Kathy and Renegade - Our Parelli Journey

Set Backs!!

2011-12-27T14:29:00.001-05:00

I haven't posted in a while but that doesn't mean we haven't been playing because we have; it's just been less play than I wanted. I've been working crazy hours at work, going to work in the dark and getting home in time to feed the ponies before it got dark. I tried to play a little while feeding; move the fq, move the hq, back up, wait politely to be invited to your food dish, etc. I was paying attention to how much or how little energy it took from me to get the desired response and trying to notice the slightest try. I also was paying attention to when my horses were "blowing me off" and not trying at all; noting when I had to be effective rather than being as light as possible and what effective means. There were some interesting revelations!

Just when my work schedule was letting up and I was working "normal" hours again, Renegade came up lame on his RF. I suspect he got kicked, probably when he was wacking America on the butt with the Jolly Ball...one of his favorite games. He'll wack her then run to avoid being kicked and usually that works for him...he's pretty quick, but apparently not quick enough this time! He's getting better each day but is still a little off so I've not been pushing him in our play time...just easy stuff.

Add to that, on Christmas day, Renegade decided to colic. I noticed he wasn't feeling well, he was too obedient...not his usual feisty, naughty self, and he was laying down alot. I got him up and gave him some Banamine and within about 30-40 minutes he was feeling better, nibbling at grass and taking a few sips of molassas water. It didn't last long though; within another 1-1/2 hours he was laying down again with no interest in food or water. I gave him another round of Banamine and we took a long walk around the block. I felt like the worlds biggest meanie to keep him moving as it was clear he didn't really want to. He finally pooped a BIG poop and farted a couple of times...I've never been so happy for horse poop and pony farts!! Renegade's appetite began to return and he looked much better. I left him turned out in the yard so he could graze if he wanted to and left him some really sloppy, soaked T&A cubes with a little of his usual feed mixed in, a bucket of molassas water and a bucket of plain water, and a little bit of hay. I kept checking on him about every 1/2 hour for about 3 hours and he was nibbling grass but hadn't eaten his feed yet. Finally, about 10:00 p.m., when I checked on him, he greeted me with a nicker and had eaten his feed, the hay, and drank the bucket of molassas water and 1/2 of the plain water. I kept checking on him through the night and all was well; he was looking good and had pooped several times so I gave him some more hay and refilled the water buckets and finally got to sleep about 3:00 a.m. When I went out to feed at 6:30 a.m., he was nickering and trotting after me with the hay in the wheelbarrow, trying to snatch mouthfuls of hay. Obviously he was feeling MUCH better and ate his breakfast with gusto!!

Now, I just have to wait for him to be completely sound again so we can pick up where we left off. We have a lot to do and I want to start using all the info I learned in Kelly Sigler's clinic. In the meantime, I've been playing with my Mustang mare, America, and getting her ready for her first trip off the farm. If you're interested, check out America's blog to follow our progress: http://mustangmusings-americaandkathy.blogspot.com/

Growth is Uncomfortable!!

2011-10-27T20:10:00.000-04:00

Kelly Sigler L 3/4 Clinic, October 22 – 23, 2011

Thoughts

I knew this clinic was going to be fun and educational but I never imagined the powerful things that were going to happen for Renegade and I while we were there.

Since I was the clinic coordinator, we arrived on Friday, about 11:00 a.m so I could help the clinic host get set up for the arrival of participants. After running through a few things and getting the registration table set up, it was time for my scheduled private lesson with Kelly. Things went well and I learned a lot until Renegade decided he really didn’t want to do a few freestyle circles. He kept trying to change the game to anything but circles. I wasn’t being very effective in changing his mind so Kelly asked if I minded if she rode Renegade. I have never had anyone else ride Renegade but I jumped at the chance to have Kelly ride him so I could watch. Renegade has a lot of strategies he uses to avoid doing what’s asked of him, sometimes putting in two to three times the effort than it would take for him to just do the task. He threw a lot of his strategies at Kelly too including a couple of bucks and it was revealing how Kelly dealt with it. Renegade had a lot of opposition reflex and some dominance which he displayed by acting out/up with his penis hanging out. Kelly put him to work to get his mind busy and it was brilliant. Within about 15” Renegade was acting like a different horse, much more like a partner. I was supposed to get back on and ride him after she finished but we got interrupted by someone breaking down on the way to the clinic site and had to stop to find someone to go rescue her and her horse.

The next day, during the clinic, Renegade was participating as a partner until the latter half of the day. He started trying to change the game when we were practicing the steady rein while following the rail. I could tell he had his penis out again by the attitude he was displaying. For the safety of the other participants and so we didn’t disrupt the clinic, we ended up having to go to the round pen to sort it all out. Luckily Kelly drafted another Parelli Professional that stopped by the clinic, to coach me through the round pen session. The only thing I was to focus on was me asking Renegade to canter and continue to canter until I asked him to stop, just working on impulsion. In order to get Renegade to canter, I really had to step out of my comfort zone, up my leadership, and be ready for what ever the result was. Thank goodness he didn’t try to buck but he tried just about everything else, including running my kneecaps into the fence rail. With Pete’s help, I managed to stop that from happening. To get Renegade to canter, I really had to create a lot of commotion, really up my phases to something that was effective, and out-persist his resistance. We finally got a couple of canter strides then had to start all over again, and again, and again…etc. It took about an hour and we finally could canter long enough for me to actually ask for a stop before Renegade stopped on his own and he would canter when I asked with no more than a phase two. At that point we stopped to reward the behavior and Pete and I were talking while waiting for Renegade to lick and chew; it took him a good 15”!!

While Pete and I were talking and waiting on Renegade to lick and chew, my emotions caught up with me and I began to cry. I wasn’t really sure why until a day and a half later, after I’d had time to process everything. After thinking about it, I’ve come to the conclusion the crying was a result of my having to dig deep into myself to do that round pen session to help my horse.

I’m more of a carrot type person, so having to go to that place in myself where I could do what my horse needed me to do to reinforce a concept really brought out some emotions I’d stuffed down deep inside myself. During my childhood, my siblings and I were on the receiving end of abuse that was called “discipline”. I have always been afraid of not being able to control my emotions and I equated “discipline”, or in this case reinforcement, with abuse. I know I wasn’t abusing my horse during the round pen session but it sort of felt that way to me, hence the very emotional response I had.

There is a second reason my emotions took hold of me and that is because I finally came to the realization of just how ineffective I’ve been and that equates to unfairness to my horse. I’ve been lying to him all this time by not being fair and consistent. I’ve always felt I was lacking in this department but after the round pen sessions, I really know it in a gut wrenching, owning it type of way. It’s not pretty but it is what it is. Now that I know it, and I mean REALLY know it, I have to own it and do something about it. That something is to be fair and consistent for my horse. This brings to mind Pat’s saying, “the attitude of justice is effective” and I’ve been sorely lacking in this department.

I really felt sorry for Pete being subjected to my emotional outburst. The worst part about it was when it was happening, I couldn’t put what I was feeling into words; all I could do was cry but it was all part of the process for me and now that I understand what happened and how I felt about it, I’m o.k. with it and it was a very powerful experience.

I have to thank Pete for taking me outside my comfort zone, where I was all too happy to stay, and instead putting me in the learning zone, where something wonderful happened. No one said learning was easy or comfortable, but I’m so glad I had the opportunity to go through this process and come out being just a bit more mentally and emotionally fit because of it. The added bonus is my confidence has gone up a few notches as well!!

The next day, Renegade was a much different horse, content to be with me and following my leadership for much of the day, however; during the afternoon, he began testing me again by trying to change the game, developing an attitude, and he was dropping his penis again. This time, I decided to do less sooner and went straight to the round pen before things got really difficult. I repeated the strategy from the previous day and instead of taking an hour, it only took 10” to see a change. We left the round pen and rejoined the group to play a freestyle traveling circle game. It was lots of fun and Renegade gave me some really nice circles without opposition, argument, or attitude; he actually seemed engaged with what we were doing so it was a great time to quit and give him a big reward.

I was concerned about how the “round pen sessions” would affect our relationship but I didn’t need to be worried. I felt wonderful when I went out to see Renegade this morning and he stopped grazing and came to me with a positive expression. I spent a little time with him then went about my business. Later in the day, I went out to do a few more things and invited Renegade to walk with me by using my energy and a little body language to sort of “scoop him up” as I walked by. He readily came with me and had a positive expression.

Today was a day off, of rest, for both of us but tomorrow I’ll get out there and play with Renegade and see just where we are and what I need to do to be the leader he needs. I’ll be playing with a new awareness and a new set of eyes, trying to be in the moment and recognize the moment my horse needs my help so I can do less sooner.

I really would like to get some feedback from Pete now that I’ve had time to think about all this. When I was “in the moment” and having my emotional response, I couldn’t even ask for feedback let alone be ready to hear and accept it. It only took me nearly a week to be ready; now if I can only get in touch with Pete!!

BFO's and AH-HA's!!

2011-10-06T21:42:00.000-04:00

Had another play session tonight much like last night. I could see the tiniest bit of improvement in our circling game without having to do so many changes of direction to get his attention. I'm trying to remember, every time we play, to look for the tiniest of improvements and to NOT drill, drill, drill. I'm also trying to pay attention to how engaged Renegade is with what we're doing and that starts with the moment I go to get him and ask him to catch me.

Secrets and Revelations!!

2011-10-06T21:39:00.000-04:00

Played with Renegade online last night and it took a little doing to get him engaged and paying attention. He's good at the things he likes to do and offers them readily, like splitting himself in half over a log; now that he's learned it, he thinks it the coolest thing ever just like he LOVES sideways to and away over things.

We have been playing with the circling game for what seems like forever without much progress and without engagement from Renegade. He made it absolutely clear it was NO FUN for him by tipping his nose to the outside, throwing his shoulder into the rope, and leaving. He comes back readily when I ask and comes at a trot or canter so I know it's a game and he's trying to make things more interesting for him so I've been working on myself to become more provocative.

When I sent him out on the circle, I payed attention to fundamentals like backing up straight then waiting before sending and asking for a snappy depart in the send. I also concentrated on having Renegade keep his nose tipped in instead of out of the circle and when he broke gait, I immediately had him change direction. We got pretty active, energetic and it wasn't really pretty but Renegade suddenly became interested in what we were doing. After about 7 or 8 changes of direction, Renegade gave me two really nice canter circles to the left which is his easier side. When going to the right, I was hoping for 1/2 lap at the canter but Renegade suprised me with 1-1/2 laps at the canter.

For the changes of direction, Renegade would, in his LB way, not want to look at me so I could draw him for the change so I would go to his zone 5 for a bit of driving game. Amazingly, his ears would perk up, he'd look at me with a really interested look, turn to face me and I'd send him off in the opposite direction. He loved it and got his little studly look on and was nickering, enjoying the "play"!!

Rather than drill on that, we moved on to circling with an obstacle which happened to be a log that is laying down in my pasture. Renegade offered canter circles and maintained gait over the log and even gave me a couple of nice flying lead changes to boot!!

Called it quits after this as it was getting dark and I still wanted to spend a few minutes of undemanding time with Renegade before bringing him in for the night and giving him his feed and hay. Renegade's demeanour was soft and quiet, he even allowed me to rub his face all over and this is something he's never enjoyed.

A Really Nice Day!!

2011-09-18T18:58:00.000-04:00

Had fun with Renegade today...played online for a while and I think I found the secret to getting snappier change of direction from him. I can't wait to play with it some more to see if it will really work. I really tried to be playful about it and for the first time he was very engaged and put effort into what we were doing. Wooohooooo!!!

After warming up online, I went to freestyle riding. I'd planned on doing some cantering until I got relaxation or some consistency but I had my english saddle that has a slick seat and my riding tights that only had knee patches. Boy, oh boy, that wasn't good planning...I was way too slippery in the seat to feel secure enough to canter. I should add, I'm fairly new to english riding, usually ride western, so I already have a bit of a learning curve!!

We did a bit of freestyle warm up in a small arena then moved to the bigger arena for some FTR at a trot. I moved to the bigger arena because round pens and small arenas tend to shut Renegade down and he loses his impulsion. He needs long lines to encourage him.

In the large arena, I chucked the idea of cantering because of the slippery seat, and instead played with FTR at the trot. The focus was trying not to pick up the reins and without Renegade stopping to grass dive or sight see. The first 3-4 several rounds of the arena, he had a couple of places he wanted to stop and he tried to grass dive a few times...I HATE that abrupt stop lol!! I persisted until we made a complete circuit of the arena without stopping and without grass diving. It only took about 20" lol!! Happily, he was good at staying on the rail and I didn't have to pick up the reins very often. As a reward, Renegade got a nice, long rest in the shade while my friend and I chatted. I'm adopting a new strategy of sticking with it until I see a change...no matter how long it takes as I think I've been quitting too soon.

After the rest, we made a couple of circuits in the opposite direction; the second one was way better than the first but I think Renegade was getting tired as he was tripping a little and he didn't have the impulsion he had earlier. Thinking about it, I probably should have stopped after the rest in the shade but I wanted to see what the other direction would be like. Sometimes, I think I'll never learn...sigh.....

We practiced a few turns on the forehand and Renegade did nicely. His hind feet stayed planted while his front feet moved 90 degrees. He was also light in my hands which is a huge change for him as he likes to try to move forward during the yield and in the past has pulled on my hands. Maybe because we expended so much of his energy he was ready for some slow, quiet maneuvers!

When we finished our online and freestyle, I removed Renegades bridle and halter and hung with him for a while. I had a couple of cookies so I asked him to stand up on the tire pedestal, gave him a cookie and let him rest there...three of his favorite things!!

Feeding Time Rituals

2011-09-16T20:25:00.000-04:00

I'm loving how our feeding time rituals are going. The horses are getting into a more positive pattern now, especially America and Captain. Li"Bert"y and Renegade still want to creep or sneak in uninvited but their intention is a lot less now and it's much easier to interrupt their idea of creeping in. A light flick of the stick and string does it.

I had them on a circle around me and they were outside my personal space (the distance of the cs and string) and they lined up like the hands on a clock: 12, 3, 6, and 9. That gives them enough space to not feel the need to defend their space or their food and I act as the alpha, chasing away anyone that finishes early and tries to encroach on anothers food bowl. I have to laugh when they seem so content to eat their own food, faces in their own bowls, not checking out the neighbors food bowl, and knowing they can eat in peace. It's such a peaceful, almost pastoral time. I love listening to them quietly eating.

I also have to giggle when they finish and I'm gathering the empty bowls, they all line up at the fence in their proper positions, waiting for their after dinner flake of hay...no squabbling, no dust, just happy horses waiting quietly for the second course of their meal!!

Reflections and Introspections

2011-09-16T20:09:00.000-04:00

I've been in a very introspective mood lately and have been taking a hard look at myself and what I can change to make my world a better place for me and my horse. The last couple of weeks at work have been exceptionally stressful and it's not just me, it's the whole office. Our company is going through a merger and everyone is on edge, even though they don't want to admit it, and it shows. Tempers are short and everyone is worried about whether they will have a job in the new, combined organization. Add to that, the fact this is our busy season, which is stressful in itself, and you have the perfect storm brewing and it doesn't take much to set everyone spinning.

One day last week was particularly stressful and I came home in tears and very upset. On top of that, being so stressed out, I was in no frame of mind to be with or play with my horses. I decided I needed to find a better way of dealing with my stress so that it can't or won't impact my life when I get home from work or my time with my horses.

After talking with a friend, not about specifics, because I didn't want to relive everything, but about how to change mindset and create positives out of negatives, I felt much better and ready to tackle anything! We had a great conversation and I came away with some wonderful strategies to use "in the moment"; to help me stop, take a breath, and think about what's happening in that moment and how I can turn it into a positive. I love that my friend said moments like these are teaching moments and I might want to ask myself the question "what is the lesson in this for me, what do I need to learn from this?". That one statement gave me a whole new perspective on looking on those moments in life that are less than desireable and that maybe they are put there for a reason; that just maybe there's a lesson I need to learn at that moment. I can make these moments positive or negative depending on how I view and respond to them. If I just react in a reflexive sort of way, then it can be a negative experience because there's no conscious thought behind my reaction, but if I view it as a teaching moment and take charge of myself and the situation, I can see the value in what just happened and learn from it. I see this strategy as extremely empowering!!

I've decided that along with my new strategies, I am also adopting a new motto: "Life is wonderful, Everything is as is should be, and I'm living the dream". This is my version of the Serenity Prayer and gives me the mind set that life really is a grand and wonderful thing no matter what happens, everything happens for a reason; it's neither good or bad...it just is what it is, and everything I do is taking me one step closer to my dream. That dream is what I choose to make it and since it's my dream and I have a choice, I choose to make it a wonderful, positive experience and let the rest go!!

Offerings!!

2011-09-13T21:45:00.001-04:00

Played online and at liberty tonight with the circling game and transitions with changes of direction. Online went VERY well and Renegade OFFERED the canter straight away the first time I sent him out on the circle. I decided to take what he offered and he did 5 circles to the right before he looked like he might break gait. I asked him in before he could do that. To the left, Renegade offered 2 canter circles but he also offered a couple of FLC's so I opted to reward that instead of asking him to continue on the circle because someday I'll be asking for those FLC's and I'd like him to offer them at that point when I ask!! I think we call that playing for tomorrow!!

After the canter circles, I slowed everything WAY down to work on our changes of direction with softness and no brace. I slide my hand down the rope, close my fingers slowly, and WAIT for Renegade to seek the release and turn towards me. The more I play with this the less time it takes for him to turn in to me and ask the question "what do you want now?". Sometimes I have him come in to me, sometimes I send him out in the other direction...it all depends on how long it takes him to turn towards me, and the expression on his face when he does turn in. Softness and lightness gets to come in to me for a rest, any brace or resistance gets sent out in the other direction until I get a change!!

Also played a bit with speeding up sideways. To make it easier, I do it on the rail so it takes away having to worry about Renegade leaking forward...easier to be particular but not critical!! Sideways to the right and Renegade offered a trotting sideways although his hind end lags a bit but we'll work on that after we get a bit more consistent and he develops the athleticism. To the left the sideways was speeded up, not to the point of trotting but almost and enough effort to earn the reward of stopping. To the left is his "harder" side so we'll need more time to develop this.

After our online play and warm-up, we tried a bit of liberty and we had a pretty good connection for about 10" then lost it for a bit. I just kept trying to be provocative and interesting until I got Renegade's attention again and when I had it, he offered to jump a single barrel (it was perpendicular to the rail) and turned, faced, and waited. When I sent him back the other way, he jumped half way over and stopped. I don't think I asked for that but maybe I did or maybe Renegade just offered it. Either way, I let him rest there as someday I'll want to ask him to do this. After he had rested there and licked his lips, I asked him to sideways off the barrel towards me and he was only to happy to do that. He earned another rest, a cookie, and it was the perfect place to stop for the night.

Impulsion and Cantering and Enthusiasm, Oh My!!

2011-09-05T19:38:00.000-04:00

Played online with Renegade tonight and I don't know if it was the storm coming in or that it was a bit cooler tonight but Renegade was very playful and had impulsion on the circle!! When I asked for the trot, he gave me a canter and it was a nice one to the left. I allowed him continue for 5 laps then asked him in as he looked like he was thinking about breaking down to the trot. The circle to the right was not quite as nice but he did offer the canter so I allowed 2 laps and asked him in before he could break gait and also to reward the offer of the canter. I'm so happy as this has been a major sticking point for us for soooooo long...I couldn't get him to canter no matter what I did and to have him offer was a huge gift.

We also played with touch it having him touch the trees with his nose or shoulder and then his zone 5. He still wants to swing his zone 5 out when he gets close to touching it with his rump but he's getting better...the swing is not as wide and we get within about 1 to 1-1/2 steps before he swings his rump.

Sideways along the fence was great. We can do sideways without a fence but I moved back to the fence because we've been working on trotting sideways and the fence helps eliminate that forward movement. Happy to say we did sideways at the trot to Renegade's right for about 25', to the left it was difficult and we didn't trot...will have to play with that some more.

Renegade was really playful tonight and decided to leave three times. I always let go of the rope as I don't want him to pull on me. He goes cantering across the pasture then turns to look at me. I start friendly game with the carrot stick and string and he canters back to me and he nickers all the way back. I need to figure out what to do about this game he loves so much...I know he's having fun but geesh...online is online and liberty is liberty. I'm not crazy about him choosing to play this game so often; I'm thinking he does it because it's fun and not because I've caused him to leave as he comes right back. But...of course, I could be wrong!! Wish I could figure it out!!

I wanted to keep playing and I think Renegade did too but the dark clouds were coming in fast and we got caught in the rain coming in from play time. It was probably a good time to quit anyway since Renegade gave me so much tonight.

Of course, I didn't tape tonight because the last two play sessions weren't particularly good and it looked like rain so I didn't want my video camera out in the rain. Figures tonights play session would be especially good!!

Liberty Fun

2011-08-31T19:50:00.001-04:00

Played a bit with liberty today and had Renegade doing small circles at a walk around me. Of course, I had a couple of cookies involved to make it worth his while to do the requested task. He gave me one circle in each direction but had to play with me in between. He left a few times and I'd ask him back and finally got the circles I asked for. I loved his enthusiasm when he came back to me...ears forward, at a trot, and nickering!!

A Nice Day Today

2011-08-30T22:30:00.000-04:00

Spent some time with a friend today practicing patterns and freestyle riding. Renegade started out a bit "up" but quickly relaxed after a bit of FTR and some trotting circles. The big breakthrough today was riding the weave at the trot...Renegade was following my feel and riding where I was looking...no reins involved. The problem we had was coming around the "ends" of the weave; Renegade kept breaking down into a walk. I think we need to take a bit of a wider track around the ends for him to maintain the trot. I plan on trying that tomorrow.

We played with the Question Box pattern and had lots of fun with that but definitely need more practice although did come through the center nice and straight twice which earned him a rest in the center!!

We also had a bit of a go at a "mini" precision pen with a 10m circle riding arcs to the points. That was a lot of fun but I need to get a lot better at my focus to help Renegade. I noticed when my focus was good and I was looking in the correct place, Renegade did well; when I lost my focus or was not looking far enough ahead, it put Renegade off track and we wouldn't hit the points correctly or our arcs would be wonky. Eeekkkk...I need more practice!!

A friend, Ingrid, loaned me her Parelli Cruiser saddle to try out and unfortunately I didn't have a girth small enough to be able to ride the saddle on my horse but my friend, Terri, let me ride her horse since the saddle and girth fit him. It was awesome riding Beau...he has a BIG, swingy trot compared to my little guy, Renegade...his trot is so little like he is!! I have to say...I enjoyed my ride in the Cruiser, I felt very secure even though the saddle and horse were both new to me. I felt very comfortable and confident in the saddle. Unfortunately, I don't think it will work for Renegade but I think it would be a great saddle for my other two horses. I may just have to start saving up for one of my very own!!

We ended up having to call it quits before we really wanted to as the sky got very dark and the thunder and lightening started. It's good we stopped when we did because the skies opened up and the rain began to pour down right after I got Renegaded loaded on the trailer!!

Reflecting!!

2011-08-22T20:29:00.002-04:00

I was just telling my husband tonight that 5 years ago I could never imagine saying this but I was commenting on how I wish my other horses could be more like Renegade. I can turn him loose in the yard to graze and he's quiet, doesn't get into anything he shouldn't, doesn't tear anything up...in other words, I don't have to worry about what he's up to. Five years ago, that wouldn't have been the case...he was just the opposite. I love that he's so reliable about some things now. Of course, there is always room for improvement but overall, I'm very happy with our progress over the years. That's saying a lot as 5 years ago, I actually thought I was way over horsed and thought about finding Renegade a more suitable home with a much more knowledgeable human partner. I'm so glad I never followed through on that idea. I can't imagine my life without him now!!

Approach and Retreat and Prior and Proper Preparation!!

2011-08-16T20:13:00.001-04:00

Turned out the horses when I got home from work and I've been experimenting with different pairings in different areas. The reason for this is Bert is VERY attached to America, practically at the hip, and tends to get emotional if she's not somewhere close or worse yet, out of sight. I'm trying to do some approach and retreat towards that day when I take America to a play day or on a trail ride. I don't want Bert at home fretting until we get back; I want him to be comfortable with her absence.

Tonight America and Renegade were turned out grazing in the yard and Bert and Captain were turned out in the pasture. Bert was having such a great time eating great mouthfuls of grass he really didn't notice America moving off and out of his sight. The only reason he noticed is it was getting close to the time I normally call them up to the night pasture and feed and hay them. He started cantering through the pasture calling for America...she was obviously unfazed by this and continued to eat grass.

I went to Bert and asked him to follow me up the fence line, I put out some tasty Alfalfa hay and he came over to eat it, forgetting all about America with the exception of one final check of the fence line to see if she might be coming. He came back to his pile of hay and began quietly munching. In the meantime, I went to get Renegade and we walked back to the night pasture at liberty with America following us.

With all the horses returned to the night pasture and quietly eating, I filled their water tank, said goodnight to each, and took my leave. All was quiet when I left and I think it was a successful session. We'll see how tomorrow night goes!

FUN AND SUPRISES!!

2011-08-14T18:54:00.000-04:00

Went to the Trail Partners Playoffs, hosted by Parelli Professionals Karen Woodbury and Annie Shank. The event was held at Peninsula Farms in Ocala under their covered arena. I was grateful for the cover as it was really hot and humid yesterday and the shade from the arena kept everything about 15-20 degrees cooler.

There were 52 participants and Karen and Annie had some obstacles set up for us to navigate both online and mounted. They also had some nice goody bags for each of the participants and prizes and ribbons for both the online, mounted, who came the farthest, the partnership with the highest score (adding owners age and horses age together), and the person who put the relationship first to help their unconfident horse over the course.

Renegade and I didn't win any prizes but my focus for the entire challenge was to see if I could have his attention, obedience, and confidence at an event like this. We had a faux paux at the squeeze over a jump as Renegade only went half way over then started sidepassing off. I decided to accept it and say thank you but now would you please jump? He did but we ran out of time to try the last obstacle which was trailer loading. I tried it anyway and Renegade went in but it didn't count towards our score since we were out of time. I don't care that we didn't win any prizes or ribbons, but I am really happy that he tried everything and even offered some extra stuff.

Now, I just need to work on me to make sure I'm being VERY clear on what I'm asking for and get the response I'm looking for but overall, I'm pleased with the day!

HUMMM...AND RE-EVALUATING

2011-08-14T18:40:00.002-04:00

With the closing of the Parelli Center and the pressure of doing the Flex Track off, I've given Renegade the past two days off and have just spent some undemanding time with him while he grazes. It was better this way anyway as I was a bit emotional after the announcements from Parelli Headquarters. I think Renegade has enjoyed the time off as he started calling to me when I rounded the corner on the way to the pasture and kept it up til I reached the gate then he began nickering vigorously. I think he was happy to see me and anticipating being able to graze in the yard.

It's been so hot and humid here that it's been a welcome break for both of us taking a couple of days off. I'm contemplating backing off quite a bit for the next month or so and concentrating on just making deposits in our relationship bank with the hope of being able to make some withdrawals when the weather cools down a bit. I'm sure we'll have the occasional play time but shorter in duration and working on only 1 or 2 things at a time for now. I've made the decision that being a Parelli Professional is no longer a priority and that goal will be replaced by another when I get it figured out. I'm just going to focus on my relationship with my horse and my horsemanship. With the closing of the Parelli campus, now might be the time to investigate other opportunities, i.e., dressage with Karen Rohlf!

WOW!!

2011-08-10T09:32:00.000-04:00

I just read the announcement from Parelli Central saying Parelli is selling the Florida campus in Ocala so they can concentrate on spreading the Parelli message in other areas; i.e., internationally. That's great news for some people but for others it's not great news. I happen to be in the not so great category.

I have been planning and saving for the last two years so I can take courses at the Parelli Center in Ocala. I am enrolled in my first Flex Track module in October of this year and was going to enroll in the second module in April 2012. The October Flex Track will be held as scheduled but the rest is up in the air but will most likely be held at the Colorado campus. This effectively kills my dream since I don't have a hope of traveling to Colorado for courses; I am not able to get that much additional time off work to allow me the travel time and I certainly can't afford to quit my job at the moment without a safety net in place...like winning the lottery or powerball lol!!

I'm quite frankly in shock at the moment and also feeling a bit unsettled. I hate not having a firm plan in place; I have to have set goals and work towards them. I'm not at all comfortable at flying by the seat of my pants...maybe if I were rich and it didn't matter but I'm not and it matters a lot. I've worked so hard and so long and gave up a lot to try and make my dreams a reality and now it seems as if those dreams are being dashed upon the rocks.

I'm trying to practice some emotional fitness here, waiting patiently for more information from Parelli so I can began restructuring my dreams for the future. For now, I'll just carry on as I have been...trying to be the best me I can be for my horses and myself.

CUDOS AND LIFE IS GRAND!!

2011-08-05T17:11:00.000-04:00

I couldn't be more proud of Renegade then I was this morning. I had the vet out to do vaccinations in prep for our visit to the Parelli Ranch in October (and also because they were due). I got Renegade from the pasture to move him around a bit and get our relationship right before the vet arrived. When she arrived, Renegade was very interested in everything she was doing; he observed her getting the vax ready, writing on her clipboard, and putting the alcohol on the cotton. He was VERY engaged and attentive but not in a scared way...he was interested in the goings on!! When it came time to give the vaccines and draw blood for the Coggins, Renegade stood still and turned his head to soften his neck just like we've practiced. He got vaccines on both sides and was equally good on the other side too. AND...HE DID ALL THIS ON A LOOSE LEAD!!! He used to be pretty extreme in trying to avoid vaccinations and would run into or over me or the vet to avoid them. It's taken some time to get this good but oh, it's sooooo worth it to be able to vaccinate a horse that stands calmly.

The vet also checked his teeth while she was here and all that playing with his mouth paid off too when we forgot to do it while I had him online. The vet went into the pasture, approached Renegade, asked for his head, politely put her fingers in his mouth and he allowed her to check his teeth. He had a brief moment of wanting to resist but she was politely persistent and he lowered his head and allowed her to check his mouth. DID I MENTION I LOVE MY VET!! She could have turned that moment into a wrestling match (I've seen other vets do it) but she just waited on Renegade to relax.

Thanks again Pat and Linda for this program, my wonderful vet for her horse savvy, and most of all Renegade for acting like a partner and not a prey animal!! Life is GRAND!!

YES!!!

2011-07-26T23:50:00.000-04:00

I've been repeating my pattern of entering the pasture while the horses are grazing and going to sit on the log. I'm happy to say Renegade is beginning to repeat his pattern of moseying over to see me, generally within 5 minutes or less. Of course I have a cookie to reward such good, positive behavior!!

Again, haltered from a seated position and played a bit with Renegade's mouth and inside his lips while I remained seated. His mouth was much quieter tonight, a lot less tongue and lip action so I checked to make sure he hadn't gone introverted...he hadn't, he was just quiet. I gently massaged his lower gum and he got the softest look on his face and his lip was really relaxed!!

Next was FTR with me in zone 5 nearly at the end of the 22' line. Renegade did a great job at staying on the rail so I asked him up into a trot and we went about 50' ON THE RAIL!! I breathed out and slowed down and so did he but he did get a little crooked when he stopped...something to work on next time...straightness on the stop. We FTR like this in both directions and both were equally good.

Next was split in half over the log...took about 30 seconds for him to put RF and RH over, then nickered and looked at me. Of course, it was cookie time!! Then Renegade suprised me and gave me a gift. I asked him off the log to the side opposite me and he lined himself up and put his RF over then his RH over then looked at me. I immediately went into neutral, he nickered and I gave him a cookie and a short rest. Then I asked him to move his RH back to the other side of the log and sidepass off (away from me). He was a bit sticky but he did it after a couple of phase 1 flicks of the ss. The bring back (sidepass back to me) was not sticky at all, he came right back but stopped at a polite distance from me, looked at me and nickered. No cookie this time...he knows this game REALLY well!!

On to the frisbees and put your foot on it...haha...Renegade's got this game figured out now and tested me to see how particular I was going to be. He stepped near the frisbee, pawed near the frisbee, stepped on just the edge, then finally put his foot on it. Each time he asked me a question until I could finally answer yes when he put his foot on it. I went into neutral again and he nickered. We took a brief rest for some scratches and rubs then did the weave at the walk. It went well and Renegade is looking for me more and following my body language better. We started in the middle of the pattern because that's where we were and he went on the correct side of the cone for where we started and without me having to direct him...tells me he's starting to really understand the pattern and think about it.

COD on the circle is going much better. I sent him out on the circle at a walk and when he came around, I slid my hand down the rope, closed my fingers slowly and WAITED. He softened and came around, staying out of my space and went back out on the circle in the opposite direction. We did two repetitions in each direction and he was nice and soft, no bracing, on each change. I wanted to reward his softness and not wanting to be a drill sargent, I called it quits, asked him in and he enjoyed a cookie while I gave him some rubs, stroked his forehead and his forelock. It was a great place to stop for the night!!

We're Having Fun Now!!

2011-07-18T23:44:00.009-04:00

Entered the pasture, sat on the log and waited for Renegade to approach me. I closed my eyes, pictured him coming to me, and he moseyed his way over. It took only about 3 minutes for him to do this. I haltered him while sitting down and with his permission.

Played tonight with driving from zones 4 & 5 - started with zone 3 and was able to quickly move to zones 4 & 5. Renegade stayed on the rail with minimal corrections. Decided to up the ante and ask for the trot from zone 5 and we did 5 strides then stopped softly, smoothly, and straight!! Tried it two more times and did great - 5 strides the second time and 10 strides the third time, both with nice, soft stops with me bringing my energy down and lifting the rope slightly.

Played with COD in the circling game and decided to only have Renegade do 1/2 circles before I asked for the COD and it worked beautifully. I slowed everything down, concentrating on getting a nice, soft turn and not giving Renegade anything to brace against. I also concentrated on not letting him come in too close during the COD. The strategy was successful; Renegade was making nice, soft turns and moving out smartly after the turn and stayed out of my space. I only tagged him if he came in too close and it was more of a provocative tag...like oh, oh, gotcha...you were too close. On the last COD, Renegade began licking and chewing then nickering. I think he got the game!!

I've been having problems with resistance from Renegade when attempting to lead him by the ear so tonight I tried it by putting the savvy string around his ears and leading more by a suggestion and suprise, suprise...he lead very nicely. I think when I was using my hand, I was being too direct line and using too much pressure. :-( Ack...but at least I figured it out now and we can progress from here. :-)

Back up by the tail at liberty was fun. Renegade backed straight with very light pressure on the hairs of his tail, more of a suggestion really. I did need to get him started with a light wave of the cs, again more of a suggestion...a lift it.

Played with touch it with zones 1, 3, and 5. Renegade did well with zones 1 and 3 and was much better about zone 5. He's gaining more confidence about backing straight now without veering off to the sides rather than straight. I yo'd him back and when he'd get crooked, I'd bring him forward and start again. Had to repeat that about 5 times and he finally backed up straight. I quit on that note!!

Before unhaltering tonight I played with Renegades face and mouth as he has opposition reflex about this. I played until I got acceptance and softness. I even was able to massage the inside of his lower lip and his lower gums. I massaged softly and slowly until he relaxed and stopped moving his mouth then quit. He was quite intrigued by all that and looked interested but soft when I quit. I unhaltered again while sitting on the log. Renegade was willing, soft, and stayed with me for some scratches.

He was quite funny and decided to go munch on some grass so he left at a trot, went about 50' away, took a few bites, then came trotting back to me nickering. I think he still wanted to play cause he started sidepassing around me, then offered a close in circle. When I started laughing, he nickered, trotted off about 50', took another few bites of grass, then came trotting back again. I just had to giggle, he was too funny!!

Slow And Right and Velvet Noses!!

2011-07-13T20:32:00.000-04:00

Another repeat of the last two nights and played with the same tasks.

Catching was easy...I went to sit on "our log" and Renegade came right over. Of course I had a bit of cookie to reward him with and make it pleasant for him. Haltered him again from a sitting position with his permission. This is new and nice...have had difficulty with this when I tried it in the past; he would nearly always move his head just out of reach meaning I didn't have his permission.

Touch it with your nose went well, only had to send Renegade twice before he figured out to touch the utility pole; he has the trees solid now.

Split in half over the log took 15 seconds tonight...he's solid on this too now.

Foot on the frisbee went really well tonight...he's got the hang of putting his foot on the pink frisbee, the green one not so much...wonder if it's the color? He finally "got it" after 1/2 dozen tries and ended up with 1-1/2 feet on it!!

Unhaltered him from a sitting position, again with his permission. He stuck around so I decided to play a bit of friendly with his head, nose, and mouth. Renegade usually moves his head away or will jerk it away in his LB way. I had to make it interesting enough for him to be willing so I used the ss over his poll with me still sitting and very gently asked for his head and wahoo...he gave it to me and let me rub his forehead and a bit on his nose. After a bit of approach and retreat in a playful, teasing manner he allowed me to rub his whole head, jaw, neck, lips, nose, etc. and he had a really soft look on his face. When I removed my hands (before he had decided he's had enough) he had a very interested look on his face. I decided to call it a night on that note!!

Ditto but Better!!

2011-07-12T23:09:00.000-04:00

Tonight was a repeat of last nights session and went very similar to last night with a few exceptions. I didn't have to play the catching game tonight, I went and sat on the log and Renegade came right over to me. I greeted him and haltered him while I was still sitting!! Progressed through the games/exercises in the same order as last night and FTR was great, needed only a couple of corrections this time and we went nearly all the way around the pasture in both directions. We went into the corners, practiced turning through the corner, and at one point Renegade offered a trot and stayed on the rail!! Stops were nice and straight with the exception of one and I may have caused that as I had the lead rope a bit short and it caused his nose to tip which swung his hips out.

Splitting in half over the log took about 45 sec...I think it's time to up the ante a bit with this and ask from greater distances!

Touch the trees was great tonight and touch the utility pole went better, Renegade was still a bit unsure about what to do but he eventually touched it twice with his nose and it took less time than yesterday.

Circle w/COD at the walk and trot went well although he still wants to come in a little too close to me. With Renegade it's important for me to NOT move my feet so I made a commotion and made it unconfortable for him to come in that close. After a couple of repeats of this, he began to stay outside of the commotion zone lol!! I confess, I got a bit greedy and asked him up into a canter and he obliged me but on the second lap (going to the right), when he got behind me, I felt him tip his nose to the outside of the circle and before I could turn around to do something about it, he was far enough out of position that I just let loose of the rope rather than hold on and let him brace and jerk the rope from my hands. He didn't go far and when I asked/drew him back to me, he came readily and was nickering as if laughing at his little trick!! Definitely need to get the walk and trot COD MUCH better before asking for the canter again!!

Putting his feet on the frisbee went really well tonight. At first Renegade wasn't putting much effort into finding the frisbee let alone put his foot on it so I asked him to keep moving. It didn't take long for him to begin searching out the frisbee and putting his foot right on it then look at me. I think he knew what I was asking for all along but was playing with me!! Once he got it the first time, I was sending him back and forth between two frisbees and he was finding it each time and it was too funny how he always put his RF foot on the pink frisbee and his LF foot on the green one. I think he's one clever pony!!

When we finished our play, I sat down on the log and invited Renegade in to me. He came right over and I asked him to lower his head so I could unhalter him. He gently lowered his head so I could undo the knot and remove the halter. NICE that he stayed with me once the halter was off and he followed me all the way back to the night pasture, through the gate, and stood and waited for me. He could have easily blew me off and stayed out with the two other horses grazing. TONIGHT I WAS MORE INTERESTING THAN GRASS!!

Psychology and Canter Circles!!

2011-07-11T20:54:00.000-04:00

Turned horses out again to graze for a couple of hours when I got home tonight. It rained most of the day and they were grateful for the grazing time and it's cooler when I go out later to play!

Played a mild form of the catching game as Renegade was more interested in grazing then coming to me; I was about 50' from him when I got his attention and drew him to me at a nice walk with some impulsion. Haltered him with his permission and played friendly game, both normal and extreme, and he did well so went on to FTR with me driving from zones 3, 4, and 5 in both directions. Renegade is really doing well with this at the walk and when I want to stop, I just breathe out like I do when in the saddle and he stops nice and straight against the rail!! A couple more times of this and we'll try the trot.

Next up was splitting him in half over the log and as usual he did great and did it in less than a minute. After a brief rest we played circling game with the log. Renegade was making assumptions and stopping at the log to line up parallel to it to "do the splits". I just resent him until he figured it out - took two times and he was circling at the trot and jumping the log twice in each circle. As expected, this is better going to the left then it is going to the right. Need to do more on that right side!!

Slowed it down after this and asked for 1/2 way over and sidepass off with me in zone 1...he did great. When he got to the end of the log he waited but moved forward a bit which put him out of line for the sidepass back to me. Rather than micro manage him, I asked him back and ...voila, he positioned himself correctly to make the sidepass over the log back to me. By George, I think he's got it lol!!

Next was touch it with different zones. He's got the trees down so I sent him to a utility pole. It took a few minutes for him to figure it out but he got it and touched it with his nose. Bingo...time to move on after giving him time to lick and chew.

On to circles and change of direction and I think slowing him way down the past two sessions has worked because he offered me 6 CANTER circles in each direction tonight with me in neutral!! I decided not to get greedy and after 6 canter circles, I slid my hand down the rope, closed my fingers slowly and waited until he looked at me and asked a question then I let him come in and stop. When he got to me he nickered and licked and chewed. When doing the change of direction, I'm going to wait to send him back out in the other direction until we've got the looking to me part more solid.

Next was put your foot on the frisbee. I set two frisbees out on the ground and would send him between the two allowing him time at each one to sniff it or put his foot on it. If he did neither, I sent him on until he began to put effort into it and TOUCHDOWN...he put his foot on it. We repeated it a few times until the last time he firmly planted both front feet on one of the frisbees and nickered. I let him rest there and gave him a cookie to suck on (he likes to make them last since I give them sparingly lol!!). He stayed there for about 4 minutes then came over to me where I was sitting on the mounting block. I gave him a few rubs and another cookie and he offered to sidepass a circle around me at liberty!! He then stuck to me while I gathered up all out toys and equipment and we called it a night. It was getting dark, time to put the horses up and give them their hay for the night. They all went through the gate from one pasture to the other when I asked (at liberty) and I gave each one a couple of cookies, their feed, and their hay and said good night.

Mirror, Mirror...

2011-07-09T21:31:00.000-04:00

Turned the horses out in the grassy pasture today and let them have a few hours of grazing to themselves then I went out to pull some weeds. I like to hand pull them so I don't have to spray poison in the horse pasture. I was wandering around pulling weeds and the horses started following me a few paces behind. It was fun watching them mirror me...I'd take a few steps and pull a few weeds and they would follow me a few steps and graze close by. We kept repeating this all over the pasture. Eventually Renegade approached me and I gave him some scratches, he especially likes them on his chest and was making funny faces.

Once we had a friendly game established, I haltered Renegade and we played with several things. The focus was slow and right beats fast and wrong and not giving him anything to brace against and boy did we have fun. Renegade did lots of licking and chewing and it didn't take him long to get there considering he's a LBI...usually it takes a while for him to digest his thoughts.

First up was FTR with me driving from zones 3, 4, and 5 - Renegade was super and I only had to make a couple of corrections in each direction. He stayed on the rail and stayed straight both ways.

Next was 1/2 way over a log and sidepass 25' off and stop. He was wanting to sideways back towards me at about 15' but I persisted and he got it. He sidepassed 25', stopped and waited. This was huge as he usually will turn and move away from the log. Once he'd licked and chewed, I asked him back to me the 25' and he did it beautifully...in fact it was easier than away!! I let him stop, gave him some scratches and he volunteered to sideways away from me. This time he went all the way, stopped, and nickered at me. After a short rest, I asked him back to me and of course it was great. When he got to me he stopped and nickered again. I think he's got it!!

Next was splitting him in half over the log with the RF and RH feet over the log...he really has this one down...it only took about 45 seconds for him to get it!! After a rest and his lick and chew, we left the log and I asked him to put his RF foot on a frisbee...first time he blew me off, second ask...TOUCHDOWN and lots of licking and chewing.

Left the frisbee and played touch it with a tree; first his nose, then zones 2, 3, 4, and 5. Everything went well except zone 5; he still has some confidence issues with zone 5...he veers off to one side or the other. We'll keep playing with it to develop his confidence until he can back straight to the tree.

Played with change of direction on the circle and kept it slow. Renegade has a habit of pushing through pressure when I ask for the change so the focus was for me to ask softly and slowly then wait and as soon as he asked me a question, I brought him in. It took three repetitions of this and he was making the turn when asked although he wanted to come in a little too close to me. I just asked him to move his shoulder over and on the last go he made the turn and kept his distance while turning. On that note I stopped and he licked and chewed ALOT!!

It was starting to get dark and time to put the horses up and give them their evening hay so I called it quits for the night. Renegade really offered me alot tonight; I hope I accepted it in the spirit with which it was given. I love my horse!!

ENERGY vs. energy!!

2011-06-29T22:30:00.000-04:00

Played with Bert tonight and the focus was on the circling game, me controlling my energy, and Bert walking on the circle calmly with relaxation and rhythm. The first couple of times I sent him out on the circle I thought I was relaxed but when he left at the trot with his head up high, I realized I had tension somewhere in my body and he was reading it. I concentrated on each of my body parts making sure they were relaxed and it was my stomach or core that was tense. I made a conscious effort to relax it and voila...Bert immediately came down to a walk!! I brought him in for a rub and a rest and he was licking and chewing.

I then yo-yo'd him out and sent him in the other direction and this time I made sure I relaxed my core right away and he left at the walk. Yahoo!!! I then experimented a bit with my energy and by tightening my core and relaxing it I could bring him up to a trot or down to a walk. It was super fun playing with this.

Bert is such a sensitive, responsive boy and I want to maintain that. At times he can be a bit reactive but if I can get him thinking he goes from being reactive to being responsive. I noticed tonight that when I got my energy under control, Bert quit being reactive and became responsive and he also kept checking in with me, looking inside the circle. When I had my energy "up" too high for him he couldn't look at me but instead was looking outside the circle.

Once I got my energy under control I was able to send him out on the circle and got two laps in each direction at a nice, relaxed walk then called it quits for the night. I think he was o.k. with everything because when I took the halter off he stayed with me for rubs and wither scratches and had a nice, soft look about him.

What Being Provocative Can Get You!!

2011-06-29T22:28:00.000-04:00

Played online tonight because it kept threatening to rain. When I went to the pasture Renegade wasn't interested in coming to me so I waited and said hello to Bert, Captain, and America, giving them scratches until Renegade couldn't stand it anymore and came over to see what was going on. I just happened to have a cookie in my pocket (broken in small pieces) so I greeted him, gave him a rub on the forehead and offered the cookie piece. Then, with his permission, I haltered him and we went together to the other pasture to play.

We started with some touch it with me sending him to different trees and playing with putting/touching different zones on the tree...first the nose, then the shoulder, then zone 3. When that was going well I tried yo-yo'ing him back to touch the tree with zone 5. He kept moving off to the right or left, and not putting his zone five on the tree. I'm not sure why...I have maybe played too much with backing him around corners or he may have a zone 5 issue and be a bit unconfident. I just kept bringing him back in then yo-yo'ing him back until he could finally back straight up. We got to the point where he could back up with his zone 5 about 2 feet from the tree without veering off so I quit at that point...I felt he'd put significant effort into getting to that point.

Next was splitting him in half over the log so I sent him sideways over to the log and he lined up in "our spot"...a nice lower, narrower spot on the log that's easy for him to step over and he doesn't have to "split" too wide. It took maybe 30 seconds for him to put his RF then RR over the log and he licked and chewed pretty quickly. Gave him a rub and a piece of cookie and played with the weave next. I had some step in posts set up but the rope kept getting caught or I'd confuse Renegade when I'd lift the rope to keep it from getting caught so decided to try this on another night and use cones instead.

I had read the article in the May Savvy Times about setting 4 poles on the ground with space between then and asking your horse to sideways down 1 pole then turn 180 degrees in the space then sideways down the next pole, do another 180 and so on. RENEGADE LOVED THIS GAME!! He caught on really quickly and was tuned in to me, kept asking questions, and when I thought we'd done enough, he offered to do more!! He was also licking and chewing like crazy...unusual for him as a LBI...it generally takes a while for him to digest but not for this game.

Next was circles and change of direction. I'd been having a problem with Renegade pushing through the pressure of the wiggling rope no matter how hard I wiggled it, added in the carrot stick and string...he ran through that too...very typical LB dominance so...I became more provocative. I dropped the cs, slowed everything WWWAAAYYY down, sent him at a snails pace walk and when I asked for the change of direction I made sure to use lots of feel on the rope doing it gradually, closing one finger at a time. HAHA...by the time I got to closing the second finger Renegade was bringing his nose inside the circle and preparing to change direction AND looking to me for direction...come in or keep going. I brought him in to reward him following my feel...no pulling or bracing, just a nice soft feel. After such nice feel, I decided to stop and spend some undemanding time with Renegade letting him graze.

Take What He Offers and Work With It!!

2011-06-27T20:47:00.000-04:00

Played online for about 30 minutes sending Renegade to touch obstacles with his nose using about 20' of the 22' line. Played with sideways along the fence trying to speed it up a bit...the nose is willing but the hq not so much...really need to work on that!! Played with splitting Renegade in half over a log and it took about 1" for him to "get it"...didn't dwell on it, moved on to circling game...he really wasn't in to it...kept diving for grass or stopping to graze so oh boy...got to change direction each time. It took about 6 changes in each direction then he offered 2 laps at a trot.

Saddled up and played with owning the hoof...having him place one of his front feet on the frisbee...repeated 4 times and he got it...rest, rubs, and a bite or two of grass were the reward. Next was forward half way over the log then sidepass 10'...had to repeat twice and he got it...much nicer today...hq not lagging so much...I think he's figured out what to do with his feet!! Next was follow the rail at walk then trot...of course Renegade is a super star at this game...he loves "going somewhere" even if it is along a fence rail. For variety I added in turning his nose in to the rail and asking his hq to move sideways...turning the FTR into a sideways. We did it at the walk this time until he gets himself sorted out. Renegade did well but again the hq were lagging some but we'll get there as he figures it all out. Next was practicing opening and closing the gate. Sideways to the gate - Renegade sometimes gets unconfident and tries to leak forward so had to repeat 4 times to get a nice sidepass to the gate. Lots of rest for Renegade while I petted the gate!!

Rode the weave pattern at a walk and Renegade was responding nicely to my body language; didn't have to use the reins but once in 4 passes through the weave. YEAH...this is huge for us!!

Did 2 laps at the trot on a 60 meter circle, Renegade had a nice bend going to the left...still working on his bend going to the right...it's getting better though.

Back to the gate and sidepassed to it from about 6' away, stopped for 30 seconds, reached over to unhook the gate, asked Renegade for 1 sideways step with me holding on to the gate and whoop, whoop...we did it!! The best part? Renegade didn't try to shove the gate open with his nose instead...that's his default move..in fact he didn't try to go through the gate at all, he was checking in with me, something he's not done in the past...he would assume an open gate meant he should go through it whether I asked him to or not!! Another huge moment for us.

Didn't work on the bowtie tonight...Renegade didn't have great impulsion so I decided not to "go there"...I didn't want to make him do it...far better to wait until he's in the mood to offer!!

Wow...What A Day!!

2011-06-18T21:37:00.000-04:00

Used Renegade for transportation today...rode to a neighbors house a few miles away and had a nice ride. Renegade was a bit unconfident on the ride over and we had to work through several thresholds but we made it from my house to Cindy's in about 40 minutes. We got a little lost one time when we took a wrong turn but got back on track and found her house. Renegade handled the road traffic and the ATV's just fine, it was a couple of trash cans and a bag of burnt trash in the woods that got him. He didn't spook but had to take a good, long, hard look out of both eyes lol!! The other thing that got him was the utility boxes for the telephone and cable lines. We just took our time working through it.

When we got to Cindy's, Renegade suprisingly didn't want to greet her horses. He's usually the one that is sooo ready to touch noses over the fence but not today. Not sure what that was about? Cindy wasn't home so we started back home. Renegade was much more relaxed on the way back home and it took us 1/2 the time to get home. He was so relaxed I decided to try some trot/walk yo-yo's and we had fun with that.

When we got back home we played with opening and closing the gate which gave us a chance to play with a bit of finesse and sideways to and away from the gate. Having the gate on Renegade's left side was no problem, he lined up all zones easily next to the gate. With the gate on his right he lined up zones 1-4 with the gate but he wasn't confident enough to put his zone 5 next to the gate...it was out about 1 to 1-1/2 steps. Played with that a bit and eventually we were lined up on the right and I was able to fasten the gate. We stayed there a while, resting.

After our rest at the gate, we rode 20 meter circles at the trot and I played with pushing Renegade's hq out instead of pulling his nose in when he lost the pattern. It worked great...by pushing his hq out, his nose came back to the inside and we were back on the circle!! I think I accomplished two things doing this; working on hq yields and NOT using my reins to micro manage his zone1!!!

After the circles we moved to follow the rail at the trot and since Renegade had good impulsion I decided to ask for the canter and got it. It was a nice, relaxed canter and I kept my butt in the saddle and actually felt a bit of fluidity at the canter. Whoot, Whoot!! Canter on the left lead was easier than the right. On the right lead we had to try three times but Renegade finally got it...we did 5 strides and came back to the trot. Another Whoot, Whoot!!

I decided that was enough for one day and Renegade was being so calm and attentive, I removed his bridle while I was on him. We spent about 15" with me just being a passenger while he moved about eating grass. It was a nice, friendly way to end our session. When it came time for me to dismount, I got his attention by tapping his rump so he would lift his head. I asked permission to get off and did while he stood perfectly still. Once I was on the ground he went back to eating. I asked him to follow me over to a log and unsaddled him there then hung with him for about another 15" while he nibbled grass.

Double The Fun!!

2011-06-14T20:30:00.000-04:00

Played with Bert tonight really paying attention to my energy and just how little or how much would cause him to walk or trot on a circle. I didn't care if he made complete circles or not, the only goal was to cause him to leave at a walk or trot by changing my energy.

It was very interesting to me, I thought I was asking very softly for Bert to walk on the circle and tried to keep everything light and soft. I did well with my body and my cues BUT...and this is a big BUT...my mind was on overdrive apparently because Bert kept leaving at a speedy, impulsive trot, nearly cantering. When I concentrated on calming my mind and just picturing what I wanted his departure to look like, amazingly...he left just as I pictured it...a nice, relaxed walk. Tonight was a valuable lesson on just how sensitive and attentive Bert is; I need to be careful of the mental messages/energy I'm sending down that line to him.

It looked (and sounded) like it might rain tonight so rather than ride, I decided to play online tonight. I'm happy to say that was the right decision because we had a fantastic play session tonight.

Played with sideways with and without the fence, along a log, over a log, away and towards me and wow...Renegade was paying attention, asking questions, putting in some effort and doing a good job of reading my body language and energy.

Played with driving him to objects from greater distances (about 18-19' of the 22' line) and again Renegade put effort into getting to the objects and reading my body language. This has been a major sticking point for us in the past but tonight it all clicked.

Split Renegade in half lengthwise over the log and it took all of about 45 seconds for him to figure it out...again, engaged, reading my body language, and responding to cues/phases.

Circling game was great at the end of the 22' line, was getting some nice upward transitions with just a lift it and lead it, no need for higher phases. He did break gait but oh boy...we got to practice change of direction. About two times of that and Renegade was maintaining gait and direction on the circle. Downward transitions were not quite as easy...so I wanted to leave it for another day.

Weave at the walk from about 17' of the 22' line went really well...again Renegade was reading my body language and putting effort into the pattern.

I'm VERY happy with our session tonigt!!!

America And I Had Fun Today

2011-06-12T21:09:00.000-04:00

I haven't ridden America in over a year as I've been spending most of my time with Renegade working through the Parelli Levels but thought it was time today. She's been meeting me at the gate every day and when playing online she just seems like she's wanting a job; it's almost as if she's bored by the same ol' same ol'.

She met me at the gate this morning and came up beside me and stuck her nose in the halter when I offered it. We played online for a while practicing all 7 games and upping the ante a bit by asking for a bit more speed in the sideways, doing our circles where there was a log for her to cross twice on each circle, played with transitions on the circle and how little it took to ask for walk, trot, and canter. America is still a little bit impulsive at the canter on the circle but it's much improved and we're almost at the completely relaxed canter stage.

After our warm up, we saddled up and headed to the round pen. I bet America would be fine to ride in the pasture but I'm not quite confident enough with her for that yet; I don't think it will be long though. America was so calm, cool, and relaxed during our Freestyle session. She had a nice, steady walk but she did stop quite a bit but of course there was some delicious grass growing in my round pen (I haven't used it in a while) that was begging to be nibbled on!! We did a bit of passenger lesson with some direct rein peppered in here and there to see how she would do and she politely followed my suggestion. I couldn't have been happier with the way everything went. Love my Mustang girl!!

After riding we unsaddled and went to the trailer for trailer loading practice. America got in and came out twice then went in and stayed in. Of course I had a couple of cookies handy and gave them to her. She stayed in the trailer for quite a while and I think got bored and asked to come out. I asked her out, unhaltered her and left her loose in the yard to graze for a couple of hours as a reward for all her good work today.

Here's a video synopsis of our session today. Sure was fun!!

http://youtu.be/55z4s1lluHA

Videos From Yesterday's Session

2011-06-11T01:17:00.000-04:00

Moving the Renegade Cam:   http://youtu.be/KgW-bzp_row

Weave at the Walk with Carrot Stick:   http://youtu.be/5SxR5ckL-zU

Bow Tie Pattern:   http://youtu.be/KU1Ej49qelI

Sideways Over a Log:   http://youtu.be/MhEc48z9agA

20 Meter Freestyle Circles: http://youtu.be/hpSSFeo-S4I

More Circles and Bow Ties

2011-06-09T22:26:00.002-04:00

More play with freestyle circles at a trot tonight. Got two in each direction...pretty good for a LBI; we're working on building up to 6 - 10. Also played with bow tie pattern and Renegade LOVES this pattern a little too much lol. I decided to add an extra circle or two before heading back to the rail as he wanted to canter half way through the circle!! I wanted him to wait for the cue lol!! We practiced/played in both directions and had a ball.

I video taped everything so I can watch and fix myself. I did notice I need to be ALOT quieter with my hands; I "fuss" too much and I'm afraid that will cause Renegade to think it's the friendly game.

In watching the video it's interesting to me I'm not "wobbling" in the saddle as much as I thought I was while cantering. Don't get me wrong, I definitely have room to improve but it's not as bad as I thought lol!!

Circles, Bow Ties, and "Jumping"...Oh My!!

2011-06-08T22:24:00.000-04:00

Rode Renegade last night playing with circles at the trot, both to the right and left. Renegade was really lacking in the impulsion department tonight...wanted to stop and eat grass after every few strides. The only time I had good impulsion from him was during the bow tie pattern...he can't wait to get back to the rail and canter!! I have been allowing it since he generally lacks impulsion but I think tonight I will ask for an extra circle around out "barrel" (little group of trees that sub as a barrel) before going back to the rail. The reason for this is Renegade can easily take over and get dominant and I don't want to create a bad habit to be fixed later!!

We also played with our first "jump" over a log. It really was a trot over the log but it's a big enough log that it requires some extra oomph from Renegade to get over it and that results in a bit of a jump. We repeated trotting to the log 4 times before he maintained gait and trotted/jumped over it. Of course that resulted in rubs and a rest!!

I taped our session last night and will post video later.

Change of Plans but Fun Just the Same!!

2011-06-06T21:38:00.001-04:00

I had planned on riding Renegade tonight but I kept hearing thunder and the weather report said some thunder storms were moving in to our area. I really wanted to play with the horses so I decided to play online instead and America volunteered by meeting me at the gate and practically sticking her head in the halter when offered. I also thought it might blow Renegade's mind if I DIDN'T pick him tonight.

We started out with a bit of driving from zone 2 and 3 and she did great even though this was the first time we'd done this. We went about 30 feet with two corrections...YEAH!! Next up was splitting her in half over the log. It took about 5 minutes for her to get it figured out...she's a smarty girl!! Next up was circling game to the left; first at walk, then trot, then canter...got 2 circles at the walk, 4 at the trot, and 1 at the canter. Walk and trot were soft and rhythmic, canter was a bit impulsive for the first 1/2 circle but then she gave me a full, relaxed, and rhythmic circle at the canter. After a rest and some scratches we did circling to the right. America was a bit more impulsive in this direction and took off at a trot even though I asked for a walk. I stuck with it until she softened and slowed down to a walk then stopped her and brought her in for a rub. When I sent her back out I got a nice walk for one lap then asked for the trot with a lift and lead and she went right into the trot softly. Let her do 1 lap then brought her in. Then back out at trot softly, asked for canter and got a nice, soft canter for 1/2 lap. I decided to bring her in after 1/2 lap because she was so soft and didn't want to take a chance she'd stop on her own!!

Played trying to really pay attention to quality, not quantity and hanging in there long enough to make a change. It was a fun play session and I think America enjoyed herself. She didn't leave me when I took the halter off. Tomorrow will tell the real story...will she meet me at the gate?

Played with Bert tonight and some was good, some was great, and some was not so great. I'm having a hard time deciding if he's RBE or LBE! He is a very sensitive horse and can be reactive but then in the middle of everything, he'll stop and take a bite or two of grass.

Started out with some friendly game with the cs and string and he was fine with that. Then lead him out following me while I played a bit more of an extreme friendly game with the stick and string. Again, he was fine with this. Went to the log to try sideways over it...he offers this game at liberty occassionally but he seemed like he needed to move his feet and couldn't stand still let alone go sideways so I used the log in the circling game. The objective was for him to move his feet but watch where he was going. I sent him to the left asking for a walk but he went into an impulsive trot, I let him stay out there a bit until he softened and came down to a walk then brought him in. When I sent him back out to the right he was REALLY impulsive and went off at a canter even though I'd asked for a walk. I brought him back to me and tried the send again but with ALOT less energy from me (I barely brought my life up) and he left at a walk. I immediately went into neutral and he made 1/4 lap then turned in to me to ask a question. I asked him in...HE ASKED A QUESTION and he wasn't emotional or impulsive and that was what I was aiming for. After a rest, I sent him again at the walk and he gave me another 1/4 lap and came in to me and that was o.k. too...he'd left at a walk!! Then I decided to send him out again at the walk I'd ask for a change of direction. I kept everything slow and precise. As expected, he gave me 1/4 lap at the walk but this time when he looked in to me I asked for the change of direction. He did it beautifully and at a walk!! We did a few of these paying attention to him leaving at a walk in a relaxed way, if he stopped, he got to change direction. This worked well for him and after 4 repetitions he was making a full circle at a walk, relaxed and rhythmic!! Had to quit for the night after that.

I think my strategy of blowing Renegade's mind worked because when I took Bert back to the pasture Renegade whinnied and came cantering to me from across the pasture. Hahaha...love it when a plan works!!

Prior and Proper Preparation for My Video Camera Would Have Helped

2011-06-02T21:26:00.000-04:00

Note to self...check batteries in video camera before going out to tape a session lol!! I went out to play with Renegade and took my video camera intending to capture some video to review to see what we're doing well and what we (I/me) can improve on but forgot to check the batteries. They were low so I only caught 2 minutes of video :-(

Saddled Renegade and played a bit online for pre-flight checks; played with splitting him in half over a log and he was actually asking questions tonight. I really rewarded that and his effort placing his feet over the log. When he stopped trying I sent him away quickly then back to try again. About three repetitions of that and he started paying attention and put the R front then the R rear over the log; I let him rest and waited for the lick and chew...it came quickly!! Did two circle laps at a trot in each direction then brought him in...send and bring back equally good...check!!

Mounted up and checked the brakes...all was good. Started out walking a 20 meter circle in both directions and it went well so went to the trot until we got two laps on a loose rein with only 1 correction per lap. Played with back-up...still needs work as Renegade gets sticky or wants to do anything but back-up. I just get patient, hold, and wait until I get 1 back-up step then stop and rub. When he does back up it's light but we're not consistent yet.

After the 20 meter circles we played FTR at a trot to get the impulsion we would need for the bow tie pattern we did next. We played with the bow tie for both leads and as expected the right lead was easier but after two tries for the left lead we got it and cantered for 5 strides. That's huge...we've not been able to get it before. On the right lead we cantered for 20 strides. Suprisingly for his left lead being so hard to get it was the easiest to ride and seemed the smoothest. The right lead was a bit rough but I'm sure we'll get better as we continue playing.

We had so many good things happen tonight that I wish I'd caught on video but I guess I'll just have to try again tomorrow. I just hope Renegade is having as good a time with all this as I am!!

Playing With New Eyes!!

2011-05-30T22:18:00.000-04:00

Was planning on riding tonight but horses all had pedicures today so opted to wait until tomorrow and played online instead. I played using some of the strategies suggested in the Horsenality Report and had lots of fun with it. After haltering and driving Renegade from zone 3-4 to a log in the field I let him touch it and rest there waiting for him to lick and chew...it took a while but I waited (difficult for a LBE like me lol!!). Once he licked and chewed (it was pretty secretive-barely moved his lips and tongue) he put his head down for a bite of grass and I allowed it but then asked for him to line up parallel to the log then asked for the right front foot over the log then the right hind. I didn't wait after the right front went over as he knows this and for the right hind I asked for significant improvement as we've practiced this several times now. It only took him a couple of minutes and he was split in half over the log!! I waited and it didn't take long for him to lick and chew and this time it was very obvious. I gave him some scratches on his withers and his shoulder (his favorite) and went on to something else. I drove him from zone 3-4 to a tree and when he touched it with his nose, we waited. More licking and chewing then on to driving on the fence line first from zone 3-4 and when that was going well I moved to zone 5. Renegade really liked that because I couldn't micro manage him...but he caught on really quickly and stayed on the rail and kept a nice pace. I only had to make two corrections on the way back; he wanted to go sideways so I took what he offered and we went sideways "and then some" until he decided he'd rather just stay straight on the rail. What fun!! It made it easier as we were headed back toward the pasture where the other horses were so he had a bit of impulsion to play with; it wasn't emotional just physical impulsion and that was fun to play with!!

Played a bit with circles at walk, trot, and canter. Every time Renegade broke gait we got to change direction. I'm having a problem with Renegade wanting to come in too close when we do the change of direction and rather than move my feet tonight I tried flogging the cs and string to protect my space and prevent him from coming in too close. It worked but I must have flogged a little too hard cause it sent his nose out to his left and that set him up to throw his right shoulder into the rope and off he went. He didn't go far, and turned around to look at me so I played extreme friendly and with the stick and string and he came cantering back to me!! Not quite sure what to make of this since the "flogging" sent him away but the "friendly flogging" brought him right back at a canter no less!! I need to think on this tonight. I'm leaning towards my intent or maybe even the expression on my face as the difference maker in sending him away and bringing him back or was it my energy? Hummm...how interesting!!

Renegade Is A Rock Star!!

2011-05-25T23:20:00.002-04:00

I went out to play tonight after it cooled down a bit. Saddled Renegade up and did a short warm up online asking for one foot at a time over a log, specifically his right hind over the log while his left hind remained on the other side; he was connected and really "got" it after about 5 minutes so I quit and waited. It took about 4 minutes and he began to really lick and chew; when he finished we left the log and did some circles at trot and canter with a couple of changes of direction thrown in just to see where we are. The first change in each direction was tough as he had "forward" on his mind. I just persisted and he finally looked to me for direction so I brought him in...more licking and chewing. Sent him back out and change of direction was much nicer and easier.

Next up was traveling circles at trot and canter and they went well. I was purposely doing circles to get his impulsion going for riding which we did next. We rode 20 and 10 meter circles and I played with bending my ribs to help Renegade bend his and it worked beautifully!! Normally he's stiff when going in circles to the right but tonight he was able to maintain nice circles without many corrections. Hummmm...maybe it was me all along???!! We did 8 circles to the right and 8 to the left, bend was equally good on both sides, trot was VERY nice in both directions, very even and rhythmic, very easy to post to and not at all impulsive but relaxed. 10 meter and 20 meter circles were equally nice.

I also played with isolating the fq and hq that I learned in the workshop with Jerry Williams, 3* Parelli Professional, earlier this month. Renegade remembered our practice sessions with this very well. I lightly picked up the reins just until I made contact, kept the reins even so Renegade could keep his head and neck straight, and asked him to move his fq. He did it beautifully keeping his hind feet still and stepping over in the front. We did 180 degrees in 4 steps, rested a moment, then did 180 degrees back the other direction. I definitely had to give him a rest and reward after that; he was so soft, light, and willing and waited for direction without assuming what we were doing.

Since Renegade did sooo well on the circles, and that's probably his least favorite thing to do, we went out into the pasture to ride some straight lines doing FTR. The pasture has some trees and there were a few low hanging branches so I used transitions to ride from one low hanging branch to the next breaking the low hanging branches off so we could go through without me getting slapped by them. It was a fun way to put principles to purpose and Renegade caught on really quick to that game!! Once we had a clear path, we played the bow tie pattern. There is a couple of groups of trees that substitute nicely for a barrel so I used those to come around then back to the rail and into a canter. The third time around the trees and Renegade was offering the canter as we came back to rail and maintained it for 10 strides. It was sooo fantastic he offered... and I know it was all him. I sometimes feel when we're cantering that I'm wobbling around like a sack of potatoes up there!! Poor guy, he's trying so hard and I'm getting in his way...I've got to work on getting better at the canter so I can stay out of his way. Unfortunately, the only way I know how to do that is practice, practice, practice. Hopefully Renegade will be as patient with me learning to canter as he was when I was learning to trot!! I decided after his wonderful canter offering, it was time to stop and reward him by going back to the mounting block so I could get off. I unsaddled Renegade and spent some undemanding time with him while he grazed.

I've been reflecting back on how difficult some of these things have been for us in the recent past and trying to figure out just what has changed that now makes everything so much easier. I think for one thing, I'm getting more confident in what I'm doing because I feel like I know what I'm doing, what I'm asking for, and what it should look like. I'm also being more particular but not being critical, just patiently persisting with the proper attitude until we get it then rewarding, rewarding, rewarding with his favorite things: rest and food (he gets to graze for a few minutes). I've also slowed things down and go back to basics if we're having trouble with something and I'm also concentrating on breaking things down into their parts (finally, I'm getting this one...whew!!) to make everything really simple. That helps both of us.

I keep thinking back to where we started 5 years ago when Renegade would charge me with mouth open, was very aggressive, had no use for people, reared, bucked, kicked, would run over the top of anyone in his way, would bite at the drop of a hat, didn't want to be caught and really was unrideable. The change is dramatic...the more confident I become, the less dominating he becomes and we're developing a real partnership. Renegade has been a great teacher and considering me being such a novice, he really has been patient with me in the last few years while I got up to speed. I think he's breathing a sigh of relief that I'm finally getting some horse sense!!

Progress, Progress, Progress!!

2011-05-23T14:51:00.000-04:00

Just had the most fun play session with Renegade! Played in a playpen made of step in posts and surveyors tape to test my lightness and his obedience…was awesome!! Built a smaller circle inside with 5 posts and played weave with it..fun, fun, fun!! Went out into the pasture and did traveling circles at trot and canter…woohoo…getting better all the time! Slowed it down and played with one foot at a time over a log, first front feet then back feet…Renegade is starting to catch on. Saddled up and rode ‎20m and 10m circles at the walk and trot then went outside into the pasture and did FTR at walk and trot, found some trees to use as "barrels" and did the bowtie pattern…got some nice canters on a left lead, right lead is more difficult but that’s not suprising as most everything is more difficult on his right side. Need to work on suppling up that right side!!

The really suprising thing is I must have done something right because after we had some hang out time and he rolled and grazed a bit, I left him in the pasture to graze while I went to get dressed to go into town and get hay. When I came out of the house, Renegade was still connected to me...followed me up and down the fence line, even when I was in the truck. He even waited in the pasture by the gate when I drove the truck out the driveway and followed me down the fence line all the way to the road. I think he would have followed me to town if the fence hadn't stopped him!! When I got home, he met me at the gate!!

Play Sessions since the Workshops w/Jerry 05/01/11

2011-05-13T20:39:00.003-04:00

Day 1: Played with the rein concepts and Renegade was assuming every time I picked up the reins that he had to start moving or doing “something” and not waiting for any direction or input from me. I backed up and played the friendly game with the reins until he understood that me picking up the reins meant he should get ready for something but wait until I indicated what that “something” was. It didn’t take him long to start asking questions and not assuming he needed to move. Once we had this clear, I decided to just do some FTR at walk and trot, trying not to touch the reins unless absolutely necessary and we did great; we did two laps to the left at walk and two at trot without me having to touch the reins. To the right we did 1-1/2 laps when I had to pick up the rein when Renegade decided he wanted to take a shortcut across the round pen!! Doing this took up the bulk of our play session so I didn’t get to play with the new rein concepts but this was time well spent!!

Day 2: Played with reinforcing the friendly game with the reins and it took about ½ the time for Renegade to start asking questions instead of assuming…ha ha…progress!! Once Renegade started asking questions, we did some FTR then moved on to moving the fq and moving the hq using a refined direct and indirect rein and we did pretty well. We got two fq steps to the right and back to the left without forward or backward movement. Moving the hq was not quite as smooth; I think Renegade was confused so we’ll have to work on this in another session. Once we finished with this I decided to try a 10 meter circle, first at the walk and then at the trot. It went really great!! We did two circles to the left at the walk and trot and Renegade’s trot was so even and soft, I was able to post to it…first time ever – he’s usually really stiff on the circle. To the left we did almost 2 circles before we both lost our focus. Renegade wasn’t quite as soft and even going to the right and neither am I…something else to work on in another session.

Day 3: Our back up is broken!! I guess I’ve put too much emphasis on moving forward for FTR and circles that our back up is pretty rough, nearly non-existent. Oh boy, something else to work on but not today…still working on the refined direct and indirect reins and I don’t want to confuse Renegade by adding in even more right now. We did more of the same as yesterday and in about ½ the time with Renegade even softer and more relaxed than yesterday. I’m enjoying how quickly we’re progressing and how each day takes less and less time to accomplish the same thing or even more than the day before.

MORE TO COME...I'm just trying to catch up now...whew...been a busy couple of weeks!!

Having a Goal but Changing the Plan!!

2011-04-24T19:27:00.000-04:00

I had a plan today to start riding 60 meter circles with Renegade and had everything marked out (I really need a strong visual to make decent circles). Did a short warm up on the ground before mounting up. I got up on the fence rail and asked Renegade over, which he obliged me by coming sideways over to the fence. I love that he gets close so it’s not a stretch for me to get on!! Once I checked our lateral flexion and hq yields, off we went,, walk 5 steps, stop, back up 2 steps (well, that was the plan/pattern anyway!!). Well, our stop was broken so spent a bit of time with this and eventually had Renegade stopping off my seat but not before having to go through the routine of lift the rein and hold while he tried to play his "you’re not going to control my zone 1" game. Had to stick with it long enough to make a change and get him to soften/lighten up. That ate up quite a bit of our riding time so I decided to play with "owning his feet". I had a couple of frisbees and we played with put your left foot here, put your right foot there, all the while playing with our stop!! Renegade got soft, willing, and was stopping off my seat without me having to lift the rein. It was great practice. Tomorrow well play with circles!!

BREAKTHROUGHS AND LOTS OF PROGRESS!!

2011-04-17T22:17:00.000-04:00

WOW...what a weekend Renegade and I had!! Spent the weekend with some girlfriends and our horses and had a wonderful time.

I played online with Renegade and after some rousing play doing circles, change of direction, and falling leaf, he was ready for me to slow it down so we played with moving one foot at a time. Big breakthrough there..Renegade was on a pedestal and I asked one front foot off, rest, asked other front foot off, rest, asked one back foot off but got two...sent him back on the pedestal, repeat...good until back feet...both came off at same time, sent back to pedestal, repeat...finally...one foot, then two, then three, stop and rest...lots of licking and chewing. Asked for last foot off the pedestal, rest, lots more licking and chewing!! Hoorah!!

Split Renegade in half lengthwise over a pole, right front, then right hind over the pole...only had to repeat once and he got it. Rest and lots of licking and chewing. More Hoorah!!

On the ground, sideways to the gate, then open the gate one sideways step at a time...real slow...got the gate open then I got a bit mixed up but sorted myself out and we closed the gate again real slow one sideways step at a time. Later in the day riding freestyle we opened the gate. We had a bit of a rough start with Renegade wanting to rush but again I slowed everything down to one step at a time and stuck with it long enough for a change. By the time we finished, we had a beautiful, slow, controlled sidepass while opening and closing the gate and all with very little rein support. BIG HOORAH!! Of course, we need more practice but this was soo nice, soft, unhurried, beautiful really!!

Rode the barrel pattern at the walk several times then Renegade offered to trot so we trotted the pattern. The first time through at the trot was a bit rough and disjointed with a couple of starts and stops but the second time through was really good so we stopped...more licking and chewing!! I think I finally have the pattern now and it made everything easier for Renegade. He was turning off my seat and body position and was needing very little rein support.

As a group, we rode all 4 horses in the ring and did all kinds of little patterns, challenges, etc. Sooooo much fun...even used horses as cones to do a few things. By the time we were done I had Renegade stopping off my seat and backing up with me just wiggling my feet...look ma...no reins!! What a blast!!

I went outside my comfort zone and rode in my english saddle all weekend. I finally got the gullet width/saddle pad combination worked out and I can get on my balance point now. I started out feeling a bit out of my element (I usually ride a western saddle) but by the time the weekend was over, I was feeling confident riding in it. I did discover however, there's a reason for the different clothing for english riding. Jeans are not the most comfortable thing to ride an english saddle in!! Next time I'll remember my breeches and half chaps!!

It seems as if we've struggled along for quite a while and the last couple of weeks we've made progress by leaps and bounds. I'm not quite sure what's changed or gelled but I do know I'm lovin' the progress were making!!

NOTE on changing to english saddle: I decided to change from my western saddle to my english because as the weather got hotter, I shaved Renegade to help with cooling him out after play sessions and when I shaved him, I saw some white hairs on his right shoulder/wither area. They didn't show until I shaved him but seeing them I'm wondering if my western saddle caused them. Also, I wondered if this would affect his muscle development as we do more riding so decided to change for the moment and see what happens.

Of Guilty Pleasures and Horsemanship!!

2011-04-11T22:46:00.001-04:00

I'm back...I fully intended to play with and ride Renegade and play a bit with Captain yesterday afternoon but there was such a lovely breeze blowing and I indulged my desire for a nap. I rarely nap and it felt like a guilty pleasure but it was oh so nice!! By the time I woke up, it was time to feed the horses and fix some dinner.

I played with Renegade tonight and yehawww...we had fantastic traveling circles both to the right and the left and at a trot (10) and a canter (5). Renegade also had the beginnings of a nice, soft bend in his body in both directions and was looking inside the circle 99% of the time. I'm absolutely thrilled with this as we've had so much trouble with this for a LONG time.

Falling leaf was a bit of a struggle tonight. Renegade kept wanting to come in too close to me even though he had nearly all the rope. I need to have a better plan for this tomorrow night - have some thinking to do between now and then!! I don't want to have to move MY feet, being a dominant LBE he needs to move HIS feet and stay out of my space. An important note though...he has a habit of blowing through the pressure when I ask him to change direction but I won the game tonight. It took a bit of doing, wiggling the stick and string and rope all at the same time until he was uncomfortable enough to stop and look at me. WHEW...three repeats of that and he was changing direction with a little feel on the rope. SCORE 1 for me lol!!

Drawing him over the log one foot at a time went great tonight; Renegade was engaged, waited and asked questions rather than assuming, and really thought down to his feet...one at a time lol!!

Circles with an obstacle (log) went well for about 4 laps then Renegade kept wanting to stop 1/2 way over and go sideways. I took advantage of his offer since it's something on the self assessment skills list. I'm aware it's his left brain way of changing the game but I allowed it this time for the above reason. I'll see what happens tomorrow. Also, just to note this, he may have been ready for more quiet activities since we had already done the traveling circles and falling leaf - he may have just been a wee bit tired!! I have been asking quite a bit more from him lately so wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt.

Sideways over the log was absolutely beautiful, both from zone 3 and zone 1. I might up the ante and try zones 4 and 5 - he may be ready. I'm also beginning to introduce cues when he goes to lay down and roll. He's laying down reliably now when we finish our play sessions and he does it right next to me so it's the perfect opportunity to teach the cues.

After Renegade rolled and got up, he grazed quietly nearby and my two other horses came over to say hello. It was a perfect way to end our play session. The only thing I enjoyed more was feeding them their wet hay cubes with a bit of feed in the bucket. I love sitting on the log and listening to them slurp their supper and occassionally lift their heads to look at me with wet, green noses!!

Horse Play

2011-04-10T14:02:00.002-04:00

So far today I've played with two of my four horses. Bert is such an extrovert and tends to over react, I have to keep phases light, my energy low, and be very clear in my communication. I also have to stick with it long enough to help him make a change then move on to something else. We played with figure 8's today; he started out reactive and confused but ended up doing a couple of nice figure 8's at a relaxed walk and thinking about what he was doing. It was much the same with the circling game...he started out rushing through a trot and canter circle but we finally got a nice relaxed circle to the left then to the right at a walk. Did the weave with him and he did great! By this time he was really thinking vs. reacting and kept looking to me for direction. I quit after that and gave him a nice rest and some spanish moss from an oak tree (he loves the stuff!!).

Next up to play was America, a.k.a., Meri and she is very much LBI but can get quite extroverted at times. She started a bit extroverted but quickly settled down and did some nice figure 8's and circles to the right and left at a relaxed trot. We did a a couple canter circles to the right and left in the roundpen. To the right was better than to the left...how interesting! We hung out for a few minutes and she gently explored me a bit; she was really interested in my hat and my watch.

Gotta go clean the pool now and do a couple of other chores; I'll play with Renegade and Captain later and am going to ride Renegade.

2011-04-09T21:28:00.000-04:00

Met Cindy today at an Easter party for kids, she’s new to horses and feeling a bit unsure and afraid. I invited her to come meet my horses and she came by this evening. I showed her a little bit of what I do with my horses and I think it inspired her. She asked lots of questions and is very interested in Parelli so I’ve loaned her some Savvy Club DVD’s, my L1 kit, a halter, 12’ lead, and a cs and string (don’t worry, I had two!!). I also gave her my Parelli Connect bracelet and invited her to come try the 30 day free trial. I hope she does find her way there!!

More Basics!!

2011-04-09T21:27:00.000-04:00

Had another rousing play session, much the same as yesterday, with Renegade tonight and boy was it fun. I was getting some nice, snappy responses, the best changes of direction yet, nice canter squeezes with a great turn, face and wait. Circles with an obstacle were awesome, not change in gait or direction unless I asked for it. One foot at a time over the log was good tonight, a few more days and I think we’ll have it dependablly.

After our session, I turned Renegade loose and he stayed with me rather than wander off to join the other horses grazing nearby. After a couple of minutes, he decided to roll and was close to me. He laid down, rolled, then righted himself but didn’t get up right away. I offered my hand for him to smell and he did and stayed down for another couple of minutes then got up slowly, shook, "blew out the butterflies" (and probably some dirt as well lol!!), and hung with me a bit longer until I got up and asked him to join the herd. I would have loved to hang out a bit longer but had chores to do.

Back to Basics!!

2011-04-08T21:22:00.002-04:00

Since we have been having some issues lately when Renegade is out away from me farther, I went back on the 12’ line to re-establish respect and it worked beautifully!! Instead of Renegade being out of reach of the cs and string, he was now within touching distance and he knew it. Our 7 games were fantastic as were our traveling circles and falling leaf. We had a pretty rousing session with me upping my expectations of snappy responses. It was amazing just how responsive he was!! When we were done warming up strong, we played with one foot at a time over a log, sideways from zone one over a log, back up over a log, splitting him in half lengthwise over a log, etc. I was asking for things that caused him to think down to his feet. We had an amazing connection and Renegade was really paying attention and was engaged. The most difficult thing for him was 1 foot at a time over the log; he kept wanting to rush his two back feet over. We kept playing with it until he finally slowed down and thought about it rather than just reacting and rushing over with his back feet. He made a great change at that point and I think he knew it cause he "chuckled" at me when he did it. At that point I decided our session should end as that had been so difficult for him and he made a positive change. Interestingly, I took off the halter and lead rope and he stayed with me even though we were in a big pasture, there was grass, and two of my other horses were grazing nearby. Then, as it was pretty warm out and he was sweaty, he laid down to roll. He was close enough to touch so I rubbed him with the cs. He kinda laid there for a minute and relaxed and did a little contented moan. We hung out for a few more minutes then went together to turn him out in the yard to eat grass. It was a great session!!

Oh…forgot to mention we also did circles with an obstacle in both directions and did great!!

LAYING DOWN, STAYING DOWN, AND CHANGING HIS MIND

2011-04-02T20:34:00.000-04:00

Played with Renegade this evening and had fun. We did the weave online from 22′. At first, Renegade wanted to create his own game but I slowed everything down, got precise, and didn’t let him be “wrong for long”. Three times through the pattern and he was looking where he was going and looking to me for direction!!

Played the circling game online and am starting to get some upward and downward transitions with phase 1 or 2 and am pleased with that. Played a bit of circling at liberty and got some nice circles at trot and canter. For a change, Renegade was looking inside the circle and not outside. I also didn’t have to have as much energy going in my body for him to maintain the canter. I was experimenting with just how little energy I can use to cause him to maintain the canter; it seems we’re refining it a bit.

The best part came after our play session. I followed our usual routine of me sitting down on the ground for some UDT with Renegade. Tonight it took very little time for him to lay down to roll and he was very close to me. He laid down very softly and rolled a bit then righted himself but didn’t go to get up right away. I was close enough to rub his knees with my hands and he softly smelled them. I then gave him part of a cookie I just happened to have handy and he stayed down to eat it. When he went to get up, I offered him another piece of cookie and he changed his mind about. He was about 1/3 of the way up and decided to lay back down for the cookie and stayed down while he ate it. WHOOT, WHOOT!!

PRIOR AND PROPER PREPARATION!!!

2011-03-27T18:06:00.002-04:00

Since it’s getting so warm now, 88 today in sunny FL, and Renegade is sooooo hairy and sweats whenever we play, I decided to body clip him. I’d never body clipped a horse before and I had to buy a set of clippers since the ones I have were good for bridle paths and light clipping. Renegade was soooo good through the entire process and I did a pretty good job for a first timer. One side looks really good, the other needs a bit of touch up but we’d both had enough for one day. I’m so glad that way back when, I took lots of time getting Renegade used to clippers so I could clip his bridle path. I can do that at liberty out in the pasture! Taking the time back then made everything go smoothly today!! Love me some pony boy, Renegade and soooo proud of him!

YEEEEEHAWWWW!!!

2011-03-23T20:21:00.000-04:00

I don't have much time but wanted to do a quick post so I don't forget. Played with Renegade tonight for about 20" at liberty in the playpen and it was fantastic. I sent him out on the circle to the right at the trot and he gave me 7 circles without breaking gait or changing direction. After 7 laps, I decided to bring him in before he made any decisions about what he was going to do and he came right in. I let him rest a bit then sent him out to the left at a trot and he gave me 5 laps with good impulsion. I decided to ask for a transition down to a walk for half a lap then back up to a trot for half a lap. He got it and it took very little effort from me (HOORAY!!).

After the trot laps, I asked for the canter and Renegade went right into it. I did have to keep quite a bit of energy going in my body for him to maintain the canter but we did 4 laps!! I didn't have to actually canter myself and I didn't have to hop up and down either, just had to have some up and down energy going. I also didn't have to turn with him which I've had to do since he likes to stop or break gait behind me. Tonight he followed the rail, maintained gait, looked for me, and asked questions. I'm so thrilled as this has been our bug-a-boo for so long and I think we've finally had our break through!!!

After his stellar performance, I asked Renegade in to rest when I sat down on the ground he laid down to roll, first on his left side then on his right side and while he was down on his right side he stayed down for a bit while I rubbed him with the cs.

After our rest, we went together at liberty out to some grass to graze. I left Renegade there while I was nearby preparing the evening feed for all the horses. I'm loving the fact he is becoming very respectful at feeding time. He used to try to sneak in from any direction he could to snatch bites of feed from the bowls but he waits patiently now. He continues to graze but I can see him looking to see if I'm ready to invite him in to his bowl. Feeding time in the pasture is almost becoming a pastoral event these days and I'm loving it!!

Busy Day Playing With Ponies

2011-03-20T20:58:00.000-04:00

I played with 3 of my 4 horses today and had a ball. Each one is so different and so interesting. I played with Li"Bert"y, a.k.a. Bert, first and he always really needs to move his feet first before the real learning can begin. He did about 8 laps to the left and 4 to the right before he settled down to business. Once he had done his laps, we worked on sideways along the fence and he figured it out pretty quickly; he had a little trouble sorting his feet out at first and we had to get our rhythm going but then he did a couple of really nice sideways steps so I quit. Saddled him up for the second time and he did very well, standing quietly, smelling the pads and saddle, etc. Once the saddle was on, I moved him around a bit out on a circle in case he decided to buck but he did great. I sent him off at a walk and he did 2 complete laps, nice and relaxed. It was time to quit and spend a bit of undemanding time while allowing Bert to wind down. He still is a bit emotional at times and it shows in his sweat patterns, but we're working on those emotions. He gets better each time we play; I stretch his emotional bubble just a little bit more each time then let him find his rhythm and relaxation.

America was next to volunteer to play; she was waiting at the gate when I brought Bert back to the pasture. We played with a few trot and canter circles and some changes of direction. America is getting better each time we play. I also saddled her up and sent her out on some circles. She did great for saddling, stood still, investigated pads and the saddle and had no problems with girthing her up. She has had a tendency to buck when first saddled to I sent her out and away from me but she didn’t buck at all this time. After warming her up and moving her around, I decided to lay over the saddle to see how she handled that and she did fantastic. She turned to look at me while I was rubbing her shoulder from both sides. She also turned to investigate my legs hanging on the other side. I’m wondering if her not bucking was because I saddled her with an English saddle today and not the usual western saddle? I may switch to the western saddle next time just to see if there’s a difference. After our play, we had some undemanding time and America stood close to me the whole time. She investigated me a bit as I lay on the ground then stood quietly while I took a “nap”. She also laid down to roll on her left side; she was about 4’ from me.

When I put America back in the pasture, Renegade nickered to me several times. When I invited him in he came at a trot. I greeted him, haltered him, and we went to the play pen. We played with some more trot and canter circles and a few changes of direction. I’m finding Renegade will maintain the canter and do more laps if I have some visible energy in my body so I’ve been sort of hopping up and down in the center of the circle. Interestingly, I also have his attention when I do this; rather than his usual looking outside the circle, he looks intently at me. I guess what I’m doing is exaggerating to teach right now and it’s working. I’m going to play with this some more to see if I can refine it so I can be in neutral and not have to jump up and down; well it’s not jumping really, just little hops. When we finished we just hung out together and Renegade was licking me all over; my hands, my hair, my arms, my shoes. Not sure what that means but as long as he doesn’t carry it too far, I’m going to allow it for now. During our undemanding time, Renegade laid down about 3’ from me to roll and he really was enjoying himself.

Well, now that they’ve all had time to cool off and rest for a bit, it’s time to go out and feed them. I enjoy feeding time and listening to the sounds of them gobbling up their feed; it’s one my favorite times of the day!

Back in from feeding and the ponies and they all greeted me with whinnies and nickers. They must be content because they were all very quiet and polite while waiting for their meals. I stand with the feed bowls at my feet then set them out in a circle around me. The horses have to wait outside my bubble (extends out the length of the cs and string) and wait for me to invite them in to their bowls. It makes feeding time so much more pleasant, orderly, and calm...no jostling for position or fighting over who gets which bowl. When they were finished they started munching their hay...they didn't play musical bowls tonight. Bliss!!!

2011-03-15T23:35:00.000-04:00

I've been playing with the things I learned in the workshop on liberty circles and change of direction with Jerry Williams and the new strategies are paying off! We've gone back online to fix a few things and Renegade is giving me some really nice canter circles, 4 - 5 laps worth although he's doing it with a bit of an attitude. I can just hear him thinking "fine...you want canter circles, I'll give you canter circles" while sticking his tongue out at me lol!! Right now the goal is canter circles and increasing the number of laps; we'll work on attitude later. I want to be particular without being critical so I'll accept the circles even if he's giving me attitude for now...it's all about rewarding the try for now and sticking with it long enough to make/see a change.

I've also noticed, when cantering circles, Renegade tends to change leads about every 5 strides. I'm trying to work out if he's just trying to figure out how to carry himself comfortably or is it something I'm doing that's causing the lead changes?

Backing by the tail is really getting nice and light now and we're actually getting some speed to our back up. Renegade is staying straighter as well unless I go just a little to fast for him. I need to remember to speed it up a little at a time and not try for too much too soon!!

On the weekends when I have more time and can actually ride, we've been playing with patterns and I think Renegade really likes the bow tie pattern. He is actually eager to go into the canter after coming around the barrel (or in our case, a cone). I'm trying to work on figure 8's, weaves, large and small circles, corner to corner, upward and downward transitions, and trying to get a reliable stop off my seat. I've been riding in a western saddle but recently changed the gullet in my english saddle (the wide was too wide and the saddle tipped forward). The saddle fits much better now and stays in place so I'm going to be using it more often now. It's a change for both of us but it seems to be going well so far.

I'm getting a more reliable stick to me canter now, especially when going to the left, still working on going to the right but we'll get there!! 6. It's taken us a while to get to this point but we've had fun getting here. I can't wait until we can canter together long enough to help us both get more fit!!
Even though I'm working extra hours at work, I gave up some time on Facebook and Twitter to make more horse time!! I play with Renegade when I can and make every effort to squeeze out some time every day even if it's only 15 minutes. I focus on doing simple tasks with excellence and refining everything we do. We are actually making some good progress even though most sessions are short. I had set a goal of filming and submitting my L3 Online and L3 Liberty auditions by May. I'm not sure I'll actually meet that time line but we're continuing to make progress and that's what counts. I can't wait for work to slow down a bit so I can have more horse time!!!!!

Time, time, time...is the biggest factor but I try to make the most of the time I do have. I ask for alot,
accept a little, and reward often and it seems to be working; we are making progress a little at a time
and that is what is important. Interestingly it seems, the less time I spend doing things with Renegade, the more I want to make it count, the more I pay attention to all the little things and look for "good" times to stop our sessions. It seems to be working and Renegade as he's more eager to meet me at the gate in the evenings, puts more effort into things we're working on, and is less likely to leave me if given the chance (at liberty).

Being Particular Without Being Critical

2011-03-13T21:20:00.001-04:00

Played with change of direction tonight and after about 10" Renegade was consistently looking for me and asking questions, especially when traveling to the left. I’m super excited about this because this is the side I always had trouble drawing his eye for the COD – he just didn’t want to give me his right eye.

Also…hum, how interesting…building a good COD actually helped our circling game. We started out with a COD every 1/8 of the circle, then every 1/4, then at 1/2. Pretty soon Renegade was doing full laps with no change of gait.

Backing by the tail is getting excellent now…we backed 1/2 way around the 70’ round pen and we did some stick to me at walk, trot, canter, stop, and back up. Renegade wants to turn in to me when we transition down from canter to stop but I used my carrot stick to block that and pretty soon we were able to go from canter to back up and stay straight. (Note…the stick to me was circles to the left, will have to try to the right tomorrow night).

After we finished playing, we hung out for a while; Renegade licked, chewed, and yawned then he laid down to roll right beside me!!

WHAT A DAY - INSTALLMENT 2!!!

2011-02-20T20:44:00.000-05:00

Renegade and Beau were tied to the trailer next to each other eating their hay from their respective bags and Renegade decided he wanted to try Beau’s hay. It was interesting they shared from the same bag for a bit then Renegade took a big mouthful of hay; I think Beau thought he was being too greedy because he gave Renegade a slight nip on the nose. This is a BIG change for Beau as he’s usually very submissive to other horses. I found myself cheering for him!! Renegade was more polite after that and they continued to share hay.

The workshop was awesome and I learned some strategies to help me with the problems we’ve been having with our circles, especially canter circles, and our change of direction, especially when traveling to the left; I have a hard time drawing Renegade’s right eye. The biggest BFO was that I’ve gotten a bit lax and sloppy in my expectations. I’ve been allowing Renegade to invade my space too much/too often and not asking for snappy responses. Once I changed my approach, upped my expectations, and sped everything up a bit, our results were much better!!

After the workshop, we watered our horses and loaded up for the ride home. Boy did we, Terri, Ingrid, and I, have A LOT to talk about on the way home. It seems we all learned a whole lot during a two hour workshop. We arrived back at Terri’s house and unloaded the horses; Renegade was going to be a visitor for a few hours while we went to dinner so we got the horses settled in then went in the house to freshen up before heading out to meet “J” at Pepe’s in Ocala. We were celebrating Ingrid’s birthday and we were eager to hear about “J”’s first month as an extern at Parelli.

After dinner, we headed back to Terri’s to pick up Renegade and head to my house. Renegade did very well at loading in the dark even though we’d not practiced this much. He looked ready to go home and chill in his own, familiar pasture with his herd mates. If he was as tired as I was, I know he was exhausted. My brain was full and so was my belly; I literally and figuratively had lots to digest. After getting Renegade settled in, I went in the house, got ready for bed, and it didn’t take long for me to fall asleep and I slept soundly all night. Writing up my notes would have to wait until the next day.

WHAT A DAY!!!

2011-02-20T10:51:00.000-05:00

I had fully expected to have to work Saturday but at the last minute management decided one admin person could handle the needs of all the management personnel. Rene volunteered to work since her husband also had to work so I got the day off. After hurried phone calls and e-mails, I managed to sign up for the Parelli Games in the morning at the ISC in Ocala and the Liberty Series Workshop, Circles and Change of Direction, with Jerry S. Williams in Williston, FL in the afternoon. To top off an already wonderful day, I had dinner with 3 fabulous friends; it was like the icing on the cake. I absolutely love it when the stars align and everything becomes possible!!

Since my truck is still out of commission, my friend Terri was very generous and provided transport for both me and Renegade. Renegade and her horse, Beau, get along well so they kept each other company while traveling. Ingrid also rode with us (she didn’t take her horse) and the three of us had a fantastic time talking and laughing with each other. It’s always nice to have friends to share with while traveling; we never seem to run out of things to talk about!!

We arrived at the ISC about 9:00 a.m., signed in, parked and unloaded our horses. After letting the horses relax for a few minutes, we tacked up and headed down to the area where they were holding the games. Renegade was distracted by the nice, green grass and that was an indicator of how things would go for the rest of the morning; I seemed to have only 50-75% of his attention. I’d like to note, this is different than having his attention only 50-75% of the time as he was paying attention to me but had about 30-50% of his mind on the grass and grazing. When I asked for something he would comply but didn’t do it with enthusiasm.

The first stop was the station for the online games and I decided not to try the online games right then; there were several people in line and there would have been a wait…more time for Renegade to disconnect from me. I decided to move on to the liberty station thinking that might be a better place to start; there was less waiting and not much lush grass in the honeycomb. I quickly learned my thinking was flawed! While some of our liberty was o.k., it was pretty lack luster for the most part. Stick to me was great at walk, trot, AND canter and back-up and our friendly game was good as was our squeeze between me and the rail but porcupine 6’ was difficult and sideways over a cs on the ground didn’t go very well. BFO…if it’s not going well online; don’t go to liberty!!

I had thought about trying the freestyle games but since I didn’t have Renegade’s full attention on the ground, I decided riding might not be a good idea!! Instead, I thought I’d take him to a different area to work on getting his attention using a squeeze but looking for snappy responses and it worked really well. The first two times through the squeeze Renegade was moving his feet but with no real purpose or direction, he was just shuffling his feet around. The third time through, after getting tagged the first two times through, when I sent him he left at a canter and it was a really nice one!! He was relaxed, soft, responsive, and enthusiastic and was easy to bring back when I asked for the disengage. I’m glad I decided to abandon my original plan and take care of what my horse needed as it helped the rest of the day get better!!

Renegade must have felt very comfortable at the ISC because he rolled 4 times while there. I wasn’t happy that he decided to roll with the saddle on but since it was warm out and he’s still got a pretty good winter coat, he was sweaty and was most likely itchy. He also doesn’t roll all the way over, so I wasn’t worried about the saddle horn. I’ve been working on having him lay down next to me so I decided to take advantage of him laying down and rub him while he was down. Later, after I had untacked him, he rolled 3 more times. I happened to be sitting on the ground the last time he rolled and he gave me a lovely sand shower when he got up and shook!!

After the games were over we were shooed out of Parelli Land so that the staff could get on with their chores and enjoy the rest of the day off. It looked like a giant wave of people moving up the hill towards their trailers with a couple of smaller waves following. It’s easy to get caught up in the feeling at the ISC and not want to leave such a magical place. After waiting for the initial crush of people to leave, we loaded up our horses and pulled out headed to the Holistic Horsemanship Center in Williston, FL for the Liberty Series Workshop, Circles and Change of Direction, with Jerry S. Williams, 3* Parelli Professional. It was about a 25” drive from the ISC to the Horsemanship Center and we arrived there about 1:30 p.m., enough time to unload, water our horses, and give them a bit of hay before the workshop started at 2:00 p.m. I’m going to write up the workshop notes in a separate post on my clinic/workshops pages.

More to come...

Liberty Series #3 Workshop, Drive vs. Draw With Jerry S. Williams 01-30-11

2011-01-30T21:46:00.002-05:00

Had the opportunity to audit a liberty workshop today with Jerry S. Williams and boy, was it ever informative. I didn't get home until it was nearly dark but can wait to get out there and try what I learned today. I've made notes and posted them on my other blog page.

The Universe is Conspiring!!

2011-01-29T20:06:00.000-05:00

Wow…life is conspiring to keep me from progressing very quickly. I have a new assignment at work and I’m going to be working 6-10 hour days…going to work in the dark and getting home just before dark. I’m going to have to get creative and come up with some ideas to squeeze in some horsey play time for a while. I don’t even know how long this assignment will last. On the up side, I’ll be making some extra $$ so I can attend Jerry Williams L3/4 intensive clinic in May!!

I LOVE MY HORSE!!!

2011-01-28T19:23:00.000-05:00

Tried touch it with your tail tonight with Renegade and played with it for about 15″. Had to use approach and retreat several times as Renegade would veer off to one side or the other rather than backing straight. I took my time, kept it slow, and would bring him back each time he started to veer off. Eventually, he backed straight to the tree with his tail touching and since he looked relaxed, ears forward, eyes on me, head level, blinking, licking and chewing, so I let him rest there for a bit before moving on to something else. It was an interesting session and very revealing that such a confident horse in so many situations could have so many thresholds backing his zone 5 up to that tree!!

We did a little more online: some trot circles with change of gait to canter and got a full canter circle in each direction with minimal correction/direction from me. Played a bit with his mouth since he’s fairly protective of that area; ended up being able to insert the tip of my finger in the corner of his mouth without him trying to take his head away, had a positive expression and did a little gentle chewing (not the frantic chewing he has done in the past) then his mouth got quiet. I was able to gently rub his lips without him resisting/objecting. Also led backwards at liberty by the tail about 30′, nice and soft and away from his hay!! Talk about being a partner. Probably didn’t set that up the best for success but was extremely happy with the result!! Must have been an o.k. session because he stayed with me after we finished; he didn’t just rush back to the hay pile!!

I'm lovin' me some cheeky little Chincoteague Pony!!!

Offerings and Fun!!

2011-01-26T19:26:00.001-05:00

Got home from work and first had to fix the hotwire…Bert had it crunched and had part of the fence crunched too. While I was fixing the fence, Renegade came to visit me and kinda hung around for a few minutes. When I finished and went to the gate, he followed me.

I got him out, saddled him up, and we went to the “arena” to play. I thought I’d warm him up a bit online but ended up only needing to move him around enough to do my three cinch tightenings. He stood still while I got on and while we did out lateral bends and then we walked off on my cue. Boy, did we have fun. We rode the large circle at the walk; all I was looking for was a soft bend and understanding the pattern. We did pretty good for our first time, maintaining the walk and the circle but there’s definitely much to work on. We did an energetic walk over the cavalettis (set at 8″ – we’d done 6″ many times before), trying maintain straightness and not tick his toes. By the 4th time across, he was doing good (no ticking). The weave at a walk was fun, when we get good at that, I’ll try it at the trot. The most fun was with the bow tie pattern…seemed like Renegade really got this one. When we came around the cone with me doing partial dhq I was going to ask for the trot at first but Renegade said “why not canter”!! The first few times, I got 2-3 strides of canter but the last time we cantered 1/2 the length of the “arena”. I decided we’d done enough…he gave me so much and so willingly!! Sadly, I probably needed to spend my 1/2 hour UDT with Renegade tonight but it was already getting dark and I still had to feed everyone. I’ll make a point of having enough time to hang out tomorrow after our play.

Oh yeah, must add...I got two nice back up steps off my seat...no reins!! WHOOT, WHOOT!!!

Play With Me!!

2011-01-24T23:13:00.000-05:00

I have to confess, I didn’t really play with Renegade tonight. I wanted to set up my “arena” with a large circle, a weave, a figure 8, some cavalettis, and the bow tie so I can start more freestyle riding and getting our patterns much better. I brought my cones, a 22′ line to measure with, a hay bag, and Renegade with me. While I set up, Renegade “grazed” on the hay bag and when I finished setting up, we just hung out while he continued to munch and I played friendly with the cs and string while listening to music. It was a nice way to spend some time after a very manic/hectic day at work.

Our time together was nice and relaxing until we went at liberty back to the pasture and Renegade decided to leave me. Well, a catching game ensued and the more provocative I got the more he wanted to play. We ended up in a STM game at the trot all over the place. I think he was bored and was saying “play with me!!”.

Sometimes I forget, he's been relaxing all day while I'm at work and when I get home and want to relax, he's ready for some action!!

Fun and Games!!

2011-01-22T17:16:00.000-05:00

What a fun morning!! We were a bit rushed as we “were late for the show”. I normally like to arrive a bit early, unload my horse, walk him around a bit and check the place out but this morning we arrived at the ISC, had to fill out some paperwork, unloaded the horses and had to saddle them up right away. Missed the meeting at the big pond so on the way down the hill, we stopped and did the online challenge. Renegade and I made our time, completing all 5 obstacles and didn’t break the tie until he decided he wanted to go check out some grass a bit farther out than the 22′ line lol!! Liberty was great, we completed our 5 tasks with 1 second to spare and he even sidepassed the cs laying on the ground – this has been a huge bug-a-boo for us!! We did FRT/STM at the trot, I got greedy and tried for a canter STM but it didn’t happen. I was o.k. with that since he’d just given me so much during the online and liberty challenges and he was rather distracted by the grass, the cold air, and the cold breezes. Wasn’t sure about doing freestyle games because Renegade had been distracted but decided to give it a go and was glad I did. We made our times, with time to spare…did the weave at a walk, mostly off of my body but did have to make a few corrections, we trotted the straight line back to the box. The barrel pattern was fun, would have been better if not for “operator error” lol!! We did the first part of the pattern at the walk and Renegade was pretty unfocused (maybe I was too??!!). The second half of the pattern was better, we did it at the trot and it would have been fantastic but I got the pattern wrong; did the first barrel right and mixed up the next two, bummer!! I definitely need to work on getting my pattern straight!!

It was fun to see Renegade so confident today. There was a young horse that had never been over the bridge before and wasn’t confident about it at all so Renegade led (with me driving from zone 4-5) the way and that little horse followed him right over. It was especially nice because Renegade sometimes has zone 5 issues but didn’t have them today.

Especially nice was seeing our progress since last year when they held the games. Our scores were much better this time, Renegade was much more connected to me, and he really tried for me today!! Couldn’t be happier with how we did today!!

Rest and Relaxation

2011-01-21T19:51:00.000-05:00

I decided to give Renegade and myself the night off since we're going to the Parelli Games tomorrow at the ISC in Ocala, FL. We've been playing every day for about two weeks now so he's earned a day off!! Besides, I worked today and had to run errands after work. By the time I got home, it was nearly dark so I went to say hello to my ponies and just give them each a couple of cookies. No pressure, no plan, just being in the moment with them.

I'm so looking forward tomorrow. Jerry Williams, 3*PP, is hosting the games so it should be loads of fun!!

The Tail (spelling intended lol!!) of Two Sarah's

2011-01-20T20:17:00.000-05:00

Day 5 of new strategy and things are going very well. Tonight’s music selection was the tail (spelling intended!!) of two Sarah’s, McLachlan and Brightman. Renegade will maintain gait and direction at the walk and trot until I ask him in so we can do 6-8 laps. I did have to send his zone one back to the rail twice as he was trying to cut across one side to shorten the lap lol!! We’re still at one lap in each direction at the canter trying to be consistent and as light as possible, once it’s pretty good we’ll move up to more laps. Also played with transitions between walk and trot and it’s getting better, Renegade at first tried to push through my cues to slow down but I upped my phases and he really started to catch on quickly; I was getting really nice upward transitions and downward transitions started to get lighter. Just hoping I don’t screw up my progress with the circling game by doing transitions!! I’m just trying to keep it interesting for my little LBE!!

Played at liberty leading by the ear and it’s getting softer, lead by the tail all the way across the 70 rp and it was straight and soft!! STM was nice at walk, trot, and canter to the left, we (read me) need work on going to the right…I’m stiff and Renegade mirrors that!! I think I need to practice by myself to get unstiff.

During UDT, Renegade did ALOT of licking, chewing, and yawning and I tried to mirror him, especially during the yawning. He laid down again and this time he did it much quicker and stayed down a bit longer. After he got up, he stayed with me and ended up smelling my hair and licking my ear!! Made me giggle!!

Cat Stevens and The Moody Blues

2011-01-19T19:01:00.000-05:00

Got out there with Renegade tonight for day 4 of my new online strategy. Everything felt really relaxed. At first, Renegade had some “nasty ears”; he’ll look at me and give me “those ears” when I’ve got him figured out and he’s not winning the games!! At the moment, I’m choosing to ignore them and just continue with what we are doing. Once he understands the game is not changing, his ears come forward and he gets more engaged with me. That’s also when he starts nickering and “chuckling” to me and we had alot of that going on tonight.

We got some really nice walk, trot, and canter circles using my energy and a lift and lead. Had to up phases a couple of times when he didn’t respond, having to kiss or cluck, only once had to roll the stick and string. Also played a bit with up and down transitions; really had fun with that.

After our online play, I went to liberty and Renegade was connected, followed me all over the rp. He was exhuberant when I sent him out on the circle and got a nice, complete canter circle to the left (and that’s his “hard” side). Played with a few COD’s just to see where we’re at and got a couple of pretty nice ones in each direction. Backed all the way across the rp leading by the tail and half way around leading by the ear…we even trotted a few strides and came back to a walk!! Did some STM at walk, trot, and canter in both directions; to the left was better than to the right (my hard side) but both were a great starting point.

UDT after play was nice and soft. It took about 15″ for Renegade to decide to lay down but when he did he stayed down quite a bit longer than he has previously…long enough for me to get a cookie out of my pocket and give it to him. I thought the cookie might cause him to get up to get it, but he chose to stay down until after I gave it to him. He likes to suck on his cookies and a bit of his tongue protrudes so I gently touched it, he then started licking me so we had a game of lick, touch, stroke the tongue. When I stopped, he came back for a second round of the game!!

Tonight’s music selection was Cat Stevens and The Moody Blues…think he likes them too!!

Must Be Doing Something Right!!

2011-01-18T18:28:00.001-05:00

Played with Renegade tonight using my new strategies and the idea that it’s not about the canter circles and had a really successful session. Stayed particular with our yo-yo back, a rest out there when he was straight and looking at me, keeping everything soft when possible and giving Renegade time to think and respond. I ended up getting some really nice canter circles on line in both directions (always bringing him in when it was MY idea) and his departs on the send were snappy. Tried sending him out on a circle at the trot and asking for the canter after a 1/2 lap and it only took me lightly rolling the stick and string to get the canter. Wooohoooo…so happy!!! He did lots of licking, chewing, and yawning DURING our session as well as after during undemanding time. He also laid down again, it wasn’t for long but each time he’s staying down just a bit longer.

Judging by all the nickering, chuckling, and engagement going on, I think I was getting something right!!

Also, during our play time I played some Spanish music and some Santana…maybe Renegade likes latin music!!

Warts And All!!

2011-01-17T19:03:00.000-05:00

I had a friend video tape a few play sessions with Renegade and I over the weekend and boy was that video revealing. It was difficult to watch some of the things I was doing but great to see how I can change what I'm doing to help my horse. I was confusing him on so many levels and as hard as I've been trying to not act like a predator, that's exactly what I saw on the video.

With my new awareness planted firmly in my head, I went out to play with Renegade tonight. We had been playing with canter circles, both online and at liberty, and having inconsistent results. Now I know why...I was way too direct line and focusing on getting those canter circles. Once I broke it down into what was really broken, we had great results tonight. By concentrating on the quality of our back-up and send with snappy departures, I actually got canter circles tonight with very little effort on my part. My horse was responding to lighter phases and with more energy. So...BFO...it's NOT about the canter circles!!

The hard part for me is I know this intellectually, but I finally now really KNOW this. How did I get so off track and so direct line? How will I stop myself from doing this again? Can I stop myself from doing this again? Is my awareness such that I can stop myself from becoming so direct line again? Thankfully horses are forgiving and if I pay attention maybe, just maybe, I won't keep repeating my mistakes.

Hummm....

2011-01-14T19:15:00.000-05:00

Played again tonight and just like last night, trot circles were fabulous in both directions but canter circles were non-existant, so rather than repeat a negative pattern, I went back online to fix it. The reason I tried first at liberty is to make sure last night wasn’t an off night and to give Renegade the benefit of doubt. Going back online helped a whole lot and we ended up doing three nice canter circles in each direction and I stopped with that for tonight. We backed, leading by the tail, all the way across the diameter of the 70′ play pen!! Also lead Renegade by the (L) ear for 10 steps. I also trailer loaded Renegade from the fender and he went right in!!

During the post play UDT, Renegade did alot of licking, chewing, and yawning unlike last night when he did very little and he laid down next to me again twice. This time I rubbed his forehead and he rubbed back a bit and he stayed down just a little longer tonight that the past few nights. Can’t wait until I can “do a Cheri” and have him sleeping with his head in my lap.

I’m wondering if I’m confusing Renegade by playing with my energy…maybe I’m playing with it too much, maybe I should just try one change or a little change at one time rather than experimenting? Jerry…I’m still trying to get the hand of that Spiderman thing of throwing the web lol!!

Anyway, it was another interesting evening of play!!

Where Are We Going??

2011-01-13T18:38:00.000-05:00

Tonights session was interesting. I could feel my energy level was not has high as it has been the last 4 days and Renegade’s energy wasn’t as “up” there either. Trot circles were amazing, 6 to the right and 5 to the left, nice, cadenced, soft. Canter circles…well, they kind of fell apart tonight…I’m wondering where all that wonderful impulsion from last night went??!! I couldn’t get Renegade to give me more than 1/2 lap in either direction tonight. Something to ponder on tonight.

On the flip side, leading by the tail was fabulous tonight – we backed softly and straightly 3/4 the diameter of the round pen!! I finished our session by tying the 22′ line into reins and asking Renegade to side pass to the rail to see if I had permission to get on and he moved right into position. I got on bareback and did a 15″ passenger lesson at the walk. I haven’t been on him bareback in ages and it was fun!!

During our undemanding, post play time, Renegade did alot of licking, chewing, and yawning and ta da…laid down next to me twice!! I found it interesting he also spent a fair amount of time softly investigating me tonight with his nose and by licking me. He was checking out my coat sleeves, the hood of my coat, my hair, and even my face. He was gentle about it and even licked my face. I have to admit I was a bit nervous about that given his past history of biting but I kept my nerves in check and allowed it but was ready to move him off if he got too pushy. No worries though…he was just fine.

Lots of different stuff happening tonight but just as exciting as the past few nights…just different. Not sure where all this is going but I really want to find out!!

Awesome!!!

2011-01-12T18:38:00.000-05:00

YEEHAW!!!!! What a fun play session tonight. The weather is pretty cool here tonight and Renegade was really enjoying it. In the round pen, at liberty, Renegade gave me 4 really nice canter circles in each direction…yep…that’s right 4 CANTER CIRCLES!! AND…I was in neutral in the center of the circle!!!

Backing by the tail was also improved tonight…Renegade gave me 6 nice steps back, staying straight and soft. He did turn and look over his back at me once but didn’t turn to face me.

Stick to me was good at the walk and trot but by the time we got around to stick to me canter, I think Renegade had cantered himself out lol!! I wasn’t going to push it because he’d already given me soooo much.

We had our undemanding time and while waiting for him to lick, chew, and yawn, he laid down beside me instead. I was able to rub him and give him a cookie while he was down. Unbelieveable to me the changes in just the last few days. I’m over the moon!!

Fun Time Tonight

2011-01-11T20:12:00.000-05:00

Had another fun session with Renegade tonight. When I entered the pasture, I sent America away and Renegade came right over to me nickering as he came. I think he was ready to play!! In the round pen at liberty he gave me 4 laps at the trot in both directions with only a couple of corrections when he wanted to come off the rail. I just put some energy towards his zone 1-2 and he did the next two laps perfectly!!

When we moved up to cantering I was able to canter a small circle in the center of the round pen while Renegade cantered on the rail. For a change, he was putting out more effort than me. He gave me a full lap at the canter in both directions!!

Back up by the tail went REALLY well tonight, Renegade gave me 6 steps back (one at a time with reward in between each step) and stayed straight, didn’t try to turn and face me and enjoyed the butt rubs as his reward.

During our post play undemanding time, Renegade again did LOTS of licking, chewing, and yawning. He stayed with me, standing quietly for about 15 minutes and we went together at liberty back to the pasture.

Fun and Questions

2011-01-10T20:13:00.001-05:00

Hummmmmm…how interesting!!! Got home from work and went straight out to play with ponies instead of letting myself get sucked into the house lol!! Had a very interesting session with Renegade. He didn’t meet me at the gate but that’s because America, the lead mare, was at the gate and defending her turf. I entered the pasture and moved her off and called Renegade – he came to me at a trot. I greeted him and asked him to come up next to me, haltered him and we went to the play pen to play. I backed Renegade into the pen, closed the gate, and removed the halter and lead rope. I checked our connection, all was good, so I sent him to the barrel in the middle of the pen to play touch it. I moved to the center of the pen, called Renegade to me, rubbed him, backed him up and sent him out on a circle to the right. Got 4 really nice circles at the trot with me in neutral!! Asked him in, rubbed him, backed him up and sent him to the left and got 4 nice circles at a trot. Asked him in, rubbed him and let him rest with me for a couple of minutes.

We moved to the rail to play stick to me in a circle to the right, started out at the walk, moved up to the trot with Renegade following my energy nicely, moved up into the canter and Renegade cantered with me for 4 strides. It was a bit rough as this is his “hard side” but we did it. To the left was much better, walk and trot were excellent, moved up to the canter and got 1/2 lap, both of us cantering together!!

Played with backing by the tail and at first he kept wanting to turn and face me so we moved to the rail to make it easier for us to be successful; ended up getting 2 nice steps back.

During our play session, I saw Renegade lick and chew more than I’ve ever seen him do it!!

When we finished, it was time for undemanding time and this is where it gets really interesting. Renegade hung with me, staying really close. I was rubbing him all over and he wanted to mutually groom me; I let him do a bit as long as he was polite about it. About 5 minutes into our undemanding time, Renegade began to yawn and he yawned at least half a dozen times. Renegade is inately a LBE so I’ve not thought alot about him being up on adrenalin but he must have been to have yawned so many times. Now I’m wondering if he’s been hiding this side of himself or if I just wasn’t paying attention? He’s almost always appeared to be confident and relaxed with most everything. Either way, I feel bad for not noticing. The nice thing is his decision to let down and relax with me; I noticed after all the yawning, he was REALLY soft.

Anyone have any thoughts on LBE’s and adrenalin?

Keeping it Short, Simple, and Sweet!!

2011-01-06T20:25:00.000-05:00

Played with Captain tonight doing extreme friendly and helicopter at liberty. Also played with asking him to back by using a few tail hairs. He took him a little bit to catch on but we ended up with him giving me one step back. The really wonderful part is he was nickering to me while we were playing…that’s a first, and he was REALLY interested in what we were doing!! Something else that made this so special is it took an incredible amount of trust for Captain to do this. He's blind so he had to trust I wouldn't lead him into trouble by asking him to back up.

What a fun session tonight. Renegade was READY to PLAY so we played at liberty in the play pen and had significant progress tonight. The last time we played, I was getting 1/4 canter circles and tonight I got two laps to the left and one lap to the right. Even better, Renegade offered this, I only had to "remind" him twice when he broke gait by tagging the ground where he broke to a trot. When I asked him in to me, he came at a trot and nickered!! Also played a bit with the weave and Renegade was much improved since the last time we played with it. I could see him really trying to do the pattern and I didn’t have to do alot of driving. Our draw was pretty awesome. All this play took only about 15" so we spent the next 15’ UDT with me sitting on the ground and Renegade standing next to me quietly relaxing. Oooppsss…almost forgot our awesome stick to me at walk, trot, AND CANTER. We’ve been doing well at walk and trot but canter has been a bug-a-boo but tonight, Renegade went right into the canter with me for about 1/4 lap!! I'm thrilled at everything Renegade has been offering me lately. I'm not sure what has changed so I'm going to have to soak on that a bit!!

A New Year And Lots Of Fun With Horses!!

2011-01-01T17:52:00.000-05:00

It's a beautiful day here in Florida and I was up early since I went to bed early last night. Guess I must be getting old since I didn't even make it 'til midnight before I conked out lol!! I went outside to do some chores and intended to fix the fence where Li"Bert"y crunched it trying to get that "greener grass" on the other side and although I had good intentions, I actually only did some clean-up and noticed the horses watching me intently so I went to say hello. I guess with having a few days off with little attention from me they were ready for my company and all of them met me at the gate. I spent a little time greeting each one of them and giving some scratches in their favorite itchy places. Since they seemed so connected, I decided to play with them instead of fixing the fence; I didn't really want to fix the fence anyway!!

AMERICA:
I played with America first and wow, it was soooo much fun and she was awesome!! I wanted to check our trailer loading so we went to the trailer and she went right in when I asked, no hesitation or fear, just confidently loaded herself and stayed in until I asked her out. Liberty play in the round pen was next and America was a superstar!! She was a bit impulsive at first but I expected that since she was so "fresh" but she settled in nicely to trot circles with an obstacle and relaxed very quickly into a nice rhythmic trot. When she started looking for me I asked her in and the first couple of times, she was a bit unsure but she figured out the pattern very quickly and started coming in confidently. Next up was saddling since I haven't saddled her for over a year and I wanted to see where we were. I saddled her at liberty and she stayed with me the whole time, didn't try to leave even one time; I'm so proud of her!! Once she was saddled and the cinches (both front and rear) were done up, I asked her to move off fully expecting her to buck a bit since she had a tendency to do that when first saddled when we left off last year but she suprised me by moving right off smoothly into a trot with NO bucking. She was calm and relaxed and I stuck to the familiar patterns we had just worked on to help her stay confident. I also wanted to see what she would do with a bit since it had been over a year since we'd played with that too and was amazed when I offered it to her she took it right into her mouth, no muss, no fuss, no head tossing when I did up the bridle either. I just let her carry the bit while I sent her back out for more trot and a couple of canter circles. She was lovely!! I'm so impressed with how she's retained everything we had worked on/played with over a year ago and how confident she was about everything. I have always liked America's personality since the moment I met her at the BLM Mustang adoption, was estatic when I was the high bidder and was able to bring her home, and awed at her confidence and ability to think things through when working/playing with her. After today, I've fallen in love all over again!! America is generally a LBI but can become quite extroverted if unconfident and she isn't afraid to express her opinion; I try hard to listen to her feedback so that we can communicate effectively. I can't wait to start riding her again; it's been over a year since we did any riding and it was only about 20 hours at walk/trot. Judging by how things went today, we should be able to pick up where we left off so long ago and make some great progress!!

LI"BERT"Y:
Bert is the polar opposite of America!! He is RBE so the name of the game for us today was time and consistency to develop rhythm and relaxation. I decided to play with Bert at liberty today since he was also "fresh" from not having been played with for about a week over the holidays. Bert was VERY impulsive at first so I let him move his feet by sending him out on a circle. He kept looking to me to come in but he wasn't relaxed; his head and tail were high so when he looked in I had him change direction and sent him back out. We did this several times until he was maintaining gait and direction on the circle then I asked him in. He turned to face me but hesitated, not wanting to come in to me so I sent him back out on the circle. We repeated this dance several times and he began to relax; his tail went down and finally he lowered his head. As soon as he did this, I asked him in and he came about 1/2 way to me and stopped. I let him stay there until he licked and chewed then sent him back out and repeated the pattern; as soon as he relaxed, I asked him in. We had to repeat this 3 times and he finally came all the way in to me. Knowing my tendency to overdo things, I made the conscious decision to stop right then and there. Bert did ALOT of licking and chewing while we hung out for a while. I love my little RBE and really love it when I see him developing confidence and the ability to relax.

RENEGADE:
What can I say about Renegade except he's a LBE and LOVES to play so the strategy for us today was to really PLAY with him. I did this in the play pen and got pretty provocative with him while at liberty and we did some amazing things. First on the list was canter circles since we really need to get better at this. Renegade was stellar at the trot circles but I had to play the "don't make me tag you" game with him three or four times to convince him I really did want canter circles. I could tell it was like a game to him when he started "chuckling" to me when I went to tag him then he would scoot his butt out of the way and take off into a canter. After three or four times of this, I could ask him up into the canter with a point and cluck and he'd go right into cantering. I ended up getting several nice 1/4 circles at the canter. I was mindful to ask him in BEFORE he broke gait back to a trot and he was coming in to me with exhuberance and enthusiasm. It was a wonderful feeling and he was nickering as he was coming in!! Next up was the weave at walk and trot. Even though Renegade was a bit impulsive we had fun with the weave at the walk and I was about 15' away from him using drive and draw to weave him through the cones. I could tell he really understands the pattern because he started doing it before I even asked for it; it wasn't the most beautiful thing in the world but his try was awesome. I noticed that today Renegade did ALOT more licking and chewing than he normally does and he connected with me really quickly and stayed with me - no running off or trying to change the game today, and the softness in him was really noticible. After our play session, we hung out for a while and Renegade decided to roll and I was rubbing him while he was down. When he got up, I was sitting on the ground and he stayed with me so I started scratching him then rubbing him "with my heart in my hand" and the gentleness that was shared between us was amazing. I love that feeling, especially when he turns his head to see what I'm doing, softly smells my hand, and sighs. Years ago, when we first started this amazing journey, he didn't trust anyone and he would try to bite you if you touched him anywhere and I didn't trust him not to bite me (he actually connected one time and gave me a huge bruise). Everything leading up to this change in us (the sweat, tears, frustration, time, learning, and growth) has been worth every moment.

Basha's Blog - home

2010-12-11T22:34:00.000-05:00

Basha's Blog - home

Trying To Stay Positive When So Much Is Going The Opposite Way

2010-12-05T09:38:00.000-05:00

I haven't posted for a while but I've been busy!! I've been working alot so it's left little time for my horses but I managed to squeeze in a play day with a friend last Sunday. We played on the ground in the morning then saddled up and did FTR out in her big pasture. We did walk and trot and when both were going well, we added in transitions. We practiced getting our go and whoa equal and getting a nice, light back-up. Renegade was really leaning on my hands to begin with but I was as "dependable as a fence post", just maintaining until he gave me the slightest try backwards. After a few repetitions we were backing up softly and if I did have to pick up the reins, I only had to lift with an open hand!! As his reward, Renegade got to just stand and rest quietly while my friend and I visited for a bit. Then it was time to dismount, unsaddle, spend a bit of undemanding time and head home.

Once home, I had to unload Renegade then load a cow to take to auction. Fortunately she loaded easily and fairly quickly. We headed off to the auction and dropped the cow off and on the way back my truck suddenly overheated and the oil light came on. Pulled in to the nearest gas station and discovered no water and low oil. Apparently we'd blown a head gasket just that quickly. I called some wonderful friends to come rescue us and the trailer and called a tow truck for my truck. The news on my truck is not good; apparently it's not recommended to just replace the head gasket but rather to either replace the motor with a used or remanufactured engine to the tune of $4,500 - $4,800. I'm debating what to do...look at used/new vehicles or repair my truck. I LOVE my truck and I really don't want payments!! Plus...I know I've done all the maintenance on my truck, I know what I have. It would be a crap shoot buying a used vehicle. To further complicate the situation, my husband has been unemployed for quite a while now and with the economy the way it is, the prospects don't look hopeful any time soon. It makes the decision about what to do about my truck all the more complicated.

On top of that, I caught a bad cold from someone at work. It bothers me when people come in to work when they're sick and spread it around. Why can't they stay home? I don't have time to be sick and now I've given it to my husband!! Arrrrggggghhhhhh!!

I want to get in the holiday spirit, but it's been difficult. I'm upset/worried about what to do about my truck, our financial situation is getting so tight we're having sell our cows and pigs, I'm going to be looking for a second job shortly, and we're having to cut way back on everything and that's tough because we don't live extravagantly to begin with...we're pretty frugal.

I'm really trying to focus on all the things we do have: our health (mostly, except for this cold), my job, our home, having a second vehicle (even if it is a beater...it does run and get me to work), having food on the table, and great friends that love, encourage, and are there for me when I need them. I'm also trying to give over my cares to God; I know he'll take care of me.

Early Birthday Gifts from Renegade

2010-11-21T14:14:00.000-05:00

I had to work yesterday and run errands after; I was hoping I'd have some time left over to play with Renegade before meeting some wonderful friends that were taking me out to dinner for my birthday. I ended up having about 1-1/2 hours!! I first let Renegade out of the pasture at liberty to just hang out while I did a couple of chores although I did ask him to behave when he tried to drink my coffee!! When chores were done I asked Renegade to follow me to the round pen and of course he had to make a game of it. He took off a couple of times; didn't go far but I think he was testing to see my intentions. I played the catching game with him twice and he ended up following me and then walking with me in zone 2-3 all the way to the round pen. When I stood at the entrance and invited him to go in, he did - he chose to go in...it wasn't him following me or me going with him!!

Once in the round pen, I played a little friendly then started softly asking him to move different parts of his body: fq, hq, zone 1, rf, lf, sideways, etc. to check our connection. All was well so I moved to playing on the 45' line with him (my round pen is quite large - more than 70'). I sat on a barrel and asked him to circle at the trot. The name of the game was "don't make me get up"!! Well, I had to get up twice and tagged him but that's all it took; he was doing really nice circles to the left at the trot, maintaining gait and direction until I asked him in. I had to repeat the pattern with getting up twice when we changed direction to the right and then we had nice, soft trot circles to the right until I asked him in. I also tried asking for canter circles while I was seated but we need more consistency when I'm standing before I'll be able to get a good canter circle while seated!!

I played to win tonight and got some great results and the time it takes really gets shorter each time I play to win!! I'm really enjoying our new level of communication and I think Renegade is enjoying my new level of leadership. I think our relationship is moving to a new level now and it's very exciting!!

After playing the online circling game I decided to go offline and slow it down so I took off the halter and 45' line, repeated the moving body parts exercises to check out connection then asked for a figure 8. I only had one barrel so I stood in as the other barrel. It took Renegade a couple of minutes to puzzle out what I was doing but he caught on and did some nice figure 8's. Our drive and draw was woking really well; I only needed subtle tilts of my head and subtle movement of my shoulders.

Renegade is growing his winter coat so he's getting pretty hairy and fuzzy so he was sweating a bit and I could tell he wanted to lay down and roll in the sand. I allowed him to go down and he went to his left side and was rolling. I began to scratch him with the carrot stick and he was enjoying that so I moved in closer so I could rub and scratch him with my hands/fingers. He REALLY enjoyed that and he stayed down for about 5 minutes getting his massage. He's never allowed me that close, for that long and stayed down for that long; he usually gets up if I move in closely. I am so thrilled he felt confident enough and trusted me enough to allow me into his personal space while he was so vunerable. I was a huge thing for both of us and the softness in him was a wonderful thing to witness. His eyes were soft, his body was soft and relaxed, he yawned and blew softly almost like a sigh; I thought he might even lay down on his side for a minute. When Renegade finally got up, he stood by me softly while I rubbed his neck and withers and gave him a scratch on his chest. In those 7-10 minutes, I felt we'd been the closest we've ever been and just shared something very intimate and tender. I really wish I were a better or more eloquent writer: I feel as if I haven't adequately described the feeling during those 7-10 minutes.

I can say this...I have an absolutely awesome horse that has taught me much, forgiven me much, and offered me his heart!!

2nd ACTHA CTC Ride

2010-11-13T22:00:00.096-05:00

I almost forgot to post about the 2nd ACTHA ride we went on today! It was an amazing day, spent with a couple of good friends and our horses. We arrived early, about 9:00 a.m., even though our ride didn't start until 11:00 a.m.. We wanted to spend a little time with our horses, let them graze and hang out a bit before asking for anything. Doing this is good for our horses, it keeps everything low key and they don't get the idea that they get unloaded and put right to work!! After the undemanding time, we groomed and saddled the horses and played with them online to get warmed up and make sure we had partners, then it was time to mount up and warm up freestyle.

We rode around the grounds a bit and explored a big pit (really a BIG hole) that was causing the horses some concern. After playing approach and retreat a few minutes, we had them riding through with confidence...no hesitation or rushing!!

Our ride got started a little late since there was such a large group for the first ride but we finally got started. The obstacles were interesting and some were pretty challenging. The numbers after the descriptions are the scores; horse first and rider second:

1st obstacle: the "vines" were caution tape strung in strips over the trail and we had to ride through the center; the challenge was there was enough room to the right for the horse to "avoid" the obstacle. Renegade thought about going to the right but with a gentle ask, he went through the center. 6/8

2nd obstacle: noise control was a person standing behind your horse and blowing a whistle to the left, directly behind, and to the right. Renegade slightly flinched with the first whistle blow. 9/10

3rd obstacle: tarp was spread out on the ground and you had to travel over it. It was narrow enough the horse could "avoid" by going around. Renegade wanted to go around and tried twice but I gently persisted and we crossed the center. 7/7+1

4th obstacle: sidepass over a pole on the ground. Sidepass over anything has been a bug-a-boo for us as Renegade will sidepass a couple of steps then want to step over the obstacle unless it's a large log. We bobbled a couple of times (I lost my focus) but I stopped and regrouped and we sidepassed the whole thing!! 7/10

5th obstacle: backing an L. Renegade was having no part of backing up and no matter how many times I stopped, regrouped, and tried again, we just couldn't get it. 0/0 timed out

6th obstacle: turn on haunches. Had to back your horse into a circle made of a hose on the ground then turn on the haunches 180 degrees. I was having trouble communicating with each individual foot and we kept getting 1 foot in and one almost in. Finally got both back feet in and got about 90 degrees turn. 4/6

We ended up with a combined score of 74+1 and were 13th out of 24 horse/rider pairs (and some of those had done the first ride and the obstacles didn't change so they had two bites at the apple!!). I love the fact that we did better on this ride than on the first one where we came in dead last and won the "booby prize"!!

We had a few "unofficial, unplanned obstacles" during our ride: the construction machinery, riding along the side of a busy road, the bicyclists coming out of the woods behind us, the pony pulling a cart, and the "horse eating whatever" that we never saw but was really rustling the brush on one part of the trail. All in all though the horses took everything in stride with the exception of Renegade; he really was having druthers about whatever was rustling the brush but we ended up getting past it confidently.

Something that pleased me greatly was Renegade's acceptance of horses being in his zone 5 and/or passing him without him getting defensive. We have been working on decreasing his "bubble" so he's more confident and he did really well on this ride. He used to either pin his ears and turn to try and bite or would try to kick at passing horses but not today. He accepted my leadership and trusted I'd keep him safe. He did turn to give a sneer to a couple of horses but I just lifted a rein to remind him I was in charge and to put his nose back to the center and he did fine!!

I'm loving how far we've come, how much progress we've made, and looking forward to the fantastic future with my awesome pony!!

Open House at the Parelli ISC, Ocala

2010-10-31T21:34:00.000-04:00

Had a fun time yesterday at the open house. I almost didn't go, but I'm glad I did. No horses allowed so I had time to just watch and absorb everything and visit with some friends. I met some of the participants in the fast track that starts Monday; Mariah Helms and Sarah Berg were there, and I met a lovely young woman, Connie, from Germany. She is staying with Claudia and Bill and since they had an adopt-a-thon for a dog rescue going on, Claudia asked if I could keep Connie company since she didn't know anyone. It was fun when I introduced her to Liane and Liane spoke to her in German. They had quite a conversation and I think Connie felt more at home!!

I enjoyed watching the demos/spotlights put on by the interns, externs, and mastery students. I missed alot of that at the Rendezvous since I had my horse with me and I felt it necessary to be relationship building with him instead of leaving him alone in his stall. I also enjoyed the presentation John Baar did on what it's like in the fast track; it was revealing and I have some work to do before I consider doing a fast track.

Speaking of fast tracks, I spoke to Lee Palmer and she told me how the Horseman's Series works. Since I can't get the 4 weeks off work to do a fast track, I think the Horseman's Series is perfect for me. It will cost a little more, but it gives me an option I didn't have before. I'm setting my goal of enrolling in the first 2 week Horseman's Series in October 2011, then the second one in early 2012. I have some organization and figuring to do before I decide when to do the third segment. I'm so excited about this opportunity; I can see my dream coming true where before it was an impossibility!!

The Rendezvous - Afterthoughts, Impressions, Suggestions, & Ideas

2010-10-28T20:26:00.002-04:00

I've had lots of thoughts and impressions about the first Parelli Rendezvous; I also have lots of suggestions and ideas to help make it better! That's not to say I didn't have a good time because I had a GREAT time despite being confused and overwhelmed at times. I'll try to explain!!

Check in, when we arrived at the Jacksonville Equestrian Center, went pretty smoothly even though we had a bit of a wait in line to check in. My horse was fine in the trailer, but my friends horse was getting more and more upset the longer we had to wait. I think things might have run smoother if we'd just had to show our paperwork and come back later to get all the other information. Even better would have been a couple of representatives at each barn to do the intake and give info. I was fortunate with my timing that someone was at the barn to unlock our stalls quickly; I know other people had to wait or go get someone.

I was a bit disappointed that sign-ups were first come, first served. The reason I say that is I sent my money for my spotlights and tournaments in with my registration paperwork so I expected I would be able to participate in those activities I signed up and paid for. That was not the case; two mornings in a row, I arrived at 8:30 a.m. or slightly later and some sign-ups were already full. I had paid for an online and liberty spotlight but never got to do either one. I'd also signed up and paid for an online tournament and didn't get to do it either. I did get to do the liberty tournament I paid for but had I known it was going to be in an open arena and not a round pen, I wouldn't have signed up for it since our liberty is not that advanced!! Another part of the problem with the spotlights and tournaments was there were limited spaces so they filled up quickly and everything seemed to run really late. When events ran late it made for being late for the next event I signed up for. I sometimes missed the next event entirely or had to cancel. Organization also seemed to be a huge problem; even the people running the events seemed unsure of what they were supposed to be doing. When I arrived at the Rendezvous, I was given 5 tickets representing the events I'd signed up and paid for but I was never asked for a ticket at any event. I think lists should have been provided with the names of those that paid for an event already on the list then extra spaces for those that wanted to try the event but hadn't paid to sign up in case of cancellations or extra time.

The food at the concessions was good and I was happy to see fresh fruit available for those that wanted it. I brought most of what I wanted to eat because I wasn't sure what would be available and I didn't want to exist on burgers and chips for the weekend. On Saturday night, an announcement was made that dinner would be available for Rendezvous attendees to enjoy during the bonfire. I would have liked to know that earlier; I might have made different plans, but I'd already arranged to eat out with friends.

While I enjoyed the forums, I would have liked to see them in the afternoon. I wanted to get out and play with my horse in the mornings, especially since he'd been in a stall all night. It also was much cooler in the mornings and got HOT in the afternoon. I would have enjoyed doing the activities with my horse in the mornings and have the forums in the afternoon when I was ready for a sit down and bit of a rest!!

It might have been nice if there had been a formal or official lunch break. I had to find time to sneak back to the campground or to the concession stand to get something to eat or drink before hurrying from one event to another. Another day, I didn't get lunch until late afternoon and by then I had a headache from not eating but I didn't want to miss doing my freestyle spotlight (the one spotlight I'd paid for that I actually got to do!!). I did, however, miss the saddle makeover demo I'd signed up for because the spotlights were running late because the liberty spotlights before them ran late. I felt sorry for the judges...they'd been going for quite a while without a break.

I hope none of these observations are taken as complaints because that's not the spirit in which they were meant. I'm merely stating my opinions and observations. I know this was the first Rendezvous and naturally there were "growing pains" and a learning curve. Better organization would have gone a long way towards helping things run more smoothly and keep things on schedule. For those of us that brought horses, we also had a responsibility to keep them happy and occupied rather than stuck in their stalls; that meant running back and forth to the barn to tend to their needs, saddle or unsaddle, etc.

Even though I missed participating in many of the events I wanted to do with my horse, I'm still happy with our experience. I accomplished my most important goal of taking my horse and exposing us both to a new experience and having everything go well so we could expand our comfort zones, grow, and become confident in a new environment. I'd say that makes the Rendezvous a resounding success for both of us even though we didn't get to do everything I would have liked. I had an amazing time and my horse remained calm and focused the whole weekend!!

Day Four of the Rendezvous

2010-10-28T20:24:00.000-04:00

Day four dawned bright and early. My friend "J" wasn't feeling well and planned on leaving early. Another friend, Kim, helped keep "J's" horse, Britches, occupied while "J" got packed up and ready to go. Terri and I got Beau and Renegade out for a bit to move around and work out any kinks. Renegade's L hind was a bit puffy but he was walking fine. After moving around a bit, the puffiness went away. I think it swelled since he's not used to standing in a stall; he's used to being out 24/7 except in really bad weather.

After walking Renegade for a while, I put him back in his stall and went to sign up for an online spotlight but the slots were already full. Liberty spotlights had spaces open, but based on our liberty tournament results, I felt we weren't quite ready for that, so I skipped the spotlights altogether and decided I'd watch some spotlights later in the day. I went to get breakfast then went back and got Renegade. I decided to try a little liberty in one of the two outdoor round pens and to my suprise, we did wonderfully. I got some nice trot circles in each direction plus some nice changes of direction. We also played stick to me at walk and trot and did some changes of direction too. Renegade was "with" me and I kept everything slow and soft to encourage him. He responded well to this strategy. I was looking for quality in everything we were doing and I feel like we got it!! Also played a bit with drive and draw during COD, trying to do as little as possible, as soft as possible, and rewarding the slightest try/feel from my horse. I didn't even notice at first but Jerry Williams had wandered up and sat down a little ways away and when I did notice him sitting there, I thought he was reading something.

When I finished my liberty session, I went to speak with Jerry. I wanted to thank him for everything he's taught me as a student, how patient he's been while I fumbled around the last couple of years (I'm sure there were times he would have liked to give me a phase 4 with a carrot stick lol!!!), and how he never "gave" me the answer but helped me find it for myself when I was having a problem. Jerry told me he'd caught some of our liberty play out of the corner of his eye, and he saw some really nice things happening for us during the session. Boy, was I happy to hear that...it was what I was feeling, but it was nice to hear from a professional!! Jerry also said he's noticed big changes in Renegade and I both, and in our relationship together. He noted Renegade has a new softness about him that he didn't have last year or the year before. While it's hard for me to see the changes because they're small and everyday, Jerry is gone all spring and summer, the changes are large to him. It's nice to be reminded of that!!

I wanted to watch some spotlights so I took Renegade back to his stall for a bit and watched some spotlights in between running back and forth to the campground to begin packing up to leave later in the afternoon. I'm glad I was present for the wrap-up with Pat and the demo by Kalley, Zeus, and the two Gypsy Vanner youngsters. It was a beautiful thing to see, Kalley flying around the arena on Zeus with the Gypsy Vanners on each side, at liberty, matching Zeus stride for stride. I got goose bumps and had tears in my eyes. I remember Kalley from tour stops years ago and knew then she had a special talent. Little did I know then the extent of her talent and what I would witness today. Kalley is a master horsewoman!! She's also quite the show woman...Pat better look out...I think Kalley could give him a run for the money!!

After the wrap up, since we had finished packing up the campground, we went to load all the horse gear from the barn. It didn't take long and we parked the trailer in the shade to go say all our goodbys before loading the horses and heading home. I didn't want to leave, but all good things must come to an end and besides, I'd been missing my other three horses all weekend (along with my husband, dogs, and cat - not necessairily in that order!!).

By the time I made it home, it was getting dark. Renegade was ready to rejoin his herd and it was so cute when we went to the pasture. Li"Bert"y, a.k.a. Bert, was whinnying excitedly to Renegade and then had to sniff him all over, very gently. I think he was happy to see Renegade!! America, a.k.a. Meri, had a look on her face that said "oh, no...the little trouble maker is bbbaaaccckkk!!". I made sure everyone was o.k. and gave them some O&A hay and said goodnight to everyone. It was time to say hello to my husband and the rest of my furry kids!!

As much as I enjoyed camping and being at the Rendezvous, I was happy to be home, have a nice, long, hot shower in my own bathroom, and sleep in my own bed!! A perfect ending to a perfect weekend!!

I'll post more tomorrow about afterthoughts, impressions, suggestions, ideas, etc.

Day Three of the Rendezvous - The Evening

2010-10-28T19:40:00.000-04:00

Dinner out with Bonnie and Jerry Williams was alot of fun. I got to meet a couple of members of the Jingle group that I hadn't met before and we shared a lot of stories about ourselves. It really was nice getting to know Jerry and Bonnie outside a clinic/workshop/teaching environment. Dinner lasted about 3 hours and we did alot of talking and laughing. We hated to leave, but the restaurant was closing!!

In case you're wondering, the Jingle group, is a group online coaching forum that Jerry developed. Jerry has facilitated us setting goals, posts "can-you's" that he demonstrates via video, we have individual group coaching calls and the larger group call that includes everyone in all the smaller groups. We can post stories and get "atta boys/girls" or support when struggling with something. We also have e-mail life lines if a problem comes up. For those that chose the option, there is video coaching as well. I've had a great time with the Jingle this summer; it kept me going out and playing with my horse, even during the really hot and humid months when I normally retreat to the a/c!! I think the Jingle played a part in how well Renegade and I did at the Rendezvous as well!!

When we returned to the campground, we went to see the horses and get them out of their stalls for a while. Terri and I took Beau and Renegade out to a particularly nice, green patch of grass for some well deserved grazing time. It was a perfect end to a perfect day. As we sat there listening to our horses graze, we watched the ground mist roll in, under a beautiful moon and stars. I couldn't help but think just how blessed I am that I have such good friends sharing the Rendezvous experience with me, I have great Parellin Instructors, and a horse that tries so very hard for me.

After about 45', we took the horses back to their stalls, settled them in for the night, and headed back to the campground. Once there, I just couldn't stop smiling and I kept replaying the spotlight we did in my head. By the time I finally settled down enough to sleep, it really was quite late...about 1:30 a.m. WHEW...it was a LOOONNNGGGG day!!

Day Three of the Rendezvous

2010-10-25T20:29:00.000-04:00

SATURDAY, October 22, 2010
Day three started early although I did sleep in a bit; I had trouble getting to sleep the night before thinking about the day and how to best get and keep Renegade's attention. Bless my friends that fed and watered Renegade so I could sleep a little longer!! I really wanted to try a tournament or two and a spotlight or two, so after coffee and breakfast, I went to sign up. The online spotlights and tournaments were already full so I signed up for a liberty tournament and a freestyle spotlight. After signing up, I went to the barn to get Renegade.

Imagine my suprise when he met me at the gate, nickering happily. I haltered and saddled him and we went out to mosey a bit, look around, then warm up online. Renegade was really connected to me online so we did a bit of liberty in the round pen. That went o.k. but not spectacular so I figured we were in trouble for our liberty tournament and I was right!! I didn't know the only thing we could use the round pen for was the circles, everything else was OUTSIDE the round pen!! Had I know that beforehand, I probably wouldn't have signed up for it, but since I did, we went to do it. I started in the round pen and our circles were great so I thought I might get lucky with the rest outside the pen. Well, it wasn't meant to be...Renegade left me twice! He didn't go to the far end of the arena but I had to play the catching game to get him back. I know he was playing with me because he came back at the trot!! I decided not to push it after that and our three minutes were up so I stopped there rather than take the extra 20 seconds.

I went back to playing online with Renegade a bit and it went well so I decided to mount up and ride around. I happened upon the gaits and distances tournament and no one was waiting to do it so I gave it a go. Renegade and I did it at a fast walk and our time was 3:36; the big QH ahead of us did it at a fast walk in 3:33. I think our time was pretty good for my little pony boy!! The nicest thing is the second half of the pattern we rode off feel and focus, NO REINS!!

By the time we were done there it was time for our freestyle spotlight so off we went to the arena. I had hoped to do an online spotlight to introduce Renegade to the arena environment with all the noise, music, people in the stands, clapping, etc. but didn't get to do that since they were all full. The best I could do is have him near the gate while the last of the liberty spotlights finished up.

I'm very grateful my friend, Tinker, was with me. Her humor and conversation helped me get my mind settled and my butterflies in formation. She also held all my extra stuff, like my lead rope and carrot stick, etc. I was suddenly feeling like I just had too much stuff to manage. Bless Tink for being there to help me!!

Before we went on, I was asked if we had music we wanted to use. I didn't know we could do that and it wasn't listed in any of the applications, etc. so I asked them to play something by Josh Groban and something country and western. They chose "My Confession" by Josh Groban and "Live Like You Were Dying" by Tim McGraw. I couldn't have picked better music for us; I love both of those songs and the tempo was good.

When it was time for us to enter the arena and they opened the gate, I felt like I was on a barrel pony. Renegade was a bit excited and I thought we could run a barrel pattern in 17 flat lol!! I flexed him a couple of times and disengaged his hq a couple of times and he got focused and we entered the arena. I had decided to stick to patterns we know and can do well so I started with FTR at a walk. Renegade did well but had a couple of bobbles where there were alot of people in the stands and about 1/2 way down the arena were there were some gates with a screen on them; he wasn't too sure about them. I think he's seen too many gladiator movies and thought the lions were going to come out of those gates lol!!! After a couple of passes, he was fine with them so I asked for a trot FTR. His trot was a mix of relaxation and a bit of tension in a few spots (same ones that were problems at the walk), but after a couple of passes he was much more relaxed.

There were some cones set up in the arena so we did a weave at the walk up, back, and up again then went to push the big green ball. We did that at a fast walk and Renegade pushed it for quite a distance. I asked Renegade to walk over a tarp and he spooked in place a bit when the dirt made a funny sound going onto the tarp. I asked him to try again and when he put a foot on the tarp, I left it for a little bit. When we came back to it to ride over it Renegade did great; went straight over it.

I had thought if everything went well and Renegade felt really relaxed, I might try a canter FTR but while he felt relaxed, I felt if I asked for the canter it might just be too much for him so rather than sacrifice everything that went to well, I quit while I was ahead. I'm getting smarter that way...sometimes, no...make that most times...less is more!!

I had asked when we entered the arena if everyone could hold their applause til the end since I didn't know how Renegade would handle it. When we finished, I got off and when the applause started, Renegade didn't even flinch. He stood quietly near me while I collected our ribbon and he was loose, I didn't have a hold on him. I was trusting him to stay and he did!!

Even better than getting our ribbon was the complement Dave Ellis gave us when he said "he's a nice little pony"!! I was over the moon right about then!! When we exited the arena, Tink was there and so were my friends Ingrid and Bob. Ingrid and Bob hugged us and congratulated us, Tink had tears in her eyes and that made me tear up too. It was emotional for me because I realized just how much my horse had just given me in that arena. It may not have looked like alot to an observer, but knowing where we started from, he had just given me 310%. Renegade was also yawning like crazy while we were standing there so I know he was a bit "up" in the arena. That also told me I did the right thing by not asking for the canter in our spotlight. We stretched ourselves without overwhelming ourselves and that is a HUGE success!!

Of course, we had to go show off our ribbon and Liane got some nice shots of Renegade with the ribbon on his halter!! I took Renegade back to the barn with the intention of unsaddling him then having some mosey and undemanding time but he wanted back in his stall. I think he was tired both emotionally and physically and was ready to just rest. Besides, it was past his normal afternoon nap time!! I figured it was just as well since it was about 2:30 and I was hungry...I hadn't had anything to eat since an early breakfast.

I gave Renegade some hay and molassas water and I went back to the campground to have a snack and decided to celebrate with a beer!! After hanging with my friends for a bit, having a snack, and drinking my beer, we decided to watch a couple of spotlights then get ready for dinner out with Jerry and Bonnie Williams and members of our Jingle Group. I think I'll cover dinner out in another post since this one is getting pretty long!!

Day Two of the Rendezvous

2010-10-25T18:39:00.000-04:00

FRIDAY, October 22, 2010
Woke up at 5:45 a.m. and went to check on the horses to see how they did overnight. They were happy to see me, and happy for a hay and water refill. Then back to the campground for coffee and to get dressed for the day. After we had breakfast it was back to the barn for stall maintenance then took the horses out to move them around, play with them a bit to see what horses showed up that day, and let them graze a bit before it was back to the stalls. Then it was off to the arena for all horse participants to join the remuda with Pat to find out how the Rendezvous was going to work. After the meeting, we then set about exploring a bit and finding the sign up/registration for spotlights, demos, tournaments, etc.

I decided to try the Fast Track experience demo and it was interesting although I think I was a day early for Renegade. It was obvious he was still more interested in everything going on than in me and what I was asking. John Baar gave us several tasks to accomplish, squeeze over barrels in both directions, all 4 feet on a pedestal, circles with transitions, etc., to be sure we had our horses mind before we could get on to ride. I started with the pedestal since it's usually Renegade's favorite thing...he will put his feet on everything and anything, especially if he can get out of work lol!! Well, long story short, he wanted to do everything BUT put his feet on that pedestal!!! I spent the whole Fast Track experience being coached by Kathy Baar until Renegade finally put two feet on the pedestal. I knew right then I better get busy and play with Renegade to get his attention before the whole weekend turned into something I didn't want!!

We went out to the practice arena and played all 7 games and did some patterns online until Renegade was focusing on me. I had to be quite firm at times, very clear in what I was asking, and particular in his responses. That's how I spent the second half of the second day but I'm glad I did it because it's what Renegade and I both needed to get focused and help the rest of the weekend be successful for both of us. Needless to say, I didn't do any spotlights or tournament games on Friday!!

The First Annual Parelli Rendezvous!!

2010-10-25T18:17:00.001-04:00

I've decided to blog over several days about my experience at the Parelli Rendezvous. The reason is simple...there was so much going on and I was so busy taking it all in that it's going to take several days to capture it all!!!

THURSDAY, October 21, 2010
I woke up early Thursday morning; actually, I was suprised I slept at all since I was so excited about going. I was excited to be taking my horse, and having new experiences with him, but at the same time, I was also a bit apprehensive about whether we could handle all the excitement and stimulus. No worries there but I'll talk about that later.

I had my morning coffee, finished packing my trailer and checking my list so I didn't forget anything, and loaded my horse and off we went to my friends house to off load everything to her truck and trailer since we'd decided to travel together. Since she had to work 1/2 a day, I bathed both horses and when she got home all she had to do was change, get a quick bite to eat and we were on our way by 2:30 p.m. We had a fairly uneventful trip except for the huge number of semi's passing us...it upset her horse a bit. We arrived in Jacksonville at the Equestrian Center about 5:00 p.m. and had a bit of a wait to check in. By then, her horse was done with being in the trailer and by the time we got him unloaded he was pretty sweaty and upset. The good thing was, once off the trailer he settled down quickly. Renegade traveled well the whole way; he was a bit damp but that was because it was a bit warm in the trailer. When I off loaded him; he was looking around at everthing but not in a nervous way, he was just interested in all the going's on!!

We unloaded all our barn supplies and got the horses settled into their stalls then went to the campground to set up our camp. We finished just about the time it was getting dark and that was a good thing. By then we were getting tired and VERY hungry. I had prepared sloppy joes so we could just heat and eat then go get our horses and mosey around to check out the place. Both Beau (my friend's horse) and Renegade were calm but interested and especially happy when we found some nice green grass for them to graze for a while. We had about 45" of undemanding/grazing time with them then went back to the barn to settle them in for the night. Then it was our turn for some undemanding time...we went back to the campground for a little R&R before showers and bedtime. We took the horses out one last time before we turned in for the night.

One More Day!!

2010-10-19T22:33:00.000-04:00

Only one more day to go before I leave for the Rendezvous in Jacksonville and I can hardly wait. I'm getting excited to see how Renegade and I will do in this newest adventure. This is quite out of both our comfort zones and I'm banking on our relationship being good/strong enough that we'll be fine.

Speaking of things that take us out of our comfort zone, we've been doing alot of that lately: learning to canter in an arena then out in "the big wide open", doing the obstacle challenge at Black Prong, the ACTHA competetive trail challenge last Sunday, and now the Rendezvous. I'm wondering though, what horse will show up for me!! We'll see on Thursday lol!!

The ACTHA scores were posted tonight and out of 13 horse and rider pairs, Renegade and I came in last. ACTHA gives the horse and the rider individual scores and combine those for a total. Renegade got a score of 30 and I got a score of 32 for a total of 62 out of 120. I knew going in to the competition we probably weren't going to place very high but I wanted to do it for the experience and exposure. Doing this competition also let me know, just as I thought, where I need to do more teaching, where we need more practice, and what I need to refine. All that being said, I am really pleased with everything we did do and all the things that went well.

Wow though...between the workshops I've been to and audited and the obstacle challenges, I have a laundry list of things to work/play with all winter long. I can see it's going to be a busy fall/winter/spring!! WHOOPEE!!!!!!!

CAN IT GET ANY BETTER THAN THIS??!! OH YEAH!!!!

2010-10-17T18:19:00.002-04:00

Renegade and I participated in our first ACTHA ride today and had lots of fun. One of the nicest things was at the awards presentations after the ride when one of the judges gave a complement to the whole group. He said he's spent over 40 years in training barns and show pens and he was really happy that today he didn't see any stressed out horses, none of the horses were mistreated, and although some horses and riders could use more education/training, he was very pleased with everything he saw. He also said he thought everyone was very safe and riders were willing to do what the horse needed even though it was a competition and even if it meant abandoning the goal of completing the obstacle. I thought that was a nice endorsement of the group as a whole and the way horses and riders interacted.

Renegade was kind of "up" for about the first 1/2 of the ride but eventually settled down and relaxed. I had tried a few walk/trot transitions on the first half of the trail and while Renegade was listening to me, I could feel his forwardness and his ears were rivited on the trail ahead. The second half of the ride, I could feel the difference in Renegade, his head was lower, his body was softer, and his ears were flicking back to listen to me. He even took the lead position for quite a while and he wasn't willing to do that in the beginning. Terri and I even did a couple of long trotting sessions. Both of our boys were relaxed and cadenced...it was such a pleasure. Both Terri and I had big smiles on our faces after that!!

As for the obstacles, Renegade and I did well at some and stunk at others but that's o.k., I know what we need to work on!! Here's a list of obstacles and how we did:

1. Drag a log - had to sidepass to the fence, pick up the rope, drag the log, sidepass back to the fence, and place the rope back on a post. We did all of it except putting the rope back on the fence and that was my fault. I was fumbling around with reins and rope and I'm sure I wasn't clear with Renegade on what I wanted.
2. Back a circle around an obstacle - like I said, Renegade was pretty forward for the first half of the ride so he was resisting backing up. I had to abandon the goal and just concentrate on getting a back up so of course we blew that obstacle and that's o.k. because I was riding the horse that showed up!!
3. Turn on Haunches - again, Renegade was very forward and had "happy feet", he couldn't keep any of his feet still!! After leaving that obstacle, on the way to the next one, I did some pushing the ribs over and partial disengagements while going down the trail to work on softening.
4. Trot weave - we missed one cone out of 4 and it was my fault...my focus was not there!!
5. The dismount/remount - we did fine with this, Renegade stood still while I dismounted and remounted.
6. Hat pick up - had to pick up a hat with a stick. The judge threw the hat on the ground and handed me a stick. I used the stick to rub Renegade for a few seconds then asked him to take a few steps forward to the hat, I leaned over a bit and hooked the hat with the stick, brought it up, let Renegade smell it, then handed it to the judge.

Unofficial obstacle - One of my favorite things was the water on the trail; it had a muddy entrance, was long, covered the whole trail, and was belly deep for Renegade. He handled it like a champ, entered without hesitation, and kept a steady pace through the water. Water used to be a HUGE issue for him. Too bad that one didn't count for points lol!!

The only real incident we had was early in the ride when the horse eating Pterodactyl egret was flying from pond to pond (and it was flying pretty low!!). All 4 horses in our group spooked and turned to run but were easily stopped. Happily everyone kept their seats and no one ended up in the dirt or lost their confidence. The horses calmed down quickly and we continued down the trail. On the way back we had to pass those same ponds and that egret was still there but the horses weren't concerned this time.

I was also thrilled that Renegade wasn't doing his usual "snatching" grass and other stuff through the whole ride. I figured the first half he wasn't confident enough to eat and the second half, I kept him busy enough with all the trotting and softening that he wasn't thinking about eating. He did eat after we got back to the trailer though; had some soaked, sloppy hay cubes, some water, and some hay. He stood quietly tied to the trailer munching hay while I went to the presentations and ate lunch. When we were ready to go he loaded easily; almost like he was ready to go home and ready to stand still for the ride home!!

I'm so proud of us and everything we did and didn't do today. I put principles to purpose but didn't abandon my principles in persuit of my goals. Renegade and I have come VERY far in a few short years and I know we will go much farther together. When I think back to 5 years ago, doing something like this wasn't even a dream...I really thought it would not be possible and I was thrilled when we could just ride down the driveway and back. Now I'm dreaming of doing all sorts of things and know that we can only get better!! Positive, progressive, and natural...my dream, my goal!!

Busy Day Today!!

2010-10-16T19:22:00.000-04:00

I started out the day going to audit a workshop, Leads and Lead Changes, with Berin MacFarlane and it was super. I learned alot and have much to play with. I'm going to write up my notes and post them to my clinic and workshop notes blog a little later.

On the way home from the workshop I ran errands, went to the feed store, got hay, and grocery shopped. When I got home, I played with two horses while the hay cubes were soaking.

America was stellar at trailer loading; I pointed and she went in VERY confidently and STAYED in eating hay!!! She was in the trailer about 7 minutes and I decided to ask her out before she decided she needed to come out. She was not wanting to come out; she wanted to stay in and eat!! I couldn't ask for more than that!!

Renegade was interesting tonight. He lacked impulsion tonight and after trying for about 10 - 15 minutes to "wake him up" with no success so I decided to play with the horse that showed up. We were playing at liberty; I sat on the barrel and asked him to circle me at the walk. At first the circles looked like eggs and our draw was pitiful but after I dq'ed his hq's a couple of times he was looking for me and our draw improved significantly! Soon, the circles looked more like circles and drive and draw were equalizing. Just for fun I decided to sit on the ground and ask for circles and that went really well...even better than with me sitting on the barrel and I didn't have to get up even once to tag/dq his hq's!! Renegade earned some scratches in his favorite places and a couple of cookies as well.

I had a laundry list of stuff to get done after playing so the sessions were short but VERY productive and fun. My trailer is hooked up for the ACTHA competetive trail challenge tomorrow and I've started packing/arranging stuff for our trip to the Parelli Rendezvous next Thursday. I'm really getting excited and can't wait to see how Renegade and I do in that environment. I know it's going to be busy with lots of activity and it will be good to stretch us!!

AHHHHHHMAZING!!!!!!!!!!!

2010-10-13T18:43:00.000-04:00

Played with America and Renegade tonight. America had her 4th session with trailer loading tonight and was awesome!! We moseyed to the trailer, taking the long way around and sight seeing on the way. When we got to the trailer, I opened the door, pointed, and she went right in...ALL 4 FEET!!!! She went in very confidently but wasn't confident to stay very long...only about 15 seconds. After about 3 repetitions she went in and stayed in with all 4 feet for about 2 minutes. She was fairly relaxed, her head was low and she turned her head around to look at me. I'm not sure if it was for reassurance or to ask, "can I come out now?". I took it as a question and asked her out of the trailer; she backed out calmly and quietly. I'm so thrilled with her progress!!!!!

Renegade was amazing tonight too. I've been playing with getting draw when he's traveling to the left on a circle at liberty and it went well tonight. I actually got him to draw at a trot several times!!! We also played with sideways to and from over the barrel and considering all the trouble we'd had with that for so long, we did great at it tonight. Played a bit online as well and got about 1/4 of the 70' round pen at a trot to the right!!! WAHOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!

It was a super, amazing night!!!

America and Li"Bert"y are STARS!!!

2010-10-11T19:37:00.000-04:00

Tonight's play plan involved America and Bert, Captain and Renegade had the day off and had grazing time together in another pasture. I haltered America and left the pasture leaving Bert alone. This was part of my plan tonight as Bert tends to get emotional when America leaves and I want to get him used to being alone or with Captain and Renegade; I want to be able to start taking America to play days soon and I don't want Bert to be upset about it.

Tonight was the third night of trailer loading with America and she was fantastic!! The first two tries, she was only confident enough to put three feet in the trailer but on the third and forth tries, she put all 4 feet in the trailer. She was much more confident about it tonight although she didn't stay long she didn't want to leave in a hurry like the last two nights. All in all we spent maybe 20" practicing and then enjoyed some grazing time on the way back to the pasture. I turned America out and haltered Bert.

The session with Bert consisted of liberty in the round pen. He is super sensitive and in general, the beginning of our sessions are quite exhuberent. I didn't try to stop him, I just put him out on a circle and "helped" him go a bit. He decided fairly quickly to slow down into a relaxed trot, then he started looking to me for direction. It took about 8 circles to the right and 8 to the left before he started to settle in. When he was looking more relaxed, I invited him in and we had a nice rub and scratch fest. He was connected to me so I decided to play a bit of stick to me at a walk. It was fabulous!! Bert stayed with me and we did some turns to the left and right. I decided to quit while things were going so well; I haltered Bert, took him back to the pasture, turned him loose and he decided to stay with me!!!

Both America and Bert were STARS tonight; they both tried so hard...America in her LBI way and having to think and take her time and Bert in his extroverted way being exhuberent with "happy feet" then settling in to a nice relaxed trot. So different, but both so much fun!! I love my horses!!!!!!!

Trailer Loading Fun and Positive Patterns!!

2010-10-10T20:19:00.000-04:00

Had another nice play session with America and trailer loading tonight. She was very confident with three feet in but that’s where we left off Friday so tonight I asked for more effort getting that last foot into the trailer. It took a while and I had to ask several times but eventually she put that 4th foot in the trailer. She didn’t stay very long but that’s o.k., she gave a huge effort getting that last foot in there. I backed her out and we went to graze. Interesting that she stayed very close to me while grazing. She could have gone out to the end of the 22′ line but chose to stay close, eating about a 6′ circle around me lol!! She also had a very soft look on her face.

Interesting too that Bert called frequently for America while I had her out playing. He couldn't see her and tonight that seemed to bother him ALOT. When I took America back to the pasture, Bert was stuck to her like velcro, was smelling her all over, and gently rubbed her with his head.

I tied all the horses while prepared their supper. America and Bert were very quiet standing tied. Renegade was a bit fidgety so I waited to feed him until he was standing quietly. The tying is going very well and I love that everyone is so quiet and patient while they wait. When I untie them, I lead them to their food dish and unhalter them but ask them to wait a moment before I allow them to go to their dish. Doing that keeps everything low key, polite, and eliminates any chaos or squabbles over food dishes. It's becoming a positive pattern!!!!!

A Day Off And Trailer Loading

2010-10-08T21:21:00.000-04:00

Well, when I got home from work, Renegade met me at the gate, nickering to me softly. I decided to just spend some undemanding time with him so I let him out in the yard to graze. He was at liberty and he started to move off from me so I played with disengaging his hq for a bit, then he decided to leave me at a trot so I mirrored him. It was soooo funny, he slowed down and turned to face me so I turned to walk away and he followed. Once he "caught" me, I stopped so he could graze and I was a human curry comb and scratched some of his favorite itchy spots. I then spent some time with my arm over his back from zone 3 and we stuck together while he ate. After about 15", I left him to go start getting the horse's feed ready.

When I got near the pasture, American was standing with her head over the gate and nickering to me, so I decided to bring her out and play with her. I decided to play with trailer loading since I hope to start taking her to a few playdays soon. We wandered over to the general vicinity of the trailer and played 7 games. America was doing great so I sent her to the trailer and she went in with her two front feet but backed out pretty quickly. I played with her in and around the trailer for a while longer and sent her in several more times and she got very confident at putting her two front feet and one back foot in and would stand quietly 3/4 in the trailer while I rubbed her all over. We've got some work to do to get that 4th foot in the trailer but her confidence with tonight's session was amazing. I think she'll be loading confidently in a few more days and I'll be taking her to play days soon!!

After her huge effort at trailer loading we took a break away from the trailer and listened to a friend play her guitar and sing. America seemed very facinated by the whole thing; she was watching and listening! She did this for about the length of two songs and then started grazing while I sat in a chair and listened to the rest of our "concert".

IT WAS A GREAT NIGHT!!!!!

Improving The Draw

2010-10-07T21:35:00.000-04:00

When playing at liberty with Renegade and trying to draw him off the rail to change direction, we've has success when he's traveling to the right but when traveling to the left, his nose is tipped out, he's hesitant to give me both eyes (especially his right eye), he will turn in towards the rail and away from me, and blow through all my cues. I have been thinking on how to approach this to "help" him find the right answer easier and sooner and drawing blanks so I asked people in my support network (friends and a Parelli Professional) and they came through for me!!

To my support network I say, thank you, thank you, thank you!! I tried a combination of the 45′ around Renegade’s neck and stepping towards his hq to get that draw better when going to the left and IT WORKED!!!! I got several really nice draws. Renegade gave me two eyes and I drew him all the way in to me several times to let him know this is what I wanted. After several draws, I tried a couple of COD’s in both directions and they were great!! I kept everything slow for the draws and COD’s so as not to cause any brace and encourage softness. I also paid particular attention to MY body language to be sure I was clear in what I was asking. When we finished, Renegade was softer and more confident in giving me his right eye; I'm very pleased with tonight's session. Six more days of this and it hopefully will be going well!!

Also, with the 45 still on his neck, I got a few nice canter circles with an obstacle (barrel).

Horsenality, Horsenality, Horsenality!!

2010-10-04T20:59:00.000-04:00

Played with three horses tonight after work. Played with Li"Bert"y first and I think the cooler weather had him feeling a bit frisky. He was playing up online for a few minutes then he settled in to some nice walk and trot circles, 4 in each direction. I also asked for a transition to the canter once in each direction and Bert did great!! He went right into the canter with "lead it" and a cluck. I allowed him to canter 1/2 circle then brought him in for lovin'. He gave me a little rub with his head, really gentle and quick but it was nice!! He squeezed over the barrels in each direction but was a little high headed. Need to work on getting him more confident with that.

Circling game with America was nice...she went into the trot with a lift and lead and did 3 circles in each direction. Also asked for transition to canter and it took phase 3 before she moved up a gait and I'm still trying to figure out why she did a little pirouette just before the canter?!! Not sure if she was just feeling frisky, if she was upset with my use of phases, or is having a physical issue. I'll see if it happens again tomorrow. She squeezed over the barrels but I had to direct her nose as she wanted to cut the jump. She's definitely not as athletic as Bert when it comes to jumping lol!!

Renegade was fun tonight. I decided to keep it low key tonight since he did those huge jumps on Saturday. We played with putting one front and one hind foot over a log and we got it twice!! The first time it was just a brief moment before he moved his other hind foot over the log. The second time he got it and stayed. I spent some time rubbing him and scratching his itchy spots. He was nickering like crazy!! It took about 20" for us to get it and he clearly was thinking, trying to figure out the puzzle. After all that mental effort, I figured he earned his rest!!

Also, got an e-mail from Parelli that the group of us from Ocala Parelli Players that participated in the obstacle challenge benefit at Black Prong had our picture put up on Tumblr!!

No Play Today :-(

2010-10-03T14:05:00.000-04:00

I've woken up each day for the last 6 days with a stiff/sore neck and back. I'm not sure what's causing it but it's getting the best of me today...I'm so over it. I've tried redlight, ibuprofen, hot showers, heating pad, ice, etc. and nothing is helping and now it's starting to give me a BAD headache. It may be time for me to see a doctor but wondering who to see: chiro, MD, etc.

Awesome Playday Today!!

2010-10-02T17:05:00.003-04:00

Went to an Ocala Parelli Players play day today at Nicole's and had soooo much fun!! It took a bit to get Renegade's attention to do the circling game but doing some changes of direction, "tag the spot" where he broke gait down to a walk, and transitions up to canter and he decided trotting a circle wasn't so bad after all. After that, circles were nice, smooth, at the end of the 22' line (I had the popper in my hand).

Someone had set up a jump and it was at least three feet high. I decided to give it a go and see what happened. I figured Renegade would, at a minimum, stop at the jump and I was right. What really suprised me is when I asked a second time he jumped it and it was from a stand still. Luckily I got it on video...you can hear me and some of the other playday participants cheering in delight when he jumped!!

We also did some weave and figure 8's online and they were o.k. but ridden weaves, figure 8's, and circles were really nice and for the most part we did it off feel and focus alone both at the walk and the trot!!

All in all it was a really fun, relaxing, inspiring day!!

Hahaha!! I Love When A Plan Works!!

2010-10-01T22:53:00.002-04:00

Hahaha!! Had success with circling while sitting on the barrel tonight, actually got two circles in each direction. I did notice that Renegade had that "I'm kinda outta here" nose tilted to the outside so I played with bringing him in when he tipped an ear to me and it worked!! It started with an ear on me, then he ever so slightly looked at me and when I rewarded that, he started to look to me asking questions. Hehehe...love when a plan works!!

I haltered/unhaltered while sitting on the barrel and that went well. I unhaltered after we did the circles and we did some liberty play, did stick to me and WE CANTERED TOGETHER going to the right!! We then played with some turns and squeeze over the barrels. Renegade was really "with" me tonight during liberty and when I asked him in at the end I allowed him all the way in. He put his head on my chest while I gave him a good rub. He's never done that before.

At the end we had some hang out time with me sitting on the ground and Renegade standing next to me. I started scratching one of his favorite itchy spots and oh boy...I could tell he was really enjoying it, those lips were really twitching lol!!

When I invited him to leave the round pen he waited for me (at liberty) to collect my gear then we went together back to the pasture so he could graze. It was a great night!!

RB and LB, Oh My!!

2010-09-30T23:11:00.001-04:00

Gotta love those LB'ers. Tried **this** with Renegade tonight and couldn't get even a quarter of a circle at the walk let alone a trot lol!! So...I stood up to send more energy...still nada...hummmm how interesting. Absolutely no go tonight!! Needing to think about this, I decided to use Renegade's not wanting to move his feet with any speed or energy to my advantage so played with leading by the ear and chin, and stick to me at the walk, focusing on his position to my shoulder. Being particular about this caused him to stick to me better and we ended up trotting with me in zone 2-3!! We've been still playing with the draw your horse backwards and tonight Renegade finally started to get into it, he was enjoying the butt scratches and backing up into them!! We backed about 20 steps!! Even though I had to revise my play plan tonight, we still managed to improve on several things!!

Also gotta love those RB'ers. Played with Bert tonight; he's soooo different than Renegade. He's light, responsive to the point of being over reactive at times. I've been playing with retreat while doing the friendly game with stick and string and Bert's following me with much more confidence now and he's not at the end of the 12' line behind me!! On the circle I played with how much or how little energy it took to send him out on the circle. We got good at reading each other and just by playing with energy I could send him at a walk or a trot and it took very little energy to do either. He was soft on the circle, his head is still a little high but he's learning to relax out there. Got two nice circles in either direction. Also did sideways along the fence, had to slow it way down to give him time to think and he did great. Squeeze over the barrels was good too; I had him on the 45' line and was using a little over 1/2 of it!!

**I came back to edit this post because I realized I didn't explain what **this** is!! This = sitting on a barrel and sending your horse out on a circle for two laps in each direction and bridling/unbridling your horse while sitting on a barrel.

I Love Li"Bert"y!!!

2010-09-29T20:11:00.000-04:00

Played with Bert tonight and wow!! I got some nice, soft circles at the walk and trot, and he even had a slight bend in his body!! I’m so pleased…my really skittish, RBE has come so far since I got him as a baby!!

Played with Renegade online tonight trying to get better, quicker responses, snappier COD’s, and snappier hq disengage. It was a GREAT session, lots of licking and chewing…both Renegade and me lol!!

Breakthroughs and Fun!!!

2010-09-28T20:08:00.002-04:00

Renegade caught me tonight when I went out to get him from the pasture but while I was just scratching him he took off!! The thing was, it seemed a playful thing because he stopped, turned around, and looked at me and when he did, I lightly slapped the ground with my cs and string and he came trotting to me and nickered when he got to me. It was as if he was laughing and saying “game on”!! I scratched him a bit more then softly asked for his head to halter him; he turned his head so softly to me and actually sought the halter!!

We went to the play pen as I had a plan for liberty and we had a nice, fun time. I did my pre-liberty checks online and everything was going very well – Renegade was light and responsive! I took the halter off and asked for a few hq yields to see how we were. All was good so went to playing with circles with an obstacle at trot and canter and some COD’s. The circles with obstacles was great, Renegade even jumped at the canter without breaking gait; COD’s were good when he was traveling to the left, difficult for him when traveling to the right. I slowed way down going to the right and asked him in each time he looked at me rather than push through the pressure. A few of those and he started looking for me when going to the right. As soon as he did that, I asked him in (he came at a fast walk) and stopped.

Also had a huge breakthrough with sideways over a barrel AT LIBERTY!! Renegade had been having trouble with the squeeze/sideways over the barrel (it’s a pretty tight fit for the little guy – he’s got to be right on for the barrel to fit under him and between his legs!!). I tried sending him sideways away from me over the barrel and it was difficult so I tried drawing him sideways towards me (he loves sideways towards me!!) over the barrel and it worked; Renegade did it perfectly!! Then, interestingly he offered to do sideways away. I think he finally understands and is comfortable with the barrel in different zones!! Wahooooooooooooooooooooo!!!

Interesting Day of Learning

2010-09-25T18:09:00.002-04:00

I audited a workshop, Advancing Liberty, with Berin MacFarlane this morning and I have much to think about. Berin introduced us to some key concepts to developing our liberty play with our horses, beginning online and transitioning to liberty play; how to develop the solid foundation that will lead to success at liberty, how to know when it's time to advance a skill (speed, distance, zone). Watching everyone play with their horses this morning, I came to the realization I don't hang in there long enough with Renegade (more on this later), and I tend to introduce new concepts to quickly, before we're solid with the current skill. Sheesh...such a balancing act with two LBE's (me and Renegade), how to keep either of us from getting bored but manage to stick with something long enough to get really good at it!!

I have thoughts to gather and notes to type up; as soon as I'm done I'm going to post them here.

Splitting Your Horse In Half!!!

2010-09-23T22:03:00.003-04:00

The play group, Ocala Parelli Players, I belong to has been having challenges this summer to keep us all progressing during the long, hot summer. The object of the challenges is something that is low key, requires focus, and can be done in a short session. Members volunteer to provide a challenge and each challenge lasts for two weeks. The only requirement was the challenges had to involve something that was on the self assessment sheets but that could be done by any level student. I haven't blogged about each challenge but thought I'd blog about this last one because it's something I've been playing with for a while now.

The challenge is: have your horse put one front foot and one hind foot over a log or pole. One of our OPP members named this challenge "split your horse in half" lol!!

Well, I tried this tonight and didn't quite get the split in half but we did get close. I know, I know...close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades lol!!

Renegade is good at putting one front foot over or one back foot but not both on the same side at the same time but tonight we did get the left front over the log and the left hind resting up on the log. It was a brief rest but it's closer than we've gotten before and I figured I'd better quit while I was ahead. Going to try again tomorrow and see what I get!!

I tried to pay particular attention to rewarding the slightest try and I think it worked because Renegade knew he “got it” tonight. I was tapping his hip to ask his foot to move closer to the log and I tried to notice when he first “thought” about moving that particular foot. Well, I must have gotten it right because he really put some effort into figuring out what I wanted after that!! And the look on his face when I rewarded him placing his foot on the log, well, his ears pricked forward, he arched his neck a little and nickered at me!!! Sounded so pleased with himself!!!!!!!!!

I'm usually guilty of getting greedy and trying for the whole enchilada but tonight I decided to stop while I was ahead and oh, is that hard for me to do lol!!! I'm really trying to work on myself and stop being so task oriented!! I hope tomorrow night we'll make more progress and get a longer rest of his hind leg on the log, maybe some friendly of his hind leg while it's up there will help. We'll see what happens.

Patience, Patience, Patience!!

2010-09-22T21:11:00.003-04:00

My program of tying my horses while I fix their evening meal is going VERY well. Even my youngster, Li"Bert"y a.k.a. Bert, has learned already to stand quietly and wait. I was hoping there would be no problems but was ready with knife in hand in case anyone pulled back in panic; I was ready to free them if necessary. I was prepared but everyone has been fantastic during this learning period and feeding time has become a very quiet, sedate affair!! It's so nice to have peace and quiet during food prep and feeding!!

I dewormed all the horses tonight. All of them did really well; Captain was so polite, relaxed, and took the paste easily. America couldn't wait to get the tube in her mouth then she wanted everyone elses paste lol!! Bert took a couple of minutes of approach and retreat before he was relaxed enough to accept the tube and paste. Renegade did great too; he used to be sooooo difficult to deworm...LOTS of opposition reflex, but passive persistence has paid off - he gets easier each time and he used to be very difficult (I really think he was forced to do everything in his past).

After the horses were dewormed and fed, they all got scratches and cookies - a bit of undemanding time to finish the day.