Unexpected

 So months ago I signed up both horses for a test riding clinic. I've done it before, the idea is you go to the venue and practice the test with coaching. It's a low-stakes way to get the horse and rider some show experience without the added pressure of judging. 

Unfortunately, there weren't enough people to make it feasible to go ahead and it was cancelled. But I have a full size dressage ring so I reached out to a couple people and offered that they could come to my place to practice. It would allow me to have 2 lessons and give Quaid the excitement of people coming and going. 

the horses are starting on the back paddock 
for short periods of time. Quaid is very happy

In the end only Tanya and Suzi ended up coming. I put myself as the first ride and decided that it should be Quaid. I figured that Tanya would pull in while I was riding and I didn't want him running around in the field and maybe hurting himself while I was riding Carmen. It also gave me time to do ground work first. 

I've been practicing the work I did in the CJ clinic with working with Quaid until his focus is willingly on me and he's relaxed. Funnily enough, those go together.  Jane came up and we talked about how things were going. I said that I thought things were going really well. I told her that I had signed Quaid up for the first show but just for one test: Training L1. That way I could do a really good warm up, ride the test and then be done. I wouldn't have to worry about tiring him out for his second ride. She said that she thought it was an excellent idea, especially for young horses. 

She started us off walking the test pattern while we talked it through. She was really nit-picky about hitting the lines and tangent points. Which I appreciate because I can get a little 'that's close enough' in my schooling.  (I actually really liked that and have incorporated it into our warm up). 

After that we did our warm up of trot and canter.  As we were starting there Tanya pulled in. Quaid was a bit distracted by that but not too much. Then Carmen flipped a switch and began to bolt around her field just beside the ring.  It completely caught me off guard because she doesn't do that. Like she might run a little but she's generally not a fan of self-exercise. 

you can see Carmen in the background here
while I try to not panic that Quaid was gonna panic. 

Jane was giving me instructions to just ride my horse like I've been riding him. I was NOT to get grabby or tight.  It was hard. I was worried he would bolt and leap around in response to Carmen.  Jane took us to the far side of the ring to get my focus back. Not Quaid's. Because other than a few seconds of 'what is going on' he just settled in and waited for me to tell him to what we were doing. 

the bravest little toaster

 Even when Tanya brought Suzi up by the ring he was so good.  Like he wanted to look and broke canter a couple times but he wasn't freaking out and he didn't get annoyed at me for giving him instructions.  (FYI, I was really happy that Suzi was there because I need to practice with distractions). 

a screen grab of a canter stride. I just thought it was funny-
like we were being picked up by aliens. 

We practiced the test and it went really well. He did break from canter early near the end because he was distracted cantering by Suzi. Jane then just had me canter him all the way around the ring.  Which we did with zero issue. Which is great given some of the canter issues we had last year.  

I love this one

Some takeaways: 

• we're progressing each ride and lesson and it shows. I need to stop expecting him to be resistant when things are going on
• Quaid will stay on me as long as I am also connected and ride with intent. 
• I'm sitting up much better (i.e., riding less defensively)
• I need to practice more sitting trot- he thinks he's either going to walk or canter when I sit. 
• downward transition need work: I shut him down too much and he falls on his forehand. 

He's a brief clip: 

There's a lot to improve on but I just love how quiet and unflustered we're being. 

After I put him away (and stuffed him full of carrots and praise), I went to get Carmen. Whomp Whomp, she was lame. I think in her silliness she strained her stifle. She walked out of it a bit but was not able to have a lesson. Like at 16 she decides she's going to experiment with lameness?! Anyway, I have her on Bute and quiet turn out. She's already walking better, pretty normal but I'm not sure if we'll actually be able to show or not. My plan is to call the vet tomorrow after I see her without the Bute. (I'm not spiralling, you're spiralling). 

In summary, Quaid is being quiet and mature. Carmen is being silly and wild and things are never normal around here. 

but look how handsome my pony is! 

Of Saddles, Spooks and Intention

 According to my watch I rode a total of 22 times in April. Which is way better than the total of 4 for March! It's been pretty even between the two of them. 

It's been an interesting start to training. Carmen had a few days off with what was probably an abscess or stone bruise. She was off with zero heat or swelling. It's also possible that it's the saddle.  The saddle fitter was out and she said that while the saddle fit wasn't terrible she probably needed more room for her shoulders. I figured it was coming and she's bringing in some saddles for me to try.  She's moving sound now so I think that, while the saddle isn't doing her any favours, it was more hoof related.  I can't argue because I've gotten 11 years out of it and you can see how she's changed:  

2015

2025

That means that Quaid has been stepping up. I had another lesson on him last weekend and it was so good. Even better than the week before.  

Last year I had an issue with wasp nests around the ring. So this year I bought some fake ones and hung them around the ring. I totally underestimated how scary the horses would find them. So I had to work through that. Carmen took all of 10 minutes and she was over it. But, in fairness, this is the work we've spent 10 years doing.  While she's been spicy this year, she's also been really rideable, so it's fun. We've not had any big explosions this year.  Not that the spooks aren't there, they totally are. I just think my timing in answering her questions has really improved. 

Quaid, however, was really upset by the nests. So I've been working on it with him. Yesterday was a rare gorgeous day so I decided to work both of them. I rode Carmen in the morning and was a great ride.  I then headed off to karate where I was worked hard.  Because Sunday was supposed to be heavy rain (which it is), I decided to work Quaid after karate, despite being tired. 

I spent some time working him on the ground by the nests and he was fine. I then hopped on. It started fine but then he began to object to going by the nests. I was working through it and then he started to act up even when we weren't by the nests. It felt less like an uncertain horse and more like a horse asking me some fundamental questions. And not really liking my answers.  

I was all alone and wasn't feeling too safe. So I hopped off and I put him to work from the ground. Rather than working on him being quiet and soft, I was working on him listening to me and following my guidance. When he was all 'yes ma'am'  I got back on and we went to work. I realised that I was probably being too tentative about asking him to go forward and letting him set the pace because of his worry about the nests. Now I worked on keeping my intention super clear and not worrying if my ask was not perfect and stopping. I asked him to deal with me and my asks and go forward. There was some judicious use of the crop to reinforce the leg. 

And it worked, he went forward and focussed on me and not on all the things he was being distracted by. I swear one day I will learn, lol but maybe not.  But if we can't work through stuff at home we have zero chance of doing it elsewhere.  So I think my homework is that we go forward and follow my lead. 

Now it's May and soon it will be time for our first show.....

Quaid's Very Busy Weekend

 Now that the weather is better (sort of. At least the snow is gone) I've been having a lot more rides.   My rides on Quaid are getting longer and more demanding. Instead of primarily walk we've been doing WTC and asking him to stay with me.  

And I have to say that he's really been stepping up. He's definitely matured physically over the winter but it seems that he has mentally as well. He feels a lot less worried or emotional about things. Not that he's not having feelings but they have seemed easy to work through. 

The other day the ring had a lot of puddles (like I know April showers and all that but could the world be less gray?).  We've done the work of going through, standing in them etc. This time I decided to act like they weren't there. I rode and if the path took us through a puddle then that was fine. But I didn't ride the puddle, I rode the straight line. It really worked.  Not that I don't think schooling puddles specifically is wrong. I think that we needed to do that. But now that he understands puddles we can just carry on. God I hope that made sense....

Quaid: am I a seahorse now?

Anyway, things are going well. So when Jane was able to teach this Saturday I jumped at the chance for Quaid to have a lesson. It would be a good test of whether things were as good as I thought or if I was just not challenging him so he was happy. 

I start every ride with him doing groundwork. How much depends on how he feels. I do it until I believe I have him connected to me and then I get on. I had my Pivo set up for the lesson so I recorded the work I do at first. Here's a short clip. 

I describe this as playing. I know that there's a lot I can do to firm things up (more on that later) but I really enjoy it and I believe that it makes a big difference in him. 

Jane arrived and I hopped on. I've been working on keeping my outside leg on (not pushing, just there) as part of my homework and it quickly became clear that unless I focus on it, my leg just falls off and does nothing. Which means that my hands do the turning and not my seat and legs. Sigh. Riding is hard.  

Anyway, Jane is aware and she spent a lot of time (well the whole lesson really) reminding me to keep it on, and, no, it's still not on, yes really, c'mon you can do it but do not kick your horse it's not his fault your leg is off.  I love how she doesn't get frustrated with me because she knows that learning is a process. 

look how grown up he looks

We did a number of 10 metre circles at the walk with me using my inside leg for bend and my outside leg for steering and I was not to use my hands.  And then we did teeny serpentines down the long side. And Quaid just buckled down and did his level best to follow these weird instructions. 

We did a lot of trot work as well, but not in the small circles because we want to preserve his joints. I was to use my legs to encourage him to take longer steps behind but not faster.  Which meant I was to squeeze longer, not tap-tap-tap fast because that threw him out of rhythm. 

The whole lesson was amazing. And Quaid was right there. He didn't get flustered or do any of the kicking out that was last year. We picked up the canter to the left and it was good, then he lost his balance and fell out of it. We rebalanced and then he picked it right back up with zero fuss. 

whee

We had a break and then went to the right. I was not allowed to ask for canter until the trot was good. I was pleased that he kept going too after the break because I'm sure he thought we were done. 

Here's a brief clip. What you will see is a trot, some canter that falls apart, we regroup and try again. For me the big part is not that we fell apart. It's not neither of us were flustered. He didn't get upset. He just tried to figure it out and do it. 

It was a great lesson. Jane was pleased. I was thrilled. Quaid was happy for all the carrots at the end. 

Now the reason that lessons were on Saturday was that some of us had signed up for a ground work clinic with CJ up at Krista's. I thought it was a great way to get some practice working in a new place and work on him learning to relax and not melt down with worry.  

Carmen was left home. Not that she was happy about that but I want to keep working on them being apart and it being NBD (no big deal). After a small hesitation, Quaid self-loaded on the trailer and we were off. When we got there he unloaded easily and walked nicely up to the barn. He was clearly worried but stayed connected. I put him in his stall and set him up with water and hay. 

I watched a few lessons and I was really pleased I decided to come. CJ's philosophy matched mine. He was keen on horses being connected and finding relaxation. He was not keen on confrontation or 'dominance'. He wanted the horses to follow a soft feel and he worked with each one to help them find it.  He talked about arousel levels with 1-4 being chill and totally relaxed; 4-7 is up and excited/ energised and 7-10 is instinct (flight, fight, or freeze).  He does not like horses that are shut down. He wants them to engage with the environment. So if you present something novel (like a flag) he wants them to look at it (this reminded me a lot of the TRT Method). He doesn't want a horse thinking 'if I just close my eyes it will go away'. 

Quaid: I don't know who that is but I like him

I brought in Quaid and explained that he worries and loses focus in new places and I wanted to get some tools to help me (and me).  He was able to show me how subtle Quaid's initial lost of focus is and how to get it back using my whip to ask him to yield his hind quarters. Not even a big yield, just so that the horse is bent to the inside. He corrected how I used my whip at times.  And showed me some things. Like how choppy his steps get when tight and worried and not stop the ask until he showed even a small reduction in tension. 

Quaid, was slightly distracted but really was quite calm.  He was 10 times better than last year when I brought him, right out of the gate. CJ said that I had done some really nice work with him (which is always nice to hear). Quaid was passed back and forth between me and CJ and dealt with that really well.

One thing CJ shared that really resonated with me was 'notice what happened right before what happened happened'.  That's where you make your correction. So if you're riding down the long side and the horse just starts to bend to the outside that's when you start asking them to connect back, not wait until it's a big disconnect (like a spook). I left Quaid to chill back in the stall after and then took him home. He didn't really want to self-load to come home. I tried a few times and then led him on. I probably could have worked through it but I needed to get home and I didn't need to pick that particular battle. He follows me on easily enough and stands tied so it's not critical. 

When we got home Carmen was quite excited. So was Quaid but he walked quietly beside me back to the barn. When I let him out, Carmen was all over him but he was like excuse me ma'am and he headed out to the field to frolic a bit. He was so happy to be back out. Carmen looked a bit offended but then went and ate her hay. When Quaid came over to share she pinned her ears so everything was back to normal, lol. 

 CJ may have wondered why I came but to me it was totally worth it. I got a few exercises, some tips, some encouragement that I'm on the right path and it was a really solid, positive outing for Quaid. I think a lot of people believe groundwork is for when your horse is a problem. And it totally is. But it's like the riding basics: we all need it and we should always be working on it, no matter what level we're at or how calm our horses are. 

Gathering Momentum

 Since my last post things have really picked up. The weather decided to be more spring-y and I took full advantage. Last week I rode every day Monday-Friday. It was great. Sessions are shortish because we are building up to work. 

Quaid:

On Monday I ended up just lunging Quaid because he was really full of himself. There were puddles in the ring and apparently they insulted his mother based on his reaction. I thought it was a great time to work on teaching him to seek the puddle. Much like the work I did with Carmen to get her to seek the tarp, I set it up so that all my demands ceased as he approached it and upped my demands away from it. It took a bit for him to figure it out but when he did he was like 'ooohhh'.  It was interesting because his attention clearly wanted to be outside the ring and I had to work hard to keep his focus inside and on me, without creating a blow up but not backing down from one either. 

He has opinions about working with puddles

I rode him on Tuesday and Thursday and he was really good. I have been trying to stay conscious of being consistent and connected. Not let him shift his focus to outside.  I'm feeling braver and more confident on him this spring Part of it is that he feels more substantial.  The other part is the mental work I've done on myself. Not that I"m done. I'll probably never be done, lol.  

We even cantered on Thursday and it was fine. You may recall that last week it became a bit of an issue. He would get balky about it and become difficult. I did a lot of work before winter set in to smooth this out.  Now one canter does not a summer make, as they say, but it is positive and I'll take it. 

The vet came on Wednesday and things were pretty good. She noted some interesting things with Quaid's teeth. He's missing some teeth and his lower canine has migrated forward. His upper canine is not there but there is a bony lump under the gum. He had a fragment of a tooth cap that was stuck between his teeth that she took out.  

see that tooth far left? it's his canine, 
instead of an incisor

Otherwise everything was fine. 

This weekend I'm taking Quaid to a groundwork clinic and I think it will be great for us. 

Carmen: 

Carmen usually comes out of winter pretty calm and ramps up. This year she has been spicy from the beginning. What it interesting is that it feels fun and not frustrating. There was even one day that a couple years ago would have had me dismounting. But I found myself shrugging and riding forward. What is interesting about this is that she isn't spooking/bolting. Not that she wouldn't. I'm pretty sure she would but I'm keeping her connected and forward so she doesn't. 

I had a lesson today and decided to start with Carmen.  We did the entire lesson at walk and it was awesome. Jane had me work on riding with my legs. The exercise was to do really shallow loops with my legs. For example, bend with my left leg, use my right to steer her off the rail, then switch. It was really neat and made me focus on being clear and my timing. 

she's a lot whiter this year

Carmen also saw the vet and everything was fine. No surprises. Which is just how I like it. 

Oliver

Oliver? Who's that, I hear you ask.  Last week Ed saw a truck in our driveway. he didn't think about it, just figured someone was turning around. And that could be the case. But later I went out and there was a kitten under our bbq. He took off. Later he came back and Ed was able to catch him bring him inside. The plan was to find a home for him. I went off to exercise class and when I got home Ed asked 'did you find a home for the kitten?'

No

Then he's staying. 

And that is exactly what happened. He's totally bonded with Ed and it really is adorable seeing them. Ed settled on the name Oliver (because he's been abandoned and is quite hungry all the time).  He follows Ed everywhere. 

he's so cute

I mean how can you resist? 

Off Like a Herd of Turtles

 It's been a wintery winter. And March has been the Marchiest March we've had for a long time.  It's been cold. When it does warm up it rains. Sometimes it's cold and rainy.  The ground is either frozen or sodden. Sometimes both. 

 I've ridden a grand total of 4 times. 

It's hard to get training off the ground with it being so inconsistent. I've kept the rides short. I rode Quaid for the first time on March 31. It was 17 minutes after we did a bunch of groundwork and lunging. I kept it to a walk.  I rode him again yesterday and we trotted too.  Both of them are exactly where you think this early getting back to it.  Carmen is spicy and Quaid is bemused and I'm pretty sure they are both thinking 'this again?' 

Quaid: wait, what? Didn't we do this last year?
His ears are extra floofy and I love it 

We had planned to travel to Cuba the end of March, but of course, that could not happen. So we booked a few nights away locally. It was a lovely little cottage on the ocean and it had a hot tub and sauna. It was a nice break  and we really enjoyed ourselves. 

the view. The hot tub is just below the deck

it was a lovely cottage

A great dessert at a local restaurant

We walked on a beautiful white sand beach.  I brought Margaritas. So I like to say we had white sands, an ocean view, warm water and cold drinks. So it was perfect. 

Carter's Beach. It is stunning, even in March

So it's been a slow start in the riding department. Hopefully things will get better for riding weather. I am itching to get back to it. 

Thank You Johanna

 This morning started like any ordinary day, feed, coffee, clean stalls, walk Cordelia. When I got back in the house my world was rocked by a message from my friend, Karen that Johanna had passed away on Thursday. 

We don't know what happened but it was a shock. I've been spending the whole day thinking about the clinics I've taken from her. Long time readers of my blog will remember that I've benefitted from Johanna's teaching since 2015. In those early days with Carmen she gave me hope that we'd be okay. 

May 2015 

Johanna loved horses to her very bones and they knew it. When Carmen came home and really wanted nothing to do with any human she was completely drawn to Johanna. And that never changed. 

2016

Even when the clinics paused because of Covid, Carmen greeted Johanna each time like an old friend.  Johanna believed in keeping things simple. Make it clear to the horse and stay out of their way.  She freaked me out at first because she was often quiet during her lessons. At first I thought it was because she thought I was so bad she didn't know where to start. But then I learned that she used the quiet to assess how things were and then begin to work.  when she introduced something new she would tell you to go off and play with it. She never expected that you would have mastered it. Instead she gave time for it to sink in. 

We all know how difficult my early years were with Carmen and I've had tons of help from many people. Johanna was a key part of our journey. She never even voiced that we should part ways or that I couldn't make progress. Each year she would note the progress we made and then get us a little further. 

Quaid also benefitted from her expertise. 

one of may first rides

Johanna was not just a clinician, she was my friend. She had a wicked sense of humour. She was an easy house guest. She retired a few years ago and moved to Portugal. She took two horses with her. One of the horses was one that had been set free in the national park near her Hacienda. The horse was a mix and many horses were being dumped because owners couldn't afford them. This guy assessed her property and decided to move in. Instead of moving him off she took him in. the past few years we talked a lot about an adult German shepherd she rescued. The poor dog had lived his life on a tiny patio, never touching grass, going for a walk or hanging out with his human. She gave him the best life. I know it's ridiculous but thinking of that dog and the two horses she left behind. I'm sure they are taken care of but do they know? Probably.  

So I'm sad.  I am in my 60's,  I know that none of us are getting out of this alive. But I miss the friends I've lost.  Johanna made the life of those who knew her (animal and human) better. I hope I can do the same. 

Thank you Johanna. 

 

Spring Things

 It has been a very wintery winter- cold and snowy. It has been the snowiest that we've had in a while. 

this photo sums up my winter

Things were starting to clear up when we were hit with a blizzard that dropped a crap ton of snow right at the end of February. 

Feb 25th

I needed snow shoes to walk Cordelia because parts of our walk the snow was up to my thighs.  Then the temperature began to rise and things started to melt. The last two days the temps have been in the teens and the snow is pretty much gone.  Yesterday I started work on cleaning up the poop that has accumulated. 

This morning I did laundry and hung it out on the line. On my walk this morning I saw that my ring was mostly bare. And no only that- it wasn't frozen rock hard. 

two days ago the snow was a foot deep here. 

It seemed like a good idea to knock some of the mud of the horses and get them back to work. I was tempted to ride but thought I should probably use today just to lunge and do groundwork.  

Carmen was pretty chill about the whole thing. It was just a bit of exercise to get her going and to check in on her focus.  She's going to be 16 this March and pretty much knows the drill. 

this was her AFTER I groomed. Sigh
Buy a gray horse everyone. They are so pretty

She's not too overweight but definitely out of shape.  We worked about 25-30 minutes and called it quits. 

I then got Quaid out. 

Quaid: what's happening, are we doing stuff? 
We're doing stuff aren't we? 

Quaid behaved pretty much like you'd expect a coming 6 year old who's been confined by deep snow and a mare who has zero tolerance for shenanigans.  He really wanted to be a Quaid-shaped kite. Then was offended when I said I had a 'zero kite rule'.  We had a little bit of 'you're not the boss of me' with some distractableness thrown in for extra spice.  

I just stuck to the plan, matched his energy and had more resolve so we settled reasonably quickly. It helps that he still has his winter coat and it's warm. But I'll take every advantage I can get. 

Quaid: you're no fun

In the end he was lunging politely, leading and yielding easily. 

Later we got a delivery of hay. Quaid was fascinated watching them dump it. Carmen just napped. 

I love being able to have hay delivered

It's early days yet and I know that there will be cold, wet and possibly snow. But today was a lovely and it was great to get back to work.