Sunday, 10/25/09
Seems like everybody I know was watching TV tonight: football, baseball, Sunday night programs. After I left work, my first thought was the barn :^)
Wizard got a bucket of Alfa Supreme and a rice bran mash. He is loving the rice bran!
I tacked Selena up in a surcingle and a bridle and did a longeing session with her. She was obedient but I don’t think she got a lot of training on the longe in her past. One of the reasons she did not get longed much is because she is so good under saddle :^)
After warming up at the walk, I asked for a trot in both directions. She broke into a canter several times and I gently corrected her and asked her to trot. We probably longed for about 15 minutes, including warmup and cooldown. Even though it is rarely needed for a horse like her, it is a good thing for horses to know how to go on a longe line, for training, rider fitness, and for veterinary evaluation.
Wizard looked like an old pro after working with Selena. I longed him very lightly (I’m trying hard not to stress his stifle) at the walk and trot. Then, we went back to our long-lining exercises. He already was more forward and bold to the left since our last session one day ago. To the right, he stopped once and pinned his ears- interesting! I coaxed him forward and we walked toward the gate to get a little forwardness and straightness. We halted twice and I heaped on the praise. He continues to be a quick and sensitive pupil.
Saturday, 10/24/09
A good day for ground work. I tacked Wizard up in his bridle and a surcingle and we did some ground work in the indoor arena. I started with a very light longeing session, walking for a few minutes, followed by about 7 times around at the trot in each direction. Then I fastened two long lines to his bit and introduced long lining to him.
I started by standing on his “good side” (his left) by his shoulder. The lines were held in my hands like reins. I asked him to walk on, just like we do on the longe line. His walk was a little wobbly because he was uncertain, but he seemed to catch on quickly. I asked for one turn and one halt, and praised profusely. Then, I tried the “bad” side (his right), which is the side on which he stops and spins on the longe line. He was very hesitant and reluctant to go forward but responded when I clucked him into a walk with my voice. I walked him along the wall so I could keep him straight. It will take a lot longer to work on the right, but it is an interesting glimpse into his personality to see that he is just as funny about his right on the longe line as he is in hand.
Here’s a photo of me long-lining JR this spring. Wizard will take a few more sessions before he can be this far away from me.
Thursday, 10/22/09
Just when you think bug season is over, your home state is attacked by swarms of Asian beetles. We’ve got the usual gnats that fly around in the warmest part of the fall days and this year, there are bunches of beetles bouncing around the barn as well.
I tacked up Wizard, dosed him with Ulcergard as an experiment, and went on a trail ride with Mary the Morgan and her owner. Wizard was antsy on the way out to the trail but walked quite nicely once we reached the trailhead. On the tight, winding trails, he quietly picked his way through the paths but when we got to the open, sandy, hilly trails, he bounced around anxiously. I carefully worked and worked on him and had him settled to my satisfaction.
When we reached the street where we cross and pass the pigs, I dismounted and let Mary take the lead. Mary was skittish but after two tries, she walked past. Wizard was perfect and never even turned a hair as we walked past them. A bit down the trail, I remounted and rode the rest of the way to the barn. Overall, Wizard was better than expected and it gave me hope. Was it the ulcer treatment? Was it the weather? Was it the time off? Only Wizard knows for sure.
Selena is quite a lady but not a lover of ladybugs. Or gnats. I took her for a short loop on the trails with Mary and she was obedient but definitely not pleased by the bugs. Her head was up and her expression was alert, as we were on new trails. I did not mind the alertness but her wiggling and twitching was a little more difficult to handle. From what I could tell, the ladybugs were bouncing off her rear end and the gnats were fluttering around her nose. But she continued her streak of being a smart and sensible trail horse. She just does not like the wildlife ;^)
I rinsed Selena off and gave Wizard a bath. I took a tip from the racetrack groom school and soaped and rinsed Wizard’s face with a bucket and sponge instead of a hose. It SOAKED me but he did not seem to mind as much as he does with the hose. More efficient, cleaner horse- win-win!
Monday, 10/19/09
After three windy, rainy, bone-chilling days, autumn is back. The sun is strong but the air is crisp. My favorite weather.
I took Wizard out on the trails in hand and Mary the Morgan and her owner rode with us. We were out for about 30 minutes and it was lovely. It was almost dark when we left and totally dark when we returned but both horses were very good.
I rode Selena for about 40 minutes. She was obedient but was not as loose in her topline as she has been in recent rides. She is going through a heat cycle so I think she will be back to her limber self in a few days. We warmed up at a walk, doing shallow serpentines and walking over four poles. As the ride progressed, Selena became more comfortable and her transitions improved. We did more work on a forward trot and back to a working trot. I also asked her to do a slow trot and she responded well. Her best work of the night was when we did a little shoulder-in at the walk- it was her best effort to date. Because I did not get her to completely loosen up her neck and topline, her canter-trot trantions were not quite as soft as they were in our last ride, but they were more accurate. After our ride, I cooled her out and we played with the pedestal. She learned to step up onto it in about 15 minutes, the same as Wizard. Her athleticism made it easy once she figured out what to do.
After eating his evening alfalfa, I free longed Wizard at a walk, trot, and canter in both directions and did a little more work on the pedestal. Last night, he sniffed the pedestal and gave a flehmen response and I clicked and gave him a treat. He repeated the behavior tonight and we turned it into a new trick :^) Once he was on the pedestal, he smiled (see photo above). Now he is a two-trick pony!

























