Hi all,
I don't know what your fall/winter has been like but ours is full of rain, wind and cold weather, I think we had about 2 weeks(not consecutively) of Summer and a few days of fall and this morning it was 28 degree's and then it has been raining and windy all day. Enough said.
After all that I have to admit that I have been going out to the barn everyday at about 6:30 or 7:00AM since the 10th of April 5-7 days a week. I have been working on how to get the best out of all of my horses, but my immediate attention has been on Silke.
The Trainer is not here anymore so it is up to me to continue to find the "holes" in my program. I truly have been having a lot of fun and I have learned so much about softness, feel, timing and body language. I could write something about Silke every day but it would be quite boring to most of you. I keep this blog going so that I can chart my progress.
So here is what we worked on today:
I put a 14 foot line on her and then I attached a 23 foot line and let the 14' line drag. This accomplished 2 things, Silke got used to something dragging beside her on both sides and it was heavy so she also got really light with a loose lead line at walk, trot and canter. Her Canter slowed way down and as soon as she went around relaxed, I asked her to stop. She seemed to like the game and she didn't really care that there was a rope following her on the ground beside her. I thought she might not like it, but I was pleasantly surprised, both ways. This should prepare her for long lining her for driving. I also worked on asking her to stop at all 3 gaits and then to stop on the rail between me and the rail, she did really well with this too. I always end the session with my getting on her and having her stand still at the mounting bench. well, I accidentally let go of the rein, and she walked slowly over to the gate 10 feet away and I called her name and she turned to me and I asked her to come back, and she did! She just let me know she was ready to go to the pasture. We played a bit longer and I got back on her, it was a great day and we ended on a good note too! I played with Bear and Feather today too and I cannot believe how different they are compared to Silke, she is so light and responsive, I am finding more holes in their programs than in Silke's. She is making a better horseman out of me!
Thanks for listening,
Cheryl & Silke
I don't know what your fall/winter has been like but ours is full of rain, wind and cold weather, I think we had about 2 weeks(not consecutively) of Summer and a few days of fall and this morning it was 28 degree's and then it has been raining and windy all day. Enough said.
After all that I have to admit that I have been going out to the barn everyday at about 6:30 or 7:00AM since the 10th of April 5-7 days a week. I have been working on how to get the best out of all of my horses, but my immediate attention has been on Silke.
The Trainer is not here anymore so it is up to me to continue to find the "holes" in my program. I truly have been having a lot of fun and I have learned so much about softness, feel, timing and body language. I could write something about Silke every day but it would be quite boring to most of you. I keep this blog going so that I can chart my progress.
So here is what we worked on today:
I put a 14 foot line on her and then I attached a 23 foot line and let the 14' line drag. This accomplished 2 things, Silke got used to something dragging beside her on both sides and it was heavy so she also got really light with a loose lead line at walk, trot and canter. Her Canter slowed way down and as soon as she went around relaxed, I asked her to stop. She seemed to like the game and she didn't really care that there was a rope following her on the ground beside her. I thought she might not like it, but I was pleasantly surprised, both ways. This should prepare her for long lining her for driving. I also worked on asking her to stop at all 3 gaits and then to stop on the rail between me and the rail, she did really well with this too. I always end the session with my getting on her and having her stand still at the mounting bench. well, I accidentally let go of the rein, and she walked slowly over to the gate 10 feet away and I called her name and she turned to me and I asked her to come back, and she did! She just let me know she was ready to go to the pasture. We played a bit longer and I got back on her, it was a great day and we ended on a good note too! I played with Bear and Feather today too and I cannot believe how different they are compared to Silke, she is so light and responsive, I am finding more holes in their programs than in Silke's. She is making a better horseman out of me!
Thanks for listening,
Cheryl & Silke
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