Becoming an old hand

Soleil and I have been rather busy. I have been working a lot on getting her soft and to not lean on the bit she is catching on I would still like her to get softer and lighter but I want that for every single horse I ever ride or get on. So I am happy with how she is catching on. along with our trial rides around here, I hauled out and went to a park over in the black forest, for a change of pace and more exposure. I was quite impressed at how well she did. She was a little nervous at first but i just rode her like I would ride any other horse and kept her straight on the trail. In no time at all she settled in rather nicely. Along the way there were nature signs she didn't like them at first but after I rode her past a couple like it was no big deal soon it wasn't and we had a great ride. I am very happy with how this mare is making up her own mind to settle and decide that the world is not so bad out side. I look forward to more long rides and more progress.

Saddle Sore

Well with Bailey, (Winston) having some well deserved time off the pressure for a couple days was at an all time low. This gave me a chance to camp out on Soleil. Although I did have several other horses to ride during the course of the day I have been able to put 3-4 hour rides on her in the evening. This is just what the doctor ordered for this horse. After several circles trotting and loping around in the pasture she has finally decided that walking is the best way to go. She is now walking out of here relaxed as she can and keeping that gait the whole time. There are still times when she would like to jig around, however, she now is responding to rein pressure instead of having to work at it. She continues to get softer and lighter every day and that is the best news, as I love horses that are soft and light. She really steps out at a brisk walk and covers the country well, I have been letting her WALK as fast as she wants to as long as she stays in the walk. I look forward to her getting better and better as we continue to put longer rides on her, She is spooking less and less and is starting to look to me for the guidance instead of taking over and letting things get out of hand. Hope I have more good news to report next week. God Bless, BW

Hot to trot

Well we have been off and running with Soleil, and I mean that almost literally. When I first got on her to take her "out" on a ride, it was simply survival. I wanted to feel her out and see exactly where she was at. She was very nervous and unsure, however, this was also compounded with a general lack of respect for me on her back. We made it and we survived and I found out a lot of thing about this horse. First of all she is decent in the arena or round pen, so she knows some of the basics, (I filled in some gaps for her with some things that I like to have built in), so the trick is to get her to remember while we are riding out. See, with the basic foundation set even in the round pen, I will always have something to go back to when trouble arises. However I with her I decided to work on and build foundation while I am out on the trail. Shortly she became responsive and let me get some control of the feet. Getting control of the speed of the feet was a different story. Like I mentioned before, Soleil is a smart horse and i feel that she wants to be good and has the potential to be a gentle horse. So when she started softening up some, I put all that energy to work. Leaving the house she wanted to trot, so we trotted, up the hill, across the hill, down the hill, and back and forth and every place I could think to go. The key was that I was controlling the direction, and I had to be careful not to let her get herself wound up. Before long SHE made up her mind to walk. and I let her, she was still mouthing the bit and was a little nervous, but she was responsive and i left her alone. Shortly after that I turned her back toward home and she started the jigging again I sent her in a circle again, it took a few circles before she figured it out. But she did and walked home nice. I am very encouraged by the progress that she is making. With every ride we have to trot and lope less and less circles. I am excited for the day that she just walks out of here and back, and that day could be today. She seems to be sound on her back leg but I am keeping an eye on it. She has been picky about the grass that she eats, I know that it is good grass, all the other horses are lovin it, but it is different for her and I am sure that she will get used to it. I don't mean to sound like she is bad, because she is very good, but I don't need to work on and train on all the good things about her, and there are many, but i am using all her good points to build with and it is making my job easier. God Bless, BW

up and going

After letting her settle in for a couple days, I got started on Soliel's training this morning. I noticed when I first led her out of her pen that she had a tendency to be somewhat pushy toward me. Right away that was the first thing that I addressed. I got her on the end of the rope and shook my finger at her, at first she had no clue what I was doing then I shook the lead rope, light at first, then harder, until she shifted her weight backwards, I was quick to stop my action when she responded. In no time flat she was backing up relaxed with very little effort from me. Then I got on, today I mostly worked on softening exercises. getting her to flex laterally and then move her hind quarters, then we rolled over her front legs. Once she got used to me and my cues she settled in and relaxed nicely. All in all I believe this mare wants to be gentle and quiet. She seemed sore on her right hind, I think that this is something that she will work out of. But until then work will be light. I am excited to work with this horse because she is showing me that she is very smart and is willing to try and learn. Until next time, God Bless. BW