HOME | DD

Description
With the taste of cool iron on his tongue and the soft creaking of well-oiled leather, Leo watched his handler move from side to side as she buckled and checked all of the straps of his tack. It felt strange to be back under the saddle again after such a long break. He'd barely completed a year's training in dressage and competed at Yellow Field Stables when an accident in the pasture left him with a strained tendon in his front left leg. It had hurt when he had been walked back into the barn for treatment and he quickly became cautious around it. He didn't realize people thought he was turning into a mean horse when he snapped at them for coming close to the injury until even Heather, his favorite human, refused to handle him without someone else holding his head. This quickly brought on a change of behavior. Leo never meant to hurt anyone and only aimed to please. He allowed himself to be hand-walked for several months and stalled with no pasture access. It was depressing, but having Heather come back to him again made things a little less dim. She always brought a treat of some sort and talked to him.
The recovery was very slow and tedious. He almost re-injured himself when he got excited in the cool breeze during his hand-walk and jumped around. It only took a rough slamming of his leg on the ground again to remind him.
Once the vet pronounced him healthy enough to resume training, Heather started him on the lunge in a small circle to prevent him from getting too excited again. He graduated from that to having the small woman on his back at a walk and eventually they moved to the faster gaits. He remembered the sweat and soreness from working muscles that had lain dormant for so many months, but it felt so good to get back out. With Spring, Leo behaved admirably so Heather would take him out to the outdoor rings where he could truly enjoy the air and warm sun on his coat again.
His quivering nostrils scented out grass, sand, and other horses when they stepped out of the barn and walked side by side to the ring. He felt his tail and mane catch the slight breeze and heard Heather giggle as she watched him. They made to the ring and Leo let his hooves sink into the sand-mix that coated the arena floor. Heather let down the stirrups and made sure they'd be right for her before looping the reins over his neck and swinging into the saddle. Leo chomped happily on the bit and shook his neck. Heather gathered the reins and nudged him towards the rail where they began their warmup.

----
Leo is a bit behind in training after his injury. He's only 7 years old, but he's feeling a little out of sorts having colts half his age doing some of the same things

Reference - amour-interdit.deviantart.com/...

Description
With the taste of cool iron on his tongue and the soft creaking of well-oiled leather, Leo watched his handler move from side to side as she buckled and checked all of the straps of his tack. It felt strange to be back under the saddle again after such a long break. He'd barely completed a year's training in dressage and competed at Yellow Field Stables when an accident in the pasture left him with a strained tendon in his front left leg. It had hurt when he had been walked back into the barn for treatment and he quickly became cautious around it. He didn't realize people thought he was turning into a mean horse when he snapped at them for coming close to the injury until even Heather, his favorite human, refused to handle him without someone else holding his head. This quickly brought on a change of behavior. Leo never meant to hurt anyone and only aimed to please. He allowed himself to be hand-walked for several months and stalled with no pasture access. It was depressing, but having Heather come back to him again made things a little less dim. She always brought a treat of some sort and talked to him.
The recovery was very slow and tedious. He almost re-injured himself when he got excited in the cool breeze during his hand-walk and jumped around. It only took a rough slamming of his leg on the ground again to remind him.
Once the vet pronounced him healthy enough to resume training, Heather started him on the lunge in a small circle to prevent him from getting too excited again. He graduated from that to having the small woman on his back at a walk and eventually they moved to the faster gaits. He remembered the sweat and soreness from working muscles that had lain dormant for so many months, but it felt so good to get back out. With Spring, Leo behaved admirably so Heather would take him out to the outdoor rings where he could truly enjoy the air and warm sun on his coat again.
His quivering nostrils scented out grass, sand, and other horses when they stepped out of the barn and walked side by side to the ring. He felt his tail and mane catch the slight breeze and heard Heather giggle as she watched him. They made to the ring and Leo let his hooves sink into the sand-mix that coated the arena floor. Heather let down the stirrups and made sure they'd be right for her before looping the reins over his neck and swinging into the saddle. Leo chomped happily on the bit and shook his neck. Heather gathered the reins and nudged him towards the rail where they began their warmup.

----
Leo is a bit behind in training after his injury. He's only 7 years old, but he's feeling a little out of sorts having colts half his age doing some of the same things

Reference - amour-interdit.deviantart.com/...