Ride #3: We canter!
I couldn't help myself. I wanted to ride today. I had all the horses in the middle pasture because Jean had her guys come over and get some sand and they were making multiple trips, so I left them in the middle so they didn't escape. When they had finished I decided to ride Lyric first because that way, the horses would be in the middle pasture and thus, in theory, up by the arena. Plus I wanted to take Dan on a cool down hack and figured I could pony Funny too. So, I went out and grabbed Lyric and we headed back to the barn.
She was mostly good although she had a few panicky moments. She did try to walk through me a time or two so we had to have words. But after a few cookies, she settled down. And she only got cookies when she softened and did pillar 1 and was relaxed. So for the most part, we did okay. She did poop like... 4 times, but... she was mostly settled. Ha ha! And she did try to leave when I took the halter off to put the bridle on. Um... no! I thought for a second I might actually lose her, which.. was a bit scary as the barn opens to the neighborhood! But I managed to keep her inside and get the bit in.
We headed up the arena in hand and did our pillar walking up there. She was a bit more settled because she could see them and she's more comfortable in the arena anyways I think, so.. she was much better there. We did our in hand work and she was good. She still can't quite figure out how to eat treats or alfalfa pellets with the bit in her mouth. hee hee. She tries but they end up eeking out of the corners of her mouth in a big drooly wad. Gross! So, I decided to just stick with "good girls" and wither scratches. We did a couple of laps in pillar 1 with some transitions and then also added a little pillar 2 and 3. I do think that today we actually got a true pillar 2. I think she's actually able to lift now!!!
So then I hopped on and we practiced pillar 1 at the halt. Yeah... we definitely need more work with that. She's still pretty clueless about contact. But we did get some softening, which I immediately rewarded. So then we walked. And she's gotten much softer in her walk. Steering still is tricky. Hee hee. And especially tracking right.... straight is hard! She wants to bulge right so bad. We picked up the trot and I tried to ride much more forward and I tried to ride her into the contact. But... I just don't know if I can do it. I feel like I'm just teaching her to hang on the bit and I don't want that. I want her to be soft to the contact, not sit on it. So maybe I wasn't fully committed which is why it didn't work??? But, it didn't really work. And steering is still hard. There's one corner where I kept thinking she was going to smash into the fence.. TURN baby girl, turn!! So we went back to practicing that an inside leg and an inside rein means soften in the turn, and then you get "released". And then... we went back to trotting and then I made sure I had breaks. And then... we cantered. Because, you know... clearly we are not accomplishing things at the trot, and barely accomplishing things at the walk, so ... why not!? ha ha. I know, I know. I really do know but... I had to indulge myself. So we cantered!
Left Lead Canter Trotting in our third ride; aiming for more forward
We started on the right lead and she picked it right up. It was actually kind of nice. Not too fast, but forward. And she has the snorty snorts when she canters. After we did a few loops she fell out of it, so I let her and we trotted and then walked. So then we tried for the left lead canter. We got the right lead twice... and then finally we ran into the left lead. She held it for a bit and then I asked for a trot, and she did. Good girl! We did a bit more trotting and then some good work in the walk with a relaxed neck and then we headed back in.
I decided to try riding a little in the pasture, so... good girl that she is, we went through the gate without me having to get off. Yeah cowpony! We headed towards the barn and veered away from the horses and I tried for a trot. Ha ha.. That was a very forward trot that then turned quickly to a canter with a bit of a bolt feeling to it, so... we came back to a walk. She was getting nervous, so... we headed back to the barn and then towards the horses again. Then we trotted up the hill alongside the pasture, which created a LOVELY trot, but the she turned and headed towards them and got really quick and wouldn't listen, so... I had to seesaw to get her to stop. Ugh. Whoops. So then we trotted a few steps away and she was good so I rewarded her with stopping and then heading back to the horses. Then I got off and I opened the gate for the horses so they could come to the barn while I untacked her. They didn't... doh! But she was good and didn't panic in the barn like she did in the beginning. I was able to get her rinsed off too. She was good. And then when I turned her out, the fool didn't even go galloping back to the others, but instead stayed there and ate some hay. Really?! Oh well. She was good overall!
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