Sunday Stills Challenge - - Motion with a touch of poetry.......

This weeks Sunday Stills Challenge was on motion. Obviously when I think motion the first thing that comes to mind is horses. There's nothing I like better than a pretty moving horse.



I have to admit I cheated on this post. Between the new glasses and the new contact lenses I haven't figured out yet how to change the settings on my also new camera so I pulled this pics from the archives.



They were taken at my annual open house last September. I must admit I am longing for summer again when my horses are slick and shiny again and all that icky winter hair is gone. Thought maybe posting a few of these would cheer me up a bit.



I didn't pull just any pics from the archives, I pulled the ones I'd never use for promotional shots because they're just not "that" kind of shot. However, they're great for this challenge on motion.



You never know quite what to expect when turning Arabian horses loose for an event like this. They are such hams and the somehow know the crowd is there just to see them, they can't help but put on a show.



As you can see from the "content" the horses had their own ideas and added some poetry to the motion in most of these shots. Like I said, there's nothing I like more than a great moving horse.......except maybe one with attitude!



I should probably be doing some kind of contest for captions for a couple of these shots! What do you think? LOL

The horse in the first two pictures is Rhapsody. The next two pictures are Trouble. Then there is Tag followed by Dare.

Visit Blog Village and vote daily for this blog Here They are now measuring the rankings by votes out, so if you find my blog on the site, please click that link too to improve my rankings. TY

Friday Funnies - - Rules of the Barn

1. I am human. You are horse. What I say goes. Please take that into consideration when you are standing on my foot.

2. Spilled grain is not "fair game", especially when it is spilled in another horse's stall. It still belongs to that particular horse. You have no reason to go in and eat it.

3. Poop does not need to be hidden. I clean your stall every day. I will Find it. Do not hide it.

4. I do not need your help when I clean the barn, nor do I need your supervision, or even your presence. I have been cleaning the barn and stalls ever since you lived here. I know what I am doing. Standing at the door staring at me, will not make me clean faster.

5. There is no need to go into the barn and help yourself to the feed. Meals Are given at specific times of the day -am and pm. There is a feed schedule. You know the schedule. I know you know the schedule. You know that I know that you know the schedule. There is no need to help yourself.

6. Water buckets are not toys. Neither is the gate, pitchfork, wheel barrow, whatever is in the wheel barrow, fence,
or the occasional dog.

7. The wheel barrow is there for a reason. Please do not try to move it while I am cleaning your stall.

8. Just because I go into the Barn doesn't mean you automatically get food. There is other stuff in the barn. Stuff you don't want. Like de wormer and fly spray , shots, medicine.

9. Sheath cleaning will NOT be enjoyed...by anyone.

10. Water travels through the hose. If you are thirsty, do not stand on the hose. The water buckets will fill much faster.

11. Not everything has to be high drama. None of the following things will kill you: fly spray, plastic bags, balloons, hoses, chipmunks and other small rodents, or bright blue tarps.

12. Although I understand the need for you to go to the bathroom, it is not necessary to hold it in all day until the moment I finish cleaning you r stall and put away the wheel barrow.

13. Accidents happen. However, I'm not altogether sure you're not trying to kill yourself. Next time you decide to impale yourself on some sort of object, please try to do it when it's not hailing, midnight, the weekend, or Christmas.

14. While I appreciate your need to be clean, pooping in your water bucket does not make my job easier, and it deprives you of water. Please find a new spot.

15. Whinnying as loudly as you can in my face does not make me feed you any faster.

16. I have to wait patiently too while you are having your shoes tacked on. There is no need to bite me.

Visit Blog Village and vote daily for this blog Here They are now measuring the rankings by votes out, so if you find my blog on the site, please click that link too to improve my rankings. TY

A Bit of Humor

I received this in an email today and I couldn't resist sharing it here. Since I was stuck at home due to our unexpected snow causing bad roads between here and Richard's, today seemed like as good a day as any to share so here goes.....

Jesus and the Burglar

A burglar broke into a house and shined his flashlight around looking for valuables.

He picked up a CD player when a strange, disembodied voice echoed from the dark saying: 'Jesus is watching you.'

He nearly jumped out of his skin, clicked off his flashlight and froze.
When he heard nothing more he continued. Just as he pulled the stereo out he heard: 'Jesus is watching you.'

Freaked out, he shined his light around frantically. Finally, in the corner of
the room his light beam came to rest on a parrot.

Did you say that?' he hissed at the parrot. 'Yep,' the parrot confessed, then squawked, 'I'm just trying to warn you that he's watching you.'

The burglar relaxed. 'Warn me, huh? Who in the world are you?'

Moses,' replied the bird.

Moses?' the burglar laughed. 'What kind of people would name a bird Moses?'

"The kind that would name a Rottweiler Jesus."



Visit Blog Village and vote daily for this blog Here They are now measuring the rankings by votes out, so if you find my blog on the site, please click that link too to improve my rankings. TY

Are You Over-Horsed?

Most of us have heard that green horses and green riders don't make for a good mix. It's probably obvious to most why that happens to be true. Yet the instance of people riding horses who are beyond their skill level seems to be a pretty acceptable norm while it is just as dangerous a combination as green horses and green riders ever was.

Any time I go to a public event involving horses examples of over-horsed individuals are readily available. It doesn't seem to matter whether the people have a trainer or not, it's common practice to see people with an equine companion that is beyond their skill level.

It's easy to tell the worst of these horse/rider pairs from others, they are the ones with chronic problems. You see them in the warm-up and then in the ring fighting the same issues and the issues never seem to get resolved. If anything they just keep getting worse.

The horse might be tipping its head upside down and running off through the bridle. Or the horse might be bucking and kicking out instead of going forward. Other examples would be stopping and backing instead of doing the required gaits, running off, running the rider into walls, trying to run out the gate. You can name about any bad behavior and you'll probably see it from a horse that has learned its rider does not have the skill to get the horse to behave properly.

Sometimes the rider acquired the horse with these issues and doesn't have the skills to resolve them. Other times the rider causes the issues riding off of the horse's mouth instead of driving the horse forward into the bit. This horse develops bad behaviors trying to protect itself. Either way the combination of a rider with more horse than she/he can handle is a serious issue.

The unfortunate thing about this situation is it is a lose/lose for all concerned. The horse learns it can get away with unacceptable behavior making that horse difficult for any rider. Fixing this kind of horse can be near impossible sometimes. The odds that horse will ever be suitable for a less than experienced rider are slim to none if it even can be fixed.

A rider with this kind of horse loses confidence and may even develop fear. The rider may even lose all interest in horses out of frustration and lack of success. Sooner or later someone is going to be seriously hurt if the horse isn't sold first. There can be no other outcome with a horse that continues to learn it can cheat at whatever is asked of it.

If the relationship isn't terminated sooner instead of later, injury is part of the downhill spiral. Horses packing riders they don't respect can do many very dangerous behaviors. The more they get away with, the more the boundaries are pushed and the more dangerous things can become. It can become a downward spiral with no end in sight if the relationship is not terminated.

So how do you know if you are over-horsed? First off you have to get honest with yourself. It's impossible to see yourself as a great rider and accept that a horse is too much for you. If you can't get a horse through chronic behavior, then that horse is probably too much for you. If your horse is "good" for the trainer but naughty for you, it probably means that horse has your number. That would be another indication that the horse is too much for you.

In these kinds of relationships it's pretty easy for the owner/rider/handler to "blame" all kinds of things for a horse's bad behavior. It can be poor training, bad timing, the horse next to you, mares cycling in heat, who knows what else. Such excuses will not fix the situation. They will only hide it and thus make it worse. If your horse has chronic bad behavior, you've been working at it and it's not improving dramatically, then you and your horse are probably not a good fit.

It would probably be better for both of you to move on and cut your losses. Pouring more money into this kind of situation in the form of training or even more shows never works because money can't change the fundamental problem which is a negative history between this horse and rider.

The chances that a rider will gain enough confidence riding this kind of horse to actually ride through these issues are probably slim to none. Even if a trainer can fix the horse, horses never forget despite what some people say. They have long memories when it comes to things that have been threatening to them (which is the usual cause for horses developing this kind of behavior in the first place), the odds are the "offending" rider will be remembered by the horse and the pair will still have to resolve the issues between them together.

I'm not saying that this can NOT be done. I am saying that it is highly unlikely. The chronic bad behavior of any horse is not an issue for the faint of heart. One must be pretty darn determined, even more talented and not all that concerned about life and limb because a horse with chronic behavior will fight hard to hang onto what is within their comfort zone.......and that would be misbehaving.

Do you have an experience with a horse that was too much for you? I know I do.....



Visit Blog Village and vote daily for this blog Here They are now measuring the rankings by votes out, so if you find my blog on the site, please click that link too to improve my rankings. TY

Preparations................and Set Backs

As the countdown continues there are a lot of last minute things Richard and I are trying to get accomplished. Just like any plan there are those things that come up along the way that must be dealt with so the plans can be completed at all. So as we try to get down our list a new set of things to do is emerging.

Good body clipping requires thorough bathing first. The easiest way to do that requires warm water. The soap just doesn't lift the dirt the same with cold water and trying to get that deep down ground in dirt is near impossible. However, warm water baths are out of the question on my farm.

Angie and Richard have a portable unit that heats water for bathing. Wouldn't you know, that unit requires fixing, so getting parts was added to the list. The nearest dealer with parts is in Olympia making it a half day project just to get parts not counting any repair time for the unit.

Tracking down some new blades without having to pay $30 or more for them has also become a priority. Since the idea of body clipping hadn't come to me sooner when I could have ordered them from a catalog for half the price. Overnight shipping would defeat the purpose so the hunt is on for something nearby. If the blades can't be located I'll be ordering them online and touching up my clips after the fact. Not the most efficient way to go, but sometimes that's the best one can do.

Whatever additional horse clothing I don't already have must be purchased so these horses stay warm once their warm winter coat has been removed. Of course that assumes we can track these things down anywhere within our area. More time ticking away on this project as well.

On that list of things to do we had ideas about what we wanted to accomplish with these horses under saddle before our guests arrive. While we are trying to accomplish these things we're also trying to keep the other horses on their work schedule as well.

I started off the day thinking it would be like any other work day. We'd be working on horses as we worked out a schedule. But things have a way of not going the way I'm thinking.

Richard already had orders from Angie to get to Olympia today for the water heater parts. He wanted to be headed that direction by noon. Had I known that before I arrived at his farm, I'd have brought different horses on my first load. Instead of the yearlings and Legs I'd have brought the geldings and Vee. In hindsight, maybe that would have saved me some frustration.

The guys showed up to repair the lawn mower so Richard ended up staying later than he planned. That made it possible to work in that second load with Vee and both geldings.

My frustration came in the first load. The yearlings were great. The source of my frustration had to do with Legs. It seems like every time things are going great something happens and happen it did.

The horse came off the trailer with a deep gash in his right hind pastern. It looks like he'd stepped on himself and cut himself with his shoe. The gash is ugly enough that Legs is now on stall rest and antibiotics. Once again things with my stallion are on hold.............



Visit Blog Village and vote daily for this blog Here They are now measuring the rankings by votes out, so if you find my blog on the site, please click that link too to improve my rankings. TY

To Body Clip.........Or Not?

The clock is ticking on our countdown for people flying in to see horses. While I still don't know exactly what day is D-Day, I believe the party is arriving in Seattle sometime this weekend.

With all of the issues Richard and I have dealt with this winter, the training of the horses has been bumped time and again. I think we've decided that the most any of the three geldings has is about 63 days including groundwork and under saddle work. Considering the off again on again schedule, these horses are doing remarkably well. Of course, we're still trying to get "that last bit" done before our people arrive.

I thought I had my time all scheduled out when Angie brought up the subject of body clipping. Just the sound of those two words makes me itch not to mention my concern about the horses with this odd winter we are experiencing. The severely fluctuating temperatures are bad enough with horses having a winter coat. I hate to think what it'll do to them if they're naked.

That leaves me in a quandary. I make decisions for my horses based on what is best for them. I have to be honest the thought of body clipping horses followed by plummeting temperatures does not sound "best" for any equine. Then seeing how sweaty these horses get during some of their workouts doesn't seem "best" either. There are definitely two sides to this coin.

Sooooooooo, I've been digging out extra blankets, hoods and sleazies checking to see what I've got and that it's in good working order. If all the parts are in place and the weather co-operates with mild enough temperatures to bathe and get the job done and life doesn't interfere with some wierd diversion, I'll probably be foregoing my dread of the great body clip itches and taking on this project.

I'd really hoped to just do show clips on their faces. I didn't even want to clip their ears because of the prospect of freezing temperatures. However, since many people can not see through winter hair, I guess I will have to grit my teeth and dive in. I doubt that Uncle Sam will respect my decision to do what is "best" for the horse in place of what is "best" for my business. Sometimes I sure wish I didn't have to deal with that tax man, that's for sure.

If it turns out that the hair comes off, I'll be taking pictures and doing a series of posts on the process of body clipping for the Arabian horse show circuit. I know I promised to do that quite a while back but the pictures did not turn out so I've been waiting for more "victims."



Visit Blog Village and vote daily for this blog Here They are now measuring the rankings by votes out, so if you find my blog on the site, please click that link too to improve my rankings. TY

Sunday Stills Challenge - - Architecture

This weeks Sunday Stills Challenge was on architecture. Ed jokingly added that he thought about eliminating barns but didn't. Saying it wouldn't be fair. Geez! You bet not fair since many of us who particpate own horses and live in the country. Not only are barns of major interest to us, they're about the only thing we get to see. LOL



The first two pictures of different sides of the same barn. This barn was intented for hay storage but as the size of my herd has expanded that has changed. Little modifications here and there have created stalls for over flow. We hope someday to convert this back to strictly hay storage. With this many horses we really need it.



This last picture is my usual quirky addition to Sunday Stills. While maybe this doesn't really qualify as architecture, it is a dwelling. If you don't think so just ask the birds who live in this little condominium.

Can You Believe It.....on the Arabian Horse Farm....Bigtime!

Sometimes I just don't know what to expect out of life. By the time I think I have things figured out something new comes along and knocks me for a loop. Today has been one of those days.

It started last night when I got a call from a friend. Lindsay had told me she'd called earlier in the day when I was still working horses. I'd forgotten about that call until the friend called again.

I expected my friend to be calling about Daffodil business or maybe something about the rescue stuff being organized for our county. Instead she began telling me about a woman she'd met through those efforts that was trying to locate flood victims from those floods of last month.

The woman had contacted county officials and wasn't getting any help finding horse owners who had flood damage on their property. She had grant funds for flood victims and needed to get them disbursed or return them.

My friend remembered reading Farm Flooding at Rising Rainbow Arabians and seeing those pictures on my blog. She thought I might fit the criteria and qualify for help with the amount of flooding we had experienced and Dave losing his job. The friend was calling me to verify and put me in touch with this woman.

I have to say off the top of my head I figured our flooding sure didn't amount to what others had gone through. Even though the flooding here had reached the scope of our hundred year flood table, I thought we'd fared pretty well. We only had barn aisleways under water and about 9 wet stalls. We hadn't lost any feed although we lost use of our fields for a few weeks. I told my friend all of that and she still seemed to think we fit the criteria. It had something to do with silt damage and boy we did have silt. That stuff was everywhere about an inch thick in my turnaround not to mention that in my fields.

I took down the name of the woman and the partial name I was given of the organization she represents. I was supposed to email my friend a couple paragraphs or so telling what had happened here and include the pictures. I planned on doing that today after I got my work done with the horses.

Then today after dropping off my first load of horses and loading up the second, I went into the house to use the rest room before I headed back to Richard's. I checked the messages on my answering machine while I grabbed a bun and slapped a piece of meat and cheese on the thing so I could head back to Richard's as quickly as possible and still get a bite to eat.

The third and final message on my machine was from this woman,
Wilma Thornstead from the organization known as Ripley's. Ripley's what I didn't catch from my friend and the woman only said Ripley's. She left me her home number and a cell number and asked me to call her back asap.

I waited until I pulled into Richard's to make the call since I don't have a hands free device for my cell phone (they make me crazy). I figured I could unload the first horse and talk at the same time.

Imagine my surprise to hear this woman telling me my farm qualified for pasture relief from the extent of our flooding. Her organization was going to supply us with a month's worth of hay for my horses. I asked if we needed to fill out paperwork or provide pictures and other documentation only to be told it was already authorized. It was a done deal she just needed to pay for the hay and set up delivery.

To be honest, I was in shock. Things like this just don't happen to me. But hear I was talking to a woman asking me if I had storage for 8.5 tons of hay and if orchard grass was all right. Well, I do have that kind of storage and orchard grass is great but who gets that kind of help out of nowhere?

I heard Wilma say again she needed to pay for the hay. Then she'd call us back to make arrangements for the delivery. But to be honest, I still didn't believe it. I gave her both my cell number and Dave's telling her he would probably be the person home to "accept" a delivery since I'd be gone working horses whenever this was all worked out. I nearly forgot to say "thank you!" I was still so stunned.

I swear it wasn't fifteen minutes later when Wilma called me back happy to tell me the hay was paid. Then she said she was sorry they couldn't do more. (In my head I'm thinking MORE, what the heck, lady do you know how much this means!! but the words didn't come out!)

Wilma also said we needed to call the feed company to set up a time for delivery. She'd tried to call Dave but hadn't reached him so she'd left a message with the phone numbers. OK, by now it's beginning to sink in, I'm getting free hay for a month within the next few days and I darn well better get my hay loft cleaned out so there's somewhere to put it. Still to be honest, I was in shock! I didn't know what to say and a mere "thank you" just didn't seem like enough. I did however manage to get the words out but they just seemed hollow next to the gift I was just given.



I tried to call Dave but didn't reach him either. However, shortly after he called me to say he'd received Wilma's call and the hay was on its way. But Dave was really confused, all he knew was he got a call from an unknown woman telling him to make arrangements for a hay delivery. He had no idea why we were getting hay or who this woman was, let alone that it was "pasture relief."

The first phone call I made to Wilma was at about 1 pm and now it was only 1:30. Dave had called the number for delivery and the hay was coming NOW, not in a day or two or next Monday, it was on its way. Dave heard they had only been waiting on an address to deliver.

Dave had barely arrived home from a dentist's appointment. Now he found himself franticly rushing to get the loft cleared out. He felt as off balance by this whole thing as I did. In my mind I'm thinking, "If this is a dream, don't anyone pinch me. I want to relish it for a while."

The next time I talked to Dave it was a little after 3 pm. I was on my way home with my second load of horses worked. The hay had not arrived yet. I figured they must have had to load it first and the truck would probably arrive sometime after I did.

Well, that was wrong........This truckload of hay arrived maybe a minute ahead of me. As I rounded the corner to my street I saw the rig pulling into my driveway. It was REAL! This beautiful load of orchard grass hay was going into MY farm!!

By 4:30 all 8.5 tons were snug in my loft. The delivery truck and trailer were gone. Both Dave and I were sitting in our living room stunned! We are still stunned. To show you how stunned Dave is, about an 10 pm he says to me, I guess this means I don't have to go get hay on Sunday. Yupe, those brain cells are too stunned to work! I wonder how long that will last? LOL

These people from an organization I don't even know the whole name of gave us a month's worth of hay for my entire herd of 28 horses because of the silt damage to my pastures. Can you even imagine?? Like I said before, if this is a dream, don't anybody pinch me. I'd really like to relish this for a while. Talk about taking a load of stress off.......

I'm going to have to find out the full name of this organization so I can properly thank them. And, of course, I need to say a big thanks to my friend. I'm pretty sure even she will be surprised at the extent of this help. She'd said something like maybe $500 worth of hay......... this was a whole lot more money than that. I really am speechless........and grateful. It couldn't have come at a better time. Good things do happen sometimes. Can you believe that?

Note: These pictures are a couple of the pictures I intended to send my friend to show our flooding.



Visit Blog Village and vote daily for this blog Here They are now measuring the rankings by votes out, so if you find my blog on the site, please click that link too to improve my rankings. TY

Giving It Another Try........

Believe it or not, I gave another try with the contact lenses today. My appointment was at 10 am so I delivered a trailer load of horses to Richard's first. Then Dave picked me up and took me to my appointment while Richard and Jessica worked my horses.

Well, I guess Richard mostly worked them because Jessica took a header off a horse on Tuesday and banged into the wall pretty badly. She has a bruised chin and a bump on the back of her leg and isn't moving all that great. So while she was there to help Richard to day, it was something of a slow day for Jessica.........but I digress, back to my contacts.

We got caught in construction and arrived a few minutes late for my appointment but the doc was waiting for me. He first adjusted my new glasses because they're sliding down and falling off my face every time I bend over.........not a good thing when trying to work horses. Putting on leg wraps and picking feet is a chore as it is without having my glasses falling off. I don't do blind well........

So we got those fixed and moved on to putting in my new contact lenses. I did so well putting them in and taking the out the first time but my second attempt at either task did not got well. With the first attempt at taking them out ending in this disaster , putting them in for the second time didn't go much better.

It took several attempts at the left eye before I ever got that one in and from there it only got worse. I realize that most people start off with the right eye, but since I can only see up close with the left eye, that's where I have to start or I'm putting in both eyes pretty much blind.

It was the second eye that was the killer. I just couldn't seem to get that contact to want to stick. I'll bet I spent twenty minutes working that thing. It wasn't until the doc left me on my own to keep trying that I got the thing in place. Actually it was my first attempt after the doc left so then I had to wait until he was done with the next patient before we could finish up and I could be on my way.

By the time we arrived back at Richard's, they already had the 3 horses in the trailer worked and loaded so I drove my rig home (yes, wearing my new contacts - but not seeing all that clearly) dropped off those horses and loaded up 3 more and drove back to Richard's to ride.

Because my lenses are set up for my right eye to see distance and my left to see up close AND the fact they don't have the prism I have in my regular glasses, my poor eyes and were not sure of what to make of this situation. My poor brain was even more confused than my eyes. The picture I was receiving was not what the doc told me it would be. He says it will get better and I sure hope he's right because right now I can't see clearly anymore than about 50 feet. Past that distance I see outlines fine but can't read signs or tell details on faces. Not the best way to drive or for that matter to ride.

I did manage to get horses tacked up ok. and the riding went ok. The horses were a bit goofy and I don't know if it was from me or not. I didn't feel stressed about riding and I didn't feel like I was particularly struggling with my vision but something sure had them going, that's for sure.

Vee was on the bucky side which I attributed to her not liking my neoprene pad......which she detests almost as much as the crupper. (Did I ever mention she launched poor Jessica a couple of weeks ago over that crupper?) The mare also resisted going forward so tomorrow it will be back in the long lines and I'll be trying a different saddle pad to see what we get.

The other two geldings were off to the races. Neither horse wanted to slow down despite being lunged. It took them a while to get underneath me and slow down and I was stripping off layers of clothes working up a sweat. But I managed to stay on ok and not get disoriented by the new prescription.

By the time I got home I was an hour and a half past the time I was supposed to take out my contacts. I still had one load of horses to work but that depended on getting those lenses out in a reasonable amount of time.

Just what IS a reasonable amount of time to a new wearer of contact lenses? I have NO idea but I can tell you it took me about ten minutes to remove the first contact from my right eye and another fifty to get out the second. When I called Richard he was heading off on a road ride with the kids and I called it a day.

Currently my left eye is very sore. I'm still concerned about the vision I have when wearing the contacts but have been told to give my eyes a few days to adjust. And I'm feeling a bit on the crazy side. I don't get how my eyes adjusting is going to take me from blurry at a distance to clear at that distance but one can only hope.

I am going to give it a try because it's really nice to ride without my glasses sliding down my nose. Or worse yet, getting fogged up because of the cold air and my hot breathe with all this posting on baby horses.

Tomorrow is another day, I hope. Depending on how long it takes me to get those suckers in at home by myself and if I can tolerate six hours of them in place. Oh, and let's not forget, arriving safely to and fro because I'm driving in these things when I can't see like I'd like.

All I can say is it's a good thing I am used to driving by what I think is there instead of going off what my eyes see. It might sound scary but, ask my kids, it's very effective in this case. I really hope we get to work nine horses tomorrow, show season is barreling in on us.

Note: The picture above is Dandy. We're trying to decide the best place for the horse's head for hunter pleasure. In addition to height we are also considering his movement at the different spots we have tried. This is where Richard thinks he likes it best.........me, I'm not so sure.

Visit Blog Village and vote daily for this blog Here They are now measuring the rankings by votes out, so if you find my blog on the site, please click that link too to improve my rankings. TY

Birthday Surprise!

Yesterday was my birthday. I see other bloggers post about their birthdays and anniversaries and what they've done to celebrate. And I'd like to do that too, so I thought I'd share the birthday cake I recieved from Richard on my cell phone.

I have to tell you it's the first decorated birthday cake I've received in about 50 some years. I don't know whether to laugh or cry over that statement but one thing's for sure. I can appreciate its sentiment and the added bonus it had absolutely zero calories...........not bad for a woman wanting to lose thirty pounds.

To celebrate Richard and I worked horses. Well, what else would two horse crazy fools like us do on a winter's day? We only worked two loads of horses instead of three but six horses is still a lot and mostly it was fun.

The two yearlings are beginning to get an idea of what I'm asking them to do with their feet. And their condition is actually beginning to improve, although we've got a long way to go on that.

Legs is going just down right awesome. The horse just gets better and better each day. By the time show season rolls around we should be ready to go. Nationals is definitely the goal for the two of us this year and hopefully another horse or two.

Vee is beginning to understand what I'm asking her for regarding that left lead. The mare is getting the correct lead often enough now that I'm going to change the focus from the lead to improving the quality of the gait. She's getting a nice lope to the right but that left one has a ways to go to catch up, that's for sure. Once that gets fixed, it'll be time to begin working on frame.

The other two horses worked yesterday were Percy and Hope. Poor Percy probably felt picked on because Richard worked him on the ground. Jessica rode him some in the round pen and then I finished him up outside the pen.

Then Richard worked Hope in the long lines. We're getting ready to do video on her and her brother, Louie, for someone in Texas so he's working on the "final touches." Even thinking about it makes me want to weep.....I love this mare. Selling her was not what I'd hoped to do with her.

That in a nutshell is how I spent my birthday. Doing what I love best.........and that's working with my horses.

Visit Blog Village and vote daily for this blog Here They are now measuring the rankings by votes out, so if you find my blog on the site, please click that link too to improve my rankings. TY

Horse Related Injuries

Loving horses can have it's down side. Mostly, for me, that would be the possibility that I might get hurt. I've been pretty lucky over the years and nothing really serious has happened to me. Or maybe it would be more correct to say that nothing I THOUGHT was really serious has happened. In hindsight I must admit there's a couple of instances where I should have gotten medical attention when I did not. I am lucky because nothing bad happened those times.

My friend, Lori, was kicked in the head by a horse about a month ago. From what I can tell with no health insurance she opted not to go to a doctor. I've been worried about her since I first heard of this accident. No one knows better than me what a head injury can mean. Also no one knows more than me what dangers lie in not seeking treatment for such an injury so I have been worried about my friend.

Efforts to contact her have been fruitless adding to my concern. Then yesterday she posted a picture of her injury.

Now I'm even more worried. Lori is having trouble thinking and I certainly understand why. Not being able to contact her means I cannot talk to her about my concerns either, which doesn't help my worrying.

I know that anytime during the healing process things can go wrong with a head injury. Certainly an injury like this probably includes broken bones in Lori's face as well as trauma to her brain. Neither of these types of injuries should be left untreated. The long term ramifications of such are something I don't even want to thing about.

Since I cannot make contact with my friend about the only thing I know I can do is pray and ask others to pray for my friend as well. Hopefully that will be enough to see her safely through recovery. So please......pray for Lori. I think she really needs our help.

Born a Horse..........and Awards

My friend, Kimberly, over at I Gallop On wrote a beautiful post that I can totally relate to. I, too, was born a horse.

I can't even imagine my life without wanting one, needing one, being one. I get Arabian horses and they get me. We communicate in a way that says we are one kind. It's a feel, a touch, an instinct to belong with the herd, to be one with the herd.

With it there's a trust that can only come within the confines of that herd. A knowing there is safety in the relationship no matter what external forces may exert. We may have our little squabbles as all families do, but when push comes to shove it's about the horse. That's what counts.

It can't be described in mere words nor experienced by those who don't feel such a connection. It may not even be recognized by observers as anything but craziness, a bug, an addiction or maybe wishful thinking. But it's recognized by the horse and in return the horse gives over his faith and trust..........and that's all that matters. I am a horse and if you don't believe me, just ask my horses............they'll tell you.



Back to more normal things I'm behind on awards again, so I better get things up to date in that department. I hate these things hanging over my head. The last thing I want is for someone to think I don't appreciated these remembrances, because I most certainly do. It's just I'm a procrastinator when it comes to "picking" those to pass awards on to others. .

All my blogging buddies are great. By the time I get around to it , the awards have made the rounds, that's for sure making it even harder to chose recipients. Even so I am grateful to be remembered and I'm going to get my act together and pass these along.

The rules on this awards are the same as always. Name and link the blogger who gave you the award. Then name and link to five bloggers you wish to pass the award along to.

With that being said it's on to the awards:

Lisa from Laughing Orca Ranch. awarded me the Van Gogh's Ear award telling me I needed to bring my cotton swaps when I claimed it. Looking at this ear, I think maybe she's right, it could use a thorough cleaning. But then it does look like an ear that would belong on Vincent Van Gogh, a bit on the hairy side and a little red from too much glass tipping maybe........but enough with that and onto the award.

Apparently, this Van Gogh's Ear Award is for blogs that are making a difference in the blogosphere. It's creator said, "We are all artists in our own way, be it art, photography, writing, philosophy, comedy, or blogging, and we all go a little crazy sometimes. But if you ever feel so crazy to cut off your ear and give it to a prostitute, "Seek Help"! Always remember you're unique. Just like everyone else."

I'm passing this award along to a few of my blogging friends. If you haven't checked out any of these blogs before, please go say "Hi!" to them.

Astaryth from Adventures of an Eclectic Mind

Billie at Camera-Obscura

Dressage Mom

Mikey of the Horseshoeing Housewife

Midlife Mom from Home on the Range



I was also presented with the Friendship Award by CTG Ponies
http://ctgponies.blogspot.com/2009/02/friendship-award.html and I thank her so much for thinking of me. It's been too long since I was given this award so it's definitely time for me to get on the stick and pass it along.

The award description:
"These blogs are exceedingly charming. These kind bloggers aim to find and be friends. They are not interested in self-aggrandizement. Our hope is that when the ribbons of these prizes are cut, even more friendships are propagated. Please give more attention to these writers. Deliver this award to eight bloggers who must choose eight more and include this cleverly-written text into the body of their award."


I'm passing this award on to more of my blogging friends. Please feel free to check them out as well.

Ezra

Wiola of (Freelance) Riding Instructor 's Diary

Seatbelt for my Saddle

Horseypants

onthebit at A Horse and a Half

Tiggerish Tails

OK, that's it for awards and sentimental stuff. Tomorrow it's back to work with Richard and working horses.

Visit Blog Village and vote daily for this blog Here They are now measuring the rankings by votes out, so if you find my blog on the site, please click that link too to improve my rankings. TY

Footfalls Made Easy - And a Jammed Packed Saturday

I found this video over at Dressage in Jeans on a post about western pleasure. While I'm not going to go into the specifics on that post, I will say I agree whole heartedly with the ideas behind it in relationship to the Arabian horse in the western pleasure discipline as well.

Correction.......I agree with it when it pretty much comes to all disciplines. I've been pretty open here about what I think in regards to spur and jerk training. It's not really training and it doesn't really work.

However, my interest in this video for my blog has to do with the way they showed the beats of each gait. Since I have just recently posted about the beats to each gait in my post Long Lining - - Beginning the Young Horse - - What to Ask I found the use of different colored polo wraps to show the footfalls of each gait very helpful. So helpful, I thought it would be a good idea to post the video here for anyone having difficult "seeing" those footfalls. It's amazing how something as simple as using different colored wraps can make it all so clear.

On another note I thought I'd go back to Valentine's Day and share how it went for me. It was my first day working horses with my new glasses. I was a bit concerned about the new prescription because the changes made were dramatic, not just changes in the strength but a huge change was made in the prism used as well.

That prism thing is pretty tricky and can easily set a person on her/his ear. I really wanted to get back to riding but wasn't sure my eyes would tolerate the new lenses. I sure didn't want to end up in the dirt because I got turned around by the prisms so I was prepared to go slow despite feeling like I need to make up for lost time here too. What a place to be!!!

I started off with Legs and the yearlings in the first load. The yearlings are getting conditioned for halter. Richard does the round pen work on that with one while I school the other one of the halter stance with the other.
Teaching horses to set their feet properly can be boring for both the handler and the horse. The yearlings are somewhat destracted by the work going on in the round pen at the same time they're supposed to be learning so it's actually made things a bit livelier. My glasses didn't seem to cause me any problems with this process so that was good.

Next I was on to riding Legs who is coming along really awesome. He or Dandy would defintely have been the best choice to try out my new glasses. If there were problems, I wanted a good, quick "Whoa!" so I didn't end up in the dirt.

Legs was awesome and the glasses worked out just fine. So in the next load, I actually rode two more horses. We are still working on Vee getting her left lead. With Jessica it has been a hit and miss proposition. I felt it had to do with consistency so I have taken the project over.

We have been working the horse in the round pen. The support from the rail as a barrier has helped prevent the mare dropping her outside shoulder which in turn has increased her incidence of getting the correct lead. On Saturday, Vee was a star.

Before I rode her I tied her to the inside using her halter and lead rope and then lunged her a little bit each direction. She did great getting her leads although she would scoot a bit like she was going to switch but didn't when I told her "no." It was clear she is getting the idea what is correct. Even picking up the correct lead sometimes when she is set up incorrectly.

When I got on her I worked to see if the same was true under saddle. Only twice did Vee get the lead incorrectly and yes, it was my fault, I set her up wrong. BUT ALL of the times I set her up correctly she got it right and MOST of the times I set her up incorrectly she still got it right. She IS getting it! And she's quite proud of herself too!

The next horse I rode was Percy. You remember Percy from Getting Started......and then there's Percy There's a lot to catch up on Percy's progress, obviously, if I'm riding him BUT I am riding him. We're working on him moving off my legs. At my age, I want really good steering so this horse is learning that my style. Let me just say, he's coming along..........

in addition to those 5 horses, I also hauled Tag, Hope, Dandy and Lucy over to Angie and Richard's. That made a total of 3 loads and 9 horses. My new glasses didn't disrupt too much, although the reading is tough. For me that made for a great Valentine's Day. I was exhausted but it was the good kind of exhaustion. It was a good day.

Visit Blog Village and vote daily for this blog Here They are now measuring the rankings by votes out, so if you find my blog on the site, please click that link too to improve my rankings. TY

Sunday Stills Challenge - - The Moon

This week's Sunday Still Challenge which is all about reflections. was the moon in all her splendor. Or that's how I perceived it anyway. I never should have mentioned the fact that there was the possibility that the moon would not show itself this week here in my part of Washington. Mother Nature just couldn't resist co-operating with my prediction leaving me with one little chance to figure out how to photograph her glorious moon.

I probably should post the other pics I took trying to get to this one. They are littered with streaky lines of light as the camera jiggled.........not my normally quiet (what a laugh) self. These failures are definitely worth a laugh or two.

I guess I'm lucky I got even one picture to post. I never did figure out how to disarm my flash that was pretty darn sure it was needed for this project. But I think I'm getting "closer" to that portion of my camera manual. The problem I am having is I cannot read the symbols in that darn book. But in the search I did find how to change shutter speed.........I've been searching for that for weeks. LOL



Yesterday was a great day working horses. I'll post more about that later. In the meantime, I leave you with a pic of my daughter Lindsay and our new puppy. Isn't she sweet.

This puppy is one of the fourteen puppies Colleen's two Siberian Husky females had a while back. The puppy is 4 weeks old in this pic which was taken last Sunday (I know I should have posted it sooner, my bad).

Our puppy won't be coming to live with us until she is 9 weeks old. By then she will have gone through her complete worming regime and have her puppy shots finished. Then we won't have to worry about anymore of that kind of stuff until she is 6 months old.

Visit Blog Village and vote daily for this blog Here They are now measuring the rankings by votes out, so if you find my blog on the site, please click that link too to improve my rankings. TY

Who Knew Contact Lense Could Slow Me Down!

I can't believe that I'm posting to days in a row about contact lenses. The effect of this experiment has pretty much monopolized my life for two days leaving me unable to do much with my horses. I never expected getting contact lenses would side line me. Yet that's exactly what happened.

Late last night I finally realized that I was only making my eye more sore trying to remove the lens from my right eye. At that point I put drops into my eye and went to bed planning to get help removing the Len's in the morning.

By morning my eye was pretty red,swollen and crusty in the corners. Since the Lenscrafters wouldn't be open until 10, I decided to feed my herd instead of leaving the task to Lindsay. It was nice to see the horses but at the same time the soreness of my eye made me a bit on the cranky side.

I was also worried about getting dust or hay particles in my eye. Probably not a reasonable fear but there none the less. So I didn't really spend any quality time with my horses. I got them fed and headed back to the house.

Before leaving for the mall I put drops in my eye a couple of different times. Hoping the added moisture would relieve the pain a bit. By this point my eye was hurting enough I didn't notice any relief but I think it might have gotten worse had I skipped this step.

When I arrived at the mall, the people at Lenscrafters were great. They immediately put me into a room to examine my eye. At first they thought the contact was gone and my eye just irritated from me trying to retrieve a lens that was not there.

However, after adding a dye to my eye and getting me to look around enough to roll my eye, the missing contact showed up. It was folded up into a small mass and lodged up under my eyelid near the inside corner. The doctor removed it easily once it was finally located.

I can't even tell you what a relief it was to just get that thing removed from my eye. While my eye was still very sore and red, there was a world of difference in how it felt with that "thorn" no longer poking me.

While I was at the mall I did pick up my new glasses. They are going to be their own trail. There is a huge change in the prism in my lenses as well as a big prescriptions change. They are going to take some getting used to as well. Hopefully I'll have gotten used to them before it's time to try contact lenses again.

The whole experience with the contacts was painful enough to make me consider giving up wearing contacts. I think the doctor must have realized this explaining that this is just one of the things that happens meaning, more or less, it's not a really big deal.

It was, however, a big deal to me. My right eye is the only eye that I can see distance. If I loose the sight in that eye, I will not be able to drive. It will probably affect a lot of other things as well. It was for me quite a scare. It's probably a good thing that the doc doesn't expect me to try contacts again for at least a week. Maybe I'll have the time to "forget" this little adventure.

But for today, that wasn't the case. Despite the drops the doc put in my eye to soothe it, I had a tough day. My eye was and is still sore and I was unable to work horses because of sensitivity to light.

Richard and Jessica came and picked up the yearlings and Hope so at least three of my horses got worked today. I did put leg wraps on the two yearlings before they were loaded in the trailer only to have one of the undo the velcro while the other was being loaded. That left one polo wrap trailing on the ground in the aisle instead of supporting the horse's leg. Talk about making me look bad......yearlings have the knack.

The majority of the other horses got outside to play. I did help Dave and Lindsay with turnouts but that was it for me. Just that little amount of time was enough to aggravate my eye. I spent the rest of the day inside soothing myself with See's Chocolates.

The only part of me that appreciates the two days off has been my b*tt. A little bit of R & R for that part of my anatomy was helpful, I must admit. But I still can't wait to get back in the saddle. Hopefully tomorrow, I'll be back working horses.....and writing "real" posts!


Visit Blog Village and vote daily for this blog Here They are now measuring the rankings by votes out, so if you find my blog on the site, please click that link too to improve my rankings. TY

The Day from H*ll Compliments of DOL

Today, I went to get my driver's license renewed in the morning. Richard and I were going to begin working horses after I got back. But things just didn't go as planned. Why is that not surprising?

I wanted to get one of the new EDL's which stands for Extended Driver's License. That would allow me to drive into Canada and back without a passport. (think Canadian Nationals and Region 17 Championships) I looked on the Department of Licensing website to see what I needed to bring besides my soon expiring license only to find no information about the extra requirements for the EDL.

We arrived at the DOL at 9:30. According to the website most offices open at that time on Thursdays. Wouldn't you know it, the Parkland office didn't open until 10:00. That was the first problem of the day. We ended up waiting in a crowded lobby and not very patient people. Can we say flashes of mob scenes on the doors opening?

When they did finally unlock the doors Dave reached the number dispenser ahead of me. Lucky us we had number 002, we'd get help soon............nope that was wrong. Turns out there were different numbers for EDL's so Dave was back retrieving another number. This time we were number 506, still not bad but we waited amid the crying babies and grumbling impatient adults.

Arriving at the window, I laid out my soon to expire license along with my birth certificate, marriage license and court authorized name change. Once the clerk figured out the progression, we thought we were good to go........only to be informed I needed proof I was a citizen of the US. My birth certificate didn't count. Who knew? When did born in the US NOT make you a citizen? So it was back home to get a copy of our home owner's insurance policy because it has my name on it.

I called Richard to let him know it didn't look good for working horses today. Grabbed the requested paperwork plus every other form of proof of citizenship they accept just in case they'd find something wrong with the insurance policy paperwork.

Back at the Department of Licensing there are still more crying babies, along with some kids looking way to young to drive waiting for tests and a still overcrowded room.

This time the number I received was 518. Not too bad, we might make working horses after all. But maybe that was my mistake thinking I might still fit in working horses. We got through all the paperwork just fine. Then it was time for the eye test.

That thing is always tricky for me because of my permanent double vision. Looking into their little machine I realized this was a new test since my last license renewal.. First I read a line. Then I moved to a row of colors and from there they asked about a rectangle with a red dot. I couldn't see the red dot. When I did it was outside the box. But they went ahead and did my interview for my EDL and I thought I was good...........until they called me back to the window and asked for another eye test. Can you say sinking feeling, MiKael?

This time I was told I'd have to go to an eye doctor and get my eyes examined.They gave me a form for the doctor to fill out. The only way I was getting a license was with a doctor's approval. Since my current license expires on Tuesday, it was now or never, so we were off to find an opthamologist with an opening today.

I can't even tell you all of the things that went through my mind. Not being able to drive would seriously screw things up with working horses.....not just for the day, but permanently. I drive three loads of horses back and forth each day. No license..........no horse training.............Geez..........what a mess.

So we headed off to Tacoma to my regular opthamologist. First appointment available today was at 4:30 and not with my regular doc. No way could I get back to DOL today at that rate. Then we headed off to Dave's doc only to find he just happened to be out of town.

After several more stops at local Lenscrafters and Pearl Vision's, I finally did get an appointment at the South Hill Mall Lenscrafters at 2:30. If we were lucky I would get my eyes examined and still make it back to DOL today. Since Dave has a dentist appointment in the morning and Lindsay a CAT scan in the afternoon tomorrow, it was really important to wrap this up today if possible.

The doc was good about the exam. Getting approved to drive wasn't a problem except for one little fact.......... I needed a new prescription. Since we were doing this I decided to go ahead and try contacts. They finally have them that will work with astigmatism which is why I've never tried them before. And with contacts I might even get to wear make-up if I want. What harm could it be?

First, I took my signed DOL forms back to the licensing office. This time I was number 562. They were only on number 550 so I was thinking I wouldn't make it back for my contacts in time. Lucky me, all those numbers ahead of me didn't show and I actually got to see the same clerk for the third time today. The end result was my temporary driver's license and the sleeve required for the new EDL I will receive in a couple of weeks. At least one thing was accomplished, although they probably never should have issued that license without me having my new prescription.....but what the heck? If they can't figure out I'm a citizen from a birth certificate from Seattle they probably wouldn't get what "requires prescription" means.

We hopped back into the car making another trip to South Hill Mall. (The good part of this was I scored a 2 lb box of hand pickes See's Chocolates....all of my favorites) I picked out new frames, ordered new lenses and got fitted with contacts. I had a lesson taking the things out and putting them back in. It was a snap! Sounds good, doesn't it.................Well, that's probably the first clue that things will go wrong if they already haven't.

I can't see a thing with the contacts in. Because of my double vision there can be no prism in the contact lenses but that's only part of the problem. I can adjust.

The real problem is they set me up for reading in my left eye and distances with my right eye. Who knew they could get so creative with my eye sight! Currently I can't see either way unless I cover the other eye..........even then it's not good. They say I'll adjust........right now I'm wishing I could adjust them (not the lenses......the smart doc who thought of this).

It's a good thing I didn't drive myself through this fiasco, there is no way I could see well enough to drive home. And wasn't that what brought me there in the first place? The good ole DOL thinking I couldn't see well enough to drive. How could it be I arrived with pretty good vision and left pretty much blind. It must have been my day, don't ya think??

Then there's just one other problem.................well, that lesson at taking the contacts out that was such a snap. I can't even get my contacts out! And I can't see well enough to read the directions. Dave tried reading them to me but his interpretation is lost on me.

I was supposed to leave them in for 4 hours and then remove them. Each day increasing by 2 hours until I've reached a full day. I didn't push the 4 hour mark. Not being able to see to read my email or write my blog, I was more than ready to shed these things when the 4 hour mark rolled around. Enough time spent "adjusting" for one day so I tried taking the suckers out.

Two hours later and I'm still wearing one contact. The other one flipped out after about the third series of tried. It fell onto my lap somewhere. I never did "feel" the thing come out of my eye, I just caught a glimpse of a reflection of light as it rolled over one boob and down somewhere in my lap.

Dave and I were groping around trying to find the slimy thing. By the time we actually did locate it, the lens was pretty dried and rolled up in a little ball. I'm pretty sure wadding up contacts is not considered "careful handling." Somehow I don't think this is how life with contacts is supposed to start.

Each time I try to take out the remaining contact my stomach begins to flip and I want to puke. You'd think I was contemplating a roller coaster ride instead of taking out one silly lens. I'm thinking maybe I'm not cut out for contacts. I've lived without make-up for about ten years now, I guess I can finish out my tour on earth au natural. What do you think?

Oh, I forgot to mention, I'm wearing my old glasses over the top of my one eyed version of new contacts, I can actually see! Do you think this is a bad sign.............at this point I"m not sure what to think.

I hope I get some horse time tomorrow. After this day, I really, really need it. But before I can even look at a horse I'll have to go back to the optometrist's office and shed this last lens.........that is if that lens is even still in my eye. At this point, I'm not making any bets. How about you?

Long Lining - - Beginning the Young Horse - - What to Ask

Once the horse has learned to "listen" to messages from the long lines, it is time to begin working on building impulsion from the horse. As I've said before, we do not expect the young horse to go forward in a frame. The important thing is going forward, the frame will come in time.

For now, what Richard and I both want from the horse is true forward effective movement at each gait or what I referred to before as "function." That means the horse is stepping deep underneath itself, lifting its back and ribcage, followed by its shoulder as it follows through each stride. We want the horse to learn that going forward means using itself correctly as well as forward movement.

To do this we use that outside rein to tap the horse on the hock to literally drive it forward underneath itself. As we are asking for this forward movement we are looking for any abnormalities of gait that indicate a horse is not traveling square or using itself effectively. These inadequate movements can be seen in shortened steps, a crooked body, a turned head, or an irregular gait (not true to it's natural rhythm.) to name a few. If there are no physical issues that could be causing such things, the horse is pushed through this movement into the correct function.

To be able to identify any inadequacies of gait it is important to understand what is considered to be true function in each gait. It is my understanding that some breeds of horses may characteristically have slight differences in what is perceived as correct gait. Because of that, I'll be describing the gaits typical for an Arabian horse which tend to be "deeper" in stride than many other breeds.

The walk is a four beat gait where the hind foot steps into/if not beyond the footfall of the corresponding front foot. (Reading the descriptions by the Bedouins of old of their horses sometimes indicated as much as four inches beyond!) It is also expected for a true walk to include a balanced, fluid swinging of the head in rhythm with the footfalls.

The trot is a two beat gait where the diagonal pairs travel in unison. It is expected to have elevation or suspension equivalent to "a spring in the step" giving the floating effect that Arabian horses are known for. The hind foot should nearly step onto the footprint of the front and the head and topline should remain relatively quiet.

The canter is a true three beat gait that is smooth, easy and straight on both leads. It begins with the horse pushing off with the outside hind foot. The second beat consists of the inside hind foot striking the ground at the same time as the outside front foot. The third beat is the inside front. Again, the head and topline should remain relatively quiet with the gait looking effortless. Due to the nature of this gait, the depth of the horse's reach with the hind legs is not at the footfall of the front feet as in the other two gaits, however, to be correct those hind legs must reach up deep underneath the horse.

I would say a good measure of a correct depth of stride for an uncollected Arabian horse at the canter would be about the mid point between the front and hind footfall. However, each horse will have its own "correct" point for this gait with the best way to determine this being pushing the horse for "more" until it has reached its maximum.

It's important to note it's pretty normal for young horses to start off on this journey of being trained to long line (or ride for that matter) not really moving correctly underneath themselves. There are many reasons this might occur that have nothing to do with how talented a horse might be. The important thing is to know the young horse is probably going to need to be encouraged to use itself correctly.

I'm going to name just a few possible reasons a horse might start off moving in less that optimum fashion if only to reinforce when starting off it's important to be watching closely for correct gaits since that is our goal. A young horse can get caught up in concerns about the process and move hesitantly. It can have learned inefficient movement just hanging out, growing up. Or it can have muscle memory from old, not necessarily traumatic injury, that has influenced its movement (this is what we believe to be the case with Vee's issues cantering only to a greater extent that what is normally expected) . The horse can have "learned" ineffective movement from a number of environmental influences..........dealing with lots of mud for extended periods, a rocky terrain.........etc anything that might have affected how they moved to get around. As I said before there can be many many reasons behind why this happens, what's important is that it does.

Regardless of "why" a young horse might not be moving correctly, the whole point of working the horse in the long lines is to "teach" the horse to move to its truest function on cue. Working in the long lines is an effective way to teach the horse this skill before it has to deal with the weight of a rider. Since horses learn more effectively with strong building blocks in place, you can't get a better platform to start from than good forward movement from the horse.

So as we work the horse in the long lines our goal is getting that horse to give us it's optimum performance at each gait. That performance doesn't necessarily mean getting a correct footfall by itself. It's important to remember that we are looking for the horse to be square and a lift in the ribcage and shoulder as well. Often time that difference between a correct depth of footfall and true "function" is the added push it takes to get that lift of the ribcage and shoulder. Once we have reached this function, we want the horse to learn that our cue means that optimum function is what we want.

We are going to accomplish this by tapping that horse with the outside line on the hock. We will cease tapping as we detect any improvement in stride asking for improvement in increments thus communicating to the horse that stepping more deeply is the "correct answer." Over time we will end up with a horse that knows a request forward means that true gait. Then and only then will we be ready to work on form. Lots of times that form will come by itself as the horse gets comfortable with going forward into the weight of the lines.

This process works best when it is done slowly. While a session may include getting a horse to optimum performance of each gait, it may take the entire session to accomplish this or it may take an entire session to accomplish it for one gait. It really doesn't matter which way it goes, what matters is that the horse reaches a point that is comfortable for the horse. Learning is dependant upon a quiet, comfortable approach with goals attainable by each horse as an individual.

To be continued...........

The horse in the picture is showing that spring in her trot described above. See how she is suspended off the ground at the midpoint of the beat.

Visit Blog Village and vote daily for this blog Here They are now measuring the rankings by votes out, so if you find my blog on the site, please click that link too to improve my rankings. TY

Starting a Horse in the Long Lines.

Before I ever put a horse into the long lines, I make sure they thoroughly understand the concept of giving to pressure. I want the horse to give from side to side comfortably without feeling trapped or the least bit confused. I also like a pretty good "whoa!" You never know when that young horse might get confused in the lines and tangled up. If you have a good give to pressure from each side and a good "whoa!" you're less likely to have wrecks, not to mention the horse is less likely to be confused or stressed over the application of the lines.

Also, I'm going to make sure that the horse is comfortable wearing the surcingle. With most horses I will let him/her wear the surcingle and just lunge them the first time or two. That way the horse gets the chance to "feel" the piece of equipment grabbing them as they move and can work it out on the lunge line. How that horse responds will determine when I make the decision to apply the lines.

If you have access to a round pen being able to begin there really helps the horse figure out where it belongs in relationship to the handler in the long lines especially if the horse already has round pen experience. If the horse isn't familiar with working in the round pen, I'd probably introduce the horse to the basics of longeing in the round pen as a first step.

When starting a young horse in the long lines having an idea of what discipline you expect this horse to be is helpful in determining where to run the lines. If you don't have any idea , then I'd probably take the middle ground with the long lines.

If I had a surcingle with 3 or more rings on each side, I'd probably try the middle ring to give the horse as much room to "pick" where it's most comfortable. Since I don't, my surcingle has two rings on each side, I'd be starting on the lower ring.

For horses that want to carry themselves high, it would probably create a problem to use the lowest ring for the lines. Even though we're not going to start off asking that horse to bridle, the pressure (even for steering or stopping) from those lower rings can cause that high headed horse to feel claustrophobic. For this kind of horse, I would use the higher ring on the side (NOT the ring on the very top of the surcingle). The lines, of course, would run on the sides and not over the back of a young horse.

For the young horses Richard and I just started, we used the western saddle and ran the lines through the stirrups. Before running the lines, a short line (one of those five foot extensions off our custom lines) to tie the stirrups together.

As part of the desensitizing process, Richard and I both tend to do a lot of fussing around the horse as we apply the lines. Asking the horse to stand still while the lines are threaded and unthreaded from the appropriate rings can be a great way to get the horse used to the feel of the lines moving against his/her body in a controlled situation.

In the beginning of teaching a horse to long line, Richard and I begin working on the circle. That way we can use the horse's skills on the longe line as a starting point to teach the horse to walk, trot and canter on cue.

The inside line is used to keep the horse on the circle. As you might notice in most pictures of my horses long lining, the inside line is slack dragging on the ground most of the time. Sometimes that inside line might get "flicked" to move the horse out farther on the circle. It is the outside rein that is used to drive the horse.

Before we begin teaching the horse how to go forward from cues from the lines, we're going to make sure the horse is comfortable carrying the lines in the first place. Working off cues like I was longeing, I will ask the horse to move. I like to let the horse decide at what gait. Some horses will be ok to just walk around the circle. Others will want to trot using that gait to express some of their stress over this new situation. For me, either is fine, as long as the horse is calm.

If the horse is not calm, I'm going to stop the horse and go back to more desensitizing. I can hold the horse with the one rein while I coil the other rein. I can move that coiled rein over the horse's back. Then extend it to over the butt and down the hocks while still holding with the other line. Back and forth between both lines doing this things the horse will eventually figure out the lines are not going to eat him. Then I'll go back to the circle again to see if I have a calmer horse moving around the circle.

I won't even start on cuing the horse to move forward with the outside line until my horse is comfortable feeling of the lines dragging along. That what when I do tap that horse on the hock to move forward, it's less likely to jump out of its skin thinking some troll just grabbed him/her.

When I do reach that point I am cuing the horse with the outside line, my initial goal is a response from the horse. Any forward response will do. As soon as I get it, I will desist tapping with the line. I want the horse to learn that flick of the line means go forward. How far forward will be something we build over time.

To be continued............

What to Ask

In this picture is Scandalous Tag on one of his very first "trips" in the lines. You can see the line tying the stirrups together. Also, the horse is tentative about what is happening and just standing there processing.....so Richard let him stand until he felt comfortable enough to move.

Visit Blog Village and vote daily for this blog Here They are now measuring the rankings by votes out, so if you find my blog on the site, please click that link too to improve my rankings. TY

Long Lining - Cues with the Lines

For review in this series on ground work, we started the subject of long lining with More on Ground Work - Long Lining In that post we talked about the equipment used to long line (sometimes called ground driving) horses.

In Ground Work - Some Long Lining Basics we went over the different ways in which the lines can be run. We also went over a brief explanation of some of the reasons for those different choices.

In Frame versus Function we discussed what we actually want to accomplish with the lines. Making sure we start off with building blocks the horse can understand so that we can actually teach our horse to use itself to its utmost potential.

There is one more thing I would like to address before I go into the specifics on starting young horses in the long lines. I thought it would be appropriate to first talk about how Richard and I use the lines, themselves, to get the desired response from the horse. Since the horse learns more easily with a consistent cue repeated over and over in the same fashion, having an "format" on how to use the lines will help make things clearer for the horse.

I was taught both in riding and long lining the inside rein was for head set (frame) and the outside for speed (impulsion). In the case of long lining on a circle the inside rein is also for steering. To reverse directions, of course, that would change to the outside rein to convert the horse over to circle in the opposite direction and the rein would become the "new" inside rein.

When it comes to speed, most people I know think about slowing down, half halts, that kind of thing with that outside rein. But in the beginning of the long lining process those kinds of cues are farther down the road. I think it's safe to say Richard and I both believe that outside rein is the one most important in the long lining process since it is the one used for to create impulsion.

Since impulsion is the key to frame, you must have that impulsion before you ever think about slowing the horse down or rounding it up. Using that outside line to drive the horse forward will usually get the desired response. Sometimes a longe whip might be added to that equation to increase impulsion as well.

To help the horse to understand what type of impulsion we might be asking for, Richard likes to keep that outside line resting over the hock of the horse for both the walk and the trot. If he wants the horse to increase impulsion, Richard "flicks" the horse on that curve of the hock with the outside line. The tap that occurs as the flick travels down the line and reached the hock tells the horse to step deeper underneath itself to get away from that pressure. The result is more impulsion from the horse.

Sometimes it will take several "flicks" for the horse to step deeper but that's ok. Being consistent and not letting up until the horse "gives" more forward movement will help the horse understand exactly what the request means.

If the horse should break into the canter/lope, Richard brings the horse back down (usually with his voice in a "whup!" sound) to the desired walk or trot making sure that line stays resting on that hock. Then he will ask again repeating the process until he gets the requested response from the horse.

When asking for the canter or lope Richard allows the line to drop down below the hock onto the back of the cannon bone/lower leg. Once the line is in this new position he will send that "flick" down the line to ask for this new gait.

Again the horse might require more than a single "flick" to achieve the desired gait. Richard just keeps asking until the horse gets it. Then the cuing stops. The release of the pressure of the cue is another clue for the horse about the desired response. With consistency the horse will soon figure out that the cue lower on the leg means the canter or lope.

To bring the horse down from the canter back to a trot, Richard uses his voice and a "whup" tone. Then he flips the line back up to the horse's hock to continue working at either the walk or the trot.

Cuing the horse with a different placement of the line against his/her leg gives the horse another clue as to what is being asked. That "flick" of a line isn't necessarily about faster or breaking gait but about stepping deeper and the position of the line is about the gait being requested.

This picture has the line run across that curve above the hock. I tried to get one at the canter but everything is too blurry to tell. I still haven't figured out how to change the settings on my new camera to fix this.

Before we begin on the process of starting a young horse in the long lines, are there any questions on any of the posts up to this point?

Visit Blog Village and vote daily for this blog Here They are now measuring the rankings by votes out, so if you find my blog on the site, please click that link too to improve my rankings. TY

Sunday Stills Challenge.........Reflections of one kind or another.......

After Tracey at Mustang Diaries took a cheap shot at trees reflected in puddles then followed with a great pic of her cat jumping over something clearer than any puddle around here, I'm not sure I even want to post my Sunday Stills entry.........but then, when have you ever known me to be chicken. So here are my submissions on this weeks Sunday Still Challenge which is all about reflections.



As I wandered out to the creek trying to catch some type of reflection, I couldn't help but notice the difference in the creek now than when I last took pictures of it. That flood was something else. I'm going to post a few pics of the then and now as well as my Sunday Still pics just so folks can see the changes our little creek went through during the flooding.





The picture of the sad little bridge (which is 12 feet long) shows the damage the flooding did to that bridge as the creek turned raging river coursed over it and, of course, the 'normal' size of our little creek. The dark picture is that same angle of the bridge with the only trace of it being that straight line of white water in the center of the flooded creek. The next picture is just past the bridge. The creek was nearly 60 feet across at this spot.



Also any of you who have been here for a while will know the picture of the horse is indeed Scandalous Reflection, my 7 year old Arabian stallion. He is indeed the reflection of his famous great-grandsire Khemosabi. I couldn't possibly post anything about reflections without thinking of him..........That counts doesn't it? Well at least it does in my book! Since it's my blog anything that counts in my book MUST surely be appropriate. LOL

I'm looking forward to next week's challenge which happens to be the moon. Only looking at the weather forecast I'm not sure I'll be getting much chance of seeing anything through the cloud layer, much less getting an opportunity to shoot pictures of the moon.

With no archive photos of the moon to my credit, I may have to be even more creative........who knows what rogue idea I could come up with.........well, Tracey would probably guess but then Tracey might even do it herself since we are stuck with the same kinds of weather most of the time and an equally odd sense of humor. Oh, I forgot, Tracey has archive photos of the moon that she can use. LOL Sorry, Tracey, I couldn't resist.

Visit Blog Village and vote daily for this blog Here They are now measuring the rankings by votes out, so if you find my blog on the site, please click that link too to improve my rankings. TY



baby boomer Arabian horse Khemosabi Sunday Stills