31 March 2011

It's Been Raining...

...started Monday. Today's Thursday. At first it was kind of fun, but now my paddock is a mud hole, my pasture has rivers of drainage flowing to the pond. Sigh...

29 March 2011

The Think Tank

He came over to my right side after completing a particularly difficult task and stood perfectly still. As I waited patiently, gently stroking his shoulder, he dropped his head below his withers and I watched his lower lip droop. His tail went slack; completely still...

28 March 2011

A Rough Week...

Things have changed inside the herd. All five horses have been out 24/7 for ten days now. Two days into the turnout, I noticed a change during the late night feeding.

23 March 2011

When Physical Ailment Impedes Progress...

Locking stifles need forward and straight to improve. Slow hill work would be the best solution, but SW Florida is sadly lacking any of those!

20 March 2011

The Morning After...

On Friday, Compa, Ziggy and Cru had an uneventful night, but Saturday morning feeding held it's share of excitement...

19 March 2011

18 March 2011

Something to Think About...

All horses have three trainable systems - mental, emotional and physical. Most people think only of the physical. Which makes sense since that's the part we see and that's the part we ride - - - or is it?

Consider this. How easy is it to ride a horse that is physically sound, but mentally or emotionally disconnected or frazzled? How easy is it to ride a horse that does not, will not or cannot do what you ask? How easy is it to ride a horse that is physically capable but is totally hysterical?

See? Unless you are a very talented rider, most people don't care too much for a horse that is not mentally and emotionally connected to them. Yet I see people get on horses all the time who are completely uncaring of their handler, totally distracted, and thinking of everything but carrying a rider safely. Makes me wonder.

I coined a phrase I'd like you to think about:

"Consider first the horse's mind,
Then their emotions,
And their body willingly follows."  daj 2001

Give that some thought today.

Stay safe and have fun!

15 March 2011

A Book, A Chair and A Stick...

While Compa improves daily, he certainly cannot be turned out with my herd. Although he would beg to differ...

14 March 2011

Complications...

There are consequences when a horse is mishandled, which lead to complications in training...

07 March 2011

The Work Machine...

Some horses don't want to wait and Compa is making up for lost time. Every day he presses me for more.

02 March 2011

Integration Difficulties

It's not going well. Compa insists on his own set of rules; rules that make no sense to other horses.

01 March 2011

There Aren't Enough Hours In The Day...

Compa is a learning machine. There aren't enough hours in the day to satisfy his desire to learn.