Summer Update

I spent the end of May visiting Bruiser and had a blast! My goal for the visit was to develop respect and trust in preparation for his trip to GA with me in August. On day one Bruiser would try to go forward when I asked him for forequarter (FQ) yields and he would threaten to kick, tail swish or put ears back when I asked him for hindquarter (HQ) yields. During my stay I focused on getting rid of this opposition reflex when direct pressure is applied. I used a combination of natural horsemanship techniques and clicker training and Bruiser responded quickly. By the last day he was willingly yielding both his FQ and HQ. We also worked on nose yields (he went from shaking his head to backing nicely) and head lowering. The head lowering was particularly fun as Bruiser was really getting the hang of CT and I was able to do some free shaping; by the end of the second session he was putting his nose on the ground. The last thing we worked on was trailer loading. Bruiser is quite comfortable getting on the trailer but being shut in and moving are a little nerve racking for him. We did a lot of approach and retreat and made some great progress. I had a wonderful time and I can't wait to get him in August!

Recently Anita and I competed in a Trail Class that was put on as a fundraiser for NATRC. It was Anita's first competition and she placed third in novice! I decided at the last minute to ride Cal in the open division and we placed second. The competition was held at Meadowchase Farms in Dublin, GA. It was definitely hot but still very enjoyable. Eclipse did the clinic and is making great progress. He walked through the bottle box for the first time and is less scared of tarps and "car wash" type obstables.

Horses are Like Potato Chips...

Life has been busy but I am beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel. My current semester will be over at the end of April and then my final semester will be from mid June to August. I am looking forward to the break from school and am very excited about my summer plans! My dad is scheduled to do a bicycle tour in Colorado and wants to drive to visit family in Kansas. I have decided to tag along and since Colorado is a hop, skip and a jump away from Utah I have also decided to make a trip to visit Carol and Bruiser. This got me thinking...it makes more sense to go ahead and get Bruiser since I will have already driven all that distance.

As a college student I knew that I couldn't afford three horses and so for the last several months I have been looking for a home for Eclipse. The market is atrocious and he isn't an easy horse to place but recently I found a potential candidate. The rub is that now I'm not so sure I want to part with him. I continued training him while I was looking for his new home and he has recently shown some excited progress with groundwork. At first I had a horse that thought canter meant trot like hell strung out and now I have a horse that actually offers to canter on the correct lead both ways!

So this left me with a dilemma. I can't afford three horses at the moment but I want all three. I know I need another horse like I need a hole in my head but Bruiser seems like such a perfect match for me. Thankfully I have found a solution and my client Anita has decided to lease Calatar. It will work beautifully for both of us as she can now get a taste of horse ownership and I can ensure he can retire with me when the time comes. Needless to say I am thrilled and I promise to take lots of photos and videos of Bruiser for his fan club.