Day 128

I didn't go out yesterday because I went to the dog show! Yayyyy doggies!!

Today. Was. FABULOUS.
Mainly because Colin came out today and Ray wasn't there. We chatted and he showed us three new stallions that he brought up from Florida. The poor things are so skinny! We're determined to get some weight and muscles on them. He promised to let me ride one, Cache, once he's settled in and has a bit more weight on. I'm super excited, Cache looks like a train coming down a track. So much power! I know I can be bad about getting pictures and videos up, but I promise I'll get a video of me riding Cache up as soon as I do!

So we rode all together and when he was done riding Cache, Colin came back in the arena to watch my brother and I ride. He immediately took to my brother and pretty much gave him an hour long lesson on Nina, giving him tips and tricks on how to ride her better so that she's more relaxed, more balanced, and gaits tighter. Unfortunately I didn't hear any of those comments because I was working on warming up Brie. I got around the arena a couple of times before my mom demanded a switch with me so that I would ride Harry.

What a handful. I know that I should be light on his mouth, but it's just so hard when he pulls and tries to take off! So, like a bad owner, Colin saw me struggling with Harry today. As soon as he was done working with my brother, he asked if he could ride Harry, and I obliged. First thing he pointed out was that Harry has a really unnecessary fear of the wall and we're going at it the wrong way. We use our inside leg to apply pressure and the outside rein to try to get him over to the wall, while Colin said that we should just not fight with him like that, just make him go straight, and instead of reversing into the arena, we should reverse onto the wall. Another pointer that he had regarding my fighting with Harry was instead of pulling on his bit constantly trying to get him to slow down is to just turn him into a wall or a corner and he'll have no choice but to stop.

Colin set a few goals for us with Harry:
1. Extinguish the fear of the wall.
2. Get him to relax while not wanting to take off.
3. Make him STOP when we want him to stop.

I think I've mentioned before that Harry has a tendency to tap-dance when he gets nervous. We've been told lots of different things to stop this and none of them have really worked. Colin suggested just keeping pressure on him at all sides when he starts tapping until he stops and then immediately release pressure and he'll start to get the message. It's worth a try.

He also mentioned that trotting is a good thing for the horses. We're all so concerned with gaiting all the time that they never get the chance to relax, and he said that giving them an opportunity to lapse into a natural trot is relaxing for them, and that when we ask them to gait from a trot, they'll have relaxed and then be ready to work really well in a gait. We can give that a try too, though I'm a bit skeptical about that. All we can do is wait and see.

But now Colin will be around more often, or so he says. I really am looking forward to having him around. It's nice to get some new pointers and tricks every once in a while, because thinking of ways to deal with issues gets a little exhausting on your own!

Day 127

Worked a lot with Brie today. She's like a pro over that white pole now. But I forgot my camera! =[ So I can't show you her trick. I worked on transitions for a while today between walking and cantering. We're getting better at it....there were a couple of tries where she didn't want to just bolt where she seemed like she was paying attention. I was wary of it today though because there was a puddle in one of the corners of the arena, so I had to keep avoiding it.

Afterward.... I RODE HARRY! Who is behaving marvelously, if I do say so myself. All that we need to work on is going straight down the soundboard and WALKING. Lots of walking. He's so full of energy and so eager to work that he has a hard time listening to when I ask him to slow down. So we shall start working on that from now on.

At the end of the day, my brother and I took Nina and Harry over the scary white pole while they were cooling. We walked them on foot, or tried to walk them, over the pole. It took a while for them to not be so scared of it and go around it. Nina actually pushed it quite a ways with her nose! Harry took a big leap over it like it was a huge jump, it was pretty adorable. They'll get used to it. They have to learn how to trust us when facing new and scary things (because there will be SO many white poles out on trail), otherwise we put both of us in danger.

Day 126

Short day booo. Also, it was not 50 degrees like I'd hoped. But we did get to open the big doors to the aisles and arena to see the light of the wonderful world today!

All the snow and ice has pretty much melted, and for three horses who haven't been outside to play since before I can remember, they weren't too excited! We let them out in the small paddocks today and they only bucked and ran for a few minutes, then just stood around and enjoyed the sunshine, which is definitely a great thing for anyone to do as this winter breaks. =] And! I got to apply the Yo-Yo Game in real life for the first time today with Brie! We were leaving the paddock and I didn't want to awkwardly back her up with the gate, since it opens inwards, and possibly be squished, so I was like "Hmm...Yo yo game?" and while it took a couple times for her to understand that I wanted her to pause and wait a minute and let me ask her to step forward, she was a total doll and stood patiently until I was out of the paddock, holding the gate aside for her to come out.

I only worked with Brie today. I was being very slow about brushing her and saddling up. I decided to try something new and goofy too. We have poles that are guides for figure 8s, but they were moved to the sides and the PVC covers come off, so I took one off and set it on the ground in the arena and worked with Brie to step over it. At first she was like "OH MY GOD SCARY WILD WHITE POLE MONSTER AHHH!" and just kept eyeballing and snorting at it, going around it and never over, but after a few sniffs and a tap, she pretty much had the idea. So after I walked with her over it for a while, I sent her out to lunge over it. It was so cute, she kept approaching it like it was a 5 ft jump when it's just this little 8 inch high pole with the most determined look on her face. We worked on actually walking over it while I was on her.

Tomorrow, hopefully I'll get to ride Harry. Maybe Nina too.

Oh! And Brie had this horrible habit of throwing her head while on cross ties when you wanted to kiss her nose (which we're all guilty of doing with Harry and Nina...I know, I know, one day I might be sorry with a broken nose, I just can't help it) so I was teaching her to not toss her head by holding a carrot down so she could grab a bite as I kissed her. Today it was so funny, after I rode and she cooled, I was going to give her a carrot and I just said "Gimme a kiss" and put my head forward a bit like I had been doing when holding the carrot down last week, and she held her nose out to let me kiss her! Multiple times! I just thought that was so cute =]

Days 124 & 125

Saturday
Our short day. I only rode Brie today. We worked really well, not just running around and playing. She worked up a sweat just corto-ing around! That's how I can tell that she's pretty out of shape. I wish our days were longer so I could ride Brie every time we go out to ride. No one else really wants to work her, they just sit on her or walk a couple times then stop. Everyone has gotten so caught up with Nina and Harry that Brie is just on te side as a pet now and it makes me kind of sad.

Brie's so smart too! Her intelligence shines through more and more every time I ride her. I need to keep learning things to keep her occupied because when she's learning, she's happy and listens. It's when she's bored that she starts being silly. She's looking for things to do even more now that cabin fever is at it's height.

I can't wait for next weekend! It's supposed to be warming up to 56 (downright balmy!) on Thursday and I can only hope that it'll be that warm come Saturday. These horses need a good scrubbing, and it'll prolly take all day next Saturday.

We were talking to Paco about a horse that is supposed to be coming up to the stables from Florida, a National Champion Fino mare. We were talking about how expensive she was and how her owner doesn't let her go outside in the pasture because he's scared she'll get hurt. I can understand why it's a concern because of the money spent, but come on! What a horrible life for a horse =[ it breaks my heart to know that some horses never get to play outside for just a bit. I also don't believe in the "in training, no playing" attitude, where horses in training don't get to go outside because of the belief that they'll get distracted. If you send a kid to school and only make them do schoolwork and never let them play, they'll get really defiant. Plus if horses go out regularly, they don't act as crazy every time they go out.

I'm also kind of upset by some comments made about what I've been doing lately, focusing on Brie rather than Harry. Brie might no longer be our only option for showing, but she still deserves attention! And it angers me when people say that I'm just interested in playing around with her. They have no idea of what I'm trying to do that day, so they should just keep their mouths shut! If I want to play, I can, and if I want to work, I can. What seems like work to one person may not seem like it to another--that's just how it is.


Sunday
No one comes out now that it's cold! I saw Gary today for the first time in forever. I haven't seen Annie or Jane in forever!

I rode only Brie again today. She worked well, and while I wanted to ride Nina, I ended up not because I was upset. Remember the work thing? Yeah, that became an issue today. I was cooling Brie and I asked my brother if we could switch and I could ride Nina and he could cool Brie, because all he was doing was standing with Nina in the middle of the ring while she was huffing (he does this often) and he told me he wouldn't because I "already made Brie crazy by running her". First of all, I didn't even canter her, we corto'd. Second of all, she was perfectly calm, walking like an angel! And thirdly, he didn't even want to listen to me say those two things! So I just finished cooling Brie and then brushed her off.

My mom said I need to start riding Harry. I have been! Just because I took two weeks to work with Brie anyways?! If we would get up earlier, we would have more time to ride, but it's such a hassle waking up my brother to go. It's like a surprise every weekend that we have to wake up early!

I've decided that during the summer, instead of getting a job, I want to learn as much as I can about training. I want to read, watch, train. I want to stay down at the stables. I wonder if it'll happen. I hope so!

Day 123

Worked a lot with Harry today. Did a lot of lunging just on the Parelli halter before I rode. We made little bracelets for his back feet so he would pick them up more, but they didn't really keep an effect while I rode.

I think that trying something new, letting him romp around before we got down to business, was a mistake. I think that it messed with his head and set off the day in a bad direction that took way too long to get back on track. I guess now I know. He just needs a lot of warming up, not losing his focus, and to just keep being reinforced when he's doing the right things. It'll take some time for him to get all his legs in sync, but we can do it before show season starts.

Brie was wonderful. Didn't ride for very long, but she listened really well. I can't wait until it gets warm outside--I can't wait to start trying trail rides again with her! I just need to find some trails.

Day 122

Started Harry again today. He got really annoyed that I started him off lunging the direction that he hates, but he just has to deal with it! I need to remember that, as much as I'd like to deny it, he IS an 800lb animal and that a stand-off with him will not help matters.

Paco gave me some advice: go back to basics. So it's back to lunging on the noseband for him instead of on the pisador. I have to remember not to take it as an insult, but rather take it as a challenge that I have to go back and review things with Harry. I also have to take into account that it's winter and he's not being let out because of ice and that we aren't there all week to ride him. So we're going to work on more groundwork more often with him, especially to help him pick up his feet more in the back and get everything all in sync so he doesn't look like a clumsy 2 year old! He needs to look like the polished 5 year old that he should be =]

Brie? Oh goofed around. A tiny bit of canter. All without stirrups!

Looking forward to tomorrow more. I hate that Saturdays are so short!