Bye Bye Bearded Lady!

March 1st came on with high winds and lovely temperatures. Of course, the ring was still thick with snow, but I thought, it's MARCH now. I can't just let Dee hang out anymore. She needs to start working. So she got on the lounge line. I thought that gale force winds plus not having worked in weeks would equal a crazy, entertaining rodeo spectacle. I was wrong. Dee was LOVELY, and with the snow, she had this big, springy, beautiful trot that I didn't ever expect her to produce. I mean, she's a cute mover, but sort of the daisy-cutter type. This was a HUGE. GORGEOUS. TROT. I was blown away, she looked fantastic. Add this to the fact that any worry I may have had about pulling her shoes went out the window and all in all it was a great day. She did about 15 minutes of work.. a 2x5 trot set and some walking, but I feel like that was more than sufficient, especially considering that she was powering through about 6 inches of snow (and I DO mean powering!). Did I want to jump on her? You bet! However, seeing that the ring was SO snowy, I was a little wary of getting on. She's currently going through a growth spurt, and right now she's in that awkward butt-higher-than-withers stage. It's easy to see that she's trying to figure out her new balance, and I figure it's best not to stress her out with having to figure out how to balance herself with a rider in 6 inches of snow.
With the great weather, I honestly figured that the ring would melt in a few days.. especially since Dee and I had already broken it up. Unfortunately, it's STILL covered in snow, so I STILL haven't gotten on her. She worked monday, tuesday and friday. She's hopefully going to work tomorrow, too. Tuesday and Friday she did 2x8min Trot. She's actually great to lounge, which means that I don't have to have her on the same boring 20m circle all the time. Sometimes we go large, sometimes we spiral down a little, we change which side of the ring we circle on... it keeps her interested. The best part? She's TOTALLY FOCUSED. I don't know what happened, but she's absolutely on the job when we get to the ring. Other horses? WHAT other horses? She could care less about her friends in the paddock. I'm really excited about that because it means that she's willing to pay more attention to ME instead of worrying about her best buddies.
So what have we been doing besides introducing work again? Getting beautified!! Now, I've had horses that get furry before, but Dee has taken it to a WHOLE NEW LEVEL. I've NEVER had a horse with so much hair. Her facial hair can rival a yak, and her mane is like a forest. When I put the bridle on, first I have to somehow manage to pull her great big bush of a forelock out from under the headstall. Next I have to try my hardest not to accidentally tug her chin hair while tightening the noseband. This never works, and she inevitably gets very angry with me for pulling her hair. I finally relented and brought my clippers up.
So today, Miss Dee got a spa day instead of working. Mane? Pulled. Bridle path? Exists again. Yak beard? Gone! Rest of winter hair covered body? Shedding bladed. Was she happy? Absolutely not. Does she look fabulous? You bet!
I didn't get any body shots or neck shots, but I DID take a before and after of her face. Please excuse the angle on the 'after' shot.. I don't know what angle I was at, but it made her jaw look enormous and not at all proportional. Her head is actually very nice.
So:

Dee Before her makeover.

Dee after a nice shave!

Tomorrow is supposed to be almost 60 degrees. Here's to hoping the ring will melt!