Update: Sriracha, Uma, Zoodle

The last three months have mostly been focused on Dylan and the wedding, but the littles are all still hanging around having a good time! They're been in small amounts of work, but nothing terribly consistent. Planning a wedding is like having a second full time job, on top of my more than full time job, on top of trying to keep a show horse fit and actively showing... there's just not enough time!

Sriracha:

My 'Ratchy hasn't done hardly anything for the past few months. She slipped her halter off at some point, and pretty much has gone feral. She takes treats, and gets looked over, but while she became pretty tame with all her handling she never really became friendly - she just doesn't like to seek out the people. It's just her personality! One of these days when I have time, I need to corral her into a small pen and get her halter back on, then work with her until she tames back down a little more. Mules are funny like that, if you leave them alone they go feral on you. If you work with them all the time they're great, but if you don't they might go wild on you until you work them down again.

Uma:

Uma is doing exactly what I wanted her to do - she's reached an age where she can start to learn about harnessing and lunging, and she is! She's learning how to lunge, how to wear boots, how to be patient. I don't have a harness small enough to fit her, so she hasn't worn one of those yet. I am not sure she's going to be large enough to bother breaking to drive though... she is a tiny little shrimp. Tiny little shrimps don't really make the best driving animals - it's a lot of work for them and they can't make the times that bigger minis can make. 

But isn't she adorable anyway!?

Zoodle:

Zoodle is doing great. He also didn't do much until after the wedding, but he's been back in work. He's getting better and better about lunging - it's sort of forward in these tiny one inch increments at a time, but it's coming. Zebras have no work ethic whatever, so finding his work ethic is something of a challenge sometimes. He loves people and he likes to be doing stuff with the people, but when it's kind of boring or sort of hard, he really wants to know why he should bother, and heavy bribery is what gets him understanding that it's something good. One new problem that has popped up is with the addition of the sidereins - he wears a bit quietly until there's one little bit of pressure on it, then he flips his tongue right over the bit. That is a habit we can't be forming or I'll never break it. He needs to wear sidereins because he has a big fat thick bracey neck, and he needs to learn to give to pressure or I'll never be able to turn him - zebras brace! Part of it is that he has a big fat tongue and doesn't like any tongue pressure, so the little straight bar mullen mouth that worked great for the mules does not work for him at all. Snaffles seem to be the same. So, what I've done (and will be experimenting with) is found a high ported snaffle with a Wonder Bit ring, the English kind. This is not a bit I would put on a normal baby, but he is not a normal baby. By setting the headstall on the top part of the ring, and the sidereins on the snaffle, I can set where the port will lay in his mouth, i.e. not acting on his palate. Rather, what this hopefully will do is both create tongue space for him, but also the high port should make it really hard if not impossible to get his tongue over the bit. I'll report back to see if it works!

He's dog safe!

Adding stripes to his stripes

Not a fan of the sidereins even though they're just floppy elastic on the last hole... he'll get there!

Awesome Immy

Phew! It has been a crazy, crazy month. I am tying up the last loose ends of my schoolwork, my practicum in Wisconsin has come and gone (yes, it was really, really snowy and freezing cold), and things are slowly making the move back to a normal pace. I should be fully complete with my schoolwork by the end of the weekend (I hope)... it has been a very long 2 years but I am finally at the end!
The mares had most of the past two weeks off - I was simply too busy with my practicum and schoolwork and a million clients to do. I lunged Immy here and there, and sat on P once or twice, but it was all I had time for. Thankfully, I flew back from WI on Sunday night, and the girls were put back to the grindstone on Monday. 

Immy is definitely starting to get the idea of the sidereins:

She is stronger going to the left than to the right, but she is gradually releasing on the right side. It just takes time and muscle memory! 

And she's starting to look pretty sexy if I do say so myself!

Spring is finally showing up in our neck of the woods (sheesh it took long enough), but we still are having a few nights here and there that are way, way cold. Most of the time the girls have been naked, but there have been some nights that were outrageously cold. I was complaining to S that all of my blankets are a smidge too big for her, but that I hadn't gone out to get new ones because I was having a hard time justifying buying a whole new set of blankets when they were only just a little too big. She and her hubs own a mobile tack store, so she pawed through her used blankets and found a 76 (all of mine are 78s). The problem? It was a closed front blanket. How in the hell was I going to get THAT on?

As it turned out, it wasn't hard at all.

She put her head up and backed into P at first, but stopped and let me toss it on. Once it was on, she just looked at me like, "oh... well, okay." It has been on and off a few times since then, and there was no more muss or fuss about it. 

She says, "lady give me more cookies!!" The closed front blanket isn't waterproof, so I tossed a sheet on over it, just in case. Also, it was in the 20's that night... in March, in Texas. I know.

Tuesday night was date night with Mo, seeing as I've hardly seen him in the past two weeks (and we needed to install our new washer and dryer, how romantic!), so the mares had it off again. On Wednesday, I got a text from S saying that her auntie and uncle were in town, and that her auntie wanted to go with us on a trail ride. She asked if she could ride P, and then her auntie could ride Rue and I could ride Immy. Immy has only been out on the trails once before, and that was when S ponied the two of us off of Rue.... it didn't go very well, seeing as Immy was way too hyped up to mentally deal with it.
I wasn't sure that it would go well, but S is a good/bad influence on me, and gave me her usual "just do it! She's a different horse now, she'll be fine!" So, we went for it. I had S pony us off of P to start, but once we had to go through out first gate, I had her let us go for a minute to see what would happen. To my great surprise, Immy marched right to the lead, and off we went. She never spooked, never faltered, never hesitated  and never gave any indication that she hadn't done this a million times before.

Look at her leading!!!

I look kind of like a goose with my leg sticking out in front of me (being defensive, and also partly crippled), but as you can tell I was pretty damn pleased with her. She even crossed a little stream! 

To top it all off, back at the barn she solidly walk-trot-cantered for me... what a champ!!!!!!

She was understandably tired yesterday, so we settled for a nice lunge in sidereins. She actually stopped outright and braced outwards against the sidereins at one point, likely because she was tired, but a little encouragement sent her back forward again. We kept it short and sweet - no need to push. A little bit of stretching and forward movement did her some good, and we ended with a nice full-body rub down and a whole lot of cookies. It's funny, I'm not normally a cookie-giver, but I am pretty liberal with the snacks when it comes to Immy. When treated too much, P turns into a giant butthead, so I don't give her more than the occasional cookie, but with Immy it helps to relax her and get her thinking positive thoughts about everything that is happening to and around her. When she's not in the mood to play with me, she clamps her mouth shut and won't take anything I offer her, so any time she readily takes a cookie from me is a good day in my book.

Today was swim day! I wanted to ride, but I figured that it would be good for her to loosen up her body in the pool.

She's really putting on some muscle, is she not? She is looking awesome!!!


I am exhausted, and there is more to write about... but not tonight. Tomorrow I have a huge announcement to make.... stay tuned for that!!!

End of February Analysis; March Goals!

I am SO glad February is over! It did NOT go according to plan at all! Hopefully spring is coming, and we can finally get the ball rolling with Immy's saddle work. Winter is the worst time to try and start a young horse, especially with no arena.

February Goals:

1) Take her to the AquaTread once a week

Fail! She only went once during the entire month. Granted, I made that choice on my own, due to the fact that the work farm has been full to the brim, and we had no open paddocks to keep her in during the day. The only other option was to keep her stalled in the barn, totally alone, all day long. Not gonna fly! I plan to redo this goal this month... hopefully a paddock or two will stay open so she can be left outside all day with companions next to her.

2) Trailer out to other places once a week, whenever possible (even if just ponying, lunging, groundwork, etc.)

Again, fail. I honestly just didn't thinks she was ready, with what little work we got done. (Not to mention the fact that when it rains, my trailer gets bogged down in the mud if I don't preemptively pull it out. I have to plan ahead for these kinds of things!)

3) Ride 3 times a week (or 4!) and alternate with lower-key things

Total fail. With all the rain, mud, dentistry, and light days for the sake of her mental state, I only managed to squeeze a few rides in here and there. She needs consistency in her saddle training, and a few rides here and there just aren't doing anyone any favors. Hopefully, spring is arriving, and we will have better weather, warmer days, and less mud. I plan on making this a March goal.

4) Be going comfortably w-t-c on a loose contact by the end of the month

See above. I plan on redoing this one as a March goal as well!

5) Continue desensitization to bridling

We've actually come a long way with this one! I had to alter the actual bridle itself to just make it into a simple headstall with only one piece of leather, and totally nix the browband, noseband, and throatlatch for the time being, but it has REALLY helped. I still can't pull it over her head, but bridling is no longer a horrible ordeal for her. We still have a LONG way to go, but we'll get there!

6) Continue desensitization to clippers

We only worked on this once, when she was heavily sedated for the dentist. It woke her UP, and even through her drug-induced stupor, she managed to bolt across the stall and run herself into the wall. I got the running clippers to touch her shoulder and neck on her left side, but I left it at that, and didn't pursue it again. We have more important thing to work on besides this... we'll pick it up again in a few months. I'm not all that concerned about it... it's a low priority, compared to everything else!

7) First trail ride (while being ponied)

Success! It wasn't terribly great, seeing as all she wanted to do was bulldoze the pony horse over and go charging ahead, but she kept it together for a lap around the field. She's not ready for another one just yet, I don't think, but we might try again this month!

8) Standing quietly tied out

Success! She has gotten much quieter over the month. It helps if she has other friends around, and she does tend to get fussy if P is loose and she isn't, but she had stood solidly and quietly while tied in various places like a good girl, and I'm happy with it.

Basically, March's goals are a total redo of all the goals we never got to complete in February.

March Goals:

1) Pool once a week (and Eurociser - some weeks will be twice a week)

2) Ride 3 times a week (4, some weeks)

3) Being going comfortable W-T-C by the end of the month on a light contact

4) Continue desensitization with bridle, head - do massages with daily groomings

5) Second craniosacral appointment

6) Set up a daily/weekly/monthly calendar ahead of time, and stay with! (I always do this, but last month I hardly stuck with anything I had pre-planned!)

I think that's a good place to start, don't you?

Our best-case scenario monthly plan goes like this:

Monday: Lunge/Groundwork, or Off

Tuesday: Ride

Wednesday: Pool (with possible Eurociser)

Thursday: Ride

Friday: Off

Saturday: Ride, or Pool/Eurociser (alternate ever other week)

Sunday: Ride

That gives us 3 or 4 days of riding, interspersed with less complicated things. Obviously, we won't be able to totally follow it to a T - some days she will need more mental down time, some days will be wash-outs due to weather, etc. - but I have something to shoot for.

As per this schedule, Friday was supposed to be her off day, and Saturday was a swim/Eurociser day, but I decided to add some extras in on both days. Instead of having a day off yesterday (since she already had Thursday off), I lunged her in sidereins. She was very good to the left, and pretty stiff and resistant through her neck to the right, much moreso than usual. If I had to take a guess, I would say that her traveling crooked in the pool (while she tries to look at her friends in the washbay) might have caused that. She is learning to travel straighter, and will get straighter and stronger on both sides of her body the more she goes in it, so this should be a shortlived issue.

We had a few momentary issues when Rue decided to bust up into our space. I closed the gate behind us when we went into work, but didn't bother to latch it, seeing as the boys always leave us alone. Apparently not that day, though... I had to stop and kick him out!

(No Rues or Immys were harmed in the making of this blogpost. They love each other, so the worst thing that happened was that Immy stopped to snuggle.)

I'll have more updates shortly on the pool and riding, but for now, I need some SLEEP!

Winter, I'm over you

This winter thing is realllllllllllllllllllllllly getting old.

I'm serious Mother Nature, I am tired of this crap. Every time I turn around it is either raining or freezing cold, and the few warm days that you've given us this month, it has been way too muddy and slippery to do anything useful at all. February is NOT going according to plan in the slightest. Immy should easily be going w-t-c by now, but without an arena or lights, I am severely restricted in what I can do when the weather gets nasty. Coupled with the fact that I have a more-than-full-time day job, an ever-growing trim business, enormous amounts of schoolwork as well as case studies and certification requirements coming up shortly, well.... it has been hard to get much done. To throw in some even more complicated twists, add in the dentist (and time off after it) as well as several days when she needed downtime to keep her mental state fresh. What's a girl to do?

Winter is a really terrible time to try and start a horse when you have no arena and no lights. (Which is why so many people start youngsters in the fall and then toss them back out for the winter to start again in the spring... give them a good base, kick them out to grow up over the winter, and then start fresh in the spring when there is less of a chance of everybody getting killed!) If I had a schooled horse, it wouldn't be so bad, and I could hack out down the road or on the trails, or trailer out to an arena to get some work done. With Immy, she is ready for neither, so I have to settle for what I can get. It hasn't been anywhere near the level of work that I want her to be at, but that's life, and there's really not much I can do about it. Nature is gonna do what nature is gonna do.

So far this week, we've squeezed in three lunge sessions with sidereins, inbetween bouts of freezing weather and serious sideways downpours. Just this morning, a squall blew in while I was feeding, and I scrambled to get the mares untied and free so they could run to their shed and wait it out. P apparently had other ideas, and decided it would be much more beneficial to lick Immy's bucket clean during the deluge, while Immy absolutely panicked and spun in circles as she was being pelted with freezing rain. The shed is 50 feet away, and is completely protected from the elements, but she just couldn't deal with the idea of leaving P's side for ONE second, even if it was to her complete and total detriment, so she whirled around in circles until she finally gave up and stood with her butt to the worst of it.

Sorry mare, you had the choice, and you made it...

Backtracking a bit.... Sunday was supposed to be a ride day, but between bunches of clients, feeding at the other barn, and the footing drying out from a previous rainstorm, she ended up having a day off instead. The same went for Monday - Future Hubs wanted to take me on a dinner date, and since we don't share a day off and hardly ever get to do anything nice like that, I of course went for it. Love is something you make time for, no exceptions... especially when you get so little time with each other as is!

Tuesday, it was back to work! It was getting dark by the time I managed to get my butt away from work and to the barn, but we squeezed in another lunge session before we completely lost daylight. I REALLY had wanted to ride, but a) two days off and a fresh hot mare aren't a great mix, and b) I had essentially no daylight left to work with. Oh well, you make due with what you have!

Not a great video.... and not to mention, as you can tell from her quick little stride, that the footing wasn't all that great. Ah well, it is what it is!

Wednesday, it hailed and sleeted on and off for essentially the entire day. I once again arrived at the barn as the sun was setting, shivering and soaked to the bone from a long day at work. I desperately wanted to get on P and pony Immy, but I didn't even have enough daylight left to haul out S's barrel saddle and bring it down to the barn before the sun was completely gone. I figured it wasn't too much of a loss, seeing as I was teetering on the verge of pneumonia anyway. The mares, on the other hand, were snug and warm under their blankies, and were perfectly happy to ride the elements out from the warmth and dryness of their shed. I couldn't complain as I got into my truck and blasted the heat the entire way home!

This morning, a horrible little squall blew in as I was feeding (see above). I figured there was no way the footing would be good enough for a workout of any sort tonight, but to my surprise it was dry enough for a lunge! There were still some wet spots here and there (definitely not safe enough for a ride on a greenbean), but it was more than adequate for another lunge with sidereins. I really don't usually lunge this often - I don't believe in making them pound on their joints round and round in a circle for long periods - but you make due with what you have! It is better than doing nothing at all, and keeps her from being too insanely fresh when I get back on. (These are short lunge sessions either way, so I don't feel quite so bad!)

She is pretty much the most adorable mare out there. Note to self: ditch the Supracor pad. It makes my saddle slip forward apparently! 

She is just now starting to understand the idea of sidereins at the trot... as you can tell by the picture below, she was still a little fresh about it!

Even though she was doing a naughty and trying to turn towards me in this picture... she's still just gorgeous.

P-mare is coming into heat for the first time this year, and is acting like a total whackadoo, running around and snorting and peeing on everything:

Gross. But, she looks SO pretty when she does it.


The good news is that there is NO forcasted rain in the next week!! The bad news? It is suppose to drop into the 20's when a cold front rolls in at 5am in the morning..... aw, man......

Back to the Grind

After a blip in catchability, one very intense dental session, and a few days of refusing to eat much of anything, Imogen is back to work and doing amazingly well. I can't believe how much better her attitude is already! 

Her little bit of time off before and after the dental work did good things for her brain. After I scared her half to death when I slapped her on the chest last week, we stepped back and did groundwork and grooming for a few days. This made a huge difference for her mentally, and I think it is a good default for when things are a little overwhelming for her. Working with an abused horse is very difficult, and maintaining trust in a relationship with a horse like Immy is a critical key. Without that, you have nothing. Obviously, there are going to be times when she needs to be disciplined for something or another (like if she runs me over again!), but she will learn with time that I am not going to whale on her in anger for no reason. It just takes time, and consistency - no surprises, and no deviations. She needs trust that I am not going to do anything scary and out of left field... it just takes time. 

This week went something like this in terms of a schedule:

Monday: Dentist

Tuesday: Off

Wednesday: Lunge in halter (and P and I went with S to her barrel race!)

Thursday: Off (Future Hubs and I were at The xx show in Dallas... you're jealous, I know!)

Friday: Groundwork

Saturday: Lunge in sidereins 

And the next few days will be as follows:

Sunday: Ride

Monday: Lunge in sidereins

Tuesday: Ride

Wednesday: Pool

Thursday we have a tentative craniosacral session scheduled, but it might actually happen on Sunday... I have to hear back from the therapist and see!

I can't believe the difference in Immy since her dental work. It just kills me that it has taken THIS long to have it done (months, literally), with all of the scheduling problems (on his end), the no-shows, the problems. I almost bailed on the guy and didn't use him, just because I was so annoyed, but I am so glad I didn't. The first few days following her dental were not so much fun, due to the fact that her extractions made her mouth pretty sore, but she managed to continue to eat the softest, fluffiest hay that I had for that time. She wasn't interested in eating her grain mush until Wednesday evening. By that time, she was back to her old self, but she had lost a few pounds in the process. She was looking amazing last week weight-wise, but looks a little less filled out this week. With her appetite back and her new set of chompers, I expect she'll put it back on quickly.

When I pulled her out for her grooming and lunging session on Wednesday, I had a huge surprise waiting for me. I have a grooming routine that I go through when grooming, and for whatever reason, I always start with my curry on the left side of her neck. From there I go up as high as she will tolerate, and then go back down her neck and onto her shoulder. Usually she raises her head and resists whenever I do this, not wanting me to go near her ears or poll, but nothing happened that time. Literally nothing! The same went for the right side of her neck. When I followed over with my medium brush, she let me groom her poll with NO head raising or reactions of any sort. NOTHING!

You have no idea how huge that is. HUGE! That is the first time she has ever, ever let me approach that area of her body without some sort of resistance. I couldn't believe it. I still can't!

As for our lunge session that day, it was short-lived. The ground had been slick and muddy for a few days following our last rainstorm, and I thought it had dried out enough for a lunge, but I was wrong. She did the slip-n'-slide for a few minutes before I called it, not wanting to cause a wipeout. 

Today was her first day back to real work. Once again, I was completely delighted with her attitude - she was calm, quiet, peaceful, and totally amenable to having her head and poll groomed. Bridling her was by far the easiest it has been, simply because she let me get near the top of her head without major issue. In fact, I'd say that was the best bridling she's ever had. (It also helps to have a clear bridlepath to work with... she hates having her mane pulled on!)

Her poos are WAY better as of this week as well... only a horseperson could be this concerned about horse crap! Granted, I did change a few things to see if I could have some improvement there, and they all seemed to happen at the same time (a round of SandClear, the dental, a few weeks on EquiShure, and a secondary probiotic that somebody gave me to try, just to see)... it is hard to say what worked, or what combo of things worked. But, something worked!

She was excellent today on the lunge. She's still not 100% sure about the sidereins, but she is starting to get the concept at the walk. I'm not one to crank down a set of sidereins to force a horse into a frame... I just want her to start getting used to the idea of contact. Once she is a little further along in her schooling, I will probably never use them again. When lunging my schooled horses, I only really ever use a chambon, but obviously Immy is NOT ready for that yet. 

Tomorrow, back to work under saddle!

Settling In

Our first few days at the new facility have been quite all right, if I do say so myself. The girls are transitioning into their new herd situation without a hitch, and are making some fast friends other than each other (thank god for that). P especially is totally enamored with everyone around her, and talks to all of them constantly. Imogen is, mostly, still just completely obsessed with P, although that too is diminishing. I am pleased (and a bit surprised) to report that both of them come right to me whenever I call them over - and they even call back! Who knew? They are more than happy to leave the herd and the snacks to come find me. Seeing as they are on 15 acres, and that it is now completely dark by the time I go to bring them in to feed some nights, this is totally a huge bonus. All I have to do is stand at the gate and call, and they come. 

Happy mares.

And look, here they come! Peas in a pod, these two.

It was a rude awakening this weekend to see how seriously obsessed they are with each other. Thankfully, I was right to assume that once they got out in a herd situation with other buddies, they would have other relationships to work on, and be able to not be totally stuck on each other. Monday night was a little bit hairy on Imogen's part, seeing as it was her first time really away from P in about a month in terms of tacking and prepping for a workout. She made a right fool of herself in front of the barn owner while in the barn, wiggling and screaming and pooping all over the place, worried about P. She also gave me her regular level of grief about bridling, and the barn owner suggested roundpenning her to try and fix that. I have absolutely no idea how that would actually help, but since I was a bit embarrassed I sort of halfheartedly agreed that it maybe was a good idea, sort of, I suppose. She unfortunately was not around to see today's grooming/tacking/lunging session, during which I had a totally silent and immobile mare to work with. She even let me take off her bridle with the least amount of fuss yet... we are getting there!!! I am super happy that Immy seems to be settling down day by day into a routine where there is no P around, or anyone else in fact save for me. I'm the one she needs to be worried about now!

She wore sidereins for the first time on Monday, and aside from an acceptable level of mouthing, she was totally fantastic. They are on the very last hole, of course, but they make a very light, light contact with her mouth, especially when she is bending. 

Yesterday both girls had a grooming and spa session (and they were wonderful angels who were both on their best behavior), and today Immy got back to lunging, this time with the rope saddle and sidereins:

She was a little bit amped up, but it wasn't unwarranted - chilly night, dark out, no friends. Sorry about the video quality - my phone battery is shot and it keeps dying before I ever get into the arena, so I have resorted to using my old dinosaur video iPod that I've had for a couple years now. You don't realize how far technology has come until you compare the two. Although considering that it is owned by me, the Queen Mother of Destroying All the Electronic Things, the fact that it is still alive and working is quite an amazing feat for it.

Tomorrow, M is coming to help me with ground driving for the first time! If all goes well and she is able to set us loose to work on our own, we'll practice ground driving for the next week or so.... and then we back her!