Arwen and I attended the second in the series of the Golden Horseshoe Western Dressage Shows at Ancaster 2 weeks ago. We had a good day but it was cold and windy. Glad I had more coats in the truck. :)
I bring both horses to the shows and of course Riva was not happy with loading in the morning. My fault as I didn't practice her before hand. I should have known better but we all make these mistakes. So we were not as early as I had hoped but we arrived and got tacked up without incident. My test started and I found I could not hear my caller because of the wind. Oh no...So I was lost and went off course. The judge kindly allowed us to continue and thing we going better until we got to A and Arwen decided it was time to leave! Oops...that got us eliminated!  That was something she has not done before and I was not ready. Again my fault.  
We warmed up for the next test, went in and did a nice test. I was pleased. She really seemed to try and even stood still which is not her favourite thing to do.  We ended up with a 69% score I was happy with that as our first show of the year! 

So I had planned to have Todd Owens to the barn for a two day clinic last month but unfortunately I just didn't get enough participants. So with a reorganization we had a very successful day of lesson for myself and 1 other person and several auditors. Sometimes you have to just adjust to the circumstances and go with what you have. 

​I had a super morning with Tucker and made some progress. He has turned out to be more challenging that I thought initially but he has progressed so much since the fall. Now summer is here and I hope that we can be more progressive and do more riding.  Maybe even a couple of classes in the at home show in the late summer. Those are my goals...lets see if we accomplish them or if we have to reorganize again for another goal. 

Looking forward to the fall clinic I am organizing. More information later!

So it’s been awhile since you last rode. You’ve made all the excuses that keep you out of the saddle but now with the nicer weather coming it’s time to make a move and get riding again.  So what’s stopping you? Is it the uncertainty or loss of confidence in your abilities since you rode your horse last?  
We all question our abilities especially as we get older and have lost that youthful confidence or after a bad fall or experience.  
So start small, begin again with time spent with your horse brushing and going for some leading walks around the property. Spend some undemanding time your horse will enjoy. Do some groundwork. Still feel I unconfident? It’s not a contest, take a few lessons on a quiet school horse to rebuild your skills and your confidence. If you feel that your horse may be more than you can handle at this point get one of the better riders or instructors at your barn to ride him a few times. Set it up so you are both happy and ready to start your summer riding. There is no shame in asking for help. Remember that. Just as there is no shame in getting off if you feel that you should . Try to make sure you always have a good and safe ride. Proper clothes and footwear and an approved helmet. Have a great summer.

Pat Parelli says "Zero brace means simply that there is no tension or stiffness in his body from worry or resistance when he responds. This means your horse is not braced mentally, emotionally, or physically. " 
I have  heard this over and over during my learning but I never really realized what it really meant til just now and I can see the brace my horses have. I see the "I don't want to's in my everyday communication with them. I need to work on this more and eliminate as much brace as I can to achieve better harmony with the girls and Tucker. Tucker showed me his brace starting with his unwillingness to come in from the field with me. Now he shows me how he does not want me to touch his mouth or ask him to put the bit in. All these little things that he tells me we need to work on so we can be in better harmony and work toward zero brace.

So this week has been incredibly icy . Not nice underfoot at all. Last weekend the great snow cover we had started to melt and with the rain much if it became ice again. Poor barn owners were fighting a losing battle to get rid of the ice and make things safe for all. My two stayed out and as they are only steps from the door could come in and use the arena to move around more.  Tucker was stuck in his field for the week. I brought him in Sunday but the footing was terrible in the common areas. So not wanting to risk an accident we continued to work on our come to me with food rewards each day. Now I can call him and he eagerly comes to the gate. He also will come for his owners as well so I feel he is gaining more confidence from this. Hopefully today we can work on some things that we have been working on. Updates later. 

So planting our feet and taking forever to get to the gate was happening in the fall. He would come relatively quickly though after I made him move about a bit.  Over the mud and frozen ground came things got much worse. One day it took me an hour and a half to get him to consent to come in with me. I didn't give up though and I think not giving up made him realize that I was persistent for a human. Most humans tend to give up after awhile so the horse just needs to wait them out in order to win. After that day things were a little better but still not great. It was cold and muddy and frozen. I needed him to want to come with me. So I decided to try food. Well the first time I appeared with a bucket he cantered to me. Obviously he was familiar with the bucket.  He ran over and had his treats then walked into the barn with me. Next time we took the bucket out he again came with me. I don't want to have to take a bucket out every time though so I decided to bring him out food as often as I could and just spend time with him . So I have been doing this for awhile and he is coming to the gate or to me. He knows his name and looks for me to come out. I let him eat and hang out for a bit then leave him. Sometimes I bring him in to play. Depends the weather. Today was just to icy to ask him to come to the barn with me so he ate and I left.  I keep the other horses away from him. They know me too and back off when I ask. It is all about being a good leader and protecting our herd of 2. 

So horses can be frustrating at times. They are not always on the same page as we are.  They don't have the same desires and tend to feel threatened when predators approach. Yes we humans are predators. So I have been playing with a new horse. He is not mine but we are building a relationship. So I go out into the field to bring him in and he is good and comes to me. Great! Get the halter on and give him a carrot which he enjoys but then somehow his legs have attached themselves to the ground and won't move. Hmm so I ask him again over and over to move his feet but he seems to be stuck.  I get him to move around the round feeder and drive his friends around ahead of him but when we go towards the barn he is again stuck in place.  
So.....we wait and do some backing on the spot and asking him to move his hind end then his front end then again the hind. Finally the glue allows his feet to move towards the barn. We get 20 feet or so and again the earth grabs his feet and keeps them stuck in place. Okay so I ask his feet to move again in the smaller space and get some action. We wait some more until all of a sudden he choses to walk toward the barn. Success finally. We need to work on this....So the start of our making it worth while for him to come with me.....to continue...

and why you need great relationships with your veterinarian and farrier
I guess  lameness is part of horse life.  We expect our horses to stay sound and carting us around on their backs all the time. But, that is not always the case as horses get injured and horses get sick and they can't tell us what Is wrong. This is very frustrating when you have great plans in mind for your summer or  just a pleasure ride. 
So Arwen hurt herself last year. We never really figured out what she did but it must have been a soft tissue injury. She stayed in her stall for 3 months as she was very lame. Riva stayed in with her for a couple of weeks but when it turned out to be a long term issue she went back out. Arwen had to deal with her anxieties on her own with some help from good drugs. Tranquilizers can be very useful with a horse who spend her time spinning in her stall and won't settle down if she is alone and when the others leave for the day. So she did have some companionship with a few other who had injuries but spent time alone. Not something she enjoys.
Summer was spent in a smaller paddock with Riva who has become insulin resistant so can no longer go out on the grass.  Hopefully with medication and limited grazing in the summer we can keep Riva from getting laminitis down the road.  Did I say horses were expensive? Yes they can be so working is a good thing to keep at for those unexpected vet bills. Input from my veterinarian and farrier has been invaluable. I hope at this point Arwen is fixed. My farrier changed her shoeing and this has helped tremendously. So maybe we will make it to a few shows this year. Will have to see. 

Well it sure has been awhile since I wrote on this blog. Time has gone by so fast and so many things have happened. Where do I start.  
The big thing was that I retired from the City at the end of 2016. Left to plan out the next stage in my life. In May 2017 my Mother passed on at 103, just after her birthday. She did get to celebrate it at the Mandarin till the end. Not sure if I want to live to 103. Things seems to go downhill after 100 but I guess I will find out in the future. 

So I have updated the website and renamed it Equestrian Coaching.  I have been organizing some clinics and take the occasional student. I don't really teach riding but I want to help people get a better relationship with their horses.  I enjoy playing with different horses and helping them get more confident in themselves and in humans. 

I started working again as a school bus driver in September 2017. I drive special needs kids in a wheelchair bus. It is so different from driving public transit. I enjoy it and like the kids. It is nice to have some extra money as horses are expensive. Arwen injured herself in February and has been off for the last year.  I am hoping she will be okay for the summer of 2018 but will have to see about that. 

Since Arwen was off I leased another horse in October so I could ride. We are building our relationship but he does have some trust issues and just needs more playtime. So we are working on things. He is getting better and he now will come when I call most days Hopefully it will be every day soon :)

So now I have played catch up we will continue...........