retired

I have retired my Ariat boots. I think it was time. . .

Pretty good for wearing them almost every day for a year, doing all kinds of barn things in them! They have been replaced by these. . .

I can work at the barn with these. They are comfy, I had them on today.

And I hope to get another pair of boots soon. Oh boots, I will miss you and all we have been through!

On a rougher note. . .Shyloh is really pushing my buttons! I wanted to do some round pen work with her before the rain came, but I am pretty sure I got much more of a workout than Shy. 

First was the battle with the grass. She keeps coming up with new ways to eat it. When I turn her, she dips to head to grab a bite each time. Then, Shy made her circles smaller so she was on the grass and not the track of the round pen. Ugh! Next, she refused to go into a canter when I asked her. I pretty much had to chase her to get her into that gait. Not how the round pen is supposed to work. The only really good thing she did was when    I asked her to whoa, she would stop and turn into me. I held her at that whoa for a bit (pushing my luck), but she did not lower her head to graze. Whoo hoo! Then it started to rain and we went inside. At least we ended on a good note.

I did some clicker training with Shy and the mounting block. It took a while, but we eventually made some progress. I could tell she was getting irritated; she kept swishing her tail every time I moved her back over to the block. My goal is for her to stop stepping away from the block when I step up on it. I think that this will be useful when (if) I go on trail rides and I need to step on something to get on her and no one is available to hold her. It is a work in progress. . . as is everything with this sassy horse!

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

growth

At the place that I bought Shyloh from, the horse she lived with had grazed on her mane as a daily afternoon snack. Here are today's pictures of her re-growth:

Needs some more growth at the end

This side is looking better!

On another note. . .I think Shy is really trying to test me and see what she can get away with. I need to work on being consistent and asserting myself. We played around in the arena today and Shy did very well. We worked on a trick (funny how she only "knows" the trick if she can see a treat is coming), worked on the side pass, and worked on the mounting block. 

After our work, I put her in her stall because Beth was bringing the horses inside. When she saw Ryleigh coming, she nickered for him! So cute!

They are cute!

I hung out with her for a little bit in the stall, then her dinner came. I went to say bye to her and she swung her rear end around at me so fast! I jumped out of the way (luckily there was no kick out), but I got the message that she did not want to be bothered when she was eating. So. . .we just found something new to work on, because that was unacceptable behavior. I let her know this, but I did not strike her. And I did get my good bye in. . .even though I was upset with her.

But as I think about this behavior some more, maybe it has to do with the move inside and maybe it could be that I discontinued her red raspberry leaf supplement? Robin suggested that Shy could be upset that I disrupted our schedule by going away for the weekend. But I might start the red raspberry leaf back up and see if anything positive happens.

On a funny note. . .Beth told me that she has been taking Shyloh and Ryleigh outside at the same time. She said the first time was a disaster! Shyloh stopped to eat grass and would not budge and Ryleigh was pulling to get to the pasture. Beth was being pulled in two directions, stretched out to the max! But the next time, both horses seemed to work out a system and walked just fine to the pasture.

Trying to squeeze under to go visit Ryleigh!

So, I need to re-connect with Shyloh and work on our bond. This will be my focus this week and we will be taking a break from the long lines. But not for long. . .

If you have Facebook and you want to see some more photos of Shyloh, like her very own page, here!

obstacle course

You can call me the MacGyver of the barn. I can take a paper clip and an earring and make something useful. Okay. . .maybe not, but I can be pretty creative with the stuff we have at the barn to create an obstacle course for me and Shyloh!

Just in case you cannot decipher this high tech, to-scale masterpiece, I have made a key.

1. cones
2. tarp
3. poles
4. hula hoops
5. cones
6. jump
7. walk-through
8. barrels
9. plywood
10. poles
11. poles, again

This is what we did. . .walked through the cones, over the tarp, over the poles, put two front feet in one hula hoop and two back feet in the other hula hoop, circle in the cones and stop straight on, over the jump, under the walk-through, over the barrels, over the plywood, over the poles, and through the last poles for the finish!

Let's go! We got work to do!

Shy did amazing until number seven. We had never walked under something before, so Shy was a little hesitant, but did walk through it with me. Then number eight came. This was probably a mistake on my part. I wanted the barrels to simulate a log on a trail, but I think they were too big, She attempted to walk over. She put a leg up, but must have felt it was too round to get over. She bit the lip of the barrel, decided that it was not heavy (it was just plastic), and pushed it with her nose. Hey, she gets an "A" for cleverness! Everything else went great! We walked a few times, then trotted through. 

After our obstacle course, we worked on the mounting block. Shy did very good. Then I took her outside to let her graze. She was the first horse to graze in the new pasture! And it was so beautiful outside today. We had a wonderful day. I think Shy really enjoyed doing the obstacle course, so we will definitely be doing that again! I know she enjoyed the pasture! 

Oh yeah. . .and this hungry hippo stepped on my toe! Ouch!

Not me!

mounting block

What a wishy-washy day! I was not planning on going to the barn, but then I decided that me and Shyloh had such a good day yesterday, that I would go again just to let Shy know that I am there for her. But after going to the Applefest, I was not feeling too well, so I decided not to go. So I took a nap, woke up feeling better and decided to go.

I spent the morning with Mike and we went to a local fall festival, the Applefest. They have crafts and vendors, food and a bunch of other things. We bought an apple pie and some kettle corn and an outdoor decoration for our house. It's that time of year where I have to fight with Mike regarding our front lawn. If it were up to him, our lawn would be covered with inflatable decorations and every other kind of decoration for the holidays until the end of the year. I have to hold him back so that he does not over-decorate!

I took Cooper to the barn with me today. When I arrived, I went to get Shyloh. She was standing in her shelter. Ugh. . .I did not want to cross that muddy paddock to get her. So I called her and she actually came to me! 

I hosed off her legs, picked her hooves, then turned her loose in the arena. Shy and Cooper played around a little bit. . . 

Notice the front leg kick around 16 seconds and the attitude butt around 43 seconds. Sassy pony!

After play time, I worked with Shy on the mounting block. I have to say. . .we have had better days with the mounting block. But we worked on lining up correctly. Shy can do that real well, but continues to swing her butt out when I step on the block. I think I might have in enlist another person to help me keep her rear end in place. The plan is to work in mounting block behaviors for a little bit every time I go out there. Although, I think I have to fore-go the treats. . .she thinks too much with her stomach and becomes preoccupied with getting treats. But, I want to be able to mount her from a block, it is easier for me and better for her. 

Why the stress on the mounting block? I think it is almost time. . .to ride! And with the bonding that we have been doing and Shy's improvements, I have been itching for a ride lately. Terry is going to put together a bridle for me (I had been borrowing a bridle and saddle previously) and let me try a saddle. In the mean time, I am beginning to save for a saddle. Any suggestions? Remember, goal #1 is trail riding!

ooh la la

Shyloh sure has these geldings under her love spell! Except for Caesar . . .she does not like him and he does not really like her. They continue to stand in separate parts of the shelter and every time I put her back in the paddock, he bites her!  On the plus side, he is going inside very soon, although that leaves Shy without a buddy. And she likes to have a buddy.

Shy got a new halter! 

It is really odd that her and Caesar do not get along, she gets along with every other horse that she has met so far. Ryleigh has been bitten by the love bug with her and he has been bitten hard! Today Ryleigh and Sandy's horse, Forseti were in the arena together. It has been raining so much lately that the horses have not been going outside. And since Shy lives outside, I wanted to bring her in to clean her up and get her out of the mud for a bit. I asked if it would be okay for Shy to join Ryleigh and Forseti and it was. We already know that Shyloh and Ryleigh get along, so Shyloh and Forseti were introduced. All was well. . .

But then Ryleigh began to act like a stallion! He was strutting his stuff and he did not want Forseti anywhere near Shyloh! All I will say is that Ryleigh has a fantastic spin on his hind quarters. . .whoa. . .Shy did not seem to mind all the male attention. She just laid down and rolled in the middle of it all. She is so comfortable with other horses. 

Ryleigh was put back in his stall and Shy and Forseti got to hang out for a bit. Shy just followed him around the arena. She did get a kick when she sniffed Forseti's butt and he did not like it. But besides that they were great!  Shy did yawn a few times. . .it must be boring when there is only one gelding in the arena and no other geldings to fight over her. I swear she loves the attention!

There was a saddle fitter at the barn tonight. A few horses were getting fitted and Baby Bob was one of them. He is still gaga for Shy, too! Every time he would walk by her, he would slow down and just stare at her! I do not know why she has this effect on the boys!

After she was done being fawned over, we worked on poles again, but added the tarp. We went over on the lead at the walk and trot. We were going to try jumping again, but I could not put the splint boots on because her legs were too muddy. I did wash them, but then they were wet and I still did not want to put the boots on. Anyway, she did awesome! Shy did not even second guess walking on the tarp! We also worked on getting a bigger walk out of her and it was pretty successful. To wrap up our night, we worked on the mounting block. Shyloh is doing so good! 

The pole setup

Now I need some ideas about more ground work exercises to do. Any suggestions?

day six and bonding

I think I may be back on track with Shyloh! Having a plan really improves my outlook on things! Today, I went to the barn right after work. This is what I walked in to. . .

What's wrong with this picture?

She usually does not wear the halter in the paddock, but she has been trouble to catch and she needed to be caught yesterday.

I took the wheelbarrow and went into Shy's paddock to scoop poop out of her shelter. She was very curious about the poop removal. . .

After making sure that there was only poop and no hay in the wheelbarrow, Shy went to hang out with some of her neighbors over the fence. . .

Moo!

Whatcha doin ova there?

Then, I took her inside. I groomed her and put on her Fung-a-way. We went into the arena and worked on a bunch of small tasks. I worked with Shy on ground tying and she did well. We still have a ways to go, but it was a start. Then I did some desensitizing work with a dressage crop until she was totally comfortable with it. She even put the crop in her mouth! Then we did some walk/trot on the lead line over poles. Shy did everything I asked of her! Next, I put a pole on the lowest setting of the upright poles, added some poles to lead Shy to the jump (or hop) and walked her through each way. She was amazing again! Although the closest we came to a jump was when Shy walked two legs over the pole, stopped, then hopped her back legs over together, she still never balked at anything I sent her way!

And finally, we worked on the mounting block. Shyloh is terrified of people on the mounting block! I have been walking her by it, standing up on it while she was loose in the arena, and jumping off of it for the past few weeks. Today, I lined her up to the mounting block and stood on the top. She stood there!

View from the top of the mounting block!

I stepped her up and she swung her back end out, so we repeated this a few time. Eventually, I was able to put my hands on her back and apply pressure! We stopped there. Shy had done a lot this evening and we really bonded tonight! 

I want to take a moment of silence and send my thoughts and prayers to Kathy and her horse, Captain Morgan. He passed on this morning after coming down with colic. I love this picture of Captain! 

Captain Morgan

It encompasses everything about him; his handsomeness, his goofy personality, and his fun attitude! Captain Morgan will truly be missed!

Five foods. I love food! My mother in law owns a restaurant and I get to eat good on a regular basis.


Food 1 - Pickles. I love pickles. I always have loved pickles. Seriously. . .I can eat a whole jar in a day. For Christmas every year, my dad gets me a giant jar of pickles. Yum!


Food 2 - Ice Cream. Dark chocolate ice cream with peanut butter is my favorite.


Food 3 - Mashed potatoes and gravy. Pure comfort food and deliciousness.


Food 4 - Crab legs. Ah. . .buttery goodness. You really have to work for these!


Food 5 - Chicken Paprikash. My grandma used to make this and it was the best!