I am very happy to say that Artemis is a lot like her mother and her sister, and not really like her father. Don't get me wrong, I don't hate Fonda, but there are a lot of other horses I would have picked instead of him to breed Socks to. He's...kind of a dumb horse. He's pretty enough, he's very sweet, but he lacks respect and like I said, is kind of stupid. Socks on the other hand is one of the smartest horses I've met and luckily seems to pass that on to her daughters. Personally I enjoy a smart horse, even if it can cause some battles at times. It does however, also mean that they're quick learners. Usually we don't start halter training until they're closer to a month old. I'm not even sure why, that's just how it's gone. With Artemis though, I'm not comfortable to bring her into the barn without a halter on. I don't want to take the chance that she'd somehow get between another horse and seperated from Socks. Socks is a very protective mom and I just don't want anybody or any horses to get injured. So that meant halter training needed to be done ASAP. And now that we're doing it, I can't help but wonder why we waited so long for everyone else. Artemis is such a quick learner. It was very difficult to get the halter on her the first time and she does not like feeling pressure on it. The second time was a little easier but still difficult. That was the day we took her in the arena. As soon as we got the halter on her she calmed down. She was a little angel in the barn. She wasn't really scared or nervous. She stayed close to her mom, but she wasn't even a week old so that's a given. She had fun in the arena, just going around it with her mom. With her long legs she has no problem keeping up to Socks.
Today, two days later, she once again surprised me. I figured she'd forget how nice it felt to be brushed and pet, but she seemed to remember. She came right over to us and gae almost no fight over the halter. We took them for a walk in the field behind all the paddocks. Socks enjoyed getting out and Artemis started to figure out what being led on the halter was all about. She was great until she got tired and she decided to let me know by trying to kick. She'd trot ahead a few steps and turn her back end to me, flicking her tail. I just pushed her backend away and she'd quit. I've started picking up all her feet, but she's not too sure about that yet. She already moves away from pressure, better than her mother does. After we put her away we took Jimmy in to ride him. He was pretty good, a little hyper but nothing bad. When I put him out, I went back in with Artemis and Socks. Artemis came over to me and let me pet her head, her neck (which is the place she likes to be touched the least) and her back. When I left she followed me a few steps until she realized her mother wasn't coming with her.
Artemis is doing amazing. I'm so proud of her. I worry a little bit that we're pushing her but she's taking it so well. We usually take it slow, but being at the stable makes it so we can't. It's working out pretty well so far, she's learning very quickly and she doesn't seem to mind it. Socks is great about it. She stays near while we work with her daughter, but it doesn't upset her. We usually work with them, then give them a day off and then work with them again.
Yesterday (Monday) Artemis was officially one week old. She's already growing and looks so healthy. She's getting strong too. Happy one week Artemis!
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