Preparation for Thompson Clinic

Today I decided to have another session with Eclipse since I am taking him to a Dan Thompson clinic this Saturday. On the release form I said that we had achieved Level 1 and since I would rather not make fools of ourselves, I thought it might be a good idea to work with him a time or two before we get there. The session started with games 1-4 which we went through fairly quickly. Although Eclipse needs a little refinement with driving and yo-yo, he seems to be a quick learner. 

The circling game was an interesting experience, to say the least. I started to ask more of him in this session and decided to see what he would offer if I asked for the canter. On the left lead he tore off the first few times but eventually offered a softer transition.  I realize it might take a little while for him to feel comfortable circling, as it appears that his previous experience consisted of being chased around on a lunge line. While going to the right, Eclipse was looking out when we started but made some improvements and I decided to ask for the right lead. When I did, I discovered that I have yet another horse with right lead issues...oh boy! Initially, he would make the transition but would cow-canter a few strides before switching. I did not want to end on a bad note, so we worked on trot-canter transitions until he picked it up correctly and then we stopped. I know that this is going to take some time but all in all I think he did well.

After circling, it seemed like the perfect time to introduce the saber tooth tarp. As it turns out, the saber tooth bag was good preparation for the tarp and this turned out to be a lot less uneventful than I was expecting. I was able to send him over the tarp within a matter of minutes. It took a little longer to convince him that the tarp was not going to eat him if I held it beside him but all things considered he did very well. The session ended nicely and I was able to place the tarp on him and rub him with it. He stood still and showed some slight skepticism but it was a huge improvement from "*SNORT*,What the hell is that thing!?"