Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Andrea and Pro (Sat)
Work has been crazy lately for both me and Kate, but Pro was more-or-less getting ridden regularly. In Kate's lesson on Friday Gayle had her using small circles off the outside aids while on a 20m circle to get him connected on the outside in an effort to get him to stretch forward and get less stuck behind the bridle (at least I think that's what they were doing, I missed the first 5-10 min). So I started off doing the same thing, just asking him to move forward and off his hindquarters. Whenever he started to get strung out/disconnected I'd ask with my outside hand and leg for him to do a smaller 10m circle then we'd go back out to the 20m circle. He was doing this really well, which was excellent, because Kate and her friend who was visiting surprised us after about 10 minutes. We showed off for Mommy, then she coached me through what she and Gayle had been working on while her friend snapped 800 pictures in the rain. Pro was great through it all. We did some changes of direction and canter in two-point with a babying open rein to try to get him to bend some and called it a day.
Monday, October 27, 2008
Skate starts lateral work!
Finally! So excited to be moving past forward and that boring stuff I've been doing for most of my life. I had a lesson on Saturday and my instructor said Skate will never use his little butt until we get him really moving off my leg and bending...so we started lateral work. Teaching a horse how to do a turn on the forehand makes you realize how difficult it is to coordinate all of your aids at once. We didn't get it until I finally started using my whip to reinforce the 'move it!'.
We did spiral in at the walk until the center of the spiral where it turned into TOF and he really stepped under himself...then I immediately made him trot off energetically (this was nearly impossible). He had a tendency to get really stuck after the TOF, so the trot was to get him moving forward again. It really made a huge difference in his trot...which was much more springy and engaged.
She also had me work on riding like his hind end was in front of me, since he's on his forehand and I have a tendency to lean forward in huntery fashion. Trying to mentally ride what's behind you will really make you sit back...at least it did for me.
That evening was the barn Halloween Party...Skate went as Scooby, I was Daphne, and Matt was Shaggy. Really, it was the easiest costume I could think of : ) We also ran barrels...in 19 seconds! I think real barrel racers do it in 5. I did, however, win the adult division...as I was the only adult. I got schooled by the kids on ponies! So cute!
We did spiral in at the walk until the center of the spiral where it turned into TOF and he really stepped under himself...then I immediately made him trot off energetically (this was nearly impossible). He had a tendency to get really stuck after the TOF, so the trot was to get him moving forward again. It really made a huge difference in his trot...which was much more springy and engaged.
She also had me work on riding like his hind end was in front of me, since he's on his forehand and I have a tendency to lean forward in huntery fashion. Trying to mentally ride what's behind you will really make you sit back...at least it did for me.
That evening was the barn Halloween Party...Skate went as Scooby, I was Daphne, and Matt was Shaggy. Really, it was the easiest costume I could think of : ) We also ran barrels...in 19 seconds! I think real barrel racers do it in 5. I did, however, win the adult division...as I was the only adult. I got schooled by the kids on ponies! So cute!
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
Skate's back in action...
Man, I hate posting such boring stuff after that exciting cross-country post from Hannah...but oh well!
I finally got to ride Skate after nearly two weeks off due to his fence-post leg. I expected the worst and happily got pretty darn good. He was a little fussy overall...but he's always like that. Actually, his trot was great most of the time, rhythmic and forward. I worked on the canter...which was dreadful at first but I asked from the walk next time and got a wonderful uphill collected canter. Good pony.
My annoying bit: I decided to put him on Reitsport by Horsetech...great product, covers pretty much everything I wanted in a supplement - vitamins/minerals/probiotics/joint care. So, like a complete friggin idiot, I ordered the 20 lb bucket, since its cheaper in the long run. Well, guess what? Skate won't eat it. He doesn't just boycott the supplement, he boycotts the entire bottom half of his feed. I'm holding out the hope that he's just off his feed in general due to the antibiotics, so I'm not paying to return 20lbs just yet. If he still won't eat it after stopping the meds, then we'll see. What a hassle...
I finally got to ride Skate after nearly two weeks off due to his fence-post leg. I expected the worst and happily got pretty darn good. He was a little fussy overall...but he's always like that. Actually, his trot was great most of the time, rhythmic and forward. I worked on the canter...which was dreadful at first but I asked from the walk next time and got a wonderful uphill collected canter. Good pony.
My annoying bit: I decided to put him on Reitsport by Horsetech...great product, covers pretty much everything I wanted in a supplement - vitamins/minerals/probiotics/joint care. So, like a complete friggin idiot, I ordered the 20 lb bucket, since its cheaper in the long run. Well, guess what? Skate won't eat it. He doesn't just boycott the supplement, he boycotts the entire bottom half of his feed. I'm holding out the hope that he's just off his feed in general due to the antibiotics, so I'm not paying to return 20lbs just yet. If he still won't eat it after stopping the meds, then we'll see. What a hassle...
Cross Country with Jimmy W. - or how we started schooling Prelim
Radnor was, eh. Stadium was not so hot. Trainer and I got the big E's. Oh well...always next time.
We've been doing our homework big time for the last 2 weeks -- culminating with a cross-country lesson with Jimmy Wofford yesterday! It was incredibly windy...and our xc course is up on a BIG hill...so the horses were more than a little bit wound up! It was a beautiful sunny day though - a perfect day to be out on XC! Here's the view you get when you climb up the hill to our XC course
Surfie had a little trouble getting his engine going away from the group, and bonked his hind hoof on the edge of the table, but jumped the last 2 fences beautifully. Then it was off to play with jumping on hills. We walked over to a small log on a steep hill and practiced galloping it uphill -- where you need to be right over the middle of the horse, very in synch, and jump with the horse over the fence. Galloping downhill, we worked on staying back, a bit behind the motion, and letting the horse jump forward, out from underneath us, so that we'd land over the horse on the downhill landing rather than jumping with the horse and landing with our weight leaning forward, pushing them onto the forehand. This uphill/downhill log was our prep work for the sunken road (downhill jump = drop bank, uphill jump = up bank) -- which for anyone who's never seen one is a bank complex set into the ground, so you're galloping along, drop down into the sunken road, take some strides (in this case 2 strides), then jump a bank out back onto level ground. First we cantered at an angle into the sunken road from the side (so you didn't drop in) and jumped one bank out, then reversed to jump the other bank out, then put the 2 together in both directions. Apparently my bank exposure therapy is working, as it wasn't as bad as banks usually are for me :) Next we put the sunken road together with a few other fences -- we jumped the sunken road, did a roll-back to the right to a roll-top, a training bench, and skinny prelim table all on a bending line. I'd found Surfie's "engine" by then - Piece of cake!
We've been doing our homework big time for the last 2 weeks -- culminating with a cross-country lesson with Jimmy Wofford yesterday! It was incredibly windy...and our xc course is up on a BIG hill...so the horses were more than a little bit wound up! It was a beautiful sunny day though - a perfect day to be out on XC! Here's the view you get when you climb up the hill to our XC course
Now, I'd signed Surfie up for the training group lesson...and we've completed exactly 1 Training HT...but little did I know there were 2 training group lessons. Just moved up to Training, but still really Novice...and been-there, done-that, definitely ready to move up to Prelim (3'7"!!!!!) and already jumping that height. Guess which group we ended up in...yep, that would be group #2. We didn't know that until we'd finished warmup and Jimmy pointed out the first set of jumps. After having a good gallop around XC, we lined up to warm up over a vertical -- trotting and cantering both directions, and jumping up and down hills, then jumping the little vertical to a post and rail fence. Next jimmy said -- "ok, see that little palisade, jump that, track right, prelim table, novice table, prelim bench -- good set to get us thinking forward."
What?!?! Prelim table? Prelim bench? ACK! I turn to Julia (who's also surprised, as the horse she's riding in this group is still new to the level) who says that Jimmy knows me, knows the horse, and wouldn't let us do it if he didn't think we could -- and that I knew what I needed to do to get the job done...so just get it done. So off we went...to the palisade
The prelim table! Yikes
The novice table (the white fence to the right) and back around to the prelim bench (in the foreground) -- and yes, that is a full size round bale for size comparison!
Next we did a combination of fences that I'd jump-judged at a horse trial earlier this year (the MCTA HT borrows our xc jumps, so these exact fences had been set up for the prelim division). The question was 2 coops, 2 strides apart, offset so that you have to jump through at an angle, jumping both fences on an angle.
Our instructions were to trot down the hill, find our line, jump through, pick up "a real gallop, Prelim pace" across the field to jump the "flyer-fence" -- a timber racing fence. Now I have no idea how fast prelim pace should feel (it's 550 meters per minue...about 20mph), so I watched the first horse go and Jimmy said it was a tick too slow, then the second horse was a tick too fast...so we jumped through the coops and gave it our best guess. I boxed Surf with both legs on landing, and he took off like a rocket. Surf has the most amazing half-halt cross-country -- all you have to do is put your but in the tack and sit up and he balances himself (I wish it was that easy in Dressage!), and took the fence like it was nothing
We went back up the hill to wait with Julia, and the first thing she said, with a big grin, was "I want that one back. Maybe he can go Intermediate after all." She said she watched us haul butt across the field and was wondering if we were going to rebalance, then said she was very proud when she saw me sit up and ride the fence. I have to admit that I had a huge goofy grin on my face. Next we moved onto the trakhaners. Now, my goal since I came to the farm was to someday jump the BIG trakhanker...and today was the day :) First we jumped the open ditch
then came back around to the small trakhaner, jumping it to the left side so that you could put a forward 2 strides in to the angled stone wall
Surf jumped it in 2 with no problems (though previously we've jumped it by jumping the trakhaner right of center, with 3 strides on a bending line to the wall). Then it was time for the BIG one.
We jumped the open ditch going away then circled around and found our line for the approach. About 4 strides out I was getting a little nervous and surf started to shorten his stride -- the last thing I'd want going into this fence is a little chippy stride...so I went to my stick and he jumped it beautifully :) Goal accomplished! From the trakhaners, we went on to jump 2 angled lines of logs -- a 2 stride to a skinny bounce and a bounce to a one stride
Then we moved on to the water. I need to get pictures of the crazy water jump! We started just cantering through to get everyone's feet wet. Next we cantered through the water and jumped a log out. Next we cantered a small log, 1 stride, then through the water to jump a log in the water off a tight bending turn. Surfie put on the breaks here, not sure why as we've done it a dozen times before. Jumped in fine the second time and went neatly over the out. The final exercise was a downhill run to a drop bank, 2 strides to a rolltop on the edge of a drop into water. Our first try down the hill Surfie wiggled out as I wasn't steering...very embarrasing. The second time was textbook perfect :) We held our own with the big kids today!
He get's today off, we'll do flat work tomorrow, stadium lesson friday, then show at Waredaca on Saturday :)
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
Pepsi- What a GOOD Little Morgan!!
Last night I went out to groom Pepsi (didn't have time to ride) and he ground tied the WHOLE time! (At least 30 minutes! Woo-hoo!) He still will try to occasionally move a bit, but I've been consistent enough now that usually all I have to say is 'eeeent!' when he's about to move and he'll stop. And if he DOES still move a foot or two, now I can usually just say OVER and he'll go back to where he was. (If I REALLY need his attention, I can give a finger tap on the shoulder, but for the most part that's not necessary now.)
Considering several months ago I was basically beating him in the wash stall to keep him from running over me, I consider this HUGE progress. Needless to say, we're BOTH happier now! :D
Also, I HAVE been riding, just not posting. But, after my mini-lesson last week, I realized that I've been letting my expectations drop SO low that they were barely non-existent. That's stopped. Now when we walk we WALK, and when we halt we HALT and we don't do anything until I ask him to. And I'm riding with the dressage whip again at the walk a) to increase my coordination with it so when we go back to trot work I won't be whomping him inadvertently and b) so that when I ask for something at the walk and he doesn't respond I have an IMMEDIATE comeback. He's gotten MUCH more responsive to my leg because of it, and I keep checking myself to make sure I'm not asking for more than he can handle. (He can only go about 4-5 strides at the walk right now while REALLY using his back and stepping under himself, so I make sure to ask for him to engage, use the whip if he doesn't, then praise when he DOES use that hind end and really steps under himself, and then I leave him alone for that 4-5 strides AND continue to leave him alone for the next 4-5 strides while he goes back to his 'normal' walk. This way I'm not CONSTANTLY pushing him and asking him for things that he's not physically capable of doing and hereby making him sour about the work. After his normal 4-5 strides though I ask again for engagement and the cycle continues. ;) )
Generally speaking, I just have to up my expectations, and make sure that he meets them. He's smart enough that he can as long as I make it clear what I want and be consistent about it.
Considering several months ago I was basically beating him in the wash stall to keep him from running over me, I consider this HUGE progress. Needless to say, we're BOTH happier now! :D
Also, I HAVE been riding, just not posting. But, after my mini-lesson last week, I realized that I've been letting my expectations drop SO low that they were barely non-existent. That's stopped. Now when we walk we WALK, and when we halt we HALT and we don't do anything until I ask him to. And I'm riding with the dressage whip again at the walk a) to increase my coordination with it so when we go back to trot work I won't be whomping him inadvertently and b) so that when I ask for something at the walk and he doesn't respond I have an IMMEDIATE comeback. He's gotten MUCH more responsive to my leg because of it, and I keep checking myself to make sure I'm not asking for more than he can handle. (He can only go about 4-5 strides at the walk right now while REALLY using his back and stepping under himself, so I make sure to ask for him to engage, use the whip if he doesn't, then praise when he DOES use that hind end and really steps under himself, and then I leave him alone for that 4-5 strides AND continue to leave him alone for the next 4-5 strides while he goes back to his 'normal' walk. This way I'm not CONSTANTLY pushing him and asking him for things that he's not physically capable of doing and hereby making him sour about the work. After his normal 4-5 strides though I ask again for engagement and the cycle continues. ;) )
Generally speaking, I just have to up my expectations, and make sure that he meets them. He's smart enough that he can as long as I make it clear what I want and be consistent about it.
Monday, October 20, 2008
Kate & Pro - Sunday & Monday
I think Andrea's right - he's definitely a cranky boy now that we keep adding tricks to our giant "anti-misbehavior" arsenal. He's started to get really mad and try a bunch of evasion tactics all at once. During our last lesson Gayle observed that he would try rhythm evasion, then head evasion, then back to rhythm, then head...and look consistently floored that I kept right up with him in blocking each of his attempts. Actually, while in Kroger tonight I had a large revelation. In terms of trainability, I've become very low in MY trainability factor!!! When Pro makes a request he expects me to have high trainability and say, "Oh is this what you want? For me to drop my hands? Collapse my midsection?" Now I'm finally saying "No...no...no...no." to all of his requests. And man, does it make him MAD! Though it did give me a little laugh, and it was quite humbling to realize that I've just now regained my status as the more cognitively advanced species in this duo. ;)
Anyway, he was quite mad last night. Angry when I touched him with the whip, angry when I boxed him with my inside leg, just mad that I was making him doing anything he didn't want to do. Clearly all he wanted to do was walk around sideways like a giraffe. I did manage to get him to a good stopping point after about 30min, though we only stayed at the walk. We also had a solid 10min of 10m circles by the bunny tree since he refused to relax. Well, Mommy refused to give in. I mentally "canceled" my evening plans (it helps me not get tense about realizing how much time I'm "wasting" by having to deal with his tantrums) and we walked and walked by it. Eventually he settled.
Tonight was better. Even though it was dark by the time I got to the ring (and with daylight savings coming up, this will be a sadly regular thing...) he only took about five minutes to settle down. After that he was still a bit resistant, but at least he was giving me his full attention. Always a good thing!!! I'm happy to deal with unwillingness as long as the focus is on ME. Gayle says to act like a total diva when I ride...it's all about me! ALL about ME ME ME! No one else, not Pro, not the tree, not the distractions, not anyone else. ME! :)
He was moving his shoulders QUITE well tonight. I'm still amazed at what a difference it makes to put my outside leg back a bit as I ask. Brilliant. I still have to make sure I catch him with my inside leg so he doesn't attempt to turn it into a Western spin, but he's getting better. We practiced our walking squares with quarter-pirouettes as corners and he was very good. Ended with some lovely trot. :) For about two 20m circles he was acting humorously odd - he huffed himself up as he trotted and acted like he wanted to canter or buck. I let him stretch a bit by lengthening my outside rein and he settled down. Good pony!
Anyway, he was quite mad last night. Angry when I touched him with the whip, angry when I boxed him with my inside leg, just mad that I was making him doing anything he didn't want to do. Clearly all he wanted to do was walk around sideways like a giraffe. I did manage to get him to a good stopping point after about 30min, though we only stayed at the walk. We also had a solid 10min of 10m circles by the bunny tree since he refused to relax. Well, Mommy refused to give in. I mentally "canceled" my evening plans (it helps me not get tense about realizing how much time I'm "wasting" by having to deal with his tantrums) and we walked and walked by it. Eventually he settled.
Tonight was better. Even though it was dark by the time I got to the ring (and with daylight savings coming up, this will be a sadly regular thing...) he only took about five minutes to settle down. After that he was still a bit resistant, but at least he was giving me his full attention. Always a good thing!!! I'm happy to deal with unwillingness as long as the focus is on ME. Gayle says to act like a total diva when I ride...it's all about me! ALL about ME ME ME! No one else, not Pro, not the tree, not the distractions, not anyone else. ME! :)
He was moving his shoulders QUITE well tonight. I'm still amazed at what a difference it makes to put my outside leg back a bit as I ask. Brilliant. I still have to make sure I catch him with my inside leg so he doesn't attempt to turn it into a Western spin, but he's getting better. We practiced our walking squares with quarter-pirouettes as corners and he was very good. Ended with some lovely trot. :) For about two 20m circles he was acting humorously odd - he huffed himself up as he trotted and acted like he wanted to canter or buck. I let him stretch a bit by lengthening my outside rein and he settled down. Good pony!
Friday, October 17, 2008
Kate & Pro - lunging + whip
Okay, this is from Wednesday night...Andrea beat me to the blog posting today. ;)
I decided to extend our whip/groundwork session into a longer lunging session. No sidereins or anything, just bridle and lunge line, plus the whip. I started off at the walk as usual, just like we do before our rides. Pro's getting a LOT better about accepting the feel of the whip on his side. Once he ceased with the tail swishing, I let the lunge out to about a 20m circle and let him stretch out at the trot. He actually "gets" the use of the lunge as an inside rein. I can taaaaake, and then gently release and he'll drop his neck down and stretch. It's pretty neat! He is smart, sometimes.
After that, I gradually reduced the side of the circle and gently touched the whip to his side again, just like I did at the walk. He seemed a bit shocked that I would dare try this at the trot (someone doesn't like change) but eventually settled down. He even let me gently tap it on his side and it seemed to really help him step up and underneath himself at the trot. He's getting it! :) Starting to realize that it's not a "BAD PONY" aid or a "GO FASTER" aid, but a "step under yourself, lift your back" aid. Woohoo!
I let the line out, had him canter for awhile and practiced trot-canter transitions, then repeated the whole thing to the other direction. Such good pony. :)
I decided to extend our whip/groundwork session into a longer lunging session. No sidereins or anything, just bridle and lunge line, plus the whip. I started off at the walk as usual, just like we do before our rides. Pro's getting a LOT better about accepting the feel of the whip on his side. Once he ceased with the tail swishing, I let the lunge out to about a 20m circle and let him stretch out at the trot. He actually "gets" the use of the lunge as an inside rein. I can taaaaake, and then gently release and he'll drop his neck down and stretch. It's pretty neat! He is smart, sometimes.
After that, I gradually reduced the side of the circle and gently touched the whip to his side again, just like I did at the walk. He seemed a bit shocked that I would dare try this at the trot (someone doesn't like change) but eventually settled down. He even let me gently tap it on his side and it seemed to really help him step up and underneath himself at the trot. He's getting it! :) Starting to realize that it's not a "BAD PONY" aid or a "GO FASTER" aid, but a "step under yourself, lift your back" aid. Woohoo!
I let the line out, had him canter for awhile and practiced trot-canter transitions, then repeated the whole thing to the other direction. Such good pony. :)
Thursday, October 16, 2008
Pro the Goober
So I guess Kate and I have both been really busy lately I guess judging by our lack of updates ;).
To recap my week with Pro: Tuesday he was a snot at the beginning, just very angry and determined to make sure I knew it. He decided to do that by going sideways around the circle while making giraffe faces. I boxed him forward (slapping him with my legs) and kept my outside rein connected and asked him to soften with the inside and after about 10 minutes we were going forward and straight. He went pretty well after that, good enough that I even cantered him under the lights. We made it about 4 times around before he jumped sideways at the bunny tree. When you're riding at the canter in 2-point, jumping sideways is much worse. I stayed on, but we went back to the walk and trot after that.
Tonight he started off just as angry, doing exactly the same thing. I started to get him to soften and relax for a bit, but to start with when I got my outside rein connected and tried to soften with the inside rein he freaked out when I'd take any contact. I think he's angry that right now we've pretty much got his number and is making sure we know it. So got him through that and then decided to ask for some quarter-pirouettes. Kate mentioned that she'd gotten much better results by putting her outside leg further back so I did that and he was turning amazing, each step was nice and distinct but very free and relaxed and he'd walk off immediately so he was keeping him impulsion. However, after about 4 or 5 he started flipping out everytime I'd ask for one. He'd stop. He'd back. He'd sidepass. He'd do his giraffe impression. I could boot him forward but he'd toss his head and stomp his front feet and generally act like a moron. I thought it was because he was being spooky about the pasture behind the bunny tree being all shadowy and the gate looked sort of evil, so I took him in the pasture and rode him around in there. He wasn't spooky or looky at all so I have no idea what his problem was. I went back into the ring and it was still there though. We spent the rest of the ride fighting about that and I never really got him to just shut up and listen. We did get to the point where he wasn't being insanely stupid and I kept him there for awhile, but I just didn't have any really good idea of how to fix the issue. I think Pro just doesn't approve of the new routine of "clean stalls, get Pro, ride, then Pro eats" especially since he has to get tacked up and go out right as dinner's being served to the rest of the horses. That's just how the timing works out though, unless I want to stand around waiting for him to eat.
To recap my week with Pro: Tuesday he was a snot at the beginning, just very angry and determined to make sure I knew it. He decided to do that by going sideways around the circle while making giraffe faces. I boxed him forward (slapping him with my legs) and kept my outside rein connected and asked him to soften with the inside and after about 10 minutes we were going forward and straight. He went pretty well after that, good enough that I even cantered him under the lights. We made it about 4 times around before he jumped sideways at the bunny tree. When you're riding at the canter in 2-point, jumping sideways is much worse. I stayed on, but we went back to the walk and trot after that.
Tonight he started off just as angry, doing exactly the same thing. I started to get him to soften and relax for a bit, but to start with when I got my outside rein connected and tried to soften with the inside rein he freaked out when I'd take any contact. I think he's angry that right now we've pretty much got his number and is making sure we know it. So got him through that and then decided to ask for some quarter-pirouettes. Kate mentioned that she'd gotten much better results by putting her outside leg further back so I did that and he was turning amazing, each step was nice and distinct but very free and relaxed and he'd walk off immediately so he was keeping him impulsion. However, after about 4 or 5 he started flipping out everytime I'd ask for one. He'd stop. He'd back. He'd sidepass. He'd do his giraffe impression. I could boot him forward but he'd toss his head and stomp his front feet and generally act like a moron. I thought it was because he was being spooky about the pasture behind the bunny tree being all shadowy and the gate looked sort of evil, so I took him in the pasture and rode him around in there. He wasn't spooky or looky at all so I have no idea what his problem was. I went back into the ring and it was still there though. We spent the rest of the ride fighting about that and I never really got him to just shut up and listen. We did get to the point where he wasn't being insanely stupid and I kept him there for awhile, but I just didn't have any really good idea of how to fix the issue. I think Pro just doesn't approve of the new routine of "clean stalls, get Pro, ride, then Pro eats" especially since he has to get tacked up and go out right as dinner's being served to the rest of the horses. That's just how the timing works out though, unless I want to stand around waiting for him to eat.
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Pepsi....A Perfect Ending to A Perfect Day!
Ok, so my day didn't exactly START OUT so perfect. I was actually stressed nearly to the point of an anxiety attack over the Anatomy & Physiology test I had at 2:00. But, after I got to school at 10:30, sat down with some friends from class and studied with them, I felt MUCH more comfortable with the material. A friend and I had lunch together right before the test too, and quizzed each other while eating. That helped a TON!
So anyway, I took the test (which went MUCH better than I thought it would this morning!) and left for an interview. The interview went FABULOUSLY well and I'm REALLY excited to get hired and work for this guy. (It's a barter system- I'd give him admin help and he'd give me 2 personal training sessions a week! Totally awesome and JUST what I need!!)
So, after the interview I met up with Billie to pick up all of her great stuff that she is just giving away (thanks Billie!!!) and then went and grabbed supper. (Btw, billie is super nice in real life and the amount of stuff she gave me was just incredible!)
So, on to the best part of all....I drive out to the barn, and on the way the moon is full and low in the sky. It also happens to be BRIGHT orange (making me think of the fall harvest and Halloween!) and is just absolutely beautiful. I mean gorgeous. So I get to the barn and walk up to the pasture. And it's pitch dark. Sure, I have the nice bright moon...but have YOU ever tried to find a bay horse in a 3 acre pasture at 8:30 at night with nothing but moonlight lighting your way? It's impossible.
So I start calling to Pepsi, hoping I'll at least see movement so I'll know where the herd is . And then, about 30 seconds later I hear hoofbeats coming form waaaaaay back in the field. I listen some more and they start getting faster and are coming STRAIGHT AT ME. I can't see Pepsi until he's about 20 feet away, but he ran ALL THE WAY up to me from the very back of the field just to see me! It was just adorable. And then he sniffed me (no nibbling, just sniffing Alex!) and stood perfectly still while I scratched all his itchy places he likes so much, and THEN went to sleep with his head on my shoulders and in my arms.
Really and truly, I LOVE this horse. Just love him.
(And I love that he loves me too!!)
Insert all your 'awwwwwws' here. ;)
So anyway, I took the test (which went MUCH better than I thought it would this morning!) and left for an interview. The interview went FABULOUSLY well and I'm REALLY excited to get hired and work for this guy. (It's a barter system- I'd give him admin help and he'd give me 2 personal training sessions a week! Totally awesome and JUST what I need!!)
So, after the interview I met up with Billie to pick up all of her great stuff that she is just giving away (thanks Billie!!!) and then went and grabbed supper. (Btw, billie is super nice in real life and the amount of stuff she gave me was just incredible!)
So, on to the best part of all....I drive out to the barn, and on the way the moon is full and low in the sky. It also happens to be BRIGHT orange (making me think of the fall harvest and Halloween!) and is just absolutely beautiful. I mean gorgeous. So I get to the barn and walk up to the pasture. And it's pitch dark. Sure, I have the nice bright moon...but have YOU ever tried to find a bay horse in a 3 acre pasture at 8:30 at night with nothing but moonlight lighting your way? It's impossible.
So I start calling to Pepsi, hoping I'll at least see movement so I'll know where the herd is . And then, about 30 seconds later I hear hoofbeats coming form waaaaaay back in the field. I listen some more and they start getting faster and are coming STRAIGHT AT ME. I can't see Pepsi until he's about 20 feet away, but he ran ALL THE WAY up to me from the very back of the field just to see me! It was just adorable. And then he sniffed me (no nibbling, just sniffing Alex!) and stood perfectly still while I scratched all his itchy places he likes so much, and THEN went to sleep with his head on my shoulders and in my arms.
Really and truly, I LOVE this horse. Just love him.
(And I love that he loves me too!!)
Insert all your 'awwwwwws' here. ;)
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Kate & Pro's Marathon Lesson
So Friday's lesson nearly shattered my pelvis. I rode for just about 2 1/2 hours. Paaaaain! Which of course now makes it difficult to remember everything that Gayle said, what we did, etc. I'll try to get the highlights. He was being such a twit when we started that he was lateral-walking and giraffe-facing. Gayle pointed out that he likes to hit me with multiple forms of evasion. So he was trying rhythm evasion (lateral walk) and bit evasion (giraffe face). To combat the rhythm, she had me focus on making his rhythm very correct and distinct. I move him and I dictate the rhythm, not him!! Then for the giraffe face, pick up my hands. And not just up out of my lap. UP. Even up to my chest. To wherever the bit stays in the same place and I have a straight bit line. And hold it there. Pro was, of course, infuriated by this. He eventually put his head down, I lowered my hands to their correct spot, and praised him.
We worked a lot on moving his shoulders over. Somehow, I had a magically huge revelation with this. I wasn't putting my outside leg back enough when I asked him to move his shoulders over on a turn, or a quarter-pirouette. So he'd been moving his HQs as well, subtly so I wouldn't notice. No western spins, says Gayle! Once I put my leg back as I asked, WHOOSH, his shoulders moved right over freely! It was so neat. We played around with that a lot as well with the submission.
Then the inside rein, my crack habit. We discussed purposeful use - ie, when I use it, I *USE* it, and then return it to neutral. No tweaking, no gently using it. Pull it ALL the way out, then release to neutral. She did get after me once because I used it and let it go too quickly, she said his head ricocheted like whiplash! ;) but I eventually figured it out.
We also talked about how bent his neck should be at all times. She integrated a little physical therapy into our lesson by working on his neck, getting his poll to flex in her hands, working on his jaw, etc. He loved it, of course. His nuchal ligament, she thinks, may prevent him from ever correctly being poll-high. When he's lazy, he breaks at the nuchal ligament area, not his poll. Thank you western pleasure Arab trainers who cranked his neck in draw reins at age 2-3... We also talked about only being able to see his inside eyelashes when he's bent. No more bend than that! True bend is body only. However, he does use wiggly-ness to evade so I need to watch that.
At about the 2 hour mark, something magical happened - he submitted!!! He started to come truly through and step under himself and relax over his topline. Of course, Gayle said I couldn't get off yet. If we were teaching him a new skill and he finally mastered it, you praise and get off. But if it's something basic (going round), you can't. Then they win. So I pushed through it. We worked at the trot, applying the same moving-shoulders turning, keeping the correct bend, getting him to step under himself. I also spent time playing with inside rein neutrality. When I give as a reward, I can't just fling it out there and leave it be. I have to GIVE the reward, then take back to neutral. Hmm, interesting.
Anyway...he finally got his post-lesson carrot. :) Last night's ride was pretty good, only took us about 10-20min to get submission and then he relaxed into a decent trot. We're still using the whip in groundwork before every ride, I think it's making him less freakish about it. :)
We worked a lot on moving his shoulders over. Somehow, I had a magically huge revelation with this. I wasn't putting my outside leg back enough when I asked him to move his shoulders over on a turn, or a quarter-pirouette. So he'd been moving his HQs as well, subtly so I wouldn't notice. No western spins, says Gayle! Once I put my leg back as I asked, WHOOSH, his shoulders moved right over freely! It was so neat. We played around with that a lot as well with the submission.
Then the inside rein, my crack habit. We discussed purposeful use - ie, when I use it, I *USE* it, and then return it to neutral. No tweaking, no gently using it. Pull it ALL the way out, then release to neutral. She did get after me once because I used it and let it go too quickly, she said his head ricocheted like whiplash! ;) but I eventually figured it out.
We also talked about how bent his neck should be at all times. She integrated a little physical therapy into our lesson by working on his neck, getting his poll to flex in her hands, working on his jaw, etc. He loved it, of course. His nuchal ligament, she thinks, may prevent him from ever correctly being poll-high. When he's lazy, he breaks at the nuchal ligament area, not his poll. Thank you western pleasure Arab trainers who cranked his neck in draw reins at age 2-3... We also talked about only being able to see his inside eyelashes when he's bent. No more bend than that! True bend is body only. However, he does use wiggly-ness to evade so I need to watch that.
At about the 2 hour mark, something magical happened - he submitted!!! He started to come truly through and step under himself and relax over his topline. Of course, Gayle said I couldn't get off yet. If we were teaching him a new skill and he finally mastered it, you praise and get off. But if it's something basic (going round), you can't. Then they win. So I pushed through it. We worked at the trot, applying the same moving-shoulders turning, keeping the correct bend, getting him to step under himself. I also spent time playing with inside rein neutrality. When I give as a reward, I can't just fling it out there and leave it be. I have to GIVE the reward, then take back to neutral. Hmm, interesting.
Anyway...he finally got his post-lesson carrot. :) Last night's ride was pretty good, only took us about 10-20min to get submission and then he relaxed into a decent trot. We're still using the whip in groundwork before every ride, I think it's making him less freakish about it. :)
Update on Deuce, and a possibility...Magic
This post is long past due! I have just been SO bummed for the past several weeks that I didn't feel like writing this. Deuce had all summer off after his weird parking out incident in June, and I was hoping that it had helped and that whatever problem he had been experiencing had corrected itself after his shoes were pulled and he got a good trim to put his feet back at the correct angles. My farrier came out September 22nd to trim Deuce, and I was really hoping, and planning, to put front shoes back on him and bring him back into work. Well, that didn't happen. It was painful for Deuce whenever the farrier pulled either front leg forward. I palpated Deuce's back, and it was still very sore. There was no way Deuce could be put on a hoof stand to shoe him, and no sense in shoeing him just to stand in the pasture, unless there was a valid therapeutic reason.
I took Deuce back to the vet, and when we got him on a flat, level surface and viewed his back from above and behind, he is not symmetrical from his left side to his right side. The right side of his back looks atrophied. He also is resistant to flexing his head around to the right. Five days of stall rest with 2 grams of Bute twice a day did help some. He was able to tolerate flexing his head around to the right more, and his back was less painful. From there, he was turned back out and kept on 1 gram of Bute twice a day. He became more painful again. Next, he was put on stall rest without Bute. He remained painful. He has been back on turnout without Bute since the middle of last week. Sunday, his back was still painful, but I could pull his legs forward further, especially the right front, without him pulling back.
My vet had been in contact with both Va Tech and NCSU-CVM. Deuce will need to go to one of the vet schools for x-rays of his neck and withers. We are wondering if Deuce had a wreck as a baby that is just now showing up. Do any of you have any ideas? Whatever the problem is, Deuce is in pain continuously. He is not really showing any neurological problems, either. That is placing something like
EPM further down the list of possibilities. Also, does anyone have an opinion of VA Tech versus NCSU? My only experience is, of course, with NCSU. I was thinking about trying to wait until a clinician I know is on clinics there.
This could very well be a career ending problem for Deuce, which is why I have been so bummed! This is my favorite time of year to ride, too. So I have been keeping my eyes open for something to ride. Early last week I went to check out a mule that I could free lease. She was very pleasant to ride, and would be something that I could trail ride.
Then I saw a horse posted in the "Giveaways" forum on COTH the middle of last week. She is a 16.2 hand 7yo OTTB mare, and she has done some eventing. I went to look at her Sunday. Another family came to look at her as well, though, so I was doing a really good job of not getting my hopes up...until I rode her! I REALLY liked her. She was willing to come into a nice frame for me, and was very nice to ride. It was evident how much I need to get back in shape, but she was responsive and soft. After cantering some, I was able to get a really nice forward trot with her pushing deep from behind and coming nicely onto the bit. I just couldn't sustain it for very long right now!
The owner went to check out the facility of the other people that afternoon, and I was expecting to be told that they would be getting Magic, as they have a lot going for them. The girl is in regular lessons with a big name trainer, too, and had been able to come out and look at Magic once or twice before. However, she told me that she would still like to come look at where I would be keeping Magic, and wants to see me ride her again. So I am still be in the running. The owner is coming to look at the place where I would board Magic on Saturday, and I am going to look at her again Sunday. Comments and conformation critiques are welcome!
I took Deuce back to the vet, and when we got him on a flat, level surface and viewed his back from above and behind, he is not symmetrical from his left side to his right side. The right side of his back looks atrophied. He also is resistant to flexing his head around to the right. Five days of stall rest with 2 grams of Bute twice a day did help some. He was able to tolerate flexing his head around to the right more, and his back was less painful. From there, he was turned back out and kept on 1 gram of Bute twice a day. He became more painful again. Next, he was put on stall rest without Bute. He remained painful. He has been back on turnout without Bute since the middle of last week. Sunday, his back was still painful, but I could pull his legs forward further, especially the right front, without him pulling back.
My vet had been in contact with both Va Tech and NCSU-CVM. Deuce will need to go to one of the vet schools for x-rays of his neck and withers. We are wondering if Deuce had a wreck as a baby that is just now showing up. Do any of you have any ideas? Whatever the problem is, Deuce is in pain continuously. He is not really showing any neurological problems, either. That is placing something like
EPM further down the list of possibilities. Also, does anyone have an opinion of VA Tech versus NCSU? My only experience is, of course, with NCSU. I was thinking about trying to wait until a clinician I know is on clinics there.This could very well be a career ending problem for Deuce, which is why I have been so bummed! This is my favorite time of year to ride, too. So I have been keeping my eyes open for something to ride. Early last week I went to check out a mule that I could free lease. She was very pleasant to ride, and would be something that I could trail ride.
Then I saw a horse posted in the "Giveaways" forum on COTH the middle of last week. She is a 16.2 hand 7yo OTTB mare, and she has done some eventing. I went to look at her Sunday. Another family came to look at her as well, though, so I was doing a really good job of not getting my hopes up...until I rode her! I REALLY liked her. She was willing to come into a nice frame for me, and was very nice to ride. It was evident how much I need to get back in shape, but she was responsive and soft. After cantering some, I was able to get a really nice forward trot with her pushing deep from behind and coming nicely onto the bit. I just couldn't sustain it for very long right now!
The owner went to check out the facility of the other people that afternoon, and I was expecting to be told that they would be getting Magic, as they have a lot going for them. The girl is in regular lessons with a big name trainer, too, and had been able to come out and look at Magic once or twice before. However, she told me that she would still like to come look at where I would be keeping Magic, and wants to see me ride her again. So I am still be in the running. The owner is coming to look at the place where I would board Magic on Saturday, and I am going to look at her again Sunday. Comments and conformation critiques are welcome!
Lame Skate
Dangit, I went out to the pasture (the farthest corner, of course) to grab Skate to go for a ride and was really annoyed to find him lame on his right hind. It's hugely swollen from below the hock to above the fetlock. He has two obvious injuries in that area, but both of them have been there for a week or more. I am praying its not something major. Two other horses recently developed cellulitis in the barn this weekend - odd, I've never actually seen multiple cases of cellulitis at once!
I did the usual cold-hosing and poultice with wrapping and he got some banamine for pain...now he's stall-bound until the swelling goes down. I'm hoping the barn owner will call me today and say it looks better. I hate keeping him inside, but if its a soft-tissue injury, he certainly doesn't need to be running around on it. If he doesn't seem better today, we'll have the vet out.
He is terrible about getting beat-up in the pasture, although I suspect he does it to himself! The BO said she saw him out there one morning standing outside the run-in just kicking away. Moron. Why would he be kicking the run-in??
I did the usual cold-hosing and poultice with wrapping and he got some banamine for pain...now he's stall-bound until the swelling goes down. I'm hoping the barn owner will call me today and say it looks better. I hate keeping him inside, but if its a soft-tissue injury, he certainly doesn't need to be running around on it. If he doesn't seem better today, we'll have the vet out.
He is terrible about getting beat-up in the pasture, although I suspect he does it to himself! The BO said she saw him out there one morning standing outside the run-in just kicking away. Moron. Why would he be kicking the run-in??
Monday, October 13, 2008
Gate Sourness Sunday
I may be the strange one of the crowd but I LOVE riding alone. I got to the barn yesterday and there wasn't anyone around at all. I got Desi out and after getting her all pretty I took saddle fit pictures. I am pretty good with english saddles but much better with western. Go figure that my really nice expensive saddle doesn't fit her at ALL. So I rode in my cheapy.
Since there was nobody around after we warmed up and went over our previous lessons: standing, turning off leg, stopping with my seat and NOT when I say "Good girl", and moving those pesky shoulders over.
I held the buckle and let her trot and trot and trot. At first she stayed on the rail and was very unsure about her speed. If I took a bigger breath she would slow down she wouldn't just move out. So I would push her if she lagged or felt like she was going to walk. After about a mile or so she settled into a very nice rythmic trot. Then decided that was boring and did what I wanted her to do.......headed for the gate. The nice thing about her is she is SUPER sensative. So when she would head at it directly I would just my voice and click to her, when she would go past it I got quiet. I only used my legs to keep her trotting. After 2-3 times she avoided the gate like the plague! If we were tracking left she would go towards the middle of the arena about 15' before the gate and go back on the rail 15' after the gate. LOL I have a SMART mare!
We probably trotted a good 4 miles yesterday. Tonight we will go back to bareback and hopefully start alternating. I want both of us in killer shape! I took some conformation shots of her tonight to hopefully compare in a few months to see if muscle has improved some of her weaker areas.
Anyone want to buy a County Stabilizer?? LOL I listed it on Ebay. Ideally I will get enough to get a nice CC that fits her(under $700) and then take the rest and my western saddle and get the Wade saddle of my dreams.(western)
Look how smart I am! I found the EDIT button! Ok, here are her confo shots. Feel free to pick her apart.
What I see:
Roachy
Weak Pasterns
her front cannon bones attach to the ouside of her knees
cow hocked
Since there was nobody around after we warmed up and went over our previous lessons: standing, turning off leg, stopping with my seat and NOT when I say "Good girl", and moving those pesky shoulders over.
I held the buckle and let her trot and trot and trot. At first she stayed on the rail and was very unsure about her speed. If I took a bigger breath she would slow down she wouldn't just move out. So I would push her if she lagged or felt like she was going to walk. After about a mile or so she settled into a very nice rythmic trot. Then decided that was boring and did what I wanted her to do.......headed for the gate. The nice thing about her is she is SUPER sensative. So when she would head at it directly I would just my voice and click to her, when she would go past it I got quiet. I only used my legs to keep her trotting. After 2-3 times she avoided the gate like the plague! If we were tracking left she would go towards the middle of the arena about 15' before the gate and go back on the rail 15' after the gate. LOL I have a SMART mare!
We probably trotted a good 4 miles yesterday. Tonight we will go back to bareback and hopefully start alternating. I want both of us in killer shape! I took some conformation shots of her tonight to hopefully compare in a few months to see if muscle has improved some of her weaker areas.
Anyone want to buy a County Stabilizer?? LOL I listed it on Ebay. Ideally I will get enough to get a nice CC that fits her(under $700) and then take the rest and my western saddle and get the Wade saddle of my dreams.(western)
Look how smart I am! I found the EDIT button! Ok, here are her confo shots. Feel free to pick her apart.
What I see:
Roachy
Weak Pasterns
her front cannon bones attach to the ouside of her knees
cow hocked
Sunday, October 12, 2008
Pro and his Attitude
Ok, so I've been super busy the past couple weeks so I've been missing my updates. I rode Tues and Sat though (not today, my schedule didn't let me).
Tues started out decent which I was happy about because I was all set to try out my new lesson tricks, but then the dog from across the pond showed up and made me nervous which then got Pro antsy and well, it didn't get better really.
Saturday was basically the complete opposite. Pro started out in full "FU" mode. He wanted to ignore me right from the get-go. He was fine with me connecting my outside rein, but he really didn't want to yield his head/neck/poll when I asked with the inside rein. So we had several long bonding moments with the inside rein where I kept steady pressure on the outside rein and pulled his head around to the inside with an opening inside rein. After a couple of those he started to listen more so I did the shoulder softening trick (me softening/tugging with my inside shoulder, not particularly trying to soften his shoulder) he really relaxed into it and lifted his back and started mouthing the bit. We were on a 10m circle but I couldn't see us in the mirror so I asked him to stay soft and move the 10m circle over. He freaked out when I asked him to move off his comfortable circle and his head went up (this was at the trot). So we spent awhile trotting 10m circles in various places, staying on the circle until he did a full circle soft and mouthing then moving it. He got pretty good at that but then I had to drop to a walk because of the bunny tree. Got the soft chewing back by the bunny tree and so I started doing serpentines at the walk. He didn't try to come up even once and kept moving his mouth the entire time. So I dropped my reins from the 2nd rein stop to the 3rd. He stayed right out at the end of them and kept his head on the vertical even on the looser rein so I did that a couple times up and down the arena and then sent him out to the 4th stop, which worked for awhile but after 2 or 3 loops he'd start looking to come up. Doing the shoulder trick would send him right back and out though, so I came back up to the 3rd stop and worked some more there for a few minutes and then called it a day.
Question for the audience: Despite mouthing/chewing the bit for the last 20 min or so of the ride, there was no foam when I was done. His lips were wet, but not foaming. Does that mean he was only sort of relaxing his jaw or is it a non-sign? He was mouthing it sort of hard but he was so relaxed I don't think it was angry chewing, it was more like how babies will chew their bits trying to figure out what's going on.
Tues started out decent which I was happy about because I was all set to try out my new lesson tricks, but then the dog from across the pond showed up and made me nervous which then got Pro antsy and well, it didn't get better really.
Saturday was basically the complete opposite. Pro started out in full "FU" mode. He wanted to ignore me right from the get-go. He was fine with me connecting my outside rein, but he really didn't want to yield his head/neck/poll when I asked with the inside rein. So we had several long bonding moments with the inside rein where I kept steady pressure on the outside rein and pulled his head around to the inside with an opening inside rein. After a couple of those he started to listen more so I did the shoulder softening trick (me softening/tugging with my inside shoulder, not particularly trying to soften his shoulder) he really relaxed into it and lifted his back and started mouthing the bit. We were on a 10m circle but I couldn't see us in the mirror so I asked him to stay soft and move the 10m circle over. He freaked out when I asked him to move off his comfortable circle and his head went up (this was at the trot). So we spent awhile trotting 10m circles in various places, staying on the circle until he did a full circle soft and mouthing then moving it. He got pretty good at that but then I had to drop to a walk because of the bunny tree. Got the soft chewing back by the bunny tree and so I started doing serpentines at the walk. He didn't try to come up even once and kept moving his mouth the entire time. So I dropped my reins from the 2nd rein stop to the 3rd. He stayed right out at the end of them and kept his head on the vertical even on the looser rein so I did that a couple times up and down the arena and then sent him out to the 4th stop, which worked for awhile but after 2 or 3 loops he'd start looking to come up. Doing the shoulder trick would send him right back and out though, so I came back up to the 3rd stop and worked some more there for a few minutes and then called it a day.
Question for the audience: Despite mouthing/chewing the bit for the last 20 min or so of the ride, there was no foam when I was done. His lips were wet, but not foaming. Does that mean he was only sort of relaxing his jaw or is it a non-sign? He was mouthing it sort of hard but he was so relaxed I don't think it was angry chewing, it was more like how babies will chew their bits trying to figure out what's going on.
Bareback Bonding LONG
Friday:
I decided that if I am going to have the same bond with Desi as I do with Apple that I need to do the same things that I did with him. So no saddle tonight and I will primarily ride her bareback. I need to know how she feels and how she moves. I know Apple better than I know myself. When we are in a tough situation with a rank horse I have confidence that my seat KNOWS him and that won't be a weak place. I now need that with Desi.
I was expecting her to be more squirrelly but she was MUCH more confident. She was super in tune with my seat and aides. We had a GREAT ride. We worked on those pesky shoulders some more and did lots of trotting. She has the BEST trot! She really reaches underneath herself. I am not used to a horse with longer pasterns and such a long neck.
We really had to work on standing still today. She is a little passive aggressive. She doesn't fight but if she doesn't understand or wants to do something different she is sneaky instead of blatantly rude. I asked her to stand and it was the creeping step away. Everytime she would step away from where I asked her to stand we would hindquarter until she wanted to stand. It only took a few times before she was happy standing.
We didn't work on too much. I didn't want to push it for our first ride.
I can't wait to start getting her to use her back and shoulders more. It is strange that she travels so downhill but when she stands she is very uphill.
Saturday:
Today was MUCH better. I still rode bareback but felt more comfortable pushing her a little more.
We did lots more trotting and transitions. I have learned that saying "Good girl" means WHOA and she will launch you right into her whithers. Ha Ha
She really remembered her standing lesson. She willingly stood quietly when asked each time today. Wouldn't it be nice if ALL horses remembered their lessons like this??
We worked a little on moving her shoulders at the trot, she is still pretty resistant but seemed to like it when we worked on the shoulder opening exercises.
I also wanted to work on leg cues a lot more. So we weaved around all the ring obstacles. This is where she shows her gate sourness the most. I cue the turn with my leg and only back it up with the rein if I don't get a response. She was GREAT turning towards the gate but I would have to use the rein a little to get her to turn the other way.
After we finished in the arena I rode out and up the driveway some. She took it ok, you could tell she wasn't scared but wasn't used to leading or going out alone. Then we rode around the barn and back into the isle. It is about time she gets used to the fact that her mom is a little.........outside the "box". :)
I plan on riding her again on Sunday with an english saddle this time.
Hey Kate......I can post without the saddle too. ;)
I decided that if I am going to have the same bond with Desi as I do with Apple that I need to do the same things that I did with him. So no saddle tonight and I will primarily ride her bareback. I need to know how she feels and how she moves. I know Apple better than I know myself. When we are in a tough situation with a rank horse I have confidence that my seat KNOWS him and that won't be a weak place. I now need that with Desi.
I was expecting her to be more squirrelly but she was MUCH more confident. She was super in tune with my seat and aides. We had a GREAT ride. We worked on those pesky shoulders some more and did lots of trotting. She has the BEST trot! She really reaches underneath herself. I am not used to a horse with longer pasterns and such a long neck.
We really had to work on standing still today. She is a little passive aggressive. She doesn't fight but if she doesn't understand or wants to do something different she is sneaky instead of blatantly rude. I asked her to stand and it was the creeping step away. Everytime she would step away from where I asked her to stand we would hindquarter until she wanted to stand. It only took a few times before she was happy standing.
We didn't work on too much. I didn't want to push it for our first ride.I can't wait to start getting her to use her back and shoulders more. It is strange that she travels so downhill but when she stands she is very uphill.
Saturday:
Today was MUCH better. I still rode bareback but felt more comfortable pushing her a little more.
We did lots more trotting and transitions. I have learned that saying "Good girl" means WHOA and she will launch you right into her whithers. Ha Ha
She really remembered her standing lesson. She willingly stood quietly when asked each time today. Wouldn't it be nice if ALL horses remembered their lessons like this??
We worked a little on moving her shoulders at the trot, she is still pretty resistant but seemed to like it when we worked on the shoulder opening exercises.
I also wanted to work on leg cues a lot more. So we weaved around all the ring obstacles. This is where she shows her gate sourness the most. I cue the turn with my leg and only back it up with the rein if I don't get a response. She was GREAT turning towards the gate but I would have to use the rein a little to get her to turn the other way.
After we finished in the arena I rode out and up the driveway some. She took it ok, you could tell she wasn't scared but wasn't used to leading or going out alone. Then we rode around the barn and back into the isle. It is about time she gets used to the fact that her mom is a little.........outside the "box". :)
I plan on riding her again on Sunday with an english saddle this time.
Hey Kate......I can post without the saddle too. ;)
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