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2' Jumper Champions!
Sunday, February 28, 2010
To learn how you can snap pictures and capture videos with your wireless phone visit www.verizonwireless.com/picture.
Note: To play video messages sent to email, Quicktime@ 6.5 or higher is required.
To learn how you can snap pictures and capture videos with your wireless phone visit www.verizonwireless.com/picture.
Note: To play video messages sent to email, QuickTime® 6.5 or higher is required.
To learn how you can snap pictures and capture videos with your wireless phone visit www.verizonwireless.com/picture.
Note: To play video messages sent to email, QuickTime® 6.5 or higher is required.
To learn how you can snap pictures and capture videos with your wireless phone visit www.verizonwireless.com/picture.
Note: To play video messages sent to email, QuickTime® 6.5 or higher is required.
Overdue
Sorry for the lack of posts! I am a bad blog owner, I know.
To catch everyone up...
Ride from last Tuesday:
I decided to use a running martigale. Why? I am not sure. I saw it hanging on the wall and thought, "Eh.... What the heck. Let's try it!" Proved to be a very useful tool! He responded very well to it. At first he had to figure things out and see how it worked but once he got the hang of it, he was amazing! The ground was a big pile of mush for the previous few days so we only walked up and down the roads for hillwork. So now we actually got some ring work in. I did a lot of bending work with him, getting him to respond to not only my hands but also my seat and legs. He was amazing! I got a glimpse of what is to come... hopefully. We did lots of trotting aswell. I let him go on a loose rein at first, trying to let him balance himself rather than having him brace against my inside rein for support. He moved where I asked him too and we were really connected in all areas. He didn't stick his nose up and out at all really. At the end of the ride, I took the reins out of the running martingale and worked without it. I let him walk around on a loose rein for a few laps then ask him to collect a bit. I am not asking a lot of him right now. Just figuring out what he knows, what we need to work on, getting him back in shape, etc. He did really well! Even at the trot. He was consistant, didn't break, and for a *few* strides... he was perfect. After those few strides, I rewarded and praised him and let him be done. It was a great ride!
Wedsday and Thursday...it rained and snowed a bit... uggh. No riding. Friday I slept over my friends house right after school so didn't ride again... Yesterday I hopped on at about 9pm. Did a lot of walking and about 3 laps of trotting in each direction since he had a galloping spree with Elsa and Biscuit in the ring earlier and worked himself into a sweat. So I couldn't do much but I was satisfied with what we accomplished. I worked on circles, serpentines, figure eights, just things to keep him mind busy while listening to my seat, legs, and hands, well my entire body actually, to ask him where to go. Sometimes he resisted my aids but he gave in and worked with me. It was a short ride, but a good one.
Today we had out ride Jess trailer him and Katie, Mary-Kate's horse, to Hobby Horse Farm to get some work done in the indoor. He hasn't been to a new place just to ride in... who knows how long... We got there and he was looking around but never did anything wrong. He was a bit hyper, checking things out but he listened to me most of the time when I asked him to stop. Occasionally he would take another step or two when I asked and then spin his butt around so he was facing me. When he did that, I walked a few steps then asked for him to stop again. He listened the second time. We also worked on my personal bubble that he frequently penetrates. I wasn't going to deal with being repeatedly run into. So after a few elbows in his shoulder to tell him to move over, he was fine. We brought them into the barn and on the crossties to tack them up. I already brushed (and clipped =D) him at him so I jsut picked him feet, did a quick soft brush, then tacked him up. He stood really well once he figured out he was on crossties. He had to test to make sure he was restrained at first, which was interesting but once he figured it out, all he wanted to do was chew on the crossties.
After they were both tacked up, we took them into the indoor and walked them around so they could check everything out before we got on. He was not paying attention to me at all. I don't think he has ever been in an indoor so this was a new experience for him. He took it well but was nervous about everything. I had to have my Dad hold him as I tightened the girth, stretched his legs, pulled down the stirrups, and got on, which was perfectly fine but I would have liked him to stand still for my Dad... which he only did for a sporadic few seconds at a time. I got on and I don't think he has ever walked so fast. His earrs were perked and he was checking everything out. Jumps, windows, doors, flower boxes, rock walls, poo on the ground, everything! Katie was doing the same but atleast she was paying attention to her mommy. -cough cough- Hmm.. my little booger pretended like I wasn't even there. He wasn't listening at all. His head was up, nose was sticking out... he looked like a giraffe with neck problems...uggh. Anytime I asked fort something with my legs or seat, he would trot. I eventually got him paying attention to me. I was doing circles, changing directions, asking for halts, slower, faster, and everything else I could think of. We picked up a trot. He did a little better in the trot but still... head up, nose out, and we forgot where our feet were a few times. He never spooked at anything which was nice. We trotted for a while in both directions and I cooled him out at a walk while Mary-Kate cantered and jumped Katie. I decided to try a canter, just to see if maybe a bigger ring would help... Nope.. just his race horse super fast trot. Which was fine. I wasn't planning on trotting anyways but I had to give it a shot. There was an itty bitty, 2" cross rail set up from a previous lesson. I wanted to try it once at a slow trot to see if he would pick up his feet. More as a cavalety than a jump. But no. "Mom. This thing could eat my if I go over it." We trotted, stopped infront of it, but then proceeded to walk over it and knock it over. It was great for a few laughs and I didn't expect him to even go over it so it was a pleasant surprise that he went over it at all. I don't plan on really jumping (I love how I mean "really jumping" as tiny crossrails xD) until the fall, if that. Flat work, flat work, flat work for this year.
Anyways.... after we cooled them out after Katie jumped and Jet "jumped." Then we went outside to take pictures in the lovely landscape the barn has. We got some pictures but both the horses were still hot and sweaty so we decided to go on a trail ride. The barn has miles and miles of trails and I know my way around them fairly well. We went around the first field and trotted up a big hill just so we could look around and see everything. It was gorgeous from that spot. You could see the barn, the pastures, the jumping ring (in the summer) and miles of trails depending on which way you looked. We went back down the hill and proceed on the trails. We decided only to go to the second field and then turn around and go back since we didn't know how they would take to the bridge that leads to the fourth field. We went back a different way than we came but ended up in the same place... the big hill. We trotted back up it and were just awed by the surroundings... well, not really at the time but looking back I know atleast I was lol.
On out way back to the barn, I decided to show Mary-Kate the pond where we are going to catch a turtle in the future. We walked around it one and saw geese. "I want to go herd the geese!!" "Ok Mary-Kate, go herd the geese!" And she did but they eventually split up and flew away only to meet again at a pond on the other side of the fence. Smart geese! Katie was getting into the whole herding thing. It was pretty funny. I was laughing and Jet was pretty amused as well!
We walked back to barn and saw Meri, Lynn, Taylor, and Jess heading back out onto the trails. Hmmm.. we know that they are going to go farther into the trails... Why not go back out? The horses were still warm so we went back out with the big group. We went a different, longer way that was mostly woods versus the field path I chose for when Mary-Kate and I went out alone. Jess lead the way on Cocoa, then Mary-Kate and I on Katie and Jet were a ways behind her, and then WAYYYY back behind us, Meri was on Jimmy, Lynn was on Eeyore, and Taylor was on Abbey. They were sooo slow. So we frequently stopped and waited for them to catch up, only to have them fall behind during the next minute or so. Katie and Jet became best friends. We came across several puddles. Katie's worst nightmare. Jet is fine with water and went right through. Worried that her new best friend might leave her, Katie hesitated at first but then went right acorss each puddle. We were very proud of her =) Then when we got to the third field, we had to cross a bridge... the bridge was the whole reason we didn't come to the third field in the first place. Cocoa went first and had a hissy fit. Saw it, thought, "HECK NO!" and backed up, spun around and tried to amke a gettaway. I decided to ask Jet to go over it first then. He went right over it!! I was so so proud of him! Even some of the lesson horses will hesitate to go over the bridge sometimes. I gave him a huge pat and waited for everyone else to cross the bridge.
We finally got back to the barn and untacked. I picked his feet, took off his boots, and put a sheet on him. He needed some linatment so Meri kindly let me use hers. He got a good spray of it and I rubbed it in so he hopefully isn't realyl sore tomorrow. I was on him for a good 2 hours! I put him in a stall to let him get a drink of water. After a few minutes, he peed and took a few sips of water. I took him out and walked him around the arena a few times then brought him outside to walk around aswell. Jess came around with the trailer and we loaded them on. The poor things were on there for a good 30 mintues before we left since Meri had to wait for a lesson kid to be picked up by her mom. (Meri went home with Jess) We got back to our house and I unloaded him. It it a big step up trailer and he almost fell coming out of it... silly uncoordinated horse. But he went on and off fine overall. Katie was bellowing for him as they drove away and Elsa was bellowing for him aswell. He went back into the paddock, said hello to his friends, and munhced on hay.
What a great day =) He is definately going to get tomorrow and Tuesday off. He will be soreeee. But I am going to take him out of the paddock and hand walk him so he doesn't get stiff. Next weekend we are going to the barn on both Saturday and Sunday and the show is the following Saturday. Can't wait!!
-Emily and Jet
To catch everyone up...
Ride from last Tuesday:
I decided to use a running martigale. Why? I am not sure. I saw it hanging on the wall and thought, "Eh.... What the heck. Let's try it!" Proved to be a very useful tool! He responded very well to it. At first he had to figure things out and see how it worked but once he got the hang of it, he was amazing! The ground was a big pile of mush for the previous few days so we only walked up and down the roads for hillwork. So now we actually got some ring work in. I did a lot of bending work with him, getting him to respond to not only my hands but also my seat and legs. He was amazing! I got a glimpse of what is to come... hopefully. We did lots of trotting aswell. I let him go on a loose rein at first, trying to let him balance himself rather than having him brace against my inside rein for support. He moved where I asked him too and we were really connected in all areas. He didn't stick his nose up and out at all really. At the end of the ride, I took the reins out of the running martingale and worked without it. I let him walk around on a loose rein for a few laps then ask him to collect a bit. I am not asking a lot of him right now. Just figuring out what he knows, what we need to work on, getting him back in shape, etc. He did really well! Even at the trot. He was consistant, didn't break, and for a *few* strides... he was perfect. After those few strides, I rewarded and praised him and let him be done. It was a great ride!
Wedsday and Thursday...it rained and snowed a bit... uggh. No riding. Friday I slept over my friends house right after school so didn't ride again... Yesterday I hopped on at about 9pm. Did a lot of walking and about 3 laps of trotting in each direction since he had a galloping spree with Elsa and Biscuit in the ring earlier and worked himself into a sweat. So I couldn't do much but I was satisfied with what we accomplished. I worked on circles, serpentines, figure eights, just things to keep him mind busy while listening to my seat, legs, and hands, well my entire body actually, to ask him where to go. Sometimes he resisted my aids but he gave in and worked with me. It was a short ride, but a good one.
Today we had out ride Jess trailer him and Katie, Mary-Kate's horse, to Hobby Horse Farm to get some work done in the indoor. He hasn't been to a new place just to ride in... who knows how long... We got there and he was looking around but never did anything wrong. He was a bit hyper, checking things out but he listened to me most of the time when I asked him to stop. Occasionally he would take another step or two when I asked and then spin his butt around so he was facing me. When he did that, I walked a few steps then asked for him to stop again. He listened the second time. We also worked on my personal bubble that he frequently penetrates. I wasn't going to deal with being repeatedly run into. So after a few elbows in his shoulder to tell him to move over, he was fine. We brought them into the barn and on the crossties to tack them up. I already brushed (and clipped =D) him at him so I jsut picked him feet, did a quick soft brush, then tacked him up. He stood really well once he figured out he was on crossties. He had to test to make sure he was restrained at first, which was interesting but once he figured it out, all he wanted to do was chew on the crossties.
After they were both tacked up, we took them into the indoor and walked them around so they could check everything out before we got on. He was not paying attention to me at all. I don't think he has ever been in an indoor so this was a new experience for him. He took it well but was nervous about everything. I had to have my Dad hold him as I tightened the girth, stretched his legs, pulled down the stirrups, and got on, which was perfectly fine but I would have liked him to stand still for my Dad... which he only did for a sporadic few seconds at a time. I got on and I don't think he has ever walked so fast. His earrs were perked and he was checking everything out. Jumps, windows, doors, flower boxes, rock walls, poo on the ground, everything! Katie was doing the same but atleast she was paying attention to her mommy. -cough cough- Hmm.. my little booger pretended like I wasn't even there. He wasn't listening at all. His head was up, nose was sticking out... he looked like a giraffe with neck problems...uggh. Anytime I asked fort something with my legs or seat, he would trot. I eventually got him paying attention to me. I was doing circles, changing directions, asking for halts, slower, faster, and everything else I could think of. We picked up a trot. He did a little better in the trot but still... head up, nose out, and we forgot where our feet were a few times. He never spooked at anything which was nice. We trotted for a while in both directions and I cooled him out at a walk while Mary-Kate cantered and jumped Katie. I decided to try a canter, just to see if maybe a bigger ring would help... Nope.. just his race horse super fast trot. Which was fine. I wasn't planning on trotting anyways but I had to give it a shot. There was an itty bitty, 2" cross rail set up from a previous lesson. I wanted to try it once at a slow trot to see if he would pick up his feet. More as a cavalety than a jump. But no. "Mom. This thing could eat my if I go over it." We trotted, stopped infront of it, but then proceeded to walk over it and knock it over. It was great for a few laughs and I didn't expect him to even go over it so it was a pleasant surprise that he went over it at all. I don't plan on really jumping (I love how I mean "really jumping" as tiny crossrails xD) until the fall, if that. Flat work, flat work, flat work for this year.
Anyways.... after we cooled them out after Katie jumped and Jet "jumped." Then we went outside to take pictures in the lovely landscape the barn has. We got some pictures but both the horses were still hot and sweaty so we decided to go on a trail ride. The barn has miles and miles of trails and I know my way around them fairly well. We went around the first field and trotted up a big hill just so we could look around and see everything. It was gorgeous from that spot. You could see the barn, the pastures, the jumping ring (in the summer) and miles of trails depending on which way you looked. We went back down the hill and proceed on the trails. We decided only to go to the second field and then turn around and go back since we didn't know how they would take to the bridge that leads to the fourth field. We went back a different way than we came but ended up in the same place... the big hill. We trotted back up it and were just awed by the surroundings... well, not really at the time but looking back I know atleast I was lol.
On out way back to the barn, I decided to show Mary-Kate the pond where we are going to catch a turtle in the future. We walked around it one and saw geese. "I want to go herd the geese!!" "Ok Mary-Kate, go herd the geese!" And she did but they eventually split up and flew away only to meet again at a pond on the other side of the fence. Smart geese! Katie was getting into the whole herding thing. It was pretty funny. I was laughing and Jet was pretty amused as well!
We walked back to barn and saw Meri, Lynn, Taylor, and Jess heading back out onto the trails. Hmmm.. we know that they are going to go farther into the trails... Why not go back out? The horses were still warm so we went back out with the big group. We went a different, longer way that was mostly woods versus the field path I chose for when Mary-Kate and I went out alone. Jess lead the way on Cocoa, then Mary-Kate and I on Katie and Jet were a ways behind her, and then WAYYYY back behind us, Meri was on Jimmy, Lynn was on Eeyore, and Taylor was on Abbey. They were sooo slow. So we frequently stopped and waited for them to catch up, only to have them fall behind during the next minute or so. Katie and Jet became best friends. We came across several puddles. Katie's worst nightmare. Jet is fine with water and went right through. Worried that her new best friend might leave her, Katie hesitated at first but then went right acorss each puddle. We were very proud of her =) Then when we got to the third field, we had to cross a bridge... the bridge was the whole reason we didn't come to the third field in the first place. Cocoa went first and had a hissy fit. Saw it, thought, "HECK NO!" and backed up, spun around and tried to amke a gettaway. I decided to ask Jet to go over it first then. He went right over it!! I was so so proud of him! Even some of the lesson horses will hesitate to go over the bridge sometimes. I gave him a huge pat and waited for everyone else to cross the bridge.
We finally got back to the barn and untacked. I picked his feet, took off his boots, and put a sheet on him. He needed some linatment so Meri kindly let me use hers. He got a good spray of it and I rubbed it in so he hopefully isn't realyl sore tomorrow. I was on him for a good 2 hours! I put him in a stall to let him get a drink of water. After a few minutes, he peed and took a few sips of water. I took him out and walked him around the arena a few times then brought him outside to walk around aswell. Jess came around with the trailer and we loaded them on. The poor things were on there for a good 30 mintues before we left since Meri had to wait for a lesson kid to be picked up by her mom. (Meri went home with Jess) We got back to our house and I unloaded him. It it a big step up trailer and he almost fell coming out of it... silly uncoordinated horse. But he went on and off fine overall. Katie was bellowing for him as they drove away and Elsa was bellowing for him aswell. He went back into the paddock, said hello to his friends, and munhced on hay.
What a great day =) He is definately going to get tomorrow and Tuesday off. He will be soreeee. But I am going to take him out of the paddock and hand walk him so he doesn't get stiff. Next weekend we are going to the barn on both Saturday and Sunday and the show is the following Saturday. Can't wait!!
-Emily and Jet
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Sunday, February 21, 2010
Tried Some New Things
MUD MUD MUD! Uggh. I hate the mud. Atleast it isn't ice! Anyways... since it is so muddy outside, I haven't had a lot of riding time lately. Yesterday was interesting though.
I went outside to feed lunch hay and decided to brush them all. I curried them all, then hard brush, then soft brush, then hoof pick, for all 3 horses. They are shedding!! YAY! Spring.... please come quickly. I decided to take Biscuit for a walk. Then I thought, what the heck! Why not ground drive him? So I took his harness and put just the saddle part on, threw on his bridle and off we went! We worked in the ring first then went on the road. We walked up and down it once, then trotted it. There are hills on both sides of the road so it was a work out for us! But I think I was more tired at the end of it. I went back to the house and drove him around the backyard, here, there, everywhere! When we were done, I put him back in the paddock and burshed him again and picked his feet.
Hmm.... what to do with Elsa? It is too mushy to ride in the ring... hop on and walk around the street? Nah... let's try something new! Dad used to have harness race horses so I took the saddle part from that, put fleece on it and plopped it on Elsa. I jingled it around, let her sniff it, moved it around her... she could have cared less. She doesn't have a driving bridle so I just used her riding one. I hooked up the long reins and led her by hand up the the ring. Abby was outside with me. I asked her to walk at Elsa's head the first few times around. At first she had to figure out what I was asking her but after about 2 times around, she got the hang of it! I asked Abby to now just stand still so I could see if she would be ok without her by her head. She was amazing! I was very impressed! I asked her for a trot on the dry side of the ring. I said the word and tapped her with the long reins on her rump. As soon as I asked, she went! She was a very good girl so I decided to take her around the street. I went once both directions at a walk, then decided to ask for a little trot. At first she was a little strong, but then she settled down. She actually has really nice movement and she looked like a carriage horse! Abby wanted to try so I let her take the reins and I walked at her head, just in case. Elsa was great for Abby! Abby wanted to try a trot so I told her how to do it. Abby asked her for it and she went! She was, again, a little strong at first, but settled down. We put her back in the paddock, Abby brushed her, and I decided to try Jet.
Jet was a harness racer. He knows how to drive. He has 27 races, and hundreds of days of training. He was the best out of the three of them. I took him up to the ring and at first all he wanted to do was stick his nose out. Mom yelled, "Play with your reins like you would as if you were riding and see if you can get him to round his back a bit!" Hmmm. Never thought of that. Why not give it a try? So I played with the reins and he lowered his head! I got him bending and doing figure eights! He was a great boy. I then decided to go around the road. We went around once each direction at the walk. Abby finished brushing Elsa and said, "Can I walk Elsa with you?" "Sure!" Elsa came for a walk with us. Both of them were quiet throughout the walk but Biscuit.... oh little BP(Biscuit Pony).... he was neighing up a storm! His little mind was thinking, "OH MY GOODNESS! THEY ARE LEAVING ME FOREVER AND NEVER COMING BACK! AND I DON'T HAVE ANYMORE HAY!" We had to cut our walk a little short because of that... but as soon as Elsa was back, Biscuit was satisfied. I turned Jet around and went back down the road. I asked for a trot. It was an amazing trot! We went half way one way and athe entire time the way back! I tried to keep it short because his feet are a little sensitive with all of the moisture in the ground... and he is overdue to get trimmed, but we have an appointment made!
We got back to the yard and Abby took Elsa out again. She brought her up to the ring and I brought Jet up there aswell. I took the harness off and then thought... I should hop on him bareback! So Mom went and grabbed my helmet and gave me a leg up. We were off! We went around the road again, and did a tiny trot up one of the hills. We got back to the ring and did some actual work. I actually prefer riding bareback than to riding in a saddle. It makes me feel secure and I can feel the horse so much easier and I love that. We worked on bending and bringing out nose down and we actually did really well! At the end of our ride, I gave him a really thorough brushing and BAM! I was covered in Jet hair from head to toe. He is shedding!
Today wasn't as exciting. He was turned out in the ring with everyone. They rolled. A lot. Then they took a nap right next to each other. It was really cute =) I brushed them, then they rolled again. It was getting dark so it was time to take them down. Abby and Jon (my older brother) offered to help bring them down. I was brushing Jet again at the moment so I told them to just take Elsa and Biscuit down. I then lunged Jet to get some of his bouncies out. He had a lot of them! It ring is still mushy so I tried to keep him in the drier half. My grandparents came down for my sister's birthday (which is tomorrow) so that was nice aswell. I will post more tomorrow. This post is getting awfully long.
Type more later =)
Emily and her ponies!
I went outside to feed lunch hay and decided to brush them all. I curried them all, then hard brush, then soft brush, then hoof pick, for all 3 horses. They are shedding!! YAY! Spring.... please come quickly. I decided to take Biscuit for a walk. Then I thought, what the heck! Why not ground drive him? So I took his harness and put just the saddle part on, threw on his bridle and off we went! We worked in the ring first then went on the road. We walked up and down it once, then trotted it. There are hills on both sides of the road so it was a work out for us! But I think I was more tired at the end of it. I went back to the house and drove him around the backyard, here, there, everywhere! When we were done, I put him back in the paddock and burshed him again and picked his feet.
Hmm.... what to do with Elsa? It is too mushy to ride in the ring... hop on and walk around the street? Nah... let's try something new! Dad used to have harness race horses so I took the saddle part from that, put fleece on it and plopped it on Elsa. I jingled it around, let her sniff it, moved it around her... she could have cared less. She doesn't have a driving bridle so I just used her riding one. I hooked up the long reins and led her by hand up the the ring. Abby was outside with me. I asked her to walk at Elsa's head the first few times around. At first she had to figure out what I was asking her but after about 2 times around, she got the hang of it! I asked Abby to now just stand still so I could see if she would be ok without her by her head. She was amazing! I was very impressed! I asked her for a trot on the dry side of the ring. I said the word and tapped her with the long reins on her rump. As soon as I asked, she went! She was a very good girl so I decided to take her around the street. I went once both directions at a walk, then decided to ask for a little trot. At first she was a little strong, but then she settled down. She actually has really nice movement and she looked like a carriage horse! Abby wanted to try so I let her take the reins and I walked at her head, just in case. Elsa was great for Abby! Abby wanted to try a trot so I told her how to do it. Abby asked her for it and she went! She was, again, a little strong at first, but settled down. We put her back in the paddock, Abby brushed her, and I decided to try Jet.
Jet was a harness racer. He knows how to drive. He has 27 races, and hundreds of days of training. He was the best out of the three of them. I took him up to the ring and at first all he wanted to do was stick his nose out. Mom yelled, "Play with your reins like you would as if you were riding and see if you can get him to round his back a bit!" Hmmm. Never thought of that. Why not give it a try? So I played with the reins and he lowered his head! I got him bending and doing figure eights! He was a great boy. I then decided to go around the road. We went around once each direction at the walk. Abby finished brushing Elsa and said, "Can I walk Elsa with you?" "Sure!" Elsa came for a walk with us. Both of them were quiet throughout the walk but Biscuit.... oh little BP(Biscuit Pony).... he was neighing up a storm! His little mind was thinking, "OH MY GOODNESS! THEY ARE LEAVING ME FOREVER AND NEVER COMING BACK! AND I DON'T HAVE ANYMORE HAY!" We had to cut our walk a little short because of that... but as soon as Elsa was back, Biscuit was satisfied. I turned Jet around and went back down the road. I asked for a trot. It was an amazing trot! We went half way one way and athe entire time the way back! I tried to keep it short because his feet are a little sensitive with all of the moisture in the ground... and he is overdue to get trimmed, but we have an appointment made!
We got back to the yard and Abby took Elsa out again. She brought her up to the ring and I brought Jet up there aswell. I took the harness off and then thought... I should hop on him bareback! So Mom went and grabbed my helmet and gave me a leg up. We were off! We went around the road again, and did a tiny trot up one of the hills. We got back to the ring and did some actual work. I actually prefer riding bareback than to riding in a saddle. It makes me feel secure and I can feel the horse so much easier and I love that. We worked on bending and bringing out nose down and we actually did really well! At the end of our ride, I gave him a really thorough brushing and BAM! I was covered in Jet hair from head to toe. He is shedding!
Today wasn't as exciting. He was turned out in the ring with everyone. They rolled. A lot. Then they took a nap right next to each other. It was really cute =) I brushed them, then they rolled again. It was getting dark so it was time to take them down. Abby and Jon (my older brother) offered to help bring them down. I was brushing Jet again at the moment so I told them to just take Elsa and Biscuit down. I then lunged Jet to get some of his bouncies out. He had a lot of them! It ring is still mushy so I tried to keep him in the drier half. My grandparents came down for my sister's birthday (which is tomorrow) so that was nice aswell. I will post more tomorrow. This post is getting awfully long.
Type more later =)
Emily and her ponies!
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Sorry!
Sorry! I haven't been posting lately. But anywaysss... let's catch everyone up =)
Past week or so: Rode a few times. Haven't done anything exciting really. Jet has been turned out with Elsa and Biscuit just about everyday. He has been lunged a few times on the days we didn't ride. We have more snow! UGGH. I just want the snow to go away!
Yesterday I went to Hobby Horse Farm, awesome farm just a few minutes down the rode from me, to watch my friend Mary-Kate (Hey Mary-Kate!) ride. She did an awesome job riding Eeyore! She then rode a horses that is free, Mickey?, and she did well on her aswell. She thinks she is a bad rider but she is actually really good! I would have some competition if I competed against her! So after Mary-Kate rode... I rode Poker. 17 hh tank with a lot on power. Poker is still green and requires extreme muscles. If you don't keep him forward and uphill, he will drag you everywhere. I have been working on my hunt seat Eq, and now I had to go back to dressage. My body was telling me hunt seat so I did horribly and it definately wasn't my best ride. I ended up getting Poker going really nicely w/t/c, and eh... ok at jumping. We did a course from crossrails to about 2'6"-3'ish. His jump is awkward though, not really what I am used to. He approaches the jump, takes a big stride, then sits back on his haunches and sits there for a second before launching over the jump. So I would go into my 2-point before I needed to since I was used to other horses. Then my leg swong everywhere... ok. Nevermind. I don't need to rant about my bad Eq. x] After I rode Poker, I switched horses with Julie who was riding Freedon. Poker absolutely LOVES Julie. I'm not exactly sure why but they definately clicked and he was an angel for her. Freedom was really good for me and I love riding him. He is very comfy and easy to ride if you know him. He has mental blocks sometimes. We swear we can hear the elevator music playing in his head. After I rode at HHF, I went back home to ride Jet.
HHF has an indoor, I do not. The ground was rock hard,a bit icy, and it was uneven. So we just walked. We worked on connecting our front end and back end, and rounding through his back, and coming up underneath himself. Did we accomplish much? No, but it was a cold and windy night so I was ok with it. He was quiet the whole time and everytime I asked for something he would give it to me the best he could so I was extremely proud of him for that. We worked on stopping and standing, something he is not fond of. I would halt him, stop for 2 seconds, then walk on, stop him again, halt for 4 seconds, etc. until we could stand there for a good 30 seconds or so. With the wind and everything else going on, he was really focused on what I was asking him.
We are still have problems when I ask for him to not stick his nose out. He fights me for it. If you give him the reins, he takes them. You can ride on the buckle and have no loop in the reins. Good and bad. We still have to work on him not stretching out, but into a correct frame but that will take time and I don't want to rush it. It is those little things that you work on that eventually all come together. We will get there =)
Later in the week we are going to truck Jet down to HHF to use the indoor and get some good work in. We will also be taking Mary-Kate's Standardbred Katie! We will definately take pictures and videos to post later!
I will keep you updated and post more often! I promise!
-Em and Jet
Past week or so: Rode a few times. Haven't done anything exciting really. Jet has been turned out with Elsa and Biscuit just about everyday. He has been lunged a few times on the days we didn't ride. We have more snow! UGGH. I just want the snow to go away!
Yesterday I went to Hobby Horse Farm, awesome farm just a few minutes down the rode from me, to watch my friend Mary-Kate (Hey Mary-Kate!) ride. She did an awesome job riding Eeyore! She then rode a horses that is free, Mickey?, and she did well on her aswell. She thinks she is a bad rider but she is actually really good! I would have some competition if I competed against her! So after Mary-Kate rode... I rode Poker. 17 hh tank with a lot on power. Poker is still green and requires extreme muscles. If you don't keep him forward and uphill, he will drag you everywhere. I have been working on my hunt seat Eq, and now I had to go back to dressage. My body was telling me hunt seat so I did horribly and it definately wasn't my best ride. I ended up getting Poker going really nicely w/t/c, and eh... ok at jumping. We did a course from crossrails to about 2'6"-3'ish. His jump is awkward though, not really what I am used to. He approaches the jump, takes a big stride, then sits back on his haunches and sits there for a second before launching over the jump. So I would go into my 2-point before I needed to since I was used to other horses. Then my leg swong everywhere... ok. Nevermind. I don't need to rant about my bad Eq. x] After I rode Poker, I switched horses with Julie who was riding Freedon. Poker absolutely LOVES Julie. I'm not exactly sure why but they definately clicked and he was an angel for her. Freedom was really good for me and I love riding him. He is very comfy and easy to ride if you know him. He has mental blocks sometimes. We swear we can hear the elevator music playing in his head. After I rode at HHF, I went back home to ride Jet.
HHF has an indoor, I do not. The ground was rock hard,a bit icy, and it was uneven. So we just walked. We worked on connecting our front end and back end, and rounding through his back, and coming up underneath himself. Did we accomplish much? No, but it was a cold and windy night so I was ok with it. He was quiet the whole time and everytime I asked for something he would give it to me the best he could so I was extremely proud of him for that. We worked on stopping and standing, something he is not fond of. I would halt him, stop for 2 seconds, then walk on, stop him again, halt for 4 seconds, etc. until we could stand there for a good 30 seconds or so. With the wind and everything else going on, he was really focused on what I was asking him.
We are still have problems when I ask for him to not stick his nose out. He fights me for it. If you give him the reins, he takes them. You can ride on the buckle and have no loop in the reins. Good and bad. We still have to work on him not stretching out, but into a correct frame but that will take time and I don't want to rush it. It is those little things that you work on that eventually all come together. We will get there =)
Later in the week we are going to truck Jet down to HHF to use the indoor and get some good work in. We will also be taking Mary-Kate's Standardbred Katie! We will definately take pictures and videos to post later!
I will keep you updated and post more often! I promise!
-Em and Jet
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
AWESOME ride!
I had two great rides! Yesterday we did mostly walking with a bit of trotting here or there and he was excellent! We really have to work on him rounding his neck, or atleast not sticking his nose out and playing with the bit! He is getting much better each day and now he can actually go rounded for a few steps at a time! We have to find where our feet are going again, but we are doing lots of circles, serpentines, change or directions, and more to keep his mind and body busy. It works a LOT more than just staying on the rail!
Today I got him, sat around until about 3:45om, then went out to groom Jet. I started grooming him, got all of his tack ready, and my sister came out and said, "I wanna ride with you but only when Mom comes home!" -looks at half tacked horse and sighs- "Alright, let's go lunge her because she hasn't been ridden in months..." "YAY!" So I lunged Elsa. She didn't bounce surprisingly. We brought her back down and while she was brushing Elsa, Josh(my younger brother) and I brushed Biscuit. I was amazed and so happy when Josh said that he wanted to ride Biscuit. All the horses were getting worked and brushed today! Josh is usually scared of horses but lately he has been helping me with EVERYTHING! Brushing, feeding, water, cleaning, getting tack, whatever I needed, he would be there to help. I should pay him one of these days lol. But anyways, Mom finally got home and we tacked Jet and Elsa up. (Josh was going to ride after us since he is a very beginner rider and didn't want to be on Biscuit with 2 other horses in the ring).
I was the first to get on and I let him stretch out for a lap or so in each direction. Then we got to work! We did circles, this that, and everything in between! He was a very good boy considering Elsa saved her bouncies for Abby when she was riding. He passed her nicely, was passed by her nicely, everything went amazing! We both decided to trot. Elsa was a lunatic and thought that she was the racing Standardbred going 30+ mph. Abby wasn't prepared for it and got a little nervous. She tensed up, telling Elsa to go faster. BAD CHOICE WITH ELSA. You have to stay calm on her. Your calm, she's calm. Your tense, she's tense. She is very good at reading people. But Abby kept on working with her and got her going nicely at the end. We trotting more that usual since the ground was unfrozen. We did lots of trotting and Jet did really well! He kept his head in a reasonable position and was listening to me. You and I are probably thinking two different things. He isn't the perfect made horse. He is green, and still in training so ofcourse he isn't completely balanced and ofcourse he makes mistakes but that's how we learn. He never once was out of control, he was quite the opposite. He was lazyyyyy. But that's ok, I prefer lazy over wild!
After Abby and I rode, josh rode Biscuit. He rode in a saddle without stirrups (his personal style of riding. He hates stirrups and would prefer bareback compared to using them). Biscuit hasn't been ridden constantly.... in years. Possibly ever. Nobody really know show muchhe is trained. We know he drives, but riding? Not so sure. But whenever Josh feels like riding, Biscuit is always his pick and Biscuit takes very good care of him. Before Josh got on, I had to get his bouncies out. Since he drives, he doesn't really understand lunging or if he does, he acts confused. So I brought him up to the ring all tacked up, put some grain in my hand and ran! He galloped after me, bucking and playing. We do alot of inhand work and he always stays at my shoulder. As soon as I stopped, so did he. So then Josh got on. He wanted to play Simon Says so we played Simon Says. We learned that Biscuit loves to do half-passes and knows how to do them. I also voice-command trained him and so when Josh surprisingly said, "Can we trot?" I said "Yep! ready? Biscuit.... trot!"and off we went. I wanted Biscuit to go slow so I did a brisk walk while Biscuit jogged. Overall, Josh had a blast and he was laughing and smiling the entire time! Biscuit loved being ridden and absolutely adores Josh!
I will post more later? Depends on if I have school tomorrow or not =)
-Emily and horsies
Today I got him, sat around until about 3:45om, then went out to groom Jet. I started grooming him, got all of his tack ready, and my sister came out and said, "I wanna ride with you but only when Mom comes home!" -looks at half tacked horse and sighs- "Alright, let's go lunge her because she hasn't been ridden in months..." "YAY!" So I lunged Elsa. She didn't bounce surprisingly. We brought her back down and while she was brushing Elsa, Josh(my younger brother) and I brushed Biscuit. I was amazed and so happy when Josh said that he wanted to ride Biscuit. All the horses were getting worked and brushed today! Josh is usually scared of horses but lately he has been helping me with EVERYTHING! Brushing, feeding, water, cleaning, getting tack, whatever I needed, he would be there to help. I should pay him one of these days lol. But anyways, Mom finally got home and we tacked Jet and Elsa up. (Josh was going to ride after us since he is a very beginner rider and didn't want to be on Biscuit with 2 other horses in the ring).
I was the first to get on and I let him stretch out for a lap or so in each direction. Then we got to work! We did circles, this that, and everything in between! He was a very good boy considering Elsa saved her bouncies for Abby when she was riding. He passed her nicely, was passed by her nicely, everything went amazing! We both decided to trot. Elsa was a lunatic and thought that she was the racing Standardbred going 30+ mph. Abby wasn't prepared for it and got a little nervous. She tensed up, telling Elsa to go faster. BAD CHOICE WITH ELSA. You have to stay calm on her. Your calm, she's calm. Your tense, she's tense. She is very good at reading people. But Abby kept on working with her and got her going nicely at the end. We trotting more that usual since the ground was unfrozen. We did lots of trotting and Jet did really well! He kept his head in a reasonable position and was listening to me. You and I are probably thinking two different things. He isn't the perfect made horse. He is green, and still in training so ofcourse he isn't completely balanced and ofcourse he makes mistakes but that's how we learn. He never once was out of control, he was quite the opposite. He was lazyyyyy. But that's ok, I prefer lazy over wild!
After Abby and I rode, josh rode Biscuit. He rode in a saddle without stirrups (his personal style of riding. He hates stirrups and would prefer bareback compared to using them). Biscuit hasn't been ridden constantly.... in years. Possibly ever. Nobody really know show muchhe is trained. We know he drives, but riding? Not so sure. But whenever Josh feels like riding, Biscuit is always his pick and Biscuit takes very good care of him. Before Josh got on, I had to get his bouncies out. Since he drives, he doesn't really understand lunging or if he does, he acts confused. So I brought him up to the ring all tacked up, put some grain in my hand and ran! He galloped after me, bucking and playing. We do alot of inhand work and he always stays at my shoulder. As soon as I stopped, so did he. So then Josh got on. He wanted to play Simon Says so we played Simon Says. We learned that Biscuit loves to do half-passes and knows how to do them. I also voice-command trained him and so when Josh surprisingly said, "Can we trot?" I said "Yep! ready? Biscuit.... trot!"and off we went. I wanted Biscuit to go slow so I did a brisk walk while Biscuit jogged. Overall, Josh had a blast and he was laughing and smiling the entire time! Biscuit loved being ridden and absolutely adores Josh!
I will post more later? Depends on if I have school tomorrow or not =)
-Emily and horsies
Saturday, February 6, 2010
Friday, February 5, 2010
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Shadow Picture From After I Lunged Him
I decided to lunge Jet today instead of riding him. I am still feeling really sick and just didn't have the energy to ride.
I brought him up, after getting him ready, and let him dniff around the ring for a bit. I gave him a few minutes to himself, thinking he was going to roll, but he didn't! Then I walked in with the luunge line and whip. He decided that free lunging would be more fun and I was perfectly fine with that as long as he listened to me. I started by using my voice commands and positioning myself infront of him, behind him, etc. to see if he knew how to watch my body language. He was very iffy and confused at first but as time went on he got the hang of it. I asked him to trot and BAM! He was off like a shot gun! He needed to get his bouncies out apparantly (which I thought he would need to) and he was bucking and galloping and having a good old time!
After he settled down, I got back to work. I had him trotting for a little bit, then walking, halting, then a small canter (maybe once around, if that) to see if he knew the voice commands for everything. He knows everything fairly well! I was very proud of him! After going for a while in each direction I walked him out even though he was only a wee bit warm. I worked on his ground manner. This is my space, not yours. Thank you very much... We worked on halting square, staying at my shoulder, etc.
I am going to work on this everyday so hopefully I can take him to shows this year even if it is just an In-Hand class. I really want to get him off the property and into new places to get him used to it again. Since he was a race horse, he was everywhere and anywhere in the busiest times of day. He raced right next to a highway for goodness sakes! Hopefully going to new places will be a walk in the park. Hopefully...
Tomorrow I am planning to ride him as soon as I get home from school. I don't plan on doing much, but just slowly getting him back into the swing of things and getting him back into the lifestyle of a working horse vs. a very happy pasture pal that he was before. He is still very happy and is spoiled by everyone! He is just in work too! hehe. I think he enjoys having a job though... I really do. I hope to find what he wants to do this year and follow that path. I don't want to make him into anything he is not, can't be, or just doesn't want to be. Only time will tell what path we travel down together. Can't wait to find out!
Sincerely, Em and Jet!
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
A Good Ride on a Not-So-Good Day
Sick. sick sick sick sick. I hate being sick. I have a sore throat, cough, runny nose, and back aches. Anyways... I stayed home from school today. After waking up, throwing up, then going back to sleep... I re-awoke at 10:30am. I felt a lot better and decided to make myself pancakes and toast since I was home alone. They were delicious! After eatting that, I laid down, watched a bit of TV, and had a snack.
Then it was time to go feed the ponies lunch. They acted like they were going to starve if I did not feed them that very second, which is normal. Everyone was fed and content. I picked Jet's stall and checked all the water. While he was eatting, I took off Jet's blanket and gave him a good brush. He walked away from his hay to a corner of the paddock and just sat there while I brushed him. I swear he was thinking, "A little to the right...up...wait no down... RIGHT THERE!" It was quite hilarious. I put his blanket back on and gave him some treats. I also started to teach him to bow! He is picking up on it very quickly! I think that keeping his mind busy, even in the paddock would be great for him. So I am determined to teach him atleast 3 tricks by the end of the summer. Have any suggestions as to what I could teach him?
I then took Biscuit's blankets off and gave him a really good brushing since he enjoys rolling in pee, shavings, and poo on a daily basis. Being the very verbal pony that he is, he was nickering to me the entire time. It was adorable! He is also really picking up on learning how to bow! I can just say the word now and he does it, not to his full potential but atleast he knows what it means. After I spoiled him, I put his blanket back on so he wouldn't freeze. I took him for a walk around the yard and played in the ring with him for a bit.
After finishing everything up outside, I went back inside to defrost infront of the fire. Abby came home and then Josh did a while later. I decided that even though I was feeling crappy, I was going to have a relaxing ride on Jet anyways. I put my half chaps and boots on, grabbed my helmet and gloves and headed out the door. I got all the tack, brushes, etc and brought them to the fence. He saw me coming and made a mad dash for the other side of the paddock! I pulled out my emergency treat and he came over to me and I slipped the halter on his head. Since I had gave hima good brush earlier, I picked his feet and went over him with the soft brush again. He stood still the entire time. I waws very impressed! I tacked him up and got ready to ride. Mom then came home and asked how I was feeling and oddly enough, I felt a lot better when I was outside with the horses. Interesting...
I brought him up to the ring and hopped on. He stood still when I mounted him and waited for me to ask him to go. A very pleasant change from riding lesson horses and other horses -cough cough- Elsa -cough cough- that decide that it would be hilarious to walk off as soon as you put one foot in the stirrup and are about the leap on. Not so funny for me. We worked a lot at the walk. Bending, leg yields, changed of directions, transitions from walk to halt, halt to walk, etc. and much more. He really likes to lean to the inside and stick his nose up and out so I worked on having him balance himself around corners instead of me supporting him and using all part of his body in unison to collecct him. I didn't accomplish much but I got him going nicely for a few seconds. It felt great! Since he isn't in shape and hasn't been worked consistantly for a long time, I didn't expect much and was greatful and proud of what he gave me. He tries hard, he really does but he gets confused easily. He is very easily distracted. "Walking...ok, I have to go in a straight line and move all my feet in cadence. I have to...... I SEE SOMETHING SHINY! -elevator music-" Yep. That is pretty much the way he functions but that's what I adore about him! He is always happy with his ears perked up :)
I will post tomorrow!
-Emily and her horsey friends
Then it was time to go feed the ponies lunch. They acted like they were going to starve if I did not feed them that very second, which is normal. Everyone was fed and content. I picked Jet's stall and checked all the water. While he was eatting, I took off Jet's blanket and gave him a good brush. He walked away from his hay to a corner of the paddock and just sat there while I brushed him. I swear he was thinking, "A little to the right...up...wait no down... RIGHT THERE!" It was quite hilarious. I put his blanket back on and gave him some treats. I also started to teach him to bow! He is picking up on it very quickly! I think that keeping his mind busy, even in the paddock would be great for him. So I am determined to teach him atleast 3 tricks by the end of the summer. Have any suggestions as to what I could teach him?
I then took Biscuit's blankets off and gave him a really good brushing since he enjoys rolling in pee, shavings, and poo on a daily basis. Being the very verbal pony that he is, he was nickering to me the entire time. It was adorable! He is also really picking up on learning how to bow! I can just say the word now and he does it, not to his full potential but atleast he knows what it means. After I spoiled him, I put his blanket back on so he wouldn't freeze. I took him for a walk around the yard and played in the ring with him for a bit.
After finishing everything up outside, I went back inside to defrost infront of the fire. Abby came home and then Josh did a while later. I decided that even though I was feeling crappy, I was going to have a relaxing ride on Jet anyways. I put my half chaps and boots on, grabbed my helmet and gloves and headed out the door. I got all the tack, brushes, etc and brought them to the fence. He saw me coming and made a mad dash for the other side of the paddock! I pulled out my emergency treat and he came over to me and I slipped the halter on his head. Since I had gave hima good brush earlier, I picked his feet and went over him with the soft brush again. He stood still the entire time. I waws very impressed! I tacked him up and got ready to ride. Mom then came home and asked how I was feeling and oddly enough, I felt a lot better when I was outside with the horses. Interesting...
I brought him up to the ring and hopped on. He stood still when I mounted him and waited for me to ask him to go. A very pleasant change from riding lesson horses and other horses -cough cough- Elsa -cough cough- that decide that it would be hilarious to walk off as soon as you put one foot in the stirrup and are about the leap on. Not so funny for me. We worked a lot at the walk. Bending, leg yields, changed of directions, transitions from walk to halt, halt to walk, etc. and much more. He really likes to lean to the inside and stick his nose up and out so I worked on having him balance himself around corners instead of me supporting him and using all part of his body in unison to collecct him. I didn't accomplish much but I got him going nicely for a few seconds. It felt great! Since he isn't in shape and hasn't been worked consistantly for a long time, I didn't expect much and was greatful and proud of what he gave me. He tries hard, he really does but he gets confused easily. He is very easily distracted. "Walking...ok, I have to go in a straight line and move all my feet in cadence. I have to...... I SEE SOMETHING SHINY! -elevator music-" Yep. That is pretty much the way he functions but that's what I adore about him! He is always happy with his ears perked up :)
I will post tomorrow!
-Emily and her horsey friends
Monday, February 1, 2010
Waiting....
Woke up early this morning so I could pick the stall before school so I could come home and ride. I am still waiting for Mom to come home so I can hop on him again. Sigh...
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