Griffin updates

Super crappy phone photo - but you can see how his belly has picked up and he's gained weight!

His coat is absolutely awful and fully representative of his poor health prior to our beginnings together at the very end of January.  But the rest of him speaks volumes that photos can't yet capture, and I'm optimistic that with the shedding of this nappy coat his transformation will really begin to show.  But, for now, these photos serve as a representation of where he was, where he is, and what to compare him to in the future.

On top of the big hill that overlooks the farm

Loose-lipped, nappy-haired fool. 

He got his daily feed and then instead of round pen work we went on a walk.  Off to the creek to play and drink and cleanse the mud from his legs, and then up a steep hill, back down and across a different crossing of the same creek.

He looks beyond awkward due to the slope of the stream bed, but he was having SO much fun!

He loves water!  So encouraging.  As well, we worked on the beginnings of his potential endurance career by doing fun things that were unstructured, yet still served a purpose in the bigger picture of things:

• Creek crossings.  Not leaving until he had a drink.
• Stopping and "eat something!" and not moving on until he'd done just that (so not hard to encourage lol).
• Moving on past our stops with a *cluck cluck* noise.
• Trotting in hand.  Kid loves trotting downhill anything.  

After we returned to the barnyard, I sent him away from me in some trotting circles.  He decided these should be loping circles!  That is THE FIRST TIME he's done that.  It usually takes a ton of motivation to get him to go (i.e. me cracking the carrot-stick-whip-thing on the ground).  As well, today was THE FIRST TIME he's ever moved out and LISTENED to me lunging anywhere OUTSIDE of the round pen.

He's clearly feeling SO much better than he has.  His weight is beginning to sky-rocket.  His belly is picking up.  He's getting taller.  He's developing fat-pockets.  He's developing muscle.  So much positive!

I was beyond thrilled with our little lunge session today.  He was halting quicker than he ever has and moving out better than ever before.  I'm really excited and optimistic about how he's going to grow and feel while he has 12 days off while I'm in Montana.  Such a great little guy!

 : : :

I'm off in Montana until April 1st.  Don't forget to enter the MK GIVEAWAY!  How can you not want a chance at a $50 gift card?!  Enter by commenting on THIS POST.  Winners will be chosen at random when I return from Big Sky country!  Have a GREAT week y'all, and I will try to post some photos of the journey!