DefinitelyDressage.com

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Thanks all, keep the suggestions coming! I'll have to take an inventory and see which books might best complement the ones I already have. I'm looking at some that aren't really dressage specific as well, like Posture and Performance, and Horse Brain, Human Brain. I really love using science to info...

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I have both Centered Riding books; practically wore out the copy I had as a teen. I think I still have The Athletic Development of the Dressage Horse. I do have Sylvia Loch's Rider's Balance (which I have not read much of yet) and Dressage in Lightness (one of my favorites).

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MIL sent me an Amazon gift card for Christmas this year. I've been telling myself that I have tons of info to mine in my current collection before I go off and buy more, but with a GC, why not add to the collection, amiright?

What would you buy? I'll consider DVDs too.

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Chisamba, no thanks on that! We rarely get more than 6-8" of snow here, so having to dig out is a rare event. Khall, glad Rip's scope is looking better than last time. Fingers crossed for continued improvement! Moutaineer, glad you are back on Laddie as well! MsM, I am so envious that you have ...

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In Tesla's backwards-upside down world, I started teaching her a bit of shoulder-in in the walk in hopes that it will improve her balance so she'll lunge better. :lol: Since she doesn't care for trotting in the small indoor, I figure we can tinker with ground work and some walk work to hopefully lay...

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Gotta give old Obie some air time too!

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I keep expanding on how I'm using them. Coincidentally, Thomas Ritter did a long lecture on lunging yesterday for the Straightness course I'm in, and at the end I asked him for some ideas on getting Tesla better at lunging. Although he hasn't used the pads himself, he threw that out as one way to im...

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Bodywork seems like a good starting point, and certainly won't hurt. I might also suggest trying out SureFoot pads, which you could also use with RP. I bought my first two pairs this summer, and then added two more pairs about a month ago, and have started incorporating them into the training. They ...

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Thanks, I do have Mark's book and DVD. I use a lot of what he shows in the DVD, along with Masterson's technique of touching spots along the neck following the cervical vertebrae and staying on the spots where I get a blink. I've played a couple times with that and putting her front feet on the Sure...

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I didn't count, but she did maybe six? It just lasted a minute or two, and then she seemed quite content and relaxed. It seems that some of the tension she had about allowing me to be in charge and help her out is starting to dissipate. She doesn't show insecurity in a way I'm used to with other hor...

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Yesterday she stood on the pads for a couple minutes while grooming/tacking. I didn't do any flexions, but made some progress on getting her to let me balance and bend her through a corner she has been having trouble making in the trot. I stopped after she finally trotted around that corner without ...

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Jingles for Laddie, Emi, Kora, and any other DDBB ponies with soundness problems. Geeze, it seems to have arrived in a cluster! Demi, I feel like we're leading almost parallel lives, training-wise. A has started offering some nice lengthenings, and the right lead is becoming much less of an issue. I...

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I love a good photo thread! Annabelle displaying two different moods :D: 2020_12_10_174201-1_Moment6.jpg https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50710586477_0b683b0674.jpg Tesla discovering that cows aren't as carnivorous as she first suspected: https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50710512321_ba601753d4...

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I like the design of that one!

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Awww, fuzzy spotty pony nose! Congratulations, looking forward to hearing about your adventures together!

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I just watched this webinar on C6/C7 vertebral malformation. It is depressing, but might give you some things to watch for and maybe rule out some horses without wasting PPE money: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Szk4oSp_Rd4&t=5163s

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I think I looked at every bridle on the interwebz summer between fitting something to Tesla's oatmeal box head and finding something for Annabelle's refined, but on the large side of cob head. Flexible Fit is another one. You can also order bridle parts from Equiture (BR and PS Sweden I think). The ...

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Nice saddle.

I like the PS Sweden Nirak more than the Micklem, but both act differently than a regular bridle due to the bit attachment.

Nunn Finer is nice quality and it looks like you can build your own: https://www.nunnfiner.com/Nunn-Finer-Cu ... /nfceb.htm

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I don't take jumping lessons currently, but I do try to incorporate some gymnastic jumping on a regular basis. Although I do it more for my horse's benefit, I think it's helpful for the rider as well. Sometimes in dressage I think we can get a little too in our heads and jumping requires a certain l...

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Posting mostly for my own recollection: Yesterday I trotted her in hand and got some good yawns with the flexions before getting on. Gave her a sugar cube, which created a monster who had little interest in standing on the SureFoot pads. She stopped several times during the ride and was difficult to...

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SF, how much colder does it need to get? it was 7F when I walked this morning. Granted, we do get up into the mid-30"s for an hour or 2 evry day, but with a 15mph breeze, it really doesn't feel that warm, lol. I tend to quit riding when it's 15F, but that's with an indoor arena. So far lows ov...

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I find that a big release like that can indicate there was a fair bit of tension before hand, so whatever you were doing might have been quite challenging. Nice that she can release like that. Norsey does it sometimes after some 'harder work' when we walk break. I think that is good insight. :) Tod...

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Thanks all. I will experiment today with getting her yawning and then doing some riding afterwards and see what happens. I was surprised to see it yesterday because she kept stalling out and it wasn't exactly a relaxing ride (for me), but she is not perturbed by things that would bother most horses.

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Yawning is a good thing. It releases endorphins and helps release the TMJ. Yes I’ve had this happen with a couple that I work with. Gaila used to every time I wih with her. Juliet did for awhile too. She had a problematic connection with the bit especially right side. Much better now. Still Yawn’s ...

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I heard about this documentary about a clinic with Mark Rashid and Jim Masterson and then forgot all about it until getting an email this morning. Looks like it will be released on iTunes December 29th. Time to make my husband watch another horse movie! :lol: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LJlXILj4...

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This has happened a few times with Tesla, that when I get off, she starts yawning. She would yawn readily when I started doing little neck bending exercises with her on the ground (I was trying to do Masterson work on her, but she would bash me with her head, so I had to do use a bridle and do a hyb...

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Lovely ride Flight! That looks like so much fun.

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We liked Kim's Convenience! We've been watching The IT Crowd. Kind of low budget, but pretty funny sitcom from about 10 years ago. Also Baroness von Sketch (all woman comedy sketch show). Wishing for something I could really get drawn into though, like Downton Abbey or Breaking Bad (to name two wild...

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I have to laugh about the concerns regarding distractions though please don't get me wrong I'm all for setting oneself up for a win and staying safe. It seems like every time I get on Brandon the neighbor (reining trainer) has his leaf blower running, or snapping his whip lunging horses, etc, my do...

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Nice consistency Sue. My horses would love it if I was anywhere near 130! Somehow my running slowed way down again, despite being pretty consistent 2-3x a week. My shoulder is finally feeling pretty good, so I'm cautiously re-introducing kettlebells. Good timing to have an alternative since it's bou...

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Nice update Chantal. Love that you're jumping and cross training! I was planning to give Annabelle a break for the same reason - no work travel forcing breaks since May this year. However, I decided I might as well wait until it's colder and the outdoor freezes up. I'm realizing that at that point I...

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Blob, this was my first trial with the pixel 3. Don't mind my riding, I don't know what I was doing. https://youtu.be/jKDB06kODiQ ETA: another barnmate has an iPhone 11 and says her Pivo Silver works flawlessly with it. Thanks, SF, super helpful to see. I have the 3a, so fairly similar. Looks like ...

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Oh yeah, owners! About 5 years ago I found on Craigslist a 4 or 5 year old 16.1 APHA gelding in a small Oregon town about 5 hours from here. There were some video snippets and he had a lovely, elastic walk. The owner emailed me back with this long diatribe about her horse life, losing the stallion t...

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Hmm, I had two windows open and my post disappeared! One of the best horses I ever rode was a Quarab mare when I was 13-14. She was a total doll and a really nice jumper; would love to have that horse now and see what I could do with her. I think the right horse will find you, maybe through word of ...

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They learn so fast when they are young, which is amazing but also kind of scary. Totally. Sometimes I just let her sit for a week while I try to figure out what to do next because I don't want her learning the wrong thing. I've had to cultivate a kind of detached attitude and laugh when she offers ...

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Blob, this was my first trial with the pixel 3. Don't mind my riding, I don't know what I was doing. https://youtu.be/jKDB06kODiQ

ETA: another barnmate has an iPhone 11 and says her Pivo Silver works flawlessly with it.

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We are coming along slowly. Tesla hit a rough patch of growing roots and refusing to go forward along with a few rides where she reared, so I had to adjust my tactics and we seem to be slowly getting back on course. She does not appreciate being asked to go in our small indoor arena, and with winter...

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I'll be interested to hear about your experience with the iPhone 8. My barn friend I'm sharing the Pivo with has an iPhone 7 and says it is not working for her, but she is the opposite of techy, and I haven't tried to help her with it, and am not an iThing user myself, outside of the iPad I have for...

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Interesting discussion! Getting better control of Annabelle's shoulders was a big focus tonight.

And I finally did a real canter on Tesla, so I'm a happy camper. Well, it is more of a giant lope, but she was a good girl.

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Thanks, I will check those out!

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Finally finished the Janis Joplin bio last week; it was longer than it needed to be. Now I'm reading The Poison Squad, about fighting for regulations to prevent food adulteration around turn of the century (formaldehyde milk and arsenic candy anyone?). The Poison Squad refers to a group of civil ser...

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It depends... When I had my own farm, I joined USEF whether I was showing or not as they offered decent, cheap umbrella insurance coverage with your membership, which was worthwhile. I need to check whether I still need to do this now life has changed! ... Horses, I've had both lifetime and annual ...

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SF have you ever spiraled in at the trot and then as you spiral out canter? I worked with Jane Savoie years ago and that was one of her exercises for a greener horse to help get the correct lead. I also like using SI straighten then canter. Or LY to sideline and canter. Yep, we've done all that too...

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I agree, Chisamba. She starts sucking back as soon as I start preparing her for canter, and my instructor is trying to get us to where I can really ride each stride through the transition and maintain a connection. SF I love your video and the detailed way you describe it. t/c/t is absolutely my ne...

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Straightforward, i think Annabelle started off quick but not off the leg and thus did not do well in the canter transition, i think that once she slowed down and was more relaxed off the leg, she picked up the canter better. Have you ever tried a full turn on the forehand off the outside leg into t...

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Nah. If you really thought he might be a super prospect for you, I might try to negotiate her paying the board in the case that you ended up sending him back, but you're already less than lukewarm about the horse, so it doesn't seem worth it.

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Demi, funny that you posted, because I just uploaded this video of our right lead struggles in our lesson today. Per Chisamba's question on my clinic video, this is what happens when we attempt to get the right lead from a smaller trot. It gets better with each transition, but at first Annabelle is ...

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I keep joking that we need the ability to conduct horse brain transplants. If I could have had that mare's brain in Tesla's body, we would be unstoppable!

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Yeah, its tough when the brain is there but not the confo. I tried a buckskin qh mare a few years back who had such an amazing brain. She was very sensitive and forward,and really eager to please. But overmuscled for the amount of bone she had, so I passed on her.

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in real news, none of my horses missed a beat for having the week off. well that might not be true Saiph was a bit stuck and not off the leg. naturally forward horses seem easier I really find that it doesn't hurt and often helps. I just rode Tesla after about 9 days off due to a couple little bump...

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