10/13/2026
Day 3
Yesterday I mostly ignored her, offered a few touches and just watched her.
Today, I walked in. Ignored her, put a strap on the fence for her hay, checked her water bucket. She came up behind me and had a good long sniff of my whole body. Then, she sided up next to me real close and stood real quiet, like horses do when they are comfortable with each other. I reached out to her softly, she didn't budge, so I walked away. She followed me and kept siding up next to me, so I started rubbing on her and she started grooming me. I was able to rub her and scratch her all over her neck and withers and back and chest, still a little shy about her face, but I think I should be able to halter in a day or 2.
I have a very methodical approach, as lackadaisical as it may seem, I do a lot of little things very intentionally to earn trust. I have spent many years observing horses, wild and domestic. Read a lot of different materials about behavior, and I still have a lot to learn. But when you combine that knowledge with one that has a natural curiosity and want to, well, something pretty special happens.
Meet Garden of Eden "Eden" for short.
