenta cooler pulled up to his ears, steam rising through the fleece. But he was only adorable.