Days 222 and 223

Saturday

Didn't really do much today. Just played a couple of Parelli games and then left because it was hot out. But there was a lot that went on this week. Earlier in the week, Samantha's mom noticed that Nina wasn't acting right and that she couldn't pick up her head to eat her hay from her hay basket. She called my mom who called the vet and the vet said that there was a large swollen lump at the injection site from last weekend and there were hives on Nina's neck. Definitely still a reaction from the shots. So the vet gave Nina some medicine to eat for the rest of the week and then up until tomorrow. The vet was back out to check on everyone who got shots every morning for the rest of the week up until yesterday morning. Poor Nina. First the stitches on her nose, now this! And the vet also mentioned that a couple of weeks ago, some minis colicked from the vaccines too. So it's definitely the manufacturer's fault and the vet will be taking that up with the company. I'm just so thankful that Samantha's mom was there to notice Nina! Who knows what might have happened if the vet didn't get out there. One thing's for sure -- Nina wouldn't have been able to eat for a while if she couldn't reach her food =[ But by the time we got out there today she was definitely better and the vet had cleared her this morning.

I'm proud to say that Harry and I are making progress with the tarp! He didn't want to step on it, but I did pick it up and drag it on the floor while he walked with me and then held it and walked around with it while I held him too. Then when we were all finished, I brought it into the aisle where he was cross-tied and folded it in front of him really small, then showed it to him and rubbed it on him and he was okay with it. Progress will continue!

Sunday

I'm getting really discouraged. After Harry was working well all this time, he's not doing so hot anymore. He's all loose and flying away from me now that he knows how to largo and I can't figure out how to get him to slow down and collect without tugging on the reins and it drives the both of us nuts. And it was so hot today and I felt bad for working him so hard, but the next show is in two or three weeks, and I won't be able to go out to ride this weekend, so we don't have that much time to get back to where we were a month ago. I really don't know what to do and it's frustrating. I know he's trying to figure out what I want too, I just know that he's trying, but I don't know a better way to communicate that I want him to just collect and corto instead of flying around now, and that I still DO want him to largo, but only when I ask him to, not just all of the time as a default speed. I was getting really frustrated, but then I had to remind myself that we didn't work yesterday and that he was really behaving like he was trying to give me what I wanted. He wasn't fighting at all and I appreciate that. I just need to figure out how to ask him for it better. Hopefully this week off will give me some sort of revelation!

Day 80

Today was probably the best day in the entire summer so far.

While I was grooming Harry, I got this idea: what if I lunged him in the round pen without his lead rope, just using the carrot stick? I don't know why I didn't think of this before. It seems like the most obvious thing in the world now. So after I braided his mane to train it on one side and his forelock so he can see, we headed out to the round pen armed with only the carrot stick and a lead rope (for some ideas later).

We entered, I unclipped him and walked to the middle and he followed, probably still thinking he was attached. I put my carrot stick and arm out to the side, waved it a little, and off he went. He started out slowly and then realized he was free. He has the cutest little gallop! He galloped around counter clockwise for about 10 minutes until I switched hands and yelled "Reverse!". Well he didn't really get that so I ran to the side of the pen where he saw me, yelled again, and he turned to go clockwise. I did that for a couple of reverses until he got the hang of what a tiny two-legger meant by yelling "reverse" at him. Then I tried to get him to stop on command. He didn't really get it so I had to run to one side and then the other, like the reverse, saying "whoa!" and keeping him from speeding off the other direction until he stopped and looked at me all puzzled. I held out my hand and he came to me, then I told him whoa again. Sent him back out and repeated until I just put my hands down and had to say whoa and he was coming right to me. That impressed Paco =]

After free lunging, I hooked him back up and put my carrot stick to the side and lunged like that. He was gaiting beautifully and keeping his distance from me. I called the reverse just as if I had the carrot stick and he reversed. He did try to stop a couple of times, nothing like Wednesday, but I got him back out without having to chase him; I just waved my arm like I had the carrot stick. He did so well! I let him back off for some final runs around before I called the final whoa, hooked him up, and walked him for a bit because he was dripping hot!

Saddled up and rode. He was positively charming and it makes me so smug to know that Ray watched me the whole time. The only complaint I have today about Harry is that he liked to rush the soundboard in the counterclockwise and so I'm trying to break him of that. Only one shot in the show and the sound board can make or break you! If I wanna win some money, we better have a good sound board!

I finished up completely happy and asked my mom to wash him off while I rode Brie around. A little miffed that I took her away from the crossbreeze in the doorway, we went over to the poles. Is it bad that she knows the pattern I do for the poles? We went around the indoor 4 times before heading out. She was wonderful! It's hard to believe she's the same horse! I have to keep thinking of new routes to take around the limited property, but we have fun. She didn't crowhop at all! I think she genuinely enjoyed herself. I'm so happy I finally found something she likes. If we keep working at it, maybe I'll even get a trail ride down the end of the country-block before summer's over!

Michigan Medallion Show '10

Let me start with the best news.

Nina won 1st place!!

She won with my brother in the Performance Junior Exhibitor class. I'm so proud of her! Everyone was talking up a storm about her, saying how she has so much potential, how she'll just clean up next year at all of the shows once she's settled in. It was fantastic. My mom also won 2nd place in the Performance schooling class and got 4th Championship against older horses, even stallions! She was tired by the end of the day, Saturday, when her showing was over.

Now Brie. I was so excited when I won 4th place on her in the Pleasure Mares class! Right before that class all I did was lunge her and do a couple of figure 8's in the tiny warm up arena. She crowhopped into the arena, but once I passed the horse in front of us I got a huge space all to myself and she calmed down and did really well. I think that one of the big reasons I got 4th place is because of the crowhopping. The steward kept eyeballing us and I just knew he was thinking she was lame. She's not lame! She's just anxious and that's her weird way of showing it. I was super excited because my goal for this show was to not get excused and to not come in last place and so far I was achieving it!

On comes the afternoon classes. I'm going into Pleasure Amateur Owners. I'm excited about it because she got 4th. We go into the class last so I can get spacing. The moment we walked in, it ended. She crowhopped a good majority of the class and I'm surprised I didn't get asked to leave because of it. Thinking back on it...all she did was crowhop. She had a few calm moments but she wanted to corto after the walk-reverses. I didn't place and was "excused" at the end when we lined up.

I was so frustrated. I spent the entire period from that class until my next and final class, Pleasure Youth, in the warm up trying to make her walk and reversing and just trying to get her to listen to me and calm down and ignore the huge Saddlebreds around her (because she was watching them nervously). Near the end of that session she tried to bolt for the barns and that was enough. I was done playing nice. Before she wanted to bolt for the barn I was going to drop my class because I figured she worked enough outside after she got excused, but she was not getting away with that! I went into that class with only one other rider and got second place. It makes a good picture if you don't know I was the only other rider. But the point was that she got through the class without any acting up, barely any crowhopping and I was proud of her (although it was overshadowed by my disappointment with the prior class). Before we left, I was suppost to meet Jenny over at The Joy of Horses, but we couldn't manage it. =[ Maybe next year...

I don't understand Brie.  I've worked with her for the past 9 months, she's on calming supplement, she performs wonderfully at home...does she just not like showing? I can't tell. She does fantastically when she's in her own space like in the Pleasure Mares class or when we do Costume class and I'm the only one there. Is she not comfortable around horses she doesn't know? 

I won't stop showing her. I'm just going to take her out of the PFHA show circuit for a while and focus on Harry's career. I'll take her to some fun shows where there are bound to be more horses and try to get her used to the idea of walking in front of and behind stranger-horses. If she does well enough then maybe I'll put her back into the PFHA circuit.

After all, I never said she had to win a blue ribbon in a class of 10 or more in a PFHA class. =]