Let the trail riding season begin!

I am sunburnt. Gabe is sleepy and as of this morning, is not body sore.

By my best guess, we rode about 12 miles yesterday, all told in just around 3.5 hours. My friend Jaquie brought her delightful pony gelding, Teddy, over to the farm Sunday morning and out we went to see what we could see.

It is by far the longest ride I've had him out on and I truly think he enjoyed all the sights and sounds.

We took a route I've never been down before, roads I've never even driven and discovered some absolutely delightful back roads that were very isolated and not busy at all. The horses were very good and although we had a few moments, Gabe was wonderful.

At first we did have some lack of desire to go forward issues and he'd dribble slower and slower until almost a halt. I tried squeezing him forward and got no response and (failing to bring with me a whip), I had to come up with some other way to convince him to step up the pace. So, I imagined having on a pair of rowel spurs and I "rolled" my heel up his side. Oh, did THAT ever surprise him the first time I did it and he SHOT forward! So I stayed on it, every time he dribbled, I rolled, and he picked up the pace immediately. It didn't take long for him to figure out that it was just easier to keep on marching forward instead of slowing slowing slowing into a halt.

As is typical of most farms, dogs ran out barking at us (there were a good number of hounds!), hackles high, appearing out of nowhere from nearly every house we passed. The first 3 or 4 times it happened Gabe was pretty darn sure they were going to gnaw his legs off at the pasterns and gave them the hairy eyeball while skittering across the road away from them.

By the end of the ride he didn't give the approaching barking (or baying) dogs a second glance while we marched along on the buckle. He also figured out by the end of the ride that I don't care if he wants to turn his head to look at something as long as he keeps walking forward.

We had a few very, very nice canters and he was popping over ditches and water-filled culverts like an old pro without even a second glance at them.

He saw his first herd of donkeys and quite frankly, I think he was more worried about those long-eared beasts than he was about the dogs! I told those donkeys as we walked by and they all ran up to the fence to see us that they were allowed to watch, but none of them was allowed to speak! I just knew that if one of them opened up and let loose a bray, it would be all over for Gabe's mostly-calm and collected self. We passed a herd of Belgian mares with a couple of foals that thought we were just awesome and came galloping up to the fence to see us. A galloping herd of Belgian's makes A LOT of noise! Those hooves surely do thunder and shake the ground. After we passed the herd decided to gallop to catch up to us and Gabe wasn't quite sure what to think about that. His tail curled up over his back (imagine Arab), and he started prancing and blowing hard (trumpeting like a stallion!) at that thundering herd of drafts. Such a silly boy, but even with those crazy antics he continued to listen to me and never did I feel like he had tuned me out and stopped listening, a HUGE step forward for both of us.

All in all, a long but fantastic ride and I'm looking forward to many, many more.

Jaquie is planning to move Teddy out to our place in two weeks and we're all pretty excited about it. Teddy is great little horse and I really look forward to having an adult around to go riding with and help build my cross-country course and add a few more trails around the place.

The monsters are REAL!

A pair of deer tried to murder me.

And Gabe was absolutely convinced they would succeed in killing both of us.

Have you ever heard deer running through a cornfield? They are LOUD and scary. Especially if you're a horse who is convinced the world would like to roast you on a skewer.

He was being fabulous during our ride (yay! I'm able to ride again! My heart is happy.), quiet and responsive and just GOOD. I think he was having fun and I was actually succeeding at keeping him busy enough to keep his brain working and engaged.

Then, during our cool-down on the buckle, I heard it. Something was crashing through the cornfield right next to the arena. I felt him tense. And beneath my leg I could actually feel his heart pick up and really start pounding hard. I grabbed mane (thank goodness I haven't pulled it yet, there's a LOT there) and prepared for the worst because I knew he was going to explode and there wasn't a damn thing I could do about it while the crashing in the cornfield was going on.

Chief and Calypso didn't help matters much, either. They both heard it, and being free, decided to go ape-shit bananas in the paddock next to us.

Oh Boy.

I've never actually ridden a tornado, but I'm pretty sure what Gabe offered up for me to stick to last night came pretty close. No bucking, just spinning and darting, a little bit of rearing when I refused to let him run away quickly, and quite a bit of sideways scurrying, neck arching and snorting.

It only last a few seconds, maybe even a whole minute, but it felt like forever.

The deer finally finished their mad scramble through the corn and ended up coming out not too far from where we were riding. I don't think Gabe spotted them, if he had, he may have wet himself a little bit. I saw them though before they tore off up along the edge of the field away from us. Two of 'em, looked like a doe and an older fawn.

But what impressed me the most was how quickly he quieted after the cornfield crashing stopped. He didn't dump me and it was over as soon as it began. Four trips around the arena on a loose rein then out to hit the driveway and a few trails as a final cool down. He was good, looking at everything but not reacting, walking nicely and not prancing or snorting. His back felt soft and swaying and he dropped his neck, sighed deeply and marched forward.

Got guns?

I rode Gabe last night and he was his wonderful self: No soreness and wonderfully forward, obedient and eager to please. What a pleasant, pleasant ride. We worked on spiraling in and spiraling out on a circle and he finally GETS IT! YAY! Of course, he goes stiffer tracking to the right than the left, but I expected that and worked him on it.

The people who own the land next door to mine were out doing some target shooting and making all kinds of noise walking through the woods, talking and shooting.

And it didn't phase him one bit. He was unusually focused on me for this ride which was a good thing.

The shooting doesn't phase any of the horses a bit. The shotgun or rifle can be fired near their pastures and none of them flinch. They just don't care.

Some of you may remember back in early spring when I was hem-hawing about whether to sell Calypso and my daughter said she wanted to ride her so I decided to keep the mare and give the kid the chance to ride her.

Well, she hasn't been riding much at all. The weather hasn't exactly been fabulous and I haven't been riding a whole lot either for the same reason. However, the times I have had the chance to ride and asked her to come along, she's declined about half the time.

So, Calypso needs a new job. She's young, she's dead quiet, she's level-headed, willing, obedient, brave and easily trainable. I've determined she'll just never make a very good English horse. She can jump, but not well, her gaits aren't the prettiest to watch, but she gets the job done. She has cutting QH breeding and you can really see that aspect of her athleticism come out when she's out in the pasture just playing around. That little mare can MOVE and when she's moves, she moves fast, low and powerfully with everything she has loaded into that back end and that front end free to do some serious maneuvering.

I really don't want to sell her. She's a nice, nice mare. No, not show quality, but a really level-headed horse that I can put anyone on and trust her.

When I started riding as a young'un I rode my pony Western. Well, I started riding her bareback because we didn't have a saddle right away. Then my first saddle was a western one and we did speed events, trail classes, pleasure classes and some showmanship. The speed events were a BLAST!

I've been tossing around in my head what I could do with this mare that would be fun, maybe a little different from what I usually do and right up her alley. I've been to a couple of Cowboy Mounted Shooting events in St. Louis and every time I've gone I've thought "WOW! That would be an absolute BLAST! Too bad I don't have a horse quiet and sane enough to do it." One of the bailiffs I used to work with at the courthouse did the competitions and he absolutely loved it, we talked about mounted shooting and horses and training them for mounted shooting every time we got the chance.

Okay, so maybe that's a lot more than a "little different" from what I usually do, but dangit, I want to try it and I will. If I hate it, I hate it, but at least I can say I tried.

I think Calypso would be a darn fine mounted shooting horse. Don't worry, I'm not going to run out and start shooting off her tomorrow or next week...I'm going to step back her training and take all the English aspects out of what I do with her. Tune up and fine tune her neck reining, work on that too fast trot and start some slow speed work around poles and barrels with her (slow speed work...that's an oxymoron!) to work on her handiness and responsiveness and build the necessary muscles. I guess I need to start visiting some tack auctions and find a decent western saddle. I'm going to take the bit out of her face and try her in a hackamore...she has always seemed happiest when I just ride her with a halter and rope anyway, she might do fabulous in a hackamore...we'll see. At this point, I'm game for just about anything with her, and as long as she's having fun, that's all that matters.

When I'm ready to start the mounted shooting part I'll find someone locally who does it (or tap the knowledge of my bailiff friend) to glean some advice/tips and help.

A little more about Cowboy Mounted Shooting. How fun does that look/sound? Tell me you're not intrigued!

Stand there and take it, you big chicken

After last week's peacock incident with the Big Man I decided a bit of peacock de-sensitizing was in order.

Gabe was none to pleased with me at first. He was pretty darn sure I was the one who had lost my ever-loving mind when I forced him to stand nicely while Mr. 1,000 Eyes Horse-Eater was in full strut and screaming for his girlfriends less than 20 feet away.

At first I was horrible and terrible and wicked mean for making him stand and just watch that peacock get closer and closer. I was even more horrible when I encouraged him to take a few steps towards the peacock as Mr. Peacock has his back towards us and was strutting away. He jumped sideways, blew hard at him, showed him the whites of his eyes the tried to climb into my pocket.

I told him what a nut he is for being terrified of a stinkin' BIRD. A BIRD! He didn't believe me and tried to push me to the front so I'd be the first one devoured and he'd have time to haul ass away.

So we stood and watched the peacock strut around and scream and I fed Gabe treats every time he'd stand nicely without wiggle-worming around trying to make the mind-blowing experience as pleasant as possible. Of course, I talked to him and called him many names: Moron, Goof-ball, Chickenshit, Pansy, Nutcase, Half-Wit, Goober and Peabrain...all in my sweetest most comforting voice possible.

Half an hour or so later the peacock was No Big Thing any more. Gabe gave him a bit of an OH MY GOD! glance when the bird lowered his massive plumage and jumped up onto the fence fairly close to him, but he didn't move, just looked.

Progress! Yay!

I groomed him, tacked him and took him out for a ride. And the poor guy is SORE. Not dead limping lame, but sore enough that I just walked him around for about 15 mins., worked on leg yielding a bit and called it done. The only thing I can imagine that would have made him sore was his ill-conceived leap sideways over the fence. He may have pulled or twisted something just enough to be ouchie. I could find no heat, no swelling, I palpated and got no OUCH! reactions, so, who knows.

Two bute and call me in the morning. I'll give him a couple of days to rest up and see if he's still sore. If he is, guess there will be a vet bill in my future.

The personality differences and braveness levels in my horses constantly amuse me.

Calypso, that fiesty little mare, has no fear of the peacock. Actually, I think she's pretty fed up with that bird roosting on HER run-in and violating her sensitive ears with his high-pitched screams.

So, what's a good lead mare do?

Attack the peacock of course and run him off. She has gone after my chickens from time to time when she decides she's had enough of their food-stealing ways. She's kicked a couple of them. Last night she went after that peacock, neck snaked, ears flat, teeth bared and tried to stomp him. She chased him through two paddocks and wasn't happy until he was well out of her paddock and on his merry way. I'm not quite sure what she would have done if the peacock had turned around and popped that plumage on her. Run the other way most likely!

To shoe, or not to shoe?

I have never had shoes on Gabe. I know he wore shoes at the track, but when he came to me, he was barefoot and has the most beautiful feet I think I've ever seen, especially for a Thoroughbred.

His hooves are big, well-shaped and hard as rocks. He is not tenderfooted and does very well barefoot.

Lately I've been thinking about whether I should have him shod this summer or not. A lot of the trails/roads I ride near my farm are gravel. He does get "ouchy" on the gravel, which I'm sure makes the ride not so much fun for him. Then, I think about the damage that shoeing does to an otherwise healthy, hard hoof. I'm not so willing to start doing that and possibly weaken his feet too much, plus, it's an added expense every six weeks that I just can't really justify right now, especially since it's not a necessary expense.

But I need to do something so we can go riding even on the rockiest roads. I've been bouncing the idea of hoof boots around in my head and done a little bit of research on different styles of boots, but can't figure out what I need to look for. I've heard stories about hoof boots just not lasting long enough to justify the cost, boots that won't stay on, boots that rub pasterns raw or allow sand/dirt/rocks down into them and rub/bruise the pastern/hoof.

I've never used hoof boots on my horses before, so I'm a newbie.

Any suggestions as far as style/brand I should be looking for? What should I absolutely avoid? We don't do slow trail rides as often as we do plenty of trotting, cantering and a wee bit of galloping during our rides. The last thing I need is a hoof boot flying off during a gallop and having it whack him in the belly or get tangled up in his legs.

A monster in the cornfield

If I didn't know better I'd swear there was cuttin' horse blood coursing through my Thoroughbred's blue-blooded veins.

That boy can drop rump and spin 180-degrees without thinking about it then take off like his tail was on fire. It's actually quite fun to ride...when I know it's coming!

Last night's arena ride was lazy and slow but we did good work. I remembered to ride the effort, but also took the time to just give him his head and let him find his own way without me nagging at him. I can become quite a "nagging" rider if I don't keep myself in check, especially on Gabe. He never expends more energy than he absolutely has to, so, to keep him working at a good walk or trot, I have to keep on him, pushing, pushing, pushing. Unfortunately I've been known to get stuck in the rut of pushing and nudging...I get into a rhythm...and I forget to give him the release/reward when he DOES step up. I worked on very obviously giving him a release when he stepped up like I asked. Granted, he reverts back to the drag-butt pace in a few strides, but I gave him release and only "nagged" at him when he started dragging.

We had plenty of Losgelassenheit, but not a whole lot of Schwung! Must work on the Schwung.

For portions of the ride I just released him, completely, and let him do as he wanted. I think it's good for a horse to know that every now and then they are in charge and can make the decisions. I believe it builds their confidence and encourages decision-making (if that's possible!). I'd rather have a horse who is confident enough to try to get us out of a bad situation than to wait for me to make a decision in a split-second...such as over cross-country jumps or out hunting.

After every ride we go out for a short trail ride as our cool-down and a nice hack-out after the real work. The farmers are in the fields and one of the fields next to my property is harvested so I decided we'd take a swing around it.

The combines have been out and spent most of the day behind the horses' pasture yesterday so I thought "eh, the combines won't bother him, he's seen 'em all day!"

Boy, was I ever wrong. Apparently the electric rope around the pasture prevents the combines from eating the horses. But you take him out of that roped off safety zone that giant, rumbling machine with teeth is GOING TO GET HIM!

As we were riding around the field one of the combines came up a rise and around a corner in the next field, straight towards us, spewing the remains of corn husks and smiling at Gabe with it's shiny, flesh-ripping teeth.

Gabe lost his everlovin' mind and decided he needed to save both of us from the corn-chomping monster. Drop rump, spin and RUN!!!! AWAY!!!!! from the beast of DOOM! I guess he DID have some energy hiding in that big body of his...he was just saving it for an emergency.

I thought I was a goner for a minute and remembered to push my heels down, shove my legs forward, stand up and press my hands firmly into his crest so he'd pull against himself, not me. Good thing I hack out with my reins bridged!

I let him run a bit and we settled quickly into a less frenetic rhythm. The thing about Thoroughbreds is, if you just let them go forward to get it out of their system, they get their minds back rather easily. If you fight them and make them go slow, slow, slow, the tension just builds to explosive levels. So we galloped. He snorted and blew and sweated and we galloped. Not far, maybe half a mile, but far enough for him to start to relax.

All I have to say is this: I am SO glad I put a really good stop on him or we may still be galloping!

Then, I turned his big gray butt around and we walked/jigged/hopped/side-passed right back towards the maw of the metal beast. He didn't want to, but he went because I insisted. And once we got close enough (a couple hundred feet), I made him stand/jiggle/wiggle/dance and wait for it to make a corner and head away from us before I allowed him turn around and walk back from where we came.

There are lessons in everything and in everything, I take the opportunity to turn it into a learning experience in the hopes that one day the corn, the telephone pole, the combine and the waving marker flag will no longer incite him to turn tail and run.

The Barbie dream horse

There is something to be said about riding different horses whenever the opportunity presents itself. Sure, I LOVE to ride Gabe, he's my number one guy, but sometimes, a girl's got to shake it up a little bit to keep things spicy.

But today I got to ride the cutest little Palomino mare whose prior life was as a gaming horse. She looks like Dallas, the Barbie horse that every little girl drooled over and dreamed about having: Long, luxurious blond mane and tail and gleaming coat that shone like a brand new golden coin.

She's a sweet, kind little mare who is always trying to please. A pleasant change from a gelding who is more apt to ask "Why the heck should I?" instead of just replying with "Ok! Here we go! More? Less? Good?"

Chipper belongs to a friend of mine and we went for a trail ride early Monday morning. The weather was wonderful, a slight breeze. But the bugs, ugh. The bugs. Poor ponies were absolutely miserable with biting flies and deer flies when we got down near the woods in the bottoms.

This was the first time I've ridden Chipper and it was so much fun being on a gaming pony again. A touch of the rein on her neck and she was OVER there. A shift back in the saddle and she was stopping, an ear tipped back questioningly...Stop? Slow? What do you want? I'll give! A slight tap with my leg and she was ready to go as fast and as far as I wanted her to. She definitely made me aware of how much I use my leg...apparently, too much for her sensitive sides.

She was almost looking for barrels to run and if I'd had some, I'd have let her run 'em as much as she wanted! All I had to do was ask.

Sometimes I miss running barrels and poles with my old quarter pony Blaze or my little quarter mare, Sunny. Such a rush!

I'm definitely looking forward to riding her again. Maybe next time, we'll find a barrel or two and give her a good run for her money. Yeehaw!

You want me to....WHAT?

Gabe showed his racehorse background over the weekend. No, he didn't take off with me nor did he act like the woods were going to eat him alive.

Instead, he displayed his green bean status when we came across a series of all too unfamiliar earthen obstacles that had him completely befuddled. He didn't know what to do with his body!

There is a barren strip of land on the backside of our property that runs for MILES in either direction. This is where a new oil pipeline was put in last fall and the path is wide, straight and dirt. However, the workers also constructed a series of low earthen berms along the length of it to prevent erosion. The berms are more like ramps...a gentle slope up one side leading to an 18" to 2' drop on the other side.

Heading out we stepped up the drop and walked down the ramp. No problem at all for Gabe and excellent exercise for that developing booty and topline.

However, the way back was a different story as we had to take the berms ramp first and step down.

Game over. The first step down sent him into a head-flinging nearly nose-breaking hissy fit in which he tried to gallop off sideways after the step down. I know it was because he couldn't figure out how to balance himself. He does something very similar down low hills, but not quite so extreme. I've been working on getting him to push his butt under himself going down hill while staying as balanced over his center as I can. Over and over again we stepped down off the edge and he flung his head up as soon as his front end and hind end were at different elevations. As soon as the hind end hit the lower elevation, the attempt to take off sideways ensued. Staying nicely balanced over his center became a challenge!

Yes, I popped him in the mouth the first couple of times he tried to connect his head with my face. I have had that experience and been knocked out due to a horse skull smashing into my face and I have no wish to ever repeat that again. So, I popped him and I felt bad for it but he cannot do that, period.

The next time I take him out there he will be wearing the running martingale so he can pop himself immediately AND so he can't smash my face should he decide to play the head tossing game again.

I am not a big believer in drilling horses in anything because I don't think there is any benefit to it. However, he will be drilling over those ramps/drops until he figures it out...we will also be drilling hills. If he is going to be a foxhunter and an eventer, he's got to figure this stuff out sooner rather than later. And soon, we will be popping over ditches and creeks.

I plan to concentrate on as much out-on-the-trail experience as I can this summer and stay out of the ring as much as possible. We are at the point where the basics in the ring are good enough...now, we need to apply those basics to an open, more challenging situation before we move back into the ring for the next phase of training. He NEEDS the experience out in the open right now and I think it will really improve our ring work as he learns that he must concentrate on me...not everything around us.

Sproingy, sproingy, sproingy!

Yesterday's ride had me thinking about how often we ask a horse, a prey animal, to put their trust in us. And how often they resist their natural instincts and trust us to protect them.

Every time we are with them, whether it's just hanging around, grooming or riding, we are developing a little more trust, a stronger relationship. We ask them to stand nicely while tied up, a compromising position for any prey animal. We ask them to walk quietly through the woods when by instinct, they should be hyper-aware of mountain lions in the trees or wolves lurking behind bushes.

We ask them to trust us enough to go out into the big, scary world without the safety and companionship of their herdmates and yet, still continue to be on their best behavior. That's a lot of trust we shoulder and to let them down can set back training by leaps and bounds.

For the first time I took Gabe into the woods and fields next door to our property all by himself. It's a gorgeous piece of property, half of it woods with trails cut through it, the other half a big beautiful meadow with trails all through it. It's a beautiful, perfect place for conditioning work. A grass road follows the edge of the entire property, gently rolling, through woods, around the meadow, along the edge of a pond and perfect for galloping and speed work. I haven't done that YET, but it's on the list.

I think he trusts me. He walked willingly across our bridge (it's just a concrete slab over the creek) and into the woods. He watched and looked with interest, those cute little ears pricked forward, but never hesitated. Never even hesitated to cross the bridge which in the past has presented a bravery challenge for Calypso.

He walked through puddles and mud without blinking. He did, however, have a little bit of an issue figuring out where to put his feet when we had to walk over a downed tree and negotiate the tangle of dead branches. He got a little confused about where to put his hind feet and just kind of crashed through the rotten limbs. It's good practice for him and when we went back over it he didn't hit a single branch. He jumped a little bit when a rabbit whipped out in front of us. It startled me, too. But he never hesitated or refused to do what I asked.

At least, not until Calypso started calling for him about 20 minutes in to our ride. We were far enough away that it was a faint call, but definitely Calypso's high scream opposed to Chief's low neigh.

Gabe's head came up when he heard her, he took smaller, faster steps and started jigging. Oh. Great. I can tolerate fast walks, but the jigging drives. me. crazy. Jig. Jig. Jig. Jig. GAH! I continued to ask for forward and he tried to rear and spin to go back towards his herdmates. A quick, tight circle and a heel in his side straightened him up.

He then grew about 6 inches and continued to take tiny, mincing steps, obviously wanting to go back from whence we came, but really trying to listen to me and trust in my direction. He was having a battle inside his head: Herdmates! Rider! Herdmates! Rider! AHHHHHH!!!!!

With every step he snorted, the steps got higher and slower and pretty soon I was riding an un-asked for piaffe. He had decent form for an untrained movement! Perfect? Not hardly, but it seems a very natural a movement for him. Hooray! So, I took the opportunity he presented and I went with it. I asked for a little more forward (since he was already balanced well back on his hocks and coiled up like a tightly wound spring) and we had a dozen or so wonderful steps of a very powerful passage. Woo hoo! I was ecstatic!

He started losing his balance a bit (it was muddy in the woods, not the most desirable place to school dressage movements! And, he's not fit enough to sustain it for any length of time.) so I pushed him into a nice canter and he responded with controlled enthusiasm.

I got his brain back by making him work and concentrate and his trust settled back to me instead of reaching out to his herd mates. Yes, he was listening for Calypso's call, but he was listening to ME instead.

I wonder if it helped that I started singing to him after Calypso's first holler? I won't tell you what I serenaded him with, but it might have to do with a lamb and a little girl named Mary. And a later song might have had to do with sunshine and making me happy.

In the end, he could have easily ditched me and left me sitting in the mud to go galloping back to the safety of his friends. There is no way I could win a real fight with an 1,100#, 16.2hh horse who decides to listen to instinct instead of throwing it away and trusting in the human.

I must be doing something right.

Trust issues: Mine

Sometimes I don't give Gabe as much credit as he deserves. Sometimes, I think the worst will happen instead of giving him the benefit of the doubt. Yes, I am a pessimist.

Due to the incredible amount of mud around here I haven't been able to ride for at least a month. Yesterday was beautiful beyond belief and the ground had dried enough to still be soft, but not squishy or slippery and the only thing I could concentrate on was getting home and riding!

So, I snuck out of work early so I could get out there and ride my boy while the riding was good. I lunged him first (again, I might be crazy, but I'm not suicidal!) and he bucked and farted around a bit, but was good. As long as he stays on the end of the line and listens when I ask him to settle down, it's all good. I'd rather he get those stupid moments out without me in the saddle! And I've noticed that lunging him first, even if it's for a couple of minutes, gets him into the right mindset for working rather than goofing around.

He was not too sure about a new piece of tack I fitted him with and tossed his head around like he was trying to fling it as far as possible from his body. I think I've mentioned before that he has a bit of a mouthy issue. As soon as the bit goes in it's jiggle, jiggle, jiggle, chew, chew, chew, suck it up and try to gnaw on it. For the entire ride. He works the crap out of that bit. No grinding, just chewing and playing. We gets TONS of white frothy stuff, but the bit isn't staying stable and he needs to learn to just let it sit there. I tried a flash on him, but I HATE flashes and he hated it too. So I gladly took it off. I found a nice figure-8 noseband and fitted it on him for the first time yesterday. I fit it loose just so he could get used to it. He was NOT PLEASED with it. He'll get over it, and he did. I'll snug it up a hole for our next ride and see how he does. I'm not a big believer in holding their mouths closed, ever, so it will never be as tight as I've seen on some horses. I'm sure you've seen the ones that are so damned tight the horse's flesh bulges around the leather. That's just cruel and uncalled for, in my opinion.

We did a lot of really forward, steady trot work, changing diagonals, circles, serpentines, figure-8s and gait changes. As long as I kept him moving forward things were excellent. Every time I halted he got wiggly. I don't blame him, it was gorgeous and a bit windy and he was definitely a bit full of his silly self! He still hauls around circles like a freight train when tracking right, but we're working on it.

Oh! And we cantered a bit, too. I LOVE LOVE LOVE his canter. Probably the easiest, smoothest, most powerful canter I've ever ridden. I can ride that canter all day long and never tire of it. Lovely, lovely. He tossed a few half-hearted hops/bucks in while we cantered along and I laughed at him and his exuberance. It was obvious to me that he was just playing and feeling good, not being a butt or trying to dump me in the dirt.

Here's the part I was feeling a bit pessimistic about.

I've never taken him out for a trail ride by himself and I knew before I even got in the saddle that I was going to take him out. Yes, I had a few butterflies in my tummy just thinking about it. We've always been accompanied by one of the other horses and he's happy to march along with his friends safely near him. The few times the other two have been out of sight while I was riding he pitched an "Oh My God! I'm going to DIE!" fit until he could see them again.

So, I was worried he'd pitch an even bigger tantrum if I took him completely away from them. I was prepared, riding in my defensive seat and aware of every little ear twitch or muscle quiver, ready to react quickly if he decided to come unglued.

Imagine my pleasant surprise when he was absolutely perfect. I mean PERFECT. Strode along with that huge, powerful ground-eating walk of his, didn't startle when a bunny jumped out of the field under his nose, didn't argue or hesitate at all, even as we got further and further away from his buddies. Who, by the way, yelled for him a couple of times.

We only went out for about half a mile, but he was perfect for every step of it, even came back nicely without rushing.

I guess I should trust him a little more often. I've done a good job training him so far and I should trust that training, trust that he will behave and respond when I ask because that's what I've taught him to do.

Sweet, sweet success

Two hours.

That's how long we were out trail riding today. The temperature? About 75 and a tad humid. The sky? Sunny with a bit of a cooling breeze.

The horses? WONDERFUL!

We encountered cows, cars, scary rustling cornfields, farm equipment, a barking dog, hills, mud, mud puddles, fields, ditch crossings and one big creek crossing. Gabe stepped right into the creek without hesitating, reached down for a sip, played in the water with his lips then started pawing and folding his knees. That booger was gonna ROLL in the water! But I kicked him on and prevented that little inconvenience. At least I know he's not terrified of water puddles, always a good trait to have.

The scariest thing on the whole ride was riding next to the dry, rustling cornfields. He wasn't too sure about all that noise! And when birds fluttered through the field, it was way too scary and he had to snort and jump at it. By the end of the ride, the cornfields were no longer an issue for him at all. Cars along the road didn't phase him a bit. The barking dog caught his attention, but wasn't a big deal either. Even the cows running up to the fence to visit didn't get his dander up. He pricked his ears at them, snorted, and walked on. No big deal.

He did prance a bit at some points and did his head flinging thing a few times, but nothing major, just him feeling good. We rode most of the ride on a nice loose rein with him just looking around and watching things.

However...I need a new saddle. This is the longest ride we've had and the ill saddle fit just won't work for long rides. Shorter rides are okay, not ideal by any means, but okay. When I pulled the saddle off after our trail ride he had one big bump right on his spine where the narrow channel was pinching him. I've known the saddle didn't fit perfectly, but I guess I didn't realize how imperfectly it fit until after this ride. It also needs to be reflocked, but there isn't a local saddler that can do that and I'm really hesitant to give up my only saddle for 6+ weeks to get it reflocked. I guess it's time to start saddle shopping! I hate saddle shopping...but most of all, I HATE the price tags on those saddles. *sigh* I guess I need to get out there and take a couple of tracings of his back so I can find one that really fits him. I have a couple in mind, I just need to get out to the tack shop and sit in them.

He has a high wither, but he's much, much wider than most Thoroughbreds, so he's going to be a tough fit. I think I'll go with the interchangeable gullet saddle this time around, just because I know his back is going to continue to change shape as he gets fitter.

I wouldn't be surprised at all if his occasional misbehavior is a direct result of the pinching saddle. I would be pissed too if my gear pinched and the person responsible for it didn't remedy the situation!

I'm very proud of my big guy...he's definitely a gem! Even with occasional tantrums he throws.

Trail Ride #2 and tantrums

Ooh, I've been such a blogging slacker lately. Summer and extra work at work and all that business keeps me busy enough that the blog sometimes has to take a back seat.

But, I do have a bit to update.

Took Gabe out on his second trail ride over the weekend. We were out for about half an hour, maybe 45 mins., and he was fabulous! The scariest encounter on the trail was the trees branches smacking against my hard hat. Scary stuff! Scoot and snort and look around for the scary thing. I started grabbing every branch I could reach and smacking it against my helmet, against him when I could and shaking the trees as much as I could. He was pretty darn desensitized to them within 10 minutes. Good boy! I'm sure I looked bizarre smacking myself in the head with tree branches, but hey, it worked and I achieved my goal.

You know how each horse has it's quirk? Calypso likes to get in one really fast head-in-the-air trot around the ring and acts a little ADD before she'll settle down and work. Chief drags butt for the first five or 10 minutes of a ride before he resigns himself to work and picks it up.

Gabe...well, Gabe acts like a spoiled brat. For about 10 minutes, sometimes 15, at the beginning of our ride he acts like he doesn't know a thing and he throws a little toddler tantrum. It's almost like he's saying "Make me!" He crow hops, refusing to go forward, tossing his head around and squealing (yes, he squeals, just like a girl!), forgetting how to turn, refusing to go to the woodsy end of the ring, etc. He can be a complete shit, with his ears forward the entire time like he's really enjoying himself. It's like he's testing his limits and feels the need to test me just to make sure I really AM going to make him work. Then it all stops, like a switch turns off, and he's golden.

What a nut. I don't let him get away with much, but so far I'm not really fighting his need to be a moron, let off some steam, behave like a baby, I work him through it, wedging my way in there and asking for more and more and keeping him too busy to act too silly for too long until his brain clicks. Some horses need to be longed to take the edge off before a ride, Gabe needs to test his limits and push my buttons. He's not trying to get me off and he's definitely not hurting, he's just being a big goof. I've come to expect no less from him! *grin*

He is definitely a fun horse and really enjoys playing. He's popped several balls (he kneels on them or bites 'em until they deflate, then he plays with the flat ball.) So, I found these balls designed for horse play and I think I'm going to save my pennies and get him one. If you click the link, make sure to watch some of the videos...those horses are having FUN! And I really think Gabe will too.

A big, new world

Allow me a moment to CELEBRATE! Pump my fist in the air, do a little dance, YEE HAW!

Today I took Gabe out on his first foray into the wild, scary world out of the arena. Granted, it was with his nose on Calypso's tail and Chief in the lead making sure all the horse-eating monsters got him first, but out into the world we went.

He was fabulous. Relaxed but looking around and interested, walking with purpose, but not rushing. He was responsive and paying attention to me and didn't get excited, even when a bird flew out of the field right next to us and startled me. But not him!

We started with about 25 minutes working in the arena. He was okay, not on his best behavior and acting a little goofy, but not horrible, either. I always expect the occasional bad day, and today was his bad day in the arena.

Actually, I started the whole ride with a fight with him not wanting to go to the arena at all because getting there required him walking past the pigs. OH GOD! THE PIGS! The beast has walked past them before without issue, but this time, the piggies were being quite vocal. Terrifying little horse-devouring piglets they are. Squealing and carrying on like they were going to rip his legs right off and beat him with them. Eventually, he decided that if I was walking past them, they couldn't be to bad. We walked back and forth past them a few times until he relaxed and stopped giving them the terrified white-eye. Goof ball.

Then, in the arena, there was something in the woods he knew was waiting for him and refused to walk near that edge of the arena. Another little argument ensued and we did lots of backing up and circling. I had to spank him a couple of times with Mr. Whippy and he took exception to that and tried to buck me off into the dirt. The buck FELT huge, but Robert said his hind legs only came about a foot off the ground. Bad pony! Bucking does not help you get your way, it only makes me more determined! Eventually he went where I directed and I made him stand there before walking away and doing over again about four more times. He finally relaxed, sighed, licked his lips and quit being a butt about it.

We trotted a bit, circles, straight lines, figure eights. I have to keep our circles pretty big because he is so freaking unbalanced. That's one thing about a huge horse...they take a little longer to figure out where their feet and body go while carrying a rider and I really, really have to think about myself and my position on the turns. Which is good for both of us. Riding Calypso has gotten me into a bit of a bad habit of just being a passenger not a rider and partner. Gabe is kicking my butt and insisting I ride absolutely correctly. Have I mentioned he has a TO DIE FOR trot? Holy mackerel! Big, floating and smooth as silk. He really moves out and I know when I get that trot more under control and balanced and working, there's a good chance he's gonna toss me to the moon when it comes time to sit it. Guess I need to start working more Pilates into my workout routine and get my core ready to sit that thing.

Our "trail ride" consisted of walking down to the end of the driveway and back...which is just about a 1/2 mile total. Robert and Kayleigh wanted to take our woods trails, which are on our property and I keep them well-maintained, but I didn't want to push it too much. He took his first hill with a rider today, going from the arena up to the driveway and the woods trails have hills that are a bit steeper, and narrower. I don't need to push him quite yet, not when he's still as unbalanced as he is. Step by step. He was already being perfect for his first time out and I wanted to end on a perfect note. Next time, we'll add the woods trails to our trip. Yay! I'm SO excited! I cannot wait to get him road broke so we can go on longer rides. That will probably happen closer to fall, when the fields are harvested and we can ride on the edges of the fields instead of on the side of our little one lane road. Not that we get much traffic at all, hardly any actually, but, all things considered, I'd rather get him used to traffic along the road in the field, rather than on the side of the road where things can go bad quickly. We have to ride along the road to get down to the bottoms where all the good trails are.

The lessons others teach

One thing I really love about my daughter riding and loving horses are the opportunities to teach her things like responsibility, compassion, empathy and hard work.

But I also get to teach her about good sportsmanship and understanding. She had an excellent time at the show this past weekend and really enjoys getting out there and putting her best boot forward. Yes, she did get frustrated with Trinity because she couldn't get her to trot. But she didn't blame Trinity for not wanting to trot, instead, she praised her for being good in all other aspects, asked her if she was hot and tired and wanted a bath and said she wished she had bigger, stronger legs. She does have pretty spindly little kid legs!

I've witnessed far too many kids (and adults!) quickly blame their horse for a bad ride when in reality, the horse is just being a horse. It's easier to blame something else for a mistake or a bad ride than to look inward and admit you did something wrong or not quite right. What is that quote? "There are no bad horses, only bad riders." That's something I absolutely believe to be true 99.9% of the time. Sometimes, there are bad horses, but usually because people somewhere down the line made them that way.

Anyway, back to the show. There is a girl about Kayleigh's age who rides at the barn. The kid has her own horse and rides regularly and is a pretty decent rider. But the girl has zero sportsmanship and plays the blame game with her horse all the time. The horse is a good plodder who safely packs her around. He tries to do what she asks but if he doesn't respond exactly how she thinks he should, he gets his mouth jerked on repeatedly or whipped and kicked and yelled at. Any other horse would dump her butt in the dirt (and it would be rightly deserved!) but he takes it and keeps going.

In one of her classes she did not place. We watched the class and she was being rough-handed and mean to him the entire class because he kept picking up the wrong lead. As soon as the placings were called and all riders left the arena, she got off him, jerked on his mouth, spanked him with her crop, flung her helmet across the barn aisle, flung her riding jacket onto the ground and stomped around saying what a stupid horse he was.

Kayleigh witnessed the entire thing and was frankly, quite shocked. I was shocked too, but even more so when the girl's mother did NOTHING to rein in and admonish her out-of-control, horrible child for being so awful. She just ignored her as she threw her little fit because she didn't place in the class.

Kayleigh asked me why she was acting like that when it wasn't the horse's fault and the ribbon really didn't matter. "Why is she being so mean to him?" she asked. I didn't have an answer, but my heart warmed when I realized that yes, I've been doing something right with this kid! We talked about the girl's unsportsmanlike behavior and why blaming the horse and being a brat about a ribbon is the absolute wrong thing to do. We talked about learning from the class and working on improving instead of having an uncalled for, childish fit.

She gets it. Thank goodness, she gets it. Because it's not about the ribbons, it's about the horses, learning and having fun. The ribbons are nice, but they aren't the be all, end all of riding.

Sure, Chief frustrates her sometimes, but I've never, ever seen her lose her temper with him. He's dumped her a couple of times (she has learned that he responds very well to just a light squeeze...a kick sends him flying forward and she falls off!) and each time, instead of getting mad at him, she apologizes to him, makes sure he's okay, and climbs back on. The two times he spooked hard and dumped her she didn't get mad, she caught him, comforted him, climbed back on and left it behind her as a lesson learned.

We are going to try to get Chief to the next show for her to ride. I don't know that's he's ever shown before so I don't really know how he'll respond to being in an arena full of other horses, but I know he will trot when she asks and she has been absolutely dying to show off the love of her life to all her riding friends. She's already braiding his mane and has even poked chicken and turkey feathers into his mane...he looks like a real Indian warhorse when he's all spiffed up in his feathers!

Now we just need to come up with a nifty show name for the old man! I'm eager to hear what she comes up with.

Living in a bog

Well, guess what. It's raining again. It's been raining every day since Monday and is supposed to continue raining every day for the rest of the week. Yay us. I know, I know, I shouldn't be complaining. At least we have enough rain to really green up the fields...but what good are green, lush fields when I can't turn the horses out on it because it's like walking across a bog?

The ground is so saturated that when you walk on it the sod sinks and it does feel a whole lot like walking across a bog. If you listen while you walk you can hear the water move air bubbles through the soil three feet away from where you put your foot. Not exactly ground conducive to riding, that's for sure!

I can't plant anything, I can't ride, I can't mow (and mowing is desperately needed!) and our mosquitoes are HORRIBLE. I've never seen so many of the nasty bugs around here this time of year, ever. And they are almost big enough to carry off a horse! We have to mosquito spray the horses every evening and make sure their fly masks are on or they are absolutely miserable. The mosquitoes are swarming like mad, they are evening bothering my poor goats, so the goats get mosquito-sprayed, too. Unfortunately I haven't seen any fly masks for goats or they'd have some! Thank goodness the flies/horse flies haven't made a big appearance yet, it's just the mosquitoes at the moment.

When it dries up a bit more I plan to take Gabe out for a longe session involving the oh-so-scary gate. Once again I'll ask my patient, darling husband to help me train my horse and have him knock the thing over again and again while I'm longeing Gabe just to get him desensitized to that particular noise. Nothing like turning a scary thing into a learning lesson that will benefit Gabe and myself in the future.

Hitting the dirt

Ahh, it was bound to happen sooner or later.

I got my butt dumped into the dirt yesterday. In a way, it's kind of a relief that that particular first is finally over and done with aboard Gabe. I've been anticipating it and I think that anticipation translated into unnecessary nervousness in the saddle. Is it goofy to say that now that he's launched me I feel more confident? I admit, I was scared of the fall...it's an awful long way down, but now that I've done it and survived without a bump nor scratch, I no longer have to fear the fall. Sounds weird, I know, but it's true!

Sunday was beautiful, quite windy, but gorgeous. Ok, it was very, very windy and gusty and I was a bit tempted NOT to ride because of the gusts, but, I bit the bullet and refused to let the weather make me its slave once again.

Robert, Kayleigh and I all went for a ride. Another first! We've never all three been able to ride on separate horses at the same time! Kayleigh used to be small enough to ride double on Chief with Robert and me on Calypso, but she's gotten too big for that any more. It was wonderful! I was only able to ride in the arena area and Kayleigh and Robert went for a short hack after I was done riding Gabe.

We are in the process of fencing in the arena area to turn it into another pasture as well as make it safer for riding. An enclosed area is always a nice thing to have to ride in, especially if you have kids or are riding very green horses. But, it's not fenced yet. We have it all cleared and to be fenced, just haven't gotten to the posts and fencing part yet. There is fence along two sides where it abuts the dry lots and one of the grass pastures, a deep creek and woods on one side and an opening in the woods where it leads to a bridge over the creek and back out to the rest of the property. This opening is where the gate will be installed. The gate is not properly installed yet (ever try to dig post holes in thick mud? Not fun!) but, we had the metal gate leaning against a corner post and a tree to block that opening.

Remember that gusty wind I mentioned?

Blew that gate right over as Gabe and I were walking away from it. Ever hear one of those big, metal gates hit the ground and rocks? Not exactly silent.

Hoo boy! I don't know how jockeys manage to stay on when those horses break from the gate! Gabe sprang forward from a relaxed walk into a gallop in a second flat and left me wondering where the heck he went. BAM! Gone. It did give me an opportunity to admire the pretty wild flowers growing in the grass up close and personal. His spook caught me off guard at a point when I was really thinking about and working on being as loose and relaxed as possible in the saddle so I wasn't inadvertently giving him signals so slow down or stop. I guess I was, eh? ROFL! I was so mad at myself, too. I should have been able to ride that particular spook, I've ridden 100s, nay 1,000s of them without an issue.

Poor Kayleigh was so worried about me. She's never seen me dumped before and it wasn't a pretty land-on-your-feet fall either. It was an eat dirt fall. Thank goodness I had my hard hat on. Without that brim I would have face-planted right on my nose. But, I caught Gabe (he didn't go anywhere, and stopped running as soon as I left the saddle), gave him a reassuring pat, and got back up to finish our session. Not a bit of spook left in him and we finished on a good note.

Aside from ditching me, Gabe was wonderful. He is moving well off my leg. Sometimes I have to nudge, nudge, nudge, kiss, kiss, kiss to get him walking from a halt, but he's walking most often off a squeeze, and that's definitely a step in the right direction. The turns are still sticky and he threw a few little head tossing, grunting fits when I decided he could turn around and walk in the opposite direction Chief and Calypso were heading. He did NOT like that idea at all, but after "expressing himself" in his own unique way, he would sigh and give up and head in the direction I pointed him. Good boy!

In which I giggle like a school girl

You know how sometimes it's the little things that make everything come together beautifully? I've been working Gabe on the ground, attacking every little thing I could think of before I climbed into the saddle. I wanted to be sure everything was solid and in place before I got on.

Some people would say I spent too much time on the ground with him and I would kind of have to agree. I wanted to be on him months ago, but winter and mud got in the way. I don't have an indoor or an all-weather arena so when it's muddy, it's MUDDY and I didn't want to risk injury to either of us in the deep, slick mud in case things did not go smoothly.

Gabe has learned well, he's a quick learner and really seems to look forward to whatever I can throw at him. I've yet to find something that will spook, startle or bother that beast.

Today it all came together and I climbed aboard. I was nervous, yes, my heart was pounding and my hands sweating just a bit. Every OTTB I've been on has this tendency to take off as soon as you put a foot in the iron and I was prepared for him to do the same. You just never know how they will react. He stood like a rock and waited as I settled into the saddle, all while talking to him and patting him. Robert, my dear husband, helped me out by standing at his head with a lead rope in hand, just in case all the "whoa!" work we did on the ground didn't transfer to the saddle.

It did. Beautifully.

OMG. All I have to say is WOW! Years ago I rode a Hannoverian dressage schoolmaster and I learned a lot from him. He was trained up to grand prix and had the most powerful, incredible stride I've ever sat. He was not an easy ride and I ended my lessons on him with burning abs and chafed thighs because he just required so much work to sit.

I can honestly say Gabe comes pretty darn close to that power, and that's just not a proud owner talking. He strides big, he strides powerful. He walks with purpose but not anxiety. I felt like I had endless power in the engine and all I had to do was ask for it.

And now I'm asking myself "Why the heck did I wait so long? Holy cow!" But, I'm glad I did. He knows voice commands, he understands the pressure of my legs and turns fairly easily. Is it perfect? Naw, but he's not confused by what I'm asking, and that's what's important.

I did cheat a little bit. Kayleigh and I took Chief and Calypso out for a ride before I got on Gabe. I knew Gabe would run around and buck like a nut while we were gone. I wanted him to take some of the edge off, just in case. And he did. He wasn't exhausted, but he was mellow. But I tell you what...getting off Calypso and getting on Gabe was a whole like going from Ford Escort to Ferrari. Seriously. What a world of difference!

New tack

Finally I bought Gabe a new bridle! I've been using a bridle I cobbled together from pieces parts in my tack trunk and not only did it look funny (black noseband with white piping paired with a havana browband with decorative stitching and cheek pieces in a really light brown. Oh, so attractive!) but it didn't fit very well. This boy has a BIG head! He has a 17" browband measurement but all I could find was a 16" browband. It fits, but it's a tad snug. I'm hoping it stretches a bit with oiling and use.

Everything else fits nicely and it looks fabulous on him. It's a dark chocolate brown, raised noseband and browband with decorative stitching. I really, really didn't want the raised leather or the decorative stitching but the only bridle my local tack shop carried that was flat and plain in dark leather was a Passier that cost $270. I'm not quite ready to drop that kind of money on a bridle! Maybe once we start showing and winning or I win the lottery, but until then, I'll have to be happy with raised tack. Ugh. I just want a nice, flat, wide bridle. Why is it so hard to find simple, plain tack?

A couple of weeks ago I bought a new bit for him because none of mine fit him. All of my bits are 5" mouths...he has a 6" mouth. Yes, I measured it three times, he's just big! Do you have any idea how hard it is to find a bit with a 6" mouth that isn't a draft horse driving bit? Holy moley. I found a full cheek snaffle with a 6" mouth and 5.5" cheeks. So I got the keepers, fitted the bit and the keepers onto the cobbled together bridle and stuck it on him. Oh. My. He absolutely HATED that bit. HATED. I'm guessing he really disliked the poll pressure produced by the long cheeks and the keepers. He reacted rather violently and was kind of scary. I pulled that bit off FAST! There goes $30 on nothing. Did you know you can't return bits? *sigh*

So, back to the drawing board. I finally found a 5 3/4" mouth eggbutt snaffle. Not exactly what I wanted...I was looking for a 6" D-ring with a copper mouth. No luck. So, I brought the eggbutt home, stuck it on his new bridle and gave it a go last night.

He loved it. He chewed and chewed and chewed that bit, reached his head down, responded softly and beautifully to the pressure. Very pleased, I am. Forward progress continues.

My next big purchase will be a new saddle for him. My current Collegiate Eventer doesn't fit as well as I'd like. Because he has such a high, wide wither I need a saddle with "wither panels" to fill in that space. And I'd like one that's a bit wider. But that's a ways down the road, I think. I can't afford to spend $1,000+ on a saddle right now, but I'm saving my nickels towards one!

All the beasts are shedding like mad, Gabe most of all. I think I was wearing just as much of his hair as he was after our grooming session! Only 13 more days til spring! YAY!!!! And the time change is this weekend, meaning there will be MORE daylight at the end of the day again. Double YAY!

Gabe vs the Mounting Block

Gabe met the new mounting block on Saturday and after a couple big-eyed snorty looks at it, accepted it just fine. He wanted to eat it more than anything. He licked it a few times, sniffed it and went on with his business.

I spent some time walking up and down the steps, leading him with me and having him just stand next to it while I leaned over him. He didn't want to stand still so well...as soon as he felt weight on his back, he either swung his butt out and away or tried walking off. We spent about 20 minutes working on just standing still before I could lay over his back without him walking off or wiggling around. Progress!

I did this all bareback with just a halter and lead and he was very accepting. He does, however, have a bad habit that will be broken immediately. I've mentioned before how very mouthy he is: He chews on the lead rope while tied, he swings his head around and swipes his saddle pad, he manages to get the longe line or long reins up into his mouth while I'm working him and chews, chews, chews the bit the entire time I'm working him. I'm thinking about investing in a new copper snaffle with a roller to keep his mouth occupied. He even tries to get the bridle into his mouth when I pull it over his head and I busted him chewing on his sheet last week. The turd. When he and Chief are having "conversations" over the fence he likes to grab Chief's halter and just not let go. This is not a good public relations move for him in Chief's mind!

While I was leaning over his back he kept reaching around and sniffing my butt and using that top lip to "snuffle" around...he didn't bite, but I'm pretty sure he would have if I hadn't kept an eye on his antics! Just lifting my foot and moving it towards his nose got the muzzle off my butt.

So, it's a start and the mounting block is the perfect height for him.

Working on the whoa

My new long lines feel like butter in my hands. They are soft and sensitive and slide so smoothly through the surcingle rings. And Gabe, he's getting it. He's really, really getting it. We started out lunging on the long lines with the outside line through the surcingle ring and over his back to me and the inside line through the surcingle ring out to me. I clipped the lines to the outer rings of his brand-spanking new lunging cavesson and away we went. The cavesson is a bit heavier than the halter so he tossed his head a few times to figure it out then he got over it. Unfortunately, with a cavesson, the lunge line or long reins are A LOT easier for him to reach with those curious lips of his! He sucked the lunge line into his mouth a few times before we really got started. He is such an oral animal, he loves to suck ropes up into his maw and gnaw on 'em. I don't get it.

Anyway, we worked on long lining for about 45 minutes, the first 5 to 10 minutes with the outside line over his back. I flipped the outside line across his butt, then slowly down off his back to hang across his side and around his hocks to me. No adverse reaction. It took me two weeks of regular work with Star to just get her to quietly accept the long line over her butt...we never got to the across the hind legs part, she did NOT want anything touching her back there! As soon as I'd try, she'd squish her butt forward and crow hop, trying to get away from the offending line.

The lines in the correct position make changing directions a LOT easier! We walked back and forth across the paddock, working on collecting and extending the walk. We did circles, figure 8s, serpentines and turns on the haunches on the fence. I even tried a couple of "leg" yields and he GOT IT! He took it all in stride and only crow hopped once when I accidentally let one of the lines work it's way up under his tail a bit. Ooops! Bad long liner!

Our big sticking point right now is stopping. We still don't have that one down pat. I thought it would be a bit easier to get a good whoa out of him on the lines, but, it wasn't happening. So, I'm trying a different method, and it seemed to work. Instead of asking him to whoa out in the middle of the paddock or along the fence, I aim him towards a fence and when he gets about four steps away, I ask for a whoa with both my voice and my lines. The fence gives him a visual WHOA! aid. He was a bit confused at first and tried to turn on his haunches or yield sideways in response to the whoa and the upcoming barrier, but after about the 6th or 7th attempt, he stopped while still facing the fence.

He stops beautifully on the lead rope. I say whoa or I stop, and he stops without an issue, his head lined up with my shoulder where he belongs. He ground ties and stands statue still while I'm grooming him or whatever. But as soon as I get him AWAY from me on a longer length of rope, he forgets all about the whoa. Or, when I do get him to respond to the whoa out on the line, he tries to walk in to me and stand next to me...right where he would be if I was leading him. It's almost like he thinks whoa means "Stand still next to her shoulder." *sigh*

I'm going to keep using the fence as a barrier to get the whoa on the longer lines. We'll see how he progresses. Once we get the whoa down perfectly, I'll get on. Everything else is as good, if not better, than where I wanted him before I got on.

Now, if I could only get my hubby to get his butt in gear to build me a mounting block. Five-foot-two me, no matter how flexible, is going to have a bit of a challenge getting up onto 16.2hh Gabe without some vertical assistance! Especially on a horse who has been previously trained to walk while the rider is mounting! Ha! That would be a spectacle!