Tackling Trailer Issues...AGAIN

Long-time readers will remember this post from October. Q's issues with loading had reached a dangerous place (for both myself and for her). I tried to remedy the situation with a trailer session to teach her to self-load, but after she bowled me over, Dee came down and helped out. After some super fantastical backing of the trailer into the barn/round pen, we had a setup that worked to remedy things at the time.

I had Q loading beautifully by the end of those sessions. In refresher sessions days after though,Q redeveloped her fear (error on my part for not "stopping on a good note" early) and life became difficult and questionable again in the realm of trailer loading. FML.

The only place I had to take her to and from last fall was the Fort Valley ride. We managed that with minimal issue despite her redeveloped fears, but I knew that by spring time I would have to confront the whole issue anew.

I let her sit all winter without worrying about the trailer issues. All winter we worked on other things, but through those things I always worked to keep her calm and happy. She's so liable to fly off the handle over silly things, I mean c'mon folks, this is a horse that will spook at a damn butterfly if it looks at her wrong! (And snow, and rocks, and logs, and poop, and berries, and flowers, and YELLOW flowers, and WHITE flowers, and the god-forsaken PURPLE flowers, and other horses, never cows, but heaven forbid a monster bush......yeah. She has issues.)

And so we went a solid 3 months where Q was calm 90% of the time. Sure, she wasn't in heat during those winter months (her heat cycles triggered her absolute WORST freak-out behaviors), but hey, I had to develop a baseline for how my girl *can* be before I could judge her in her dragon days.

A big part of Q's calm demeanor was my hypersensitivity to my OWN emotions and mood when I was around her. If I was having a rough day, I would not go to the barn. If I wasn't in the best of moods, I would either work only with Griffin (who isn't as sensitive to tiny things), or I'd just give the horses some grain, brush them, and then leave.

Additionally, I did my best to go to the barn without a *solid* plan. I'd have A plan. I'd have some IDEAS. And I'd have some GOALS. But if I got to the barn and things weren't feeling *just right* for one thing, I'd throw that idea to the wind and take off on another track all together. By doing this, I did my best to set both Q and I up for success. 

After 3 months, I don't have to be so hypersensitive. I've created a new habit for myself...and for Q. And before long, I'll [hopefully] be able to call that new habit a new norm.

So, last night, somewhat out of the blue, somewhat preparatory for my weekend trip (details to follow in later posts), I decided to confront the trailer issue again.

My objectives for last night began as the following:

• Clean up my mess of tack and things
• Pack the trailer part-way
• Prep all that I could prep to finish packing Wednesday and Thursday
• Do hill sprints with Q
• See if she might maaaaayyybeee load? and take her on a short ride
• If she wouldn't load, just take the trailer on a short ride to make sure things were in working order

What actually happened last night?

I cleaned, I packed, I prepped. That went without issue.

I brought the horses (who were both standing at the gate waiting on me) both in and gave them a ½ scoop of grain while I inspected the trailer, cleaned it out, and hooked it up to my vehicle. (After riding Q I wouldn't want to spend the time to hook it up.)

And then? Then I snatched up my dressage whip, gloves, and a helmet, grabbed Q, and decided to see what would happen with the whole trailer thing. I threw all other plans into the wind.

And then, before I knew it, I'd spent an HOUR working with Q on loading.

We took it slow. We took it REALLY SLOW.

I wanted to try my best to keep her as calm as I could. And keeping her calm meant being slow.

I learned last fall that Q is NOT a horse that can be lunged around in attempts to get her to load. The more she moves her feet and the faster, the more worked up and freaked out she becomes. And I can't employ any method that involved me standing in the trailer because of Q's tendency to load and immediately WHIRL around. (The center divider is pushed all the way to the left side of the trailer (as you look in from behind) because I rarely pull two horses.) I almost broke my arm last fall from being partly in the trailer when she whirled.

So... I needed to figure out a method that didn't employ her moving her feet excessively or involve me being on the trailer. Hmm...

I had tied a hay bag to the back of the trailer (since the last time we did anything with trailering Q wanted to be backwards) in hopes that if she loaded and we went on a ride she could munch some hay. Well, we didn't go on a ride but this bag of hay did work to my advantage! Before we did any loading, I just stood at the back corner of the trailer (the bag was tied on the hinge side of the door, so when the door was open it was nearest to the inside opening of the trailer) by the hay bag and encouraged Q to eat the hay. She loves the recent load of square bales so much; getting her to stand and eat wasn't too difficult.

I cooed at her for being so good and calm and standing by the trailer. I walked her away quietly, and brought her back to eat the hay a few times. I wanted her to realize that just because we walked near the open trailer didn't mean bad things were going to happen.

Calm Q. Happy Q.

Because I know that Q knows somewhat how to self-load from previous trainings, I decided to see where that got me. So when I walked her back to the trailer a fourth time, I asked her to get on, "Looooadd up!"

She got as close as she could and leaned waaaayyy far in, but wouldn't get on. I praised. I backed her up several steps and walked forward again. "Looooaad up!" Same thing. Praise. Backing.

Repeat. One foot and on, then she backed right off. Praise. Backing. Rinse. Repeat.

Spent a LONG time looking like this last night!
Except I was standing at the corner of the trailer on the far side.

Slowly, slowly, we reached a point where she'd get her front end on without an issue. Every time she came off, I backed her up, then we walked right back to the trailer where I'd say "Loooaad up!" *boom boom* Her two front feet banging into the trailer. She got to a point for a little bit where she was LUNGING on, both feet in tandem *boom!*. Then stopping. Then just looking around and sniffing. I'd praise and praise and praise. Then she'd either get off or I'd back her off to try again.

She does have a bit of a tendency to want to back up and spin to her left as she exits. Well, hello, Q, I'm kind of standing there! I got to a point where I would anticipate this and just hold the bright pink dressage whip up near her head between us both. It gave her a visual and she'd stop. If she didn't stop, I'd lightly tap her on the forehead/cheek with it and verbally chastise her for her decisions to turn.

When she made a really good attempt and lingered a long time with her front end on the trailer, I'd only back her a couple steps once she had exited, then ask her to get on again. And then that evolved into me having to back her off because she wouldn't get off. When her feet would touch the ground outside of the trailer after I backed her off, I'd immediately ask her to load again without any additional backing.

So, for her, good attempts and longer time on the trailer = less time backing my ass up outside of the trailer.

She was actually really funny once she figured out that being on the trailer meant I'd let her stand still and look out the trailer window at her friends because when I'd ask her to back up so we could try again she was very hesitant about coming off. And when she did exit she lunged right back on. "OMG!! MY FRIENDS, MOM! I CAN SEE MY FRIENDS OUT THIS WINDOW! NO! I DON'T WANT TO COME OFF THE TRAILER! I WANT TO LOOK AT MY FRIENDS! HIIIEEE FRIENDS!"

With time, she was actually getting all four feet on. She'd still get on and try to WHIRL to the right, but because I had the lead rope in hand still, I could give a tug to say, "No, no, no." and she'd stand still.

She did manage to WHIRL a few times and run off the trailer. But I just walked quietly after her manic freak-out trot, gather her up, walk her back, and go right back into everything as if nothing had happened.

Eventually we reached a point though where she would get all four on, think about WHIRLING right, pause for a few seconds, then *turn* somewhat stately to the left instead and just stay standing backwards on the trailer.

Whatever. She was pretty calm about it so I can live with that. Praise. Praise. Praise.

Lead her off, lead her back, "Looooaad up!", she'd get two feet on, hesitate, I'd wait, then ask her to put her back end on, she'd do it, then she'd pause and turn around. I'd feed her hay, let her be calm, and then lead her off and repeat.

I tried to close the door one time, and her eyes became saucers, her mouth stopped chewing, and her ears swiveled really far forward as she realized that OMG IT'S CLOSING! I talked calmly to her, but didn't get aggressive about trying to keep her on. Instead, when she - at the last moment - made a move to walk off, I shoved the door back open. Her expression as she was stepping off was very conflicted. Her whole body hesitated a titch. It was as if she thought she should have stayed on when the scary door opened back up.

I turned her around and loaded her up again, this time just standing beside her feeding her lots of hay for several moments.

We repeated this twice more and I called it a night. I figured she was calm and she was on the trailer and I could *almost* manage to close the door on my own. That was MORE than sufficient to get us through this weekend when I would always have a second person to help close the door.

From the way things progressed last night, I feel pretty confident that with time, patience, and keeping my cool about the whole thing, I'll have a horse that will load fairly reliably and calmly - and MAYBE stand forward...one day.

A calm mare completely inside the trailer was all I really wanted. A calm mare inside the trailer was just what I had!


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Oh, and, by the way, it's worth mentioning: She was in hot, raging, squirting, HEAT last night. AND I got her to load. AND be calm about it. BOOM, BITCHEZ.

Horses Who Made Me: Pegasus

Pegasus

Summer of 2011 I moved back to my hometown to begin my career job. I had recently gotten my first horse Orion (to be covered in next week's episode), and was given an additional opportunity to work with a rotund 3 year old, 14.2hh paint colt named Pegasus.

No, we're not standing in front of a green screen, that was the true
background!

My vet had recommended me to the couple who owned Pegasus because of my level head and enthusiasm. This horse needed time, patience, and determination. The owners wanted to be able to ride him around their property (a commercial campground) without issue. I'd never truly started a young horse before, and the challenge sounded fun. I didn't request any payment, as I had zero qualification to do this work. I only wanted the experience.

Experience is just what I gained!

Pegasus lived on the property with one other horse - his mother. He had never been separated from her. He'd never met another horse in his life. He only knew his mother. Additionally, he'd been socialized to the point of being incredibly rude towards people. He had always been coddled and spoiled, so he had developed quite an oral fixation with anything and everything within his reach. His curious nibbles would quickly turn into more aggressive nips.

I did my best to work with what I was presented with. I quickly realized that I'd need to bring my own tack though, as the hodge podge assembly of older tack available on the property wasn't quite up to par with what I needed and wanted to do.

My options for riding consisted of a private dirt road and a large back field with tall grass that was mown into a maze that was - if viewed from an airplane - a sunflower.

The first sessions with Pegasus were accompanied by my then-boyfriend, Chris. Chris is even more gung-ho than I as far as pushing limits goes; he was, and is, a true adrenaline junkie. He and Kenai played and watched as I tacked Pegasus up and made a very sorry attempt to lunge him - an effort that proved nearly futile due to the facilities - or lack thereof - I had to work with.

I ended up doing some modified in-hand work with the colt around the property, showing him a myriad of "strange" things. By the end of the session, Chris lay across Pegasus' back just for the hell of it to see if the little colt would respond. Pegasus didn't even flick an ear! Chris went further, throwing a leg across the colt to properly sit on his back. Pegasus still didn't flick an ear, his focus on me as I held his halter and lead. I led the colt, with Chris astride, back to the barn and ended on that note, to the great pleasure of his owners who were certain I was a miracle worker by this point - HA.

The next couple sessions proceeded the same as the first; ground work in hand followed by pony rides. With time, the pony rides evolved into solo mounted pursuits.

Pegasus was a quick and willing learner who took quickly to pressure and release methods, learning to turn left and ride off aids from both the reins and my legs.

Here is a video a friend put together of me riding Pegasus at one of the last sessions. Be Advised: It was on one of THE HOTTEST summer days I have EVER experienced in WV. I recognize the adherent risk and danger associated with no helmet and flip flops around horses. The risk was mine own and I don't recommend others pursue the same.

 


He had all of the associated "baby" breakdowns, mostly mental. He was particularly awful at throwing his head whenever he disagreed with a request. When doing on ground work, this wasn't as big an issue, but work under saddle? I lost track of the number of times I nearly had my nose broken. I eventually added a tie-down to our get-up, and his outbursts stalled.

The colt's biggest issue though? His separation anxiety. For the life of me, I don't understand why he was never ever separated from his mother. There was certainly enough property to do it. There was even a neighbor with horses who was willing to take the colt or his mother for a time, but nothing was ever done.

I quickly learned that I had a 20 minute window with Pegasus before he'd lose his shit about not being with his mother and completely break down. His mother would call for him incessantly from the moment I took him from the field. Even when I would take him to the furthest available point to work with him we could still hear her echoing whinnies of distress. You can imagine how these negatively affected everything I tried to do!

Sadly for the colt, I had a bit of a falling out with his owners after I'd moved Orion there for a short time. The wife absolutely disagreed with the natural hoof care methods that Orion was receiving and really got in my face about it a time or two. This, on top of her blatant disregard for my safety after a few incidents with Pegasus and with his mother (incidents that I will never mention in a public format), caused me to step away before further harm came to me. The last I heard from my vet, Pegasus had been given to one of their family members. I don't know what became of him other than that.

The whole adventure of working with Pegasus taught me so much. I learned what worked and didn't work when training a green horse. I learned what facilities were crucial when training vs. what could be improvised on the spot. I learned patience. I learned to say "no" when things got to be too much. I learned that I had a lot more to learn.

AERC Convention

I'm a bad blogger. I'm a good live-my-lifer though. As a result, the blog has been lacking while I've been out doing and living. All three of my blogging cohorts have posted on their AERC convention experiences already (and are linked throughout this post). Here is my much-delayed report on the weekend!

: : : : :

Thursday morning, earlier than I'd have preferred, I rocketed out of my barn abode and toward the rendezvous point in Strasburg, VA to meet and pick up Saiph to then make our trek down south to Atlanta for the 2014 AERC National Convention.

The morning drive across WV into VA was beautiful. The rising sun kissed the mountains one by
one, promising to melt the snow by weekend end. The drive was relatively uneventful, until my 13 year old 4Runner's gas gauge decided to scare me good in the middle of nowhere with the sudden illumination of my "get gas now or you're screwed" light.

I sent quick panic texts to Saiph and her husband Charles so that if I did run out of gas they would know about where I was to come rescue me. Moments after sending these, I saw that there was a BP gas station in 1½ miles. WHEW.

I put 4 gallons (a true ¼-tank for my car) into the tank and used a red Sharpie to mark where the new, true ¼-tank mark was for future reference and continued on toward Strasburg.

The pass-off of Saiph from Charles to me went pretty smoothly. We traded her things from his car to mine, and I whisked her away from him victoriously. ...okay, okay, so it wasn't quite like that but if he reads this I know he'll laugh. ;-)

Saiph and I proceeded to spend the next solid ~10 hours talking. Fastest road trip ever - or so it seemed. Good company makes everything better.

We stayed with one of my old coworkers - KC - who, fortunately for us, lives in Atlanta. Right after we arrived he shuttled us to a diner that served homestyle-cooked southern goodness. I got chicken pot pie, fried green tomatoes, and black eyed peas. NOM. But as much nom as it was, it still didn't have much on my mom's cooking of the same things (she's from SC).

After dinner, we all crashed in anticipation of waking up bright and early - my friend for work, and Saiph and I for the convention. However, before heading to bed Saiph and I printed off a photo of our other sadly-absent-from-AERC-Convention-attendence blogger friend, Karen. We were sad she couldn't be in attendance, so we decided we'd take her along on our adventures the best we could!

: : : : :

Because the first day was a business day (Friday) we woke early enough to beat rush hour traffic so we wouldn't miss the first speaker of the day. Mission accomplished. The drive took 30 minutes and we experienced no traffic! Zing!

Once we'd arrived at the convention venue and parked, we were able to snag the tail end of the International Rider "debate" where folks were taking turns discussing opinions and views on the whole FEI debacle that has been unraveling the past year or so. While I don't understand all of the finer points of the debate, I can say that I was impressed with the views each person expressed. Everyone was well-spoken. It was really cool to see folks I've only read about or seen in photos in Endurance News in the flesh - from international coaches and riders to recent winners of the Tevis. Its a strange sensation to recognize someone's face or name and wonder how you know them, and then realize that you don't really know them, but you've learned of their infamy through the endurance community!

Saiph and I quietly excused ourselves from the debate after 20 minutes or so. It was starting to go
over our heads and I didn't care to experience any mental anguish over it. If I were deeper into it all, I may have stayed. As it is, I'm really just starting to get involved in the sport after years of lusting toward it!

Saiph and I slipped downstairs to browse the tack swap and trade show, AKA browse around and temp ourselves to spend money we really didn't need to spend.

Heading to the tack swap we passed by the Renegade booth where we both got distracted meeting Ashley and Mel IRL. Finally! And, *surprise* blogger meet with Caitlin who was also at the Renegade booth!

Visiting the tack swap with Karen!

We all stood around catching up and chatting about horses, hoof boots, and endurance - because seriously, what else would we talk about?!

When the Renegade booth started getting busy with new folks inquiring about the product, Saiph and I excused ourselves to go browse swiftly spend money on our horses.

There weren't a ton of vendors, but Saiph and I managed to spend enough money between the Distance Depot and the tack swap that was going on without having other possible sources to temp money from our wallets.

I was particularly behaved all weekend, only purchasing a few select things that were on a list of things to find. Syringes for dosing electrolytes (3 for a total of $5), a breast plate in lime green for Griffin (a score at $40), and a full sheepskin cover for my Ansur (no deal on this sadly, but nice to finally obtain and not have to pay any shipping costs). The only unanticipated purchase was a second saddle for Mike.

Mike's new saddle

Saiph and I were strolling through the tack swap when I noticed an Ansur saddle. I thought, "OH! Bet it's like $1200," as most of the used Ansurs I've found are right around that dollar amount. I was very surprised to read a $500 price tag! I called Mike immediately and asked how interested he was in getting a second saddle. He'd ridden in my Ansur before and was really enjoying it. This saddle was very similar and should fit him well. My push for him to get it is because I know it is something that works well for Q - who he has been riding frequently (I'd like to use my Ansur on Griffin eventually, too). His stock saddle is so heavy and just doesn't work well on Q because it always manages to eject whatever saddle pad we use with it. Something about saddle fit and Q's movement is a tricky combination. Mike agreed that it was a good option after I assured him we could sell it with little problem if he decided later he didn't want it. I bought it right then and stuffed it away in the car.

After the buying spree, Saiph and I settled into lectures for the rest of our stay. We went to one on shoeing for specific needs first. I didn't glean new information from the lecture at all. I was encouraged that the knowledge I have developed in the past two years is accurate though! It was also refreshing to hear a farrier discuss the importance of balance in the hoof; how balance and the shape of the hoof can place stress on other parts of the leg if not properly balanced. He also waxed and waned a fair bit on how you have to watch a horse's way of going before you can decide how the hoof should be trimmed/shoed. He noted that there isn't a PERFECT hoof for all horses. I was so happy to hear him say this because I know multiple hoof professionals who have ONE image of how a hoof should be and strive to put ALL of their client's hooves into that shape no matter how it may affect the horse later. It frustrates and disgusts me and is part of the reason I choose to do my own horses' feet.

After the shoeing lecture, Saiph and I opted out of the colic lecture (Mel's review here) to go eat lunch. Such hunger. So starving. We bopped by the Renegade booth to see if Mel or Ashley wanted us to pick up anything (Ashley did; Mel was at the colic lecture) and we bopped out to find food.

We ended up at a pretty awesome - albeit sketchy as hell! - Mexican place. Lunch was $4.99 for quite a bit of food. Saiph and I ended up eating + margarita-ing for <$10/each! #winning

After lunch we headed back to the convention for a lecture on the management of heat stress in endurance horses. Thanks to Mel's copious posts on this topic, I wasn't inundated or overwhelmed by the amount of information presented. Here is Mel's review on the lecture.

With lectures wrapped up for the day, we headed across the street to Ruby Tuesday for dinner with our group of mostly-bloggers.

It was a hoot getting to sit and eat and drink with these ladies. We had so. much. fun. Of course, the conversation was all horse-related somehow. Much laughter. Much sillyness. How I wish we all lived closer!!

Me, Mel, Caitlin, Saiph, Ashley

After dinner, Saiph and I traversed across town to KC's again to meet up with him, his fianceé and three of their friends for some casual drinks, board games, and conversation at the apartment. No one was in a great hurry to go to bed since we were all sleeping in the following morning.

: : : : :

Saturday morning was blissful. Waking when my circadian rhythm dictated I should and not when an obnoxious alarm wanted me to.

KC and his fianceé made us all breakfast before headed out on a hiking trip in north GA. Once they'd departed, Saiph and I took a stroll in the beautiful 70°F weather along the Chattahoochee River Trail that we were able to access from KC's apartment. Mmmm, sun!

We mosied across town for a couple more lectures at the convention around noon. The first lecture we attended was about chest and groin injuries in our equine athletes. IT. WAS. AWESOME. The presenter didn't dumb-down the presentation at all from what he'd presented at the veterinary CE earlier at the convention. He was incredibly well-spoken, his lecture was supported by slides instead of narrated on the slides, he had a variety of media (text, photo, video) to supplement his lecture, and he answered questions the audience posed throughout the presentation with succinct tact and professionalism. (I am VERY particular about what makes a good presenter/presentation and this guy was perfect.) I learned quite a bit in the brief hour and a half that he spoke. The time FLEW by. He was so well-versed on his subject matter and it really showed. (I will link Mel's review to this lecture when she posts it.)

We had planned to attend the following lecture on recent research in endurance, but we got to it a little late and realized what was being discussed was quite over our heads! Knowing Mel was present to update us on what we missed - and in a format we'd probably understand better (thanks, Mel!) - we slipped out.

We were then presented with a bit of a conundrum: it wasn't quite 4p and we had nothing else planned for the day (no awards banquet for us). We couldn't drive home because Charles couldn't meet Saiph until 9a at the earliest. We didn't really feel like exploring Atlanta more and spending more money. Hmm... I racked my brain for friends and family that lay between us and our morning destination, wondering if we could get half-way or more to make the following day easier (11½ hours total driving for me; a ½-hour shorter for Saiph). I made a quick call to my aunt and uncle to see if we could crash there that night. They welcomed the visit, happy to be able to see me and meet my friend - even if for a brief stay.

Saiph and I rocketed back to KC's, packed our bags lightning-quick, and headed 4 hours north into NC. We chatted for an hour or so with my aunt and uncle when we arrived before finally crashing to gain a few hours sleep.

We woke early around 5a (which seemed like 4a because of Daylight Savings), packed up, loaded up, ate a small breakfast, and got onto the road.

The hours between NC and Strasburg FLEW by. You'd think after spending an already-inordinate amount of time together we'd have run out of things to talk about....but we hadn't. We realized afterward that we talked for a minimum of 24 hours straight on this trip. That's a TON of talking. We didn't listen to the radio at all. We talked. We talked. We talked. About horses, family, life, love, and everything in between. It was a lot of fun.

We made it to Strasburg around 11a to meet Charles. I said my goodbyes (happily because I'd be seeing them in 2 weeks - this weekend upcoming!) and I rocketed west toward home.

2-pointing on the grey pony; Q and Mike behind

Once home (around 2p), I hugged Mike hello, and we zipped out to the barn to ride for awhile. I had no ride plan this day aside from gaining some time on the rail trail - the asphalt section in particular - to get some trimming done the natural way. We ended up riding 10 miles (only a mile on the asphalt)! Mike on Q, I on Griffin.

Both horses did SO well; I think they were happy to be out on a FLAT trail with easy footing and no snow for once! In fact, neither horse was very sweaty when we'd finished - though that may be in part to the 2 mile cool-down. (I'm not sure I've stated before, but I have to travel 2 miles (one-way) to reach the rail trail. So whenever I post the mileage total for these rides that is always included in the total; if you subtract 4 miles from the ride you'll know how many miles the horses *actually* were in focused work and not a warm-up or cool-down period.)

Q only spooked in her evilest of ways a time or two, and Griffin was the BOMB for his first time out on the rail trail! He was afraid of graffiti and one rootball on an upturned tree, but beyond that he was so game for everything. Through tracking with Endomondo, I was able to discover that he has a very solid 7-8 mph trot. YAY. The perfect end to an incredible weekend!

Q's Hoofers

Her feet look better than they have since I've owned her coming out of this winter - except the medio-lateral balance of her front hooves is really altered from what it used to be.

Casually resting a hind; she swaps
steadily back and forth between
both hinds as she waits for me.

I've been watching her movement a lot lately (another benefit of Mike riding her while I ride Griffin) and suspected that I really needed to look at medio-lateral balance in her feet a bit closer. Her landings on her front feet are a bit off from what they once were. She's landing a titch *more* laterally than she used to. I know that hooves should land a bit more lateral than medial at first, but Q's is more exaggerated than what it had been prior to winter. On the level surface of the rail trail over the weekend I was really able to observe how her landings have altered. The imbalance is obvious - her lateral heel is more developed than the medial; this is very atypical for her front hooves. Her way of going behind has always led to a slight imbalance, but its what she needs for her conformation.

One of the few drawbacks to where I keep my horses is the lack of level surfaces. The only concrete pads in the barn are the tack room (can't trim in there for obvious reasons) and the wash stall. The wash stall area would be a great and obvious option for trimming on a level surface (so I can better see her stance and the balance of the hoof), except that it has pallets full of fertilizer and lyme on one half of it! I plan to move these sometime soon, but its going to be a good bit of labor and my time at the barn is so fleeting currently that I would rather spend it with my horses.

As a result, all of my trimming is done in the barn aisle which isn't perfectly level and isn't a hard surface. This creates an obvious hurdle for accurately assessing my horses hooves pre and post trim. I suspect this has lent itself poorly to my trimming through this winter. Shame on me for not paying more mind to things.

Hmmmm.
Fronts. Beefier development
along the inside (medial) heel areas.

At any rate, I modified the medio-lateral balance of Q's front hooves mildly on Tuesday night; I don't ever do tons at once with things like this. I like to see what she's going to do with her feet from a series of smaller modifications over time. Ultimately, the amount of riding we have coming up should help to determine how she wants her feet to be.

It was quite obvious to me (once I really paid mind to it) that the medial half of the hoof (if you imagine the hoof split down the middle through the frog from toe to heel) is indeed much higher than the lateral side. Her movement on the rail trail and her stance when standing still really suggested to me that she needed more on the lateral side, but she can't exactly get that if she's constantly wearing away the lateral side more than the medial from the current imbalance.

I hope that with time, miles, and minor modifications through trimming here and there she will get back to where she was. I really feel shamed for not noticing things sooner. Medio-lateral imbalances in the hoof and trimming for them is a weakness for me. I'm thankful at least that I am observant enough to notice things, refer back to older photos and videos, and now do what I can to try to get her feet back to how they were for the first nearly 2 years I had her.

And, No, I don't think her feet "want" to be where they are now. These changes have occurred through winter months when she wasn't in a working schedule like she had been so many months before. I've just been trimming and putting her through mild work in a soft environment that hasn't challenged or applied much wear to her feet. I know that ultimately it will be the increase in miles over varied terrain this upcoming season that will "fix" her feet, but the way she's moving now has made me concerned that if I don't give her feet a little help at the beginning then the imbalance will increase because her footfalls are pretty far from the "correct" she'd been at for so long.

Slight filling in hinds due to
standing at the fenceline immobile
as she flirted shamlessly with the
geldings on the other side.
I do love that she very often stands
squarely wherever she is.

Another hurdle Q and I were able to start to overcome Tuesday night was with her hind feet. I reallysuspect that someone may have been overly harsh in handling her hind feet at some point in her past because of her sensitivity about them being handled - it's always been more of a challenge than I ever expect it should be.

She's always let me put them on the stand to apply a roll around the hoof or bring back toe (bringing the hind foot forward under the body and resting it atop the stand). Bringing the hoof backward to rest in on the stand in a manner to work on the sole and bars of her feet has always been an issue though. She hops and skips away from me, doing all she can to avoid it. And when I do get her to stand still, she is very reluctant to let her leg be placed on the hoof stand. She'll let me do hind leg stretches with her, but if that hoof stand comes out she's not interested in me being near her.

Part of her distrust with her hind legs has also developed from two hefty cases of scratches since I got her in 2012. Treatments were NO FUN for her or me. Its the only time she's ever kicked me - and even that was delivered after she'd warned me at least a dozen times! She was hurting, I don't blame her. But I had to treat it. So, poor lady has a lot of negative associations with her back legs.

(Aside: Yes, I've also considered sensitivity in her hocks as an issue and my vet and I are looking into this. We're planning to do radiographs later in the spring. Tests from last month's vet visit demonstrated that she is tender and is more sensitive on the left than the right; and, no, the injury to her left stifle from last spring is not a contributing factor. My vet confirms that that injury was purely superficial; a lesion of the skin with no association in the soft tissue/joint/bone.)

I was very calm and patient with Q Tuesday night though. She was calm in return and allowed me to stretch out her hind legs and place them on the hoof stand on both sides long enough for me to touch her back feet up more thoroughly than I have in months. I kept talking to her the whole time telling her how good she was, shooting multiple glances at her facial expression to see if there were any signs of distress. Completely calm pony, ears on a swivel, eyes bright and alert, lower lip loose and hanging. I hope this is demonstrative of what future hind feet trims will be like!

We'll see where things go with her feet this season. She's definitely in a better place than she's been and I'm learning more all the time. I'm optimistic!

Creek Riding

***VIDEO PRIVACY ISSUES RESOVLED (uploading from my phone is tricky!, sorry for inconvenience)***

I have so much to catch up on and multiple posts in draft format that are in various stages of completion...but I just can't finish them to post in chronological order right now. I'm too jazzed on the short, silly ride from last night.

Weather this week (until later today, sigh) has been phenomenal. The sun has been 90% present which has done wonders for how cheery I am. I never notice how glum winter gets until I get to experience the sun again for multiple days, oh the difference it makes! Additionally, its been in the 60s this week! T-shirt riding weather! I forgot what that could be like.

After work last night I headed out to the barn to "play horse".

I brought both horses in, gave them some grain, and then spent some time touching up Q's feet (another post for tomorrow) and shaved her girth area. Karen had mentioned shaving Askhe's recently, too, because he has princess tendencies about having hair pulled during girth tightening. I'd been pondering the same thing for Q because she is suddenly cranky (princessy) when I tighten her girth this winter. Go figure that as soon as I shaved the area and tacked her up last night she could care less! Happy swively pony ears, slack lower lip, soft eye. So, Karen, Q sends her thanks to you and cousin Ashke for swaying me to do this! She's much happier!


After I'd tacked Q and Griffin up, Mike showed up and we headed to ride.

The first part of the ride was in the barnyard. I'd put the bridle on Griffin and attached the reins to the bit for the first time in a couple months. I've been avoiding it because I'd noticed that the bit and contact with it when riding was triggering outbursts (head flinging, stompy front feet in pseudo-buck, tripping over his feet when asked to turn).

Imagine my pleasant surprise when Griffin had no outbursts last night! He was definitely focusing harder on what I was asking, and he gave me a lot of try. Circles were balanced; no tripping and confusion like before. Trot to walk transitions with slight cues involving pressure on the formerly-hated bit were no big deal! And. And. AND! He even collected like he'll do on side reins while we were at the walk. WINNER WINNER CHICKEN DINNER. Houston, we have contact!

I ended on that good note, swapped out the bridle for his halter-bridle, and Mike, Q, Griffin and I headed out.

I had zero plans for what kind of ride we'd do. When we reached the creek to cross into the far field, I asked Mike if he could get Q to walk *up* the stream. He, and Q, obliged. A little hesitancy at first, but then they plunged right along upstream, no big deal!

I had Griffin follow.

We ended up doing a good ½-mile or more in the stream last night. It was SO MUCH FUN. We avoided holes deeper than their chests, but tackled everything else. I giggled like a fool the whole time.

At one point, where we turned around to come back downstream, Q even did a beautiful side pass UP a steep 8-foot bank. Pretty and hilarious. Mike and I decided she's our tiny dancer with her fancy footwork.

Q has so much action in her hocks

After the creek adventure was over, we trotted and cantered around the back field for a little while. There is now video evidence of me trotting and cantering the grey beast!

He was such a doll the whole evening. I'm sorry the video doesn't capture some of his better cantering because he cantered a 200 yard stretch beautifully. There was a huge grin on my face the whole time. He was even doing the whole "snorty exhale" thing and sounded like a train. Such a goofball.

I had SUCH A BLAST riding in the creek and then tooling around in the field at the trot and canter with Griffin. The whole ride ended up being 2 miles with an average pace of 3.2 mph. Both horses got a fun little workout, had their minds stimulated with some out-of-the-box exercise in the creek, and as a result their legs were the cleanest they've been in weeks! So, so, so much fun.

Taken from the creek

Horses Who Made Me: Stanley

Stanley

I could honestly write a book on the things I learned from this horse. He has been a part of this blog here and there since I've been writing. My years with Stan really finished off my foundation of experience with horses. He was the solid finish to what I'd been establishing to build the rest of my life with horses from.

Stan became a project horse of sorts for me while I worked at The Pony Garage. Sonya's boyfriend bought him as a 4 year old prospect for trail riding. Her boyfriend is a tall guy with LONG legs, so a bigger horse was a necessity. Stan is an Appendix QH who stood at 15.3hh - perfect for someone with height and leg.

I began riding Stan shortly after they purchased him. His early riding career had consisted mostly of him being confined to a stall or a ring - much like Mack - so his knowledge of trails and outside elements was minimal. Everything was new. He didn't even know how to properly canter with a rider on uneven surfaces, as he'd only been asked to do it in arenas.

I put an endless number of miles on this horse. Every time I went out to ride, I rode Stan. Every. Time.

It was sometime in 2006 when I started my adventures with him. We'd hack down the road to the 4-H arena and fool around. We'd pair up with Carly and her horse and race large circles around the hay fields behind the 4-H arena. We'd hack through the woods hither and thither on established trails and others that we'd create. We'd set up jumps with deadwood and jump them. We even rode in a horse show - I though it was 4-H but I remember adults with fancier horses being there (Stan's breeder in particular) so it must have been some other show - and we managed to get English high point! We rode in the sun, the rain, the snow, and everything in between.

A different horse than he'd been

By March of 2007 - my senior year in high school - Stan was a different horse. He'd learned how to move efficiently with a rider at all gaits. He really came out of his shell when I was aboard. His owner would ride him on a trail ride here and there, but I was his primary rider. The difference when I was riding Stan and when anyone else did was stark. It was obvious that Stan had chosen me as his preferred human. He was apt to be an asshole to a lot of other people.

One of my favorite things to do with Stan was to SPRINT up the first third of the driveway when we returned from the trails and arena that we accessed from that side of the property. I knew not to run a horse home, but that first 300 yards of the long driveway, straight uphill, was always so much fun. And Stan would always stop at the top and walk home on a loose rein after. At the bottom though? Ohhhh, he anticipated that gallop like nothing else. He'd try to rush it every time. I'd have him on a tight rein to hold him back. Refusing to release him until we'd set foot on the gravel. And then I'd give him his head and we'd take off up the hill, slowing to a stop at the apex.

Stan never danced or sped up in anticipation of this hill with any rider but me. It was our thing and he knew that.

Stan was always for sale from the moment Sonya and her boyfriend got him. They were never 100% pleased with him, but he was never *truly* awful either. They never actively advertised him, but if someone were to ask he was most certainly "for sale". The time I put into him made him better and better. The show upped his sale price. They put him through cribbing surgery to fix that nasty habit (yes, it did fix it, and was very, very worth it), which also upped his sale price.

When spring 2007 rolled around, Sonya proposed an idea to me. Ride Stan in an endurance ride. She'd ride with me on Kix - a little Arabian gelding who'd come into her possession that she wanted to train.

Endurance? Huh? What's that?

Sonya had printed off a training schedule she'd found online for me. She knew the way I was already riding Stan was perfect conditioning for endurance. A local rider - Jen - was planning to put on a ride in our area for the first time. The original route for this ride included trails that I had access to from the barn Stan was at. I could train on the actual course! Perfect!

Sonya went through the kind of riding (lots of trotting) I'd need to do and the quantity of riding per week I'd need to pursue in order to get Stan in great shape. The fact that he was a QH and the fact that QH aren't typical for endurance was never mentioned. We honestly knew NOTHING about AERC, endurance, training, or proper mounts at this point in time. We just knew how to get a horse really fucking FIT.

And so I rode. I rode 5 days a week from March until August.

I rode in the woods, I rode on the side of the road, I rode in the arena. I jumped, did marches up and down mountains, and bushwacked through chaos. I rode in the sun. In the rain. In the snow. Nothing stopped me. When I went to summer 4-H camps, Sonya rode Stan for me. She rode him in the sun and rain, night and day. (She rode Kix, too, but not like I was riding Stan.)

Finally the first weekend in August rolled around. The ride wasn't on the trails I'd been training on due to a snafu with the National Forest and endangered species concerns, but the trails it was on were comparable. Easier in several aspects, even!

The Ride Between the Rivers was born.

Stan and I and Sonya and Kix entered in the 30 miler.

The woes of then-ignorant-to-endurance folks aside (issues with ridecamp and ride management), it was a crazy awesome atmosphere. I loved and hated it. Loved because it all seemed SO wonderful. Hated because of the negative attitude I received from SO many people at that event because I was in my hand-me-down Crosby saddle on a non-Arab.

Stan was a superstar though. And the husband of one of the big-time NE region riders (she was heavily involved in endurance both nationally and abroad) complimented me on how wonderful Stan looked and moved. He said he could really tell the time I'd put into the horse and the bond between us.

I've discussed my woes with this first ride and my first experience with AERC on the blog numerous times before, though I cannot find the *exact* entry where I covered the details.

The nitty gritty of it all is this:

Sonya was supposed to ride with me. We were quickly separated at the start when Kix pitched a bucking fit. She yelled for me to keep going - she knew I could do it without her (she would later get lost and give up to just sit around and drink beer with some of the number-takers).

I slipped Stan in with a group of riders as politely as I could, doing my best to keep proper, polite distances from everyone around me amidst the chaos. I was very uncertain of the pace I should keep.

Finally, a lady on a grey Arabian I'd been trailing behind let me know it was okay to pass her if I wanted. I confessed that I was new to this and so was Stan and we didn't know what kind of pace to keep! She asked what kind of training we'd been doing and I succinctly informed her about riding 5 days a week for 5 months on trails that were typically more difficult than this. With a grin, she told me to let him go his pace and head off ahead of her.

And so I did. We did. He did.

We passed person after person, bit by bit. Stan adored every moment of it. His ears were always forward and happy. We rode most of the ride on our own. Ride your own ride? I was doing that before I even knew such a concept existed. I was listening to my horse and doing what he told me was best.

The morning of the ride. Oh Stanley.

The day soared by. The middle vet check was a bit of a chaotic mess - people suggesting we do different things to get Stan's pulse down before the nice husband-of-the-good-rider came over and helped us by taking AWAY the grain, taking stressful stimuli AWAY from Stan, and helping us to sponge him and scrape him.

We left that vet check well within the top 10.

But then Stan pulled a shoe in deep mud.

I noticed a few miles out, once we were on a gravel road and not a dirt trail, that he was off and that he'd lost a shoe. I thought about going back, but I wasn't sure if that would disqualify me so I didn't. I wanted to find Sonya or another ride management person (most were my friends) and get an EasyBoot. Sonya had them with her on Kix. I had none!

Awhile passed before we came to the first helper. I asked her to watch him walk and see if he was okay. She watched him move, then picked up the shoeless hoof and assured me he was fine, he'd just be tender on the gravel was all. She told me if I thought he was in pain anywhere but the ouchy gravel and I said no. She suggested that I keep going then, just stick to the soft places as much as I could. Continue as long as Stan wanted to.

And we did.

Eventually we came upon two other riders. They were the two front runners. I was completely oblivious to this fact. I was riding my ride, following the ribbons, just trying to get to the end. I didn't understand points, placings, best condition, or anything! I just wanted to ride 30 miles on my horse!

Well, one of these ladies had a nasty look on her face from the get-go when I wandered up behind them. She saw Stan gimping on the gravel surface (why, oh, why did we have to meet on gravel and not in the woods?!) and immediately lay into me with a piece of her mind, "Your horse is lame." "He pulled a shoe. He's happy on anything but gravel." "You have no business being out here on that horse. Its none of my business, but if I were you, I would dismount and walk him in." I looked meekly at the lady, scared and uncertain what to do. Thankfully at that moment, Stan dropped his head to eat.

I let him know it was okay to stand a bit and eat. I wanted those ladies to keep going and be far away from me. They scared me and angered me. I knew my horse. I knew he was happy. It was just the ouchy hard gravel that hurt him. He was plunging ahead on all the other surfaces. We were even riding on the edge of the road where there was no gravel most of the time! I still had SO MUCH HORSE under me that late in the ride. He was happy and alert with bright eyes, a great appetite, and drinking well!

Ultimately, I ended up trailing aimlessly behind those ladies for the last few miles of the ride (I caught up to them near the end). Stan asked so, so, so many times to plunge ahead of them and keep going. I did my best to just redirect him to eating some grass instead. I didn't want to pass that woman and have her verbally accost me again; she'd been shooting me dirty looks over her shoulder the entire time I was behind them. The second woman ended up trailing behind at some point when the other woman kept going. She was silent as I passed her, still trailing aimlessly behind the mean lady I was afraid to pass.

Stan and I crossed the finish line in 2nd place. I was nearly in tears.

No one told us once we'd finished that it would be okay to slap an EasyBoot on prior to the trot out. Stan was A-Okay other than that sore foot. The trot out area had some stones in it, so he predictably gimped through it and we were pulled. The farrier slapped a shoe on him right afterwards and he walked away sound as could be.

I was in tears. I was hurt and confused about the whole process of things. The ride volunteers - my friends - were all upset, too, that people had been so rude to me. It was a really crappy experience, but it is what it is and I can't change it.

Bottom line though - Stan was so awesome. So, so awesome. So fun and game for the whole ride. The time I'd spent with him prior to the ride really, really prepared him.

After our foray into the world of endurance, I headed to college. I would ride Stan whenever I was home, but it became more and more difficult to do with my schedule.

A barn fire happened where Stan was kept the second year I was in college. It freaked me out in a bad way. Stan was okay, though one of the mares I knew was consumed in the blaze.

I still made it out to see Stan whenever I could throughout the rest of my college years. I felt I owed it to him go to out and spend time with him. He loved our rides so much and he wasn't getting any use without me.

I still foster dreams of buying Stan to have as my own one day. But that reality is far away. I know he's safe and happy in his field right now. The place he's almost always been. I don't have time for three horses and I really don't know what I'd do with him right now. But one day, perhaps he can be mine again. He's certainly taught me so much and been there for me when I felt like no human understood me. I owe it to him to step up and help him out if he is ever in need of a home. For now though, he's got that, and I've got my two to keep me busy.

Stanley horse, you helped make me more than you even know.

Feburary Goal Review; March Goal Creation

Q

• Continue to pursue maintaining her calm demeanor: SUCCESS. Now, with the return of a heat cycle in the warmer months...will this continue?!
• Continue with further work in side reins and dressage exercises US: SUCCESS. The bulk of work Q did this month incorporated these things.
• Begin lateral work: FAIL. Forever a fail. Maybe March is the month?!
• Continue bareback and bridless work: FAIL. No time.

Griffin

• Get out onto the trails more: SUCCESS! So many trails. Total of 9.5 miles on the trail.
• Walk-trot consistency US with bridle: I incorporated the bridle into all of our rides over the sidepull halter, but have yet to attach reins to the bridle.
• Continue work in side reins: SUCCESS. Not quite as many sessions as I hoped, but we were fairly consistent given my schedule. His strength is building.
• Walk-trot poles during non-US work: SUCCESS. Every ground session in side reins included ground poles.

March Goals

Q

•  Further work with dressage concepts
• Introduction to more lateral work
• Lots of miles
• HIIT workouts in prep for our ride at the end of April

Griffin

• More trail miles
• More work with bridle without having a fit while US
• Much more time in side reins to build strength

And Then Life Happened

...but mostly I work 2 jobs currently and live a full life and thus am struggling to get *all the posts* posted.

Things are good mostly good though. As I write this (on Tuesday), we are in what will hopefully be our last arctic snap of the season. (Polar vortex sounds stupid to me, thus I coin my own terminology.) I'm sick currently, so I've got time to catch up on blogs and schedule posts of my own! In all honesty, I do keep up pretty well with reading everyone's blogs - but commenting from my phone *never* works properly, so I try to save that for later and mark posts as "unread". It slows the process some, but I'm doing my best!

: : : : :

This current snap of arctic air was preceded by rain --> sleet --> ice --> snow. In preparation for the drastic drop in temperatures + the precipitation, Mike and I hustled out to the barn Sunday afternoon to stall Griffin and Q for awhile. I didn't want to leave them in, but I couldn't blanket them until they'd dried off either.

Messy eaters.

We nestled them into the barn with water and hay and left for a few hours so they could dry out.

When we returned at 9:30p, we had friends in tow. We'd all been hanging out participating in our typical "Sunday Funday" shenanigans when they'd expressed interest in some horse time.

Q and Griffin played pony-ride for the three of them while Mike and I supervised.

Griffin was a superstar! It was the first time I'd let someone else ride him since Saiph's July visit. He's been so reliable lately, especially in the barn, that I felt 100% okay with letting someone ride him around. My friend is my size and while she has zero riding experience, I knew that the probability of issue in that small space (30' diameter round pen) was minimal.

I put a bareback pad and side-pull halter on Griffin, gave her a leg up and sent them to walking around. Griffin tried to follow me around for awhile until he deigned to listen to the feeble requests his rider was making. She got the hang of communication though, and before long they were walking hither and thither around the round pen.

Q also had a very green rider on, too, with a her sidepull halter and the Ansur saddle. Q's rider was much more exuberant in her requests, to which Q made many angry mare faces about. She tolerated things well enough though, polite as could be considering the circumstances.

Looking pretty good at the tail end of winter!

Both girls had a blast riding around and "racing" at a walk around the pen, cutting one another off and heckling. Mostly my horses chose their own paths, redirected time and again by Mike or I giving a gesture from the ground to move out.

My friend that rode Griffin was exceptionally funny with her commentary to Griffin to, "C'mon, lets race! No, no, no, don't do that. Yes! Go over there! Lets goooo! GO OFF AND DO HORSE THINGS! Lets stop here so you can kiss him [Mike]. No, Griffin, kiss him! Do you want beer? No, MIKE, he DOES want the beer! C'mon, Griffin! LIZ! Why won't he drink beer?"

No, she wasn't drunk, I swear.  Its honestly just the Irish heritage/New Yorker in her that just makes her raucous all the time. Quite a hoot, really. At one point she tried to make a ridiculous gesture with her upper body from his back (after about 20 minutes of riding) that sent her off balance. Griffin, feeling this imbalance stopped walking while my friend *slowly* tilted to the left. She lost balance so slowly that she had time to say, "I'm going down! I'm going down!" Twice before she plopped unceremoniously on the ground beside Griffin, bouncing back up immediately with exclamations of, "I'm okay!" Mike was at Griffin's head before my friend had even hit the ground, so no one was any worse for the moment. We were all doubled over in laughter at the absurdity of the moment.

My friend hopped right back on Griffin after that "incident" and the night continued.

Relaxed Q-mare is relaxed.

Once our friends had departed, Mike and I hopped back on the horses to "reset" them. Mike, walking and trotting Q around bareback while I walk-trot-cantered Griffin bareback. I seriously have the best, most tolerant horses.

We blanketed and turned them out prior to leaving - steady sleet falling from the sky upon turnout.

Monday morning afforded less snow than predicted, but a nice layer of ice beneath it that made roads a bitch. My office was closed due to the conditions, so I had another snow day.

I spent much of the day sleeping, which I think was my body trying to ward off this sickness that has plagued me today.

By Monday afternoon though, I was feeling chipper and headed out to the barn to play with my horses and to give K another lesson.

Ice that was cemented to blankets

Mike, I, and K all arrived about the same time to the barn. Mike brought my two in while I prepped hot mashes. He planned to take Q on a trail ride while I gave K a lesson. (I love that both horses are getting work on the same day! Training is so much easier when there are two butts to sit astride two horses!)

I was so happy I'd blanketed my horses when I saw them come in from the field. Ice was plastered on the blankets and each horse had icicles frozen hard and fast along their neck and chins. I had to cut them out because they'd formed so close to the skin that they were pulling it in an uncomfortable way. Fortunately, they were all small (no more than 3" long and a half-inch wide) so it wasn't an impossible task. Their legs had some ice dusted/crusted around their coronet bands and fetlocks, but nothing that wouldn't brush right off.

Look at that huge icicle!

K's horse Tempest was much worse for the wear. I imagine all of the horses were, though I didn't
march out to the field to inspect them! Tempest's tail was full of muddy icicles along the bottom 10". The hair along his legs from the knee down was caked with ice and icicles. His chin, neck, and especially his belly were covered with icicles. His belly had icicles from 3" to 10" in length. The worst of them was a 10" icicle that was easily 1.5" to 2" in diameter. It was heavy, it swung with each step, and it was adhered TO THE SKIN.

I did my best with scissors to shave off and slowly nip off as many of the bigger icicles on him as I could to relieve some of that pressure and pain they were inevitably causing. He threatened me once as I tried to remove the big one, but stood stoically after I verbally reprimanded him...I still couldn't avoid drawing blood! The icicle had adhered to his skin. =( I was a gentle as I could be in removal of the icicle after he warned me, and he was such a doll, but I still ended up making him bleed. I treated it immediately with betadine and some salve. He was licking and chewing after I'd removed that icicle - so I can only hope that he felt some relief from its removal.

The worst of the ice for my guys

I was *so* happy I'd blanketed my two!! Not having shelter out of the elements this year has been tough. I'm so, so happy I bought blankets for them.

While I gave K a lesson (she is really coming along well! learning lots and her position is improving!), Mike took Q out on a trail ride. They ended up covering 5 miles in an hour's time. =)

I've been incorporating some "trail" riding around the property to K's lessons lately. Twice now we've been out (K, Mike, and I with the three horses) ponying K and Tempest around. It's been great for boosting K's confidence in herself and her horse since we have to cross some frozen puddles and a creek. She's learning to trust her horse more (she's worried about him jumping the water all the time since he jumps the small creek in the pasture when she's leading him in on foot).

Tempest ponies very politely. Though, this may be in part because I'm ponying Tempest from Griffin! Q *hates* Tempest. Absolutely despises him. Evil mare faces are made whenever he is in a 10-foot proximity! He adores her though, which only fuels her spite for him. Its amusing, but not conducive for ponying!

Griffin has been a CHAMP about it though. For shorter rides on familiar ground he has REALLY become reliable. The first time we ponied Tempest and K was very impromptu. It was only for a few minutes, and as a result of the unplanned moment, Griffin and I were bareback with only his halter and lead rope! He was a doll. (It should be noted that the only reason I decided to take this calculated risk was because Mike was there to chaperone, K and I were properly attired and helmeted, the horses were all very calm together, we were on familiar terrain going a quarter mile AT MOST.)

Happy, relaxed pony. And Kenai's buzzcut butt.

The second ponying session with K and Tempest + Griffin and I was last night. It was a bit lengthier in time, though the distance wasn't much greater than our first jaunt out the week prior. I'd saddled Griffin this time, and he was more forward about things, but very well behaved all the same. K and Tempest really seem to enjoy the little loop we make that crosses the creek, circles some trees, and returns to the barn. Its nice to get out of the ring and experience new things. Its a fun 15 minute exercise for all involved.

Oh, and its worth mentioning - K's lesson last night was given in teen temperatures that swiftly descended into single digits with the setting sun! We're trying to make the most of what's around and have a blast where we can!

I realize also that we've arrived into March, leaving February in the dust! I hope to have another post reviewing February's goals and introducing some for March ready to post over the weekend while I'm at the AERC Convention in Atlanta with Saiph meeting Mel and Ashley - and anyone else?!

Happy 4th Birthday, Kenai!

The happiest dog.

C'mon, lookit that husky grin - such a happy poochie.

Sleeeeeppy time. Okay...more like cuddling into submission.

Kenai, you've had quite the year!

In April we were able to diagnose your issues with favoring your hind legs as partially torn cruciate ligaments - surgery to have both knees operated on at the same time was scheduled for August.

You had a blast of a summer preceding surgery with many trips to crags for climbing days - even some lake swimming!

You topped off your days prior to surgery by getting skunked for the first time - thanks, dude.

August brought surgery, and the months following were full of rehab. You set your own schedule though and I'm happy to say that 7 months out you're much happier. You still get stiff from time to time, but your range of movement has returned and you're choosing to strike out in a two-beat gait as opposed to a 4 or 3-beat that helped take strain off your recovering knees.

You've had a pretty killer winter - just as I'd planned for you to have post-op, post-rehab. You've beeb on the mountain every weekend and have ridden the chairlift more times than I can count. Everyone loves you. You receive many, many compliments on your stellar behavior.

To top off the end of your 3rd year, you challenged your BFF Clyde - an Old English Mastiff - and his sister to a bone duel. You won in that you got the bone. You lost in that you also received a puncture wound to the cheek - serves you right, you jerk. As if a puncture wound wasn't enough, you ran off and got skunked again last week - thanks, asshole - but it wasn't *as* direct of a blow as July, so I'm trying to count my blessings with that one.

My wishes for you for your 4th year are as follows: stay healthy, stay happy, grow your ass hair back from surgery - its been 7 months and we're still SO far from normal. *DON'T SHAVE YOUR DOUBLE COATED DOGS, PEOPLE! THERE IS NO GUARANTEE IT WILL GROW BACK THE SAME!*

I love you, puppy-dog.

Horses Who Made Me: Mack

Mack
My middle school to high school transition years were sort of "lost years" in the realm of my time with horses. My two best friends had horses of their own (Luke and Apache) that I would ride from time to time, but as we all got older and became more worried about our social lives, riding was less and less. This never seemed to greatly bother either of my friends (Barbara would later sell Luke to a little girl), it was killing me slowly.

A friend I became closer to during this time whom I'd met in 4-H and at Teri's in previous years introduced me to a lady with a boarding facility just outside of town during my junior year. This was the answer to the horse withdrawal I had been experiencing!

My friend Carly was boarding her horse at this place, known affectionately as The Pony Garage. Sonya ran it, but needed help with cleaning stalls, so she employed Carly and myself at $6/hour. It wasn't much money, but it was something to a high schooler!

Carly worked there to help pay off her board, I picked up hours to help gain access to some horses to ride and work with.

My schedule up there differed based upon the time of year (horses were inside at night in the winter and inside during the day in the summer). My duties consisted of mucking, feeding, turn out, and bringing them in dependent upon the season. If there were horses with special needs, I would provide them with their specific grain or medication. Anything that needed done in and around the barn I did.

And boy, oh, boy did I learn a ton!

With a little time, Sonya learned to trust me. She started letting me ride each of her horses, starting me from the bottom up. I began riding her more seasoned mares who'd really been around the block a few times. When Sonya realized I had a good seat and really knew what I was doing she turned me loose. I rode almost whoever I wanted, whenever I wanted.

I tried out so many different horses in such a short amount of time. She always had new boarders, training prospects, and other random horses in and out. There were never more than 30 horses AT MOST, usually we kept around 18. This was plenty to keep me busy!

One horse in particular that was kind of an "a ha" moment for me in the realm of working with green horses was a horse named Mack. He was a red QH gelding, a show prospect for someone, I believe, who was at Sonya's for some training miles. He was young, 4 or 5, and had never ever worked outside of a ring. While at The Pony Garage, his turnout situation wasn't even as grand as the other horses as he was confined to a small paddock most of the time, not the field where the others were.

Mack - the only photo I have of him

One summer day, a group of folks from the area was set to have a big trail ride. This crew over here really knows how to ride. They head out for 4-6 hours (long due to the fact that we'd have a group of 2 to 3 dozen folks we had to try to keep together so there was lots of stopping and waiting for stragglers) through the woods, over the mountains, and through all the streams and obstacles in between. No ride is complete without some crazy obstacle (old bridges where horses fell through) and plenty of alcohol (including WV white lightning).

Sonya said I could ride Mack for this ride. Sweet, I thought, this horse looks fun.

Ha.

Green was more like it!

He was so green. So very green. Everything was new to him. Everything was a cause for alarm. Mailboxes, trashcans, trash bags, chickens, cows, ponies, lines on the road, gates, other horses, other people, random trailers, bright houses, running water, you name it, he was alarmed by it.

I stayed patient though. He was very honest about his concerns, and I never came off.

Throughout the day he went from, HOLY SHIT THIS IS CRAZY OMGOMGOMGOMGOMG. To more of a weary and defeated, Holy. Shit. This. Is. Crazy. IsitoveryetOMGOMG. The terrain we covered was enough to chill him out.

I'd never ridden a horse prior to this that I got to watch change so drastically in a few hours time. I knew his exhaustion attributed much to his change in demeanor, but it was still so very interesting to me. I've ridden many horses since who are still so freaked at the end of a similar ride; Mack was unique in his acceptance of so much so quickly - or maybe he really was just SO out of shape, but I don't think that was it so much.

I only rode him that one time. But it's stuck with me to this day. I learned that miles and time with a horse can really help them. Not necessarily from one ride like with Mack, but inevitably, a horse will calm down as you spend more time exposing them to many things. Its worked with Griffin and with Q. Both are much calmer than other horses because of the time I've spent with them. Mack helped teach me this.

(And keep in mind, while this lesson seems so obvious to so many due in part to the eruption of the natural horsemanship training these past several years, it wasn't obvious to me in high school. I had ZERO exposure to a horse world outside of what I directly experienced. I knew professional events and training existed somewhere, methodology behind reaching the pro level though? ZERO KNOWLEDGE. ZERO. I honestly didn't even start reading into training methodologies until I got Orion in 2012. Everything I learned prior to that was direct, hands-on experience. No trainers. No horse camps. Nothing. The fact that I picked up the knowledge I did in the manner I did still amazes me to this day.)

My horses have Mack to thank (in part) for the time I spend with them exposing them to as many things as I can. Q's been in a multitude of parades - complete with sirens and flashing lights. Griffin has been all over the farm and the surrounding property these past two years - we hiked it a lot before we ever rode it - which has helped turn him into a solid little greenie on the trails. He's not flummoxed by much!

I don't know what became of that red gelding, but I'm thankful for the short day we had together and the lesson I learned from it.