Dinah gets shoes!

Dinah had a big day yesterday, and she was great. I went to see her in the morning and I got her ready. It has been really hot the past few days so she is shedding a lot. After I got her ready I longed her in the round pen and she was listening well. I have been putting her bridle on over her halter, but yesterday, she wore just her bridle. I also switched her longe line to the bridle, running it over the top of her head. Then Darby came and held her for me while I got on. It was a nice calm day out at the ranch, not a lot going on, and she was really good while I was riding her. I got on twice from the left and twice from the right and walked her in about three circles with Darby leading her each time I got on. She was perfect, and didn't seem concerned about the person on her back. Laura Wainwright and Hazel came to visit, and all the great photos of the riding are thanks to her!
In the afternoon Darby put shoes on Dinah's front feet. Darby trimmed her feet to make them level and balanced and then measured them so she could custom make shoes for each of Dinah's feet. After measuring her feet Darby had to hand make each shoe out of a stick of steel. She put the steel in her forge and it rises to 3000 degrees so she can bend it and shape it to fit Dinah's feet. A lot of farriers use pre made shoes, but Darby hand makes each shoe to fit each horse. After she gets the shape of the shoe and punches the nail holes, she has to burn it to the foot. This means she holds the hot shoe to Dinah's foot to make sure that it fits the shape. Then she nailed the shoes on. Dinah behaved beautifully through the entire process. After she got her shoes we took her on a walk and she seemed very proud of her new shoes. Tomorrow another ride and a chiropractic appointment. The horse looking over the fence in the picture is Dinah's boyfriend George. He is a sweet Arab who is recovering from a leg injury.