Just a titch lazy this weekend. One day soon I will vacuum the SUV. Coal is filled with dirt, horse hair and dog hair. Probably a few strands of mine also ;)
Went for a trail ride with P and Corey Friday night. Oh, what a lovely evening. It was cool enough that the bugs weren't too bad. The creek has started to turn that bright, almost luminous green. Wyatt was very happy to be out on trail. His little happy body was running ahead and coming back to get us moving faster. I had promised him trail rides with Pixie at the breeders waiting to whelp the pups and I am keeping my end of the deal. We have just done a few short ones down the lane and then around the big pasture. He likes the wood trails best.
Josie has to learn not to eat as we are walking. I don't mind the snatching and keeping moving but trying to stop and put her head down to enjoy nature's buffet is not tolerated. She didn't like my corrections and soon was just snatching at morsels that were chest and nose high. I must say she is a fast learner but she is also a tester so this lesson will probably be ongoing. Any slack in my vigilance and she would try.
We scared up a few herons but nobody was threatened by them. I still have yet to see the eagles.
Saturday morning, Wyatt was up with the sun - lucky me. I started out real ambitious and then trickled to a stop around 11:00. Little lunchy and a little nappy and I was good to go to the barn.
I worked Moe first. Boy is he ever herd bound. Naughty, naughty in the cross ties. Being he isn't my horse I hesitate to do what I would do if he were mine. I try the nicey, nice and rub on him when he stands still and then get my ear blasted out with a shrill neigh.
I brought him in to brush, clean feet and apply bug spray. He was agitated and didn’t want to stand still. He would push to the end of the cross ties. He did two nervous poops before I was finished. He neighed a lot for his buddies. I talked softly to him and rubbed his neck and forehead in efforts to relax him but he remained on edge. I worked him in the round pen again. At first I let him run around on his own. He makes me a bit nervous as he presses against the round pen itself. Okay, time to catch you and put you to work. Someone had removed the lunge whip – darn it - but he was forward and didn’t need it. Just the tail end of the lunge line lifted encouraged him to move away and forward to start the lunging circle.
For as distracted as he was he is listening pretty well. He has responded very well to the workout I have decided he needs. After cantering and trotting and transitions back and forth to get him focused one me, I have him take a walk break - what no QH western pleasure jog. I AM getting through.
I then took him to shower off the sweat and he rattled the cross ties or pressed forward into them and at one point was neighing and lifting his front feet almost six inches off the ground in a shallow rear. I tried being nice and just verbally saying hey in a rough voice. He was moving around a bit and pushed into me at one point and I put a fist into the middle of his rib cage as he no matter how he feels he doesn’t need to get in my space. Because he is a nervous nelly I haven’t wanted to be too firm with him as sometimes that can make that type be even worse. He immediately settled down (hmmm maybe I should have punched him earlier???) and we finished without further incident.
As I walked him back, he was anxious to return to his buddies so I repeatedly had him whoa and made high praise. He didn’t do any naughty stuff when I let him go this time. I AM the herd leader - ha, ha, ha . . .
Josie and I practiced our dressage in the indoor. My plans were to see how she went and to maybe go up to the updoor. We stayed inside. I am working on getting "contact" and find my old way works the best. Her mouth is healing nicely from cutting her bucky beaver tooth. I think that has also helped.
Sunday - work on trot poles. I had the indoor arena to myself. PERFECT! I set out four poles with 4 and a little bit spacing. We warmed up and I was a bit surprised when she bucked at the canter. It wasn't a big buck but it was a buck. I decided I had the saddle too far forward. After making the adjustment we were much more in tune and managed canter in both directions. After watching the one video I have of the De Nemethy Method (? spelling) and another by R. Pessoa, I had some ideas to try with Josie.
She was relaxed and forward through the poles as I posted the trot. I switched my leathers to jumping position and practiced two point. I went through the poles and we died as we went through. Darn it! Must practice more! We went through again with success.
We went and retrieved Wyatt from his SUV prison and walked around the property to cool off.
Mental note to self - make sure to keep the saddle in the correct position on the horse's back.
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