Attitude adjustment

The farrier came out to reset Curly's shoes yesterday. To the casual observer, Curly appears to be well mannered while the trimming and shoeing process is taking place. But in reality he is quite naughty and is constantly leaning down on whatever foot/leg the farrier is working on. Very passive-aggressive! He even willingly lifts the hoof when requested, but will immediately begin exerting downward force once you have your hand under it. Eventually, he pushes hard enough that you just have to drop the foot.

By the third hoof, our kind-hearted farrier had had enough so Curly was put to work with the lead line and made to do some turns and backing and other movements for 5 or 10 minutes, all meant to refocus and re-adjust his little attitude. He quickly learned that it really is easier to just do your job to begin with!

I think a small portion of the problem is that at the end of each farrier session, we have always released Curly back to his stall/pasture. So he wants it all to end as quickly as possible so that he'll have his freedom back. Yesterday, I had E change this expectation up a little by making her work with him in the round pen as soon as the farrier is done. Hopefully that will help keep Curly from "running back to the barn" before we are really finished with the job at hand.

Scratch

Second 4-H show of the season was yesterday...and E decided that she and Monte were not quite ready for the competitive arena yet, so she scratched. We trailered the horse out to the venue anyway to help him get used to the hustle and bustle that accompanies a show.

I expected Monte to be nervous but he surprised us all by calmly taking it all in, only pawing at the ground when he got a little too bored at the trailer. E rode around with the other girls as they warmed up their horses and he again did better than we expected. He was attentive to her and she felt safe and in control the whole time.

I think they are beginning to form a good bond. He's got some of the reactive nature that I would expect in an Arab, but he appears to be a willing partner in most respects. Plus he's just so darn cute!

Lacking confidence

Monte and E had their first trail ride on Saturday. Unfortunately there was a steady rain during much of it - and as we all know, Monte doesn't do mud very well!

Turns out that he doesn't do trail rides in general very well. E had problems with him spooking as other riders came up on him from behind, plus he became nervous each time they left the actual trail. She also had to lead him over a shallow flood channel; he refused to walk through the water while she was riding.

I was supposed to participate on this ride, but when it came time to go I decided that my back wasn't quite up to snuff yet. I wonder if Monte would have been calmed by Curly's presence on the trail. Having a friend (or at least a familiar face!) lead the way often helps when you are in a new place.

We'll be taking more rides up at Bennington over the summer, partly because it's fun, but also to help Monte gain more confidence while out on the trails.

Beautiful Thursday

I'm running late this morning, so today's post will be mostly pictures, all taken by youngest daughter, R!

R played with the camera during the lesson and
snapped this beautiful shot of the sky.


Great closeup of one of the barn cats...


Capturing E and Monte as they pass by....


You're always looking through the rails when you're only 7...

More firsts

Monte attended his first 4-H ride night yesterday. I was a little concerned that the mares (who are all in heat at the moment) might bring out some bad behavior in our recently-gelded guy (5 months ago), but he proved himself to be a gentleman and mostly ignored the girls and their excited "flirting."

He was quite nervous, however, and E had to work while riding. We assume that this is his first experience in an arena full of girls and horses, all careening around at different paces. It will take time for him to get used to the other riders and also to trust E and know that she won't purposefully put him in any dangerous situations.

During the last half hour of the ride, E dismounted and lead Monte around different parts of the arena, allowing all the commotion to swirl around her and her horse, in an attempt to help desensitize him.

I am still a bit stiff from Saturday's tumble and certain movements cause lovely facial grimaces, but overall I am feeling better. We are supposed to participate in an orienteering ride on Saturday. Today, the thought of sitting in a saddle for any length of time is not all that appealing. Hopefully that will change!

Ibuprofen is my friend

Took my first ride on Monte today. Also had my first fall.

E discovered a few days ago that Monte is not a fan of water. I learned today that this also extends to muddy spots. He placed one foot into the mud, and shied to the right while I flew to the left. I am happy to say that I have enough padding on my backside that, although I hurt, I am doing fine. Just pretty stiff and sore now. After I first fell I had trouble standing up - kept blacking out - but within a few minutes I climbed back up into the saddle and had him walk around the arena partway. I quickly discovered that I wasn't able to lift my right leg over the cantle, so I had to perform a rather inelegant dismount from the off-side.

E, who is also afraid of mud (that's how Curly slipped when she broke her ankle), led a very nervous Monte through the mud. Friend T also helped him get over this fear by riding him through it.

While I was on Monte, it was the strangest sensation to feel his entire body bend under me. He is nothing like the stiff barge named Curly! I also learned that I haven't got a clue on how to make him go or turn. Everything is so different on him.

It is abundantly clear that I do not know how to ride a horse. Yet.

Fear

I discovered this past week that I am very nervous when I get up in the saddle on Curly's back. I rode him twice, and both times was too afraid to do more than a walk. It is obvious that I just don't trust him - I've seen him be naughty with E a few too many times. With every twitch and head-shake, I imagine myself being bucked off and lying in the dirt. Each time that I found myself getting too tense, I stopped him and just sat and breathed deeply. Seemed to help a bit.

I did learn to "steer" him more precisely. We wove in and out of poles and around cones; he managed to figure out where I was asking him to go pretty accurately.

My goal for the next ride is to take him up to a trot.