Shadow Days

When you start waking up already anxious before you even have time to make the morning coffee, let alone contemplate all the trials and tribulations in your life, you know there is a problem.

 

Thank you to those who gave advice and/or support. After my vacation and approximately one month off for Savvy, I suddenly found myself terrified.

Of what, I wasn't quite sure.

True, Savvy had gone a bit feral and had really slipped back in her jumping form and confidence, but really that was not worthy of causing this level of anxiety. She may be a complicated ride, but not a dangerous one at all.

It took a step back for a bit and sorted through what the heck was going on.  All the things that I have been dealing with (mostly involving my mother who has dementia) had kind of snowballed lately. I needed to put things in better perspective and let go of worrying about all the little things that did not need immediate attention. I forgave myself for not being able to do it all and do it best (best of who, I couldn't tell you).

Carrots are a girl's best friend.

And with the wonder pony, I grabbed up great advice to break things down and build back up slowly. I am happy to report Savvy is doing great and every ride is getting easier for me. We are still only at about 2 feet but there is real progress happening and we are almost back where we left off in July.

Grid work has been useful for helping Savvy remember what to with her legs (seriously horse, it was only a month!) and helping me focus on body position, counting strides and NOT grabbing mane (I seem to have developed a bad habit of grabbing those flowing locks of Savvy's like its my security blanket).

We have graduated to a nice little course of seven jumps that I have set up in a way that I can change up the order and work on different approaches.

Nine more sleeps until the Manitoba Equestrian Championships! I am really starting to look forward to it and I think Savvy and I are going to do just fine.

Teenagers

Shiraz will be turning 4 years old in a few weeks. In my past experiences with horse training, 4 can be a bit interesting for some horses. Many horses sail through this stage in their growth without any hickups, but some...well, let's just say it can be very much akin to the struggles some teenagers may go through.

Shiraz came to my farm as a 6-month-old. She was sweet, brave and super laid back. Right from day one she led, tied, good for the farrier and happy to try anything. Year one and two were similar and she was such a treat to start training under saddle last year. She really did not feel ready physically though as she was still growing so much and so she got the winter off to continue filling out.

Enter this new, teenage version of Shiraz.

I saw it lately with her behavior in pasture. All along she has been happy to be on bottom of the pecking order, yet now she is pushing things and even throwing a very distant back hoof in the direction of her bossy herd mates.

She is testing waters and pushing boundaries in all directions. She tries to lean on the farrier. She suddenly wants to snort and spook at all the world she once thought was no big deal. She even has thrown a half-hearted "I'm gonna bite you" at me when I practice mounting lately.

Oh hell no.

It is awesome she is coming into her own and feeling out her place in this world, ya I get that.

But. Manners have to be in place and so ground work boot camp is now under way. I'll be fair and patient, but I certainly want to see a "Yes, Ma'am!" in her eye before we get back to saddle work.

I have a feeling this is going to be an interesting summer with this girl.

Have you ever worked with a young horse that suddenly decided to test the boundaries? Do you have any go-to exercises for instilling the leadership? I'd love to hear suggestions!

The Road So Far: First Quarter Review

My overall plan for 2017 has been to push myself (ever so gently) in all situations horse training related.

My game plan for the past few years has been to set myself up for success which involved breaking steps down into smaller peices to not overface me or my horse. It worked. It was a lovely little bubble. Within the bubble a little bit of work could get done safely and my confidence began to return, bit by bit.

This upcoming year though I want to expand my bubble. This is not going to be easy. I know how to keep status quo very well and I am really going to have to push myself to take that extra step. Really that is all I want from myself at this point--just one extra step beyond my comfortable little bubble and hopefully build on that.

A major success -- although admittedly felt more like a giant leap rather than a little step!

Just about three months in and there have been some successful attempts at this and also some fails. My last lesson highlighted where I am at right now. I do have confidence but it is not infinite and old memories from past horses are still affecting me (aka Miss Tea and her crazy reactions when things went wrong). I immediately knew where my anxiety was coming from when I suddenly could not push Savvy through that grid. I was afraid of what has happened to me in the past when pushing an unsure horse, NOT what I really believed Savvy might do.

I am okay with this. Knowing where my fears are coming from is very helpful. I was gutted at first but that feeling like it is not fixable is coming from a different place, a different horse. This is Savvy and we can work through things. Even though she is anoyingly oppinionated and occasionally tells me off, she does trust me and I can honestly say I know I can handle her opinions.

Status quo has been affecting her too. She has been enjoying that bubble I made for us and will have reactions to me expanding our comfort zone. Which means she will question my authority, and wonder if I have lost my marbles but we will adjust to this increase of expectations.

Give-It-A-Go Dressage Weekend Recap - Saturday

Coming into this dressage clinic I had:

• Two brand new shiny tires for my trailer
• One beautiful pony who was approaching maybe cantering in the same zip code as the cue for it (so if course I was doing a test with cantering!)
• One great friend just as (un)prepared as me also participating and a cooler full of booze
• One shitty forcast for 90% chance of rain

Saturday morning did not disappoint. It started raining around 9:30 a.m. My ride time was 1:00 p.m. so I remained hopefull as I arrived, settled wonder pony in and sat down to read through Walk/Trot B test for the first time in a year.



Wonder pony is so little! She can barely see out of her stall! :)

 

By 11:00 I had to get out to warm up. It was still raining of course but Savvy was good about it, although sceptical. We had a decent warmup. Savvy was very looky - a peacock kept shreaking from a nearby farm and cars going by were suddenly terrifying for her, but overall she handled it all well in the pooring rain and never felt unsafe to ride.

A took her back to the barn for lunch and to my surprise the rain stopped (thank you weather gods!).

My goal for this walk/trot test was just for Savvy and I to get used to the venue again and I wanted to see if I could pay more attention to quality rather than just 'showing up in the right spots' - if that makes sense?

Savvy had other plans. As we came to the outside of the ring to do the typical walk-around waiting for the bell, Savvy was a bit overwhelmed by the new area we were now in, the trees with sounds of a horse banging in the barn behind them, a still distant screeching peacock and a hyped up rider on board. She was just about prancing on the spot and grinding the bit. Surprisingly, I was feeling a bit meh, what ever, lets do this!

The judge had better ideas though. She called me over and promptly suggested we lesson first, test second. Brilliant idea!



Working on riding with a 'bridge' in the reins to ride with the
 hands as a team rather than two independant entities.

 

I won't bore you with the details but I will say it was all very different from how I ride. I played the good student though and tried all the things with an open mind and enjoyed her coaching style. She was a fun lady that was very direct but kept a sense of humor about things.

Savvy did settle finally and our test in the end was decent. Our main issue was consistancy on the contact at a trot. (Her shoulder balance was actually good though!) This has been a longstanding issue, made worse when Savvy is nervous. Her mind can get so busy and it comes out in her body all over the place, but it is getting better.

I did catch a glimpse at dressage as a competative sport and could see how some riders might end up on a path of trying to get results from the horse for the points, and just how easy it would be to lose sight of the horse's mental wellbeing.

I am a ridiculously competitive person, but knowing better means an obligation to do better. And lucky for me, my competitiveness is within myself. I know what I am looking for from Savvy and will know what a successful test will feel like for me - actual scores be damned.

I know Savvy's training is progressing at a snail's pace, but she's doing great! She is happy, healthy and we like each other. For me, that is winning.

Stay tuned for day two!



Two-Way Street

If you have had an opportunity to ride a variety of horses, you can certainly get an appreciation for how different each horse can be.

Lesson horses are a bit like seasoned travelers who have picked up a lot of different languages along the way, and will often be able to figure out what the rider is trying to ask for and maybe even oblige.

Some creatures just don't care what you have to say - clearly their idea is better.

On the other hand, a horse that has had only one rider and suddenly has a new person aboard may suffer culture shock and simply not have a clue what is being asked.

I have ridden quite a few horses and have been on the "just doing my job" types, as well as many "I don't know what you are doing but get the F$*& off me" types (I have always been attracted to projects).

Not my idea of fun anymore.

Once in a while, there comes a horse that not only knows your language, but is happy for the conversation. I have that horse right now and I am sort of feeling like someone who just found the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.

Savvy is just so engaged, it is like "Oh, you want me to go like this? Well how about this? No?  And by the way don't press that hard on my side or I will bite your foot. Let's do all the things!" and she never shuts up. I love it!

But it has raised that nagging insecurity in me - when something is good, I am afraid of losing it. Very annoying!

One good thing has come of that stupid, insecure feeling: I want to do right by Savvy and make careful choices in her training that will not effect her incredible personality in a negative way. Simply put, I don't want to wreck her.

So I push myself to be better:

I will *never* pull hard on her mouth (*unless she randomly spooks - so sorry Savvy - stop doing that shit please) and will continue to work hard on collecting her body with my body, NOT the reins!

I will pause after asking a question and getting a correct answer. AKA: SLOW DOWN and appreciate correct answers before hurrying on to the next thing!

I will ask every cue with the softest phase first. I.E. If she can leg yield with a slight touch then why am I always banging like a moron?

I will plan fun things for her outside of training and appreciate her need to be a goof ball. I.E. Hand walking out in the deep snow so she can roll and frolic or playing tag with her in the paddock.

Anyone else worried they might break their horse?

A new normal

I have been having so much fun with Savvy for the last few months, but I have been avoiding something in my mind. I knew what I needed to do, but I wasn't sure if I could officially face it.

Sophia knows fun.

Even though I have always had multiple project horses on the go, Miss Tea was my number one girl and I envisioned quite a future with this amazing horse.

If you are a believer in "you may not get what you want, but you get what you need", then this might be the case with what I have gone through with her. She was the young horse I was supposed to be starting right at the peak of my anxiety issues. Just leading a horse out of the paddock could reduce me to a shaking mess. I had the heavy decision to get better or get out of horses, and chose to dig in and get better. We worked through everything starting with horse agility (basically a horse style obstacle course with the handler on the ground) and being able to venture out together without the added stress of having to ride was huge for both of us. Working on the specific tasks was a perfect distraction for my fear.

With my confidence growing and Miss Tea turning into a decent, safe mount, we started low hunters and it was amazing! Unfortunately the super fun cross rail classes at a trot never seemed to evolve into great canter rounds and so we struggled.

One show this summer where we dug in and made it all work a few rounds.

I have been avoiding writing about Miss Tea for a while.  I am not riding her anymore and I was not sure if I was ready to say that to anyone out loud or in type. People may not understand and think I am giving up. I am in a way, but not a bad way. I am too stubborn to ever give in without a fight.

The problem is simple. Miss Tea cannot canter and I am not interested in holding her together every stride so we don't fall down. Which she does. Fall. Down. The last time she fell was so bad I fell off right in front of her and she cut her lip.

Balance issues are a part of a green horse's development. Ups and downs happen all the time and falling off horses happens. I am fine with that. But knowingly getting on a horse with downhill conformation and known clumsiness (proven not medical by chiropractor/vet/farrier), not improved with 2 years of canter focused work I think is just not fun.

And life being strange and wonderful as it is, came Savvy when I was strong enough to handle a bigger challenge in personality, but a walk/trot/canter like its no big deal. No tripping. No holding together. Just soft hands and a smile on my face.

Savvy says just keep passing the treats and we will keep having good times, or she will eat my boot.

 We have cantered four times now in her training and so far so good! Today's canter was a lot easier to initiate, and we lasted 3/4s of the arena both directions. This is fun.

And this is what Meyla thinks about it. Pony knows fun.

Redirection is always in season

I recall in a conversation with a friend of mine at the beginning of this summer that I may have said "dressage seems a bit...dull" as she was asking me if I wanted to join her at the Give-It-A-Go dressage clinic and show in July.

My thoughts were all on Miss Tea and jumping, because you know, jumping! Fun, exciting, challenging.

And then I quite accidentally met an incredible horse woman who trains horses and coaches, specializing in dressage.  I loved her perspective on horses and training. I thought getting into lessons with her would be a great help in bringing Savvy along.

Four months in and I am completely rerouted. I am hooked.

I bought the book "Dressage In Harmony" by Walter Zettl. I even intend on reading it.

I am searching for deals on white breaches.

I thought about bedazzling things. (anyone have success making their own jeweled browband? I need to talk to you.)

Like this?

Or this?

 How did this happen?! Have you ever found yourself pursuing the least expected because of a horse?

Savvy and the 'c' word

We did it!  After a whole summer of prep (avoidance/fear/lets just walk/trot for ever!) the perfect opportunity presented itself to finally ask for canter.

Cutest pony ever.

We all know I have serious baggage around the 'c' word from a two-year long shit storm of canter problems with Miss Tea. We also know as riders we can't carry baggage around and place it onto other horses, but fear is a difficult thing and if it were so easy to set it aside, I think a lot more people would be trying bungee jumping.

 

But as I said, the perfect day presented itself - warm, no wind, happy calm pony, and months of great walk/trot work, so I decided it was The Day!

 

Working on shoulder-in at lesson last week

 

The very first try was lovely! Attempt #2, 3, and 4 resulted in crow hopping -- not excessive or difficult to ride out of -- and attempt #5 she cantered well again so I left it there on the good note.

 

 



 

Happy Monday everyone!

Savvy Progress

My magical wonder pony is the joy of my life right now. What started out as a side project of training a little grey mare (when I could find the time) has now turned into a full-time passion and I am finding myself lying in bed pleasantly ruminating previous rides.

Having found an exceptional dressage coach has definitely been the key to bringing Savvy so far this summer. C is a kickass horse trainer and gets the best out of a horse the long, hard route of careful and correct training -- no shortcuts allowed. But on top of this, she also shares in my belief that above all we need to care about our horse's experience and shape their training to be interesting and fair.

Our last lesson was quite a test for wonder pony. It was cold, windy and raining and we were the only ones in the arena. Spooky mare was spooky. Luckily she is far less spooky in trot so after a few minutes of white-knuckling it around at a walk, C had us get right into trot work and we both relaxed a bit. There were still spooks, but short explosions were immediately redirected into forward and back to work with not too much difficulty.



No lesson pics - just pretty pony

Our lateral work has been amazing as of late, but this night she was a bit too nervous to get soft and I found it very difficult to get her haunches moving with her forehand. Instead, she would often pop the shoulder and curve her neck to the inside too much. C was trying very hard to get the concept "when in doubt, release" into my head. I really struggled with release on a spooky horse, but when I did, she went so much better.

After half pass and shoulders in work, C had us do a new exercise of trotting a figure-eight, except cutting straight down the center of the circle and focusing on:
1. Asking for the change of bend softly but timely.
2. Straight like its my job on that straight line.
3. Keep her shoulder from falling in on the circle back.


We did this on a 20m circle (to be honest, more like 25ish m oval)

My first go at it, Savvy and I were literally fish-tailing it on the straight line. I got my shit together though, and we steadily improved. Then C asked us to ask for walk in the straight line and then back to trot. This progressed to asking for just 4 steps of walk and back to trot, then 3 and then just 2. It was a great exercise, which seemed so simple in concept, but had a lot going on for us at this point in Savvy's training.

In a week and a half we have a dressage show! It is being held at the super fancy equestrian centre that I took Miss Tea to in the spring. We will be doing test Walk/Trot A, Walk/Trot B and one equitation class. So excited!!

Training Shiraz: Part 2

"You cannot build a dream on a foundation of sand" [T. F. Hodge] and so it is with horses, the solidity of their initial training can create a base from which great things can someday be achieved...or at least allow me to putter around safely on my pony!

Weaving cones, combining pressure and drawing, and inviting her to think about the task and be more aware of my body language.

I have continued all of the yielding work from before, and I am now adding in drawing her towards me.

Backing from pressure and then drawing her back

I have been working on lots of ground work, being mindful to push her to improve yet not over-face her with anything. Instead of just simply making her do the things, I am trying to set her up to think and problem solve.


 

When I send her on a circle I am giving her the task of maintaining the circle until I invite her to stop. Love how she is already starting to stay on task with a loose line and keeps her inside ear on me waiting for her next task.

A little fun at the beginning of trot work!

We have been practicing parking at the mounting block with me leaning over her back and working on both sides equally. Now is the time to get up and begin working on one-rein stop!

Shiraz being a super star at the mounting block.

I worked on one-rein stop for a while on both sides. I am looking for not just the stop, but yielding her head and flexing her neck with softness.

I finished up with basic turns where I am asking with my leg and seat, but use the stick to help her make the connection. So far so good!