I've been slacking, and it shows. I've been taking it real easy lately, using the weather as my excuse. It's been rainy, so I've only gone to the barn to dust Gwen's feet with powder, and then used the mud as an excuse to go home. It's starting to show. Gwen's body condition has gone from decent to pretty sad (not in an under fed sort of a way, just a general lack of conditioning). She's RBI, so I *know* she's not exercising herself out there!
I feel bad about this. It's part of my job as her leader to make sure she is getting the best care possible, and physical fitness is important. She's not getting any younger, which is starting to hit home lately, as I watch her develop physical symptoms of age. I know that, if she were properly conditioned, she would look and feel a lot better. So, today I did a bit of reading on conditioning programs, and how best to condition a horse. Since Gwen and I don't do anything strenuous (we don't compete, for example) I'm not worried about getting her into top showhorse form. I just want her to have decent muscle mass and healthy stamina.
But how do I balance her physical need for exercise with her mental desire to stand still? Of course I could make her move, both on the ground and in the saddle, but that could result in the destruction of our relationship. It certainly won't help it. At this point, I think the best approach is going to be short bursts of intense physical activity (my idea of "intense physical activity" for Gwen is cantering 3-4 laps online, or once around the arena... probably not very intense for most?), followed by slow/low intensity activity or rest. Hopefully, this will fulfill both needs, physical and mental (physical to move, mental to not move). But, we'll see how it goes.
Of course, I plan to take things VERY slow. The last thing I want to do is injure Gwen physically, or push her too far mentally. We've been pretty connected, the last few times we played, so I'm not as worried about upsetting her, or pushing her past her threshholds, but I will definitely be looking out for her emotional well being first. Our relationship is more important than muscle tone!
Anyone reading this... any thoughts on other ways I can condition Gwen without upsetting her mentally?
Now, on to the second part... my Awesome Dream!
OMG I had the most amazing dream about a horse last night! I was at Fort Sam Houston riding stables, which is located on Fort Sam Houston military base. (I rode there for a year or two, when I first came to Texas, before I moved to my current barn). Anyways, I'm at Fort Sam stables, watching a girl about my age ride this absolutely beautiful bay mare around in the arena.
She's this gorgouse, leggy thoroughbred/cross looking mare, chocolate bay with a white star on her forehead *sigh* so pretty.
So I'm standing at the side rail, with the girl's mom next to me, watching her ride this horse around the arena. Suddenly, the horse spooks violently. The rider falls, and the mare bolts off at a gallop, broken reins flapping, and saddle missing (not sure how she lost the saddle... it's a dream after all!). While mom/everyone else goes to check on the rider, I manage to catch the horse. She's trembling and obviously hopped up on adrenaline, so I decide to play the "You better run!" game with her. (By now, the horse is wearing a halter and a lead rope... dream remember. But it's not a rope halter, just a traditional halter with a long nylon lead).
So I play the game with her, and she goes tearing around in a circle around me. I do my best to avoid things like cavaletti and cones, and eventually we're in a space where she can run and not trip. She goes barreling around this circle for two or three laps, and then slows down and comes in, trying to connect with me. I immediatly fall in love. I mean, this horse is BEAUTIFUL, and she's looking at me all calm and trusting and cute...!!
She's still tense, but not freaking out, so I walk her back over to mom and rider, who have both made it back to the arena fence by this point. Rider is fine, just a little spooked. I ask her if she's considered selling the mare. She says no, but she was thinking about it now. She looks at her mom, who says they can definitely discuss it. In the dream, I know that I know these people at least a little (probably met them at the barn before, talked, but we're not friends or anything.). I know them well enough to know the girl's been having problems with the mare, and it's not getting better. The mom asks for my phone number so we can hash out the details.
At this point in my dream, I go on this weird epic journey to look for a piece of paper, all the while leading this RBE mare around behind me, thru a barn that turns into a train... it gets weird. Anyways, I find a napkin, somehow get the horse stabled (at least, I'm not leading her anymore) and head back out to find mom/girl again.
I know the horse is going to be expensive (like, REALLY expensive, cause she's obviously well bred), but I've decided I can make it work by taking out a short term loan to pay for her (I'm not even sure you can do that, but hey... it's a dream). I make it back to the mom, and we start discussing price. Before I can actually by the horse, tho, I wake up (Aw man!)
I know that it would have worked out, tho, and I would have bought the mare. *Sigh*. It's one of those dreams that makes you sad when you wake up and realize it wasn't real. I am desperately in love with this dream horse, now. I've always wondered if I would like an RBE, and I think I have my answer, lol!!
She didn't have a name in the dream (or, at least, I never learned it) so I've decided to call her "Prophetic Dream" in the hopes that I find her someday. She's actually replanced my childhood dream horse, as my new dream horse! Yeah, I'm a kid at heart like that ;)
If only dreams were real!
J
Friday, July 19, 2013
Thursday, July 11, 2013
Best Day Ever!
Today, I had one of the absolute best days with Gwen! It started out pretty typical. It's so stinking hot that I don't bother bringing her tack out; I know I won't ride. So I went out to get Gwen, and as I was walking towards her, I thought about how I always approach her. I try to take my time, "meander" a little so she doesn't feel like I'm coming after her. I always approach, mindful of her reaction. If she gives me an eye and an ear (or both, or all four) I pause a little, smile, and say "Hi pretty girl!" If she keeps looking at me, or she drops her head to eat some more, I'll continue moving forward. If she gets tense, or starts to shift her weight like she wants to move away, I stop or back up, until she relaxes again. Once I'm near her, I'll rub on her for a few seconds until I feel like she's ready to come in. Today, I thought... "What if touching her is too much?" So today, I did everything I usually do except, when I was finally in her personal space, I didn't touch her. I just stood at her shoulder, facing the same way she was, and waited. She kept on munching, then picked her head up, sighed, and turned to look at me. I offered a horseman's handshake, and she responded in kind (which she usually doesn't do! Yay, progress!). And then a wonderful thing happened... I took a step back to find better footing (was standing in hay), and Gwen picked her head up and backed up with me. I thought it might just be a fluke, until I backed up again, and she followed me again. Then she turned, watched me, and followed me all the way back to the gate at liberty! She hasn't done that since last summer! It was a great sign that I am back on the right track with her.
Once we were in the arena, we did our usual thing of liberty grooming, and then a little play time at liberty, to see how she felt. All I really do is some friendly game, a little driving/porcupine, and some yo-yo. Usually it's at the yo-yo that Gwen decides she's free, and heads off for the gate. Today, however... I pointed as if to send her in a circle... and she actually went in a circle!! It was a really tight circle, but it was a circle! She was not stopping behind me, either, but continuing the shape until she was in front of me again. Whoo! I never thought we'd have liberty circles!
After a little more at liberty (including one really active "Yippee!" gallop-buck thing that had me in a fit of giggles... my little RBI being all extroverted!) we went on the 22' and played with circles and touch-it.
But by far, the best moment as at the end, when I crawled up bareback with just the lead (i.e. not tied as reins) and we went walking around the arena. Not that big a deal, until we stopped and I decided to try a back... and she did! I was getting a back up from her just by shifting my weight and lightly lifting the lead, no tension at all! I did it three times, just to make sure it wasn't a fluke, and then hopped off and called it a day. Whoohoo! I am so excited!
I can't wait until tomorrow :)
J
Once we were in the arena, we did our usual thing of liberty grooming, and then a little play time at liberty, to see how she felt. All I really do is some friendly game, a little driving/porcupine, and some yo-yo. Usually it's at the yo-yo that Gwen decides she's free, and heads off for the gate. Today, however... I pointed as if to send her in a circle... and she actually went in a circle!! It was a really tight circle, but it was a circle! She was not stopping behind me, either, but continuing the shape until she was in front of me again. Whoo! I never thought we'd have liberty circles!
After a little more at liberty (including one really active "Yippee!" gallop-buck thing that had me in a fit of giggles... my little RBI being all extroverted!) we went on the 22' and played with circles and touch-it.
But by far, the best moment as at the end, when I crawled up bareback with just the lead (i.e. not tied as reins) and we went walking around the arena. Not that big a deal, until we stopped and I decided to try a back... and she did! I was getting a back up from her just by shifting my weight and lightly lifting the lead, no tension at all! I did it three times, just to make sure it wasn't a fluke, and then hopped off and called it a day. Whoohoo! I am so excited!
I can't wait until tomorrow :)
J
Wednesday, July 3, 2013
Games, Feet, and Savvy Lessons
Quick update. Sorry, no pictures. It's late and I'm not really in the mood to go thru the motions of loading them onto the computer. Maybe tomorrow? Anyways...
Monday we had a not-so-great day together, and I blame it on myself. I was extremely distracted, and totally unable to meet Gwen's energy level. It had to do with the fact that I was not alone at the barn; the barn manager/riding instructor was there, along with a couple of visiting ex-barn rats (the kind that grew up, moved away, and were in town to pay a visit). She was getting them ready to go down the trails and even though I had the arena to myself, I was distracted by all the commotion of tacking up, etc. I am still self-conscious, and get very uncomfortable when I feel like I'm being watched as I play with Gwen. It's gotten a lot better, but Monday it just wasn't happening. I tried to push past it, but Gwen and I never really connected, and we probably didn't make any progress at all. But, I can happily say that we didn't move backwards.
Tuesday morning, Gwen had her shoes pulled off (Hallelujah!!). I've been dying to have them removed, but since I don't know how to do it myself... I had to wait. The barn manager did it for me, so I wouldn't have to pay the farrier (I swear, they charge for everything! Wasn't it enough to pay to have them put on?? Ah well). So when I got to the barn after work, Gwen was nice and barefoot again. Yay! I am thrilled with this... not so thrilled with the thrush infection going on in her feet. :/ Yeah. That was reason numero uno that I wanted her shoes and pads off; I just KNEW all that nasty weather was going to bring about some thrush. And since I'm a procrastinator, I don't have any thrush treatment yet (I know, I know... I'm a bad horse mama). It's on order, with rushed shipping. I've been meaning to order No Thrush since I first heard about it, but hadn't had a chance yet. Now, it's kind of a necessity...
Anyway. We played online again, as I don't really want to ride her until her feet are better, and our relationship improves again, but instead of staying in the arena, we went for a little walk. My game plan was to go down the trails with her online, but that didn't go so well when I saw how over grown the trails got. It became almost impossible for me to walk around thru all the foliage (and I hate bugs. I really hate bugs...) so we back tracked and took a walk up the road instead. It was good for her to get out of her comfort zone, and look at something new. She did very well, in that she stayed connected to me and responded when I asked her to do things. She never got super concerned, and we made it back alive (obviously) and then went to play in the arena. I blew her mind when I made her back thru the gate into the arena. She was looking at me all "Whaaa?! *back* up? But... it's a gate, we go forward... whaaaat???" As soon as she made it in and I turned to close the gate, there was lots of licking and chewing.
We played touch-it at the trot, which got a bit of frisky behaviour from her (Where did THAT come from? My little RBI acting extroverted, awww) and then settled down to practice our circling game. She's kinda not so good at maintaining gait/direction at the moment (maybe why we fail at follow the rail? hmm) so I played with changing direction every time she wanted to stop. I got lots of questions, and she made a real effort to connect with me. We quit when she made it a full circle without stopping.
Tomorrow I'd like to play more with circles, and possibly figure 8's.
J
Monday we had a not-so-great day together, and I blame it on myself. I was extremely distracted, and totally unable to meet Gwen's energy level. It had to do with the fact that I was not alone at the barn; the barn manager/riding instructor was there, along with a couple of visiting ex-barn rats (the kind that grew up, moved away, and were in town to pay a visit). She was getting them ready to go down the trails and even though I had the arena to myself, I was distracted by all the commotion of tacking up, etc. I am still self-conscious, and get very uncomfortable when I feel like I'm being watched as I play with Gwen. It's gotten a lot better, but Monday it just wasn't happening. I tried to push past it, but Gwen and I never really connected, and we probably didn't make any progress at all. But, I can happily say that we didn't move backwards.
Tuesday morning, Gwen had her shoes pulled off (Hallelujah!!). I've been dying to have them removed, but since I don't know how to do it myself... I had to wait. The barn manager did it for me, so I wouldn't have to pay the farrier (I swear, they charge for everything! Wasn't it enough to pay to have them put on?? Ah well). So when I got to the barn after work, Gwen was nice and barefoot again. Yay! I am thrilled with this... not so thrilled with the thrush infection going on in her feet. :/ Yeah. That was reason numero uno that I wanted her shoes and pads off; I just KNEW all that nasty weather was going to bring about some thrush. And since I'm a procrastinator, I don't have any thrush treatment yet (I know, I know... I'm a bad horse mama). It's on order, with rushed shipping. I've been meaning to order No Thrush since I first heard about it, but hadn't had a chance yet. Now, it's kind of a necessity...
Anyway. We played online again, as I don't really want to ride her until her feet are better, and our relationship improves again, but instead of staying in the arena, we went for a little walk. My game plan was to go down the trails with her online, but that didn't go so well when I saw how over grown the trails got. It became almost impossible for me to walk around thru all the foliage (and I hate bugs. I really hate bugs...) so we back tracked and took a walk up the road instead. It was good for her to get out of her comfort zone, and look at something new. She did very well, in that she stayed connected to me and responded when I asked her to do things. She never got super concerned, and we made it back alive (obviously) and then went to play in the arena. I blew her mind when I made her back thru the gate into the arena. She was looking at me all "Whaaa?! *back* up? But... it's a gate, we go forward... whaaaat???" As soon as she made it in and I turned to close the gate, there was lots of licking and chewing.
We played touch-it at the trot, which got a bit of frisky behaviour from her (Where did THAT come from? My little RBI acting extroverted, awww) and then settled down to practice our circling game. She's kinda not so good at maintaining gait/direction at the moment (maybe why we fail at follow the rail? hmm) so I played with changing direction every time she wanted to stop. I got lots of questions, and she made a real effort to connect with me. We quit when she made it a full circle without stopping.
Tomorrow I'd like to play more with circles, and possibly figure 8's.
J
Friday, June 28, 2013
Gwen's Hoof, Camping Trip, and Catching Up
So, I have a lot to summarize! First, let me talk about the horsey camping trip, which was three weeks ago now (Yeah, I'm a procrastinator). The trip was *awesome*! If you recall, I was worried that Gwen and I wouldn't make it, because of her hoof issue. To be honest, her foot probably would have prevented us from going, if just because the tissue was too soft to handle all the rocks. However... I came down to the barn the Thursday before, to check on her, and.. my horse had shoes on! O.O Not only did she have shoes, but she had pads, to protect her frog and soft tissue while it healed.
A quick call to the barn manager and I had the story; she'd paid for my horse to be shod, so that I could go on the camping trip. I was so overwhelmed with gratitude that I cried. I think I freaked her out a little, because she kept apologizing and asking if she'd offended me.
I prefer my horse to go barefoot, and if I owned Gwen outright, I would find a natural trimmer to work on her feet. But, since I don't get to make that call, she usually just goes barefoot with a "regular" farrier trim every six to eight weeks. Since she lives in a soft turn out, and we ride in a sand arena, there's no way her feet are prepared to handle all the rocks out at the camping area. The shoes kept her from being foot sore the whole trip.
That Friday, we had some rain in the morning which had us a bit worried, but by the time we got to the camp grounds (about two-three hours away) it was sunny and bright! The horses made it there find, and Gwen was an absolute gem. As soon as I got her off the trailer, we went exploring. I didn't want to just turn her out with the other horses; I wanted to play with her in this new environment and get a feel for what she might be like outside of our comfort zone. She did great! We did a lot of circle game in the field near the other horses. I wanted her to be close enough to see them, but not so close that she was "with" them. There was a small hill nearby, so we played the circle game up and down the hill, putting something new into our game. Then we did sideways along the fence line, and then squeeze game between me and the fence. Once she was calm and more interested in grazing than looking around, we took a break. I let her graze a bit as the sun set, and then turned her out.
The next day was our first trail ride, and she did fine. The whole group went, so I knew she wouldn't give me much trouble, since her whole heard was with her. Sunday, tho, I was a little saddle sore, and opted not to go with the group on their next trail ride. Gwen and I hung out back at the camp grounds, along with her old buddy Cool. I used the opportunity to play with her online again, away from Cool and away from her buddies. She was much more extroverted than usual, looking around and moving her feet, but she remained connected and responsive to me. There were some small wooden poles in the ground, that defined the "camp" area from the field, so we I took the opportunity to do figure 8's and try our hand at a weave. Awesome.
A little while later, another barn woman showed up, so I saddled up Gwen and we hit the trails together, just her and me (her on a donkey, me on Gwen). It was our first time going out "alone" and Gwen did surprisingly well! She was a bit concerned about leaving Cool, but behaved like a lady. She definitely wanted to go back to the turn out, but she didn't give me much attitude (just a lot of drifting and attempting to reverse direction). There was absolutely no up/down behaviour, or real naughty behaviour from her, and once she realized I was being persistent but calm, she settled down and was a real trooper! I was so proud of her!!!
We came back that Sunday evening... and the storm rolled in! I didn't make it to the barn for over a week thanks to rain storms nearly every night (Crazy lightning, pouring rain... it was nuts!). Last week, the barn was still pretty soggy, so I didn't do much. I rode this past Monday, but didn't get back until today...
Now for a change in conversation...
I've been feeling a little discouraged lately, but wasn't sure why. I just didn't feel like Gwen and I were progressing, but I didn't know what to do about it. I felt like she wanted absolutely nothing to do with me, and would just shut-down once we got into the arena. This was concerning, but I didn't know what to do about it except make her move around... It wasn't until I read Emily's blog about communication that I had a light bulb. We weren't progressing, because we weren't communicating! OMG! *face-palm* Duh! I was just bossing Gwen around, and I didn't even realize it. She was doing what I asked, but her responses were dull and "grump" because I was just being a dictator, instead of actually paying attention to what she was feeling. I wasn't getting any questions, because I wasn't waiting for them, and I wasn't encouraging them. Wow. I'd really been failing.
So I headed to the barn today with this new perspective, determined to turn things around. The first thing I did was take advantage of a deserted barnyard and empty arena, to groom Gwen at liberty. I got her into the arena and parked her in the shade, then took her halter off. I let her know that she was free to move, and then proceeded with my grooming routine. Being introverted, she didn't go anywhere, but I could tell she was thinking about it. Most of the time she was very closed off emotionally (her eyes where half lidded, her head was down and her ears were "floppy". It's her classic "I'm hiding in my shell" face). I mostly ignored it. I *really* sloooooowed down my grooming routine. I made sure I used my curry in very slow, gentle circles, and spent a good long time working from shoulder to rear, paying more attention to my horse than actually worrying about getting her clean. Since we would be working online, I wasn't concerned about getting all the dirt off; this was about slowing things down. I repeated the process with my stiff brush, concentrating more on moving slow, methodically and gently rather than getting her clean.
I didn't get much change from her, but I knew she was thinking about the fact that she was "free", because any time she moved her head to get a fly, or rub her face, she would lick and chew as soon as she was back to neutral, almost as if she were saying "Huh, I really am loose..."
Once her feet were picked and I had fly sprayed her, I reassessed then situation. I was waiting for a sign that she was ready to progress. When I didn't get it, I prolonged our grooming experience to include thoroughly combing/detangling her tail, then her mane, and finally braiding her mane into a running braid. By the time I was done with her mane, she was looking more alive, with more expression and paying more attention to the world around her. I decided we were ready to do something else. When I slipped her halter on, she had a tense moment. She wasn't ready to be online. I left her halter on, but I unsnapped the lead and made sure she was aware that she was loose again, even if she was haltered. We worked at "liberty" on some hind quarter yields, since that is the easiest thing for me to do with her when she is being a bit tense.
Once I had her moving away at just a suggestion, and coming to me willingly, I snapped her lead back on and we moved on to something else. My focus was "ask me a question", so everything I did was slow. We did more hindquarter yields, then shoulder yields. I made sure I made the lightest possible suggestion, and backed off the instant she even thought about moving. She wasn't very connected yet, but she was super responsive. I was finally getting TRUE forequarter yields, where her rear stayed planted and she was just moving her shoulders away. At the end, I barely touched her shoulder and she moved away. I dropped my hands instantly, she stopped, and we both waited. And waited. And waiiiiited. And then finally... Gwen let out a sigh and started licking and chewing. SUCCESS!! I knew we were ready to move on.
I was letting Gwen tell me what we needed to work on. It became clear almost instantly, that we needed to work on straightness. I'd been letting her get away with backing up "crooked" in the yo-yo game, rather than having her back up nice and straight. Since we'd just worked on our yielding, and she was being very responsive at just a look, we worked on being straight when backing up. We started slow, with little wiggles, and then moment she started getting crooked, I would yield her back to straightness, and try again. After a few attempts, she was going backwards nice and straight, giving me two ears, two eyes, and asking a question. Yay! Time for circles. My goal, again, was to keep everything slow, soft and simple. She'd ask a question, I'd point the direction I want to go, and only if she didn't start moving would I pick up my stick. I was really using a long phase one (pointing) before I would pick up my stick. Surprise, surprise, she started responding to the lightest phase!
We didn't have great circles, but I was OK with it. She was actually paying attention, asking me questions, and looking for suggestions. So even though she would stop behind me, I was happy; because those stops were clearly questions, rather than avoidance. I'd turn, she'd give me two ears, and I'd point her back in the direction I wanted. She even volunteered the trot! We stopped, and waited. And waited. And waiiiiited... and then I got another big sigh, and a lot of licking and chewing!
After that, we tried some sideways along the rail. But, she wasn't really getting it, and was starting to shut down again. I made sure to get one good step of sideways, and then abandoned that game in favor of something different. We played touch-it with the barrels, and she even volunteered to go OVER them. Wow.
Throughout the whole session, I did TONS of stopping and waiting, letting her process. We wouldn't move on until I got a sign of relaxation, even when it meant I stood for a good five minutes until she finally let out a sigh, shook, and then licked/chewed. I ended there. Since there was no one else around (and she would be confined the whole way) I removed her halter and walked her back to the turn-out at liberty.
On the whole, I'd say this was one of the most successful days we have had in a long time! I feel motivated, and I can't wait to get back out there and prove to Gwen that I can listen. I want her to enjoy our time together again, and I feel like I finally remember how to achieve that.
J
A quick call to the barn manager and I had the story; she'd paid for my horse to be shod, so that I could go on the camping trip. I was so overwhelmed with gratitude that I cried. I think I freaked her out a little, because she kept apologizing and asking if she'd offended me.
I prefer my horse to go barefoot, and if I owned Gwen outright, I would find a natural trimmer to work on her feet. But, since I don't get to make that call, she usually just goes barefoot with a "regular" farrier trim every six to eight weeks. Since she lives in a soft turn out, and we ride in a sand arena, there's no way her feet are prepared to handle all the rocks out at the camping area. The shoes kept her from being foot sore the whole trip.
That Friday, we had some rain in the morning which had us a bit worried, but by the time we got to the camp grounds (about two-three hours away) it was sunny and bright! The horses made it there find, and Gwen was an absolute gem. As soon as I got her off the trailer, we went exploring. I didn't want to just turn her out with the other horses; I wanted to play with her in this new environment and get a feel for what she might be like outside of our comfort zone. She did great! We did a lot of circle game in the field near the other horses. I wanted her to be close enough to see them, but not so close that she was "with" them. There was a small hill nearby, so we played the circle game up and down the hill, putting something new into our game. Then we did sideways along the fence line, and then squeeze game between me and the fence. Once she was calm and more interested in grazing than looking around, we took a break. I let her graze a bit as the sun set, and then turned her out.
The next day was our first trail ride, and she did fine. The whole group went, so I knew she wouldn't give me much trouble, since her whole heard was with her. Sunday, tho, I was a little saddle sore, and opted not to go with the group on their next trail ride. Gwen and I hung out back at the camp grounds, along with her old buddy Cool. I used the opportunity to play with her online again, away from Cool and away from her buddies. She was much more extroverted than usual, looking around and moving her feet, but she remained connected and responsive to me. There were some small wooden poles in the ground, that defined the "camp" area from the field, so we I took the opportunity to do figure 8's and try our hand at a weave. Awesome.
A little while later, another barn woman showed up, so I saddled up Gwen and we hit the trails together, just her and me (her on a donkey, me on Gwen). It was our first time going out "alone" and Gwen did surprisingly well! She was a bit concerned about leaving Cool, but behaved like a lady. She definitely wanted to go back to the turn out, but she didn't give me much attitude (just a lot of drifting and attempting to reverse direction). There was absolutely no up/down behaviour, or real naughty behaviour from her, and once she realized I was being persistent but calm, she settled down and was a real trooper! I was so proud of her!!!
We came back that Sunday evening... and the storm rolled in! I didn't make it to the barn for over a week thanks to rain storms nearly every night (Crazy lightning, pouring rain... it was nuts!). Last week, the barn was still pretty soggy, so I didn't do much. I rode this past Monday, but didn't get back until today...
Now for a change in conversation...
I've been feeling a little discouraged lately, but wasn't sure why. I just didn't feel like Gwen and I were progressing, but I didn't know what to do about it. I felt like she wanted absolutely nothing to do with me, and would just shut-down once we got into the arena. This was concerning, but I didn't know what to do about it except make her move around... It wasn't until I read Emily's blog about communication that I had a light bulb. We weren't progressing, because we weren't communicating! OMG! *face-palm* Duh! I was just bossing Gwen around, and I didn't even realize it. She was doing what I asked, but her responses were dull and "grump" because I was just being a dictator, instead of actually paying attention to what she was feeling. I wasn't getting any questions, because I wasn't waiting for them, and I wasn't encouraging them. Wow. I'd really been failing.
So I headed to the barn today with this new perspective, determined to turn things around. The first thing I did was take advantage of a deserted barnyard and empty arena, to groom Gwen at liberty. I got her into the arena and parked her in the shade, then took her halter off. I let her know that she was free to move, and then proceeded with my grooming routine. Being introverted, she didn't go anywhere, but I could tell she was thinking about it. Most of the time she was very closed off emotionally (her eyes where half lidded, her head was down and her ears were "floppy". It's her classic "I'm hiding in my shell" face). I mostly ignored it. I *really* sloooooowed down my grooming routine. I made sure I used my curry in very slow, gentle circles, and spent a good long time working from shoulder to rear, paying more attention to my horse than actually worrying about getting her clean. Since we would be working online, I wasn't concerned about getting all the dirt off; this was about slowing things down. I repeated the process with my stiff brush, concentrating more on moving slow, methodically and gently rather than getting her clean.
I didn't get much change from her, but I knew she was thinking about the fact that she was "free", because any time she moved her head to get a fly, or rub her face, she would lick and chew as soon as she was back to neutral, almost as if she were saying "Huh, I really am loose..."
Once her feet were picked and I had fly sprayed her, I reassessed then situation. I was waiting for a sign that she was ready to progress. When I didn't get it, I prolonged our grooming experience to include thoroughly combing/detangling her tail, then her mane, and finally braiding her mane into a running braid. By the time I was done with her mane, she was looking more alive, with more expression and paying more attention to the world around her. I decided we were ready to do something else. When I slipped her halter on, she had a tense moment. She wasn't ready to be online. I left her halter on, but I unsnapped the lead and made sure she was aware that she was loose again, even if she was haltered. We worked at "liberty" on some hind quarter yields, since that is the easiest thing for me to do with her when she is being a bit tense.
Once I had her moving away at just a suggestion, and coming to me willingly, I snapped her lead back on and we moved on to something else. My focus was "ask me a question", so everything I did was slow. We did more hindquarter yields, then shoulder yields. I made sure I made the lightest possible suggestion, and backed off the instant she even thought about moving. She wasn't very connected yet, but she was super responsive. I was finally getting TRUE forequarter yields, where her rear stayed planted and she was just moving her shoulders away. At the end, I barely touched her shoulder and she moved away. I dropped my hands instantly, she stopped, and we both waited. And waited. And waiiiiited. And then finally... Gwen let out a sigh and started licking and chewing. SUCCESS!! I knew we were ready to move on.
I was letting Gwen tell me what we needed to work on. It became clear almost instantly, that we needed to work on straightness. I'd been letting her get away with backing up "crooked" in the yo-yo game, rather than having her back up nice and straight. Since we'd just worked on our yielding, and she was being very responsive at just a look, we worked on being straight when backing up. We started slow, with little wiggles, and then moment she started getting crooked, I would yield her back to straightness, and try again. After a few attempts, she was going backwards nice and straight, giving me two ears, two eyes, and asking a question. Yay! Time for circles. My goal, again, was to keep everything slow, soft and simple. She'd ask a question, I'd point the direction I want to go, and only if she didn't start moving would I pick up my stick. I was really using a long phase one (pointing) before I would pick up my stick. Surprise, surprise, she started responding to the lightest phase!
We didn't have great circles, but I was OK with it. She was actually paying attention, asking me questions, and looking for suggestions. So even though she would stop behind me, I was happy; because those stops were clearly questions, rather than avoidance. I'd turn, she'd give me two ears, and I'd point her back in the direction I wanted. She even volunteered the trot! We stopped, and waited. And waited. And waiiiiited... and then I got another big sigh, and a lot of licking and chewing!
After that, we tried some sideways along the rail. But, she wasn't really getting it, and was starting to shut down again. I made sure to get one good step of sideways, and then abandoned that game in favor of something different. We played touch-it with the barrels, and she even volunteered to go OVER them. Wow.
Throughout the whole session, I did TONS of stopping and waiting, letting her process. We wouldn't move on until I got a sign of relaxation, even when it meant I stood for a good five minutes until she finally let out a sigh, shook, and then licked/chewed. I ended there. Since there was no one else around (and she would be confined the whole way) I removed her halter and walked her back to the turn-out at liberty.
On the whole, I'd say this was one of the most successful days we have had in a long time! I feel motivated, and I can't wait to get back out there and prove to Gwen that I can listen. I want her to enjoy our time together again, and I feel like I finally remember how to achieve that.
J
Wednesday, June 5, 2013
Darn You Mother Nature!!
Two weeks ago, Gwen and I were doing great. We were making some real progress under saddle, particularly with her canter work. I really wanted to start working with her on the 22' line so she can get more comfortable cantering, without someone interfering from her back (*cough* me *cough*). However, the weather had other ideas. Friday, it stormed so badly that I didn't even go to the barn. It rained and even hailed, all weekend. Fast forward to a week ago Monday, it was so soggy and still raining so I didn't get to the barn until last Thursday. When I did get to the barn, I didn't do much. Just kinda hung out cause it was still too soggy to ride, or even play online. It wasn't until last Friday that I actually pulled Gwen out of her turn-out.
However, as I was grooming her, something a bit scary happened. I picked up her right front foot to pick it out. Her frog was really soft, and I didn't do anything more than normal, but all of a sudden it felt like her hoof just "gave" and the pick went too far. She didn't give a big "ouch" reaction, just a little "Oo!" but blood started seeping out. I, of course, was panicked thinking I had just stabbed my horse in the foot, possibly crippling her for life (<-- RBI over reaction). I'm happy to say that I kept my cool. I untied her from the rail and took her over to the barn manager, who took a look and told me that it looked like I'd punctured an abscess.
Next came our learning moment of the day. Gwen needed to have her foot soaked in a bucket, which I had never tried with her before. I was a little concerned that she would be unconfident about her foot in a bucket, but I was patient and kind, and rewarded with LOTS of treats... she very quickly learned that if she stood with her foot in a bucket, she'd get as many cookies as she wanted (man, has she got her human trained!). She did fantastic!
Upon closer inspection, after the soak, it wasn't an abscess at all, but instead it looks as though she had been trying to shed her frog and it went a little sideways, creating a pocket of trapped blood. The barn manager told me I probably did more good than bad by popping it, because she's pretty sure it would have developed into a nasty abscess otherwise.
We wrapped her foot, and then I let her have some undemanding/grazing time. She didn't limp at all, and isn't bothered by the wrap or the bandage.
Yesterday, we took a good look at her foot and it appears to be healed. However, the tissue is still very soft, and since it's not completely dry yet, we re-wrapped it dry to keep the moisture out so that the tissue can finish hardening (it looked/felt kinda like pruny skin around finger nails after a shower).
So, phew, Gwen is fine and making a great recovery, and has lucked out with almost an entire week of grazing/undemanding time instead of work (which is always nice for the relationship!). I'm hoping it'll be even better by tomorrow, so that we can still go on our barn camping trip this weekend...
Fingers crossed!
J
However, as I was grooming her, something a bit scary happened. I picked up her right front foot to pick it out. Her frog was really soft, and I didn't do anything more than normal, but all of a sudden it felt like her hoof just "gave" and the pick went too far. She didn't give a big "ouch" reaction, just a little "Oo!" but blood started seeping out. I, of course, was panicked thinking I had just stabbed my horse in the foot, possibly crippling her for life (<-- RBI over reaction). I'm happy to say that I kept my cool. I untied her from the rail and took her over to the barn manager, who took a look and told me that it looked like I'd punctured an abscess.
Next came our learning moment of the day. Gwen needed to have her foot soaked in a bucket, which I had never tried with her before. I was a little concerned that she would be unconfident about her foot in a bucket, but I was patient and kind, and rewarded with LOTS of treats... she very quickly learned that if she stood with her foot in a bucket, she'd get as many cookies as she wanted (man, has she got her human trained!). She did fantastic!
Upon closer inspection, after the soak, it wasn't an abscess at all, but instead it looks as though she had been trying to shed her frog and it went a little sideways, creating a pocket of trapped blood. The barn manager told me I probably did more good than bad by popping it, because she's pretty sure it would have developed into a nasty abscess otherwise.
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| The latest in Pony Fashion! |
We wrapped her foot, and then I let her have some undemanding/grazing time. She didn't limp at all, and isn't bothered by the wrap or the bandage.
Yesterday, we took a good look at her foot and it appears to be healed. However, the tissue is still very soft, and since it's not completely dry yet, we re-wrapped it dry to keep the moisture out so that the tissue can finish hardening (it looked/felt kinda like pruny skin around finger nails after a shower).
So, phew, Gwen is fine and making a great recovery, and has lucked out with almost an entire week of grazing/undemanding time instead of work (which is always nice for the relationship!). I'm hoping it'll be even better by tomorrow, so that we can still go on our barn camping trip this weekend...
Fingers crossed!
J
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| My beautiful girl! |
Thursday, May 23, 2013
Goals & Accomplishments!
So far, I haven't ever sat down and really thought about my goals for Gwen, with any sort of timeline or game plan. I have ideas about what I want to see, but they tend to come out more like "Wouldn't it be neat if..." and "maybe one day we can do this..." I have loose goals in my head. Things like "I'd like Gwen to learn to relax at the trot" and "I want Gwen to pick up her left lead" but as far as making a game plan... yeah. I'm not so great at that part.
What this really means, though, is that I sometimes don't notice when we're making progress! I mean, if I don't have a clear idea of what I'm looking for... how will I know when we've gotten there?
Part of the reason I don't have defined goals, is because I don't want to have a timeline, or expectation, for when things will get done. My plan with Gwen is mostly to have fun and make sure she's comfortable. I don't have any plans to show her, or "do" anything with her aside from what I am already doing, so I don't see as much need to write out or really define my goals with her. But I've been thinking lately that... maybe I should?
We've made SUCH progress over the past 6 months, never mind the year! It's about time I listed what we HAVE accomplished, so that I can stop dwelling on what we're still struggling with. So... without further ado, here are the things we have put into our "win" column:
WINS
Now for the "goals" or...
WORK IN PROGRESS
And now my brain is fried. XD Maybe I'll post a picture tomorrow...
-J
What this really means, though, is that I sometimes don't notice when we're making progress! I mean, if I don't have a clear idea of what I'm looking for... how will I know when we've gotten there?
Part of the reason I don't have defined goals, is because I don't want to have a timeline, or expectation, for when things will get done. My plan with Gwen is mostly to have fun and make sure she's comfortable. I don't have any plans to show her, or "do" anything with her aside from what I am already doing, so I don't see as much need to write out or really define my goals with her. But I've been thinking lately that... maybe I should?
We've made SUCH progress over the past 6 months, never mind the year! It's about time I listed what we HAVE accomplished, so that I can stop dwelling on what we're still struggling with. So... without further ado, here are the things we have put into our "win" column:
WINS
- Gwen can trot at a modest, comfortable pace freestyle (compare to: her hyper jack-hammer/pogo-stick impersonation of a trot that she had when I first got her).
- Gwen can canter on a 22' line (this is HUGE! She is so unconfident about her canter)
- Gwen JUMPED THE BARRELS! (!!!!!!!!)
- I can pick up all of Gwen's feet from one side (both from the right, and the left. I still grin everytime I do this)
- Gwen can change direction online (took forever for her to figure out what this was about)
- Gwen can confidently cross the wooden bridge online, and can cross the bridge with encouragement freestyle.
Now for the "goals" or...
WORK IN PROGRESS
- Get Gwen confident about deworming
- Get Gwen confident about cantering freestyle (it's more of a race than a canter right now)
- Get Gwen confident about jumping freestyle (we have not attempted this yet. Still working online)
- Consistently need only phase one/two for yo-yo and driving game
- Practice our figure-8
- Introduce Gwen to the weave (waiting until she's more confident at figure 8 before I attempt this, tho).
And now my brain is fried. XD Maybe I'll post a picture tomorrow...
-J
Monday, April 29, 2013
I'm a terrible blogger, but a good partner!
I have no time for a proper update, but I will say this... GWEN JUMPED THE BARRELS!
I have been trying to get her to jump over the barrel "jump" since last summer, and last Monday (a week ago) she did it! Now, admittedly, it wasn't something I focused a lot of our time on, mostly because I thought (shamefully) that it would never happy. She's a little thing, only 14 hh or so, and those barrels are awful big and scary for a little RBI. She's also not very young... not an oldie, but old enough that I was worried about arthritis, or injury, etc, so I never really pushed it with her.
But as we've gone further, and she's gotten more in shape, I decided to try again. We had an awesome warm-up online session last monday, doing fun things like traveling circles, and lots of changes of direction, lots of side-ways to yo-yo to another traveling circle, to touch-it with the barrels... and when she gave me touch-it with her nose AND her feet... hm. I thought "Why not?" and asked for a little more. She was definitely trying her heart out, though she wasn't really happy about it, and after a bit of persistance and a LOT of patience, she hopped over!
The next day, we jumped it again, this time both directions! Last Thursday, I did only on-line, no freestyle, and we did TONS of flowing games, and even some figure 8's (which she did awesome), and then we jumped the barrels again. She's getting so "into" it that the last time, she didn't even jump 'em. Just plopped her front feet over one, two, and then the back, one, two. Next time, we'll aim for a bit more impulsion. It IS called a jump, silly Gwen!
More, with pictures, when I have a time. Possibly tomorrow!
Till then,
J
I have been trying to get her to jump over the barrel "jump" since last summer, and last Monday (a week ago) she did it! Now, admittedly, it wasn't something I focused a lot of our time on, mostly because I thought (shamefully) that it would never happy. She's a little thing, only 14 hh or so, and those barrels are awful big and scary for a little RBI. She's also not very young... not an oldie, but old enough that I was worried about arthritis, or injury, etc, so I never really pushed it with her.
But as we've gone further, and she's gotten more in shape, I decided to try again. We had an awesome warm-up online session last monday, doing fun things like traveling circles, and lots of changes of direction, lots of side-ways to yo-yo to another traveling circle, to touch-it with the barrels... and when she gave me touch-it with her nose AND her feet... hm. I thought "Why not?" and asked for a little more. She was definitely trying her heart out, though she wasn't really happy about it, and after a bit of persistance and a LOT of patience, she hopped over!
The next day, we jumped it again, this time both directions! Last Thursday, I did only on-line, no freestyle, and we did TONS of flowing games, and even some figure 8's (which she did awesome), and then we jumped the barrels again. She's getting so "into" it that the last time, she didn't even jump 'em. Just plopped her front feet over one, two, and then the back, one, two. Next time, we'll aim for a bit more impulsion. It IS called a jump, silly Gwen!
More, with pictures, when I have a time. Possibly tomorrow!
Till then,
J
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