Training Horse Profile: Annie

 

Training Goals:

• Groundwork
• Start under saddle
• Desensitizing to a variety of environments

Annie is a 5-year-old Quarter Horse mare.  She was bred and raised by her owner and is now ready to be started for his teen granddaughter as her new horse.  While she is very laid back and good-minded, Annie had never been off the farm before.  Her first ride in the trailer was to bring her to me.

This mare picked up everything so quickly and was so level-headed in the arena.  She took to a rider the fastest and more easily than almost any other horse I've worked with.  She struggled much more out in the open country and was one of the more spookier horses on a trail ride.  She definitely kept me focused out there!

Day 1: Lyra was very upset when I took Annie out of her lot and took her to the round pen.  She spent the entire training session galloping around the pasture (even though I was working with Annie a mere 30 yards from Lyra's fence).  All of the galloping made Annie nervous but we were able to work through it and establish ground manners.  Worked on lunging, yields, and lowering her head.  She was a little pushy but not bad for her first day.  When I went to put her back in her lot, she bolted out as I was closing the gate and it took awhile to catch her.

Day 2: Annie was more relaxed today.  She lunged will, yielded decently, and responded well to the plastic bag desensitizing good except when shaking it behind her head.  She was a little unsure about the saddle pad.

Day 3: Her yields were good and she lunged well once I got her moving out in the circle.  She reared briefly when I asked her to move out.  She took the surcingle and saddle pad well and I sat the the saddle on her back.

Day 4: Vet was here today to do some routine work on several horses.  Annie got her coggins pulled and stood well for the vet.

Day 5: Had to switch some horses around over the weekend which resulted in Annie being in a lot that required me to lead her across a small creek to get to the round pen.  She would not get anywhere near the creek as she would panic as soon as she felt the bank sloping down (she lived in a small dirt lot).  Since we couldn't leave, we did ground work in her lot!

Day 6: Reviewed yields, backing, surcingle, and lunging.  Saddled her up for the first time and she was not concerned about it at all.  Lunged her with the plastic bag and rock jug and she handled it very well.

Day 7: Reviewed ground work and then saddled her up.  Lunged her with the rock jug tied onto the saddle, alternating sides and positions on the saddle.  No spooks or bucks!  Introduced her to the bit.

Day 8: Using the surcingle today.  Lunged her with the plastic bag tied on alternating sides and she did not spook at all.  Introduced bit pressure using the side reins.

Day 9: She was a little more on edge when I brought her out (the boys had been neighing a bunch at Lyra), but she saddled and lunged well.  Continued bit work, focusing on flexing to each side.  She was resistant to flexing but starting to catch on.  I also stood in the stirrup and she did not have much of a reaction.  She was a stinker with picking up her front feet and kept trying to lay down 😂 

Day 10: She was more cooperative with her front feet today.  She responded to the bit better today and was good with me standing in the stirrup.

Day 11: Planning on her first ride today! Reviewed ground work and bit pressure, as well as lunging her under saddle.  She had a brief side spook when we first started moving but otherwise her first ride was pretty uneventful and she walked around quietly.

Day 12: 2nd ride.  Rode at the walk and trot.  No issues but it took a lot of leg to keep her going.  Worked on backing and flexing.

Day 13:  3rd ride.  Lots of leg needed to maintain walk and trot.  Started working on hindquarter pivots.

Day 14:  Rode walk and trot today.  Completed hindquarter pivots decently. Started working on forehand pivots.  Maintained trot better but quit in the turns.

Day 15: First canter today!  Less leg needed to maintain the walk and trot.  Hindquarter pivot was decent and forehand pivot was ok.  Cantered briefly on the left lead.

Day 16:  Annie was much responsive to leg.  Walk, trot, and canter on the left lead.  Her hindquarter pivots were good and her forehand pivots were better.  She backed well but didn't really give to the bit pressure.  Maintained trot better through turns.

Day 17:  Rode walk, trot, and canter.  She was very resistant against the bit today and refused to back.

Day 18: Rode walk, trot, canter.  Switched up her bit and she was much more giving to the bit pressure. Backed up much better and gave to the bit.  Began working on the side pass.

Day 19:  Rode again in new bit and she did well.

Day 20: Switched her back into the snaffle and  rode walk, trot, and canter.  She picked up the right lead correctly about 50% of the time.  Rode her outside of the round pen for the first time.  She was scared of the frog pond and very nervous by the big pond.  Lead her across the bridge. 

Day 21: Rode walk, trot, and canter.  Worked on getting her to walk quietly by the canoe by the pond.  She spooked when walking by the frog pond.

Day 22:  More energetic today.  Rode walk, trot, and canter.  She rode well in the pasture and better by the pond except by the wooden bench. We were able to work though her fear and walk quietly by the bench.

Day 23:  Rode walk, trot, and canter.  She was good in the arena and side passed well to the left.  She didn't want to leave the pasture, but once we made it out she was more relaxed than yesterday.  Rode across the bridge and rode in the flat on the other side of the creek.

Day 24: Really struggled to pick up the right lead today.

Day 25: Annie was a little impatient after Whiskey left this morning.  Reviewed ground exercises.  Put her to work on the lunge line to work on picking up the right lead.

Day 26:  Rained a bunch so the footing was too slippery to work on the canter.  Annie backed and stopped excellently.  Pivots were good and side pass was decent.  She was a little impatient about standing after mounting, but overall she was very responsive and willing today.

Day 27:  Picked up her right lead about 75% of the time on the lunge line but was not able to pick it up under saddle.

Day 28:  Annie's owners visited to see her progress.  Annie performed well and her teen owner rode her as well.  She behaved nicely!

Day 29:  Lots of rain last night which left lots of big puddles to practice riding through!

Day 30:  Annie was feeling a little spunky today.  A few buck/spooks/bolts on the lunge line but she was good under saddle.

Day 31:  Picked up the right lead many times on the lunge line.  Under saddle, she was able to pick it up once but it was very rough.  Continued to work on her side passing.  Rode by the pond and in the flat across the creek.  She was very nervous at first but relaxed after awhile.

Day 32:  She picked up her right lead every time on the lunge line.  Was able to pick up the right lead twice under saddle.  It was rough but better than yesterday.  She side passed a little better.  She would not go out of the pasture gate so I had to back her out through the gate and down to the pond.  She kept refusing to walk forward, so we practiced lot of backing and moving off of leg.  She spooked when crossing the bridge but rode nicely through the flat until we reached a 'No Trespassing' sign.  THAT was scary.  She tried to spin around and run off and reared up when I wouldn't let her bolt off.  Eventually, we were able to work through it and walk calmly by the sign.

Day 33:  Annie was having trouble standing for saddling so I lunged her until she was ready to stand.  She picked up her right lead well on the lunge line.  Side passing left was good, right was ok.  She even picked up her right lead correctly both times.  She was hesitant to ride out of the round pen and refused to exit the pasture gate.  A crop helped to get her moving forward and I walked her in and out several times.  She was pretty relaxed on the ride by the pond.

Day 34:  She was feeling spunky today and bucked on the lunge line, but she was good under saddle.  Picked up her right lead twice.  She had a brief refusal at leaving the round pen, but once we were out she rode nicely by the pond, across the bridge, and through the flat.  She also trotted nicely along the pond.

Day 35:  Good under saddle today and had a great side pass to the left.  Rode her by the stack of tires, which was terrifying.  She also spooked at a parked 4-wheeler and I think all four of her feet left the ground when a branch brushed across my helmet 😂

Day 36:  Annie was good in the arena today.  There were new dirt piles and down trees in the small pasture so I rode her over to explore these obstacles.  She was hesitant at first but eventually walked up to everything and stepped over a log.

Day 37:  Good in the arena and good with the obstacles that we explored yesterday.  She wasn't quite as scared of the tire pile.  Worked on desentizing her to tree branches by pulling leaves as we walked by.  Went on a short trail ride and she walked through big puddles without an issue.

Day 38: Arena work- did everything well.

Day 39:  A little wild on the lunge line but rode well at the walk, trot, and canter.  Side passing was ok. Rode in the small pasture and along the pond.  She did a lot of blowing but less jittery.

Day 40:  Walk, trot, and canter no issues, side pass better.  Took her for a long trail ride through the fields.  Lots of blowing but walked steadily until we were near the hunting shack.  That got her a bit worked up until we were back down in the flat.

Day 41:  Kept trying to stop today but good side pass.  Finally was able to get her to lead across the little creek in her lot.

Day 42:  The grandfather decided it was time for his granddaughter to figure things out the rest of the way.  I rode Annie and gave her some tips and tricks for working with her and then the granddaughter rode her.  Annie behaved well and the granddaughter handled her well.  They'll have a few things to work on and figure out, but with time and hard work, they will make a great team!

I look forward to seeing pictures of the two of them next year when they start showing!

In training June 1- August 6, 2021

Training Horse Profile: Lyra

 

Training Goals:

• Improve ground manners
• Tune-up under saddle
• Trail miles

Lyra is a 3-year-old Quarter Horse mare. Her owner purchased her last year and was unable to work with her regularly over the winter, so she brought Lyra for some consistent training to get a head start on the summer. 

Week 1

For the first few days, Lyra was quite upset about being on her own.  She kept things interesting for me as she would run up and down the fence neighing when I was working with another horse in the round pen (just 30 yards away!).  When it was her turn to work, she was pretty distracted and pushy.   She was nippy when I was in close contact with her and was CONVINCED I had treats to give her.  We worked on standing for saddling, yielding the forehand and hindquarters, standing for mounting and, towards the end of the week, standing patiently with a rider.  On Friday, the vet was out to do routine work for several horses.  Lyra stood perfectly for her vaccinations and coggins test.

Week 2

She is improving in her ground manners-- more responsive and less pushy and nippy.  Under saddle, she behaves nicely--just needs a little refining.  We worked on moving off leg, side passing, pivots.  She struggles most with getting impatient while saddling. Side passing took a little while for her to figure out and she wanted to push back against the pressure instead of moving away from it, especially when moving off the left leg.

Week 3

She stood for saddling much better this week and was very respectful on the ground.  She still struggled with side passing on one side, but otherwise is a very pleasant ride.  Now that she is moving off leg well and very responsive to the bit, it is time to put some miles on the trails.  At the beginning of the week, I led her over the bridge so she could check it out first.  She was pleasantly calm on the trail with very little spooking.  Since she was so calm, I tried to ride her into the creek, but she was not in favor of that.  The footing is a little tricky, so I didn't want to push her too much from the saddle.  I decided I would try again later on foot. Towards the end of the week, her owner visited, so we headed down to the creek to see if we could get her into the water.  She followed be right in, no extra encouragement needed!  She enjoyed splashing in the cool water.  Next trail ride, she rode right into the water.

The deer flies swarmed her terribly, so 
this helped keep her more comfortable!

Week 4

She had an off day at the beginning of the week where she was not respectful of my space and kept trying to run my leg into the fence while riding.  On the trails, she did not want to go through the puddles, even though she loves the creek 😂  The rest of the week she was fabulous!

Practicing patience while I work other horses.

Over the 30 days, Lyra improved immensely in her ground manners as well as her responsiveness under saddle.  By the end of the month, she was truly a pleasure to ride, both in the ring and out on the trails.

"She is wonderful working with horses and very patient with them. She trained my young horse for 30 days and did an excellent job. I highly recommend her." -Sara P. (Owner)

Training Horse Profile: Dakota

Training Goals:

• Ground work & exercise
• Standing for saddling and mounting
• Riding tune-up

Dakota is a 9 year old Quarter Horse gelding.  He had mostly been sitting around eating, so he was out of shape and his manners were a little lacking.  His owners brought him for a 30 days of training to work on his ground manners and to tune-up under saddle.

Ground Work Exercises:

• Forehand and Hindquarter Yields: After a short refresher, he did these quite well, especially on the left side. He was more resistant with the shoulder on the right side, but once he started the yield he did it well.
• Backing: He would lean back on his hocks away from the pressure but he often wouldn't actually move his feet. It looked a bit like a yoga pose! Over time, his backing response improved.
• Lowering the Head: This is one exercise that he really struggled with. He improved some and allowed his head to be lowered down, but he never really 'gave' in response to the pressure.
• Bridges: After a short hesitation, he crossed the two-level bridge with all four feet. Probably one of the fastest  to do so. He also crossed the creek bridge and got to enjoy the tasty clover on the other side.
• Lunge: This was an exercise that he knew how to do.  He was easy to send out and trotted and cantered on que. He also stopped when asked. He struggled to pick up the correct lead in the beginning, but the improved as he got into better shape.  One thing that I worked on with lunging was his tendency to run out when I went to send him out.  Sometimes, I had barely picked up the lunge line and he was already running out to the circle.  I worked with him on waiting until I actually asked him to go and to go out calmly.  One of his amusing quirks: he liked to buck on the lunge line for a couple laps when I would first ask him to canter.  As soon as I would pull out my phone for a video, he would quit.  The days that I started lunging with my phone ready, he never bucked 😂
• Surcingle with Side Reins: Helped him learn to give to the bit instead of pushing his nose up in the air.
• Standing for Saddling/Mounting: A lot of the desensitizing exercises listed helped him practice standing still. It helped him learn to stand still for saddling and by the time I started riding him, he stood great for mounting.

A tasty clover reward
after crossing the bridge.

Desensitizing Exercises:

• Plastic Bag on Whip: He was very concerned about the bag coming near him until it touched his shoulder.  It was like then he realized, "Oh, this is harmless!" and he was never bothered by it again.  I could shake it over his head, all over his body, wave it in the air, whatever, he was cool with it.
• Plastic Bottle with Rocks: He was spooked for about a half a circle, and then settled down and trotted calmly with it on both sides.
• Empty Water Bottle: This was the thing he was the most afraid of.  That took the longest time for him to be okay with it crinkling near him.
• Whip:  He was pretty leery of the whip and tried to start lunging whenever the whip came near him.  I think someone had used the whip pretty heavily with him for lunging, because as soon as he saw me pick it up, he was ON THE MOVE.  

Desensitizing with Plastic Bottle of Rocks

Riding Tune-up:

Dakota walked nice and quietly. He definitely had the makings for a relaxing trail ride. He had a lovely sitting trot and a comfortable canter, although it took some convincing to get him there (and keep him going!). Although his owner had issues with him not standing for mounting, after all of the ground work it was no longer a problem once I started riding him.

Gotta love the horse booty! 

It was kind of amusing that the day that I went to record some videos for his owner was the (only) day that he was feeling a little bucky.  As soon as I stepped into the stirrup, I felt him round his back and pop his rump.  He thought about throwing some bucks for a couple of small circles and then apparently decided it wasn't worth the effort.  He was a perfect little horse the rest of the ride!

Dakota modeling for his sale photos.

Although he preferred to walk and was quiet 98% of the time, due to his occasional big spooks and his tendency to buck, I didn't feel that he was the right horse for his owners at their riding experience level.  Dakota has a lot of great qualities, but really wasn't going to be the right match for what they needed, and they agreed.  Dakota will make an excellent mount for a confident intermediate+ rider and will be headed to his new home soon!

Dakota modeling for his sale photos.