Weekend Playtime

I am writing this while listening to the theme to the movie Contact, Forrest Gump and various Star Trek soundtracks. Fine music, good for concentration. Some of it would probably make good music for a spotlight with Walker at some point.

Anyway, I had a wonderful time playing with Walker and Maverick this weekend. They are two horses with overlapping similarities. Walker blends his left brained extroversion with right brain extroversion; Maverick blends his left brained extroversion with a healthy dose of left brained introversion. Every  now and then, I see a hint of right brained introvert in Maverick. I really have to keep a close eye on him when he shows any sign of a lack of confidence, he really has the potential for an explosive reaction if you don't take care of that small part of him. At some point, I will explain how well I know that in a later blog.

Our weather continues to be wet, so we have been limited by and large to the small indoor arena. There isn't much room in there, but in some ways, that is not all bad. Because of the small area, it has allowed me to be very progressive with Maverick in teaching him the seven games and starting to show him how they can be put together. This week, we have been playing with the figure eight, the weave, and I have been playing a lot of liberty (NO rope NO halter) to test our connection. Most of the time, our connection has been pretty good. When he decides he wants to do his own thing, I say fine, and then some. Sometimes the "and then some" is pretty darn big. Three nights ago, he decided to test me and my leadership. After I sent him around the arena until he wanted to come into the middle softly, we did a willing figure eight at liberty. But before that could happen, he expended a lot of energy on the rail! Big trotting, cantering, kicking and farting. Afterwards, the figure eight wasn't smooth, but he was really connected, asking lots of questions and trying really hard to get it right. It is impossible for me not to come away from a play session like that and not feel my heart full. Wendy and Maverick did both the figure eight and the weave today, and our playtime really paid off watching the two of them. It just goes to show that if you teach a horse how to communicate with people, it doesn't take any special magic for someone else to play with that horse. Consistency of language, being appropriate in strategy and being in the moment are the keys.

Now, Walker was really something today. Our session was very short because he offered so much, so quickly. I asked for sideways over a barrel, which we have never been able to do from either side, and he gave it to me. He came sideways towards me over poles AND a turning a corner so calmly, it was as though a soft wind was blowing him towards me. We played with long lines from zone five, in other words, from behind him, and he did the easiest weave we have ever done together. I knew we were done after that. So he hung out with me in the middle of the arena while Wendy was playing with Bingo, and even though Bingo was getting a big lesson in obedience, spending a lot of energy out on the rail, cantering and trotting, Walker knew it had absolutely nothing to do with him. He remained completely calm just being with me.

The big goal with Maverick right now is to make both sides evenly responsive. His left side is much better with everything than his right. Stay tuned, knowing this horse, it won't take terribly long...

One footnote: Wendy, can you write about your experience with Bingo today? I think your perspective on what happened between the two of you today would be great to read about. We all await your post!

Just a Thought

Have you ever paused to consider that what so many people seek in life is the exotic, when what satifies the human soul the most are the sympathetic, small and simple things, the moments and actions that connect us to one another? I am feeling very blessed right now with the people (and animals!) I have in my life that make my daily challenges and joys more bearable and memorable.

Halcyon Weekend

Had a couple of really entertaining, enlightening and joyful days with horses and friends. Yesterday, we decided to take Maverick out on the trail. Wendy rode Maverick first, and she definitely got the most exciting end of that decision, but more on that later. Wendy and I both have decided that we have such a smart horse, we need to be as progressive with him as possible. And, since we need 500 hours of riding him before we can start to have a real partnership in the saddle, the more riding with him we do, the better. We picked a savvy team of people/horses to go with, Sarah and Tessa, me and Walker and Rachel and Doc. OK, Doc is not so savvy, but with Rachel in the saddle, we could trust that whatever happened, she would do the right thing.
Everything went very well until we got to the back side of the lake. Since the last time we had gone back there, there has been a lot of construction happening. Apparently, a large trench had been dug to lay pipe, so the footing was very soft with no grass to help. There was a new, large above ground pump station of which none of the horses was very fond. After going about halfway to our usual turnaround spot, we decided to go back to avoid anymore bad footing. Something really spooked Doc, which in turn really spooked Maverick who took off with Wendy somehow managing to stay in the saddle. She was pulling on both reins (we were riding him in a halter and lead rope for reins), then Sarah and I both started reminding her, loudly, to use one rein as he was moving fast and like a dolphin along the edge of the levy. Thankfully, he did no twisting, he just moved forward with a lot of uncontrolled energy, so Wendy was quickly able to get him to a halt by bending him with the right rein. Not everyone would have been able to keep a cool head the way Wendy did given the narrow area she was navigating between the steep slope leading to lake to her left and the soft footing to the right. Once the horses had settled some, we continued on our back, but when we made the bend around the lake towards Court road, all the horses became very unsettled. Wendy did the smart thing and got off of Maverick. I kept Walker busy by doing lots of small disengages until he got more focused. As we walked along Court Rd, Wendy kept Mav busy by doing lots of falling leaf, so by the time we got to the field across from the stables, he was quite calm. I hopped off of Walker, gave him so more cookies and told Wendy that if she felt like riding Walker, she was welcomed to do so.
I got on Maverick, did some circles around the trees as well as some figure eights. He is as green as grass, but he already knows how to stop on my seat, which is quite an accomplish so soon. He has trouble staying on track on the circle, so I had to bump him back to the middle quite often, but he was really trying to understand what I wanted. Each time he softened on the circle, I asked for a walk and gave him lots of scratches. I stopped often to give him the chance to think and assess. We also started the figure eight pattern, just enough to start teaching it to him. Wendy enjoyed riding Walker at the trot and canter, feeling how pushing her energy back into the saddle instead of scooping forward really helps the horse come up and move forward. We helped Rachel with Doc by showing her how valuable circles and the figure eight pattern can be to getting a horse with a lot of energy and ideas of his own to be calmer and more focused. Once Doc got a little softer, we all headed back to the barn. All in all, a memorable and important day for Wendy, Maverick and me.
Did I mention the weather? We got a spectacularly beautiful day, clear blue skies and about 60 degrees.
Today, Sarah and I rode across the street in the park, and she helped Walker and me with some exercises to get us both more relaxed and moving forward and up. It really helped both of us to be more relaxed as he learned to move more forward. I learned more from Sarah today then all the dressage lessons I have had up to this point. It really is great to have so many wonderful people at our barn.
Then I got to play with Maverick on the ground. We warmed up with some circle/change of direction games, then I had him step onto, over and then back onto a tarp, stopping on the tarp and staying there for 10 seconds. First time, no problems. Yo-yoed him over a poll, again first time, no problem. It is so much fun to play with a horse with excellent breeding AND no baggage! Then I started to teach him the weave, which after just the third go around, he started to understand, so we stopped and he licked my hand for about 3 minutes. Have you ever stood and let a horse lick your hand for 3 minutes? He and I were both at peace with one another, just a wonderful feeling. Then I took the halter off. After a few stops and starts, he gave me one circle to the left and one to the right. Even though he gave me several circles at liberty both ways on Friday, it felt a little robotic. This time, when he circled me, he made the decision to do so, not because he was doing a mindless circle. How different it felt to have him do the circle willingly, not like a chore. And what a draw we already have! Even when he wandered away, it was easy to return his attention to me and have him trot back to me. So many things can bring me joy, but when Walker and Maverick choose to return to me willingly with energy and respect, it makes my heart sore and brings a giant grin to my face. We finished by yo-yoing backwards over a poll, again at liberty and for the first time, and some stick to me game, walk, trot, stop and backwards from zone 2. Maverick still doesn't like me being on his right side, so we did twice as much on the right than on the left side. We stopped and I fed him cookies and again waited as he licked my hand for quite some time. He yawned a bit as I walked him back to his stall, where he drank some water, sighed and started in on his hay with satisfaction.
I am having so much fun with Walker now. It's hard to quantify how far he and I have come and how much we have learned together, so I don't even try, I just look forward to how much farther we will go. And I know Pat says your second Parelli horse is always smarter than your first one (tongue in cheek), but speaking with complete objectivity, Maverick is something special.

Horsin around

Horsin around

Special horse

Had a really interesting playtime with Maverick yesterday. He seemed to be in a very playful, punky mood, so I decided to play with him at liberty to start. We began with some friendly game, but it was obvious he needed to move, so since we were next to the fence I asked him to squeeze past me to the left, which he did very nicely.  But when I asked him to disengage, he kept going in a circle and squeezed by me again before he listened to my ask for a disengage. He did such a nice circle that I thought to myself, what if I ask him to circle here at liberty? And he did, but not just one, two, and I again asked for the disengage, brought him in and let him lick my hands for a minute or two. He loves to lick on me and Wendy after he has done a task, we both agree, it is a good way for him to access and think and feel right about what we are doing together. It took me 5 years to get a liberty circle game with Walker, and with Maverick, a very green horse, we got it in 3 months. I always imagined what it might have been like for Walker if he hadn't been such an emotional wreck when he came into my life. And what it might have been like for him if I hadn't been so green in natural horsemanship myself when we started together. I think I have my answer now in Maverick. The great news is that Walker is becoming the horse he was meant to be, all be it late.  Because of what I have learned with Walker, I can appreciate and value this chance I have with Maverick, a physically, mentally and emotionally talented young horse.

So, I wanted to test whether Maverick really understood I was asking for the circle game, so we moved to another part of the arena. I yo-yoed him backwards for a few steps, then asked him to move into a left circle, and not only did he do two circles, he did four! I disengaged him, brought him in and fed him cookies. When I asked him for a right circle, he could not do it, he moved back into a left circle again. Liberty tells you the truth, so it was obvious to me that he was not confident about the right hand circle, probably because he had not been played with much on his right side. So I put the halter and 22 ft line on him and asked him to start a right circle, disengage, rest, start, disengage, rest and start again. Each time, it became easier and easier for him to move in the right hand direction. When he moved right easily, probably the fourth or fifth time, I disengaged him, asked him in and fed him cookies, let him lick my hand for about five minutes, just hung out with him, down time. 

What a great play session! We had great energy, willingness to please, truth and a the seeking of a path to greater achievement together. I am blessed to have this chance to play with and develop this horse.

New Member of my horse family

Shame on me for not writing about this sooner, but I have a new horse I have gone in on with Wendy. His name is Maverick (registered name: Allergic Reaction), a big gorgeous quarter horse hunk. I really rode him for the first time this last week, and he is as green as grass, but I am not any more, so that is OK. We have started to ride along the rail and ride some circles, walk, trot.  On the ground, he can already do all seven games quite well, we can pick his feet at liberty from both sides (something he really did not want to do at all when we first got him), so we are already playing with Level 2 tasks. He is a left brain extrovert with lots of energy at the ready. Bay with bits of flaxen in his tail and mane. I am in love with him already. When we stop playing so he can think a little, he will lick my hand over and over again. When he gives me a little nip with his teeth, I know it is time to get his feet moving again! He is smart and tries really hard to please. He had a problem with a pretty bad hoof abscess first week we got him, but that is healing. Eddie Drabek is coming to see him tomorrow to start him on a natural trim regimen. For that matter, I want Eddie to evaluate Walker about pulling his shoes off so he can be barefoot again like when I first got him. Walker has been getting better and better under saddle, really bringing a lot of effort. Love that! More later . . .

Clinic update

So now that the holidays are over, it's time for a clinic update. Walker was just fabulous this time around. He was much calmer in the group and yet he still had lots of energy. Kerri pointed out a flaw in my cantering, I was scooping instead of flowing back and up with the canter. Now that my surgery foot has healed adequately, I rode twice this week, and what a difference it made! Walker has had huge energy at the canter, but with exuberance, no craziness. I laughed out loud each time we stopped for a break, fed him cookies as a thank you. And I know I was riding differently, because I had sore muscles. We also worked on our circling game at Liberty, and Walker was able to do a flying lead change at Liberty. What I did find out was that I still needed to play with my draw at Liberty, and we have made excellent strides with that over the last couple of days.
It has been raining quite a bit where we are, and we don't have a large indoor arena. However, we have a large park across the street with big open fields. I go out and mark an arena with cones and it works really well, plus Walker now likes being out in the open. It gives me an "arena" to play in and it helps me focus on the patterns we are playing with. My favorite right now is the clover leaf. I also ride a dressage test to mix it up a little bit so Walker doesn't get bored or stale.
It is wonderful to now be having FUN with my horse. And although I know Walker doesn't think of it as "fun" the way I do, I can tell he feels good about our sessions together. It feels like this is what he was born to do, canter big and beautiful in the middle of a park!
Maverick, the horse Wendy and I own together, is making big strides fast. We play with him in the small indoor arena, where he can now play almost all the seven games online as well as at Liberty. His Liberty stick to me game is really getting good. I love Liberty! It is so much fun, but especially with my extroverted horses.