Summer is in full swing here in Massachusetts, and we just went through our first true heatwave this past weekend. And, as a year-round, aiming for 4-5 days a week rider and horse owner, it got me thinking of creative ways to spend time with my horse Nemo when it’s just a little too hot to ride him. I wanted to share my thoughts.

I love spending time with Nemo, whether it’s in the saddle, or just hanging out with him at the barn. “My best buddy Nemo,” as I affectionately call him, loves having a job, but is also completely content to munch on grass while hand grazing in the shade. My barn has some wonderful fields where I can take him for slow, quiet hand-walking, grazing sessions, and I oftentimes find myself telling Nemo about my day, things I might be working on at home or at work, and how much I’m enjoying his company. He listens the entire time, and I’m sure he loves just relaxing and munching grass.

In the past, I’ve also brought a beach chair to the barn and have just hung out in Nemo’s paddock with him reading. It’s fun to watch him meander around, munch hay, and play halter tag over the fence with his paddock neighbors. This is such a great way to really get to know him, his daily paddock routine, and just quietly hang out together. I oftentimes end up finding his nose under my book telling me that he’d like some cookies and nose snuggles, which always makes me smile.

If I’m running low on time, but still want to squeak in a quick Nemo visit, on hot days, I’ll stop by the barn, hose him off quickly, and give him some cookies. Life gets busy for all of us riders, and I used to really stress when I couldn’t quite get a long visit in with Nemo. Instead, now I like to look at the quality of time I spend with him vs. the quantity of time. On a busy day, when I stop at the barn on the way home, just seeing him trot up to me at the paddock fence is an instant smile for both of us. A nice quick cool hose always makes him feel better, and anyone who knows Nemo (a loveable easy-keeper Morgan), knows that he will never turn down a cookie or a hug.

When I have more time to spend at the barn, after spending some quiet, low-key time with Nemo, I’ll head to the tack room to clean tack, organize my tack cubby, or wash my brushes. I consider this “found time,” that I might not otherwise have on a riding day, and I find tack cleaning especially to be relaxing and calming. Plus, when I put my clean brushes and tack away in my newly organized cubby and tack racks, it’s always refreshing to know that everything is clean and in its place.

Since the heatwave, the weather has cooled down and is more typical for Massachusetts, which has resulted in some really fun rides with Nemo recently. I love always knowing that, if it does get hot again, I still have some options to spend quality time with my buddy, while keeping him cool, comfortable, and happy.