A little improvement goes a long way

I'm afraid to be too optimistic, but things appear to be slowing improving with Kaswyn's recovery.

It was much warmer today than it was yesterday, so I wasn't all that surprised to see that Kaswyn's back legs were puffy. He had a little puffiness in his front legs too, but no heat anywhere. Fortunately, all the puffiness was gone after our ride. During our ride I could tell that he wasn't really into working, and had to get on his case a little bit about picking up the canter. After I asked for the third time and he blew me off I had to spank him, which made me feel bad afterwards. But I can't let him pick up bad habits now. He did a very nice canter transition the next time I asked, so I guess he heard me loud and clear.

Despite a tiny bit a disciplining and a little laziness, we had a nice ride. He still feels weak behind, but I can't expect that to come back very quickly. It took years to build his back and haunches, so I imagine it will take some time to get them strong again. Anyway, my trainer watched us and she said that he is reaching more up front and behind when he trots; that his range of motion seems to have improved. This was very nice to hear.

He also seems to give a much more even and cadenced trot when I sit the trot rather than post. This just tells me that I'm getting in his way when I post. However, I don't want to sit the trot for very long because his back is not used to it and I don't want to make him sore. I must say that it felt nice to sit the trot again. Little steps . . . little steps.