I haven't forgotten about this blog, I've just been incredibly busy!!! Just a quick blurb now, I will post more soon!
I get more and more excited about George every time I go play with him, he is truly the horse that will boost my savvy to a new level! Got our horsenality/humanality report today and it was worth the money! It really hit the nail on the head; and it's giving me a lot of savvy arrows to work with George. He's a Right Brained Extrovert and I'm a Left Brained Introvert! It's going to be a fun summer!
I have an endless list of things to do at work and have been running around like crazy getting it all done. Also I'm trying to organize a "clinic" down here in El Paso with 2* Parelli Junior Intructor Linda C. Richards, but she wants me to have all the clinic participants lined up by the end of this weekend! So lots more business for me!
I'm going to take a few weeks of leave next week so I'm going to have LOTS of horse time, lot's of husband time, and lots of time to update this stuff! God Bless and have a great Memorial Day!
Friday, May 27, 2011
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
light as a feather, stiff as a board
I had my second ride on George this weekend! I was sick most of the weekend, and I haven't been updating on here like I was, but I think it's good for me to keep up on it!
I had another wonderful bareback ride Sunday. I'm getting better about getting up that high! I wanted to do a pushing passenger lesson, but there were other people riding, dogs rushing us, and horses galloping and playing about. Although I was expecting a freak out, I didn't get it, I just had him turn and face things he thought were interesting, then walk again. He was SO LIGHT! Phase one go, phase one whoa, phase one turn, disengage, phase 2 backup. I attribute this more to the fact that he's hyper-sensitive and less to all the work that I've been doing (on the occaison that I have time, ha!), but a girl can hope. He was also rather Left-Brained dominant; hmmmm....how interesting!!! At one point he started stamping his hind legs and tossing his head over and over. I unstuck his feet and he was good, then when I got off him I checked his back and he didn't have any pain so I know that wasn't it.
Also another hmmm how interesting moment: I've noticed that when George is cantering on the 22-foot line, only to the left, he canters on the left lead and gallops with his hind. I have to say, I'm sure this a reason for it, but it's hysterical to watch!
I've decided the most important thing to do is make sure I have a plan with George. I have days where I feel that we aren't progressing anywhere near as fast as we should be, and on other days I'm excited with our progress and attribute the fact that we are not that advanced yet to the lack of time we've been together and our clashing personalities. BUT, if I have a plan, and it's not too demanding, it seems to work out really well for both of us!
add note: to explain the title...George is SUPER light, and while he moved much better with me riding him this time than last time, I can still feel that he's stiff. Well, not so much stiff, but very unsure of how to use his body while I ride him.
I had another wonderful bareback ride Sunday. I'm getting better about getting up that high! I wanted to do a pushing passenger lesson, but there were other people riding, dogs rushing us, and horses galloping and playing about. Although I was expecting a freak out, I didn't get it, I just had him turn and face things he thought were interesting, then walk again. He was SO LIGHT! Phase one go, phase one whoa, phase one turn, disengage, phase 2 backup. I attribute this more to the fact that he's hyper-sensitive and less to all the work that I've been doing (on the occaison that I have time, ha!), but a girl can hope. He was also rather Left-Brained dominant; hmmmm....how interesting!!! At one point he started stamping his hind legs and tossing his head over and over. I unstuck his feet and he was good, then when I got off him I checked his back and he didn't have any pain so I know that wasn't it.
Also another hmmm how interesting moment: I've noticed that when George is cantering on the 22-foot line, only to the left, he canters on the left lead and gallops with his hind. I have to say, I'm sure this a reason for it, but it's hysterical to watch!
I've decided the most important thing to do is make sure I have a plan with George. I have days where I feel that we aren't progressing anywhere near as fast as we should be, and on other days I'm excited with our progress and attribute the fact that we are not that advanced yet to the lack of time we've been together and our clashing personalities. BUT, if I have a plan, and it's not too demanding, it seems to work out really well for both of us!
add note: to explain the title...George is SUPER light, and while he moved much better with me riding him this time than last time, I can still feel that he's stiff. Well, not so much stiff, but very unsure of how to use his body while I ride him.
1st RIDE! Just a little tidbit, from a few weeks ago...
The View from between George's ears! And yes, I did think I was going to get a nosebleed being up that high! I've never been on a horse that was over 15.2, George is 17.2HH! I was just really feeling a ride today so I did lots of prep with the mouting block, played lots of friendly and scratched his favorite itchy spot just about his withers, suffered two leg cramps, one in each leg mind you tossed my body weight on him for a bit and then hopped on! My sweet little boy was very much a LBI today (I told u guys it's like nailing jello to a wall!) I sat up there for about 10 minutes, phase one go and did a pushing passenger lesson at the walk for about 10 minutes! Oh, did I mention I was bareback?
Got off, gave him LOTS of cookies, and called it a day! Really, really REALLY fantastic for the first ride on my crazy off-the-track thoroughbred!!!
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
A "Hmmmm....How Interesting" weekend!
Hmmm, so it's almost 7 o'clock at night, my memory seems a little bit foggy and all I can actually remember about this weekend is that it was wonderful, and I'm looking forwards to my first 3 day in a while. Three days in a row with George!!!
Saturday was fun, I tossed George's saddle on and we did some "hill therapy" with cavelettis. He was like a different horse! No much brace, he moved much better, he wasn't bracy, he was physically and mentally able to walk...he was just great!
Sunday was a whole other ball game. They say to play with the horse that shows up, but sometimes, you get a new horse in the same session. I have still been having trouble getting George to accept the stick and string. When they are not attached to me then they are super-tasty chew toys, when I am holding them I am super-predator. I've started long-distance coaching with 2* Parelli Professional Linda C Richards, and she just GETS me! And George! She reccommended that I try leading George from the shoulder while swinging the stick and string in a figure eight pattern, and that would've worked if he would go within 6 feet of me while I had the stick and string. He went RB and wouldn't come out of it, so I walked my happy butt over to the fence rail and swung the stick and string there, so he could only gallop in a half-circle and I'd have something to hang on to if he decided to back out of the pressure. I made sure my belly button wasn't facing him, no matter which way he went and the second he planted his feet I stopped, faced him, and smiled. It took maybe 5 minutes until I was tossing the string over top of him, around in a helicopter, and around his legs. He wasn't totally okay with it, but he wasn't completely right-brained about it either. He just needed to stop his feet to think. Hmmm...how interesting.
After we got through that point, George went TOTALLY left brained! He became snotty, he bucked online, he perked his ears at me, watched my every move, had tons of draw, he acted instead of reacted, it was just amazing. I was dumbfounded. My whole plan went out the window and we just had fun! George is crazy-awesome! And so cute! He is just so big with such big movement, he's the reason they say go through Level 3 on the ground before getting in the saddle! As much as I'm itching to ride, and I mean I have never wanted to ride a horse so badly, I am in no hurry to get up on George. He has to really be ready and I'm not sure he is yet. And that's okay! I wish I could get rid of the stigma that the only time you can have fun with a horse is when you ride. I have a blast with horses on the ground, and I have a ton of fun with George, I know that when I start riding him then it's going to be just as much fun!
Saturday was fun, I tossed George's saddle on and we did some "hill therapy" with cavelettis. He was like a different horse! No much brace, he moved much better, he wasn't bracy, he was physically and mentally able to walk...he was just great!
Sunday was a whole other ball game. They say to play with the horse that shows up, but sometimes, you get a new horse in the same session. I have still been having trouble getting George to accept the stick and string. When they are not attached to me then they are super-tasty chew toys, when I am holding them I am super-predator. I've started long-distance coaching with 2* Parelli Professional Linda C Richards, and she just GETS me! And George! She reccommended that I try leading George from the shoulder while swinging the stick and string in a figure eight pattern, and that would've worked if he would go within 6 feet of me while I had the stick and string. He went RB and wouldn't come out of it, so I walked my happy butt over to the fence rail and swung the stick and string there, so he could only gallop in a half-circle and I'd have something to hang on to if he decided to back out of the pressure. I made sure my belly button wasn't facing him, no matter which way he went and the second he planted his feet I stopped, faced him, and smiled. It took maybe 5 minutes until I was tossing the string over top of him, around in a helicopter, and around his legs. He wasn't totally okay with it, but he wasn't completely right-brained about it either. He just needed to stop his feet to think. Hmmm...how interesting.
After we got through that point, George went TOTALLY left brained! He became snotty, he bucked online, he perked his ears at me, watched my every move, had tons of draw, he acted instead of reacted, it was just amazing. I was dumbfounded. My whole plan went out the window and we just had fun! George is crazy-awesome! And so cute! He is just so big with such big movement, he's the reason they say go through Level 3 on the ground before getting in the saddle! As much as I'm itching to ride, and I mean I have never wanted to ride a horse so badly, I am in no hurry to get up on George. He has to really be ready and I'm not sure he is yet. And that's okay! I wish I could get rid of the stigma that the only time you can have fun with a horse is when you ride. I have a blast with horses on the ground, and I have a ton of fun with George, I know that when I start riding him then it's going to be just as much fun!
Having fun checking out what Mom did with the poles.
Realizing that I am still over here!
The look on his face when I really get the right itchy spot!
BOTH EARS!!!
*ALSO* I talked to the gal at the feed store and talked to her about a particular problem I have been having with George. The boy gets at least two flakes of hay per feeding, and eats maybe half a flake at a time. If I give him grain, he'll take a bite, then leave, then come back later when he's bored enough to eat. I would really like to put some more weight on George, at least muscle, and he needs it in his topline! This is a senior-feed grain because I want some weight on him without getting him hot, and I'm getting nothin.I had his teeth done and he still does this but has been eating more of his hay. She reccommended that I get Hi-Pro Sweet 4(I think it's called), a sweet feed that most the race-trainers around here use. The second he smelled it, he whinnied! I poured him a small amount of it while he paced the fence, then when I set it down and allowed him to come in, he devoured it! Yay! I missed in some sand-blast so clean out his system of sand and he ate it all. My good boy!
Sunday, April 10, 2011
1st Time in a REAL Saddle!
I was expecting much more of a rodeo than I got today! We had vicious wind yesterday and today, but today I braved it to go see my lovable little boy!
My saddle arrived this week and I've been itching to use it! George has been such a dream lately I really had this idea in my head that I was just going to put the saddle on him, get on and go! Instead I went out to the barn with the idea of saddling with savvy, then playing the seven games.
George seemed as happy to see me as I was to see him. He trotted up to me with his ears forward, sniffed me and tried to take a bite out of my arm. I couldn't help myself, I busted out laughing. It just reminded me of why George became mine and what on Earth I had gotten myself into. I love this horse, he's something else!
I brought out the saddle, theraflex pad and girth(sans-stirrups and leathers so I wouldn't feel tempted) and draped them over the fence while I gave George a good scratched and groomed him up. I love that it only took a few weeks for him to stand without anything on his head for me to groom him! And I don't know why I look at him and still see a hairy beast! Luckily he was born down the street from where I keep him so his body just must know the weather changes better than other horses in the area???
I slipped on the halter and 12-foot rope (our first time really playing on the 12 foot!) and sent him over to the saddle. He was semi-interested, as I went through the process of saddling with savvy. I think he was more interested in the fact that my used theraflex smells like another horse! I saddled him from the "wrong" side, and he didn't care at all. *NOTICE: this was George's first time with a real saddle on his back!* Uh oh, girth was way too small, or so I thought. I just barely got it on the first hole, moved him around a little, played the circling game one circle each way, and the girth magically could go up two holes! Played some more, one more hole. In hindsight, I deffinetly should have seen if I could've gotten the girth tighter, but I checked each time and each time it already felt tight to me. More on that later.
I had two shims in the front of my theraflex and one in the middle. I decided to take the one out of the middle and stick in the front. My "new" saddle is a hilason flex tree dressage/trail saddle. I love it!!! But once I got it up there I think I may have turned pale at the realisation of how tall my 16.2 HH still growing boy is. Crud.
I also vividly recalled my fierce hatred for saddles. I was prepared for mental instability on George's part, I was prepared for the spooking and learning curve for new things. I was not prepared for the fact that my goergeous athlete lost his ability to move when the saddle was placed on his back. Duh!!! Why would I expect otherwise??? Okay fine, I was really, really really hoping otherwise!
I do not, however, blame the saddle. It is very wide and I think it's pretty well shimmed, his sweat pattern was perfect when the saddle came off. George has never had a treed saddle (or a person weighing more that 120lbs) on his back before, only a racing "saddle" and a jockey. It's only natural that he would need to learn how to move with these things on his back.
Here's some videos of the madness:
My saddle arrived this week and I've been itching to use it! George has been such a dream lately I really had this idea in my head that I was just going to put the saddle on him, get on and go! Instead I went out to the barn with the idea of saddling with savvy, then playing the seven games.
George seemed as happy to see me as I was to see him. He trotted up to me with his ears forward, sniffed me and tried to take a bite out of my arm. I couldn't help myself, I busted out laughing. It just reminded me of why George became mine and what on Earth I had gotten myself into. I love this horse, he's something else!
I brought out the saddle, theraflex pad and girth(sans-stirrups and leathers so I wouldn't feel tempted) and draped them over the fence while I gave George a good scratched and groomed him up. I love that it only took a few weeks for him to stand without anything on his head for me to groom him! And I don't know why I look at him and still see a hairy beast! Luckily he was born down the street from where I keep him so his body just must know the weather changes better than other horses in the area???
I slipped on the halter and 12-foot rope (our first time really playing on the 12 foot!) and sent him over to the saddle. He was semi-interested, as I went through the process of saddling with savvy. I think he was more interested in the fact that my used theraflex smells like another horse! I saddled him from the "wrong" side, and he didn't care at all. *NOTICE: this was George's first time with a real saddle on his back!* Uh oh, girth was way too small, or so I thought. I just barely got it on the first hole, moved him around a little, played the circling game one circle each way, and the girth magically could go up two holes! Played some more, one more hole. In hindsight, I deffinetly should have seen if I could've gotten the girth tighter, but I checked each time and each time it already felt tight to me. More on that later.
I had two shims in the front of my theraflex and one in the middle. I decided to take the one out of the middle and stick in the front. My "new" saddle is a hilason flex tree dressage/trail saddle. I love it!!! But once I got it up there I think I may have turned pale at the realisation of how tall my 16.2 HH still growing boy is. Crud.
I think that the saddle is too far back, visually. But the boy has TONS of movement in his shoulder and it goes back really far!
I do not, however, blame the saddle. It is very wide and I think it's pretty well shimmed, his sweat pattern was perfect when the saddle came off. George has never had a treed saddle (or a person weighing more that 120lbs) on his back before, only a racing "saddle" and a jockey. It's only natural that he would need to learn how to move with these things on his back.
Here's some videos of the madness:
Don't get me wrong here. I've seen MUCH worse. I can see here that he is trying, he just keeps tipping his nose in like he wants to carry himself, he's just not sure how.
After this I decided to put him on the 22-foot line and let him canter a little bit. Suffice to say, it wasn't pretty...BUT he didn't rush it! Then all hell broke loose. He went right-brained and started galloping and the saddle slipped and only made him more scared. I got him stopped as the saddle was completely on his right side. I managed to get the girth unhooked without the saddle slipping under his belly all the way and let it drop to the ground > why I bought a USED saddle! I sat and rubbed him until he calmed down then started all over again. Break here for 45 minutes of walking away from George swinging the stick and string...do this every time we play and aren't getting anywhere. Once I got the pad and saddle on him without him going introverted or freaking out, I slipped them off him, took off his halter and went to put the saddle away.
I must have done something right because when I came back we came right up to me and set his forehead against my tummy. Ahhhhh happiness.
So the goal right now is to start doing hill therapy with George with the saddle on...if that makes any sense. And since we don't have hills in the desert and I don't want to use barrels due to George's old track injury, I think the best bet for him would be to use cavelettis, and to teach him to carry himself in a saddle before I ever get on him.
Also going to contact a PP today. I just...I've never had or played with a horse that reacted instead of acted so much before, and George still doesn't accept the carrot stick and string. I'm at a stop-loss here. Despite the fact that my stick and string are both trashed from George's love of chewing on them, once they are in my hand he flips out and I cannot be trusted. This is frustrating for me because I've spent so much time with him just trying to build rapport. When I think we are getting somewhere I'm wrong. I need an abject perspective to tell me what I am doing wrong to not set him up for success here. Hopefully I can get the help I need!
I have professional goals, and George is a super-horse. If I can get through to him then he could take me so far! I get out of the Army in October and want to find myself at the Parelli Center...but we're just not at the point that we could send in a video and it been good enough to catch anyone's eye! But once again, I must set back and insist on putting the relationship first!
Nailing Jell-O to the Wall
George is truly unlike any horse I've ever dealt with before! ONE horsenality cannot describe him, the only traits he really doesn't display continuously are those of the Left Brained Introvert. He has a very high play drive and is very loveable, but is mostly a right brained horse. At least right now. He is not a confident learner at all. It's very frustrating to me because I've only had LBI's and played with every other horsenality BUT the RBI, and it's been a learning experienced. Remember: if you are frustrated, learning is right around the corner. Here are George's Horsenality Reports. I'm interested in what on earth is going on here and can't wait to see how he changes in the future!
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
Good Times!!!
I had a pretty good weekend all-in-all with George. Saturday he was just a doll! We finally moved up to playing the circling game. I read somewhere that going through the other games is okay even if you are still having friendly problems. George is absolutely fine with me on his right side playing friendly, but on the left side he goes catatonic and then explodes! I've been spending most of our time together just trying to build rapport and get him comfortable with it, but it's just not happening. I figured if we continued to move on then he would be more inclined to beleive I'm not going to kill him with the stick! So we played the first five games, mostly went great!
Geroge was very happy at the circling game! We played on a 22-foot line, as always, and he kept TONS of slack in it. He is much better going to the right then to the left...not what I expected from a racehorse! Going to the left all he wanted was to stop and come in, so I let him, backed him up and sent him out again. With my last levels horse, I taught him to slow down on a circle by relaxing my body then wiggling on the rope. George was NOT okay with this! I relaxed my body then wiggled slightly on the rope and he went, "WHAT??? What happened to phase 1???" turned and faced me and backed up as quickly as possible to the end of the rope. Whoops, guess he's too sensitive for that one! I brought him in and gave him lots of love!
Then vet was due out so I decided to see if my "horse that doesn't tie" tied or not. This is what he thought about being tied:
I let him stand tied for about 30 minutes and decided it was a non-event, and my ropes are now a little worse for wear. But that's okay!
He was a wonder for the vet! He got all of his shots, blood drawn for his coggins, microchipped, and his teeth done and sheath cleaned! He was great for everything! Sunday came around and he still didn't have any bumps and such so I'm guessing he didn't have any bad reactions! I also noticed on Sunday that he finished all of his grain and most of his hay that morning! Usually he leaves more than half of both! The vet said that she took all the sharp points off his teeth but he had yet to get three of his adult teeth so his mouth will still be hurting a little until they came in completely. Here's a few pics of my little nerd!
Also, she helped me decode George's fading lip tattoo! I sent it in to the Jockey Club and they sent me the link to his information. His damn is Playin the Blues and his sire is BGs Drone. His sire won over a million dollars in his track career, his dam's sire one over 3 million, George won a total of $268. I love him anyways! He raced three times and the last time broke his sesamoid bone, I feel very blessed that his owner decided to save his life and just a few months ago gave him to me. He hasn't taken a lame step and he is a wonderful, intersting and challenging partner. I truly believe that he will be my superhorse!
Also, my saddle finally came today! yay! I can't wait to start playing with it! Maybe I'll ride him some time in the next few weeks!
Geroge was very happy at the circling game! We played on a 22-foot line, as always, and he kept TONS of slack in it. He is much better going to the right then to the left...not what I expected from a racehorse! Going to the left all he wanted was to stop and come in, so I let him, backed him up and sent him out again. With my last levels horse, I taught him to slow down on a circle by relaxing my body then wiggling on the rope. George was NOT okay with this! I relaxed my body then wiggled slightly on the rope and he went, "WHAT??? What happened to phase 1???" turned and faced me and backed up as quickly as possible to the end of the rope. Whoops, guess he's too sensitive for that one! I brought him in and gave him lots of love!
Then vet was due out so I decided to see if my "horse that doesn't tie" tied or not. This is what he thought about being tied:
He was a wonder for the vet! He got all of his shots, blood drawn for his coggins, microchipped, and his teeth done and sheath cleaned! He was great for everything! Sunday came around and he still didn't have any bumps and such so I'm guessing he didn't have any bad reactions! I also noticed on Sunday that he finished all of his grain and most of his hay that morning! Usually he leaves more than half of both! The vet said that she took all the sharp points off his teeth but he had yet to get three of his adult teeth so his mouth will still be hurting a little until they came in completely. Here's a few pics of my little nerd!
playing the squeeze game of his own accord!
Also, she helped me decode George's fading lip tattoo! I sent it in to the Jockey Club and they sent me the link to his information. His damn is Playin the Blues and his sire is BGs Drone. His sire won over a million dollars in his track career, his dam's sire one over 3 million, George won a total of $268. I love him anyways! He raced three times and the last time broke his sesamoid bone, I feel very blessed that his owner decided to save his life and just a few months ago gave him to me. He hasn't taken a lame step and he is a wonderful, intersting and challenging partner. I truly believe that he will be my superhorse!
Also, my saddle finally came today! yay! I can't wait to start playing with it! Maybe I'll ride him some time in the next few weeks!
Sunday, March 27, 2011
Pooping Glitter
Geroge was just a DOLL! Today! I am so in love with my horse! He saw me and came trotting right up to me, so I took off and we did a little stick to me just to see if we can. We can!
I had my new farrier come out this morning. He turned out to be super knowledgeable, and pretty darn cute, lol. George was a perfect gentleman the entire time. Colt, my farrier, said that he had good feet, just mis-treated like most horses off the track. Ignorance is bliss I guess, as it turns out the places where he tore up his feet it was because his hoofwall was paper-thin in those places. But his feet look ok now and hopefully they will continue to get healthier and he can stay barefoot forever!
Yesterday I posted pictures of all the fun toys that I had gotten and set up in George's paddock. Here's the picture from yesterday:
Here are pictures from this morning:
I was certainly a happy camper this morning! Yesterday the wind blowing that tarp even a little bit freaked George out, he wasn't all that interested in the cones, and didn't notice the hula hoop.
Today I got this mess, and a significant amount of the glittery stuff missing off the hulahoop! I'm glad I checked before I bought it and it's non-toxic material. pretty sure my boy's going to be pooping glitter for the next week! Today a put ALL of the poles and all the toys on top of the tarp, hopefully it doesn't get too ripped apart and blown away this week!
I had to put this videos up that I took on my camera phone! George is just too much! I love my boy!
Saturday, March 26, 2011
What can be more awesome than undemanding time???
The Answer: Toys!
But I'll get to that part later ;)
Suffice to say last week was just a no-go for George and I. I wanted so darn badly for him to just "accept the stupid stick" that I pushed him over the edge.
No suprise that when I got to the barn this morning he wanted NOTHING to do with me. He saw me, walked over, got a carrot, then walked away. *frowny face*
I noticed that his pen didn't look like it had been clean, at least since I was last out, when it also looked like it hadn't been cleaned. *ANGRY FACE*, so I decided to do it myself. I went and grabbed a poo-fork and went to work. I stuffed my pockets full of carrots and decided that if he wanted to be with me then I'd give him some incentive. I went to work, picking up poo with purpose! It felt great, the last time I picked up horse poo had to be about three years ago, and it's just theraputic. George sat in the shade and nibbled on the bushes through the fence.
But it didn't take long for him to get curious about the 15billion back and forth trips that I was taking. And since George is the kind of horse that poops on the way out the gate then spooks at the poop coming back in the gate, he just had to come check out what on Earth the crazy lady was doing with the poop. Soon he was following me all over! At first I decided that I would only give him a carrot if he got to stones to come up and touch the scary predator I had become, but then he just got so darn cute! I emptied my pockets and he stayed with me anyways. This went on for about an hour.
Finally I was done and went to go get the fantastic goodies I got at Lowes today. Aspen poles, a tarp, and cones...ok I went cone-happy, 3 sizes of cones. Also I hula hoop I picked up at target. Someone came out to feed him, and he went over and started eating. I unloaded everything from my truck, and suddenly became a very interesting person! He left his food to come check out what I was doing, then had to check out all the toys. I got him a couple scoops of grain and set it out, he didn't want it.
At this point in time we had a crowsd. Six different people came over to tell me how cool it was that he was so connected to me, and how much fun it looked like he was having with the toys. I stepped back into his pen and he walked right over. I thought: Hmmm I wonder; and took the dewormer I had in my pocket out, unscrewed the cap, stuck the tip in his mouth and shot all the nastiness into his mouth. He took it all stayed around long enough to get a good scratch, and then went back to the toys for another ten minutes before going back to his food. Gosh I wonder how much damage he'll do to those toys over night!
What could've been a very bad and negative day turned into a really great one!
I have the farrier coming out in the morning, wish me luck!!!
But I'll get to that part later ;)
Suffice to say last week was just a no-go for George and I. I wanted so darn badly for him to just "accept the stupid stick" that I pushed him over the edge.
No suprise that when I got to the barn this morning he wanted NOTHING to do with me. He saw me, walked over, got a carrot, then walked away. *frowny face*
I noticed that his pen didn't look like it had been clean, at least since I was last out, when it also looked like it hadn't been cleaned. *ANGRY FACE*, so I decided to do it myself. I went and grabbed a poo-fork and went to work. I stuffed my pockets full of carrots and decided that if he wanted to be with me then I'd give him some incentive. I went to work, picking up poo with purpose! It felt great, the last time I picked up horse poo had to be about three years ago, and it's just theraputic. George sat in the shade and nibbled on the bushes through the fence.
But it didn't take long for him to get curious about the 15billion back and forth trips that I was taking. And since George is the kind of horse that poops on the way out the gate then spooks at the poop coming back in the gate, he just had to come check out what on Earth the crazy lady was doing with the poop. Soon he was following me all over! At first I decided that I would only give him a carrot if he got to stones to come up and touch the scary predator I had become, but then he just got so darn cute! I emptied my pockets and he stayed with me anyways. This went on for about an hour.
Finally I was done and went to go get the fantastic goodies I got at Lowes today. Aspen poles, a tarp, and cones...ok I went cone-happy, 3 sizes of cones. Also I hula hoop I picked up at target. Someone came out to feed him, and he went over and started eating. I unloaded everything from my truck, and suddenly became a very interesting person! He left his food to come check out what I was doing, then had to check out all the toys. I got him a couple scoops of grain and set it out, he didn't want it.
At this point in time we had a crowsd. Six different people came over to tell me how cool it was that he was so connected to me, and how much fun it looked like he was having with the toys. I stepped back into his pen and he walked right over. I thought: Hmmm I wonder; and took the dewormer I had in my pocket out, unscrewed the cap, stuck the tip in his mouth and shot all the nastiness into his mouth. He took it all stayed around long enough to get a good scratch, and then went back to the toys for another ten minutes before going back to his food. Gosh I wonder how much damage he'll do to those toys over night!
What could've been a very bad and negative day turned into a really great one!
I have the farrier coming out in the morning, wish me luck!!!
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Getting Physically Fit
http://toughmudder.com/
I've decided to sign up for the tough mudder competition. It's a 12 mile obstacle course and it's rough! But all the proceeds go to the Wounded Warrior Project. My goal is to train and be able to finish the course! Thinking about going to the one in Colorado, it would be a fun road trip. But there is also one in California if I am home by then, and one in Texas if I'm not!
BTW: Found out that I have lost 5% of my body fat in a month! Looks like I get to keep my job for another month, yay! I haven't been starving myself or taking pills or supplements, just been eating right, drinking TONS of water and working my butt off, literally! I get my butt handed to me by a former Drill SGT for an hour and half each day, and it rocks! Still, time to bump it up!
I've decided to sign up for the tough mudder competition. It's a 12 mile obstacle course and it's rough! But all the proceeds go to the Wounded Warrior Project. My goal is to train and be able to finish the course! Thinking about going to the one in Colorado, it would be a fun road trip. But there is also one in California if I am home by then, and one in Texas if I'm not!
BTW: Found out that I have lost 5% of my body fat in a month! Looks like I get to keep my job for another month, yay! I haven't been starving myself or taking pills or supplements, just been eating right, drinking TONS of water and working my butt off, literally! I get my butt handed to me by a former Drill SGT for an hour and half each day, and it rocks! Still, time to bump it up!
Rodeo George
It's taken me what feels like forever to sit down and write about Sunday! I think I knew before I ever got to the barn that we wouldn't progress through the games, hopefully just our relationship. I am truly enamored with this guy!
FYI at this point in time I'd like to notify you that there are VIDEOS at the bottom of this post.
The first thing I did was grab my brushes and go hunt for itchy spots. I entered his paddock after he gave me permission, set down my totebag of brushes, which promptly got destroyed, and just groomed him for about an hour. I was suprised that such a slick coat could shed out so much! I just kept scratching him until I thoroughly got all of his itchy spots, he even let me into Zone 5, and positioned himself so I was getting just the right spot. Needless to say this ended with me covered in hair and a very handsome looking George!
The a brilliant, very gunsil-ish idea hit me. The whole time we spent together he really wasn't "with me". His head kept going up and he had to look at the lions 5 miles away. I thought it might be a good idea to let him into the round pen to get some steam out. We made out way, slowly but surely, around the paddocks and through the barn (REALLY SCARY), and out to the roundpen. Once inside, he went buckwild! Rodeo George! I sat outside and took some video and pictures, snickered and sighed to myself, and contemplated: Holy Cow! What am I going to do???
He ran and ran until the tops of his haunches were sweating. He rolled maybe 20 times, not in a colic way but in a "get down off the adrenaline way", but would end a good roll with a good launch into the air followed by a sprint! It occurred to me too late that probably every experience he's had in a round pen hasn't been a positive one, but I decided to let him get it out, and if we ever go back in there it will involve lots of left-brained time and lots of cookies!
I noticed also that while before I believed that George was a fantastic mover, I truly had no idea. He has athleticism coming out his ears! Also, he hasn't taken one unsound step since I've brought him to his new home, so I didn't feel to bad about my following decision:
I moved George! I moved him out of the barn stall w/attached paddock, which was already the biggest enlosure he's been kept in during his entire 4 years...too a MASSIVE pasture! He has it all to himself and it doesn't cost me any more per month! And it has some trees lining one edge so he has shade. It has pretty safe fencing, a large barrel for water, and it's just TOPS! Also, it's big enough that we can play in there without worring about other riders, I'm going to try to find cones, barrels, and a tarp...along with "real" horse toys for him to play with. He has a large palominoqh/draft in the pasture next to his. Yellow won't let me come near him, unless I have grain, which I don't mind giving him because no one else pays attention to him, but then it's only in Zone 1 and with caution. George and Yellow get along great, I'm ashamed to say it was my boy that was making all the mare squeals at their first meating. And I was worried because George inspired him to run about, and Yellow has a hairline crack up the entirety of one of his front hooves, which also looking like he has laminitis, and I really don't want him getting more hurt! I told the barn owner, and she said she'd try to contact the person who seems him from time to time, but he really doesn't have an owner right now. SIGH!
Anyways, it only took George about 10 minutes to settle into his new pen, and I think he likes it. It's about 30 times bigger than anything he's ever roamed (other than the races at the track). I think he has every chance of hurting himself in a smaller enclosure as he does in a big one, and for a horse with so much go and so much energy, it just isn't fair to keep him penned up tight.
A lady was watching us for a bit and asked me if I wanted her OTTB, Sonny. She was asking an exorbitant amount, but said she would give him to me, or to someone else that would give him a stellar home. He was gorgeous, much like George but with a dished face, and he's a thousands of dollars worth of "professional" training. He really was a doll, if George wasn't an world-consuming horse for me right now, and if I had more time away from work, then I wouldn't said yes! It's not the first time I've turned away a horse with limitless potential. There was the fresian that was dressage trained with no ground manners, the western pleasure champ that was scared of air. I wish I had the money to keep all the horses people wanted to give me! Still, I am insurmountably happy with George. He is truly the challenge I wanted and the partner I need.
FYI at this point in time I'd like to notify you that there are VIDEOS at the bottom of this post.
The first thing I did was grab my brushes and go hunt for itchy spots. I entered his paddock after he gave me permission, set down my totebag of brushes, which promptly got destroyed, and just groomed him for about an hour. I was suprised that such a slick coat could shed out so much! I just kept scratching him until I thoroughly got all of his itchy spots, he even let me into Zone 5, and positioned himself so I was getting just the right spot. Needless to say this ended with me covered in hair and a very handsome looking George!
The a brilliant, very gunsil-ish idea hit me. The whole time we spent together he really wasn't "with me". His head kept going up and he had to look at the lions 5 miles away. I thought it might be a good idea to let him into the round pen to get some steam out. We made out way, slowly but surely, around the paddocks and through the barn (REALLY SCARY), and out to the roundpen. Once inside, he went buckwild! Rodeo George! I sat outside and took some video and pictures, snickered and sighed to myself, and contemplated: Holy Cow! What am I going to do???
Destroying my grooming tote: Yum!
Getting ready to roll!
He ran and ran until the tops of his haunches were sweating. He rolled maybe 20 times, not in a colic way but in a "get down off the adrenaline way", but would end a good roll with a good launch into the air followed by a sprint! It occurred to me too late that probably every experience he's had in a round pen hasn't been a positive one, but I decided to let him get it out, and if we ever go back in there it will involve lots of left-brained time and lots of cookies!
I noticed also that while before I believed that George was a fantastic mover, I truly had no idea. He has athleticism coming out his ears! Also, he hasn't taken one unsound step since I've brought him to his new home, so I didn't feel to bad about my following decision:
I moved George! I moved him out of the barn stall w/attached paddock, which was already the biggest enlosure he's been kept in during his entire 4 years...too a MASSIVE pasture! He has it all to himself and it doesn't cost me any more per month! And it has some trees lining one edge so he has shade. It has pretty safe fencing, a large barrel for water, and it's just TOPS! Also, it's big enough that we can play in there without worring about other riders, I'm going to try to find cones, barrels, and a tarp...along with "real" horse toys for him to play with. He has a large palominoqh/draft in the pasture next to his. Yellow won't let me come near him, unless I have grain, which I don't mind giving him because no one else pays attention to him, but then it's only in Zone 1 and with caution. George and Yellow get along great, I'm ashamed to say it was my boy that was making all the mare squeals at their first meating. And I was worried because George inspired him to run about, and Yellow has a hairline crack up the entirety of one of his front hooves, which also looking like he has laminitis, and I really don't want him getting more hurt! I told the barn owner, and she said she'd try to contact the person who seems him from time to time, but he really doesn't have an owner right now. SIGH!
Anyways, it only took George about 10 minutes to settle into his new pen, and I think he likes it. It's about 30 times bigger than anything he's ever roamed (other than the races at the track). I think he has every chance of hurting himself in a smaller enclosure as he does in a big one, and for a horse with so much go and so much energy, it just isn't fair to keep him penned up tight.
Meeting his new neighbor...
Actually eating his grain! Maybe because I soaked it with tons and tons of water!
Pic of George and about half of his new paddock.
A lady was watching us for a bit and asked me if I wanted her OTTB, Sonny. She was asking an exorbitant amount, but said she would give him to me, or to someone else that would give him a stellar home. He was gorgeous, much like George but with a dished face, and he's a thousands of dollars worth of "professional" training. He really was a doll, if George wasn't an world-consuming horse for me right now, and if I had more time away from work, then I wouldn't said yes! It's not the first time I've turned away a horse with limitless potential. There was the fresian that was dressage trained with no ground manners, the western pleasure champ that was scared of air. I wish I had the money to keep all the horses people wanted to give me! Still, I am insurmountably happy with George. He is truly the challenge I wanted and the partner I need.
Here's the videos! Warning, you may want to turn down the sound!
The Second one is my favorite! Can someone tell me how I'm supposed to ride this horse??? HEHE
OMG: Oh My George!
Saturday, March 12, 2011
Learning to BBQ
My husband is teaching my to barbeque. We bought a little habchi today, then he had to go back to the store because we had forgot lighter fluid and charcoal.
I made the decision to not go out to the barn today. Don't get me wrong, there is nothing that I wanted more than some savvy horse time. But George is not Stewie; he's not going to let me simply cry into his neck and rest his forehead against my tummy until I feel better. He is also not my husband.
I've had one heck of a week, just one thing going wrong after another...after another, after another. This on top of months of my husband being in and out of the field, pulling long duties, getting up before light and coming home long after dark. I lost all of my emotional fitness, finally, yesterday. I sat and had a nice talk with our Chaplain, and by nice talk I mean me bawling like a baby and he reassuring me that I am not worthless, even though I may feel that way. We prayed together and he told me that at a time like this, it is best to surround yourself with people that you love, so that was my goal for today.
We went to breakfast together this morning, then went to the store together, watched movies together, cleaned the house together. Now I'm learning to BBQ. Yummmm...lamb.
The moral of today's story is to take time to take care of yourself. My husband is my rock, my light when it is dark. I am terrified of his deployment in a few months, as we haven't spent more tha a few weeks away from each other since we met. But simply spending time with him has cured my anxiety and my restlessness. I am absolutely itching to get out to the barn tomorrow. But today, I'm learning how to BBQ!
I made the decision to not go out to the barn today. Don't get me wrong, there is nothing that I wanted more than some savvy horse time. But George is not Stewie; he's not going to let me simply cry into his neck and rest his forehead against my tummy until I feel better. He is also not my husband.
I've had one heck of a week, just one thing going wrong after another...after another, after another. This on top of months of my husband being in and out of the field, pulling long duties, getting up before light and coming home long after dark. I lost all of my emotional fitness, finally, yesterday. I sat and had a nice talk with our Chaplain, and by nice talk I mean me bawling like a baby and he reassuring me that I am not worthless, even though I may feel that way. We prayed together and he told me that at a time like this, it is best to surround yourself with people that you love, so that was my goal for today.
We went to breakfast together this morning, then went to the store together, watched movies together, cleaned the house together. Now I'm learning to BBQ. Yummmm...lamb.
The moral of today's story is to take time to take care of yourself. My husband is my rock, my light when it is dark. I am terrified of his deployment in a few months, as we haven't spent more tha a few weeks away from each other since we met. But simply spending time with him has cured my anxiety and my restlessness. I am absolutely itching to get out to the barn tomorrow. But today, I'm learning how to BBQ!
Sunday, March 6, 2011
Don't Know Where to Start...*GUSH*
I really don't...I just had the...most....amazing....time today! I have the GREATEST HORSE EVER!
Today started when I walked into George's paddock, left the door wide open. He walked up to me let me scratch him on his left side, then I went to his right side, and he played approach and retreat with me. He really wasn't all that confident with me on that side in Zone 3/4, but he was really itchy! He backed up until he was confortable, then moved forwards again, then moved back, then forwards, inching his way until he was okay with me scratching him while standing next to his hip. So cute!
I went and grabbed the halter, 22 foot line and my carrot stick. He waited at the open door for me to come back and tilted his nose and bent his neck towards me for me to put the halter on. Then we walked calmly and cooly out to the arena. (In case at this point if you are wondering, there is a 30 foot round pen, but the walls are 7 feet tall and plywood and I don't wanna go in!). Now, my game plan for the day was to play all 7 games, but we didn't quite get there.
When we got to the arena, someone had taken two barrels, layed them on their sides, and layed some poles over and around them to make cavelletis(sp?) and jumps. We stopped about 30 feet away because he just could not move his feet any closer to them! We played approach and retreat until we were at about 22 feet, then I went and sat on one of the barrels. Well, if mom is over there, then it can't hurt me! He walked right up and started scratching himself on the barrel. He gummed the poles, walked over the ones on the ground. I have to constantly remind myself that nearly everything is a new experience for him. The only places he's ever been in his life are his small stall/paddock, the trainers, the track, and back to his stall for recoup. One the bright side, he really appears to be loving learning about new things.
We played lots and lots of friendly, I can now swing the carrot stick and string over my head without an explosion, can toss it over his back rub him all over, and he seems to be enjoying it.
Then we played the porcupine game. Very easy to move the head, move the back, move backwards, front end took some effort. Same with the driving game. Phase 4 to move the forequarters, Phase 2 for the hind. I'm doing my best to be absolutely patient with him, reminding myself that no one has ever taught him to engage witha person, or release from pressure of any kind. Still, he has never offered to kick me. We started fine tuning our yo-yo game, but he has to be paying attention to me for a Phase 1 Yo-Yo, and it's hard to catch his attention! Sometimes, especially when he is right brain I've noticed, I have to do something outrageous or Phase 4 to get his attention, then he sees me and will do it Phase 1. Hmmm.
At this point in time, I see a group of people headed to the arena. Two people riding, three people on the ground, and six dogs. I moved over to the side of the arena, and we just sat and waited. I wanted to see if he could be calm with the excitement, and if not then we could go elsewhere. When they approached I told them if we were making them uncomfortable, just let us know. They said no, not a problem! So I just sat and watched while George rooted through the sand like a piggie looking for foodstuffs.
One of the riders was on a beautiful Morgan and was trying to do dressage with him. The other lady was on an arab and just working on bending manuevers. I had met both these gals last week whilst George was the kite and my 22-line the string. He was a perfect gentleman today though. At one point in time, the gal riding the Morgan asked for a canter, which the horse was not ready for. He was tossing his head around at the trot; but, when she asked for the canter he became scared, frustrated and rushed. He took off. George was about 6 feet from me and I turned to him contemplating if there should or shouldn't be more space between him and I at that point in time. He looked at me, looked at the horse, looked at me, looked at the horse, looked at me. *paw* *paw* lay down, roll* Stood up, looked at me, looked at the horse, repeat.
After she had her horse under control, Morgangirl decided to end her session and go get a different horse. With her left two people and the dogs. Not before one of the dogs went for George's nose. He lept straight up in the air and mid air, I popped him with the leadsnap, and he hit the ground, looked at me, lowered his head and relaxed. I wasn't happy that his first experience with dogs involved one trying to bite his nose, but I'm glad because it could've been SOOO much worse.
The gal riding the Arab came up to me and we started talking, she was telling me how impressed she was the George was that calm with the Morgan taking off and what a difference he's made in a week! While we were chatting about our horses and our background, George stepped onto/over the 22-foot rope and before I could suck in a breath the line was wrapped around three of his legs and he was freaking out. I could see he was about to take off and hurt himself, so I ran towards him with purpose, and he responded by backing up with purpose. We backed up about 50 feet before he started to think. I stopped, he stopped, lowered his head, blew and licked his lips. I unwrapped his rope from his legs, then walked back over to my conversation, said sorry for the interruption, and continued the convo while playing friendly with the rope around his legs, leading by the legs and backing by them. Then we all decided to call it a day, she smiled at me and said, "You're very lucky to have a horse like that. I can tell just by looking at him what a relationship you have, he just wants so badly to make you happy." Holy Jeepers it took me two years to get a compliment like that with my last horse!
All-in-all, It was a wonderful day. I truly fall more in love with George every time I play with him. He's just so cool! I'm so bummed to have to work all week and already can't wait until next weekend. I just adore him and I can't wait to see where our next play session will lead. I'd like to think that Parelli saying, "If your horse is recreation for you, can you be recreation for your horse?" rings true here. George deffinetly seems to be having a good time too. I would, however, like to move him out to a larger paddock, he needs more room to move! The one he is in now is much bigger than his old one, but...I don't know it's just not enough!
*Interesting Note for Today* George would NOT eat unless I was near him. I sat with him to finish his breakfast, he wouldn't eat his grain until I was there. He took one apple slice from me (and I brought two bags full!) and that was that. I hope that he eats while I'm at work this week! I'm not really sure what this means though...
Today started when I walked into George's paddock, left the door wide open. He walked up to me let me scratch him on his left side, then I went to his right side, and he played approach and retreat with me. He really wasn't all that confident with me on that side in Zone 3/4, but he was really itchy! He backed up until he was confortable, then moved forwards again, then moved back, then forwards, inching his way until he was okay with me scratching him while standing next to his hip. So cute!
I went and grabbed the halter, 22 foot line and my carrot stick. He waited at the open door for me to come back and tilted his nose and bent his neck towards me for me to put the halter on. Then we walked calmly and cooly out to the arena. (In case at this point if you are wondering, there is a 30 foot round pen, but the walls are 7 feet tall and plywood and I don't wanna go in!). Now, my game plan for the day was to play all 7 games, but we didn't quite get there.
When we got to the arena, someone had taken two barrels, layed them on their sides, and layed some poles over and around them to make cavelletis(sp?) and jumps. We stopped about 30 feet away because he just could not move his feet any closer to them! We played approach and retreat until we were at about 22 feet, then I went and sat on one of the barrels. Well, if mom is over there, then it can't hurt me! He walked right up and started scratching himself on the barrel. He gummed the poles, walked over the ones on the ground. I have to constantly remind myself that nearly everything is a new experience for him. The only places he's ever been in his life are his small stall/paddock, the trainers, the track, and back to his stall for recoup. One the bright side, he really appears to be loving learning about new things.
Squeezing between the scary jump and the pole.
Scratching himself on the once-scary jump.
Contemplating the easiest way to suck down his apple slice.
Hmmmm....How Interesting Moment: When squeezing over poles, the first three feet are fine, but the right hind always gets stuck!
We played lots and lots of friendly, I can now swing the carrot stick and string over my head without an explosion, can toss it over his back rub him all over, and he seems to be enjoying it.
Then we played the porcupine game. Very easy to move the head, move the back, move backwards, front end took some effort. Same with the driving game. Phase 4 to move the forequarters, Phase 2 for the hind. I'm doing my best to be absolutely patient with him, reminding myself that no one has ever taught him to engage witha person, or release from pressure of any kind. Still, he has never offered to kick me. We started fine tuning our yo-yo game, but he has to be paying attention to me for a Phase 1 Yo-Yo, and it's hard to catch his attention! Sometimes, especially when he is right brain I've noticed, I have to do something outrageous or Phase 4 to get his attention, then he sees me and will do it Phase 1. Hmmm.
At this point in time, I see a group of people headed to the arena. Two people riding, three people on the ground, and six dogs. I moved over to the side of the arena, and we just sat and waited. I wanted to see if he could be calm with the excitement, and if not then we could go elsewhere. When they approached I told them if we were making them uncomfortable, just let us know. They said no, not a problem! So I just sat and watched while George rooted through the sand like a piggie looking for foodstuffs.
One of the riders was on a beautiful Morgan and was trying to do dressage with him. The other lady was on an arab and just working on bending manuevers. I had met both these gals last week whilst George was the kite and my 22-line the string. He was a perfect gentleman today though. At one point in time, the gal riding the Morgan asked for a canter, which the horse was not ready for. He was tossing his head around at the trot; but, when she asked for the canter he became scared, frustrated and rushed. He took off. George was about 6 feet from me and I turned to him contemplating if there should or shouldn't be more space between him and I at that point in time. He looked at me, looked at the horse, looked at me, looked at the horse, looked at me. *paw* *paw* lay down, roll* Stood up, looked at me, looked at the horse, repeat.
Cue to me grinning like an idiot!
:) :) :)
After she had her horse under control, Morgangirl decided to end her session and go get a different horse. With her left two people and the dogs. Not before one of the dogs went for George's nose. He lept straight up in the air and mid air, I popped him with the leadsnap, and he hit the ground, looked at me, lowered his head and relaxed. I wasn't happy that his first experience with dogs involved one trying to bite his nose, but I'm glad because it could've been SOOO much worse.
The gal riding the Arab came up to me and we started talking, she was telling me how impressed she was the George was that calm with the Morgan taking off and what a difference he's made in a week! While we were chatting about our horses and our background, George stepped onto/over the 22-foot rope and before I could suck in a breath the line was wrapped around three of his legs and he was freaking out. I could see he was about to take off and hurt himself, so I ran towards him with purpose, and he responded by backing up with purpose. We backed up about 50 feet before he started to think. I stopped, he stopped, lowered his head, blew and licked his lips. I unwrapped his rope from his legs, then walked back over to my conversation, said sorry for the interruption, and continued the convo while playing friendly with the rope around his legs, leading by the legs and backing by them. Then we all decided to call it a day, she smiled at me and said, "You're very lucky to have a horse like that. I can tell just by looking at him what a relationship you have, he just wants so badly to make you happy." Holy Jeepers it took me two years to get a compliment like that with my last horse!
All-in-all, It was a wonderful day. I truly fall more in love with George every time I play with him. He's just so cool! I'm so bummed to have to work all week and already can't wait until next weekend. I just adore him and I can't wait to see where our next play session will lead. I'd like to think that Parelli saying, "If your horse is recreation for you, can you be recreation for your horse?" rings true here. George deffinetly seems to be having a good time too. I would, however, like to move him out to a larger paddock, he needs more room to move! The one he is in now is much bigger than his old one, but...I don't know it's just not enough!
*Interesting Note for Today* George would NOT eat unless I was near him. I sat with him to finish his breakfast, he wouldn't eat his grain until I was there. He took one apple slice from me (and I brought two bags full!) and that was that. I hope that he eats while I'm at work this week! I'm not really sure what this means though...
I'm just going to through this one out there: I have decided I will not be riding George until we can do w/t/c transitions at the circling game just by using my energy. If he can't listen to my body on the ground there is no way he will pay attention to it in the saddle! This may seem extreme to some people but given George's background I think it's more than fair. I also don't think it will take more than a month from now...but I'll put it on my "eventually" list.
Saturday, March 5, 2011
Flip the Switch
I'm Back! Last night my hubby and I watched the old Steven Spielburg cartoon, "We're Back". It was wonderful! I try not to take life too seriously, and a good old school cartoon always brings me back down to Earth after a hard week. Well today I fell back into my old groove!
It was like someone flipped a switch in my head and I was able to just be savvy! And talk about playing with the horse that shows up! George was a different horse than I've ever seen him be!
When I walked up to his stall, he nickered to me softly, walked right up to me when I opened the door and stuffed his face into the halter as soon as I undid the knot. Hmmm...maybe I did something right last week?
I let him out of his stall, once again on the 22-foot line, and just sat there while he checked everything out, then we slowly but surely made out way to the arena, playing "touch it" with everything we could find. At the half-way point we hit a HUGE threshold, and he went flying backwards at the speed of light. Then I asked him forward, and he freaked and ran backwards again. I let this happen two more times until it clicked and I backed him farther than he wanted to go back, and it made him curious about going forwards. And *eventually* he walked calmly by. He let me know what he wanted to check out and was more than happy to go look and touch the things I thought would be fun to touch.
Once in the arena, I offered the yummy leather end of the carrot stick to George and he hungrily tried to ingest it. "Suddenly", the carrot stick was no longer scary. He let me rub him with it all over and toss the string over his back in a rythmic motion. Just last week, I couldn't get within 20 feet of him with a swinging string! I tried to take a few pictures of George with the carrot stick in his mouth, with him swinging it side to side, then holding it like a dog holds a stick he just caught, with him chewing on the savvy string or grabbing the rope and leading himself; but every time my phone came out of my pocket to snap a picture, it became far more interesting. How do I solve this curiousity? Well, I think it's going to involve a phone cover and a leash to attach it to. If he can't put his mouth on it then he is just more determined to swallow it!
Today George was sweet and loving. He planted all four feet, lowered his head, took a deep breath and just relaxed. It was so wonderful to spend undemanding time with him without feeling like I might die! Not once did he invade my space, but several times he asked to come in and I let him get some good scratches! He let me past Zone 1 to Zone 2, 3, and 4 on his left side without thinking, and then on the right side after I asked permission.
So all in all we played the friendly game and the porcupine game, and had lots of fun just being together! I was very tempted to hop on his back and ride around bareback and in the halter, that's what an amazing frame of mind he was in today, but I decided to quit while I was ahead. I'm not about to push him, and it's really only the third time we've played. On the way back to his paddock, some horses in turnouts start rip-tearing around their pasture just as we were walking by and whereas last week one of these horses farting would've caused an all-out gallop, he simply stepped up his walk to a trot for a few steps, then looked at me and went right back to the walk. Also, the entire way back to the paddock from the arena, I drove him from Zone 3, which was beautiful because last week and even when we started today he wasn't confident with me in any zone other than Zone 1 and absolutely was not confident walking anywhere with me in any zone!
Oooh, and also, after I put him away he rolled twice while I stood by and watched! Then I went and got him some grain, and when I came back he backed up for me and waiting until I gave him permission to come eat the grain at my feet. Last week he couldn't bring himself to eat with me anywhere near him!
I can't wait to go see him tomorrow! I hope today was a good omen for things to come!
Here's a few pics from today!
Checking out the barrels in the arena
I just wanted to touch on the word *eventually*. I use it in every context, probably even those it wasn't meant for. Sarah Konst brought the fluid motion of eventually to my mind. Similar to Pat Parelli's saying, "I've never seen it take longer than two days." I just make myself an "Eventually List". I know whatever it is, it will happen eventually, so I am not going to push it. Today, (Hmmm, day two, how interesting) we moved through thresholds with savvy and got friendly with the carrot stick and string!
It was like someone flipped a switch in my head and I was able to just be savvy! And talk about playing with the horse that shows up! George was a different horse than I've ever seen him be!
When I walked up to his stall, he nickered to me softly, walked right up to me when I opened the door and stuffed his face into the halter as soon as I undid the knot. Hmmm...maybe I did something right last week?
I let him out of his stall, once again on the 22-foot line, and just sat there while he checked everything out, then we slowly but surely made out way to the arena, playing "touch it" with everything we could find. At the half-way point we hit a HUGE threshold, and he went flying backwards at the speed of light. Then I asked him forward, and he freaked and ran backwards again. I let this happen two more times until it clicked and I backed him farther than he wanted to go back, and it made him curious about going forwards. And *eventually* he walked calmly by. He let me know what he wanted to check out and was more than happy to go look and touch the things I thought would be fun to touch.
Once in the arena, I offered the yummy leather end of the carrot stick to George and he hungrily tried to ingest it. "Suddenly", the carrot stick was no longer scary. He let me rub him with it all over and toss the string over his back in a rythmic motion. Just last week, I couldn't get within 20 feet of him with a swinging string! I tried to take a few pictures of George with the carrot stick in his mouth, with him swinging it side to side, then holding it like a dog holds a stick he just caught, with him chewing on the savvy string or grabbing the rope and leading himself; but every time my phone came out of my pocket to snap a picture, it became far more interesting. How do I solve this curiousity? Well, I think it's going to involve a phone cover and a leash to attach it to. If he can't put his mouth on it then he is just more determined to swallow it!
Today George was sweet and loving. He planted all four feet, lowered his head, took a deep breath and just relaxed. It was so wonderful to spend undemanding time with him without feeling like I might die! Not once did he invade my space, but several times he asked to come in and I let him get some good scratches! He let me past Zone 1 to Zone 2, 3, and 4 on his left side without thinking, and then on the right side after I asked permission.
So all in all we played the friendly game and the porcupine game, and had lots of fun just being together! I was very tempted to hop on his back and ride around bareback and in the halter, that's what an amazing frame of mind he was in today, but I decided to quit while I was ahead. I'm not about to push him, and it's really only the third time we've played. On the way back to his paddock, some horses in turnouts start rip-tearing around their pasture just as we were walking by and whereas last week one of these horses farting would've caused an all-out gallop, he simply stepped up his walk to a trot for a few steps, then looked at me and went right back to the walk. Also, the entire way back to the paddock from the arena, I drove him from Zone 3, which was beautiful because last week and even when we started today he wasn't confident with me in any zone other than Zone 1 and absolutely was not confident walking anywhere with me in any zone!
Oooh, and also, after I put him away he rolled twice while I stood by and watched! Then I went and got him some grain, and when I came back he backed up for me and waiting until I gave him permission to come eat the grain at my feet. Last week he couldn't bring himself to eat with me anywhere near him!
I can't wait to go see him tomorrow! I hope today was a good omen for things to come!
Here's a few pics from today!
On the way out to the arena
Hehe, the scary carrot stick is touching him! no scary anymore!
checking out my boots, I was sitting on the barrel
I just wanted to touch on the word *eventually*. I use it in every context, probably even those it wasn't meant for. Sarah Konst brought the fluid motion of eventually to my mind. Similar to Pat Parelli's saying, "I've never seen it take longer than two days." I just make myself an "Eventually List". I know whatever it is, it will happen eventually, so I am not going to push it. Today, (Hmmm, day two, how interesting) we moved through thresholds with savvy and got friendly with the carrot stick and string!
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