I'll send everyone an email so I can get your prizes out to you right away!
Thank you to Horze once again for their generous giveaway!
On to Shyloh. . .
I missed this fuzzy pony all week!
My pony was so sweet yesterday! I think she knew I had a crappy week at work and was super awesome for me. I did a little bit of work with her. We worked on sidepassing, backing, and bow.
Shy was sidepassing and backing like a champ. Once again though, I am sure when it is time to do it at a show in front of a judge, Shy will act like I am asking her to do handstands or spin on her head. I'll have to video some proof.
I also went back to working on the bow. Shy has the get her head between her legs part down, it's just the bending on the knee that she has trouble with. I think it stems from asking her to go down a little bit and that is a vulnerable position for her. But today we made some progress. I held her leg up and when she lowered her head through her front legs and relaxed, she went down on her knee! She wouldn't stay but for a second, but it is a start!
Love that she walks up to me now
More freezing weather and snow on its way. . .yuck! And Equestrian at Hart is hosting a Higher Standards Leather Care Soap giveaway! Check it out!
Today was a rough day at work., I was in desperate need of some equine therapy after work. My job is stressful enough without having to do other people's work while they sit around doing nothing. And on top of that, the things I heard today made me want to vomit in my mouth. Gross. Okay, enough work rant. I am so very much looking forward to a little break for Christmas and New Year.
Sometime, you just need to hug a horse
Shyloh did her job very well today as an equine therapist. She got my mind off of everything stressful. I took my time grooming her then put her harness on.
Yesterday, we had a great day! I worked on line driving Shy at the trot and I was very pleased with the results. Usually Shy won't keep the trot up, but yesterday she had a beautiful slow jog and was gee'ing and haw'ing like a pro! She was going so well, that even though I felt like I was going to pass out from all that running behind her, I kept it up as long as I could. Good pony.
The line driving is doing Shy a lot of good. It is getting her comfortable with me behind her and she is listening very well. Today we worked in the paddock with all the trees. We did lots of sharp turns, then I decided to try something new. I wanted to back her through two trees. After she finally backed through, I did not work her very much longer. Short successful sessions are best, plus my head was not in the right place.
Now for the fun stuff!
It's cute to watch Shy figure out her legs. She always starts with them too close for her big head. I did notice a couple times when I should have clicked (I was trying to click when she went on the toe of her right leg). But I had a hard time seeing around that giant noggin!
After my therapy session with Shy, I have headed home for a quiet evening on the couch to not think about anything work related until Monday. I hope to book a weekend full of horse therapy. I need it! Anyone else have any grand horse plans?
First, we warm up a bit because stretching cold muscles is a no-no. Then, usually in the arena, sometimes in her stall, I start on our stretches.
Shy doesn't want to leave the comfort of her stall to work!
Shy's absolute favorite stretch is the tail pull. With the tail pull stretch, you stand behind the horse (obviously), grab the tail near the tailbone, hold the tail out, and pull. Then release slowly. Shy puts her head down and rounds her back into the pull. The tail pull stretches the muscles and joints all along the back of the horse. We also do tail rotations, which is just like the pull, but make small circles in each direction with the tail.
Shy also likes her leg stretches. When I get done with one leg, she already has the next leg lifted for me. It's cute. We do shoulder release down and back, shoulder release down and forward, shoulder rotation stretch, shoulder circles, rear leg circles, bringing the hind legs forward, lifting the hind legs, and hip stretch. If anyone wants any specifics on these leg stretches, ask in the comments and I'll answer. Otherwise, this post would be the length of a novel!
Shy is not too keen on the lateral cervical flexion. This stretch is supposed to release tension in the poll and neck, which subsequently relaxes the rest of the body. Basically, stand off to one side, put one hand on the nose and the other a little bit below and behind the ear. Then gently flex the nose toward you. Shy lets me do it, but as soon as she has released the tension (especially to the left), she tenses right back up and wants to straighten her head.We also do a poll stretch, which is similar, but the horses head does not tilt.
Today, we worked on back up. We backed up and down the arena, working on keeping straight. Then we worked on backing in an arc in each direction. I am really pleased with the improvement in Shy's backing!
Shyloh was a dancer today! She was dancing on her mat and dancing over ground poles! She makes me laugh!
First, I tacked Shy up and took her to the round pen where I had laid out some poles. I had a set of three and another set of two. I think I can see some improvement! She did a great job going over the poles! She seemed to me to be really lifting her legs and placing her feet well. I took video, but it was horrible, since I had the camera set on a stool outside the round pen. I can't even pull a good still from the video. You will just have to take my word that she looked good.
After I fed all the ponies, I pulled Shy out of her stall to do some clicker training. Fun stuff after the hard work of trotting over poles. I got out the mat to start with, but I forgot the clicker, (duh, most important part) so I went back to get it. I figured Shy would go roll or something in the few seconds that I took to retrieve it.
Nope, she went straight to the mat. I missed the click! Fail on my part. I did a bunch of at liberty work with her and the mat. Shy kept dancing on the mat. I think she likes the noise her hooves make when they step on the wood. Either that or I am continuously clicking when she steps on the board and I need to be more mindful of that. But it sure looked like she was dancing! And sounded like she was tap dancing!
We did some backing, too. Shy did very well again. So I gave her a treat of some timothy pellets. Shy LOVES soaked timothy pellets. While I was soaking them, she did everything in her power to try and reach her bowl.
Blah. I have been feeling so blah, but trying my best to spin the blah-ness in a positive light.
Shyloh had been doing so well since the beginning of March when she started lessons. But then in July, she started being off and I have spent two months figuring out what the problem is and working on fixing that problem. When Shy was getting lessons, there was a measurable difference in her progress. It was: now she is backing better, now she can turn on the fore, now she is responding to leg pressure, now she is not scooting. And I was so happy that she was improving. I was even riding her and working on myself!
But as we are working to build those rear end muscles up. . .I am just blah. I feel stalled in our progress. There is not much improvement that I can see. How do I tell if we are working those muscles, they are developing, and they are developing correctly?
Plus. . .I can only walk and trot in hand over poles for so long. It is really boring. The only good thing I can *see* is that she is learning to find her feet. Shyloh is still working on finding her feet when there are more poles to navigate. Part of still being young and not worked, I guess. The chiropractor had said the same thing about her having trouble finding her feet on his first visit. The first couple times over the poles it is hit, hit, step on, hit, but the more we do go through, the better she gets. Today, I even raised the middle bar so she will use her rear end more. I had a video, but seriously, it was too boring to watch.
To switch it up, we also worked on Shy's back up. She has a terrible in hand back up. I used clicker training and Shy did fairly well. Not awesome, but good. I was surprised. I want to get her to the point where she will back to the end of the lead and I am standing still. We also worked on lowering her head. She was a rockstar at that! So yay on clicker training!
But as for me and my riding. . .stalled. I feel that I should be further along than I am. I should have more rides and longer rides under my belt. New goals have been set for myself and Shyloh. I plan to continue in hand walk/trot over the poles. Then I plan toget on Shy and ride her, at a walk, over those poles. I must do this for myself and her. No more excuses. Wish me luck!
I also added to and updated the Goals Tab, but here is a fall/winter rundown:
1. Get Shy's butt, literally, in shape through the use of pole work, backing, and hopefully hill work
2. Get myself in shape through yoga and my deep water swim aerobics
3. Ride Shy consistently, plus lessons for us both with Beth
Shyloh had her third ride with Beth today! I am so happy to report that she shows improvement and less skittish behavior every ride! Beth is such a great teacher and rider, I really cannot say enough positive things about the stuff she is doing with Shy. Beth also explains everything as she does it and gives the reasoning behind why she is doing what she does. So helpful for me! And, I've said it before, but Beth is just so gentle with Shy. And Beth gives Shy tons of praise for good work. I am glad Shy is such a willing and responsive student!
Today, Beth did some bending and canter work. Shy's transitions are getting better. Beth said that when she asks Shy to canter, she is putting her leg further back than normal and verbalizing "canter", just because when Shy does canter, she gets into a funky mindset. After the first canter, she is thinking "go fast" and just anticipating Beth to ask her again. So, Beth worked on calming her after the canter, even though I said I won't be cantering for quite some time. Amazing!
Shy's canter is unbalanced, as she is not used to carrying a rider while she canters. Beth worked on having her canter for longer and not go back into the super fast trot. Shy is such a smart girl, she will have this in no time! Plus, this work will build her muscles and balance (hopefully removing cresty neck and overall pudginess).
Another thing Beth noticed was that Shy is hard on the right rein. This may be due to a tooth issue. Shy was floated and had her wolf teeth removed in July, right after I bought her, but before she came to me. I have the equine dentist coming out soon, hopefully this week or the next. I have a list going at the barn with all the boarders who want a float, so I plan on calling back early next week to set a date. If her teeth are not the problem, then it could be that Shy is really stiff on her right side. Beth showed me some bending exercises I could work on from the ground and how those exercises translate to the saddle. Awesome!
Shyloh's go-to speed is a steady jog. Beth said once she asks for the trot, she doesn't have to keep asking for it, Shy just keeps it up all on her own. It is a very comfortable pace for her. It looks so smooth, I can't wait to do it. . .soon. Soon. . . Shy could probably hold that trot until next Tuesday, she is like the Energizer Bunny in that trot. It is very cute.
They also worked on a little backing up, which appears to be new-ish to Shy, as this was the only time she was skittish. The first time Beth asked her and Shy did backed up, Beth went to pat her a "good job" and Shy flinched a little. But then she was fine. Shy wants so bad to do what is asked of her the right way, she works herself up to be so tense. But, with more successful rides on her, my hope is that she will realize that no one is going to hurt her if she does not understand the cues. As long as she keeps trying and does bolt or toss me off, we will be good!
I had been borrowing Kathy beautiful bridle (I love this bridle on Shy!), and using the bit that came on the bridle. Shy was doing well with that, but Beth wants to try another bit for the next ride. Beth tried a few different ways of riding today, on a very loose rein and on a rein with more contact. Her consensus was that Shy responds better with more contact, but may be confused from the curb chain on the bit and the different pressure points. So we are going to try my rolly D-ring.
To make this day even better, the weather was amazing! After Shy's terrific ride, I took her outside with Kathy and Casi to munch on some grass. The sun was out, the weather is getting warmer, and it was just beautiful.
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