Post by jessicab on Jan 5, 2007 19:19:32 GMT -3
It is time!
As some of you know, my mare has had the last 4 months off while I was at school, and she packed on some much needed pounds. I brought her home from Cormack a couple of weeks ago, expecting the satanic horse I started with 2 years ago, and instead she has been coming back into work like a perfect little angel!
The first few days I just spent time grooming her and Fury, as well as trimmed up their feet and did a little groundwork.
We then progressed to taking her out of the round pen (their home for the holidays), tying her while I tacked her up (the tying doubles as teaching her to be patient again... she tends to paw and dance around sometimes), and then lunging her outside the roundpen. I then took her for a little walk out the road to the parking lot next door which has a nice flat grassy area which is perfect for lunging. After calming down from having to leave her buddy (who was being a big help by crying out frantically after her
), I lunged her w/t/c and she was a star. Managed to get some nice stretching at a trot by the end of it. Opted to call it a day, as she had been so good.
I think I took her out another few times to lunge her, with comparable sessions. Basically she needs muscle and to get rid of a hay belly, so a 15-20 minute lunging session daily seemed like a good way to get her to make good use of the protein she was getting in her feed.
She seems surprisingly much more balanced at her canter than she did in August.
The day came when I rode her, for the first time in 4 months. What a superstar ;D We rode in the roundpen, justtttt incase "old fanjelina" came back for a visit. She didn't which was awesome. We just kinda walked around, refreshing on turning and a little bit of bending, and we jogged around a couple of times as well; once again, doing random small circles and working on bending. Stopping, backing etc. No problem, called it quits, told her what a good girl she was.
I rode her again today. Lunged her first, because I like to increase my chances of having a cooperative mount
Once again, a successful lunging session, as she was really starting to stretch out at a trot at the end of the session (no side-reins or anything like that). She was even sweating abit on her chest, which made me intensely pleased. Brought her back to the round pen and hopped on. Again, worked on basic stuff, walk-trot, a bit of neck reining (and omg, she soo remembers) as well as working on her backing a bit (she tends to want to brace against the bit, so we did a little bit of work on getting her to soften her jaw). Did some smallish circles and freshened up on leg-yielding to the left at a walk.
My game plan this time around is to solidify her leg-yield to the left before trying it to the right. Then solidify it to the right before I start mixing it up. Then work on sidepassing to the left, solidify, sidepassing to the right, solidify, mix it up. Turns on the forehand, and then turns on the haunches. THEN I will start working on leg- yielding at a trot and two-tracking. I'm hoping to really get it all into her head, and keep it there. She already does all this (except the two-tracking), but she was never quite close to being "finished" on her lateral work. Time to get er donee!
The main thing that pleased me soo much today was how well she was carrying herself at a trot. She used to either carry herself inverted, or go around with her head between her knees. If I picked up contact she used to rear, and after we got through that she just plain ol' braced against the contact with a tense jaw and inverted neck. We "discussed" it a bit, and at the end of the summer she was softening to light contact very nicely at a walk and a trot, as well as starting to try to give me her jaw at a lope (although she was still too unbalanced for me to be all that concerned about it).
After 4 months off, and having not been touched, my little missy was going around with a relaxed natural head carriage, and softly carrying the bit without pulling. A couple times when I pushed her out she was really reaching out for the contact. Mind you, she was nowhere near collected or anything, she was probably fairly heavy on the forehand.. but its a start! Brick by brick!
Anddddddd, best of all, she doesn't duck behind the bit pressure like so many other western trained horses. She may never have the infamous "headset" thats oh-so-desired in the show pen, but I'm hoping to have a nice handy horse that is balanced and relatively collected, as well as one that I can ride English as well.
Shes being moved to Silverwood Stables on Sunday afternoon, and then the real training begins. I haven't attempted to lope her undersaddle yet, as the footing leaves something to be desired. I also want to get her fitness up a bit first, and have her loping fairly strongly and off her butt on the lungeline before I attempt anything undersaddle.. I think it will just make things easier on the both of us.
Wooooo!
Btw Liz, if you read this... THANK YOU ;D I can really feel a difference in my riding since I started taking lessons with you. I just feel like I'm riding so much more effectively now, and much more balanced as well. I think that my mare is going to want to thank you. I actually know what it feels like to really sink my weight into my stirrups (even in my old western saddle)! I'm kinda trying to incorporate alot of the "englishy" things you taught me into my western training, and I think its going to work for us. You're super
As some of you know, my mare has had the last 4 months off while I was at school, and she packed on some much needed pounds. I brought her home from Cormack a couple of weeks ago, expecting the satanic horse I started with 2 years ago, and instead she has been coming back into work like a perfect little angel!
The first few days I just spent time grooming her and Fury, as well as trimmed up their feet and did a little groundwork.
We then progressed to taking her out of the round pen (their home for the holidays), tying her while I tacked her up (the tying doubles as teaching her to be patient again... she tends to paw and dance around sometimes), and then lunging her outside the roundpen. I then took her for a little walk out the road to the parking lot next door which has a nice flat grassy area which is perfect for lunging. After calming down from having to leave her buddy (who was being a big help by crying out frantically after her
), I lunged her w/t/c and she was a star. Managed to get some nice stretching at a trot by the end of it. Opted to call it a day, as she had been so good.I think I took her out another few times to lunge her, with comparable sessions. Basically she needs muscle and to get rid of a hay belly, so a 15-20 minute lunging session daily seemed like a good way to get her to make good use of the protein she was getting in her feed.
She seems surprisingly much more balanced at her canter than she did in August.
The day came when I rode her, for the first time in 4 months. What a superstar ;D We rode in the roundpen, justtttt incase "old fanjelina" came back for a visit. She didn't which was awesome. We just kinda walked around, refreshing on turning and a little bit of bending, and we jogged around a couple of times as well; once again, doing random small circles and working on bending. Stopping, backing etc. No problem, called it quits, told her what a good girl she was.
I rode her again today. Lunged her first, because I like to increase my chances of having a cooperative mount
Once again, a successful lunging session, as she was really starting to stretch out at a trot at the end of the session (no side-reins or anything like that). She was even sweating abit on her chest, which made me intensely pleased. Brought her back to the round pen and hopped on. Again, worked on basic stuff, walk-trot, a bit of neck reining (and omg, she soo remembers) as well as working on her backing a bit (she tends to want to brace against the bit, so we did a little bit of work on getting her to soften her jaw). Did some smallish circles and freshened up on leg-yielding to the left at a walk. My game plan this time around is to solidify her leg-yield to the left before trying it to the right. Then solidify it to the right before I start mixing it up. Then work on sidepassing to the left, solidify, sidepassing to the right, solidify, mix it up. Turns on the forehand, and then turns on the haunches. THEN I will start working on leg- yielding at a trot and two-tracking. I'm hoping to really get it all into her head, and keep it there. She already does all this (except the two-tracking), but she was never quite close to being "finished" on her lateral work. Time to get er donee!
The main thing that pleased me soo much today was how well she was carrying herself at a trot. She used to either carry herself inverted, or go around with her head between her knees. If I picked up contact she used to rear, and after we got through that she just plain ol' braced against the contact with a tense jaw and inverted neck. We "discussed" it a bit, and at the end of the summer she was softening to light contact very nicely at a walk and a trot, as well as starting to try to give me her jaw at a lope (although she was still too unbalanced for me to be all that concerned about it).
After 4 months off, and having not been touched, my little missy was going around with a relaxed natural head carriage, and softly carrying the bit without pulling. A couple times when I pushed her out she was really reaching out for the contact. Mind you, she was nowhere near collected or anything, she was probably fairly heavy on the forehand.. but its a start! Brick by brick!
Anddddddd, best of all, she doesn't duck behind the bit pressure like so many other western trained horses. She may never have the infamous "headset" thats oh-so-desired in the show pen, but I'm hoping to have a nice handy horse that is balanced and relatively collected, as well as one that I can ride English as well.
Shes being moved to Silverwood Stables on Sunday afternoon, and then the real training begins. I haven't attempted to lope her undersaddle yet, as the footing leaves something to be desired. I also want to get her fitness up a bit first, and have her loping fairly strongly and off her butt on the lungeline before I attempt anything undersaddle.. I think it will just make things easier on the both of us.
Wooooo!
Btw Liz, if you read this... THANK YOU ;D I can really feel a difference in my riding since I started taking lessons with you. I just feel like I'm riding so much more effectively now, and much more balanced as well. I think that my mare is going to want to thank you. I actually know what it feels like to really sink my weight into my stirrups (even in my old western saddle)! I'm kinda trying to incorporate alot of the "englishy" things you taught me into my western training, and I think its going to work for us. You're super
, we will have to go out sometime so that she can save my riding and improve yours even more! 
