lady like that was going to try to do something so evil?” Karya asked.
Carole looked over at her friends and provided the answer none of them had really wanted to think about. “Maybe just because a grown woman wanted to spend so much time with three girls? Shouldn’t that have tipped us off instead of making us feel like we were these super teachers?”
“Maybe,” Karya conceded.
Carole shook her head, annoyed at herself as much as her friends. But they weren’t the ones who mattered now. The important thing was to see what needed to be done for Polaris.
Carole ran her hand down the horse’s left foreleg. She’d learned long ago that when she expected trouble on one leg, she should check the other one first so that she’d have something to compare with. Polaris seemed to know what was coming. He didn’t move. He didn’t flinch.
Carole began again, this time sliding her hand down his right foreleg. Again the well-trained horse didn’t move. Caroleclosed her eyes, imagining the left leg as she felt the right one. She sighed with relief. They felt exactly the same. There was no sign of swelling or heat. The only thing she noticed was that both of Polaris’s legs were sweaty, as were the girls’ own horses.
She picked up his right hoof and took a look.
“There it is,” she said. The four heads clustered over the hoof. A stone was tightly lodged between the metal shoe and the frog of Polaris’s foot.
“No wonder he’s favoring it,” Stevie said. “That’s got to hurt.”
“Not for long,” said Lisa.
She reached into her back pocket and pulled out a hoof pick.
“You’re always prepared for something like this?” Karya asked, surprised.
“Only when I’m traveling in the woods with the daughter of the president of a country I’d never heard of until two weeks ago!” Lisa said, laughing.
She handed the hoof pick over to Stevie, the acknowledged champion at dislodging stones.
Stevie looked at Karya. “Would you like to try?”
“No, you’re much better at it than I am—plus, nobody ever gives me a chance to do it myself,” Karya reminded them.
“Okay, here goes,” said Stevie.
She held Polaris’s foot securely between her knees and began working around the stone.
“It’s always a good idea to get all the soft stuff out first,” she said, as if this were a routine Pony Club demonstration. “That way you can be sure of what’s easy and what’s not.”
Once the dirt was out, Stevie handed the hoof pick back to Lisa, then prodded very gently under the shoe with her finger to be sure she knew just where and how the stone was stuck. That way she could tell how much leverage she’d need and what angle would work to loosen it. It wasn’t science; it was instinct, and it was something she really couldn’t explain any better than that to anyone else.
When she was certain she knew what to do, she took the hoof pick in her hand again, thanked Polaris for being such a cooperative patient, and gave one swift and sure twist of the tool that brought a large round stone flying out of the horse’s hoof.
“Ta-da!” Lisa announced, grinning.
Stevie didn’t smile yet. She checked to make sure she’d gotten the whole stone and that there wasn’t another one in there. Then she lowered the horse’s hoof to the ground, never taking her eye off his leg. She stepped back and watched.
The girls held their breath. They needn’t have bothered. As soon as he had all four feet on the ground, Polaris lowered his head, took three smooth steps forward, and began sniffing at the grass in the meadow. He took a small mouthful, ripped it off, and began munching. A few seconds later he looked curiously at the cluster of young riders who seemed to be staring at him, then took three more steps and another mouthful.
“I think he’s okay!” Carole said.
Stevie picked up the stone she’d dislodged. It was smooth and round, and that was nothing but good news. A pointy stone could cause no end of
Carole looked over at her friends and provided the answer none of them had really wanted to think about. “Maybe just because a grown woman wanted to spend so much time with three girls? Shouldn’t that have tipped us off instead of making us feel like we were these super teachers?”
“Maybe,” Karya conceded.
Carole shook her head, annoyed at herself as much as her friends. But they weren’t the ones who mattered now. The important thing was to see what needed to be done for Polaris.
Carole ran her hand down the horse’s left foreleg. She’d learned long ago that when she expected trouble on one leg, she should check the other one first so that she’d have something to compare with. Polaris seemed to know what was coming. He didn’t move. He didn’t flinch.
Carole began again, this time sliding her hand down his right foreleg. Again the well-trained horse didn’t move. Caroleclosed her eyes, imagining the left leg as she felt the right one. She sighed with relief. They felt exactly the same. There was no sign of swelling or heat. The only thing she noticed was that both of Polaris’s legs were sweaty, as were the girls’ own horses.
She picked up his right hoof and took a look.
“There it is,” she said. The four heads clustered over the hoof. A stone was tightly lodged between the metal shoe and the frog of Polaris’s foot.
“No wonder he’s favoring it,” Stevie said. “That’s got to hurt.”
“Not for long,” said Lisa.
She reached into her back pocket and pulled out a hoof pick.
“You’re always prepared for something like this?” Karya asked, surprised.
“Only when I’m traveling in the woods with the daughter of the president of a country I’d never heard of until two weeks ago!” Lisa said, laughing.
She handed the hoof pick over to Stevie, the acknowledged champion at dislodging stones.
Stevie looked at Karya. “Would you like to try?”
“No, you’re much better at it than I am—plus, nobody ever gives me a chance to do it myself,” Karya reminded them.
“Okay, here goes,” said Stevie.
She held Polaris’s foot securely between her knees and began working around the stone.
“It’s always a good idea to get all the soft stuff out first,” she said, as if this were a routine Pony Club demonstration. “That way you can be sure of what’s easy and what’s not.”
Once the dirt was out, Stevie handed the hoof pick back to Lisa, then prodded very gently under the shoe with her finger to be sure she knew just where and how the stone was stuck. That way she could tell how much leverage she’d need and what angle would work to loosen it. It wasn’t science; it was instinct, and it was something she really couldn’t explain any better than that to anyone else.
When she was certain she knew what to do, she took the hoof pick in her hand again, thanked Polaris for being such a cooperative patient, and gave one swift and sure twist of the tool that brought a large round stone flying out of the horse’s hoof.
“Ta-da!” Lisa announced, grinning.
Stevie didn’t smile yet. She checked to make sure she’d gotten the whole stone and that there wasn’t another one in there. Then she lowered the horse’s hoof to the ground, never taking her eye off his leg. She stepped back and watched.
The girls held their breath. They needn’t have bothered. As soon as he had all four feet on the ground, Polaris lowered his head, took three smooth steps forward, and began sniffing at the grass in the meadow. He took a small mouthful, ripped it off, and began munching. A few seconds later he looked curiously at the cluster of young riders who seemed to be staring at him, then took three more steps and another mouthful.
“I think he’s okay!” Carole said.
Stevie picked up the stone she’d dislodged. It was smooth and round, and that was nothing but good news. A pointy stone could cause no end of
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