Wah wah wah

Right foot: You're killing me!!!

I think maybe I had a little TOO much fun with Hampton over the weekend. He was a bit stiff and sore today for our lesson. Not lame, just not as much pep in his step as usual. He was also gassy and my instructor said he looked a little bloated. So yeah, he felt like the rest of us did that morning! Bloated and unmotivated. We all have days like that. :)

We didn't do anything too difficult. Mostly worked on suppling the neck ... and working through Hampton's  "issue" of spooking at the DAMN DONKEYS every time we trotted by. If he wanted to shy, I made him work harder - cross his back legs and leg yielding until he decided it might be easier if he just trotted by and gave them the hairy eyeball instead of ramming his rib cage into my inside leg. Ugh. All I could do was laugh because even when he is being spooky and distracted, he does it in the sweetest way possible. Frankly by the time we had worked through the donkey problem, he was spent and was dragging his feet. Poor guy. He can have the next day or two off. I think the little galloping we did on Sunday made him sore. It is a whole different type of movement and he isn't use to it.

I rode Baxter as well and he was as fun as could be. We worked on shoulder-in, half steps, a little passage, and canter to walk - which he doesn't know yet but I think we should get there. You should see this pony's collected canter. It is heavenly and so friggin easy for him! I still need to learn to ride him better before going to a show. But I'm thinking maybe late May or June we can do First Level?

... in trailer news, it's looking more and more like the Hawk is going to win out ...

Mental health days

So I forgot about dressage-ing this weekend and just took a mental break with the horse. Saturday I set up a simple little free jumping shoot and three of us (It was Hampton, a little paint and a Walker plus my two human friends), sent our ponies through the chute. You may remember the last time I tried to free jump Hampton (early 2010 I think):

It was mostly me picking up the poles which he knocked over about 90% of the time. Well this time it went much better! Not only did he pick up his feet, but I had him jumping over two barrels (lying on their side). Looks like someone did some growing up and has started to figure out how to organize his legs! Although as far as form and scope go, he was easily outclassed by the Paint and Walker. lol. In fact the little Tenn. Walker was a scopey little thing! Who knew? Oh well. Guess we need to start some jumping lessons soon!

On Sunday I threw on my friend's hunt saddle and took Hampton for a hack. He packed me around while I worked on my two-point and galloping positions. I felt a little like a jockey with my stirrups so short (they were the correct length for jumping), but it was good for me. Then I took Hampton out to the wide open hay field and enjoyed a lovely hand gallop. Boy, he ROLLS over the land now. Last year he was a little poggo-stick like, and wouldn't really open his stride up. He is getting much better at that and relaxing into a nice gallop instead of just a quick canter. It also doesn't wind him up, he came right back to me when I said whoa and we walked calming back to the barn. What a treasure he is!

Today I am SORE from the 2-point work so I wimped out and just lunged Hampton. Tomorrow we are back in dressage land with a lesson. 

In other news:

• I am [THIS CLOSE] to getting a horse trailer. Right now it's between a KeiferBuilt and a Hawk. Here's the Hawk:

And here's the Keifer:

The Hawk has a rumber floor which I  LOVE ...  but of course it's more expensive. Both are two horse bumper pulls. The Keifer is a step up, the Hawk is a ramp. Both have dressing rooms (yipee!!) and are pretty similar otherwise. Although the Keifer is steel, the Hawk is aluminum. Thoughts?

Thunder poneh

After Tuesday's bomb-diggity lesson, I was almost dreading riding on Wednesday because I knew we couldn't top the performance from the day before. But I decided it would be an easy day so that there was no pressure. I picked the forward and back within the gaits exercise to concentrate on.

Well funny how your plans get screwed up in the midwest. As I was going out to the arena to lunge, a storm started rolling in. It had been about 75 degrees that day and I swear in the 10 minutes I was lunging, it must have dropped 20 degrees.

Hampton didn't seem at all bothered by the howling wind and scary clouds, so I got on, hoping to be a little productive before the weather forced me to stop. It was an ok ride. His poll stayed up (thanks wind and thunder!), and he was obedient. Tried some walk-canter transitions which were wonky and sticky. meh. I blame myself there for just not preparing him well enough. However the slow trot- big trot back and forth went quite well and I ended up getting some lofty big strides from him a few times.

There were a couple of spook'n'scoots as I call them as the barn dog was tearing around. Plus wind and thunder and the pressure changes. A lot of the horse in the field were running around but Hampton stayed right with me. I called it quits when I saw lightening. Just in time, too. As we made it back to the barn it started to pour. It was a short ride but oh well. That's Indiana for ya. *shrug* We have another lesson on Tuesday so I'm hoping I can get in some rides this weekend and Monday. One of those days maybe a trail ride or hack day.

Thank you everyone for your comments on the protected post. :) I'll be updating soon. My job hunt is going really well right now and I have a post about that, too! Funny how life can change so quickly!

In which Hampton channels his inner Totilas

We have crossed the threshold.

For a while now we have been tinkering on that line between still unbalanced, gangly 3-year-old to a more sophisticated 4-year-old. Well today we crossed the line.

My instructor said Hampton was the best she had ever seen him today. He was beyond brilliant and was trying. so. hard. for me. "Worthy of tears," my instructor said of our ride. :)

Yes it was as fun as it looks!

His canter was uphill, rhythmical. Transitions were crisp, round. I mean LOOK at the above photo? I can hardly believe it is my Hampton! Oh yeah, for comparison here was our canter one year ago:

EW! Crooked, leaning, out of balance and WTF with my foot?

We did work on making the leg yields more electric. Here's something new I learned. Say you want to leg yield to the right. Once your horse is sharp off your left leg (using spurs and whip if needed), then switch your whip to your right hand. As you leg yield, tap tap with the left leg AND tickle with the whip as a driving aid. This makes the horse really snap BOTH hind legs and develop a much straighter, sharper leg yield.

We also worked a bit on developing his trot lengthenings. He needs to learn how to put his front legs out in front of him a little more. So a few of our tries ended up more on the forehand than I prefer. Like this:

But that's ok for now. He's still in the developmental stage. :) Here is our working trot:

He was so uphill and supple today. He rode like a well-trained horse and also looked like one. This horse makes me look forward to seeing him every single day. Riding him is how riding is supposed to be - fun, challenging and rewarding. Looking back a year ago ... here was our trot:

Hard work DOES pay off! He was my Totilas today. THESE are the days we all hope and work towards. When your horse gives you 100% and is right there for you. My instructor said if I rode like I did today, we'd easily hit 70% at training level. That's assuming I don't mess up the test or have any other "situations." Uh, easier said than done. :)

March 22, 2011

oopsie

For those who got the password to my protected post, please make the first letter a capital F. :)

The pony's uh "other" job

So blogger does not to protected posts. So I went ahead and posted that on Wordpress.

You can read it here.

Please post your e-mail in the comments if you'd like to read it. Like I said, if you are a follower than I don't mind if you read it. I just don't want it "out there" for the general public. :)

***

He luvs the women

In other news, it seems Baxter the pony is more than just a fancy dressage mount. The BO is wanting to breed her Paint mare this spring and guess who makes a great teaser gelding?

You guessed it.

I had a lesson on Hampton yesterday and Baxter must have jumped the mare 4-5 times in the 40 minutes I rode. And by jumped I do mean that he took it all the way to the finish line. If you catch my drift. I warned the BO that she should make sure the mare is cultured as Baxter is not, uh, the cleanest of men and we don't want the mare to get infected. I was quite grateful that there were no kids at the farm yesterday. Hate having to explain THAT one.

***

Hampton was a super star yesterday! I am just so stinkin' happy with him. We worked on trot lengthenings, collecting the canter, shoulder-in, 10 meter circles, walk-canter and we tried our first canter-walk. No it wasn't good, but like my instructor said - you gotta start somewhere! :) My instructor really knows how to explain things to help me "get" an exercise. For instance, I was trying to get Hampton to collect his canter some (he tends to get the jumping horse canter going, lol) and on the left lead she says, "use your right rein to put his right hind leg on the ground." Bingo! That clicked in my head and we ended up getting a few good strides.

She also said that if I rode a test the way I rode yesterday, there is no reason we shouldn't be getting 70% at Training Level. So it's a goal I know I can reach! Yay!!

Even cooler in person!

Yesterday I met fellow blogger Amy from Slow and Steady Wins the Race. :) How cool is that! I also met her gorgeous steed, Steady. No offense to Amy's photography skills, but photos do not do him justice. He is tall (17 hands I think) and has an incredibly intelligent look about him. I of course fell for him instantly, how can you not? Check out her blog for their adventures. She is a really sweet person and I don't think that will be the only time we will meet up. Sadly I could not stay to watch them ride - but sometime soon I will.

Also, I stole this photo of Steady while his human was in the barn. So handsome!

I also have a protected post that is coming up. It's something I don't mind any of my followers reading, just not the general public. As soon as I get that set up I'll let those who want to read it know the password.

And I'm looking forward to riding Hampton tonight. Yay!

A little sumthin'

Hampton's eye looked so much better today. The swelling is almost totally gone and there wasn't any discharge today. He has a few more days of bute and ointment and I think we'll be in the clear. He's also wearing a flymask for added protection. If the eye still looks good tomorrow, I don't see any reason not to ride him. But then again, it's supposed to rain. Of course.

Tired poneh

So while Hampton was chowing down, I rode Baxter. Boy was he fun today! I worked on shoulder in and some half pass, but I think I'm doing something wrong on the left rein. When I put my inside leg back (for shoulder in), he swings his haunches in. Maybe I am still weighting my right seat bone too much? Also worked a little at the canter. Did some walk-canter transitions and worked on keeping the canter uphill and slow.

He's not nearly as fit as Hampton, so by the end of 30 minutes he was breathing pretty hard. Poor guy. :)

Zippy was also good today. He has starting working in side reins and learning all about contact. Under saddle he wanted to argue a bit and seemed to think turning his head upside down was fun. Ugh. But after a while, he was going round and soft and I was really quite pleased with him. He doesn't have the best neck for dressage work - it's sort of connects really low - but he's trying.

Still on the hunt for a new trailer. It's one of those "right time, right place" things when looking for a good used one. Shouldn't be too much longer, tho. I'd love to hit up the April show at Come Again Farm and take both Hamper and Baxter. That's a big maybe at this point. May is Harmony in the Park in Edinburgh - which would be our first rated show of the season. I was aiming for the 4 year old test there ... but I'm not sure Hampton is ready. It's no big deal if we just stick to training level.

Of course all my plans could go right out the window if my job situation changes. eeeps.

(also, it'd be really awesome if some of my readers would click on my google or Amazon ads so a poor horse-lovin' gal can make a little extra cash ... yeah, I'm shameless)

Punch You in the Eye

Well, well well. Hampton's little wound near the corner of his eye has now decided to become an infected, swollen oozing issue. It's quite swollen right under the eye - an area that was not affected originally, although now there is a missing patch of fur there. It was fine last night when I fed him. But this morning it was a different story. This time I DID call the vet, who gave me some bute and eye ointment. Hopefully that will clear things up. So, no riding for Hampton for a bit. That means Baxter and Zippy get more attention this week.

bleh. poor horse.

Hampton: 0; Run-in shed: 1

I guess it's a good thing I planned on giving Hampton the day off today! I found him out in the run-in shed, shivering, and blood running down BOTH sides of his face and one front leg.

A quick inspection stopped my near-heart attack as I realized a call to the vet won't be needed. The wounds were not bad. The "incident" must have just recently happened as they were still oozing blood. I took Hampton in, fed him, changed his blanket and then doctored him up with ointment. His leg had just a scrape. One side of his face had a thin line about 3 inches long - like maybe he caught it on a nail or side of the shed? It wasn't bad at all. The last wound was very close to his right eye. Thankfully, the eye was not hurt. But it was a close call. It is the worst of the cuts and again looks like he ripped a small chunk of skin off somehow ... maybe on the shed? It doesn't look like a horse bite. He was a good boy and let me clean that one up and slather ointment on it. It had stopped bleeding by the time we even got to the barn.

I'm not sure if he got to playing with someone and just got tangled up in the run-in shed? Or he got cast? Who knows! I do know that in gross weather like this (36 and spitting rain and snow), that he will hang out in the shed a lot. I'm thinking he may have just gotten into a rumble. *sigh*

Oh furlough, how I luv thee

Since I am on furlough this week, I have been spending my days out at the barn. The weather has been mostly cooperative - although yesterday was soggy and today it's looking even more wet and miserable. Oh Indiana - you kill me!

Baxter and I. 

Hampton has been doing well. When I lunged him Wednesday (I do still lunge him once or twice a week to help him warm up), his right hind looked weak again. It had been looking so good lately. I'm not sure what happened. The mud in the pasture is super sucky - and I do mean literally sucky - so perhaps he tweaked himself or it has just put a strain on that leg. He's not lame, it's just an obvious weakness. I made yesterday's ride pretty easy on him. Big circles, some leg yield. We even did some leg yielding at the canter. That went pretty well - after he figured out how to organize his legs. The first time I asked he tripped and almost face planted. While the footing isn't slick, it was sloppy and a little deep in areas so I'm blaming that, too.

Since it's extra crappy today he'll get the day off. And so will Baxter and Zippy.

I really need to STOP riding with my cell phone in my sweat shirt pocket! It has fallen out 5 or 6 times now - from Hampton's 17.1-hand back, into the wet sloppy sand. And it keeps ticking! Guess I have to give it credit. But really, I need to remember to either have it in a zipper pocket or leave it in my car.

Baxter just keeps getting more fun each time I ride him. If I ever get enough money to take 2 horses to a show later this year, he will go along and be my First Level poneh.

My saddleseat days

On Saturday, a friend and I are traveling to Illinois to visit out old trainers (we used to ride Morgans together "back in the day."). They train mostly Saddlebreds now and do have a few Morgans left. I'm amped to visit with them and see on the Skadaddlebreds work. It's such a different world to me now, even though I grew up in it. I do still appreciate the beauty of the horses and they ARE fun to ride ... it's just more about running damage control when you ride them, rather than the focused, goal-oriented skills in dressage.

In non horse-related news, I also have two job prospects on the table right now. One in Colorado and one in South Carolina. They both sound pretty good. :) Both would be a big move for me, but I'm ready for it.

Show photos :)

Thanks to my friend Steph for taking these. :)

Yipee! I remembered my test and didn't fall off! :)

Walking to the show ring ...

Hampton's all like "Um, what just happened to me?"

Box of Rain

It's gross and rainy today and I have to work this evening so pretty much all motivation has been lost to go ride. Meh. So here's a roundup of progress this week. (I'm still waiting on my friend to send me photos from the show ... I'll post those when I get 'em)

HAMPTON

We had a lesson on Tuesday in which my instructor really challenged both of us to step up our game. Lots of bending to the right (one of our "issues" right now), keeping the canter uphill, 10-meter circles, shoulder-in, many leg yields and the First Level shallow canter loop were some of the exercises we did. Our leg yields have, for reasons unknown to me, improved so much over the winter that my instructor was somewhat shocked and raved about how proud she was. That made me feel great! Last year, Hampton would yield sideways but he would shuffle over with minimal crossover. Now, he glides over with awesome crossover and is light off the leg. I do not know what I did but I'm happy with it! I also need to work on our halts. They tend to be sloppy and not always square. This is my fault for simply neglecting them. It's easy points in the test and there's no reason I should screw them up.

He has been good the rest of the week. The canter is really starting to improve as he gains strength. In fact on Thursday I was able to do counter canter. The big ring is large enough that counter cantering around one end is just enough of a challenge but still do-able for a green horse. It's not something that I am going to concentrate on at the moment but I wanted to see if we could do it. He still needs the canter half halt to be better before we start doing more advanced work. But I am so proud of him!

ZIPPY

Ok, this guy is turning out to be a sweet, sweet soul. It is obvious that he just needed a calm, confident leader. The snorting and spooking in the barn has stopped. He stands quietly tied and to be groomed. The only real issue with him is he still is somewhat difficult to bridle. I have to wonder if it's his wolf teeth (I can easily feel them). I told the BO and the dentist comes in April. Otherwise, this "white stallion" as I call him is now walk, trotting. He is light off the leg. His steering is now 100% improved. Light in the mouth. He's not spooky and has smooth gaits. He is going to make a super, super schoolie. Next up I am going to teach him to canter.

BAXTER

The first time I rode Baxter, there was lots of cussing and spinning in circles. He loves to run through the right rein. And when I say RUN - I do mean bolt and levade sideways at Mach 10. He got me one time. I don't believe I've ever crossed he length of that arena so quickly! I even had his head pulled to my knee - doesn't matter to him, he was running sideways. I got him stopped ... ok the fence on the other end of the arena got him stopped ... and then made him work. Next time I rode him I felt him begin to bulge through that right rein and I CLOCKED him hard in the mouth.

That's when I got his number.

Since then he has been super fun to ride! Shoulder-in, half pass, leg yields, half steps - you name it. He is well trained and knows a lot. But he is a punk and will take advantage of a rider if they do not make it clear that his punk ass behavior will not be tolerated. He is going to be so good for my riding since he is so SO opposite of Hampton. While Hampton can be stiff in the body, Baxter is an outright squirrel. Hampton can be a little dull at times; Baxter is HOT and sensitive. You have to give the correct aids or he will not do what you want. Hampton will keep on trying and guessing even if you are screwing up.

I am a lucky, lucky girl to have these three boys to work with right now. :)

OTHER NEWS

So, my horse trailer isn't really worth fixing. I'm selling it.

BUT ... I am getting a new one. Let the trailer shopping begin! I am hoping to get one by April. March wasn't looking good for shows anyway because of my work schedule. So my plan for March is to train train train. Then see about some shows in April.

I hope everyone else is doing well. Spring is almost here!

Equine ER: Life of an Equine Vet

Someone was doodling around on You Tube ... ok it was me ... and I stumbled across this series of short clips. They are really pretty interesting and at times funny. You may have to go to You Tube to watch them as for some reason Blogger cuts them off. Grrr.