Spring Maintenance

 Spring for horse owners is an expensive time. This year got a little extra expensive with my horse trailer needing some minor repairs and two new tires.  But now the horse's bus is as good as new. Which was good because this year I had to trailer the horses to their vet appointment.  With the vet shortage it was the only option if I wanted them to be seen before the end of June.  The downside was that I had to miss a clinic that was (of course) on the same day. 

Carmen: well this is new
Quaid: where are my snacks? 

It wasn't too bad really. The horses self-loaded and the ride was pretty easy. I'm glad I went when I did because they both had some sharp edges that needed to be treated. Quaid also had a wolf tooth that she popped out pretty easily. 

So stoned post dental work

I noticed he's much less fussy in the mouth since it was done. He did react to the vaccines again but much less than last year. Just a little off his feed the next day. I gave him some banamine and he was okay by the day after. I'm hoping that as he ages his reaction will get a lot less. Carmen, of course, reacted to nothing and was herself the next day. 

I've been able to ride pretty steadily over the past few weeks and I'm seeing some real changes.  Quaid is better every ride and his canter is getting easier. There's no shenanigans in picking it up but he still struggles a little with balance and maintaining a steady rhythm. All of which makes sense. What I am loving is that he tries so hard to do what I ask. I'm not getting any of the questions or balking I had before. 

Carmen is doing really well in lots of ways too. I've been honing in on our half-halts these days. She has a habit of simply bearing down and powering through them, especially at a canter. I've been trying to keep my plan and be really clear with my ask. If she blows through my half-halt I will put her in a 10 metre circle, rebalance and carry on. This is working and I'll be curious to get Jane's input when I have a lesson later this week.  I realised that I have let he blow off the half-halts for a long time so now I need to go back and fix my mistake. But when she does come back and rebalance I can feel everything shift to her hind leg. 

Honestly, riding is a series of doing the thing, then realising that you should have been doing it differently/better/more consistently and then doing that. Until you get the next bit of learning. Or maybe that's just me... 

Steady Eddy

 It seems that Spring has decided to stick around and that's it made it much easier to be consistent in training.  At first it was  exhausting keeping two horses in work. But it feels like I've found a rhythm with it. I ride both of them 3-4 days a week and other days just one horse. I do try to take one day off.  Those days in the gym have really paid off.  

with spring starts the weaning onto the back pasture. 

I've been tackling my goals and working towards getting ready for our first show. Earlier this week I sent in the entries for the first show. *gulp*  I signed Quaid up for Training Level 1 and 2. Carmen will be doing 2nd level again. I'm hoping by the end of this year we'll be ready to move up. 

With my last lesson on Quaid showing me how tentative I'm being with him I've been trying to improve that. Rather than canter being a big thing I've been working on it being no big deal.  To do that I've been asking for it early in our ride as part of the warm up. The first time I did it the left went fine but the right was a struggle. He showed some signs of wanting to bounce, rather than pull on the reins I sat up and urged him forward. I even gave him a tap with the whip.  Now each time it's better and not so emotional.  I'm trying to keep my arms steady and stay balanced in the tack. Not that I'm perfect, heaven knows. 

That dot is Cordelia lounging about 
while we work

What is really striking to me is how steady he's being with me. Even when things don't go as planned.  Earlier this week I was riding Quaid and was trying to decide if we were done. Then I heard a rumble in the field next door and a young person riding a lawn mower popped up over the hill in the field next door. We looked and she waved at us. Quaid was curious but fine so I decided that it was a good time to finish.  When we were walking back in the barn a barn swallow dive bombed him and he jumped 10 feet. 

That's when I realised that he's much more confident being ridden. I'm assuming that it's because of all the work that's been done, starting with the early work I did, then the training Mike and Nikki did last year and then what I've done (with so much support from Jane) over the past year. When he spooks he's asking for direction, not looking to escape. When I can answer his question of 'what do I do?!' he takes a deep breath and carries on.  

Today when I was riding we were doing really well.  At the beginning I realised I had brought up Carmen's bridle instead of his. I left him unhaltered and ran down to get his bridle. I was sure he'd wander to eat the grass in the ring. But he never moved. 

Quaid: is this a test or did you just 
abandon me? 

 I was working through some of the TL test: 20 m circle at A picking up the canter the first quarter of the circle and then going down the long side.  The first time was not that great but he really tried. By the third try it was much better so I let it be and we went on to do other work.  Near the end I decided to do some walk work as part of our cool down.  We've been doing leg yields so this time I decided to play with that a bit. We walked down the rail and I asked him to bend to the outside and leg yield in a few steps and then switch bend and leg yield back. 

As always, the first time he was like wait, what? I'm pretty sure that this is wrong.  Fortunately, unlike Carmen when he doesn't understand he doesn't get annoyed, just curious. Then after a couple tries he understood and it was felt pretty good. So then I wanted to work on shoulder fore. It feels pretty easy with him TBH. Then he began to be distracted and acting worried about the brush. I figured it was the birds fluttering about and that he was getting tired so more easily distracted.  Then he began to balk at going forward. So I made sure I had the outside rein consistent and my inside leg on. 

Then suddenly a cat came streaking from behind him with Cordelia hot on its heels! Not one of my cats but a neighbour cat that's been hanging around. Why it came so close with Cordelia there I don't understand.  But anyway...  As the cat and Cordelia went streaking by us (pretty much under his head) we came to a screeching halt. The cat disappeared into the brush and Quaid stood there stock still with huge eyes I TOLD YOU THERE WAS SOMETHING THERE! 

 I was busy calling Cordelia and then I realised that Quaid hadn't moved a muscle. I quickly hopped off because I was worried Cordelia would run onto the road.  I was trying to figure out if I should leave Quaid to follow when she came bounding back looking very proud of herself I chased off the intruder! I'm the best dog ever! 

I was super impressed with how Quaid handled the ruckus. It would have been completely understandable if he had taken off but instead he waited for direction.  I have zero idea if we'll be 'show ready' but if I keep riding we'll be okay. 

'Ride Like it's October' Lesson Recap

 The weather finally seems to be getting better which has lead to more consistent riding. So yay. But it's still been chilly until very recently.  On Friday I had a lesson booked in the afternoon and it was Quaid's turn.  I was really looking forward to having input on us and it did not disappoint. 

sorry for the picture quality the sun was off to the right

Jane had us walk and honed right in on my right leg being too far forward. It felt really weird to move it back. Then she was correcting my rein aids because I was giving and taking too much with my arms rather than following with my elbows.  I've been really struggling with this, I tend to take more with hands and bend the wrist. Or tighten my hands into fists. But it's not like I was all terrible. Quaid feels a lot more steady this year and Jane commented that his trot is way better.  Our steering is also much better.  

Quaid is not steady in the contact and, not surprisingly, takes exception to me holding him. But he also has a habit of pulling the reins out even when I'm not being hard.  Turns out that the answer is to absorb the movement in my elbows. I definitely didn't really get it during the lesson but I was really trying. 

at least our halts are square. And look how fuzzy he still is! 

trotting into contact

For the transitions I was to make sure that the contact was consistent on the outside rein throughout the transition. If he ducked behind the contact I was to follow with my elbows but not let him think the contact was to be avoided, rather he needs to learn to go to it and I need to make sure that it's a steady contact not hard.  

I had told Jane that we were just starting to canter this year.  And of course you know that she was going to put us through our paces.  

there was some nice moments 

and some feelings

 As we went along Quaid was getting frustrated and there were a few things going on. One was he wanted to have his head free to drop it and buck a little (in a playful way not a 'get off' way) and was getting pissed that I wasn't letting him.  The other was that I was riding too stiff in my hips/legs.  Jane told me to 'ride him like he's a broke horse. Ride him like it's October, not April'.  Funny how riding with expectations really help. 

I had to give him a few days off after the lesson between weather and family easter events.  Tuesday I tacked him up but first I lunged him in side reins. I thought that they might help him understand contact without the added randomness of my interference.  Being on the ground and helping him to go forward to the contact seemed to make a huge difference and I could see the penny drop. Especially at the trot-canter transition. When I rode I really tried to shift my focus and feel with my elbows not my hands. I have no idea if I can explain it correctly, but it felt like when I shifted to keeping a consistent feel in my elbows my hands were softer and I could maintain the contact way better.  So I guess the penny dropped for me too. 

Today it was even better and I was able to do multiple transitions without any fussiness with his head. And he went to canter from trot without feeling the need to pop up behind.  

I used to think that riding training level (which is where we are, albeit barely) was boring. Now I find it so fascinating because Quaid is so honest. It is such a privilege to bring along a young horse and help them figure it out. 

My goal is to have weekly lessons, alternating between Quaid and Carmen. So far the 'weekly' part hasn't been happening but we'll keep trying. 

Quaid: "I'm such a genius. I deserve all the cookies"

On-Again/ Off-Again

 When I returned from my vacation things were melted and I was excited to get started.  I had a plan for gradually building up the horses' fitness. I am well aware that Carmen is 15 this year (like how?!) and I need to make sure that I don't over stress her joints. Same for Quaid but because he's 5. 

Unfortunately, the weather has been a major obstacle. It's been a cold and wet spring. But I was doing okay, getting enough rides in to feel we were moving forward, even if at a glacial pace. Glacial being the right word because sunny and warm days were very rare. And 'warm' was just by comparison.  I did manage to get a ride in on Saturday April 6 on Quaid and Monday on Carmen.  

Then it snowed. And a fair amount of snow.  It lasted a couple days and then I got sick. Sigh. 

just ugh. 

 By the weekend I was feeling better but the weather rainy.  On one of the rainy days neighbours started to burn some stuff in the yard and it really freaked out the horses. I needed to get Ed to help me with them because they were acting panicked a wild. It was weird because Ed has had a fire and they never reacted. But no one has been on that property for years so I suspect it was the novelty and smoke freaking them out. Quaid stayed agitated for a couple days which might be related to his ride last year where the truck caught fire. 

That meant it was Monday this week before I could even consider riding. The weather was cold and windy but not rain (or snow, ugh) and I was determined to work both of them. I figured that, between the weather, activity next door and a week break,  both would be excited. I dragged the ring and Carmen watched me closely. When I was almost done she found a muddy patch (not hard to find) and had a lovely roll. She shook after and looked at me smugly. 

double ugh. 

 I decided to ride Carmen first with the idea that she'd settle pretty quickly. Turns out I was wrong on that. Despite being out of shape she was lit and was a fire breathing dragon. Not over the neighbours, just life in general. I was pleased that I never got flustered or tight, I just kept riding and we ended on a good note.   I kept my focus on rhythm and bend and didn't buy into her assertions that she couldn't go there or over there or how about here. She was sweaty at the end but, honestly, that was her choice. 

I put her back out (to roll yet again) and got Quaid ready. I tacked him up but was thinking we might just be lunging to help him get over his worries about next door.  But after a few minutes he settled right in to the work. Even when we heard voices from over the field. He looked and then carried on.  I kept the ride short but there was nothing to worry about. 

I rode him again today. This time I rode him a bit longer and he had some feelings about that. And by  feelings I mean a little grumpy and then settled back to work. His trot is nice and forward this year. We actually did our first wee canter of the year. I've been working it on the lunge - getting him to pick it up and drop to trot softly and with little drama. And that was just want our canter depart was. It felt nice and balanced too which wasn't the case last year. 

the best mule

 Later this morning the saddle fitter came out and adjusted his saddle with a bigger gullet. He got a little bored in the cross ties and lifted his front leg to stamp or paw. I looked at him uh-uh I said. He froze with his leg up and then quietly put it back down. I had to laugh. 

I'm so impressed with him this year.  Quaid is going to be 5 the end of May and he's behaving so grown up.  I can imagine how it will go when we can work with some consistency. 

his 'can I have a cookie' face

Musing on Mantras

 Over the winter Jane hosted a series of monthly video meetings with her students. They were a great way to connect and learn, especially for those of us unable to ride in the winter. Surprisingly, a  lot of the sessions were not on riding skills but more on the mental skills that are necessary when you are riding a 1,000 + pounds of prey animal. Jane shared a lot about dealing with fear and a lack of confidence. Not surprisingly, a lot of riders suffer from imposter syndrome or just a general lack of faith in our own abilities. Especially in high pressure situations, like a public clinic or show. 

Carmen was happy to see me (or the hay bag). 
Best not to think about it too much. 

Of course one way to prevent anxiety in these situations is to simply not participate.  I, for one, fully respect anyone's decision to not show. There are a lot of good reasons not to and, to me, it really is a personal choice. I choose to show right now because I get a lot of benefit from it (spoiler, it's not the ribbons that I spent a a few hundred dollars to win either). 

 But I don't want to get onto the show/don't show tangent because that is not the point of this post. Whoops. 

Sorry about that. Where was I? Oh, yes, the sessions with Jane. In one of them she talked about negative self-talk and how destructive it is. We all do it, 'why can't I do X?' "I'm a terrible rider' and 'I don't deserve my horse' etc. 

Funnily enough these thoughts are not helpful. They don't inspire us to to do better, they simply make us frustrated. And, as my friend Tanya says, 'when you're really frustrated you become unteachable.' And none of us want to that. 

here's a truly adorable moment between
Cordelia and Raven to break up the text wall

Jane suggested (strongly) that we all develop personal mantras, or affirmations if you prefer. They were to be short, positive and lead to growth. They were not to be wishy-washy or hopeful. For example, instead of 'I will try to sit the canter' it would be 'I know how to sit the canter'. I don't know if that is the best example but you get the idea. Once we had a few, we were to repeat them everyday. 

To be completely honest (and I try to be in this blog), I was a little sceptical about this making a difference. Okay, maybe more than a little. So I put off doing it. But my thoughts kept coming back to it so I began to work on ones for me. I based them off my biggest worries that I have in riding: that I am not competent and that I am ineffective in redirecting my horse when she (because let's face it, it's mostly Carmen) is dedicated to a behaviour. 

Let me give some examples. At one horse show, years ago, Carmen had a total melt down and I had to scratch mid-test. I was really upset. When I went to pick up my test sheet the person in the office a woman in there said 'you know if you would just be relaxed she would be too'.  It devastated me, even though I knew that this woman had zero idea of what I was dealing with back then. But it hit the core fear I have of being incompetent.  The other one is that Carmen can get pretty wedded to a particular behaviour (like spooking) and even if I could get her by whatever, it was always pretty shitty. Jane would say something like 'bend her' and I would answer ' I'm trying' and nothing changed. Because in my heart I didn't believe I could make a difference. 

honestly, I should have just relaxed here as she bolted
around the ring and it would have been fine.....

After doing some noodling I arrived at three statements: 

1. I am a competent rider

2. I have the skills I need to ride effectively

3. I wear the crown (in other words I get to decide things and not Carmen or Quaid) 

We were to repeat them to ourselves several times a day. 

Full confession- I did not do that. But I did repeat them often. 

And guess what? They worked. When I'm riding and things get a little iffy, like say Carmen acting like she's going to spook in a corner, I tell myself 'I am a competent rider. What would a competent rider do here?' And I do that thing.  And it works. Mostly my advice to me is 'take a feel of the outside rein and put on the inside leg'. Which is pretty basic riding stuff. But then my tension melts and I can be soft and, to my shock, Carmen breathes out and carries on. And, even if she does spook, we recover really quickly. I also use 'what would Jane do? (or WWJD) and that works really well too. 

When Quaid gets a little fussy about going forward I begin to think I'm ruining my baby horse I tell myself that I have the skills I need and I ride forward.  And when either (although it's mostly Carmen right now) begins to get strong and take over I remind myself that there's only one crown and I wear it. 

Quaid or mule. Hard to tell. 

I was surprised at how well they worked. But I'm not going to argue with the success. 

If you had a mantra/personal affirmation what would it be? 

Solid

 On my last post Linda shared her trainers belief that if you leave something solid the horse will pick it right back up after a break. And she's right. I have been able to ride a few times since getting back and it's proving itself to be true. 

My plan with Quaid was to review everything before riding for the first time this year. I told myself to not push and it was okay if it took a couple weeks/ multiple sessions before he felt ready.  It took literally 4 sessions. I probably could have got on during the third session but it was cold and windy and I decided to not. But when I got on it was literally no big deal.  He stood very still and seemed to be saying 'finally'. 

his forelock is out of control

Quaid is going to be 5 this year and I've been seeing some signs of feistiness. I've been expecting some 'you're not the boss of me'.  He got a little resistant earlier this week. When we were walking up to the ring  he kept wanting to graze and got a little pissed off when I wouldn't let him. Then during our ride he protested going past the gate after a bit. Nothing major, just baby horse stuff. Yesterday I was doing groundwork and he was really relaxed so I took off his halter to put on his bridle and he pulled away and started running around the ring playing 'can't catch me' . 

I was annoyed but not. If that makes any sense.  Most of my annoyance was directed at me for not recognising that he wasn't fully engaged in the groundwork. On the other hand I had the sense of 'ah there it is' and I'd much rather deal with this on the ground than in the saddle. After he had careened around and got his sillies out I was able to go up to him and put the halter back on and  we did more ground work.  Then I got on and we went to work. It was our longest session but he was really good under saddle. 

let me break up this wall of text with 
the most adorable photo of Cordelia
and Raven sharing a moment

Quaid has definitely grown and feels more substantial when I'm riding. The stuff that was solid when we stopped is right there and the stuff that wasn't is still wobbly. I need to make sure that I don't keep thinking he's still a baby and treat him like a horse. 

I've been having some really good rides on Carmen too. When we left off last year we were still working on keeping a steady rhythm. Clearly it was not solid and it shows. So I've been focusing on keeping her straight and rhythmical. It's been interesting because while she initially was not a fan of me rating her paces I notice that she relaxes a lot sooner in our rides. 

I have left her largely unblanketed this winter and
she has learned to love the mud. Sigh. 

What I've been really happy with is that, no matter what her mood, I've been riding her the same. We're not hiding from any part of the ring and I'm not worried. It felt like I was much steadier in keeping contact but not holding. I also seemed to be more aware of how she's carrying herself. 

Yesterday I had our first lesson of the year. I decided it would be Carmen and I was excited. It was late afternoon and, while the morning had been sunny and calm, the clouds rolled in and the breeze picked up before our lesson. Carmen is also not a fan of late afternoon rides (neither am I if I'm honest).  All that to say that even last year, this would have guaranteed a spicy ride. Instead she was right with me. Jane had us do this exercise to help her get off the forehand: a turn on the forehand at the walk. We're on the circle and, without stopping, we turn around the forehand and go the other way. At first both Carmen and I were like 'what is this' but I loved how it made me stay very aware of each hand and leg aid and where she was in space. We had some lovely transitions and really good work. Even though it was probably the hardest she's worked since getting back to it she didn't really try anything. Instead she just tried to figure it out and stayed with me. 

Jane commented that I doing really well with my hands and elbows. She also noted that I have much better body control and it's paying off. I also feel that and it feels great. 

It feels like we have a lot more trust in each other these days. 

Such a good girl

I'm Back (and in the Saddle)

 Ed and I just got back from our vacation.  It was a lovely time, with the first part just the two of us in Sedona.  It was a bit cold and we ended up hiking in light snow. Which was kind of hilarious.  Fortunately, it didn't stick around (which is what happened there later in the week). 

the sun came out later

After Sedona we headed south of Phoenix and stayed with Ed's brother and his wife. They were lovely hosts and it was wonderful to spend time with them.  It was an 'easy' vacation with hiking and other activities but not go-go-go. I was able to hike in the desert and enjoy time in the sun.  It's amazing how moving south and to lower elevations makes a difference in temperature. 

After 10 days away we headed home feeling rested and recharged. I was happy to see that, while we were gone, all the snow and ice had disappeared. And even happier to see that my ring was in great shape.  I've been able to work with the horses twice since we arrived home on Thursday. This is the longest time I've spent not riding. Usually I can get a few rides in over the winter. 

Carmen was absolutely filthy. It took a long time to change her colour from mud to yellow tinged with some darker splotches. I didn't mind though. When Carmen first came she hardly ever rolled. I believe that she's feeling happier and confident so comfortable to roll and get muddy (don't burst my bubble). 

I lunged and did groundwork with Carmen first and she was fine but it was clear that she felt a bit tense. I found myself feeling fine about mounting though. So I got on and, while she thought about things, I was able to be calm and clear and she was fine. It was a short workout because we're just starting. 

Me: yay!
Carmen: Oh. this again. 

It felt so good to just settle in the saddle. 

I've done a lot of thought about getting Quaid going again and I decided to review his training before getting back on. Not to take the same amount of time but I want to review his knowledge and not just jump on. Sort of like a back-to-school review.  He really enjoyed the grooming. When I was lunging he got quite excited so we needed to work through that.  But then he was very responsive and when I brought out the mounting block he  was all 'I remember this! and lined right up. I finished up with that. 

Cordelia: horse training is boring

Quaid is definitely filled out over the winter. I think he's just at 15'2. I'd like him to be a bit taller but it doesn't matter. I'm not going to get all hung up that I need a taller horse. 

my handsome baby genius

I gave them Saturday off so I could go to my bootcamp and karate classes. I had already missed when I was away.  Today, Sunday, was another lovely spring day. Carmen was a lot more settled and we had a nice ride. I think that my confidence in my riding is really making a difference. 

After I put her away I felt like I was being watched. I turned around and there was Quaid in the stall looking at me. It's my turn!  I got him ready and we went back to the ring.  He was a lot more settled. I put on his bridle and we worked a little on responding to steering. It was pretty easy to be honest. 

Quaid: this is best way to use the ring

It was a lovely way to get back to work.  I'm hoping to get a lesson next week. Fingers crossed that the weather cooperates.