~Day Five: Setbacks~
~WIP~
So now Tiger had a name and our first round of Join Up, though long, had been a success...
...
*timeskip in place, will erase once no need for WIP*
Tiger plodded along behind me as I walked over to the fence, his muzzle only centimeters from touching my left shoulder and his eyes much softer than yesterday. The dun-coloured ears of my companion were seemingly working independently of each other, his left ear constantly swiveling to take in new sounds, his right trained onto my voice. "Good boy," I murmured, my voice soft and low-pitched. "See, I'm not purest evil, am I?" The only response the gelding gave me was a slightly louder whuff of his breath, not understanding what I was saying as such, but acknowledging my attempts to communicate with him. I couldn't help but smile to myself, but made sure that my lips were sealed in order to shroud my teeth. We had made it so far in a matter of days I didn't want my predatory canines and incisors to undo it all.
As we approached the fence I began to slow my pace down. Still walking at his original speed Tiger's muzzle pressed into my back, the pressure forcing him to slow down in order to relieve himself of it. Acknowledging his response to my change of pace I whispered "well done Tiger," slowly bringing myself to a halt right next to the fence. Tiger responded much more rapidly this time, stopping before his muzzle even touched me and raising his head to its usual height. I turned so I was facing 90 degree from his face and gently reached up and rubbed forehead in praise. "Well done fella," I murmured affectionately, moving my hand towards his neck to give him a pat. The gelding was unfazed by this after our work yesterday and even seemed to enjoy it now, blinking slowly at me out of trust. My hand lowered as I turned away from him and went to pick up the halter hung over the edge of the fence. The leather straps draped over my hands as my fingers wrapped around them, holding it steady like an unsettled creature. The metal buckles of the halter gently chimed against each other with a gentle chink as the remaining straps swung lazily below.
The whole atmosphere changed. I heard Tiger snort with uncertainty and feel him backing away from me. Worried, I turned my head towards my left shoulder and looked at him out of the corner of my eye. He'd moved several paces back towards the centre of the round pen. His ears were pinned so flat back I could barely make them out, his eyes widened wildly. "Tiger?" I called softly to the male equine, to which he responded by stopping and slowing easing himself back into a slightly more casual stance. What had just happened? When I had left the halter on the fence and backed away to see how he would react, he had approached, sniffed and pressed his muzzle against it within the space of ten minutes. He didn't seem frightened of it then, so what was going on now? I looked down at the halter in confusion. If it wasn't something to do with touch or smell, that left taste (which was highly unlikely), sight or sound. I pondered over the shiny buckles of the halter. Perhaps the reflection had spooked him? Had they caught the light as I picked the halter up? I guessed it would have made sense, but surely they would have caught the light as he was walking over? Maybe, maybe not. What about sound? As stated before, I had heard the buckles clink as I picked the halter up. Had this caused him to react the way he had? I decided to put it to the test. Tiger was watching me closely from the centre of the pen. Incredibly slowly I moved the halter in my right hand behind my back, making sure to hid it from view so that the visuals would not interfere with the 'experiment' I was about to conduct. The gelding watched the leather move, ears pricked forward in curiosity. The leather shook vigorously in my hand and I moved my wrist to and fro, the metal clanging together loudly. Tiger sprung into action. His ears flew back and his eyes rolled as if he were afflicted with madness. With a loud whinny, which caused some of the heads of horses in the outdoor paddocks to turn in our direction, he half-reared and turned in the opposite direction to me. He galloped to the edge of the pen, looking for a way out. He was wild again.
I brought the halter out to my front and looked down at the tangled mass of leather. So it was the sound? Now we had a setback- how were we going to deal with this?...
~WIP~
So now Tiger had a name and our first round of Join Up, though long, had been a success...
...
*timeskip in place, will erase once no need for WIP*
Tiger plodded along behind me as I walked over to the fence, his muzzle only centimeters from touching my left shoulder and his eyes much softer than yesterday. The dun-coloured ears of my companion were seemingly working independently of each other, his left ear constantly swiveling to take in new sounds, his right trained onto my voice. "Good boy," I murmured, my voice soft and low-pitched. "See, I'm not purest evil, am I?" The only response the gelding gave me was a slightly louder whuff of his breath, not understanding what I was saying as such, but acknowledging my attempts to communicate with him. I couldn't help but smile to myself, but made sure that my lips were sealed in order to shroud my teeth. We had made it so far in a matter of days I didn't want my predatory canines and incisors to undo it all.
As we approached the fence I began to slow my pace down. Still walking at his original speed Tiger's muzzle pressed into my back, the pressure forcing him to slow down in order to relieve himself of it. Acknowledging his response to my change of pace I whispered "well done Tiger," slowly bringing myself to a halt right next to the fence. Tiger responded much more rapidly this time, stopping before his muzzle even touched me and raising his head to its usual height. I turned so I was facing 90 degree from his face and gently reached up and rubbed forehead in praise. "Well done fella," I murmured affectionately, moving my hand towards his neck to give him a pat. The gelding was unfazed by this after our work yesterday and even seemed to enjoy it now, blinking slowly at me out of trust. My hand lowered as I turned away from him and went to pick up the halter hung over the edge of the fence. The leather straps draped over my hands as my fingers wrapped around them, holding it steady like an unsettled creature. The metal buckles of the halter gently chimed against each other with a gentle chink as the remaining straps swung lazily below.
The whole atmosphere changed. I heard Tiger snort with uncertainty and feel him backing away from me. Worried, I turned my head towards my left shoulder and looked at him out of the corner of my eye. He'd moved several paces back towards the centre of the round pen. His ears were pinned so flat back I could barely make them out, his eyes widened wildly. "Tiger?" I called softly to the male equine, to which he responded by stopping and slowing easing himself back into a slightly more casual stance. What had just happened? When I had left the halter on the fence and backed away to see how he would react, he had approached, sniffed and pressed his muzzle against it within the space of ten minutes. He didn't seem frightened of it then, so what was going on now? I looked down at the halter in confusion. If it wasn't something to do with touch or smell, that left taste (which was highly unlikely), sight or sound. I pondered over the shiny buckles of the halter. Perhaps the reflection had spooked him? Had they caught the light as I picked the halter up? I guessed it would have made sense, but surely they would have caught the light as he was walking over? Maybe, maybe not. What about sound? As stated before, I had heard the buckles clink as I picked the halter up. Had this caused him to react the way he had? I decided to put it to the test. Tiger was watching me closely from the centre of the pen. Incredibly slowly I moved the halter in my right hand behind my back, making sure to hid it from view so that the visuals would not interfere with the 'experiment' I was about to conduct. The gelding watched the leather move, ears pricked forward in curiosity. The leather shook vigorously in my hand and I moved my wrist to and fro, the metal clanging together loudly. Tiger sprung into action. His ears flew back and his eyes rolled as if he were afflicted with madness. With a loud whinny, which caused some of the heads of horses in the outdoor paddocks to turn in our direction, he half-reared and turned in the opposite direction to me. He galloped to the edge of the pen, looking for a way out. He was wild again.
I brought the halter out to my front and looked down at the tangled mass of leather. So it was the sound? Now we had a setback- how were we going to deal with this?...
