trophies, books, escapes, and broken things

What have me and Shyloh (awesome proper grammar, but I feel too formal writing Shyloh and I) been up to lately?

Hi there!

Besides the Barn Fun Day (here and here), we have been doing pretty much the same old stuff.  I did forget to mention the trophies!!

Trophies with style . . . courtesy of my dad

Baby Bob and Beth got a trophy because Bob was the only horse to actually lose his handler and take off, Jillian and Dulce got a trophy because they did really great and Dulce was the only horse who chose to jump the pool noodle obstacle, and Terry and Dulce got a trophy because Terry did not think Resy would do any of the obstacles and he did all of them!

I have read four horse related books. The first, 101 Ground Training Exercises for Every Horse and Handler by Cherry Hill was a bit of a disappointment. Not to say it was not informative. . .it just was not anything new for us. The best thing that I got out of that book was that we have done almost every exercise in there. That was kind of a booster for me since I have been feeling a bit down about our lack of progress lately. 

The second book, 101 Longeing and Long Lining Exercises English and Western: A Ringside Guide by Cherry Hill was much more useful. There was a handful of lunging exercises that I think may be helpful for both myself and Shy. Some Beth already discussed with me. . . now we just need to do them.

Equine Fitness: A Program of Exercises and Routines for Your Horse by Jec Aristotle Ballou was a very interesting read! There was a ton of explanation on how the muscles of the horse work and provided details on in hand and ridden exercises and stretches. The back of the book has cards with each exercise that can be tore out so I don't have to carry the book around. There were even exercises and stretches that focused specifically in the rear end, Shy's weak area. After some warm up, we have begun doing a couple of the stretches. The book also shares signs that your horse is relaxing into the stretch. It is a nice touch. The author also stresses the danger of over-stretching.

We also tried backing up our little asphalt hills. That was hard work! Shy was not too thrilled about that exercise. . .

The last book was for me, The Rider's Fitness Program by Dianna Robin Dennis, et al. I have read it and made copies of the workout routines so I can do them. Then I got the flu, but I am better now. . .so I just need a huge push to get started!

In other news, Shy escaped out of a pasture yesterday. She went right under the fence and ran to the big, much grassier pasture with the pond. Then Shy proceeded to give Kathy a hard time being caught to get her out of that pasture. I guess she ducked right under the fence to get out. Good thing that is not her regular pasture! Later that day, she busted a ring right off of her surcingle right before we got to the arena, effectively putting an end to the lunging lesson I had planned. Luckily I know someone that has the capability to sew through leather to fix it.  

Escapee. . . see those little hairs at the top of her tail? That's not rubbing, it is new tail growing in! Her mane is doing the same thing.

Aside from that, chiropractor and farrier next week. Shy seems to be doing good, but she is still a little jerky with her left rear leg. We actually had a true affectionate moment the other day, initiated by Shy! I was picking her rear feet (and I was not farted on for once) and Shy rested her head on my back. It was cute.

Anything exciting happening in your equine news? Ready for winter? Shy's hair sure is filling in! She is getting fuzzy!!

Patriotic Shy!

monday musings by shyloh #55

I am so close to escaping! Soon. . .soon. . .

I will get out of my stall and be able to come and go as I please. See here and here and here for my most recent attempts at escape. Allie thinks it is cute and that I am just trying to get food. Fool! Although that is a bonus as I test the strength and durability of my stall guard.

What would I do when I finally break the barrier? I have a pretty good set up at my barn, but a Haflinger just needs some socialization and more grazing time. And I don't mind helping out when needed.

I would visit friends. . .

Hi Chick!

And boyfriends. . .

Kisses to Baby Bob

Have important discussions with other horses. . .

Me, Louise, and Casi discussing the state of affairs

And get to know some of the horses I don't hang out with. . .

You are one big horse Remy! 

Check out the new horses. . .

Maverick, looking good with some weight on you!

Make sure all the barn equipment is in tact. . .

Does this tire need air?

Help clean the hay off the floor. . . 

I'd get every last piece up, I promise!

Ensure everything is in tip top shape. . .

All items in the bucket are accounted for!

Then I would go outside and graze.

Mmmm. . .grass, just outside that door.

Well deserved after such a hard day's work!

~Shyloh

goofball animals

Goofy Shyloh short stories: 

One day I was talking to someone and petting their horse in the cross ties. We heard a strange noise and turned around. Shy was on her knees, with her butt still in the air, neck stretched halfway across Ryleigh's stall, trying to crawl under her stall guard to get a single piece of hay! It was one of the funniest sights ever and I what I would not give to have gotten a photo of that! I told the chiro and the farrier that story and they both said no wonder she had problems! My horse is a contortionist!

Then, the other day, I was walking Shy down the aisle. Sometimes when I do this, I let Shy sniff and check everything out as we walk. She is so curious! She came upon one of those plastic totes. It was filled with hay replacer pellets for the new horse, Maverick, an underweight and scarred up rescue Standardbred (possibly) . I let Shy fiddle with the tote. She pushed it around with her nose, then figured out how to open it. I just stood next to her watching. Shy sniffed inside, stopped and looked around (I think she knew she was not "supposed" to be in the box), then dove her head inside. The tote moved and Shy jumped in the air and stepped back. But curiosity got the best of her and she went immediately back. Then stepped back, but not as far this time. This happened about six times, each time the reaction (which was completely caused by her actions) was less and less, until she was finally just flinching a little. And I think it was not because she was scared of the tote, but because she knew it was not hers to have. Can that be possible? If not, I'd still like to think so. Anyway, it was rather funny to watch the whole interaction!

I have also caught Shy stretching like a dog, with her butt in the air and her head and front feet down. This horse can make me laugh as easily as she can frustrate the daylights out of me!

As for the dogs. . .

My husband got a phone call from the neighbors saying that we were blaring music  in the house. They could hear it in their house! And we were both at work. It appears that one of the dogs (I am guessing Cooper since he likes to lay on remotes, phones, the computer mouse) decided to nap on the couch, stepped on the receiver remote to turn on the radio, then continued to lay on the volume button until it went as high as it could go. Mike said he could hear the music through the neighbor's phone!

Wasn't me!!

He asked his sister to go to our house to turn the music off. She said she could hear the music from the car! And when she went inside, both Cooper and Maggie were hiding in the furthest room from the source. Oops. . .no more just throwing remotes on the couch for us! 

Didn't do it!!

What goofy things do your animals do?

photo shoot

It is still too hot to do anything but mess around with Shyloh. She was sweating just standing in her stall today. She has a fan, but won't stand in front of it. She is not scared of it, so I have no idea why she won't take advantage of the breeze. It is just like her heated water bucket in the winter. . .she refused to drink out of it. Crazy horse.

I gave Shy a bath today. I have been putting her in the grooming stall and clipping the cross ties together so she can move around more. Well, after I hosed her down and had one side of her all lathered up with shampoo, Shy discovered that she could fit under the "barrier" and took off to her stall. It wasn't far, just across the aisle way, but she lost her grooming stall freedom privileges. I finished her bath,scraped all of the excess water off of her, and braided her mane. Then I took her outside to dry off in the sun and graze for a bit.

Then we went inside and had ourselves a little photo shoot!

So serious!

Kisses!

Making Shy being cuddly, not her normal M.O.

Now I am the short one!

And then this is what Shy thought of our little photo shoot. . .

Boring!

I have been itching to get back to riding Shy, but she has been off for so long, I think Beth should ride first. Just because Shy listens to Beth better and Beth is able to correct better than I can. Sunday the temps are supposed to drop, so hopefully then. . .

paranoia

Just when I had forgotten about the little buggers. . .I find a tick crawling on my elbow! Yuck! Now I am back to thinking everything I feel is an evil tick! I am so paranoid over these nasty bugs! I probably picked it up when I was chasing Bob and Dannon through tall grasses after their great escape.  Bob (I am assuming since he is the escape artist) nosed the arena doors open and broke through the 2x4. I heard a crash and all I saw was two big black horses galloping toward the fields. Luckily, they went right in a pasture and it was an easy catch! I texted Beth about this escape and she said yesterday Bob did the same thing, but he jumped the 2x4! That horse is crazy!

As for Shyloh. . . this is what I arrived to the barn to. . .

Dirty pony?

I knew from the last time I got her an Uncle Jimmy's Hanging Ball that I would have a messy pony, just not this messy! So Shy got a face scrubbing and came out clean, like this. . .

Clean her up with Orbit! *

During clean up time, I washed her tail and Shy played with the water and suds! I am kinda upset because I thought I was taking video when Shy was being extra cute with the bubbles, but I forgot to push record. Duh!

Curiouser and curiouser . . .

Can I eat my halter?

Splish splash!

I re-did her braids and conditioned her hair. And checked her for the dreaded ticks. She was in the clear. Good news is that the tests came back for the other two horses and they were negative for Lyme Disease. That and Shy being her usual sassy self leads me to believe that she is Lyme free. But I am re-freaking out over the creepy crawlers since I saw one today. Ugh!

It is still too hot to work (in my opinion) so we continued our vacation. We actually took a nap together when I fell asleep in a chair outside her stall and she fell asleep against her wall. Tomorrow I do plan on having a lesson with Beth to get back into the swing of things. 

breaks, braids, and barrels

We started the day on a bad note. . .I had Shyloh running off some excess energy in the arena before her lesson. Since she just wanted to hang out the barn doors and eat grass, I had to make her run. Once I got her going, she was running and bucking and having herself a good old time. So good that she continued running straight through the 2x4 that that blocks the barn doors and off into the deep, deep grass. I got her corralled into a pasture and went to get her. 

 Crazy horse, who does she think she is? Haha! I'm glad that she did not get hurt though!

Before the lesson, I worked on my mane roll. This was the best one yet! Still needs a lot of work and it kinda fell apart near the end, but we are so close to getting it right!

For the lesson, we decided to do something fun. The barrels were out for Markie, so Beth wanted to see if she could make Shy a barrel racer! Fun! But going into this, you have to realize. . .1) Shy can't pick up correct leads consistently; 2) Shy has not yet been taught lead changes, and 3) Shy has never gone into the canter from a stand still.

I present to you: Shyloh the Barrel Racing Haflinger!

I think it is safe to say that she prefers dressage over barrel racing, haha! But it was fun and she was a good sport about it.

I got on Shy next. She was so good, again! I walked the barrel pattern, but attempted the trot at the end. Oops, I had the reins to loose and Shy took full advantage as she tried to exit the arena on her own accord, head in the air. I did get her to stop and we worked on some more turns on the forehand. And I did get her to trot again! She is hard to control when she is trotting. Beth agrees (but Beth has so much more experience, she can handle it) and said it is just something we need to work on. . .balance and control at the trot. 

I am so surprised at two great days in a row riding Shy!

hand grazing taken to a whole new level

I went to get Shyloh from her pasture to do some in hand dressage work with her. Seriously, though, I never in a million years thought I would be doing dressage work! But Shy is into it and it will help us on trail rides, so I will do it.

First I wanted to let her graze a bit outside the pasture. Her current pasture has very little grass, so she spends all day in search of little blades to satisfy her tummy. She does not need the grazing muzzle for this pasture, but once her herd goes back into the pond pasture, she will need it. 

As I was grazing her in the much thicker, greener grass outside of the pasture, Kathy suggested that I put the muzzle on Shy to get her accustomed to it. Good idea! I left Shy to graze (let's face it, with grass in front of her face, she is not going anywhere), and got the muzzle. I put it on Shy and she was immediately displeased. She started her sweeping of the grass with a bewildered look in her eye like Why oh why can't I eat the grass?!?!

Help!

I had yet to attach the lead rope to the grazing muzzle and off she went. Not far, she just kept circling, at a trot, trying to get grass. Shy quickly figured out that the muzzle was preventing her from getting all the grass she could eat,  sothe next logical step in Shy's mind was to remove the muzzle from her face. 

She ran around in circles, dragging her head on the grass trying to get the muzzle to come off. As it was getting closer to the edge of her nose, Shy would throw her head up, hoping to fling it off, but the muzzle stayed on. A few times, she came real close to getting it off. I was worried that if she did get it off, she would have to stay in a dry lot when her herd moved. I don't really want that, but it remains an option.

I tried to approach her to show her how she could get grass through the grazing muzzle, but she kept tearing away, dragging her head, then bucking out. I wish I had this on video, it was so funny (bad horse owner, laughing at Shy's torment!)! When Shy did stop, she tried to rip the muzzle of with her front hooves! She was bound and determined to get that thing off! Since Shy was not letting me catch her, I opened a small pasture that was not in use and me and Kathy got her to run in there. By now, she has really worked herself up into a tizzy about this muzzle and its preventative measures of not  letting her get grass!

Shy ran right over to Baby Bob, whose head was over the gate that connected his pasture. He instantly took hold of the grazing muzzle and was trying to get it off of her! It was hilarious, like Shy ran up to him asking for Bob's help and he knew exactly what she wanted. Thankfully, he did not get it off of her.

Bob, Shy's knight in shining armor!

Finally, I caught her and I hand picked grass and fed it to her through the hole in the grazing muzzle. I did this until she calmed down and realized she could still eat grass, I lowered her head and showed her how she could get grass through the hole, a few blades at  time. Sometimes, I had to twist pieces of grass together, stick them in the hole and then Shy would rip the grass and eat it. She was not entirely pleased with the time it took to get such a little bit if grass,  but I think she has started to get the concept. It might take a few more sessions before she completely "gets it," but it is a start!

level up!

Shyloh and I have reached a new level in our relationship. I am not sure what made her decide to take the next step, but she has! And it is not just with me, it's with other people, too, like Robin and Kathy. Shy is approaching people on her own, not backing away from people when they approach her, and following me around the arena. She is showing an incredible interest in the things that I have been doing, something she could have cared less about just a week ago. 

However, along with her new trusting behaviors, she has come out of her shell in other ways. . . 

I should have taken this act yesterday as a predictor of what she would do today. . .

Peek-a-boo! Is there food out here?

I had Shy in the arena with Casi and I was cleaning their stalls. After I got Casi back in his stall, I turned around to find a loose Haflinger! Shy had opened the arena doors and started running down the aisle, like I'm free!, but then got distracted by the open hay closet. A Haflinger's mind never strays from food. 

I have discovered the hay jackpot!

And Shy was not my only escapee today. I was taking Baby Bob from the arena to his freshly cleaned stall when he decided at the last minute that he wanted to run toward the slightly open doors at the far end of the aisle. With all his might (and that is a lot of might), he pressed on until I had no choice but to let go of his lead rope or be drug behind him. Good thing it took him a minute to try and figure out how he was going to open those doors. I brought him back to his stall and turned around to put Dannon in his clean stall, when Bob busted out of his stall! He tried to get around Rob (Robin's husband), but was unsuccessful, so he turned around and ran into Ryleigh's stall. Ryleigh was outside with Robin, grazing and waiting to come back inside. Finally, I got Bob and secured him in his stall. Whew. . .it is a much scarier experience when some one else's horse escapes on your watch, let alone the barn owner's horse!

Shy has also discovered a way to ask for treats. How does she do this? Well. . .I taught her how to wave. . .

And now when she wants or feels she needs a treat, she comes up to me and waves. Over and over and over. It is so cute, I can't help but give her the treats when she "asks".

Another new thing for Shy is her playing on her own with Casi. Yesterday, Shy and Casi were in the arena, running like I have never seen them run before!  We were not even making them run, they were doing it all on their own and they seemed to really enjoy themselves! Shy actually worked up a sweat. Here is the video I put together.

And Shy got to hang out with Ryleigh for a little bit, today. They were in the arena and outside grazing. 

Shy also got to spend some time in the arena with Casi. 

We did some free-jumping today, which once again was a lot more work for me than for Shy. My two out of shape legs cannot keep up with her four legs! 

Shy had a busy weekend! The only thing I did not accomplish this weekend was a ride. But I am loving that Shy has taken our relationship to the next level and I look forward to what this brings.

monday musing by shyloh #14

I'm going stall crazy! This rain has kept me inside all week. At least Allie opened by window so I could smell the fresh air. . .until it got too cold and it was voted that it needed to be closed. Good thing Allie, Aunt Kathy, and Aunt Robin let (forced) me run around the arena! A girl has got to get her exercise to keep her figure, especially if she wants to eat as much as I do!

At least I'm not muddy!

I had an eventful weekend. I learned how to get that horrible hay net off the wall! How did I do it? I'll never tell. . .and I didn't even break it! I like to keep Allie guessing.

And one time, I was in the arena with Ryleigh and Allie took him back to his stall for dinner. She left the arena door open just enough so I could fit through! So I went through it. . .  escape! I was kinda surprised at myself and stood just outside the door in shock. . .where to go with my new found freedom? I started to go to the right, but then I realized that MY dinner hay was in my stall, so I went left. straight into my stall. Hey. . .I can't pass up food, that's just not my style!

I reunited with an old flame this weekend, too. Chick went into the arena and he was calling for me, so I answered. This went on for some time, so Allie took me in there with him. Wowza! I couldn't help but "wink" at him, if you know what I mean. Ryleigh was sooo jealous. I must not be a one horse kinda mare. . .but Ryleigh is still my main gelding. 

Me and Chick, catching up on old times and living outside

Ryleigh checking out my luscious apple bottom 

What else went on this weekend. . .oh yeah! Allie rode me without the lunge line! We did real good together. Except at one point, I was paying more attention to following Aunt Robin and I tripped. But we were okay, I wasn't scared and Allie handled it real well. She made me turn left and turn right, stop and go. All on her own and without a saddle! I can tell she is getting more comfortable and her balance is getting better. Although sometimes, when she tapped her boots on the sides of my belly, I startled. . .I prefer her to squeeze gently. I may be sassy, but when I have an important job to do, nothing will get in my way.

I'm good!

Allie also worked with me on the mounting block. I am really not as scared of it as I pretend to me. . .life just isn't as fun without giving Allie a hard time! She kept lining me up, but as soon as she stepped on the block, I stepped away and she had to start all over. Soon, that got boring though, and I let her get on my back. Allie was really living life on the edge, because we were all alone in the barn! She did not have any helpers like all the other times. She sat on my back, so I was real good for her. I didn't move a muscle because she didn't ask me to. She kept rubbing my neck and telling me how good I am. Then she hopped off and I got some good eats! Sometimes, it sure pays to be good!

I was fell asleep with my head sticking out of my stall!

Well, that was my weekend. It was good times! I hope everyone else enjoyed their weekend, too!

~Shyloh

the interrogation

So, last night I got a message from Beth. this is what the message said:

     Shyloh is the new escape artist! I came out to feed and she was behind the barn eating grass. . .She broke a small board by the stock tank n squeezed through under the fence. LOL! Put an extra board back up just in case she tries it again. . . It should hold her :-)

I told Beth that it was good that they were able to catch her, considering her catching difficulty! She replied:

     It's all good. . .She's ok n didn't run from us. Poor Caesar was still in the pasture cuz he couldn't fit under the board that was still up. . . He was looking at me n calling to shy, like wth. . . I wanna go too!

Shortly after, I got another message from Sandy:

     Your little girl got out tonite. She broke through the fence somehow. We found her in the back eating grass. She saw us coming and went into the fenced pasture that Bob uses. I caught her with some grain.

Remember the other day when I mentioned that Shyloh was getting comfortable in her new home? Yup, she is comfortable alright! I later learned that she went to graze near Chick. She must miss him!

When I got the barn, I had a little conversation with her when I brought her inside about her behaviors. I put her in the cross ties and interrogated her. . .It went like this:

So, how was your day yesterday?

Just fine? Hmmm. . .do anything fun? New? Exciting?

No? Cause I got a message from Beth and Sandy. . .so, you didn't escape?

Oh, it wasn't an escape? Tell me about the fence then. . .why is it reinforced now?

Oh, really? So you think breaking stuff is the way to go about getting things you want, like grass?

Wow, okay. . .explain this gash on your side?

You hit a nail as you were ducking through the fence? This is what happens when you do things you are not supposed to do!

I know! So, are you going to do it again?

Needless to say. . .I did not get the answers I was looking for from Shyloh. . .