Two Fabulous Days

I'm a little late in getting this posted but I had a simply fabulous weekend with Cricket.  I managed to play both Saturday and Sunday and I am still pleased at how everything went.

I have a standing "pony play date" on Saturday afternoons with two dear Parelli friends.  It's just a lovely, low-key time to play with like-minded friends.  All three of us are in it for the relationship above all else and so there is great energy when we are together.

We started with a good grooming session.  The warm weather is upon us and Cricket is actually blowing her coat instead of letting it go one hair at a time!  This is peaceful and meditative - mainly because you don't talk whilst grooming lest you end up with a mouthful of hair.

I started Cricket on a traveling circle game.  I've found it to be a great tool for teaching Cricket her responsibility to maintain gait as there seems to be some built-in purpose (e.g. we are going somewhere).  She gave me some beautiful canter and even when I arrived at my destination, she continued the canter circle.  Fabulous!  I disengaged her and allowed her to graze.

Sheila was having some trouble with her little gelding and I helped her with the challenge of "I'm not going" and "I'm not looking at you."  I had such fun with Nipper.  He's got a pretty big play drive but can easily lose his confidence.  I showed Sheila how she could be quite soft yet still have some intention and intensity.  I gave him back and she had much greater success and Nipper came out feeling like a winner.

It's been awhile since I've challenged Cricket's trailer-loading so I decided to see what we could do with Sheila's small, 2H slant-load.  Cricket was pretty happy to check it out and just fine to go all the way in.  I loaded her from the fender and then from the hitch.  She was so funny as she'd only circle out half way down the line, stop at the fender, go sideways and then curve around the back to load.  All on one send.

The big challenge came when I asked her to accept the squeeze of the divider.  Cricket is a big mare and it is a small trailer.  She tried her heart out for me and with some approach and retreat, she accepted the closed divider.  We finished with some yo-yo at the edge of the trailer, increasing her confidence to step down.  All in all, she was a total rock star and we had a super fun day.

On Sunday, I brought her back to the field to graze while I played with my 45' line.  I need to become more proficient if I have any hopes of achieving L4!  I threw it out and re-coiled it until I felt more fluid in the movement and the rope was laying better in my hand.

I hooked C up and we played off and on with canter at the end of the line. For not having been on the 45' in some time, she was fantastic.  While I cannot say we got a true canter depart, she did canter within about two strides of a soft, phase 1 send.  I'll take it to start.  We finished with six laps at the canter with only one correction.  Again, we are on a mission to improve her "maintain gait" and I was super-pleased with her rhythm, relaxation and connection.  My biggest challenge is getting more athletic in my rope handling and getting Cricket to better understand "canter draw, redirect, FLC".  But we're getting there!

Now That's More Like It

Had the privilege of playing with Cricket last night.  My good friend Tina made mention of this on Facebook or ParelliConnect (cannot remember which) and I decided that was the attitude I needed.  Having Cricket in my life is one of the most amazing blessings and I need to be reminded not to take her for granted.

I had a plan of playing "that's enough" - setting up some different tasks and just getting a better try before moving on.  I shifted my plan when I arrived at the barn.  Things went so poorly on Monday that I wanted to give Cricket big incentive to follow my requests.  I took about 2/3 of her grain (it's not really grain . . .) ration and divided it amongst several buckets around the arena.

And then I had a jumbled, mixed up, free-form, loosey-goosey session.  Totally channeled my RB.  And had a little FUN.  I really didn't care too much what Cricket did except that I wanted enthusiasm and "yes ma'am."  At first she was completely focused on the buckets.  I expected this and so was not frustrated.  As we continued to play, I got more specific about when she could stop for a nibble (or a cookie when the grain was gone).  And she started asking questions, "Is it okay if I check for a smackerel?"

We did a little with "more energy/maintain canter" on the circle.  I decided to use change of direction to encourage maintain gait.  This is not my favorite strategy but it worked for what I wanted.  Each time she slowed to the trot, I had an OH BOY moment with the change.  As soon as she put in more effort, I allowed her to stop and that was it on canter circles.

After a little more play - and finding some holes that need to be addressed - I decided the connection was strong enough and I slipped her halter off.  As soon as we moved forward, she headed for a (now empty) bucket.  I smacked the ground to disengage her with an "I didn't say you could leave" attitude and she whipped around to face me.  No argument, no bolt.  I brought her to me.  And gave her a cookie.

She was fantastic.  Lots of stick to me, a jump, some COD and she even offered some canter around me.  I brought her to the mounting block and she was happy to let me get on.  We had a very short, very slow walk around the arena - bareback and bridle-less.

Throughout the session, I had my spotlight music playing on my iPhone in my back pocket.  I really like the music I've chosen and I felt good playing to it.  I'm going to re-order the songs, moving the Jason Mraz tune to the front and the Joshua Radin song to the end.  If I can connect to that sense of play and connection, the spotlight is going to be just fine.

Like Coming Home

I was able to play with my pony tonight.

Simply wonderful.

I wasn't asking for much and I wasn't expecting much.  And in return she blew my socks off.

My normally introverted and sullen mare was so beautifully and openly extroverted.  Something I haven't seen in our on-line play in a very long time.

Things were good when she offered a little trot in our warm-up.  Things were better when she gave me a gorgeous forward trot in the circle game.  She gave me some easy, 3-beat canter and an exuberant flying lead change.  We played with some long distance, energetic touch-it - asking her to really hook onto my idea.  On a focused send, she went straight for the jump and cleared it with beautiful energy and intention.

And that was it.

I sat on the barrels, scratched her belly and then put her up and gave her dinner.

Like coming home.

(Not) In the Mood

It's been ages since I've updated my blog.  Every time I start a blog post, I just sort of fizzle out.  What's up with that?  Maybe it's just a bit of the winter blahs . . . Who knows!

I've had several good play sessions with Cricket in the past weeks.  We continue to work on and refine what Carol taught us at camp.  In so many ways, my relationship with Cricket has never been better.

We've been playing with more intention on-line.  Using softer phases and stronger focus has my little mare offering more with me doing a whole lot less.  She's beginning to offer draw at speed, we've gotten some soft flying lead changes on the change of direction and she's offering canter more and more.  I need to remember that I turned groundwork in to drudgery and it's going to take some time to convince Cricket we are actually playing.

Under saddle, we're still having a ball!  I've been playing with steady rein and stretching into bit contact.  Cricket picked that up in no time and now I'm teaching her to follow the feel of the bit - forward and down or back up into my hands.  She totally gets it!  She can get a little resistant about holding frame so we're just going soft and slow.

I've been teaching her correct bend for lateral work and she can nail it on the right bend but we've been fighting (for lack of a better word) on her left bend.  Her lateral flexion is fine to both sides and her freestyle HQ disengagement is fine to both sides.  But for some reason, when we put them together, it all goes to hell.  Carol helped me break it down and Saturday, I asked for the bend and when I asked for the HQ she gave me the weight and body shift.  Loved it!

I want to start preparing Cricket to be able to ask for flying lead changes under saddle.  I never imagined this would be something I would do but I think we're ready.  At least for the ingredients.

We're starting to introduce speeds within the canter.  Unfortunately our arena isn't wholly conducive to this but we're making the best.  I've started asking her for more speed on the long side and then to slow on the short side and speed up down the long side.  It's a little hit or miss but I think that has more to do with Cricket trusting me than anything else.  When she figures out I really want her to turn it on, I think we'll have some fun.

I also got a wild hair to start asking for freestyle walk-canter transitions.  I saw it on a Mastery Lesson and thought, "why not?"  I can get a little rattled asking Cricket to canter freestyle, simply because I had this idea that going from the walk to the canter was a finesse thing.  Don't ask me where I got that idea.  So last Saturday I just started playing with it.  At first, Cricket gave me a racey-bracey trot.  I just brought her back down and asked again.  A few repetitions on the left lead and she got it and I rode one of her best freestyle canters EVER.  On the right lead, she nailed it on the first try.

Speaking of right lead canter, I think we've finally exorcised the Corner's Demon.  You know, the little devil on Cricket's shoulder that convinces her to run hell-bent for the corner every time we take the right lead.  She offered a right lead canter on Saturday and rather than say, "No." I opted for "Me Too!" and she gave me several circuits of the arena with no indication of running for the wall.  None!

And I have finally found the perfect bit.  Because sometimes equipment matters.  In the time I've been riding her in her new bit, she's come to the point where I hold out the headstall and she reaches for the bit and takes it up into her mouth.  Recently, when I went to remove her bridle, she continued to play with her bit and I stood, for about 10 minutes, holding her headstall while she played with the bit.  The past weekend, she tried to pick up her bit while the headstall was still on the wall and I was still saddling her.  I think we found a winner.

So there's the update.  In all of this, Cricket's attitude towards me is just amazing.  She nickers to me, comes to me with purpose and intention.  She's getting into the conversation more and more.  In a word, she's becoming willing.  It's beyond "I'll do what you say" obedience, it's "sure, that sounds great" willingness.  Not all the time but more and more.  Loving it!

Camp Day 3: Rise and Fall

My private session this morning was a bit of a fall from glory.  After ending on such a high yesterday, it was bound to happen.

I wanted to work on maintain gait on-line.  At the canter.  It wasn't pretty.  At least to me.  I felt uncoordinated with my tools, my horse was unenthusiastic about my efforts and I felt as if we did a whole lot of something for a whole lot of nothing.

I'm sure that's just my perspective.

In our ground session we did long line driving.  My frustration from my private session spilled over into our group session.  I was way too hard on Cricket, probably as a reflection of being too hard on myself.  Cricket got just a little scared of me.  While I'm thrilled to see her access a little of her right brain, I'm not proud about how it happened.

We wrapped up driving and did some liberty.  Of course Carol calls on us to do our liberty circle game right as Cricket and I are in this uncertain place in our relationship.  It was okay but I could tell Cricket wasn't so sure about it.

As we played at liberty for the session, Cricket tried so hard to please me but I think my confusion made that very hard for her.  While I was asking her for a figure 8, she left me and went to the middle of the arena and offered a circle game.  By herself, complete with change of direction.  Around no one.

Later she went out from my figure 8 and offered a figure 8 on the other side of the arena.  By herself, completely alone.

She hooked up with my friend Margenia's horse and they proceeded to take a casual stroll on the wild side.  Carol had Genia and I meet up in the middle of the arena and ask them to circle us.  It was pretty cool as both mares worked out a circle together.  When they hooked onto the game, we disengaged them and they came right up to us.

Our mounted session was better.  A review and extension of the previous day.  We also introduced some lateral work, building the blocks towards half-pass, side-pass, haunches in and shoulders in.  I really struggled with Cricket's bend to the left.  I asked Carol about it and she helped me to separate each element and figure out what was confusing Cricket.  I'm not sure how long I played with this but I finally started making some progress and called it a day.

Camp Day 2: Fun Fun Fun

Just when I thought it couldn't get better . . .

We had another mind-blowing private session about the circle game.  It's amazing how such a simple concept has so many layers and facets.  Our ground session was a bit of a review of the previous day and then expanding on the liberty we started on day one.  Carol is asking us to stretch our idea of how the horse takes responsibility and it's pretty intense.

Under saddle, we started with a review of day one and then did some CS riding using a F8.  Carol had half the riders at one end, half at the other and the goal was to do a F8 using CS and neck string.  As always, it was up to us how to approach it for safety and confidence.  When it was my turn, I was pretty nervous about it.  But it's a pattern Cricket knows and likes so I felt that we could work through it.  I started at a walk to get Cricket on the pattern and then we moved to a trot and then a canter.

I cantered my horse with just a carrot stick.

It wasn't perfect, it wasn't all that pretty (at least in my mind) but dammit, I did it.

And then I cried.  Happy tears.  I've waited so long for that moment.

The second time around was better.

My private session was the first of the afternoon and I decided, just for fun, to ride bridle-less.  Crazy, right?

Crazy fun!  Cricket was so freakin' amazing.  We did all gaits, simple changes through the walk, sideways, yields . . . Oh my gosh it was a blast.

At the end, all I could do was thank Carol for all she's done over the course of my journey with Cricket.

So I wonder what day three holds?

Camp Day 1: Exceeding Expectations

The first day of camp was amazing.  Every part of the day exceeded any expectations I had coming in.

I have to admit to some trepidation.  Cricket and I have a bit of a rocky history with camp.  As hard as I try not to carry that particular baggage with us, it's hard.  I have so much time and emotion invested in this horse and we can crash pretty hard.

Almost every moment of the first day was just knock-your-socks-off kick-butt.

Each day of camp starts with private sessions.  Then we usually do some sort of simulations before starting our ground session.  After a lunch break we have a riding session and then finish the day with some more private sessions.

One of the early morning private sessions was focused on the circle game.  And that was the key, it's a GAME.  I think I got enough out of that 15 minutes to make the entire camp fee worth it.  Our simulations focused on steady rein and weight aids and that was cool.  Our ground session focused on the game of the circle and building the ingredients for on-line flying changes.  My favorite part of the morning was when Carol demonstrated with Cricket.  I had questions about how to ask for more without being critical of what she's doing now.  In riding, we did steady rein and stretching, asking the horse to move forward into contact.  In my private session I wanted to work on maintain gait at the canter and Carol put me on a reining pattern of fast and slow circles throwing in some lead changes.

I have more detailed notes and will probably post more once I get back home and can process everything.

Afterall, It's Supposed to Be Fun

At the heart of Parelli is the idea of playing games with your horse.  You'd think I would have figured that out by now.  Apparently not.

I scheduled a lesson with our local 2* Junior Instructor, Robin Harris, as a tune-up for camp.  I've been struggling with Cricket's on-line canter and nothing I'm doing is terribly effective.  Rather than count on camp to fix things, I set up a lesson.  After Cricket's little buck-up last week, I decided to include some riding in the lesson.

We started by just running through the games.  As I applied steady pressure to Cricket's shoulder, Robin asked, "Is that how you always check your porcupine?"  "Yes."  "Do it differently."

Huh?  I stood there, with a completely blank expression.

"How is your 'lead by'?"

So we did lead by the mane and lead by the leg.  Robin suggested incorporating more of this into our daily routine and to use grooming for checking basic yields.  The same basic challenge was issued regarding driving game so we did driving from Z3 and dwell only came when Cricket matched the energy I wanted.

The rest of the games were good and we deliberately omitted circles.

For the circle game, I showed Robin what we had and just how well it wasn't working.

We did a little on the circle but it wasn't working so Robin had me do a short range circle.  The idea was a 2 second lead it/energy cue followed up with a deliberate but quick phase 4.  Cricket gave me some great energy so we took that to the regular circle.

When I finally got the play dynamic right, Cricket gave me some beautiful canter.  Simply beautiful.  The first time I stopped her, I did so with a disengage.  Robin encouraged me to use more draw so we could both become more comfortable with that energy coming towards me.  The first time I asked, off a left circle, Cricket came in and jumped right, jumped left, reared a little and finally straightened up towards me.  I swear, with a lift of my arm to the right, I would have gotten the most beautiful FLC.  Going the other direction, she was much straighter.

Instead of wearing that out, we called it a win and moved onto riding.  We adjusted my shim pattern in an effort to alleviate the back pain I've been feeling lately.  I think it worked because I didn't feel a twinge or spasm during the entire ride!

Robin introduced me to the steady rein and using weight aids to move your horse.  The weight aids comes from Colleen Kelly and it's something with which I'm already familiar.  My dear friend Kathy has been certified by Colleen to teach her methods and we've played with it off and on over the years.  We played a little with canter and Robin helped me adjust my request so I could stay with Cricket during the transition and canter rather than falling behind and inadvertently driving with my seat.

What I need to remember:

• Be more creative.  Cricket knows her basic yields so check those during grooming, haltering, etc.  Use play time to expand on those basic yields.
• The key to Cricket's play drive is mental intensity.
• She needs to understand the consequences for breaking gait and I need to follow through when she does.  If there's no repercussions for dropping to the trot, why should she exert the energy to canter?
• More draw to bring back, less disengage.  Keep the energy flowing and forward.
• If she offers her crappy 4-beat canter, do some transitions until she can move into a forward, correct canter.  Don't punish the crappy canter but find a way to let her know that's not what I wanted.
• If she pins her ears, don't make her feel wrong but do something about it - change something to effect a change in her.  Foster the happy ears without criticizing the driving ears.
• Stop making excuses for her.
• Ask for the canter by riding the transition UP.  Literally.  Lift the inside hip a little and get up with her.  When Cricket offers a true transition, she's very up in her front end and I need to be ready for that on the first beat.
• Be more particular on the small things - straightness through the transition, up or down; go when I say; whoa when I say.

All in all it was a great lesson.  Now I have camp in just under two weeks and then Wendy comes back in November.  I should be rockin' and rollin' just in time for winter to come in and shut everything down!  Ain't that the way it goes?

What It's All About

I made the choice to play with my horse last night.  To actually play with her.  Not "do stuff with her" or "work on her on-line canter".  PLAY.

I invited Cricket to come play with me.  She accepted and so we began . . . with haltering.  Just the softest touch to ask her to keep her head lowered and towards me.  Just the softest reminder to please bring her head back.

My idea was to squeeze out of the stall and head to the arena.  Her idea was to squeeze out of the stall and grab hay from the bales stacked across the aisle.  We went with her idea . . . why not?  After the initial, frantic bites, I asked her to yield her HQ in a half turn followed by her shoulder in a half turn, all with a "hurry up and get back to the hay" attitude.  Suffice it to say, she didn't believe me.  At least not at first.  I repeated the pattern so she understood that I loved her idea and could she please consider my idea.  I also added in some sideways away, sideways towards, hurry up and get back to the hay.

In the arena, there was a 3-barrel pattern set up and my plan was to use that to do some free-form change of direction.  I decided to keep everything at the walk or trot.  She doesn't want to canter and I'm tired of telling her she's wrong.

I started slow, just using the barrels as objects and asking her a series of "can you" questions.  We played with all three barrels before I asked her to circle.

At a walk, she made it past the first barrel and at the second barrel, I wanted her to go around and draw back to me.  She wanted to jump.  But only half way.  I wish I had a picture of the expression on her face.  She was so proud of herself.  This is something we've been working on and she knows I like it and she knows it almost always yields a cookie.  She was right - I loved it and gave her a cookie.  It took more effort to do what she did than what I wanted.

She showed me she wanted to jump so I changed my plan to "go around or go over."  As we approached each barrel on the circle, I asked her to either go around (and maybe draw and redirect or draw and stop) or go over (maybe half way, maybe all the way, maybe jump and stop or maybe jump and keep going).

It was so far from perfect but it was so much fun.  She started asking questions and participating.  Her energy never really came up, except for the jumping, and that's okay.

We finished with some upward transitions following a change of direction.  It's a pattern my friend taught me to help the horse prepare for FLC.  I asked Cricket to change direction at the walk and then immediately move into the trot.  I don't know if I really set us up for success but on the last one, Cricket put in an energetic trot and held it through the change.  I figured that was enough and told her how wonderful she was.

Leaving the arena, I sent her back to the hay and we played some more with her idea.  I opened her stall door and asked her to back into her stall and quickly come forward for more hay.  She liked that a fair bit and it was a little bit of a challenge to get her to stay in her stall.

Last night made me aware of how I have drained the fun out of being with my horse.  Up until now, it's been about what we need to do or worse, what we cannot do.  It's not been about what we can do or better still what we want to do.

This is supposed to be fun.  It's supposed to be recreation for both of us.  So what if she's not perfectly bio-mechanically correct, so what if I ride a bit like a drunk monkey, so what if she doesn't canter on line.  We'll get there . . . when we're both ready.

Concerning Circles

I have this idea that if could ever achieve even a modicum of mastery of circles with Cricket I would be somewhat of a horseman.

And not just will she send, will she stay out, will she come back.  I mean rhythm, cadence, tempo, impulsion, obedience, flexion and maybe a little exuberance.

Cricket on a circle is the picture of resignation.  She puts forth only as much energy as it takes to create motion in a sort of forward direction.

Nothing I have done has produced consistent results.  I've tried psychology - do less to try and cause her to want to do more.  After awhile she realizes she can just do less.  I've tried playing a game - come here so I can tag you.  That will get her energy up but only in short bursts and it's pretty easy to cross the line into offending her.  I've tried leaving her alone and rewarding her when she offers more.  I've tried a driving circle game.

But fundamentally, I saw no purpose in the circle game.  And neither did Cricket.

Sunday night, I asked my friend Kathy to watch our circle game.  At best she might see something I was missing; at worst she could at least commiserate with me.

So I just played while Kathy watched.  Cricket did her poky little trot.  Her canter was barely a canter.  It was more of an "un-trot" - four beat, stilted and just crap.  Her walk was not easily distinguished from her halt.

Kathy and I chatted about it.  She has some similar issues with her LBI TWH mare.  Kathy suggested using raised poles on opposite sides of the circle to see if the pattern itself could cause Cricket to move better.

I put two ground poles on Rail Razers and sent Cricket on the circle.

It's almost embarrassing how un-athletic she was about these little poles.

To clear the poles in stride, Cricket needed to be straight on the circle.  Which she wasn't.  Hmm, how interesting!

So I left her alone and she started to figure it out.  And she started to move forward in a lovely energetic trot.  All without me asking.  I rewarded the trot and then asked her to go again.

On the right circle, she offered the canter and after a few laps, she adjusted her stride and balance and was doing the most beautiful free, flowing canter.  She was taking the poles in stride and she was just relaxed.  I cannot count how many circles she did - isn't that cool in and of itself?!

To the left, she was a bit of a hot mess.  She kept falling in on the circle and loosing the arc.  She was bunny-hopping on her hind legs instead of reaching into her stride.  I had to use some driving on the circle to encourage her and help her understand what I wanted.  Physically, she never got it as well on the left as on the right but mentally she was trying her heart out.  I rewarded her for a good try and called it a day.

So now my quest is to find ways to turn the circle into a "maintain gait" puzzle and build her both mentally and physically.  I was so pleased with how well she worked to figure out the game and this might be a way forward.

Whirlwind Weekend

What a phenomenally busy weekend!  Coming back to work on Monday has been more restful than getting off on Friday afternoon.

For Saturday, my plan was to take Cricket out for a trail walk and work a little more on her preparation for harness and hitching.  I convinced Kathy to come with me.

I had Cricket on two lines, though for a good part of the walk, I had the far side line up over her rump so as to carry both lines on one side.  I also had my carrot stick.  There were moments where both of us were a little wadded up but all in all it was good.

Down the first bit of dirt road I asked Cricket to yield across the road using a little direct rein and a little supporting/pushing rein.  She totally balked at the feel on her legs and ended up going backwards.  I did my level best to help her come out of it without really giving on the rope at her hocks.

I know she needed to feel release to go forward but I didn't want that release to come while she was backing.  I'm not sure how we sorted it out but we did and with just soft feel, I had her moving from one side of the road to the other, back and forth, with a nice forward walk.

Later, we used another road to practice stopping and putting slack in the line.  Cricket's first response was to back up to me.  I tapped her on the butt and she went forward, swung sideways, etc.  We just repeated it until she could respond to the feel by stopping and just shifting her weight back to find the slack.

Yesterday I spent nearly all day at the barn.  I met Becky at about 9:30 and we spent about 2 hours playing and riding.  I needed to retrieve the cookies from my truck so I asked Cricket to come out of her stall, pick me up at the picnic table and walk me the 50ft to the truck.  She was so obliging!  After a little grazing, a quick grooming and a brief warm-up, I saddled and got on.  Cricket was so good.  I haven't asked her for much in weeks and she gave me some great trotting and some relatively easy canter.  We had some hiccups in our right lead and some severe wonky-ness in our left lead. But it was almost all physical.  Little or no mental resistance at all.

After Becky left I ran home for lunch and then back to the barn to work on my saddle shimming for Bleu.  I'm not happy with it.  Either the shim pattern I'm using is wrong or it's the wrong shim pattern for my mare.  It worked fine when Carol Coppinger put it together but it's not working too well for me.  I had a brief ride and just felt the saddle was too low on her shoulder and too high in the back.  I'm ordering a felt pad from Jeffers so I can make some shims and play with it some more.  Bleu was so good.  So very, very good.  I don't think I've ridden her since Thanksgiving (when I first got my saddle!).  I'm looking forward to spending more time riding her this Spring.

Lilly's owners came out to see how she's doing so I put Bleu away and brought Lilly out.  My last session with Lilly was a serious event in which I started to address her pulling on the halter.  While her circle game was not perfect, there was much less pulling and much more thinking about the connection.  We played with sideways on the fence, backing over a pole and she even stood on the pedestal for the first time.  There were other horses in the arena and I used the opportunity to help Lilly understand energy and when it's about her and when it's not.

I decided to play with some mounting friendly.  When Lilly finally understood what I wanted, she was happy to comply by standing right with me at the pedestal.  I jumped up and down and she was not at all bothered.  I leaned over and scratched the opposite side and she was just fine.  I jumped up and draped myself over her - the first time a human has ever been on her back - and she acted like it happens every day.

I was so proud of Lilly.  So excited that her owners got to see that milestone.  And really, just honored that Lilly trusted me enough to accept what I was doing.  I laid over her a few times, swung my legs back and forth, hooked a knee over the opposite hip and even swung both legs up so I was laying down her spine.

So I can say I groomed all three horses, played with all three horses and got on all three horses.

Finished my day with iced coffee and Kahlua on the porch swing, followed up by homemade blackened shrimp Alfredo over whole wheat pasta and organic strawberries for dessert.  Not too shabby!

Driving: Putting Principles to Purpose

It's time to get serious about learning to drive Cricket.  I know this can be dangerous but so can riding.  It's about education and preparation.  Even if I have to figure this out mostly on my own, I think it's achievable.

I see this as a way to take our ground play and communication to a whole new level.  I see this as a way to put to purpose what we've learned thus far.  I also see this as a way to give Cricket a job.

I'm beginning to understand that she needs something to do not just to be doing something.  The few times I've played with her and another horse, she takes on this attitude of responsibility.  I can really see her working through the situation and "doing what needs to be done."

Last night I took her out on long lines to practice some of what I learned from the Jonathan Field DVD.  The goal of his DVD is not to prepare a horse for harness but rather to increase communication through long lines as an aid for under saddle.  Regardless, he teaches some good rope handling skills and you have to start somewhere.

I used the "carpet of motivation" (i.e. the field of green grass across the drive) to help me out.  If it things went pear-shaped I could drop the lines and Cricket would just eat.  It also allowed me to go somewhere and give her a reward at the end.

We played with circles and flipping the ropes around her back and down to her hocks.  She got a little fussy at the bind created by the drag on her head from the rope around her hocks.  She didn't flip out but pulled a lot with her head.  She eventually sorted it out and I got some nicely shaped trot.  We played a little with going from a circle to a straight line.  When that was pretty good, I added changing sides to move from one eye to the other.  Cricket exploited every little rope foible by coming to a dead halt and eating as if she hadn't been fed for weeks.

After visiting with my friend while she was feeding, we headed back to the barn and before I put her away we got some lovely, and I mean lovely, outside change of direction with a little ask on one line and a little release on the other.  I would ask Cricket to walk past me and use a feel on the far line coupled with a release on the near line to get her to turn away from me and change directions.  She did it with relaxation and total flow.

I ordered Steve Bowers' book, Farming with Horses, from Amazon and it arrived yesterday.  Apparently this is the bible when it comes to harnessing and hitching a horse.  To put it mildly, I'm a little overwhelmed.  I've just paged through the book and I see that this undertaking may be more daunting than originally planned.  But I can see some cool things, too.  What if I could teach Cricket to pull the harrow?

But I've done so much with Cricket already.  If we just take our time and find help along the way, I think we'll be fine.

Emerging from Chaos

To say things have been crazy lately would be a gross understatement.  Kind of like saying the surface of the sun is a little warm.

I'm not sure how or when things fell apart.  Nothing catastrophic, mind you.  But when disorder creeps into my existence, it creates a perfect storm of introversion, procrastination and OCD.  The result - I become an ostrich with her head buried in the sand.

But it's getting better.

I've done little with Cricket.  I've done less with Bleu.  Most of my energy has been devoted to LillyToo.  LillyWho?  No, not horse #3.  Good Lord, I'm not that crazy.

Lilly is a coming 4yr old QH mare belonging to a good friend of mine.  We've worked out a deal for Lilly to stay at my barn and get a bit of a groundwork foundation and get her ready to be properly started under saddle.  I know my limitations so I have no intention of putting a leg over this mare's back.  I'll take responsibility for screwing up Cricket but I won't add another to the list of casualties.

I have to say I'm totally in love with Lilly.  It's a good thing she's short or I'd be tempted to steal her.  She's a lovely balance of all the horsenalities.  She's forward but not a run away.  She's playful but not a total pest.  She lacks enough confidence so as to look for leadership but she's not worried and fretful.  She pauses to think but her introversion is shallow and she digests thoughts very quickly.

We have two main issues:  maintaining connection between her brain and her feet in motion and looking to the human for guidance/leadership.  Both are coming along so nicely.

I'm glad the days are getting longer and warmer.  I cannot neglect Cricket and Bleu just because a new project has come along.  I can only avoid "middles" for so long!

With Cricket my current plan is to abandon all formal groundwork.  It's not getting better, in fact it's getting worse.  So we're taking long trail walks with a savvy string fashioned into a collar and a feather line for a leash.  We're playing at liberty with the clicker.  I want to ride but I just don't want the pressure of my freestyle audition right now.

I want to start riding Bleu.  I've not really taken her out of the arena since last fall.  I need to see if she helps my confidence for trail riding.  If not, I'm not sure what I'll do . . .

Bendy, Bendy, Twisty, Turny

I have a feeling Cricket is out of whack.  Again.  But having just paid for both horses to see the equine dentist, I'm not sure there's anything left for the equine chiropractor.  Unless I sell a kidney.

The last couple of days have been groundwork only.  I've been feeling a bit out of sorts myself so I've taken the opportunity to just have some down time with Cricket and Bleu.

Part of my focus with Cricket has been trying to sort out her left lead canter.  As Becky observed on Tuesday, Cricket is relaxed and correctly arced on her right lead but she tips her nose out and falls on her inside shoulder on the left lead.

I played with some shaping her on the circle and after a few repetitions, she was able to keep herself relatively straight on the circle and transition from the trot to the canter.  I've also started working on some of Karen Rohlf's mobility exercises from her Results in Harmony DVD series.  Basically, just taking Cricket on the circle and then asking her to yield her HQ while maintaining forward motion.

This is definitely outside my comfort zone.  I got frustrated with Cricket yesterday.  I know she was trying but unfortunately she was also trying my patience.  I took a moment to calm down and we started again.  I tried to maintain my posture and to ask her for what I wanted.  I'm not sure I was getting it but it was getting better and I managed to stop on a good note.

I don't think I'll get to play today.  I want to continue our progress but need to honor how my body feels and not push myself.

Consistency

I have had some of the best sessions with Cricket over the last three days.  I've even started to rekindle my desire to play with Bleu.

The consistency has been good for me and it's been phenomenal for my Cricket.

On Sunday, as I blogged earlier, we just played at liberty and then a little on-line.

Monday I went out and brought out both girls.  I stripped off Bleu's blanket and put both horses at liberty in the arena.  Bleu was content to munch hay over the wall but Cricket wanted to be with me.  After brushing the mud off Cricket, I haltered Bleu and allowed Cricket to munch hay.

I played with some traveling circle games and obstacles.  Bleu gets skeptical and rather than address an obstacle, she tries to duck out of it.  With Cricket, I'd almost rather she ducked out and kept her forward.  But for Bleu, I'd almost rather she stopped to think about it rather than plowing forward.  I never made her feel wrong but kept adjusting the circles to "force" her to address the bridges, jumps, barrels, cones, etc.  She became much more fluid and I called it a win.  We did a little with her canter on-line and then I saddled her up.

It was my first ride on Bleu in my Natural Performer and my first ride on Bleu since my October camp.  She was a champ!  We walked and trotted around a little before we stumbled on a little game with Cricket.  Cricket, still at liberty, was bothering some of the other folks in the arena.  I grabbed a stick and when I went to drive Cricket away, she kind of startled at the stick and string. Hmm, how interesting.  I used Bleu to herd Cricket around the arena until Cricket would stand and accept the friendly game from Bleu's back.

At a win spot, I dismounted from Bleu and took both horses over to the rail.  I unsaddled Bleu and put her away with some hay and then saddled Cricket.  We did some FTR and corners game at the walk and trot and then some FTR at the canter.  I am getting more and more comfortable with a true freestyle canter, at least on the right lead.

Ed wanted to ride a passenger lesson on Honey so I picked up a CS to be able to defend Cricket's space.  We continued with some FTR at the trot and Cricket was pretty accepting of the stick.  It just felt right so I asked her to pick up the canter and we cantered, for the very first time with a CS in hand.  The second time, I even asked her for the downward transition with the CS.  WOO HOO!!!

Yesterday, I played with her on-line, at liberty and under saddle.  We had a long day with intermittent appointments  so everything kind of runs together.

She's becoming more consistent with liberty circle games at the canter.  We're missing just a few ingredients to get a FLC.

She's getting more solid with her "jump half way."

We're still struggling with left lead canter both on-line and under saddle.  She's tipping her nose out and leaning on her inside shoulder.  I tuned her up a bit at the trot and then tried to figure it out on a left hand circle.  Part of it is me and I think part of it is a habit Cricket has developed because of me.  I need to work on getting her more supple on a left bend.  Hmm . . .  might need to make some room for some serpentines and I might need to consider putting her back in a bridle for a little while.

Can't wait to get out there tonight . . .

Cricket's Gift to Me

Christmas Eve was perhaps one of the most beautiful days we'll have this winter.  I spent the majority of the day running like a mad-woman, trying to finish things up before heading to my Mum & Dad's house for Christmas.

The day after Christmas was miserable -cold, windy, snowing.  What do I do?  I head out to the barn to play with my horse.  It wasn't too bad as I had on all my clothes and the barn blocked the wind.

I gave all the horses a little hay to stoke the furnace and keep them warm.  I invited Cricket out of her stall and she clearly said, "No thanks, I'm good."  I left her stall door open and sat on the hay across from her.  Nothing doing.  I went in the arena to help someone and still Cricket stayed in her stall.  I finally tempted her out with the Carrot Stick and the promise of hay while I groomed.

We finished grooming and I asked her into the arena.  Though she was slightly reluctant to leave her hay, she obliged my request.

My plan was to play a little at liberty and then go on-line and maybe ride.  There were lots of folks there and Cricket has been a bit iffy at liberty lately.

We started with some simple "stick to me" and Cricket was ON.  She easily gave me the trot and then the canter and even maintained her canter while I walked a circle.  I stopped my feet, encouraged her on and she gave me the first canter circle we've had in ages.

She was jumping everything.  And I mean everything.  From a small barrel that was tipped on it's side to a straight rail to double down barrels.  She tried really hard to jump a single standing barrel but lost her confidence a little.  She even jumped a cone.  A little cone she could have stepped over or even on, she jumped it!

On the circle, she started offering canter so I took that and worked on some change of direction.  While we didn't get a flying change, we got some soft, obedient and relaxed simple changes.  We tried to do a full turn around the previously mentioned small barrel and she spun and then jumped it.

We played with sideways towards and she gave me a trot and almost a canter.

Everything was energetic and just full of spit and vinegar.  The only drawback to the whole thing was her headshaking.  I didn't let it bother me because I'm really at peace with this as "just a part of Cricket."  She was pretty emotional and a little RBE (awesome to see in a normally LBI) but very obedient.  The emotions, coupled with the snow blowing in her face was just a bit much for her.

We went out into the paddock, still at liberty, and played  friendly game with the little horse-drawn sled.  I put her on-line after she spooked which caused the horse pulling the sled to spook.  Nobody was hurt but I wanted Cricket to get over her skepticism.  I put her on the 22' and had her follow it much like we did the cow simulator at the Parelli Center.  The young girl on the sled offered Cricket a cookie and that sealed the deal.  Cricket's skepticism turned to curiosity and she followed, nosing the girl's boots and jacket.

What a fun day and what a beautiful gift from one of my beautiful girls.  We turned the horses out into the snow and I got to watch them all frolic, run, buck and play.  Bleu put on such a display, I laughed out loud.

I Think She Likes It!

I finally was able to ride in my Natural Performer last night.

I love it.

I do believe Cricket liked it.

YIPPEE!!!!

I decided Cricket would be my guinea pig for testing the fit of the saddle.  My sweet tolerant Bleu would probably be okay with anything, regardless of how it made her feel.  Cricket, on the other hand, believes her opinion is law and has no problem letting me know when any little thing is amiss.

We started with a little ground play.  Some stick to me - one foot at a time and then some "snappy come with me."  Then on the 45' line we played with long-distance Touch-It and then some circles - one foot at at time and then some transitions trying to elicit a willing canter.  Not too bad, not too good but I'll take it.  Did a little extreme Friendly Game by running up to her and flopping against her.  She was a little concerned at first but when the lunacy was coupled with some belly scratches, she decided the craziness was perfectly acceptable.

Then cam the big moment.  Saddling her with the new saddle.  She was a little grumpy, pinning her hears and turning her head.  I just gave her cookies and she quickly decided it wasn't that big of a deal.  I have her pad shimmed with the basic "wide shoulder, downhill" shim pattern.  Figured that was as good a place to start as any.

Once I got the saddle on and relatively secure, I checked the front of the saddle.  Holy Shoulder Clearance, Batman!  I could fit my whole hand comfortable back to the stirrup bar area.  There was certainly enough space to invite her up into the saddle.

I moved her around a little and got things snugged up.  No resistance with mounting.  Another good sign.  We walked for a bit but my stirrups were really too long to do anything so I jumped down to shorten them.  Took her back to the mounting block; again, no resistance to mounting.

We walked and trotted around the arena.  She was stretching and pushing her back into the saddle.  She was forward and open in the trot.  She sort of offered the canter but I think I wasn't really ready.  My stirrups were still a hole or two too long and I didn't have my helmet on.  And there was just too much mental pressure for me.  All that translated into tension between Cricket and me and she was a bit snarky about even offering the canter.  No worries, there will be more rides.

She was very responsive to my leg and seat.  We played with turns, curves, circles, sideways, transitions, back-up, etc.  Everything felt great.

One thing I know - it takes more than the positive feedback from one ride to really evaluate a saddle.  A poor fitting saddle creates pressure points that may not be affected by a new saddle.  The first rides feel great because the already sore spots are getting relief and any new sore spots have not had time to develop.

Another thing I know - anything, and I mean anything, that remotely inhibits Cricket's movement causes her to bow up, buck, swish her tail, pin her ears, turn to bite, etc.  It's instant feedback on whether something feels good.  She has never once protested her ReactorPanel and we've been riding in that saddle for 2-3 years.

I'm pretty confident this is going to work for Cricket.  I'm pretty confident it's going to work for me.

Oh, I tried to get pictures but the lighting was terrible (for photos, anyway).  I'll take some better pictures and some video this weekend.  I may even ride Cricket in both saddles and see if I feel/see a difference in her attitude, movement, etc.

Teeter Totters and Tug of War

Yesterday I played with both horses.  I felt like I was back on my grade school playground.  Playing with Bleu is a teeter totter - balancing respect and rapport; love, language and leadership.  Anything with Cricket is a death match tug-of-war.

Bleu's circle game continues to improve.  At the trot, it's more and more a circle than an egg or amoeba.  Her upward transitions to the canter are getting less emotional and slightly more balanced.

We've been playing with one of my bridges to simulate trailer loading and she seems to be getting more confident each time.  We also started some traveling circle game and while she was confused at first, she quickly figured out her responsibility to keep the circle going.

I had the opportunity to work with a real trailer so I decided to see how she would handle it.  Being the super obedient RBI that she is, she jumped right in and just trembled.  I played with yo-yo game, me in the trailer and her stepping in (2 feet, then 4 feet) and backing out.  We played yo-yo out of the trailer, approach and retreat.  She was able to relax with her head mostly in the trailer and I called that a win.

Later in the day, I went back out to ride with my friend Allison.  I decided to ride Cricket.  The ride wasn't that bad considering I hadn't been on her (except goofing around bareback & bridless) in over2 months.

We opened the gate from inside the arena, exited, held the gate while Allison and Dillon came out and then closed the gate.  I would say it's her BEST gate session ever.

Out in the paddock area, she was okay.  Leaving the barn, not so much.  It wasn't that she was afraid or wanting to go back to the barn.  If I wanted left, she wanted right.  It felt like argument for the sake of argument.  We meandered our way out on to the neighbor's property.

The ride was very low key and I spent my focus on "permission to graze."  I tried to see things from Cricket's perspective - she's been cooped up on her dry lot all day and I hadn't done much with her in 2 months.  So I kept my expectations reasonable.

Cricket did well.  All things considered.  But everything was a discussion, everything a negotiation.  That mare sees little to no point in anything I ask from her.

After feeding everyone, Allison and I turned them out and I stood in the pasture and had an absolute love fest with Cricket.  I found an itchy spot on her shoulder that caused her to stretch her neck, twitch her nose and roll her tongue.

I think it's time to reevaluate my approach with Cricket and get back to a stronger focus on developing Bleu.  I have camp in a few months and I would like to have Bleu going a little better than we are now.

Day Whatever . . .

I feel... thin. Sort of stretched, like... butter scraped over too much bread. - Bilbo Baggins in The Lord of the Rings

abandon, abdicate, back out, bail out, bow out, chicken out, cop out, cut loose, desert, discard, discontinue, ditch, drop, drop out, duck, dump*, dust*, flake out, fly the coop, give up the ship, kiss goodbye, leave, leg it, let go, opt out, pull out, quit, run out on, screw, ship out, stop, storm out, surrender, take a powder, take a walk, throw over, vacate, walk out on, wash hands of, withdraw, yield.

In other words, I give.  I simply cannot commit to my 30 day program.

I had a fairly major meltdown this weekend.  I came to the conclusion that I am simply exhausted.  There are too many pulls on my time and resources and I simply cannot handle it.

So I'm cutting back, scaling back and in other words just learning to say, "No."

After pulling myself out of the ashes of my crash, I spent good time with both horses on Sunday.  I gave Cricket a medicated shampoo bath in the hopes of alleviating whatever is causing her to rub raw spots on her neck.  She stood like a champ for her bath, even when the hose was on her face and between her ears.

Later the same day, when it was cooler and the humidity slightly less oppressive, I returned to the barn to play with Bleu.

We did a little Touch It on the 12' and she is quite eager to find her cookies on the different obstacles in the arena.  I had Ed move one of my bridges into the arena so we played with that in simulation for trailer loading.  I need to be diligent about this as my plan is to take Bleu to fall camp and I want the trip to be as uneventful as possible.

I switched to the 22' and we played with some Figure 8 and circles.  For the F8, I just want her to find the draw as she comes around the cone - she tends to zone out a little when in motion.  On the circle game, she offered more relaxation and less anxiety.  I asked for a little bit of canter with some "mirror me" and her transitions were racing and somewhat unbalanced but relatively unemotional.  I think she's starting to figure out I want an upward transition and not just more speed.

I saddled her and rode her.  There were other horses in the arena and though none were her pasture-mates, I think she felt a little more secure.  We played with gait and direction, whoa and go.  She gave me some good, sustained trotting and I jumped off and called it a win.

Yesterday I mustered enough energy to go feed.  When turning them out, Bleu paused in her gateway and I came in to scratch her.  For the very first time since she came into my life, she let down her reserve and thoroughly enjoyed the scratches and attention.  That just made my day.

I'm still committed to playing with them both - on some level, even if that's only friendly game.  I just need the breathing room to just be.

Day 11-17: Trying to Catch Up

I promise I've been doing more than I've been writing about. Honest.

The only two days, not counting my official week off, in which I did nothing with the horses was Day 14 and Day 16. Sunday I just didn't fee like it. Tuesday I was at work until after 11pm.

The time is all mashing together and I've slept since all this happened and each day I get older and it feels as if my memory gets squishier.

I've been trying to focus on short, provocative sessions with Cricket. We've been playing with the F8 pattern since my return from the Columbus Parelli Across America event. I cannot say the success has been phenomenal. In fact, session three seemed to take a few steps backwards. Not too worried, however. It's light years better than it has been. Maybe after this seven day program I'll learn another key and the next time we pick it up, it will be even better.

On the days I didn't play with her, I've tried to spend some rapport time with Cricket. Her new ritual is to find me after I've opened all the gates to turn out all the horses and hang back for some scratchy time. I love this part of my day. I love seeing that she needs me for something.

I've been playing more with Bleu, working to build our relationship and partnership. Overall, I believe she's beginning to see me as more of a leader. She seems less reluctant to exit her stall and enter the arena. She seems less concerned about leaving the herd.

I took her on a trail walk with the barn owner. She did great until she realized just how far away we were. I'm sure we inadvertently crashed through a threshold or two. But I'm not wholly convinced Bleu knows how to honor her own thresholds so that's now on our "to do" list. I played with her until her focus came back to me and we headed back tot he barn with enthusiasm but relative calm.

A day or two later, I took her out again. With strange horses and closer to dusk. She hit a major threshold not too far from the barn. We worked it out, taking the time it took, and when she was calm and interested in grazing, I turned her around and took her right back to the barn.

We've been playing some in the arena - balance on the circle, sideways and feet on obstacles. She's become a champ with the tarp and we're working out the pedestal. I think I need to figure out how to get my bridges moved into the arena so we can start with something a little easier.

The other day she offered a jump and then I sent her over a single down barrel in the arena and she sailed right over. She's such a good and obedient girl!

Yesterday it was just too damn hot to do anything. It's been dry (as in no rain) but wickedly humid here. Today our temps, with the heat index, should top out around 105. So when I went out yesterday, I just walked both horses down to the other barn to hose them off and cool them down. I let them both graze while I just watched. They are so different. Bleu grazed the same 20' area while Cricket blazed a trail for the back of the paddock.

As I prepped feed, Bleu heeded the "call of the feed cans" and brought herself back to the barn. I had to fetch Ms. Independent - she knows she's going to get fed so why bother coming in when she knows I'll go get her. The nice thing, despite being on lush grass, when I called to her, she picked up her head and came to me. At a walk, but at least an enthusiastic walk.

Don't know how much I'll do this weekend. With the predicted highs, it's just not safe to over-exert the horses or myself. Who's stupid idea was it to do a 30 day program in the middle of summer?