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And I found the sooner I started on my work with them, the better.
He had nothing but time on his hands to walk in circles in his stall and hate life – and everyone else who shared life with him. The way he kicked at the sides of the stall when the two of us were near told me he was going to be one of the biggest project animals I had ever dealt with, but I was okay with that. I had been taking things easy lately, working with animals that were only young and not that far gone.
Maveric was old enough to know that he had to be careful who he trusted – something that came from the trauma he’d dealt with before he was purchased by his current owner. Those were things his current owner and I could only guess.
It didn’t matter, however. Things that were done to him early on could affect him now, but they didn’t have to, and that was what I wanted to teach him. But first, I had to show him I was boss. Not because I demanded he do what I tell him above all else, but because he had to know that he was the one who could sit back and relax and let me be the one to make the decisions. If he knew he didn’t have to take care of himself – that I was willing to take care of him and point him in the right direction, then he could relax.
And that was my goal.
It wasn’t until nearly five in the afternoon before we were able to take Maveric out into the pen to start working with him, and though Ham was true to his word and went along with me, he warned me several times along the way what danger we were putting ourselves in.
Or, at the very least, the danger I was putting myself in.
For his own part, Ham stayed on the other side of the fence while I walked with Maveric in the pen. He was saddled and ready for a ride, but he wasn’t happy about it, and I was doing what I could to calm him down before I attempted to get up on his back.
“Why don’t you just stick with the walk today?” Ham called out. “I really don’t think you should try getting on him.”
“I know what I’m doing,” I argued. “This isn’t my first rodeo.”
“But it will be your last if you wind up getting yourself killed by that animal,” Ham warned.
“Don’t worry about me,” I said again. “I’ve got this under control.”
I was confident in myself that I did, but I should have listened to my buddy.
I climbed on the back of the horse, and instantly things went wrong. Maveric wasn’t at all willing to even entertain the idea that I could be on him, and he was happy to show me that fact.
He bucked and lunged, doing what he could to get away from me. But, I knew what I was doing. At least, I thought I did.
It wasn’t until he threw me to the ground that I realized just how strong he really was.
I hit the ground hard enough to hear my leg snap as I did.
I didn’t pass out, and there were no protruding bones, but I was fucked. And Ham was right.
I dragged myself to the side of the corral as he took care of putting Maveric back in the stall before coming back for me.
“What did we learn?” he asked.
“I’m not a cat. I can’t land on my feet,” I managed.
“More like, next time you’re going to listen to your best friend. Geez,” he said with a shake of his head. “Let’s get you to the hospital.”
This time, he heard no arguments from me.
