A word to the wise...

If you are a nurse, and upon getting home from work, you decide it would be nice to hop on your horse bareback for a few minutes, don't do it while still in your scrubs. The really do not provide any grip. Now, I know this seems like common sense, but I thought I'd share just in case there are any other stupid nurses out there.

The good news was, Licorice was an angel. I did some ground work with her, practicing sidepassing (for some reason she sidepasses much better to the right than to the left) and also trying to get her to leave her front end where I put it. She likes to always turn and face me... this was recently a topic of debate on FHOTD. I personally do not think it is a problem for her to face me when stopped or when "whoa"ing on the lunge line, as long as she doesn't try to "crawl into my lap," as it was stated. And yes, she likes to do this. We are at a point where when she even shifts her weight towards me, a sharp look and a flick of the leadrope will change her mind.

Anyway, I digrees. This morning I worked on moving the forequarters. She yields the hind great, but she's not as automatic with her front end. When we got to where she would stay put for a good 5 seconds, I called it quits. This will definitely be a frequent lesson.

Anyway, I hopped on bareback, in my well worn and too-big scrubs... we walked all over the paddock with a minimum of attitude... I mean, there's still attitude but it's getting to where it's manageable. But stupid me, I decided to ask for a trot, which is normally no problem... but as my ass had no grip to it, being that my clothing was a little inappropriate, I proceeded to flop all over her back like a toddler. Oops. (Don't get me wrong, I'm not entirely blaming a wardrobe malfunction... if my seat were better, this probably wouldn't have been an issue).

But Licorice did exactly what she should have done... she kept trotting, because her retarded rider had told her to and hadn't asked her to stop. This, of course, didn't help my foolish ass up there scrambling for balance... but the point is, she was a good girl, and when I finally righted myself, I stopped her and told her so. Then we finished our little jaunt at a walk. Ears pricked forward and all.

Follow the Leader

I had an "aha!" moment today.

Watching the Parelli Level 1 stuff has made me think about some things. First of all, I think there is probably something valuable to get out of just about any training program. Well, one of the points that was made is that your horse gains respect for you and considers you to be his "safe place" (ie: not the barn, or his stall, or the pasture) when you are able to protect him/her from other horses. This makes sense- you are proving yourself to be the boss of other horses, so your horse assumes you are alpha above all horses, and is less likely to challenge you.

I realized I hadn't been doing much with Dutch because a) he was out of commision for a few months and b) he's not my main riding horse. Being semi-retired, I figured it wasn't a big deal if he got a little rusty. But I realized... what if it's a big deal to Licorice? I mean, I expect him to retain some basic ground manners- do not run me over, do not try to snatch hay out of my arms, stay out of my space, etc. But I hadn't been actually focusing any groundwork on him.

So this morning, I was playing some of the Parelli "seven games," which are really no different than any other training method, much as they may claim it is. The Driving and Porcupine games are yielding to indirect and direct pressure. The Yo-Yo game is practice backing and coming back in. I will say that watching the discussion about how your horse may respond to these has been helpful though. I worked with Licorice for about 10 minutes, and then decided to do the same with Dutch. It's amazing how unresponsive he has gotten! He doesn't "argue" like Licorice, he just tunes me out. I had to get pretty assertive with him to drive him back and yield his hind- and forequarters. He finally started listening, responidng, licking, and chewing, but it took some doing.

Interestingly, I stole glances at Licorice, and she was watching us intently. When I did some leading practice and jogged Dutch around the yard at a trot, Licorice looked postiviley jubliant. She ran around bucking and farting. I'm not sure exactly what that means, but I'm pretty sure it means something. I wonder if she had an "aha!" moment too?

I rode Lic yesterday and she was so good! We walked, trotted, cantered. She did spook a couple times... it's funny, because we passed two big dogs and she was fine, but she spooked at this yard with 4 little ankle biter dogs. Then I stopped to talk to my neighbor (the one with the three horses) about riding together sometime... well, she was having some kind of family get-together, and there were like 7 dogs running around, and some guy playing football... it was too much for Lic, she attempted to wheel around and bolt... but once I stopped her, I had her stand there until she calmed down, and she did fine. We are still having that issue where she bucks going into the canter sometimes- I have found that pushing her through it is more effective than stopping and trying again, but that, of course, means I ahve to sit out the bucks, and I think I need to work on my seat. I didn't fall or anything, but talk about spanking yourself on the ass... lol. Once I consciously told myself I HAD to lean back or I WOULD fall off, it was fine- I got my balance and Lic cantered instead of bucking. So I think her issue might be as much with me as anything else. I also worked with her on the scary white cement on my neighbor's driveway. She put two feet on it, and we're going to work again every day this week, even if I don't have time to ride.

I went to a local horse show on Sat. I could only stay for the morning classes, which were English, but it is super beginner friendly. I'm out of town for next month's show, but I'm thinking about entering in the April show. They had some weanlings (I guess soon to be yearlings now) on the farm... and I fell in love with one. It was a buckskin, and he had a splint on his leg and a shaved spot on his neck where it look like he had an IV before or something... anyway, he came up to see me over the fence, but he was very hand shy... poor baby. But he gave me several nuzzles/kisses... I thought I would die from the cuteness. Hopefully in two month's time we can enter the WP walk/trot or novice classes.

Finally... progress!

The past couple weeks have gone really well with Licorice. I have had about 3 good rides on her- rides where I felt like progress was made. The first good ride was a couple weeks ago, and I actually walked her away from home, because she throws a fit if I try to ride her away from Dutch. I know this will eventually have to be remedied, but my goal right now is to build confidence for both of us and to show her how much fun a good ride can be. We went to a field about a mile away, and I lunged her until she settled down- she was very full of it, so we spent about 20 mins cantering around in circles. When I mounted, she was a pain in my ass for a few minutes, bucking and acting foolish, until she realized I wasn't going anywhere. Now, this field is about 90 acres, and has some pretty established ATV trails we were using- there are gopher holes everywhere else. But I figured the ground was soft enough that if I got dumped, I most likely wouldn't suffer any mortal injuries. So I was pretty comfortable asking for w/t/c. She really threw a fit at the canter, but once again, I just plopped my ass down and kept it there like it was made of velcro. By the end of our ride, we she was trotting and cantering (in the correct lead) with very little attitude. Our only downfall was when we came across a small bridge with a white colored concrete- she was convinced it was going to eat her. Being that there was traffic coming and going, I didn't push the issue- we just cut across a field.

Then, this past week, my friend Sarah who I bought Licorice from came to visit. She gave me a couple of riding lessons on her, especially focusing on her balking and biting issues. My left leg is currently several lovely shades of purple, red, and yellow, incidentally. But my new method of getting her through the nasty biting is a good hard kick on the side she is biting at, a pop in the mouth from the opposite side, and continuing to cue for forward movement. It took me a few tries to get all three of those movements down simultaneously, hence the gnawed-on leg. It took some doing, but I got her through it. Yesterday, I was riding her bareback around the yard, and she was doing her biting crap, and I just tried to stay very consistent with my cues until she would walk without any attitude. When asked for the trot, I got the same thing (she's not a dumb horse, she knows that a faster gait+bareback rider=less balance for me when she acts up. Doesn't help that I'm still working on balancing her trot bareback- she has a much bigger trot than Dutch) and we worked on that until the farrier got here, but it's definitely going to take time to convince her that I'm not going to back down.

She was, however, a perfect angel for Sarah, much to my chagrin. We took both horses out on some state land (Dutch is coming back form a hock injury complicated by arthritis, but he actually loosened up and looked more comfortable after being ridden) and Licorice seemed to have a blast. She did buck a few times at the canter for Sarah, but other than that was very good.

So, having someone more experienced here helped me a lot, and having her talk me through some issues helped my confidence. I just figure I have to keep plugging along. And Sarah gave me her extra Parelli Level 1 and Level 2 stuff... I figure I'll give it a chance and try it out... and just keep pushing Licorice and myself. But the progress we've made has really given me then confidence and determination to keep working with her.

It's a mini, not a mounting block.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8BD9bc3u9ag

Ok, I was with this girl until she started playing jumprope with her horse (wtf) and using her mini as a moutning block.

For the record, I am not as anti-Parelli as a lot of people are. That said, I'm not paying a month's salary for a stick with a rope on it. I read a book by Parelli once, and when I was done, I was left scratching my head and going "huh?"

My personal take on Parelli is this: I think he is gimmicky beyond belief and out to make a buck. No surprise, isn't everyone? If someone wants to pay up the wazoo to play his 7 games or whatever- far be it for me to criticize. Know why? Because other than a couple dumb things the girl does, in that video I see a cooperative horse willingly doing whatever his owner asks, at liberty, and without coercion. That, to me, says something about Parelli works. Just not my thing.

I personally prefer Clinton Anderson. I will probably get some shit for that, but, oh well, everyone has an opinion. I have one of his books- his writing style is very accessible to me, and his ideas make sense. Now, I also didn't pay $75 for his stick with a string either. I paid $7 for a lunge whip. And I didn't pay whetever he charges for his special rope halter with knots on it... I paid like 12 bucks for a rope halter from the feed store. I could have paid less and made my own, but I'm too lazy for all that.

I guess my point is, even the most gimmicky trainers (and yes, both these guys are gimmicky) will have something valuable to take from their programs. Anderson's groundwork is working pretty well for Licorice. She knows she needs to lead like my shadow, and is getting better about lungeing all the time. Some of his exercises have made her very respeonsive to my body language. She's not a perfect horse, and I would say I'm not a perfect trainer, except I wouldn't dare to call myself a trainer. I guess, I'm not a perfect owner? I know a lot of her issues stem from my inability to demand respect, and now I have to learn how to earn, and insist upon, her respect and trust. So without a good trainer to rely on (and frankly, withou the hundreds of dollars it will cost to get one) we are muddling along, and I am taking ideas from wherever I can find them, and adapting them to our situation.

Hopefully, somehow in all the steps we make, forward and backward, we'll get somewhere.

I am such a nerd.

I never read blogs until this past year. And I have to admit- I love the horse blogosphere. Yes, the previous sentence is proof that I am a huge nerd. I have always loved the internet and have always posted at message boards- for poetry, music, politics, that kind of stuff. But now, I'm just reading (and posting) about something I like... not because there is some agenda or point to prove... but because I always wanted a horse, and now I have two of them. And there is this really cool community of people who I can read and learn from.

And then I can blog my dorky little heart out. If only my husband knew... when he finds out, and he will... I will never live down blogging about horses. I will be teased mercilessly. Oh well.

Hopefully I can work with Licorice this week and post something soon. Her originaly trainer is coming to visit me next week, and hopefully she can help me figure out where I've being going wrong.

Happy blogging. :)

There are no words...

... for how appalled I am.

The new trainer came today... and OMG...

Okay. I'm going to take a deep breath, and start with the good. Because there were some good things she did, and I feel like I did learn something today. At first, on the ground, we lunged a bit, and she commented that Lic seems nice and willing on the ground. There are definitely some things I have been lax on- I need to tell her what to do, not simply ask, and insist on a response. Something she pointed out to me was that I cue her several times for, say, a canter on the lunge line. When I get it, I'll be satisfied with just one lap or so around, the stop her and praise. She told me that when she is slow to respond to my cues, I need to really work her until she is tired, then cue her to trot, then walk, try again the other way, insisting on a good response. I also need to get a longer lunge whip, because when she moves out far enough to get into a canter, and I cue her, but she doesn't respond, I don't have anything to back it up with because I can't reach her. That makes sense to me.

While riding, we worked on balkiness and stubbornness. Something that seemed good in theory but didn't quite work out was when she balks, cue to walk, if she doesn't respond bump harder and tap with a crop until she moves, then release all the pressure. Worked a few times, and she actually seemed like she was giving up on the bucking when she realized all she got was a one-rein stop and continued pressure to walk on... but eventually she seemed like she just went totally numb and desensitized to the cues. She would just stand there, pin her ears, and swish her tail, but refused to move. So I would pull her head around, make her turn around, make her back, still nothing.

So at this point, my thought was to get off, lunge, and get back on. Trainer agreed, so we did such. It was going okay, until Lic decided to do what she does sometimes- stand planted and bare her teeth at me. Trainer encouraged me to get more aggressive with body language a pop her with the lunge whip- which I'm okay with, she does need to learn that she can't just stand there and give me that nasty attitude. Anyway, it seemed like an okay idea, until Lic reared (she does that too sometimes when she doesn't feel like responding to my cue) but this time, she flipped herself over onto the saddle, and of course I hear CRACK! Now at this point, I’m concerned that my horse is okay, I go and check her out, and she's fine, although she had this very sheepish look on her face.... Saddle was fairly damaged, but I think it might be salvageable- the tree is cracked up by the pommel but I think it's only the outer surface- the actual structure of the saddle seems okay.

So at this point, we simply lunged for a good long while, working on trying to get her to maintain gaits without me nagging at her- she seems a little unbalanced at the canter, but she also has gotten a little pudding under her skin, so hopefully as I get her fitter that will improve.

As for the bad... while this lady had some valuable pointers and instruction that I agree with, I was appalled at her attitude. Let's see- for starters, when Lic pulls that nice little stunt where she tries to bite my leg... she suggested popping her in the mouth with my reins "as hard as you can." I personally feel that while it's okay to correct, I just don't like the idea of essentially ripping her mouth up! I did pull on her to correct, but certainly not "as hard as I could." She also suggested a Tom Thumb bit to me, which I know nothing about, so I'll do some research before I consider trying one.

As this did not exactly cure Lic’s attitude, the trainer proceeded to ask me, "Do you ever just beat the shit out of her?" Ummm, no, I do not ever just beat the shit out of my horse. Thanks. I correct her, but I do not beat the shit out of her. If it takes a thousand years for her to respect me, that's fine, I'll plug along and err on the side of too soft or lenient- yes, I know that's not a good way to train but OMG!

Her other brilliant suggestion was that I needed to buy a shorter crop so I can beat Lic in the face when she bites at me. WHAT? Okay, first of all, I'm not too fond of the idea of, say, treating corneal abrasions or (god forbid, not that I would EVER do this) broken face bones. Second of all... if I'm already having problems with control under saddle, and Lic has already shown a propensity to rear, SELF-PRESERVATION tells me I should really avoid "beating her in the face." Third of all, I like the ability to halter and bridle my horse. So far, she's fine with that. Somehow, I think beating her in the face might give her a bit of a head-shyness problem...

but what do I know, I'm just a newbie horse owner and this lady is a show trainer, a western please show trainer no less. Ugh. I love riding western but the amount of abuse that goes on is nauseating. So no, I will not be "beating the shit out of" Licorice. And although I got something out of today, I do not believe I will be asking her back.

Sorry for the rant. I'm not a happy girl right now.