Happy Horse Momma!

Last weekend was Mother's Day, and I have to say -- recently, my girls have made me a very happy horse momma! I never did get around to talking about Elly's progress, so I will talk about her first.

Under saddle, she is coming along like a champ. She is naturally forward--which I prefer--and completely sane. Her walk is swingy & gorgeous, she naturally reaches under herself at the trot, and we've even practiced a couple canter departs. With about 30 days under saddle, she is still finding her balance somewhat, so I am going to continue to work on the canter strength / balance on the lunge, until she is ready to hold it under saddle; however, the fact that I can get a depart eventually is super promising. With her, I've been really just working on basic geometric shapes -- 20m circles, serpentines, figure 8's, etc -- and getting the correct bend. We've started to introduce leg yielding at both the walk & trot too, which she is picking up easily. Her one "downfall" is that her natural self-carriage tends to bring her a little behind the verticle, so getting her to relax into contact is going to be a work in progress for sure.

Also, on the ground, Elly has completely mastered the trailer loading! 2 weeks ago, I took her & Meadow to my friend's indoor. I left Meadow in the trailer (only brought her for moral support) & walked Elly all around the indoor, lunged her a bit, and then we went home. She loaded like a pro each time, was a bit tense in the new environment, but still listened. Again, relaxation will be a work in progress, but I'm sure will get better with each new adventure off-site. Today, I took her by herself on a field-trip to the vet's office in order to get round 2 of her strangles vaccine. Same deal. Loaded the best she ever has each time, was a bit tense while there, but still controllable. I just found out that there is a schooling show very local to me at the end of July, so my goal is to get her out enough between then & now so that it can be her show debut!

As for Meadow, I continue to be pleased & surprised at how far we've come since I've been back from NZ! One of the facebook groups I'm a member of inspired me to put a couple shots of her side-by-side. I definitely see improvement in her muscling & topline in just a bit more than 6 months (including a dreadful winter!). These are obviously not glamour shots... August 2013 after a bath... April 2014 coggins photo... but still, not too shabby!! :)

I took her to the indoor today & we hopped over a little xrail at the trot a few times to loosen up, then worked on canter. We cantered the full arena BOTH DIRECTIONS and even got a couple circles in there. She's definitely still not as strong on the left, but the right is getting so much easier too, which just a couple months ago, that was a battle. So, I know that the left will only continue to get better & better! I do need to work on not throwing her away in the canter departs though. I'm trying to give her too much rein & causing her to rush, rather than take the depart. But, that's my bad--not hers! We are also adding legit shoulder-in to our repertoire. We've worked on it two sessions now, one at home, one at the indoor. She is definitely a little confused & it's definitely hard for her, but she does seem to try. Also, I'm very glad I added those boots, but especially when we are trying the shoulder-in, I can hear some interference behind. She'll learn though, no problem. Give us another month & she'll be cantering perfect circles & doing shoulder-in around the whole arena. ;) Haha. Maybe not just a month, but I'm sure we'll see noted progress! And at this rate, my goal of doing 1st level with her next year should be QUITE attainable. :)

So, as the title states, I have been a very happy horse momma the last couple weeks!

Just for fun -- teaching Meadow to jump! 2' vertical!

The Honeymoon Phase

I have been out of touch for a while here, but I have a great excuse! Erik & I finally went on our honeymoon that has been 2 years delayed due to Navy scheduling. We went to New Zealand & Fiji, and it was an amazing trip, but not horse related, so I shall not digress... :P

Since being back, I've been really turning up the heat on riding regularly & trying to make some progress with my girls. I made a riding schedule while in the airport in Fiji on our return trip, & it gave me some great brainstorming time to think of things to work on & how I wanted to progress.

So, to start with Meadow, I have been really concentrating on the basics with her. 20m circles with good bend, sprinkling in some 10m voltes if need-be to balance her out. I have been doing this consistently for the last few rides with her and it has seemed to help her strength and balance a bit. We also did a long trail-ride on my first Sunday back, & I had her out leading the majority of the time. We had quite a few "training opportunities" on the trail with a TON of bridges. Ended up doing a lot of tight circles and framed-up backings. By the end, she was really responding to my leg & trusting me when I asked her to go forward, but due to the hard ride & "training sessions," she scratched up her back right & it was puffy for the next couple days. So, Meadow basically got a week off; I lunged her once & today was my first day back riding her.

Also, I forgot to mention that I set up a little crossrail to start schooling Meadow over & add some variety, but she would not treat anything that small as a jump and ended up knocking it over every time I'd try to ride over it. I eventually got sick of that, so I hiked it up to a 2' verticle, put a hay bail underneath to make it look "solid," and tried her over that. We've done it a total of 6 times now, each time she takes it super calm, hasn't knocked it down, and jumps very nicely. Proud of my little girl's jumping skills!

Meadow's 6th time over the jump!

Now onto the dreaded canter... Well, the right has really been coming along. At my friend's indoor, we are able to canter full 20m circle, starting to work on a bit of bend even, but the left... not so much. Still bucking & not wanting to hold it. However, out on the trail, going straight, she was fine with both leads. I found that very interesting, as well as the fact that she had knocked up her right hind on the trail. I went ahead and put SMBs on her today for the first time, & while the first canter to the left was buckity, break--per usual--the 2nd and 3rd times were just fine. We got an entire long-side in & the starts of a curve before she broke. I'm thinking--and hoping--that she has been interfering behind causing a lot of these canter issues & with boots, it'll all be solved!! Crossing fingers!

Well... I wanted to update on Elly too, but I am a tired girl... I'll try to update tomorrow... *Teaser* I attempted canter with her both directions today for the first time!! :)

March showers bring...?

I'm sitting inside now with my husband watching basketball, lamenting this sad, rainy day / weekend. Luckily, I was able to work with both girls yesterday & made some good progress!

We'll start with Miss Meadow. I will need to get some pictures of me riding her soon, so that I can chart her progress photographically a little better, but until then, my written descriptions will have to do... First off, we're starting to get some shedding!! I don't think I've ever been so excited to have the horses start shedding--I hope it's a REAL sign that Spring is here to stay. But alas, I took Meadow to the indoor as I usually do on Friday afternoons, and I decided to really concentrate on trying to get some canter. Based on some tips & tricks I had been researching, I decided to try it a little differently by really holding her together into it, rather than trying to give her free rein & half-seat off her back. I also wanted to try to leg yield into it to set her up a little better. That was the plan, at least. You know what they say about plans...

So, we started to the left. I was getting decent leg yields, she had pretty good energy, was listening... all those good signs... but then, when I asked her to canter, rush rush rush. Ok, bring her back, try again. Again, rush rush rush. Okay, throwing the leg yield out the window, let's just try getting the depart into a corner. After about the 2nd try or so, she changed the rush rush rush to a kick-out / crow-hop combo. Actually, she threw a pretty decent buck one time too; enough to make me lose a stirrup, but luckily it was just the one, so not terribly scary. I would say we tried a good 5 or so times before FINALLY, she gave me a couple strides without resistance on the correct lead. I made her do it 2 more times to sink in & in our last attempt, we actually got half of a 20m circle on the correct lead. She was leaning in & terribly counter-bent, but I'll take it! The better news is that then, after a quick rest break, when we turned around to practice to the right, she picked that up right away. I was able to get full 20m circles to the right on two occasions, though again, leaning in & counter-bent. I was happy with that though, because I think she needed some proof that she could do it, and now that we both know that she can, we can start fine-tuning from here. Once we get the canter going, I really think that we can pass through Training Level fairly quickly as we're already practicing most First Level movements.

Making great progress with Elly!

When I got home, Erik scared the bejeezus out of me, because I didn't realize he was outside, but more importantly, we had a great conversation with our neighbor who volunteered to help us clear some of our back acreage for more horse pasture! That was super awesome & since I had Erik outside with me already, I had him help me a bit with Miss Elly! Now, here's the super exciting news. I had him hold the lunge-line again while I walked her around. He had to push her a few times, but she already is understanding what leg means and steering and brakes. Because she was doing so well at the walk--and incredibly calm--I decided to try a little trot. I expected 2 things: (1) her to get a little nervous feeling me bouncing around up there and (2) me to be thrown off balance initially depending on the trot she threw out. Well, with Erik's help, we asked her to trot and she picked up a steady, balanced, easy trot immediately. She kept her head still, her body straight, and didn't blink an eye about me being up there--and the trot was smooth & easy! We practiced walk/trot transitions for a bit and ended up doing a full trot circle each direction. To finish up, Erik let us off the lunge line & took a couple photos to commemorate the day! I was so proud of my little big girl! I have a feeling that she's going to surpass Meadow quickly... I'll probably get a full canter circle on her before Meadow masters it! All in all, in was a great day, and I'm itching to continue this great progress... Alas, the rain continues...

Slow progress...

As sporadic as my work has been with the girls, I do feel good after each session. However, the weather really has made my progress with them both quite slow. I sat on Elly under tack for the first time yesterday, practiced walking & halting on the lunge with no silliness, which is a great achievement. But then, I realized that today is exactly 5 months that I've owned her. Not much progress in that time period, which is frustrating. I have 2 more weekends between now & Erik & my trip, so I'm hoping to be able to walk & trot on the lunge, both ways, with basic steering, by the time we leave. If I'm able to work with her 3 days at a pop each weekend, like this past weekend, I don't think it'll be a problem. We'll see what mother nature throws at us (predicting 1-3" of snow again tomorrow... ugh)...

The girls enjoying a rare warm day!

The other thing that Elly & I are having to really work on is trailer loading. I have heard that drafts can be a bit more claustrophobic than other horses, and she definitely has a bit of that from her Friesian side. Before the winter settled in, I was feeding her in the trailer with much success, though she would come in, grab a bite, and then back out immediately. The one time I tried to close her in, she got herself twisted around & freaked out, only further cementing her fear of trailers. So, last weekend, I fed her in the trailer again with Brazynska as well. The first time she was very tentative about it, but the second time, she went right in. We even did a little field trip to the gas station. This weekend, I decided to try her on her own. She started to play the in-out game again and so we had a bit of a "discussion" about that until she finally would load and stand until I asked her to back out. She was definitely nervous through the entire thing but in the end, she did it fairly easily, so I feel like I won a major battle there. I will be trying again this weekend to see if it stuck. I really need to get her good with the trailer so that I can start bringing her places and desensitizing her to other surroundings. Meadow is very good with all of that because we did so much of it early on, and I want Elly to be just as good if not better!

Miss Meadow and I also had a good weekend together. I lunged her on Thursday evening & surprisingly, she was very "up" so I was able to work on her canter on the lunge much more successfully than usually. Then, on Friday, I trailered her over to my friend's indoor & we worked on a bit of everything. I tried collecting her up a little bit more to see if that would help hold her in the canter, but it was futile. I was able to get an almost full circle of canter to the right (which to be honest, she was breaking at the doorway entrance to the arena because she wanted to quit after being ridden for almost an hour), but the left was not good at all. She tried everything to avoid picking that up--wrong lead, kicking out, crow hops, speeding up, slowing down--until she finally gave me maybe 2 half-hearted strides before pooping out. Because she can do it on the lunge--though even there it's less balanced than to the right--I think it's a strength issue vs a pain issue which is an improvement over where we were. Her trot-work is coming along nicely; we're starting to do big-trot, little-trot sets and leg yielding. At the walk, I practiced leg-yields and the beginnings of turning-on-the-haunches. All in all, both of us were very tired after that ride! One of the first times I've made her sweat! :)

On Saturday, Erik & I decided to take our dog Rocky on a hike over the hills at the nearby park. I am gearing him up for a dog show in May & his left shoulder needs some conditioning as well. Since Meadow needs hind-end conditioning, it seemed like a great idea to take her as well, but I didn't want to ride while my husband walked, so he walked Rocky & I hand-walked Meadow. Up & down A LOT of hills. Good for my hind-end as well! It was a nice evening, & I think both animals really enjoyed it... I enjoyed it... hopefully the hubby did too, because we need to do that every weekend before Rocky's show as well... I've already decided that if he doesn't do well at the show in May that I'm giving up on that until winter, because I already have too much on my plate with the horses. Adding in dog showing is just not going to work if I want to stay married!! Haha!

Hiking the hills with my horse & pup, photo by Erik

Spring has sprung?

It has been a month since my last post, which is not terribly surprising considering the weather we've been having here. One day it's 50 & sunny, the next it's in the 20's & snowing. All these fluctuations & snowfalls have caused my pastures to become mud-city. Not fun. And even though it's mid-March, the horses are still holding on to their winter coats; very minimal shedding occurring.

This is supposed to be a good weekend though, starting out today with a sunny day in the 50's. I had the farrier out & for the first time ever, all my girls are barefoot! Because of the mud, we decided to keep Meadow barefoot until it dries out (she lost her last set of shoes ~2 weeks in), and we're trying Braz out to see if she will be okay without shoes. Meadow will get a full set around next time, weather & attitude permitting. :) Attitude-wise, she did great today for her trim. Elly got the prize for brat-horse. She gets very antsy when nervous. She is definitely going to be a spook & bolt type vs a spook & stop type.

Speaking of spooking & stopping, after the farrier finished, I took Meadow to my friend's indoor to do some work. We had a really great ride; she was responsive, forward, and listening. She did spook a couple times (not surprising since she hasn't been ridden consistently for a couple months now...), BUT she settled down immediately afterwards back to work. I was very proud of my 4--coming 5 yr old--brain. It will be interesting to see the difference between her & Elly.

During the ride, we worked on a bit of everything. We started with a nice, easy walk warm-up sprinkled with some walk leg-yields. Then did a trot warm-up with trot leg yields. Then, worked on maintaining a balanced, connected trot on the circle with lots of walk/trot transitions. To finish up the trot work, we practiced some small trot/big trot for the first time and she was really pushing for the big trot which was great. She wasn't able to stay through the entire time, but that's a strength thing, so as soon as we can get riding consistently and throw in some conditioning hillwork rides, I think her progress will be incredible. Finally, to cap off the session, we attempted canter each direction. Probably a combination of weakness & tiredness resulted in more bucking/crow-hopping than cantering (especially to the left), but we were at least able to get the depart on the correct lead once each direction. Again, hoping that will come as we work on the conditioning.

After getting home, I parked the trailer strategically so that I could practice trailer-loading with Elly. I am going to feed her in there on the weekends & start taking her on little trips (ie, gas station, around the block, etc). I need to get her comfortable with the trailer so that I can start taking her out to expose her to things. I would love to start doing that when Erik & I get back from our honeymoon in April. I have 4 weekends between now & then and A LOT to accomplish. Hope the weather cooperates... the weathermen are calling for snow on Monday already... so who knows... when will Spring officially spring??

Snow photos!

We've gotten ~10inches of snow in the past couple days, so needless to say, no riding has been happening. Instead, I dragged the husband out to help me take some photos in the snow.

I started with Miss Elly--who I have sat on only twice before. Literally, I put a halter on her, ran a brush over her, put the bridle on, & asked for a leg up. She just stood there through all of it... such an easy-peasy girl. I tried annoying her a little bit with my legs to get her to walk on, but she just does not understand that yet. Luckily, though, she doesn't get nervous or antsy when confused, just stood there and looked back at my legs a couple times. She'll pick it up easily, I'm sure, once I have good weather & consistency.


Elly & Leah, Feb 14 2014

Elly, Braz & Leah, Meadow in the background, Feb 14 2014

Next, I jumped on Brazyska. Just put the rope halter on with the lead rope tied in a loop. She was not happy to leave her warm, dry stall and head out into the deep snow. It actually got the others kind of riled out too--seeing her out--so all of the pictures with her have the other girls in the background too. They just wanted to play, & she was having no part of it!

Braz - small but mighty!




Meadow & Leah, Feb 14 2014

Finally, as it started to get a little dark, I pulled Meadow out. Had to lock Elly in a stall, because I didn't want her causing trouble. She definitely dominates the submissive Meadow. Meadow is just so quiet and relaxed at home. I can't believe she's only 4 (almost 5)! AND a red-headed mare at that! I am so lucky to have THREE easy, great girls, each with their own personality & quirks!













Then, to top that off, I'm SO lucky to have a husband that puts up with my horse silly-craziness! :)

Elly & Erik, Feb 14 2014

 

The pursuit of balance...

The weather has cooperated enough in the last week to let me work Meadow 5 out of the last 7 days! Not too shabby. And then, when not riding, I dwell. dwell. dwell.

My two main items to work on with Meadow are the following:

• sensitivity to the leg
• balance at canter

Interestingly, I think they are quite related. So with those issues in mind, here are some notes on my last week's rides.

• Friday: First ride in 3 weeks. Was able to get canter depart both directions & trotted over a 1/2 crossrail. Canter fell apart after 3-4 strides. Was at friend's indoor arena so naturally had a bit more forward than at home.
• Saturday: Rode at home. Sucked back, but still able to get canter departs both directions. Again, fell apart within a couple strides. However, tried a set of 3 trot poles with a small ~18" verticle and had a lot of success with that.
• Sunday: Did a walk-only session at home to stretch her out but let her have a rest day. Again, very low energy & dull to leg. Finished quite frustrated with that lack of sensitivity.
• Monday: In-hand work concentrating on a working walk & snappy walk/canter transitions. High energy was the name-of-the-game. I was very pleased with how she responded to that.
• Tuesday & Wednesday: Off
• Thursday: Started with in-hand work, again concentrating on high-energy & sensitivity. Afterwards, I rode and was SO pleased with her forwardness. Got some great leg-yields at the both the walk & trot, but better yet, I got a FULL canter circle to the right for the first time ever. The left was not so lucky, but that is her tougher side anyways. Unfortunately, I may have pushed it a little bit, because I tried the small verticle set at the end, and she was just worn out. Didn't want to lift up her feet & kept knocking it down. Oh well. I'll take my sensitivity & balance success! The strength and stamina piece isn't going to get there until the weather clears up more & I can actually get her out on some hills & hacks.

Tomorrow, I take her to my friend's indoor again, & we'll see how it all builds. I really can't wait for Spring & consistent riding again! If we made this much progress in a week, I think a solid 30 days will make a world of difference!