DAY 9: Both Argent and Brody got wormed today. It
was much easier than expected, although Brody gave me a look like I violated
his taste buds. Sweet carrots, treats and a vigorous brushing followed and that
seemed to make up for the offence. The footing the round pen was less than
optimal so for safety sake we kept things easy. We refined the exercises of
Establishing a Direction, Consistent Direction, Establishing a Change of
Direction and Consistent Changes of Directions at liberty without too many
“errors”. A couple of honest (and humorous) mistakes happened. Soft corrections
and lots of praise occurred. We focused on several Backing exercises and Yielding
the Hindquarters 1 and 2 for a bit and got some real improvement there. Lunging
for Respect 1 and 2 were also worked on. Brody is adapting well to the new
lifestyle and the routine of training. We’ve introduced beet pulp pellets into
his feeding program. Not sure he like them. We will be sculpting his feeding
program over the next several weeks in order to get the right kind of weight on
him. Being an Appendix Quarter Horse the TB aspect of his genetics seems to
show up in his metabolism. He is more of a challenge to keep weight on. Some
resistance to Flexing on the right side was met today. He knows the exercise
but was testing his boundaries a bit. This seems to indicate that he is feeling
better due to the increase in the amount and quality of his feed and the level
of trust we are working on. He did the typical circling and backing but we
stuck with him, moved his feet and made the right thing easy and the wrong
thing difficult. When the right thing was attempted the level of praise was
high and quickly given. Brody seems to learn quickly which is a plus. The
challenge will be to keep him mentally stimulated as his training improves.
Overall he is a very willing gelding who seems to have heart and curiosity. The
day ended when we had 4 to 5 “wins” with each exercise, followed by brushing, a
nice snack and then some time on the tree of knowledge.
Day 10-13: The
weather was horrible. We had to travel away from home over the weekend and came
back with winter colds. Everyone got some time off. Sigh. We got lots of
questions from friends about whether Brody is a short term or long term horse.
Frankly, we don’t know. It’s like we are dating and finding out if this can be
a long term relationship or just some fun and enriching companionship for a
time. It feels like long term but
we’ll know more as his health, training and aptitudes/interests develop. For
know he is enjoying his new lifestyle and that is what matters.
DAY 14: Brody got
to give a lesson today! Our friend Katie came over and was interested in
learning more about our style of horsemanship. The clouds were rolling slowly
in so we decided that a ground work session would be the best course of action.
We covered the points of position, intent, pressure, reward
and others while working on the round pen skills, Lunging for Respect 1 and 2,
Yield the Hindquarters 1 and 2, Backing (Tap the Air and Steady Pressure),
Leading Beside and Flexing. Brody stayed mellow and was willing to focus even
though he fells he “knows” the exercises. Katie was just learning so body
language and intent were her biggest challenges. It really proved how vital
good body language is to the training process. When the communication was not
“clear” Brody either tried to figure out what was being asked or simply stopped
and walked towards the human with a “what was that you were saying” attitude.
That willingness to try even if he is unsure is really endearing. The session
ended with both the horse and human getting some great wins and seeing how
important clear body language really is. It was a good time to be sure.
DAY 16: Yesterday
we had rain, now and freezing temperatures so working outside was out of the
question! Today however we had better weather and wanted to get some
saddle/training time in. So we loaded up the dynamic duo (Argent and Brody) and
headed over to the local arena. The footing was less than optimal because of
the recent weather so we focused exercises at the walk and trot (yes, we snuck
in some lope transitions too) for the most part. Ground work consisted of
Lunging for Respect 1 and 2 to warm up then Backing (tap the air and marching),
Circle Driving, Flexing and Yielding the Hindquarters 1 and 2 were done. Once
we got at least four wins per exercise we moved on (did we mention it was cold
out?). We then tacked up and worked on the Cruising Lesson, One Rein Stops and
some basic patterns at the walk and trot. Brody is getting better at these
exercises and needs to be managed less and less with each session. We are
addressing his initial cinching issues by bending his head towards the girth
and using advance/retreat. Brody is really rusty on responding to leg/seat cues
and his stop needs to be managed via the reins. The goal this season is to get
those skills refined and much better. His transitions are decent but his
stamina and lack of muscle keep the length of any riding to about 20-30 minutes
before needing a break. Still we knew this would be the case and are working
towards getting his weight (three meals per day plus all day grazing) and his
stamina back to where it should be. In the short time Brody has been with us
there has been really understanding, the development of respect and even some
bonding. Being excited about the process of helping him get to his potential is
quite cool.
This is going to be another unique adventure!
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