dancing horses

dancing horses

Wednesday, May 22, 2024

Hissy Fit

 On Sunday I had 2 lessons again- 30 minutes for Quaid and an hour for Carmen. My friend Stephanie offered to come and help which was great. The plan was to lunge/groundwork with Quaid and then ride. I had them both tacked up and Stephanie held Carmen while she grazed.  The weather turned cold for the weekend (of course). Sunday was a bit better but it was foggy, cold and windy.  Because of the weather I didn't set up my Pivo so there's no media. 

the pasture is doing great

Quaid was a bit up and required more lunging and moving out then is typical but I felt he was in a good place when I went to mount, just as Jane was arriving.  I lined him up but as I started to mount he walked off. I hopped off the block, brought him around and lined up again. This time he walked off as I swung my leg over. With the high cantle of the Spanish saddle I hit it with my leg and he got a bit upset as I tried to find my balance. Fortunately, he didn't do anything and I got him to whoa. I hopped off and lined him up again. For me, standing while being mounted or dismounted is a non-negotiable for me. I hate feeling unbalanced and I'm not nimble enough to just go with it. This time he stood and we did our usual stand there and flex to the rein before walking off. 

He was tight and because of the mounting issue I was also tense.  When we walked down the long side two blue jays burst out of the brush screeching.  I got to experience his spook. Which turned out to be a sudden jerking stop, splay of the feet and then breathe and carry on. So that was nice.  

Jane was getting on my case to follow with the reins. I thought I was but she said my elbows were moving too much and if I'd just put my elbows at my side they would move naturally with him. Turns out that as soon as I did that his fussiness in the bit ended.  We worked on the circle at walk and trot teaching him about the outside leg and steering. I was also to ride him forward, especially at the trot. I was riding him too slow. As soon as we got forward everything smoothed out.  I could definitely feel things falling into place. The 30 minutes went really fast.  

I untacked him quickly and turned him out. I then put on Carmen's bridle and hopped on. You may recall that I said she was being challenging lately. When she was a bit a strong to start I honestly didn't think anything of it. Until we went to walk down the long side and she began to throw the haunches around. 

interrupting the wall of text with
Me and Mini Me

We went on a circle working on bend and half-halting. Carmen totally blew off my half-halts requiring me to get quite strong. But about 5 minutes in when I was supposed to leg yield down the long side Carmen threw a massive hissy fit. She tried to bolt, throwing her shoulders around. When that didn't work she began to spin. I did not feel safe. I asked Jane to come in and hold her so I could get off. I apologised to Jane and said that I needed to lunge her before riding and it was okay if she had to leave. 

I'm pretty sure that there were a few things going on with Carmen,. One was that she's now on grass which always gives more energy. But the big thing was that she was in a massive heat and frankly didn't want to fucking do the thing. What she wasn't was scared. Before I got on she was grazing calmly and without issue. It was a big middle finger at me. I put on her halter over her bridle and brought her down to the end of the ring she didn't want to go to. She immediately picked up this relaxed jog. 

Nope I said. You had energy and you are going to move your ass. I worked her butt for a solid 10-15 minutes at a trot and canter. She was to go forward with energy and when she tried to be lazy I chased her. I was, understandably pissed but I wasn't looking to punish her. I was looking to match my energy to her resistance. As we worked I was able to begin to use softer and more subtle aids. And she was not ignoring those. When she did (at first), I raised my energy and got after her. Carmen is really good at giving me half (or less) of her attention. If she was human we'd be talking while she scrolled on her phone. 

Jane was still there when I mounted again. This time we were able to have an actual lesson with Carmen. We worked on getting her to bend and maintain it while half-halting on the outside so she wasn't blasting off. She was not allowed to bend herself into a pretzel to carry on a circle while looking out.   Only once did she act like she wanted to bolt. Fuck around and find out I growled because we'll go.  And that was the end of that. 

it was hot today so she had a bath

In the end it was a really good lesson and Carmen had some great work.  My body felt like I had done an intense workout. Which I guesss I had. My abs were actually sore.  

I usually give her the next day off or just do a stretchy walk. But I knew that I would obsess about the debacle of Sunday, and I needed to follow up. I tacked her up and went for a ride. And she was letter perfect. Not a hint of any hissy fits. That felt like vindication. I know we've come a long way and I've done a lot of work. Carmen will always be Carmen and at times her feelings overwhelm her. Add in her tendency to be dominant and she can be challenging. It helps that I don't buy into the feelings nor do I buy that she's frightened. She just, well, Carmen.  

Fortunately, Quaid is a little more easy going because I'm not getting younger. 







13 comments:

  1. Ugh that moment when dramatic Spanish mares gotta be... Dramatic! But good for you for executing your plan and making it work :) and yay for having Quaid too. It's so nice when you have a Carmen to also have a Quaid - that's why I have so many horses 🤣🤣

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    1. The drama can be a bit much by times. It seems like every spring we have to have a ‘come to Jesus moment’. 🙄

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  2. Oh Carmen....
    Have you ever tried herbs for her when she's in heat? I used to buy one called moody mare that had a bunch of herbs like chaste berry and red raspberry that worked well for Gussie.
    Quaid sounds like he's going to be a fun horse for you.

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    1. She is on chasteberry. She always has has one difficult heat in the spring.

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  3. Its definitely a weird balance, matching your energy and asks to what they're giving you. Sometimes it feels like I'm straight up beating Ezio because he decided he wasn't going to listen to a quieter ask. Sorry horse, you'll get quiet when you listen to quiet. I'm glad you were able to work through it!

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    1. It is hard. But sometimes the only path is through.

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  4. Carmen keeps you at your top game, so maybe that’s good training for you and Quaid, too. He will seem easy compared to her.

    The green grass really does affect them. My horses have one thing on their mind, grazing, and it is tempting them every moment. I actually despise working with Tweed at home because of that, even though it is good for him.

    You are so right that it’s not a scare thing, but rather a pissy thing. I work Tweed every time before I mount, and with just a little scratching of the surface, he will flip me the bird. But when we find it and work through it, he is so much better.

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    1. Thanks for that. It is not easy some days

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    2. No, It’s not all rainbows, butterflies, and unicorns with our horses, especially when we’re consistent with our team training. We are asking them to give up something they love to do and horses they love to be with to…work.

      We have a boss mare, Cowgirl, and they do what she says…happily. I channel my inner Cowgirl before I go out there everyday, and I work him on the ground until he gets soft. Somedays it’s quick, and somedays it’s not.

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  5. these mares and their strong views of the world.... honestly tho sometimes working on the tools and techniques necessary to achieve a great ride are often as useful and productive as having the great ride in and of itself!

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    1. That's an excellent perspective for me. Thanks!

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  6. Good for you for knowing exactly what she needed in that moment! And good for Carmen for recognizing who the real alpha is in that relationship. Glad she finished well and has been a good girl since.
    And good boy Quaid too for doing the work despite dealing with some spooky weather.

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    1. Thank you for encouragement. It really helps.

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