Thursday, April 21, 2011

You knew this was coming

A new saddle for Jennifer equals a new performance event for Basil.  Today she tackled Western Trail.
Surprisingly, rats are not particularly adept at trotting over ground poles.  First we had refusals.
Then she had to taste the poles...
And sit on them!
Things got worse before they got better.  For a while I doubted she would ever catch on.
We decided to take a break and regroup.
The rat wrangler gave Basil a pep talk...
and a quick refresher course in ground pole technique.
Basil said a little prayer...
and crossed the poles like a champion!
Yay, Basil!
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14 comments:

  1. LindsayApril 21, 2011 at 6:23 PM

    You could start a whole little segment on the blog: The Adventures of Basil! A great new feature like the Tack Tips!

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  2. Kismet LodgeApril 21, 2011 at 6:23 PM

    naaw! Basil is sooo cute!! she looks good in that saddle too!!

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  3. SianApril 21, 2011 at 6:59 PM

    Rolling on the floor... I'm a Basil fan!

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  4. AnonymousApril 21, 2011 at 7:55 PM

    Oh my gosh! I am laughing hysterically! It's a good thing she doesn't find leather very tasty ;)...

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  5. TeresaApril 21, 2011 at 10:01 PM

    LOL! LOVE Basil :) Such a good rat!

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  6. Last Alliance StudiosApril 22, 2011 at 8:10 AM

    Awwwwwww! Has she tried any cross country yet? XD

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  7. ShantiApril 22, 2011 at 8:12 AM

    Go Rat go!! ;-))))

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  8. Lynn WApril 22, 2011 at 8:43 AM

    Love love love Basil! While I never tacked up our rat Mokey (named after the Summer Pony/Winter Pony books) I believe she would have tolerated it well, she had a great personality.

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  9. BraymereApril 22, 2011 at 9:12 AM

    Mokey is a great name for a rat!

    I don't think Basil minds the saddles at all. She hardly seems to notice them and will wash her face and eat treats with one sitting on her back! She's really a good rat (even if she isn't good at trot poles!).

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  10. AnonymousApril 22, 2011 at 12:07 PM

    Jennifer, why don't you write and illustrate children's books?

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  11. AilanreanterApril 23, 2011 at 9:09 AM

    This is sooo adorable, it sure was the cutest refusal that I ever saw.
    And as usual, ground-work is the key to success.
    Very priceless! :D

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  12. DianaApril 25, 2011 at 2:43 PM

    What a gorgeously cute rattie! It's obvious that she doesn't mind the saddle. Makes a great publicity series LOL

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  13. AnonymousApril 25, 2011 at 4:15 PM

    Like the rat performance! One of my cats did not completely fail show jumping. Even with her flabby gut she managed to walk over the jump I had sitting out on the table without knocking it down! Though I've never tried to get her to do it on purpose. :D

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  14. Stina MarieApril 26, 2011 at 6:00 AM

    Hilarious! Go Basil!!!

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