This past Saturday, August 13th, I had such a fun time with Buckshot! The weather was very nice, not too hot nor too humid, and the arenas had good footing. Wonderful. After I got Buckshot groomed and tacked up, I led him out to the arena and we began our phase 1 warm up walking.
I had recently read on Carol’s blog (Dressage Training Horse) several wonderful reminders of equitation, so I started using them. Good boobies, I thought. Shoulders back. Stretch from my abdomen to my neck. I sat up higher, and had good boobies LOL! Have shoulders like a proper woman and hips like a whore. I let my hips sway more noticeably with Buckshot’s walk. I kept reminding myself of these guidelines, and laughing at the same time. They worked! I could feel a better posture. We walked and did some patterns and exercises. I felt calm and balanced and happy. The arena and farm were quiet, and we had the whole arena to ourselves.
Finally, my sister drove up for the Saturday lesson, and I walked Buckshot out of the arena and over to her car to chat with her for a few minutes. After chatting, I directed Buckshot back to the arena. Our twenty minutes of walking was up so I asked him for a trot and he happily responded. In fact, he quickly went into a canter. After a few strides, we came down to the walk. I asked again for a trot, and he happily and energetically trotted, and then, almost in exuberance, went into a canter. I brought him down to a walk, and thought some. And that is when it happened.
I decided to try something new, something I’d never tried before because I was a little afraid to try it. I wanted to canter Buckshot using just one hand, with neck reining. I hadn’t done it before because I didn’t know what would happen. You know the feeling. Well, someday I’ll try that thing I want to try, but not yet. I don’t know what might happen. I don’t know if I can handle what does happen. So I’ll do it some other day. But this time, on this calm and quiet and happy Saturday, I wanted to try it.
So I put my English reins into one hand, draping them in the shape of western reins, and cued him for a canter. He picked it up immediately and I leaned back and rocked my hips, and brought my arm forward and back with his head. It felt wonderful! My seat stayed well in contact with the saddle! The rein movement seemed to fit his head movement nicely. I was even able to think, and steer, and bring him around the end of the arena and keep going! It was absolutely wonderful. I then said “trot” to bring him down to a trot. I laughed out loud and rubbed his neck and said “thank you, Buckshot, that was great!” And after a minute of walking, we did it again. I felt like running to get the BO and telling her, look what we can do! Just like a child would do when they achieved something surprising. I felt like a child on the inside! I couldn’t believe how well my butt stayed in the saddle and how composed my mind was. So we did it several more times, and each time I was enchanted by being able to canter one handed and doing it so well. Perhaps it felt good to Buckshot also since he was willing to keep cantering. I laughed and laughed and felt bubbly and wonderful inside.
Then three other students came into the arena and we started our class. After warming up the horses, the BO set up a pattern for us, one that included cantering and turning and walking. I felt so confident that I decided to do the canter one handed. We did great! The BO yelled out how well we did in the pattern! I was positively beaming and so proud of Buckshot! We went on to other patterns and then did a trail ride and then came back to the barn.
I was so proud of Buckshot and his hard work. And I was proud of myself. To have pushed beyond one of my mental limitations, and tried something, and felt confident enough with Buckshot to handle whatever happened. And then to reap the results of such a good canter, was icing on the cake. And I confess, I just wanted to canter, canter, canter! Like a teenager might want to. It did feel like I channeled my inner child and my inner teenager! Since I didn’t ride horses as a child or a teenager, maybe they are getting their time now! Such a joyful time for me, and Buckshot seemed to be in such good spirits also. I also think that the equitation tips from Carol may have contributed to my confidence; her tips enhanced my feeling of balance on Buckshot and when I feel such balance, perhaps my confidence grows. Thank you, Carol! I’m going to read and use your other tips as well.
On Sunday, sadly, we couldn’t repeat our fun from Saturday. Sunday was grey, cloudy and drizzly. The arenas were too soft for anything but walking. So we did a trail ride with the BO and her husband, and got caught in a good rainstorm. But I look forward to doing more next weekend. And to continuing to improve the canter. What a great horse Buckshot is! I am so appreciative of him.
On another topic, did you read the blog post Fugly had recently on Larry Trocha’s reply to a horse owner with problems? It is very interesting. He was pretty blunt that the horse owner had let her horse walk all over her, and had caused her horse to ignore her and take up dangerous practices. In my opinion, his thoughts are accurate and are things that need to be said. Having a horse isn’t for the faint of heart, or the timid, but some horse owners are just that. And he shares the brutal realities of letting a horse get away with all manner of bad behaviors. I just hope the owner will indeed take his reply to heart, and not dismiss it as too harsh.
For me, learning how to be a leader to a horse has been one of the most mental and challenging things ever. Have you found that to be the case with you? I hope you had a great weekend with your horse!
One woman's reflections on her journey with horses...
Monday, August 15, 2011
Tuesday, August 9, 2011
Great Times with Buckshot!
Last week I took Thursday off of work. I was feeling much better from the previous weekend “illness” caused by an antibiotic. So I wanted to go see Buckshot. The weather was nice and I was so very glad to see Buckshot. Just missing a weekend felt like I had missed a lot of time with him. I got to ride him and we started in the arena. After our warm up and some trotting, I decided to try and ride alone in the trail. Buckshot did great – it was nice and quiet in the woods and he seemed very comfortable, even though there weren’t any other horses with us. We went about halfway down the trail and then turned around. His energy picked up very slightly; I guess he was happy to be going home.
But I wanted to do some more work in the arena. So after we exited the woods, I headed him towards the arena and he walked in with purpose and a good stride. He walked straight into the center of the arena and promptly stopped. I’m pretty sure he was thinking, well, now, it’s time to dismount. But I spoke to him and said we’d do a few more minutes of work, at which he immediately moved forward, three steps and stopped again! I think he was thinking, yes, you’re right, that wasn’t a good place to dismount, but this spot here, is just fine to dismount! I broke out laughing at his willingness to help me find a spot to dismount! I couldn’t help it – he just seemed so earnest about it. I laughed and laughed, and decided to, well, dismount! And give my horse a big smile and hug, and a treat! Whether it is his sense of humor, or willingness to help, either way, what a special horse!
Saturday was a good day at the farm, although we had several strong rainstorms so our riding was cut short. And Sunday was a day of wicked heat and humidity, with a heat index of 106 muggy degrees, so I didn’t ride Buckshot. Instead I planned to do some work by walking around on the lead line. After bringing Buckshot to the barn to groom him, we started walking down the road to the field arena. And guess what? We went farther than we ever have! And made it very, very close to the field arena. As I led Buckshot down the road, he followed very willingly, without any balking or hesitation. He stopped occasionally to look at horses in the pastures on the road. We reached a spot near a barn where I had previously given him a treat. This time, he stopped and softly touched my hand with his nose. A reminder, perhaps, that this was a treat spot? Probably. So I gave him a treat there.
And we kept walking. Several yards down the road, he became nervous, and smooth as silk, turned me around one hundred and eighty degrees. I let him walk a few steps in that direction and then stopped him. I told him if he would walk just ten more steps, he’d get a treat and we’d turn back. Well, we turned back around and he did walk/ slightly circle for ten additional steps beyond the farthest point. I then gave him a treat and we headed back. We were so close to our destination, but I didn’t want to push it. He had gone beyond his comfort point already. Inside, I was thrilled at how far he had gone – so willingly and trustingly! I’m sure we will make our destination in a few more attempts! There is grass there I can’t wait to let him eat. I am so proud of Buckshot.
We walked back down to road and went into the arena. We did a few exercises walking around and over several cavaletti. He even backed up over them. After a few minutes, I said let’s go walk on the trail. And we headed into the trail. We walked very far into the trail by ourselves. Buckshot was willing and trusting, stopping to sniff every pile of poop, but otherwise, without any problems. I finally stopped us, took a drink of water (the day was so hot and humid the trail was like a sauna!), gave him a treat, and turned around to head back. He followed willingly.
When we exited the woods, I was thrilled with him! We had never walked so far in the woods by ourselves before! What a willing and confident horse he was! I took him to his stall, not to untack him (he only had a halter and lead line on), but to get his “post-work” treats, and get his rinsing tools, and we went to the wash stall for a nice rinse. Then I took my amazing horse back to his pasture, telling him all the way what a wonderful horse he is!! I am still so proud of him, of his willingness to go on two adventures, further than we had gone before, and with such a good attitude. When he became nervous at one point, he let me know, and then trusted me with a few more steps. I know it may seem so ordinary, we were just walking various places, but for me, it was an exciting day for us, and makes me just so proud of him! I hope you had a wonderful time with your horses also!
On another topic, last night I saw the movie “Buck” about horse trainer Buck Brannaman. I thought it was a good movie. It relayed his background and history, and his current clinics. It shared a little bit of his training theories. In my opinion, he seems to be a very nice, low key person, a great horse trainer with a lot of empathy for horses and a general all-around nice person. Someone I’d love to have the opportunity to talk to in person some day. I find him such a contrast from the hard-charging, heavy-handed marketing-type clinicians. Unfortunately, I can’t say that I learned a lot from the movie; in fact, I wish he had shared more of his theories, practices and philosophies. Watching him ride his horse in a field, and perform the most beautiful, controlled, soft moves with a horse was breathtaking. It was far beyond any maneuvers I ever will be able to do, but I appreciated seeing such lovely riding by an expert. There are also some raw and difficult sections of the movie, e.g., the physical abuse he suffered as a young child, as well as issues with a dangerous horse at one of his clinics. Overall, I liked the movie and do recommend it to horse fans. But it isn’t really a movie for children because of the topics just mentioned. For adult horse fans, it is a good movie. What are your thoughts on it?
But I wanted to do some more work in the arena. So after we exited the woods, I headed him towards the arena and he walked in with purpose and a good stride. He walked straight into the center of the arena and promptly stopped. I’m pretty sure he was thinking, well, now, it’s time to dismount. But I spoke to him and said we’d do a few more minutes of work, at which he immediately moved forward, three steps and stopped again! I think he was thinking, yes, you’re right, that wasn’t a good place to dismount, but this spot here, is just fine to dismount! I broke out laughing at his willingness to help me find a spot to dismount! I couldn’t help it – he just seemed so earnest about it. I laughed and laughed, and decided to, well, dismount! And give my horse a big smile and hug, and a treat! Whether it is his sense of humor, or willingness to help, either way, what a special horse!
Saturday was a good day at the farm, although we had several strong rainstorms so our riding was cut short. And Sunday was a day of wicked heat and humidity, with a heat index of 106 muggy degrees, so I didn’t ride Buckshot. Instead I planned to do some work by walking around on the lead line. After bringing Buckshot to the barn to groom him, we started walking down the road to the field arena. And guess what? We went farther than we ever have! And made it very, very close to the field arena. As I led Buckshot down the road, he followed very willingly, without any balking or hesitation. He stopped occasionally to look at horses in the pastures on the road. We reached a spot near a barn where I had previously given him a treat. This time, he stopped and softly touched my hand with his nose. A reminder, perhaps, that this was a treat spot? Probably. So I gave him a treat there.
And we kept walking. Several yards down the road, he became nervous, and smooth as silk, turned me around one hundred and eighty degrees. I let him walk a few steps in that direction and then stopped him. I told him if he would walk just ten more steps, he’d get a treat and we’d turn back. Well, we turned back around and he did walk/ slightly circle for ten additional steps beyond the farthest point. I then gave him a treat and we headed back. We were so close to our destination, but I didn’t want to push it. He had gone beyond his comfort point already. Inside, I was thrilled at how far he had gone – so willingly and trustingly! I’m sure we will make our destination in a few more attempts! There is grass there I can’t wait to let him eat. I am so proud of Buckshot.
We walked back down to road and went into the arena. We did a few exercises walking around and over several cavaletti. He even backed up over them. After a few minutes, I said let’s go walk on the trail. And we headed into the trail. We walked very far into the trail by ourselves. Buckshot was willing and trusting, stopping to sniff every pile of poop, but otherwise, without any problems. I finally stopped us, took a drink of water (the day was so hot and humid the trail was like a sauna!), gave him a treat, and turned around to head back. He followed willingly.
When we exited the woods, I was thrilled with him! We had never walked so far in the woods by ourselves before! What a willing and confident horse he was! I took him to his stall, not to untack him (he only had a halter and lead line on), but to get his “post-work” treats, and get his rinsing tools, and we went to the wash stall for a nice rinse. Then I took my amazing horse back to his pasture, telling him all the way what a wonderful horse he is!! I am still so proud of him, of his willingness to go on two adventures, further than we had gone before, and with such a good attitude. When he became nervous at one point, he let me know, and then trusted me with a few more steps. I know it may seem so ordinary, we were just walking various places, but for me, it was an exciting day for us, and makes me just so proud of him! I hope you had a wonderful time with your horses also!
On another topic, last night I saw the movie “Buck” about horse trainer Buck Brannaman. I thought it was a good movie. It relayed his background and history, and his current clinics. It shared a little bit of his training theories. In my opinion, he seems to be a very nice, low key person, a great horse trainer with a lot of empathy for horses and a general all-around nice person. Someone I’d love to have the opportunity to talk to in person some day. I find him such a contrast from the hard-charging, heavy-handed marketing-type clinicians. Unfortunately, I can’t say that I learned a lot from the movie; in fact, I wish he had shared more of his theories, practices and philosophies. Watching him ride his horse in a field, and perform the most beautiful, controlled, soft moves with a horse was breathtaking. It was far beyond any maneuvers I ever will be able to do, but I appreciated seeing such lovely riding by an expert. There are also some raw and difficult sections of the movie, e.g., the physical abuse he suffered as a young child, as well as issues with a dangerous horse at one of his clinics. Overall, I liked the movie and do recommend it to horse fans. But it isn’t really a movie for children because of the topics just mentioned. For adult horse fans, it is a good movie. What are your thoughts on it?
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
Missed Weekend
This will be my shortest post ever. This past weekend I didn’t get out to the farm at all, because I was sick. Taking an antibiotic for a tiny infection on one of my fingers caused me to feel like I had gotten a bad case of the flu. I felt terrible physically. So I stayed in all weekend and missed Buckshot! I can’t wait to see him again. I hope he liked having a little vacation.
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