Getting to Know Bo

Bo has been home here for two days now. He arrived Wednesday night after dark, so he had to stay in the stall overnight. He's living in a big 5-stall barn all by himself. He seems to be fairly happy on his own, only calling out occasionally. We do have a few other horses within sight and earshot, but I haven't heard them answer Bo's calls.

I'm out to the barn several times a day to see Bo and interact with him. I'm currently his only "herd", so I want to visit with him as often as possible. We have established morning and evening walks down the road, both to start work on his fitness and lose a little weight, and to reinforce good leading skills. His leading skills are currently pretty good, and he is responding well to pressure/release of pressure so for the most part he is walking on a loose lead at my side. We have a small running creek on the property, and he is willing to walk through that with no drama. Yay! A good lesson for a future driving horse.

The first day Bo was rather stand-offish. By getting down and observing his facial expressions, I could see he wasn't real keen on being touched. I've often wondered how minis felt about being touched constantly, especially from above, without any kind of permission. Bo, and I assume most minis, tolerate this invasion (heck, they don't know any differently), but he displays his displeasure with a wrinkled nostril and occasionally swings his head in a threat to bite. So I am curbing my impulse to cuddle him until he knows me better.

Today, day 2, I did find a spot on his neck that he really likes scratched. He arches and leans into my fingers, lips twitching, and he even offered to give me some mutual grooming today. I think he is starting to warm up to me.